My family runs an adventurer's guild.

Therefore, in the eyes of Miss Dagger and the Cloaked Guy, Roxon Oil Company, which has caused such a huge disaster, is bound to be condemned by the public and cursed by the whole country, and will eventually be ruined and completely destroyed! And every single one of the company's top executives should be waiting in line to go to jail.

However, from this morning's news, the Dagger Lady and the Cloaked Guy, who were eagerly hoping for justice and fairness, vaguely heard an ominous implication—no matter which TV station it was, they were just reciting empty words and clichés, not only without any accusation or condemnation of Roxson Oil Company as the culprit, but they were even deliberately misleading and implying to the audience that what happened in New Orleans was a supernatural disaster!

Well, if we exclude the fact that Roxon Petroleum Corporation recklessly drilled wells and tried its best to conceal the truth after discovering bad signs, until the entire city was destroyed, the disaster that happened in New Orleans can indeed be forcibly explained as "mysterious underground energy that disturbs the human mind erupting for no reason"—just like a volcanic eruption, it is simply an unpreventable natural disaster.

Since it was a natural disaster, Roxson Insurance Company naturally doesn't bear any responsibility; compensating the victims is a hassle for the insurance company...

Of course, to prevent the insurance companies that have suffered losses from making a scene, Roxon needs to coordinate with them privately in advance... However, given Roxon's strength and influence, it shouldn't be difficult to do so.

Moreover, in New Orleans, a city notorious for its poverty, how many American citizens can afford insurance?

However, this was ultimately just a vague omen, so Miss Dagger initially held onto a sliver of hope.

The New Orleans disaster has already been known to the government, and it's caused such a big stir, surely they wouldn't resort to such despicable tactics?

Next, the well-informed Iron Man Tony delivers the final, utterly devastating blow to Dagger Lady and Cloak Guy.

"...Unfortunately, this time, the victims in New Orleans are unlikely to get any explanation. The White House and relevant interest groups have coordinated to decide to disguise this as a natural disaster, because Roxson is so large that it cannot fail."

Tony glanced at them with a hint of pity. "...So, the media are warned by the authorities to cover up the truth of this matter."

In the Marvel universe, Roxson is the world's largest energy company, monopolizing 70% of the US oil market. In terms of total assets, it's many times larger than Iron Man's Stark Industries. The United States is fundamentally a country ruled by conglomerates; once assets reach a certain level, "money equals power," and the US government has long publicly stated that it serves taxpayers. With such vast assets, Roxson Oil Company is essentially a major shareholder wielding real power behind the scenes, making it virtually untouchable by law.

—If it weren't for such a deeply entrenched power base, the major villain, Roxson Corporation, wouldn't have been able to survive from the era of Agent Carter until now. Of course, in order to cover up the disaster in New Orleans, Roxson Oil Corporation would have had to give up a lot of profits...

However, the victims of this catastrophe are not able to view these ugly secret deals with such calmness and objectivity.

"...How could this be? Tens of thousands of people died for nothing? Where is the law and justice?" Miss Dagger Tandy was completely devastated.

"...The law? In America, when the poor fight against each other, the law is generally effective; when the rich fight against the poor, the law can also be effective. But when the poor fight against the rich, haha, unless the rich are trying to put on a show, or the poor have some powerful backer, what use is the law?"

Tandy's mother interjected with a sneer, "...If the United States is a company, the president is the CEO, and the government is the management, then Rockxen Corporation is one of the board members of the 'United States Corporation.' The president, as CEO, can certainly fire and discipline employees, but it's very difficult to punish a director, even one with a small share..."

—As a former socialite in high society in America, Tandy's mother, though now down on her luck, still knows a thing or two about how things work.

"...Although I am on the Orderly Good side, I have to admit that for the upper class, the law is not actually that sacred."

Princess Catherine, the Golden Dragon, chimed in while slicing the fried eggs on her plate, "...In the end, the law is nothing more than a spider web. If mosquitoes and flies land on it, they're doomed. But if cats and dogs run into it, then the spider web gets torn to shreds..."

"...Yes, as far as I know, drug trafficking is considered a serious crime in the United States. However, your country's CIA and FBI operate the largest drug trafficking network in the country, and many notorious drug lords are informants for these two intelligence agencies. But what law can punish them?"

Phil curled her lip and chimed in, "...Only children talk about justice; adults only care about interests..."

Author's message

P.S.: The story about the CIA's multi-layered subcontracting ultimately resulting in a bunch of incredibly amateur spies exposing themselves through WeChat group chats is absolutely true. Because so many people skimmed off the top, these people only received five yuan per thousand words in compensation. What else could they do but fabricate stories and plagiarize from novels?

Chapter 273, Don't Take the Law Too Seriously (Part 2)

"...My God! How could this be...Shouldn't Roxon Petroleum Company be punished for this?"

After listening to everyone's comments, Miss Dagger Tandy's face turned extremely ugly. "...They even sent assassins to kill me and my mother!"

"...If we have to talk about punishment, there will probably be some. After all, with such huge losses, quite a few people will definitely suffer, although the culprits may not necessarily be the ones who suffer. Judging from the current situation, a public and lawful trial of Roxon Petroleum is unlikely. However, in the behind-the-scenes dealings, Roxon Petroleum will definitely have to sacrifice a lot of interests to get through this."

Tony replied, "...Then, the power structure within Roxon Petroleum could very well be reshuffled as a result. Some executives might be reassigned or even fired, some board members might be forced to relinquish some shares and power, and some tactless underlings might even die... It all depends on the power struggles within Roxon Petroleum's upper echelons. There's a slight possibility that they won't change at all."

"...Sounds like just a failed investment?" The cloaked man, Tyrone, looked even darker—even though he was originally black.

"...Yes, for Rockxon Petroleum, the disaster in New Orleans was indeed just a failed investment."

Tony nodded and said, "...Roxson Oil Company's workforce is comparable to that of many small countries. Their investment in New Orleans can be likened to a military adventure by a certain nation, driving its people to the battlefield. Victory means reaping the rewards, defeat means investment failure. As for the consequences of failure, it's probably similar to a country losing a war—at most, the leader resigns—in fact, that's already quite an attitude; many defeated leaders would shamelessly shirk responsibility... That's how ugly politics is!"

Upon learning that the New Orleans disaster was no longer a legal issue but a political one, everyone at the table fell silent.

Although anti-intellectual education is popular in the United States, the impression that "there are no good people among politicians" is also deeply rooted in the minds of most Americans.

"...Isn't there any media outlet with a conscience that will step forward and expose the truth to the public?" the cloaked young man said indignantly.

"...Heh, there are many media outlets in the US, but only a few big bosses control them behind the scenes. Once the interest groups at the top have set the tone, even if the small fry insist on singing a different tune, they won't be able to make much of a sound." Tandy's mother curled her lip.

"...So, what should we do about New Orleans?" Miss Dagger Tandy asked. "...Should we just treat it as a natural disaster?"

"...That's right, so you're out of luck! At least the government will provide relief, and the insurance companies will pay out. S.H.I.E.L.D. and the state government said they would work to pressure Roxon Petroleum to donate a sum of money to charity to help the poor who have no insurance."

Tony sighed, "...I'll donate some money too, but I reckon it'll be a drop in the ocean...and this has created tens of thousands of disabled people in one fell swoop!"

—Although the "super-mystical magic" of Miss Dagger and the Cloaked Guy saving New Orleans by "shaking hands" is practically cheating, it can't turn back time and restore everything in New Orleans to the state before the disaster.

Therefore, in the citywide chaos that lasted for several hours, more than 200,000 citizens of New Orleans were killed or injured, a proportion even higher than that of war, riots, and fires. When war, riots, and fires occur, people at least try to save themselves and actively escape; however, after being infected by evil chaotic energy and turned into zombies, the citizens of New Orleans only tried to harm themselves and actively courted death...

Especially after being injured, ordinary people would try their best to bandage and provide first aid, but zombies would continue to hop around with their bleeding bodies as if nothing had happened.

As a result, when everything settled down, the death rate among New Orleans residents was even higher than in many war-torn cities! Even the wounded were generally severely injured. Leaving aside the healable cuts and fractures, some of the irreversible injuries resulted in blindness, broken limbs—not fractures, but the actual loss of a limb—some were disfigured, and others were missing several fingers.

It is conceivable that these disabled people will face many difficulties in their future lives, and may even be unable to support themselves.

If the disaster is deemed the responsibility of Roxson Oil Company, the victims can still count on compensation from them—though who knows how long the lawsuit will take. But if it's classified as a natural disaster, the injured and disabled will be in dire straits.

Don't forget, medical expenses in the United States are very high. By the time they leave the hospital, most of them will probably be burdened with millions of dollars in debt.

"...And besides, you cloaked young man, you still have the mind to care about others? Your own troubles aren't over yet! You haven't forgotten that you escaped from the police station, have you? Although the police station there is definitely a mess, your criminal record is still on the server!"

Tony pointed at the cloaked young man, Tyrone, "...So, you're not going home for now, if you don't want to be arrested—of course, I know you have the ability to teleport, and ordinary police can't catch you! But believe me, organizations that deal with special groups like you have been around in this country for a long time, and they definitely have a way to catch you. If all else fails, they can even use your parents as hostages!"

"...Then, this lady who turned light into a dagger, although logically speaking, the top executives of Roxon Petroleum Corporation, well, to be precise, those who pushed the New Orleans underground mysterious energy mining project, should be too busy to take care of themselves right now, but no one can guarantee that Roxon Petroleum Corporation will not retaliate against you afterward—even if they killed your father first."

Tony then pointed to Miss Dagger Tandy, "...Although you have superpowers, there are quite a few assassins with superpowers. I know of several supervillains in New York alone. Moreover, your power is more focused on mental interference, which isn't actually very suitable for combat. Besides, they could easily use legal means to deal with you, such as accusing you of stealing company secrets..."

“…Damn it, does that mean we’re still in mortal danger?” Miss Tandy was furious. “…Does this mean Roxon Oil Company can do whatever it wants without paying a price? And we’re being treated like criminals just for trying to get justice?!”

A long-term idea that needs further development

He has been reborn as Ainz Ooal Gown from Overlord and is about to take the Great Tomb of Nazarick to another world.

Hmm, isn't this just a super easy transmigration template where a max-level character with god-tier gear crushes another world, only experiencing the difficulty of the beginner village?

Thus, Wang Qiu, the transmigrator who became a giant skeleton, sat on the throne just like in the original story, waiting for the game to shut down and for his transmigration to begin, before embarking on a journey of wits and courage against thin air to show off.

But then, to his horror, he discovered that instead of a lush green meadow above him, he saw the Statue of Liberty!

To make matters worse, among the distant Manhattan skyscrapers, one can still vaguely make out the oddly shaped Stark Tower!

Help! How did I end up in New York in the Marvel universe?

This isn't some pretentious journey of outsmarting thin air; it's a nightmare of hellish difficulty!

—The time-traveling version of Ainz Ooal Gown, Qiu, is hiding in his bedroom in the Great Tomb of Nazarick, shivering as he holds the shy-looking Albedo.

However, the randomly spawning skeletons around the Great Tomb of Nazarick left him no room to back down. (Swept ashore, landing in New York)

Thus, the trembling transmigrated version of Ainz Ooal Gown had no choice but to grit his teeth and lift the coffin!

Marvel Universe! Here I come!

Chapter 274, America is about to perish, what is there to worry about?

"...Although I have always hoped for fairness and justice in the world, I have to say that the law of the jungle may be the truth to some extent."

Captain America, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke slowly, "...However, at least here, you are safe for the time being. The law may not be able to give you justice, but S.H.I.E.L.D. has indicated that they are willing to protect you... The Roxon Oil Company assassins can't infiltrate this place no matter what, and you don't need to worry about your police records. For S.H.I.E.L.D., the law is not something that must be obeyed..."

"...So, Captain, what do you, uh, S.H.I.E.L.D. plan to do with us? Could it be..."

Only then did the cloaked young man, Tyrone, finally realize something: "...We're being treated as some kind of dangerous element that needs to be controlled?"

"...Ahem, although I don't think you are bad people, Director Nick Fury insists that all people with abnormal abilities should be controlled, or at least given the necessary education, otherwise you will gradually abuse your powers and eventually endanger society."

Moreover, if you can stay here, we can better protect you from retaliation by certain forces or from magical backlash due to improper use… Therefore, S.H.I.E.L.D. has provided several options for you to choose from.”

Captain America spoke somewhat awkwardly. He wasn't actually good at persuasion, but because Dagger Tandy possessed the ability to see through people's hearts to some extent, Nick Fury, the bald director, insisted that he, "God's righteous man," take the lead—otherwise, what if Dagger Tandy found some secrets in his mind, or even something that ordinary people would find very offensive?

As an international intelligence organization and special operations agency, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s behind-the-scenes dealings are often not so clean.

"...So, what options did S.H.I.E.L.D. offer us?" Miss Dagger and the cloaked man exchanged a glance and asked.

"...Director Nick Fury gave you three options: First, join S.H.I.E.L.D.'s training school and become an agent handling supernatural events, but I think that's a bit too early for your age (high school students); second, have S.H.I.E.L.D.'s research department implant tracking devices in your bodies, the kind that high-level agents have, and then routinely report your whereabouts once a week, but that's neither free nor very convenient, and it won't protect you from persecution by certain forces. The remaining option is...why don't you want to stay here with me and learn magic?"

Captain America smiled, raised a finger and shook it, then a small orange-red flame ignited at the tip of his finger. "...These otherworldly magics, while not as powerful as the forces within you, are much more diverse and quite interesting!"

The eyes of the cloaked man and the dagger woman lit up as they stared at the leaping flames burning on Captain America's fingertips.

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

Meanwhile, on the other side of the table, Phil was also trying to have an academic exchange with the old black witch from New Orleans.

The main topic of their academic exchange was, of course, the magic possessed by this old black witch, or rather, American folk witchcraft.

It's important to understand that while the technology in the Marvel universe is incredibly advanced, the magic in the Marvel universe is equally mysterious and unbelievable.

The most high-end and sophisticated of these mystical items is undoubtedly Thanos's gauntlet, capable of wiping out half of all life in the universe with a snap of his fingers; a slightly less sophisticated example would be the "savior handshake" between Tandy the Dagger and Talon the Cloaked...

Anyway, even if Phil lost all his brain cells, he still couldn't understand why Tandy and Tyrone shaking hands could make the Earth seem to activate antivirus software, sweeping away all the evil energy in New Orleans... This isn't a Disney princess's "true love kiss"!

—It feels like it's neither scientific nor magical, and it doesn't make any sense at all, does it?

Perhaps it was because she already knew about the zombie crisis in New Orleans and had such a cheat code that she remained unmoved even though the evil energy surging from the ground had already connected with the Dark Dimension, thinking it was a trivial matter that Kamar-Taj didn't need to worry about?

Unfortunately, after some conversation, Phil was disappointed to find that this old black witch was not the kind of magician who participated in adventures and battles in fantasy worlds, but rather more like a medium or yin-yang master from urban legends, and a rather clumsy one at that.

She knew nothing about magical theories or the workings of magic, and didn't even have a decent magic book. She could only ramble on about some incoherent, seemingly eccentric ancient stories and some orally transmitted spells.

Among them are divination spells, exorcism spells that require incense, bones, and mineral powder to cast, and spells that allow one to peek into the secrets of another dimension through a crystal ball and flames. Unfortunately, the success rate is as mysterious as the stories she tells, and they have virtually no combat ability.

In short, although this old witch had some knowledge of extradimensional power, she was completely unaware of the principles behind it. She only knew how to operate according to the routines that had been memorized from generation to generation, which contained many fallacies. In addition, there were misunderstandings and omissions during the transmission of knowledge. Many witches were used to making very ordinary things sound mysterious, completely disregarding whether their disciples could understand them, which resulted in more mistakes than correct ones.

In addition, there were various stream-of-consciousness musings that were "more felt than explained," haphazard and incoherent actions based on "feelings," and reckless and haphazard attempts based on "I think this might work." After all this aimless tinkering, she eventually became mentally unstable...

After all, her job was to deceive rather than to cast spells. After deceiving others too much, she ended up deceiving herself too.

Anyway, after listening to the old black witch ramble on and on, Phil felt even more confused.

Nevertheless, the old black witch wasn't entirely without fault. After engaging Phil in a long, rambling discussion of nonsensical, logically flawed magical theories—the success rate of spells being purely a matter of luck—she sighed and said, "...Although the crisis in New Orleans has passed, because none of the destined partners sacrificed themselves, the misfortune has accumulated. So, a hundred years from now, our descendants will suffer even more terrible hardships. Perhaps burning meteorites will fall from the sky, or perhaps a terrifying tsunami will engulf the entire city of New Orleans..."

As she spoke, her face was filled with undisguised sorrow, as if she had witnessed the impending doom of New Orleans firsthand.

Then, this compassionate old black witch was immediately slapped in the face by someone at lightning speed.

"...I think you don't need to worry about that, or rather, there's absolutely no need to worry, ma'am. According to some person from the future, by the time the United States is a hundred years from now, it will have already perished in nuclear war and civil war; and if another hundred years pass, all of human civilization on Earth will probably have been extinguished. What difference will it make to us what kind of terrible disasters New Orleans may suffer then?"

Tony Stark, the sharp-tongued Iron Man, immediately made this sarcastic remark, which startled the New Orleans guests present. Dagger Lady and Cloak Guy looked up at Captain America, only to see that this righteous man of God was also nodding with a heavy expression, and they were stunned.

"...Uh, could it be that those doomsday prophecies about 22nd-century Japanese people in magazines and newspapers are all true?"

"...It's absolutely true. The captain and I just spoke with this future Japanese person in another world not long ago. So our generation needs to work even harder to prevent this world from sliding into such a tragic state, so that our descendants can have a slightly brighter future."

Tony answered, then turned and patted Phil on the shoulder, "...By the way, could you do me a favor at the hospital next Friday?"

"...Of course...Wait? A hospital? Could it be that you've already decided to remove this thing that's interfering with spellcasting?"

Phil looked up at the blue, shimmering arc reactor on Tony's chest and said thoughtfully.

"...Yes! I've already scheduled the surgery for next Friday at New York Central Hospital. Sigh! To put a sudden stop to this world sliding into the abyss, science alone isn't enough; perhaps we'll need to add magic to have any hope!" Tony sighed.

Chapter 275, Tony's Surgery

Outside an operating room at New York Central Hospital.

Sitting on a bench in the hospital corridor, Phil held her newly bought smartphone, intently playing a mobile game.

Because the mobile game was quite difficult, the pair of fluffy cat ears on the top of his head twitched with his emotional changes, sometimes standing up, sometimes drooping, and occasionally even his tail would wag a few times, which attracted the attention of many curious people.

Several young nurses, in particular, watched with shining eyes.

Wow! Those ears are so cute! I really want to pat its head and stroke its fur!

And another thing, that shiny, smooth cat tail must be really fun to pet, right?

However, the stern-faced S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in black suits beside Phil effectively deterred their restless hands, forcing the nurses, whose eyes were darting around, to only steal a few glances from afar.

They even got scolded by the head nurse for slacking off, which was really not satisfying.

—Actually, if they came over and talked to her nicely, Phil would be very happy to let them masturbate and suck her...

The condition is that you are not allowed to secretly pluck his fur!

Compared to Phili's calm and composed demeanor, Tandy the Dagger and Tyrone the Cloaked Guy who came with him seemed rather restless, occasionally standing up from the bench and glancing at the glass door at the outermost part of the operating room.

—Of course, you definitely won't see anything.

"...Um...Mr. Phil, will Mr. Stark's surgery be alright? It's been several hours already!"

After standing up and sitting back down several times, the cloaked young man, Tyrone, finally couldn't hold back any longer and leaned close to Phil and asked in a low voice.

"...Oh, don't worry, nothing will happen! Besides, even if something does go wrong, I'm here for you, aren't I?"