Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 378 Arrogance is an Inherited Tradition (First Update)

"I thought you would vehemently refute her beliefs!" Master Wang said softly, making sure no one else could hear.

"I only let her drown in her own stupidity." Salomon's embarrassment flashed across his face, then he said nonchalantly, "That's not important. What's important is the extradimensional creature that's entangled with her."

"You've made great progress, Salomon." The young mage raised an eyebrow; he wasn't fooled by Salomon's reaction. To blunt his sharpness and resolve his turmoil—this had always been the Sorcerer Supreme's requirement of his disciples. Only by achieving mental peace could Salomon avoid being driven mad by the Stigmata. Although, in a sense, Salomon had been mad from the beginning, the Sorcerer Supreme had managed to keep that madness within limits.

Although Master Wang didn't know what Salomon had gone through during the last incident, he still keenly noticed Salomon's intellectual progress; Salomon was different in some ways. However, he didn't dwell on the topic, lest an enraged Salomon raise his fist at him.

"Hannah Hudgens has a strong sulfur smell, which almost certainly indicates the presence of beings from a lower plane." The conference room of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Skybus is used to set up holographic projection tables and exchange intelligence and issue orders. Normally, it is used by members of Coulson's team. But now, it is crowded with arcane apprentices from Kamar-Taj, and the intelligence being released is not by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents but by Salomon.

"I don't smell sulfur," Agent Coulson, one of those who had close contact with Miss Hannah Hudgens, questioned. Agents Melinda May and Grant Ward agreed, especially Fitz-Simons from the science team, who hadn't found any trace of sulfides when examining Hannah Hudgens.

“I didn’t smell it, I saw it.” Salomon pointed to his brow. “The sulfur smell is just a metaphor.”

"If aliens really exist, they certainly wouldn't be able to create an explosion using a particle accelerator. The heat from that explosion would be enough to instantly vaporize any organic matter..." Fitz's rebuttal was even more reasonable, but his questioning was met with disdain from the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj.

"Not all extradimensional beings are organic," said Master Wang. "Some extradimensional beings are entirely spiritual entities. My family's secret techniques include a method for cooking extradimensional spirits. If you also call a flat lower plane a planet..."

"What exactly is a spirit? A ghost?" Fitz asked.

"Alright." Salomon clapped his hands, drawing the apprentices' attention back. Mentoring apprentices was no easy task; practically every arcane mage who might succeed the Sorcerer Supreme had to go through this process (and without exception, die of old age before taking the mantle). Mordo had done it, Kasirius had done it, and now Salomon had to do it too. "The lower planes are a collection of negative energy, and negative energy means increased entropy. The question now is whether we're facing demons or monsters, but we can review the creature compendium we learned earlier to make that judgment. I hope you haven't forgotten the weaknesses and resistances of those monsters."

Because ordinary people were present, Salomon added some scientific explanations to make it easier for them to understand. Compared to Mordo and Kasirius, Salomon showed more patience when teaching his apprentices. "In contrast, positive energy represents entropy reduction, and our magic is the best weapon against creatures from lower planes. I require you to work in pairs, one preparing a defensive spell and the other an offensive one, just like we practice. If one forgets the incantation, you must help and protect them until the others arrive."

"You mean, you want Hannah Hudgens as bait?" Agent Coulson interrupted Salomon's orders. "How do you know that thing won't hurt her?"

“We don’t know if it’s the devil or the demon, Coulson,” Salomon said. “Their motives may be the same, but their methods are completely different. I think what happened to Hannah Hudgens is more like the devil’s doing; the demon doesn’t have the patience to slowly drive her mad. But I have to say, that guy almost succeeded. Hannah Hudgens abandoned her faith, and if this had ended there, she would have been destined to be tempted into depravity and go to hell. If that guy finds us, it will know that it has failed completely.”

Salomon turned to the young sorcerer and instructed him to take two female apprentices to the interrogation room to protect Hannah Hudgens closely. If she needed to use the restroom, the apprentices had to follow her. He ignored Fitz's nonsense about the electromagnetic barrier's blocking capabilities; he didn't believe it would work.

Agent Coulson had no objection to Salomon's assertiveness. He already knew that "professional matters should be left to professionals," and since Salomon claimed the matter involved extradimensional beings, it was feasible for Salomon to arrange protective measures. As an agent, his job was to remind Salomon if he overlooked any precautions. After all, protecting important targets was a core part of an agent's professional training, and he wouldn't compromise on that—besides, he wanted to observe the abilities of other arcane mages and report back to Nick Fury.

He didn't know if every arcane mage was like Salomon; if so, then he was in big trouble.

"Very good." Salomon glanced at Agent Coulson's perpetually amiable face. "Arrange it your way. Also, I need someone to show me around this plane. I can't rule out the possibility that Hannah Hudgens left the plane with the scent of the lower plane, but that guy might have come with her too."

"You mean, that thing was on the plane?" Skye shuddered, her interruption drawing Melinda's attention again. She pursed her lips, glancing at Fitz and Simmons, wanting their scientific perspective on the matter.

She didn't need anything too technical; Skye admitted she didn't understand it. She just wanted to hear something less scary.

The idea of ​​devils and demons swaying around on an airplane was frightening enough. She had expected the sorcerers to object, but none of them questioned Salomon's judgment—thanks to the magic Salomon had placed in the Kamar-Taj Library over the years and his consistently demonstrated magical prowess, not a single arcane apprentice would question his assessment—Skye felt that Salomon's attire reflected his status.

Of all the sorcerers, Salomon was the most conspicuously dressed. He wore a deep red robe, glittering gemstone rings on his fingers, a huge silver key hanging from his chest, and a black leather belt with a copper buckle on his right arm. Several small glass bottles containing powder of unknown composition were attached to the belt loops.

Skye saw him take out a small bottle containing silver powder and sprinkle a little on each of the wizards.

"Alright, Skye," Agent Coulson called out to the person least willing to do this, "you take Salomon for a walk around the plane."

"Very well, so you won't suspect me of doing anything." Salomon's words had a hidden meaning, though no one had yet grasped it. After assigning all the arcane apprentices to various corners of the plane, Salomon leisurely followed Skye around. In the quiet, dimly lit corridor, only their footsteps could be heard. Skye kept turning her head to look around, afraid a terrifying figure might jump out from a corner. She absolutely didn't want to see Salomon's face, because that half-lit, half-shadowed face seemed to carry a chilling, mocking smile.

This made her a little angry again; she thought Salomon wanted to see her make a fool of herself.

"This isn't where I came from, Skye," Salomon said to the somewhat nervous hacker. "Take me to see the server room, the control layer. The first time I came here, I spent most of my time in the cargo hold."

"Are you referring to the Dark Elf invasion?"

“No, it was earlier than that, before Agent Coulson took over the plane,” Salomon said, meeting Skye’s curious gaze. “During that mission, Nick Fury and I collaborated briefly to thwart the Lord of Hell’s plot.”

"That sounds impressive." The female hacker's eyes darted around. She seemed to realize something, then suddenly puffed out her chest, appearing no longer afraid. "So, this is just a small mission?"

"Of course, this is something the apprentices could handle, you just got there first." Salomon winked mischievously. "But bullets won't do."

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(End of this chapter)