Magneto's "Grand Invitation"

Magneto's "Grand Invitation"

At this time, the Broadway incident had yet to settle down, and countries all over the world were busy suppressing the rapidly increasing number of superhuman crimes.

Then came news that shook every major organization and power on Earth.

The Brotherhood led by Magneto had suddenly appeared in Alaska and gone to war with a powerful enemy. They seemed to have been ambushed by a group of mysterious powerhouses as well, suffering devastating losses! Several core members were said to have died.

This was truly shocking. The one who had suffered a setback was Magneto—a mutant leader who had spent years single-mindedly building his cause and honing his abilities, a seasoned professional who was either in prison or on his way to prison, someone humans would not dare kill even if they managed to capture him!

Who had attacked Magneto? And who could make Magneto suffer, dragging the entire Brotherhood into devastating losses? Countless dubious reports spread wildly across the major dark webs. Truth and falsehood were impossible to distinguish, rumors filled the skies, and chaos reigned.

Anyone with even a little status wanted to dig up some intelligence, if only to learn what kind of enemy had taken Magneto down.

Who on the entire Earth possessed such strength? In Weyland's dilapidated building.

Duva sat on the sofa, idly swirling the cup in his hand. It held neither wine nor anything else, just plain water.

He watched the computer screen before him, taking in all the information circulating on the dark web.

"So that's what happened. Magneto took a loss? Ikaris clearly doesn't have that kind of strength on his own. He'd be lucky not to get beaten to death by Magneto. Their battle probably woke the Deviants frozen beneath the lake."

After giving it some thought, Duva suspected that other Eternals might have joined the battle. He remembered that among the eleven Eternals, one possessed Super Speed. Like the Flash next door, he could rapidly transport comrades from all over the world to the front lines—an elite reinforcement-gathering ability second only to spatial teleportation.

If Magneto and the Brotherhood had faced both the Eternals and the Deviants at once, without understanding how those creatures fought, it was perfectly reasonable for them to suffer a crushing defeat.

"Magneto is a steadfast extremist. When he finds out Ikaris isn't one of the Deviants as he understands them, but that the 'ancestors' he recognizes are actually a pack of big black dogs crawling around on the ground, what kind of expression will he make?"

Duva slumped deep into the sofa, muttering to himself before breaking into peals of laughter. He was obviously in an exceptionally good mood.

Around him, a group of Xenomorphs and one human clustered together, guarding his safety.

In the entire building, aside from Duva, only the Queen in the underground cavern was more important.

"You did this on purpose? You were the one who fed Magneto the false information?"

Elektra's expression was stiff. Though she tried hard to control her emotions, flashes of indignation still occasionally appeared on her face. She was constantly devising escape plans, imagining how, once she regained her freedom, she would take a blade and carve beautiful scars across Duva's serene, handsome face.

Elektra was not anxious over the plight of mutants. She was anxious because her life and actions were controlled by Duva.

"Why do you say that, rookie assassin?" Duva said. "I merely had a chat with S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Even you didn't understand it, so how could Magneto have known?"

"Forget about the mutants. What do I have to do to satisfy you?" Elektra desperately wanted to kill this man, but whenever such thoughts arose, the parasite in her chest would wriggle. It was the clearest and most terrifying warning.

The sensation was deeply unsettling. Yet because of it, Elektra had also gained enhancements from Xenomorph genes—strength superior to ordinary people, speed, and Super Speed-level regenerative abilities. Her power had skyrocketed, allowing her to begin stepping beyond the mundane. That made her both happy and unhappy.

Duva raised an eyebrow in surprise. "What makes you think you can leave me alive and free? Or would you rather work for an organization like the Hand than serve me? At least I've been generous enough to improve your strength and extend your lifespan."

Elektra parted her full red lips, but did not know what to say.

In a sense, the man was right. Between two things that were both no good, it seemed she could only choose the one that was less bad.

"What do I need to do, new boss?" Elektra lowered her head as though all strength had left her body.

"Just stay by my side. I can't do everything myself. For example, when I free up some time and decide to wipe out the Hand," Duva said casually.

Elektra looked confused. "You may not know just how powerful the Hand is. With only you and these Xenomorphs..."

"No, I know very well. I also know who the master behind the Hand is—some ghostly thing from beyond Earth. Their fate should already be certain," Duva said.

As they spoke, a Xenomorph walked behind Duva. There was nothing strange about that. Xenomorphs were not statues; protecting Duva did not mean standing still without moving.

The instant this Xenomorph made its move against Duva—

Elektra, who had been full of resentment and dejection moments earlier, seemed to become a different person. Her instinct to protect Duva surged forth, and she reflexively drew her blade, blocking it before Duva's neck.

With a sharp clang.

Elektra blocked the claw stabbing toward Duva.

At the same time, the other Xenomorphs moved. In flawless coordination, they precisely broke the Xenomorph's limbs in an instant, then pierced its shoulder with a tail and hoisted it into the air.

"I was wondering how long you could hold out. I didn't expect you to fail so quickly," Duva said calmly as he turned around.

The Courier Xenomorph's body changed, eventually transforming into a human.

Mystique Raven.

"You knew from the beginning?" Raven stared fixedly at Duva.

"Of course. I can form an inseparable mental connection with every Xenomorph, yet you slipped in among them. Do you know how awkward it is when a vegetable pastry reeking of curry gets mixed into a pile of delicious egg yolk pies?"

Duva sighed and patted Mystique's cheek.

Mm, nice to the touch. Thinking that, he gave it another hard squeeze.

Mystique showed no unusual expression. Something at this level was nothing to her and would not cause any psychological reaction whatsoever.

If she had not confirmed that this guy was obsessed with Xenomorphs all day long, she might have tried using her beauty to deal with Duva. But after considering it, she decided a man this composed probably would not fall for that, so she did not attempt it.

"Why?" Raven still refused to give up. "Why did you deliberately spread false information and use me to strike at the Brotherhood? Maybe you're a mutant too. The abilities you possess now may come from the X-Gene..."

"That's right, theoretically that's possible. But I could also be on Professor X's side, specifically here to weaken you," Duva said. "But I never gave you any definitive information from the start. You were the one trying to be clever, believing whatever you wanted to believe. You killed your people, not me."

Raven frowned and merely stared at Duva. After a while, the device on her arm vibrated. "Erik wants to speak with you."

Duva ordered a Xenomorph to release Raven's arm.

Raven did not use the opportunity to do anything foolish, such as attacking Duva in an attempt to escape. Instead, she activated the device's speaker.

"If this was your invitation to me from the very beginning, then I have to say you succeeded. This little trick was very effective."

Magneto's voice rang out. "Boy, let's talk now—about the real Deviants. In return, I will give you what you want—the damned, lowly reptiles that burst out from the bottom of the lake and launched that ambush!!"