Old Man Logan's Concerns

Texas, El Paso County, early morning.

Logan had just dropped off his last passenger. Exhausted, he slept inside the Stretch Limousine he rented, only to be awakened by the noise outside.

"Damn it!"

Cursing angrily, he had no choice but to struggle to his feet and push open the car door.

This happened to him often. It had to be those thugs who had snuck across from Mexico again. They had their eyes on his luxury car and wanted to strip off the wheels to sell for money.

But he could not let those thugs get away with it now. He still relied on this rented car to make a living, and he desperately needed money.

The professor's illness required money for medicine, and he had also been saving up to buy a Yacht so he could take the professor out to live safely at sea.

Having lived for so many years and witnessed the deaths of friends and lovers, he had long grown tired of his own life.

His only remaining wish was to give Charles—the only old friend still alive, the one who had once redeemed him—a decent life in his final years.

And if those thugs took off the wheels, not only would he have to compensate the rental company, but he would also be unable to keep this stable job.

"Hey, these lug nuts are all chrome-plated. You've ruined them all. You bastards, get out of here..."

Leaning against the car door, Logan tried to persuade the thugs to leave without resorting to violence, but things clearly did not go as he wished.

When the punks saw the owner appear, they did not run. Instead, they immediately raised a gun and fired at Logan, then continued removing the wheels.

To them, killing someone seemed as simple as eating and drinking water.

Logan's healing ability had greatly deteriorated due to the toxins in the Adamantium, but an injury like this was still not enough to kill him.

He rose to his feet and slowly extended his Claws, stepping forward to fight the thugs.

But due to his aging body and lack of proper rest, he was soon beaten to the ground by the six thugs. All he could do was shield his head with both hands and wait for an opening to strike back.

"George, can he really still help us?"

Inside the Truck, Gabriella asked worriedly.

They had taken a detour to El Paso County, and after a full four hours of searching, they had finally found Wolverine Logan. But seeing him like this made her lose confidence.

George smiled and nodded.

"Of course he can. He can be a huge help."

Don't be fooled by Wolverine's current state. If he really got ruthless, a few more of them still would not be his match.

And if they could find a way to remove the Adamantium toxins in the future, Wolverine's body would return to its peak youthful condition.

After all, Apocalypse, who possessed the same healing ability, had lived for thousands of years without aging at all.

"Wait here. I'll go talk to him first."

George pushed open the door, leaped down, and used his ability to send two daggers slicing toward the thugs' throats.

He had no compassion for thugs with no moral bottom line who killed innocent people at will. He went straight for their vital points.

Slash, slash, slash, slash.

Several consecutive sounds of windpipes being cut open by sharp blades rang out. The thugs who had been kicking Wolverine instantly clutched their throats and collapsed in disbelief.

Sensing something was wrong, Wolverine lowered his arms, equally astonished.

Then a hand reached out toward him.

"You all right, Wolverine Logan?"

"Friend, you may have the wrong person. I'm not Wolverine, but thanks for the help."

Logan did not take his hand. He slowly stood up by himself.

George did not mind. He withdrew his hand and continued.

"My name is George. I'm a Mutant. We have thirty-five Mutant Children with us, and we need your and the professor's help."

"Mutants? Mutants disappeared long ago. There are no Mutants in this world anymore. And there is no Wolverine or professor either."

Wolverine shook his head and crouched down with some difficulty, wanting to pick up the scattered lug nuts and restore the car's wheels.

George waved his hand, and the scattered lug nuts on the ground instantly floated into the air and landed in his palm.

"There may indeed be very few naturally occurring Mutants left, but there are still quite a few Mutants created through artificial experiments. For example, I'm a Mutant synthesized from the genes of the professor and Magneto."

"Who exactly are you?"

When Wolverine saw the lug nuts floating, a wary look appeared in his eyes. The Claws on both hands extended once again, though one of them was stuck halfway out.

George paused at the sight, then waved toward the Truck parked by the roadside not far away.

A moment later, Gabriella slowly walked over with Little Wolf Girl and the other thirty-five Mutant children.

"Show Mr. Logan your abilities."

Little Wolf Girl extended her Adamantium Claws. Riktor raised an Earth Wall from the ground. The other children also displayed their abilities: controlling wind, controlling fire, manipulating plants, controlling water and electricity, breathing out frost, and more.

Their powers were not strong yet because they had not been fully developed, but they truly proved that they were Mutants.

"Mr. Logan, George did not lie to you. We just escaped from the Mexico City Genetic Modification Institute. They..."

Gabriella recounted her experiences and the Institute's situation in full detail.

After hearing everything, Wolverine took a deep breath. Looking at George and the children, he refused with some difficulty.

"I'm afraid I can't help you. I don't have the ability to."

He did not care whether he lived or died, but given the professor's current condition, he could not afford to get involved in something this troublesome. One wrong move could drag the professor down with him and get him killed.

So even though he could not bear it, he still refused.

Gabriella's eyes immediately dimmed at his words, but George had expected this and did not give up.

He knew why Wolverine had refused, and he also knew that Wolverine was kind by nature. As long as he gave him a reasonable way out, it would be easy to persuade him.

"At the Experimental Base, I once accidentally came across intelligence related to the Westchester Incident. You work so hard driving to earn money because you want to cure the professor's illness, right?

By helping us, you would actually be helping the professor—and yourself.

If our plan succeeds, the professor will receive the best medicine and equipment in the world. There may even be a chance for him to return to normal."

"But have you considered that the famous Playboy Tony Stark might not repay us? He might even sell us out.

Not everyone in this world is willing to repay you after being saved. Many people, for the sake of profit, may retaliate even more viciously."

Wolverine fell silent for a moment before replying.

He understood such things all too well.

Back on the battlefield during World War II, he had once saved an officer. But when that officer was nearing death from old age, he had actually coveted Wolverine's healing ability and wanted to kill him and take it for himself so he could keep living.