Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 975 A Different Perspective (First Update)

He said his wife had come.

"Lucy Ball?" Wanda seemed startled by the name; she hadn't expected to find a clue to the spirit so easily. Robbie Reyes, sitting in the driver's seat, glanced at the passenger seat; clearly, the name Elias Morrow had mentioned had caught his attention. Wanda gestured for Robbie to calm down; she didn't want a burning skeleton running out in front of so many police officers. "You think Lucy Ball is going to Southridge Prison? I think you're trying to get rid of me, Constantine. Is there something you can't let me know?" Wanda said irritably. "I'm the one in charge of this mission."

"That's right, but you were too slow. If you had been faster, we could have retrieved those boxes containing the sealed spirits instead of letting S.H.I.E.L.D. take them." Constantine's calm rebuke instantly extinguished Wanda's anger. She knew she had performed poorly, but she was also somewhat dissatisfied with Constantine's brutal methods.

"As for Joseph Bauer," the Royal Guard explained before Wanda could speak. His tone sounded somewhat reluctant, and Wanda instantly understood. There was only one person in the world who could elicit a response from the Royal Guard that he wouldn't normally respond to. "His soul has been corrupted. Your magical training is carefully selected to ensure you don't directly confront the depths of the Sea of ​​Souls. But Joseph Bauer is different; he devours knowledge without restraint, his soul riddled with holes like the brain of a prion patient. He's beyond saving; death is an act of mercy."

"Is the teacher on the chain of command?" Wanda asked expectantly. Even though she knew Constantine could represent the monarch of the Immortal City on certain occasions, she preferred to hear these words from her teacher rather than the Praetorian Guard. Besides, she felt it had been a long time since she had heard that gentle yet stern voice, that voice that had accompanied the sweet tea, fried bacon, and warm sunshine in the cold castle.

"Five minutes and twenty-six seconds ago, Our Lord withdrew from the Chain of Command." Constantine's cold response shattered her illusions, pulling Wanda Maximov back to reality. Wanda had noticed she was experiencing frequent lapses in concentration lately, but she attributed it to neglecting her meditation. Salomon had been very strict with her; meditation, a crucial practice for stabilizing the mind, was required daily. However, since Robbie Reyes' hospitalization, Wanda had been busy caring for Gabe, leaving her no time for her mandatory practice. "He's currently vacationing at his estate in Oxfordshire. I wouldn't have contacted Our Lord if I hadn't discovered someone whose soul had been corrupted by the Dark Book."

After hanging up the phone, Wanda realized that Robbie Reyes was staring at her face.

"What's wrong?" She raised an eyebrow casually and put her phone back in her pocket. The police officer standing at the hospital entrance waved to Robbie, signaling him not to park there and block the road. This was the second report Los Angeles Police Department had received from Los Angeles General Hospital this week. The first was a fire in the intensive care unit and a missing patient; this was a clear-cut murder. Neither case had a suspect, which had greatly frustrated the local police, especially the backup officers, who wanted to stop and question every car that passed by.

"Your expression is quite something. I can tell you really admire your teacher." Robbie Reyes started the car and turned it around in front of the hospital. He said with a sardonic expression, "I've heard you mention him many times, but I've never really known what kind of person he was. I know Daisy doesn't think much of him; she thinks your teacher is very cold and unapproachable, but I'd like to hear your opinion."

"It's a long story, and it also involves my brother. If you've watched TV, you should know what the Avengers are saying: my brother and I were experimental subjects in Hydra's human experiments..."

"You have a younger brother too?" Robbie Reyes asked, somewhat surprised. "So your magic is due to human experimentation?"

“Yes, he’s my brother. We’re twins, so he’s always my brother. As for magic, it’s definitely not human experimentation. My teacher said I have a natural talent. He’s my magic teacher, and also my life teacher. He even bought me a penthouse in New York, the kind of luxurious residence you often see in TV dramas.” Wanda shook her head in the car. “We still have some time before we return to Southridge Prison, so I can briefly tell you about my teacher. But I promise we’ll never finish this story, because there’s no one in this world wiser or warmer than him…”

"Who called?" Bayonetta pushed her sunglasses up to her forehead and squinted at Salomon lying beside her.

"Constantine, he and Wanda had a bit of a disagreement." Salomon lay back down on the recliner. "Wanda didn't handle this very well, so I had Constantine relay some words to her. It's nothing serious."

One of the advantages of owning a private estate is that you can enjoy sunbathing without restraint.

Although early summer was still a while away, setting up artificial sunlight wasn't difficult. Bayonetta and Jeanne had a sudden inspiration to experiment with bikini tan lines, and Salomon spent the entire morning in the garage building several devices using common materials and equipment. Meanwhile, he also bought a whole case of sunscreen—a wise decision, as the estate's sunscreen supply quickly ran out. Bayonetta snapped her fingers, then put her sunglasses back on and lay back down.

"Turn up the temperature, honey, that way you won't get tan lines."

Salomon waved away the Cheshire Cat with a fruit knife in its mouth, and Pegasus, who was leading his flock of lambs, nibbling away at the grass in an attempt to clean the lawn, before lying back down beside Bayonetta and Joan of Arc. "How's things going in Latveria?" Bayonetta suddenly asked after a short while. "You've been working on this for months."

This startled Salomon, as witches usually didn't concern themselves with the Immortal City's goals or operating methods. Although Salomon didn't hide most things, Bayonetta rarely showed interest in his business.

"Aside from a shortage of manpower, there aren't many other problems."

This is actually a big question, but Salomon didn't say much about it.

The academy system in the Immortal City has only been operating for a short time. The promising officers and clerks who will be recruited in the future have just finished learning Latin, the unifying language of the Immortal City. Their biggest worries are simply how to complete tomorrow's assignments and physical training. The academy is constantly expanding, and the young people abducted from war-torn countries such as Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, and Iraq will require a long period of training. The future of the Immortal City depends on these people.

Salomon wasn't sure if his guiding principles would help the Latvian guerrillas undergo a transformation, or if the Immortal City's preachers, with Victor von Doom's assistance, could successfully reorganize the scattered guerrillas into an organized and disciplined army. He could only trust that his chosen allies could consolidate their forces before the European and American financial magnates made their move; otherwise, the Immortal City's army would face numerous difficulties fighting in the unfamiliar territory of Latvian.

Salomon was unwilling to reveal his hand to the world so quickly. The Immortal City's fatal weakness was its lack of basic industry; the factories it had built in Africa were simply unable to meet the current military production needs. Therefore, he had to take over Wakanda as soon as possible to free the Immortal City from its dependence on foreign countries for basic industry.

He hoped Natasha Romanov would pursue him even more closely.

Please vote for me!

(End of this chapter)