Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 729 Severing the Lifeline (First Update)

Salomon didn't care about Wilson Fisk, how many lives he had, or how much dirty money he'd made. Perhaps Wilson Fisk, nicknamed Kingpin, had a deep past and a certain charisma, but Salomon didn't care. In his eyes, he was just a mob boss; no mob thug, no matter how powerful, was violent enough to him—at least not as violent as him. If it weren't for the recent message from Matthew Murdoch, with whom he'd recently spoken, Salomon would have almost forgotten about the "Black Sky" and the Shadow Dimension. If Kunlun hadn't repeatedly requested assistance from Kamar-Taj, he wouldn't have cared about the insignificant Hand; the dragon skeletons those two organizations had fought so fiercely for were nothing more than living room decorations to him.

Even without the backing of the Immortal City, the disputes among mortals were not worth his time. As long as Jin didn't recklessly cross the red line of human trafficking on the East Coast, he wouldn't even bother with it.

Because Salomon had promised Tita that such a thing would never happen again on the East Coast. Not long ago, the Sorority wiped out the Clinton family's private army, and the Rockefeller family, abusing their power, instructed the US intelligence agencies to investigate—the connection between former US President Bill Clinton and the Rockefeller family couldn't be hidden from the Immortal City's intelligence network. In fact, this was common knowledge in Little Rock; Bill Clinton was actually the illegitimate son of Arkansas Governor Winthrop Rockefeller. Clinton's rise to power was closely linked to the Rockefeller family, secret societies at Columbia University, and the evil god organization that worshipped Chernos (see Hillary Clinton's email scandal for details). Regardless of how much the outside world praises Bill Clinton's inspirational legend, the truth remains that it's a story of international financial groups promoting their spokespeople to power.

If you're still interested in digging back, you'll find that Washington and many others associated with the Declaration of Independence were actually connected to secret societies. This is why Salomon mocked the Avengers' pursuit of Hydra; they were completely unaware that their nation was built on secret societies, and even the Celts, once ruled by the Venerable One, had connections to them. Ever since the last Grand Master of the Templars, Jacques de Morlay, was burned at the stake by Philip IV, money found its perfect partner: the military-industrial complex. Unless there's a global reshuffle, and Tony Stark beats himself up again, it's absolutely impossible to completely purge Hydra and the series of financial giants behind it.

These tycoons, champions of free-market economics, deeply resented the supreme authority of the monarchy, making them all future enemies of Salomon. Salomon's recruitment of the Malik family was no casual decision; he aimed to completely eliminate and assimilate this force. While others focused on the minor skirmishes on the surface, he had already laid out plans for a century into the future. It's difficult for ordinary people to comprehend how so many interconnected plans were formulated, let alone executed. Even Thanos was merely a tool in Salomon's schemes.

That said, the Immortal City's superior battlefield deployment capabilities are giving the Department of Homeland Security and the CIA a major headache. They have absolutely no idea where this high-tech force came from, leaving not even any informational evidence after the massacre. The only evidence is the bomb craters left at the scene, which led the CIA to link the Clinton private army massacre to the Langley Air Force Base attack. However, given the former's outright scandal and the Epstein affair still fresh in everyone's minds, the CIA wouldn't be foolish enough to bring it into the open. If they contacted the Avengers, they would know who the only person in the world to use such a large-diameter, self-propelled munition was. However, such investigations can only be conducted privately, and even their progress is under Salomon's control. The Malik father and daughter faithfully report anything he wants to know, helping him secretly plunder the assets and influence of secret societies through various means.

This included, but was not limited to, posting evidence of high-level corruption online, assassinating key figures, and altering wills to force conglomerates into succession struggles. Victoria Hand's agents and assassins executed their missions flawlessly, without anyone noticing any interference from external forces.

Even after the bloody massacre that wiped out the private army, the Clinton and Rockefeller families showed no restraint and continued to act as they pleased. Wilson Fisk, a newly emerging New York underworld figure, became the perfect candidate for the white glove—however, after visiting former Mafia boss Elijah, Wilson Fisk quickly realized there was something he couldn't do. Especially during the time Salomon and the Witch were still living in New York, the Sorority never hesitated to purge Manhattan gangs that might disturb Salomon. This clever man, even under pressure from the Clinton and Rockefeller families, didn't cross the line by providing young women to celebrities and politicians, which temporarily removed the Sorority's chainsaw from his throat.

This didn't change Salomon's opinion of him; after all, the number of mob bosses who died each year could fill a shipping container, and Kingpin was just one of those destined for such an end. Salomon simply wanted to use this opportunity to persuade his foster mother's close friend to reconsider—Vanessa, as an extremely talented artist (although Salomon disliked abstract art, he had to admit Vanessa's artistic talent), didn't need to find a partner who didn't even have a proper job and could be killed at any moment because of a gangland feud. Before he arrived at Athena's apartment, his foster mother had been discussing this with Vanessa, and he only brought it up because of Athena's request. However, Vanessa seemed determined, and neither Salomon nor Athena said anything more.

After all, it was her life, and they had no right to interfere with her choices. Only after Vanessa left the apartment did the goddess of wisdom speak. "Remember to hold a funeral for her; we were her only true friends in New York."

The painting Vanessa gave her now hangs on the apartment wall, its beautiful, colorful curves following the profound beauty of mathematics. Athena finished her glass of wine. She and Salomon both foresaw Vanessa's fate; they couldn't stop it. They had gathered in the apartment less to persuade Vanessa and more to see her one last time.

Salomon shrugged. "I can take out Wilson Fisk first; he'll be dead sooner or later anyway."

"Fate is not such a simple thing. Even if Wilson Fieske dies, Vanessa will also face death. Go see your sister; I need to be alone for a while."

“You will never be alone, my mother.” Salomon kissed the goddess of wisdom on the cheek. “I have other matters to attend to. I will stay here until evening to have dinner with you and little Lorna. Tomorrow, someone will come to install sentry gun turrets at the orphanage. New York is becoming increasingly unsafe lately, and the Sorority is gradually withdrawing from the city. I must ensure that the children’s safety is not threatened by outsiders while you are away.”

Please vote for me!

(End of this chapter)