Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 407 The Monarch's Backup Plan (Second Update)

When Salomon received Stark's call and acquired the first batch of force-feedback powered armor, he was already in Oxford University study mode, which meant staying up all night writing papers. However, he also attended afternoon tea parties and various seminars, and thanks to the knowledge he gained from Athena and the Kamar-Taj Library, he was even able to communicate across disciplines.

Laura Crawford had visited him once in Oxford; she had come to say goodbye to Salomon. Her father's friend, Captain Conrad Ross of the Endurance, was about to set sail, and Laura would accompany him to an island near Japan in search of lost treasures.

She even joked that when she got back, she would let Salomon check if there were any magical items among those treasures.

Salomon readily agreed and even gifted Laura a dagger. "You'll need it," he said sincerely, his voice soft and sweet, almost inviting a kiss. "Archaeological excavation is an extremely difficult task; may courage be with you, Laura."

Since parting ways with T'Challa in the Immortal City that day, he hadn't gone back to check on the Wakandans' work. He wasn't worried at all about the consequences of angering the Wakandans now, because the Wakandan royal family's Heart-Shaped Herb was monopolized by Bastet. Without Bastet's power, consuming the Heart-Shaped Herb would only result in death.

The Wakanda royal family is essentially Bastet's proxy; the survival of the royal family rests in Bastet's hands.

Given Bastet's attitude, Salomon was certain that he and the Ennead were not of one mind; otherwise, he wouldn't have directed the King of Wakanda to seek him out. This wasn't surprising; the relationship between Athena and the Olympian gods was similar. Athena utterly despised her father, the king of the gods, and Merlin disobeyed the orders of the Danube, let alone Bastet, a deity with a relatively low status in the pantheon.

The observers from these various pantheons support Salomon because, for various reasons, they also do not want Earth to return to the age of the gods. The Sorcerer Supreme's desire to retire is not a secret among certain groups, and taking over Salomon, which the Sorcerer Supreme is responsible for, is the only way for them to achieve this goal.

However, Athena was the first to find Salomon and bestowed upon him the shield and Pegasus, making him, in a sense, the champion of the goddess of wisdom.

When Salomon arrived at Stark Industries headquarters with his unfinished thesis, Tony Stark, who had been waiting there, jumped up eagerly. He had called Salomon several times before, trying to arrange a meeting, but the arcane mage had declined each time, citing her academic commitments. Now that the force-feedback female armor was complete, Stark knew Salomon would definitely come today, and his questions would be answered.

"You need to tell me where you found this thing?" Stark held a piece of vibranium ore between his fingers—the one Salomon had left behind. "My father bought almost all the vibranium in the world. Do you have some other way to get vibranium?"

Salomon was very self-aware; he knew his ideals were not something most people could understand, especially idealists like Stark and Steve Rogers who had received a Western education. Stark currently only knew the tip of the iceberg of his plan, and if he truly knew Salomon's entire scheme, he would certainly oppose it.

Needless to say, Steve Rogers would absolutely not agree.

Constrained by Stark's technological control, Salomon dared not reveal his true intentions to Stark. Fortunately, Wakanda's timely arrival gave Salomon more options. However, the technology was still in the hands of others, and Salomon now needed artificial intelligence even more. The server matrix he installed on the machine was for this purpose, including using artificial intelligence to mine minerals and forge weapons and armor on Mars, which was one of Salomon's backup plans.

If necessary, the AI ​​that mutually benefits him will take over the forging facility, completely excluding the Wakanda from future plans. Salomon's true intention is to learn from Wakanda and Stark's technology and adapt it for his own use, ensuring he has sufficient technological reserves should his allies turn against him. He doesn't quite believe that Stark and Wakanda's support for him will last, so he is prepared to abandon his allies, even to the point of ruthlessness.

Of course, on the surface he remained amiable and approachable, trying to gain support by adopting a negotiable attitude.

This is why Odin praised Salomon for becoming a qualified king. Salomon and Odin were so similar in some ways that Odin almost wanted to marry his daughter to Salomon so that his incredibly strong-willed daughter could keep Salomon in check.

Salomon didn't reveal where he got the vibranium, which made Stark a little anxious.

"Hey! You've got your hands on arms dealers? Do you know Ulysses Klaue?" Stark's tone became urgent. "You shouldn't know that guy. His family has been in the vibranium business for generations. I have some connections with that guy, but I have to admit he's a heartless scumbag. If you want vibranium, I can help you buy it, just stay away from that guy."

"It's not what you think. I don't know that person," Salomon shook his head. Stark's reason for not wanting him to come into contact with Ulysses Klaue was simple: although the legal age of adulthood in the United States is eighteen, twenty-one is considered the true age of adulthood. Salomon was still some time away from turning twenty-one, and Stark naturally didn't want him to be exposed to the worst aspects of the world.

"Besides, we've known each other for so long, you can't treat me like a child, Stark." Although this concern was indeed heartwarming, Salomon still issued a somewhat humorous warning to Stark, "I am the heir to Kamar-Taj, and even if I were still wearing diapers right now, you have to treat me as an adult with the ability to act independently."

"Okay, sorry." Stark realized his mistake. The person standing before him possessed strength and determination beyond the reach of ordinary people; Salomon was no young man who needed protection. He readily apologized. "But you still haven't told me where your vibranium came from?"

"All I can tell you is that I obtained it from a legitimate exporter. It's authorized and completely legal." Salomon blinked. "I can offer you some vibranium in exchange for another technology of yours, the neural signal transduction technology you installed on the MK43. I had two ideas before: one was to use your neural signal transduction technology to direct the powered armor, and the other was to use implanted artificial organs to emit signals for directing. Before determining the superiority of either method, I need to make a side-by-side comparison."

"While I'm not a biologist, I can tell you that using artificial organs is impractical. Mechanical damage can be replaced, but artificial organs can't; the cost is too high." Stark seemed to revert to his usual confident and nonchalant attitude when discussing his technology. "You want to modify your androids? Wouldn't that make my force feedback armor obsolete? I even painted it for you!"

"You can treat it as a technological reserve; the force feedback armor of the androids will still be their main armor."

"Okay, but I still think your energy backpack is stupid; it takes up way too much space. But since you've already paid, you can call the shots."

Stark had no intention of delving into the matter.

He had seen Salomon's androids, whose level of intelligence Stark greatly admired. But he knew they weren't technological products, but intelligent beings created by mysterious alchemy. He could imagine the combat power those androids could unleash after donning force-feedback powered armor.

"What do you plan to have those androids do?" Stark asked.

"The first step, of course, is to find a fight to fight," Salomon said, not wanting to answer the question; he had other things to do.

He's busy digging up the graves of the Knights of the Round Table!

Please vote for me!!!

(End of this chapter)