My family runs an adventurer's guild.

"...Received! After settling the target in, fly directly to the temporary UN headquarters as soon as possible. Don't do anything unnecessary!"

In the director's office of the S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters in Washington, D.C., Nick Fury, the one-eyed, charcoal-black man, was monitoring Black Widow Natasha's pick-up operation in New York on his computer while remotely controlling the operation and issuing orders via telephone.

In fact, if he were to act according to his usual temperament, he would never have been so polite; instead, he would most likely have tried to detain Firi and Lulutia.

The reason is simple: S.H.I.E.L.D. suspects you pose a threat to Earth's security!

What? You claim to be an envoy from another world? And you're demanding diplomatic treatment? Who has recognized your country?

Your country is not a member of the United Nations and has not established diplomatic relations with the United States! Therefore, we do not recognize its existence!

—There's no way around it; being prone to suspecting everyone is Nick Fury's occupational hazard, and it's already in its late stages, so there's basically no way to salvage it.

However, Nick Fury, whose power and position are now precarious, can no longer "control everything from the heavens to the earth and the air."

Because the current relationship between S.H.I.E.L.D. and the US government and the World Security Council is... extremely bad.

The reason things turned out this way is ultimately due to the recent Battle of New York, which caused a major upheaval in the global socio-economic landscape.

It's important to understand that while the Avengers fought a glorious and heroic battle in New York, defeating the Chitauri and trampling Loki, the root cause of this alien invasion was ultimately S.H.I.E.L.D.'s own self-destructive actions.

In short, Nick Fury defied all opposition and launched the Tesseract research project. To expedite the process, the research facility was even borrowed from the US government. Then Loki, the Fiend, arrived and wreaked havoc, blowing up this massive project that cost billions of dollars!

Next, Loki used mind control to incite a large number of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and scientists to betray the organization. Using S.H.I.E.L.D.'s equipment and the Tesseract, they seized Stark Tower and opened a portal over New York City... which led to the Chitauri invasion!

From the perspective of the White House and the Pentagon, the subsequent struggles of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers are nothing more than cleaning up the mess left by previous sins.

Therefore, in the eyes of the US government, S.H.I.E.L.D., an organization that claims to protect the safety of the Earth, requires the US to pay huge sums of money with unclear accounts every year, but in the end, it actively invites an alien invasion to New York, causing the US economy and hegemony to suffer a devastating blow...

Is S.H.I.E.L.D. colluding with alien forces to become traitors? Or has it been infiltrated by anti-American forces on Earth?

As S.H.I.E.L.D.'s direct superior, the World Security Council, in order to absolve itself of responsibility for launching a nuclear missile at Manhattan at the end of the Battle of New York, simply pinned the blame on S.H.I.E.L.D., swearing all day long that it was all because S.H.I.E.L.D. was unreliable and caused this disaster.

Nick Fury had no way to explain this, because he couldn't easily get rid of the blame. After all, it was S.H.I.E.L.D. that took the initiative to research the Tesseract, and they were in charge of the entire research process. If S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't take responsibility when things went wrong, who else would take the blame?

Right now, impeachment proceedings and protests against S.H.I.E.L.D. are piling up, and there are more than just a few people calling for Nick Fury to step down.

In short, faced with yet another extraterrestrial visitor appearing on the streets of New York, a bewildered Nick Fury dared not make any rash moves.

—The Battle of New York had just ended a month ago, and the game of shifting blame and smearing each other was still in full swing, leaving the public with a bellyful of resentment to vent. If S.H.I.E.L.D. were to stir up another hornet's nest at this time, they would truly face multiple punishments and be condemned to the deepest hell.

Since the other party has shown an attitude of peaceful contact and has taken the initiative to go to the United Nations headquarters, let's take this opportunity to pass this hot potato over there.

Let these unknown visitors from outer space wrestle with those old foxes, big foxes, middle foxes, and little foxes at the United Nations!

In fact, the White House and the Pentagon share the same conservative stance—after the devastating Battle of New York, even the most arrogant and conceited hawks have been awakened and have realized that their self-proclaimed imperial army can only act with impunity within the cradle of Earth; in the vast universe, its combat power is simply insufficient…

Moreover, regardless of the outcome of the battle, as long as the battlefield is in New York, the United States is destined to lose everything.

Furthermore, the attitudes of other countries must also be considered: if the reckless actions of the Americans anger aliens and lead to an interstellar conflict, will other countries be coerced by the United States to unite against a common enemy, or will they try to throw the United States out to apologize?

Don't forget that as a global superpower, the United States has enemies all over the world—the feeling of being pushed around when the wall is falling is not pleasant.

Therefore, Phili and Lulutia did not receive a "warm welcome" from American missiles and machine guns upon their arrival. On the contrary, the New York police and National Guard present maintained a cautious and polite attitude, for fear of offending these extraterrestrial visitors who were difficult to describe.

When S.H.I.E.L.D. took the initiative to send people to take over and bring the cat and the silver dragon to the United Nations, all the military and police personnel present breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, they can easily turn around, continue to raise their rubber batons, and beat the protesters to their heart's content!

"...The action team will continue to be responsible for escorting them along the way, and we must not allow any problems to occur to Target One and Target Two on their way to the United Nations Headquarters."

Nick Fury thought for a moment, then picked up the phone again and added, "...Also, all the ordinary people who had contact with Target One and Target Two should be apprehended as soon as possible to facilitate the investigation of this incident! We must act quickly, before the FBI and CIA do!"

※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※

Meanwhile, behind Phili and Lulutia, accompanied by a spatial teleportation that resembled the shattering of a mirror, a bald woman in a yellow robe and Master Wang, dressed in black kung fu attire, appeared side by side on a rooftop by the street, looking down at the cats and silver dragons below.

And they watched helplessly as Phil and Lulutia were taken onto the Quinjet by Black Widow, and then the two turbo engines spewed out blue flames, causing the Quinjet to wobble and rise into the air, before suddenly accelerating and speeding toward Westchester County in the north.

"...Are we just going to let them come into contact with ordinary people like this? Sorcerer Supreme! If we go after them now, it should still be in time!"

Wang, who was recently on duty guarding the New York Sanctum, asked the Ancient One somewhat nervously, "...Although I don't understand how they got through our magical barrier to Earth, this dragon and that cat-man definitely came from another world..."

"...No need! Since they have already made contact with the government, there is little point in us intervening to stop them. On the contrary, it would be easier to expose the secrets of Kamar-Taj... It seems that they do not have any obvious malicious intent, at least on the surface."

The Ancient One said calmly, "...I will continue to monitor their actions. Let's wait and see for now!"

"...But isn't our consistent philosophy to keep all threats from other dimensions outside of Earth?"

Fatty Wang retorted, "...the reason why humans can enjoy peace and security is because we contain threats in places they cannot see."

Whether these sudden extraterrestrial visitors are benevolent or malevolent, they will have a significant impact on the world… and human society is probably not yet developed to the point where it can calmly face all the harsh realities! Panic alone is enough to cause enormous disasters.

"...The problem is that any protection has a time limit. Mortals will one day have to face the threats from the magical dimension."

Our organization cannot prevent all magical threats from reaching Earth, nor can it forever act as a babysitter for human civilization. Your Majesty, Earth is becoming increasingly dangerous, and human governments must slowly learn how to protect themselves. Since we couldn't stop the Chitauri invasion of New York last month, we have no reason to prevent this third kind of contact now.

The Ancient One explained, "...hopefully this will bring some positive changes to the world..."

Ironically, contrary to the traditional view that "older people are conservative and younger people are radical," the most open-minded and tolerant person in the Kamar-Taj Presbyterian Order is actually the oldest and most ancient person, the Ancient One.

But then again, those arrogant, self-important people who look down on others are usually just half-baked idiots. On the other hand, someone like Gu Yi, with her rich life experience and witnessing the rise and fall of history, tends to be more magnanimous and tolerant.

Otherwise, the Ancient One wouldn't have maintained a seemingly upright public image while secretly drawing evil power from the Dark Dimension to prolong her life.

So, while her rigid and dogmatic disciples clung to outdated rules, attempting to keep all magic beyond common sense out of the sight of mortals, the Ancient One herself had already keenly sensed the changing times—the world situation was changing faster and faster, extraterrestrial visitors were visiting Earth more and more frequently, and superheroes and supervillains seemed to be emerging in droves…

All of the above seems to indicate that the global peace that has prevailed since World War II is about to come to an end.

A turbulent new era, full of upheavals, bustling activity, and fraught with crises, seems to be slowly emerging on the horizon.

In this situation, if Kamar-Taj continues its isolationist policy and prevents official organizations from accessing magical information, then if extraterrestrial visitors launch a large-scale invasion and Kamar-Taj is unable to withstand it, human society could be instantly overwhelmed without anyone knowing!

Faced with the sudden arrival of the cosmic era, terrified ordinary people clung to lifelines for peace of mind. And the Ancient One, exhausted and weakened by the corrupting influence of evil energy, also longed to provide Earth with more lifelines and find more reliable allies.

She lived for so long, witnessing the rise and fall of many nations, and also witnessing humanity's ever-increasing capacity for self-destruction.

My body can't hold on much longer, but humans are becoming more and more reckless. I managed to pull through this time, but what about next time?

There's no other way but to take extra precautions for the planet before I run out of energy... like finding a few reliable friends?

In fact, in the realm of magic, Earth is not without allies—the Asgardians of Asgard, the legendary Norse gods, once guarded the Nine Kingdoms under the rule of Odin, and Earth was one of the Nine Kingdoms protected by the Asgardians.

However, as time has passed, Odin is now old and frail, nearing death, while his successor, Thor, is far from mature and powerful. Once Odin passes away, it's questionable whether Thor can even protect Asgard, let alone Earth.

As for S.H.I.E.L.D. in the secular world, they might be able to handle small-scale operations on Earth, such as fighting a few dark wizards and managing counterinsurgency, but when it comes to facing an evil overlord like Dormammu, the ruler of the Dark Dimension, they probably wouldn't even be able to come up with an effective countermeasure.

Before this, the Ancient One was always very worried about who would protect Earth once she and Odin died.

The disciples she trained in the sorcerer's monastery now seem incapable of inheriting her mantle as the Supreme Sorcerer. Among these disciples, even the strongest so-called masters are worlds apart from her in strength, having only learned a smattering of her knowledge.

It wasn't that the Ancient One was hiding something from her, afraid that she would starve her apprentice if she taught her. Rather, it was because the magic that the Ancient One truly relied on was far too dangerous—extracting energy from the dark space for one's own use. For a magician, this was as suicidal as an ordinary person drinking radiation soda to train their mutation abilities!

Without the extraordinary perseverance of someone like the Ancient One, ordinary sorcerers who rashly come into contact with the energy of the dark dimension will be like those who have listened to the whispers of the Cthulhu god. They will either become half-human and half-demon, like suffering from lead poisoning or radiation sickness, and become slaves of the dark sovereign Dormammu—just like his traitorous disciple Kaecilius and his followers; or they will have their SAN value reduced to zero and be driven insane. Even if none of the above situations occur, they may die instantly due to improper use of this kind of power.

To gaze into an endless abyss without falling into it is something not everyone can do.

Therefore, the Ancient One could only search for potential successors who possessed both exceptional intelligence and unwavering resolve, capable of shouldering the heavy responsibility of the Sorcerer Supreme, while simultaneously seeking multiple layers of protection for Earth—the forces behind this dragon and cat might also have the potential to become allies.

In addition, she also remembered the strange, nonsensical announcement she received from the void last month—"...A group of kittens are coming to play here!"

At the time, the Ancient One was on high alert, gathering her disciples at Kamar-Taj to prepare for battle. But nothing happened at Kamar-Taj; instead, New York was attacked by aliens.

However, now, a cat-man has appeared openly in New York, and he is carrying a magical aura that the Ancient One finds familiar.

"...The kitten mentioned in that announcement, could it be you? Interesting, let's see what you can bring to the Earth!"

Chapter 213, Phil's Overt Scheme

As the largest metropolis in the United States with extremely developed information technology, and in the era of information explosion in the Internet age, the cats and silver dragons that suddenly appeared on the streets of New York became a hot topic on Internet forums around the world in just a few tens of minutes.

"Breaking news! New York has once again welcomed aliens! A giant dragon and cat-people have arrived in Manhattan!"

"...My God! Has the Earth become a public toilet? Even cats are invading New York!"

"...You seem to have forgotten the dragon that follows the cat...and cats have been invading human society for a long time, cat owners!"

"...What an adorable intruder! Wait, that dragon can even transform into human form, and it's a stunningly beautiful woman at that!"

"...A beautiful dragon? Wow, this makes me want to be a dragon knight even more!"

"...How did they suddenly appear on the street? There doesn't seem to be a spaceship or a portal in the video?"

"...Oh my god! The dragon and the cat-man appeared out of nowhere! This must be magic, right?"

"...Dragons and orcs have appeared. Does a world of swords and magic truly exist in this universe?"

"...Ahhh, I really want to escape this boring job that makes me feel like I'm rotting away, and go on an adventure in a world of swords and magic!"

"...Come on! Don't play dumb, you New Yorker! Everyone knows that every day in New York is an adventure..."

Before the cat Fiori and the silver dragon Lulutia even left Manhattan, the internet from the United States to Europe and East Asia had already exploded.

After all, this happened in the world-famous Manhattan, New York, in a crowded public place.

At the scene alone, there were so many people watching the whole thing. Although many passersby were scared away when they saw the dragon, there were also many fearless and curious individuals who lingered at the scene, taking pictures with their phones and uploading them to the internet.

—Although the U.S. government has far stronger control over the internet and media than China, it is slower in doing so.

In China, once the government issues an order and takes real action, no matter what kind of monsters or demons they encounter, they have to shut up. Even before the government can react, local media outlets are already proactively holding back sensitive news stories to observe the government's attitude before deciding whether to publish them.

As for the United States, at least it still has the face of a leading free nation. Before issuing a ban, it has to engage in some bargaining and gain the support or tacit approval of various bigwigs. By the time the ban is issued, a long time has passed. There is also a group of people who have misled themselves and will take the opportunity to jump out and shout for press freedom... Moreover, those videos, audios, and photos that have already spread around the world are not so easy to delete completely.

So now netizens all over the world know that a dragon and a cat-man have arrived in New York and are about to head to the United Nations headquarters.

Images and videos taken at the scene, accompanied by sensational headlines, spread like wildfire like a flu virus. Experts and gurus alike jumped in, offering their opinions on the dragon and cat—if they didn't hurry and sing their praises, the news would become outdated!

Some believe these "friendly" aliens might open the door to a new world for humanity, while others believe that the door to a new world is fraught with disaster. Some insist that the government has some ulterior motive involved, while others believe their appearance is the will of God.

"...Thank God, finally a few alien visitors who don't look so fierce have come to Earth!"

"...Have you forgotten Thor from the Avengers? Even though his brother made a mess of New York."

"...Thank God, judging from this situation, interactions between civilizations outside Earth haven't completely degenerated into the most despairing Dark Forest Law, where people kill each other upon meeting... Otherwise, Earth's future would truly be hopeless!"

"...I heard this furry cat-person is a magical pet? I wonder if it's possible to keep one here on Earth?"

"...If we could keep one, we'd love to have one too! Long live fluffy! Fluffy is the best! Fluffy is the epitome of civilization!"

"...That's right! I love pretty and cute cat-eared lolis the most! Uh, but this one seems to be a little girl already, right? She's less than a meter tall!"

"...Uh, didn't you see the news? Apparently, this cat is male! Even though it's wearing a skirt..."

"...A male? Hmm, even if it's a male, it's not bad. Maybe we can ask it to breed with our Persian cat..."

"...Are you crazy? This cat-person can use magic! Be careful not to anger it, or one spell from it will turn you into a mouse!"

"...That dragon is female! Interested in becoming a dragon rider? The kind where you ride a dragon during the day and get ridden by it at night?"

"...No thanks, I'm worried about getting crushed—what if I turn back into my original form when I get excited?"

Countless opinions of all kinds spread rapidly online, ranging from pessimistic to happy to jubilant. Some were even a bit eccentric. Netizens rushed to express their views, leading to heated debates that escalated the topic's popularity.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

This is also why Phil insisted on having Miss Lulutia, the silver dragon, make a high-profile appearance in the Marvel universe.

Since the three gateways, or landing points, to the Marvel universe are all under the control of the Kamar-Taj Sorcerer's Guild, the path of "gathering intelligence discreetly and developing stealthily" is simply not feasible. So let's just do it officially and announce our arrival to the world in a grand manner!

In any case, they really have no ill intentions towards the Marvel world, and the Marvel world can't interfere with their world either. So why not reveal their identities from the beginning and negotiate with the United Nations of the Marvel world in a high-profile manner before Kamar-Taj can stop them?

Although the Kamar-Taj Order has always maintained a secretive style, trying its best to prevent ordinary people from contacting the magical dimension, and believing that it is for the better development of human civilization, political leaders from various countries do not see it that way. They only regard the Ancient One as a meddlesome old lady!

—You think it's for our own good to keep us from magic? Bah! Who asked you to hide magic away?

According to this bullshit, Wall Street plunders the wealth of people around the world, but it's for their own good, to prevent people from being corrupted by money?

Moreover, during the last invasion of New York by an alien army, the Kamar-Taj Preceptorate did nothing, but this time, with “seemingly friendly” extraterrestrial visitors, the Kamar-Taj Preceptorate is trying to interfere… What do you expect high-ranking officials and politicians from around the world to think?

As a keyboard politician, keyboard historian, and keyboard economist who has watched countless palace dramas, historical dramas, and war dramas and is barely above average, Phil is "a jack of all trades, master of none" when it comes to politics.

—Under the sunlight, all underhanded tricks have no trace. This is what is known as a "public conspiracy"!

Chapter 214, Provisional United Nations Headquarters, Xavier Castle!

On the other hand, Ferry and Lulutia, who were traveling in a S.H.I.E.L.D. Quinjet, also arrived at their destination after a short flight.

—A temporary evacuation site for the United Nations headquarters in Westchester County, north of New York, after the Battle of New York.

A British country manor that, for some reason, seemed somewhat familiar to Phil.

In short, although it is only a little over an hour's drive from Wall Street, Westchester County is a very rural and secluded place.

In fact, Westchester County is not even part of New York City.

Traditionally, New York City comprises five boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, and the Bronx.

Manhattan is the most bustling area of ​​New York City and the earliest part of the city – Wall Street, Broadway, the Empire State Building, skyscrapers, Hell's Kitchen, Chinatown, and Central Park are all located here. The USS Intrepid is docked on the Hudson River, and you can also see the Statue of Liberty in the distance.