Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 1243 The Vatum Conference (Second Update)

"Some of you have seen me, some have only heard my name. If you've ever had an eyeball mojito at the Doorless Bar that's practically a failed beer, then you've had both."

A cloaked figure stood on a high platform made of Teotihuacan concrete, looking down at the crowd below. High deacons of the New York and London temples of Kamar-Taj stood behind him, but the people closest to him were a red-haired witch holding a snake-bone staff and a rather disheveled woman with dark hair, rather than the guards holding garrison spears.

Laura Crawford's curiosity was satisfied for the first time. She had never known there were so many magicians on Earth, and that some of the folk tales about magicians were actually true. But not everyone shared her optimism. She still didn't understand why her patron had brought her to this place. The faces of the representatives of the magical schools, hidden under their black hoods, didn't smile despite the emperor's humor. Something was off about this conversation from the very beginning.

These spellcasters were summoned because of the names of Kamar-Taj and the Sorcerer Supreme, not because of the person on the platform's influence. If the rumors about the Sorcerer Supreme's high regard for this person were true, and if his demonstrated abilities were genuine, then some people would be willing to answer the call to this South American temple, which might be flooded by the outside world, to hear the ideas of the Kamar-Taj school.

All the spellcasters here were cloaked in black, and only braziers provided light within the Wattum Temple. A fierce wind, carrying rain, swept through the portico, sending the increasingly cold air into the hall where the statues stood. The stench of rain lingered. The mystical schools of magic were unwilling to reveal their true forms here, and no one wanted to show what lay beneath their cloaks to others.

"If your school of thought possessed even a modicum of precognitive ability, then you should know the calamity facing the earth today." The emperor placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, his eyes scanning the growing shadows below. "We may die, in floods and fires, leaving no trace. Just minutes ago, the Tungurahua volcano, 140 kilometers south of Quito, the capital of Ecuador, erupted suddenly due to an earthquake. This was not a small eruption, but a complete one; the mountain fractured, lava flowed, and molten lava was ejected tens of thousands of meters into the air due to pressure. Tens of thousands of residents died in the heat, toxic fumes, and scalding black rain before they could evacuate. Such a scene will surely happen again, and we all know why."

"We can leave. We know many habitable planets," a hoarse, seemingly random voice said. "Mother Earth scattered humanity across the universe. Those human colonies are suitable for us to live on, and we can continue our research there."

"Escape?" The Emperor raised an eyebrow, his tone rising, and he let out a laugh. Wanda Maximoff clearly heard the anger in the Emperor's voice; the golden cloak embroidered with a crown of thorns couldn't completely suppress the spiritual energy pouring forth from him. "Of course you can do that, but when the entire universe falls into the hands of extradimensional beings, to which world can you escape? Can your teleportation magic even cross the Dark Realm beyond the Milky Way?"

The air fell silent once more, and the temperature in the temple hall dropped even further.

"The reason I stand here is to completely avert future disasters, provided we can survive this one." The emperor took a step forward, instilling a sense of oppression in the spellcasters below. "Earth needs to survive this crisis, humanity needs to survive this crisis. Without Earth, humanity is like stray dogs, outsiders wherever we go. Even the humans in alien colonies will despise us, these wild dogs. Without Earth, we have lost everything."

"How does Kamar-Taj intend to deal with Quetzalcoatl?" a voice never heard before asked. "Can the Sorcerer Supreme kill Quetzalcoatl?"

"Yes, but the Sorcerer Supreme won't do that, because the Sorcerer Supreme, and indeed all of Kamar-Taj, need to conserve their power to deal with a horrific catastrophe that could threaten the entire galaxy." The Emperor's tone suddenly became calm. He waved his hand, and three dazzling gemstone rings on his wrist gleamed in the firelight, instantly silencing those below who wanted to continue speaking. "The sorcerers of Kamar-Taj saw hope for defeating Quetzalcoatl in the Eye of Agamotto and the Cosmic Cauldron. The future of humanity is not yet over," he said. "Ask yourselves, how many of you have ever dealt with a threat of this magnitude? How many times have you been either creating trouble or on your way to creating trouble? How many times has Kamar-Taj helped you deal with out-of-control magical creatures, extradimensional beings, spells, and plagues? Why do you rely on Kamar-Taj while secretly causing trouble? Why has nothing like this ever happened to Kamar-Taj, while you keep making mistakes?"

"This is the price we have to pay for progress. Magic is not science; we are always exploring. We asked Kamar-Taj for help because we believe Kamar-Taj has the ability to solve problems. After all, we have already handed over the school's secret texts and some magical artifacts; Kamar-Taj is the government of the magical world."

The emperor nodded; these people had already fallen into his linguistic trap.

"Very well. Since everyone believes that Kamar-Taj is the government of the wizarding world, then the government has the right to impose punitive measures when dealing with those who cause great damage, right? Fines, whipping, imprisonment, or even the death penalty."

"Karmar-Taj has already done that. How many spellcasters are imprisoned in the dark dungeons of the Himalayas?"

"Do I need to read out the names of those heinous criminals one by one? Do I need to read out the names of the victims of those tragedies?" The emperor's eyes were devoid of any emotion. "And how many ordinary people have lost their lives because of accidents while you stand here?"

"That was an accident!" The voice was exactly the same as before, but much quieter. Many people realized that this conversation was not as simple as discussing how to destroy Quetzalcoatl.

"Accidents are no excuse! How many accidents are caused by curiosity that is explicitly forbidden yet knowingly violated? How many accidents are caused by your desire to use your skills to satisfy your enjoyment of the material universe? Every life has value, and you have no right to cause the death of others because of accidents caused by your own selfish desires!" The emperor's tone remained calm, but his rising anger made those spellcasters who used their second vision unable to help but close their eyes and shed tears. Some even felt dizzy and their vision went black, as if staring at the sun for a long time had burned a hole in their retina.

"The Sorcerer Supreme has entrusted me with this power, and now I will exercise it." The Emperor drew his longsword, an irresistible heat emanating from its blade, dispelling all the chill in the hall. "I hereby declare to all schools of thought that all future experiments involving extradimensional energy, explorations of extradimensional realms, and summoning will be subject to the strictest restrictions and scrutiny. I will establish an institution to review all experiments and formulate regulations. No one will be allowed to conduct high-risk experiments that could threaten the human race, or summon dangerous extradimensional beings like Quetzalcoatl, without permission."

Wanda Maximov skillfully concealed Laura Crawford behind her, and the Royal Guard signaled for her to retreat quickly. The Kamar-Taj sorcerer's attitude unsettled all the spellcasters present, but they still clung to a last vestige of hope, imagining that such tyranny could never have occurred under the Sorcerer Supreme's lenient rule. Discontent rose and fell; many began whispering and even shouting protests, and some of the more radical spellcasters had already reached into their cloaks.

"What if we refuse?" one of them asked. "Without the spirit of exploration, is there any point in the existence of us mystics? All we want is the truth of the universe, nothing more."

"You have the right to object, after all, Kamar-Taj is not a dictatorship."

Upon hearing this, almost everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Some of the older scholars believed that Kamar-Taj was merely using the Quetzalcoatl incident to intimidate all schools of thought; as long as they continued to acknowledge Kamar-Taj's authority and make assurances, the matter would be over, since such meetings were not uncommon in history. However, the holy sword in the emperor's hand shone even brighter, and its temperature rose higher and higher. The air in the hall quickly became dry and stuffy. Some people sensed something was wrong and began chanting incantations to try to leave, but the surrounding extradimensional energy fled in fear from the runes that had appeared out of nowhere.

Hammurabi, Ammon, Hannibal, and Supiluliumus, members of the Praetorian Guard, stood in pairs at the hall's exit and behind the Emperor, their spears held horizontally, explosives loaded, their blades crackling with electricity. An army, clad in armor dripping wet, entered. Their leader wielded a greatsword, and their helmets concealed their expressions, yet their fierce aura emanated from their every movement.

The 7th Knight Squad of the First Company arrived at the Temple of Vatum and pointed their weapons at the wizard.

The emperor descended from the platform. He threw off his cloak, revealing his armor, his eyes gleaming with supernatural power, and his blazing sword was pointed directly at all the non-Karmar-Taj sorcerers present.

"But it is now."

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(End of this chapter)