The Battle of New York Ends

Actually, what Luca wanted to say was...

Since Ancient One needed the Hexcore, could she simply give him four different magic runes? And, if it wasn't too much trouble, could she "borrow" a small Arc Reactor from Tony Stark's storeroom for him?

That way, he might be able to synthesize the Hexcore right there and trade it to her.

It would also save a big shot like Ancient One from having to wait around.

Who could have guessed that she'd disappear without even saying goodbye?

"These big shots are all fucking riddlers!"

He grumbled to himself, but he did have some guesses as to why Ancient One wanted the Hexcore.

According to the lore, most sorcerers in the Marvel Universe didn't actually possess any magical power of their own.

To cast spells, they had to borrow power from the corresponding dimensional entities.

And since it was a loan, it naturally had to be repaid.

With the Vishanti, the source of white magic, things weren't too bad. No matter how much power sorcerers used, they'd only have to work off their debt in the end.

But if they borrowed power from a dark entity like Dormammu, even a little could cause the sorcerer to fall into corruption and become a mindless puppet.

The Hexcore was, essentially, an inexhaustible source of magical energy.

Luca had no idea where it drew its power from.

But with it, perhaps the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj could draw power from it to cast spells, instead of borrowing it from dimensional entities.

For a big shot like Ancient One, a longtime deadbeat who borrowed without repaying and even beat up her creditors, this might not be much use.

But for the ordinary sorcerers of Kamar-Taj, it could probably let them cast spells without having to pinch every penny, so they wouldn't all end up as musclebound melee fighters.

Lost in all these stray thoughts, Luca took one last look in the direction of Stark Tower.

To his surprise, he happened to see Loki pick up the Tesseract from the ground.

He could tell even from a glance.

The Tesseract in Loki's hand was shining with a bright white light unlike anything the other Core Components had emitted before.

The white glow even seemed to outshine the Tesseract's own light.

Though it was far away, Luca instinctively took a couple of steps closer.

But before he could do anything, Loki seized the chance while no one was paying attention, opened a portal, and vanished.

"Core Component, Space Stone, or Tesseract?"

"With white light that bright, it could probably synthesize something incredible. What a shame."

Recalling the sensation he'd felt just now, Luca shook his head helplessly and picked up the backpack from the ground again.

"Either way, I can't get my hands on it for now. Better to wait until I have a chance to see what this hot potato can synthesize."

With his current abilities, even if he got his hands on a treasure like that, he wouldn't be able to hold on to it.

With that in mind, Luca joined the crowds fleeing in all directions after Hulk's rampage and hurried back toward home.

On the way, he considered the situation.

"Even though I've decided not to get involved, Loki's departure means the future has already changed from what I remember. And I've confirmed that this isn't the Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline. I'd better not put too much faith in the plot from now on."

At the very least, as far as Luca remembered, the Bifrost in Asgard was still damaged.

Originally, Thor would have taken the Tesseract and used it to repair the Bifrost.

Without it, Thor would have a much harder time traveling to Earth.

Also, in the original Avengers: Endgame, Captain America eventually returned all the Stones.

But what he'd taken back then was Loki's Scepter, which contained the Mind Stone, while what he returned was the Mind Stone on its own. That was bound to affect the story, too.

That said, Luca's current strength and influence were far too insignificant. Even if he'd thought of some things, he was powerless to get involved.

As he considered how these changes might affect what came next, Luca soon arrived back at his apartment building.

Aside from nearly being mistaken for an injured person and taken to a relief station by disaster-response workers a few times, he hadn't run into any trouble.

He glanced into the alley, but didn't see the four people from Avengers: Endgame who'd returned, so he headed straight upstairs.

But just then, Luca spotted several medical rescue workers carrying a stretcher briskly out of the building.

And the sturdy middle-aged woman walking beside it was someone he knew.

"Aunt Shamila?"

Luca hurried forward. The woman he called Aunt Shamila heard him and turned around. Then she strode over and pulled him into her arms.

"Master Luca, I thought you'd..."

The woman's name was Shamila Beletskaya. She was the Orange Family's driver and bodyguard.

She was very close to Luca's mother, Gina Orange. They said she'd once been a battle-hardened soldier who'd seen real combat, but for some reason, she'd retired and become a driver.

In Luca's memories, Aunt Shamila had been at his mother's side since he was very young. She had no family or social life of her own, and was probably the person his parents trusted most.

Luca looked over Shamila's shoulder.

Sure enough, his mother, Gina, was lying on the stretcher.

"She still hasn't woken up? But at least we got help. That's something to be grateful for."

A trace of guilt flickered in his heart at having left Gina, badly injured and unconscious, alone at home. But he quickly pushed it aside.

Meanwhile, Shamila, still holding Luca, saw him staring at the stretcher and felt her heart ache.

"Sir has already... At least you're all right, Master Luca!"

She gently held Luca's right arm, the one without a prosthesis. She'd originally wanted to ask where he'd gone, but in the end she only pressed her lips together and stayed quiet.

Luca gave a slight shake of his head.

"I just lost it on the street. How's my mother?"

Luca knew Shamila had probably only just rushed over from the company, but at least she'd seen the rescue workers put Gina on the stretcher. She should know something about her condition.

As a veteran who'd seen combat, Shamila quickly suppressed her emotions and explained.

"She only has a few external injuries, and they've been bandaged. We don't know what caused her to lose consciousness yet. They'll have to run more thorough tests once she gets to the hospital."

"Fortunately, the Homeowners Association has some influence, so the rescue here was among the quickest to arrive. Whether we'll need to bring in a private medical team afterward will depend on the initial test results."

Luca nodded.

Manhattan had been the center of the attack, and the area affected had been extensive. The number of damaged buildings, dead, and injured was enormous.

But the luxury apartment building where the Orange Family lived had been expensive to begin with, and most of its residents had some standing in society.

So whether it was the current rescue and treatment efforts or the post-disaster reconstruction, they'd be given top priority.

And although the Orange Family's company was currently in serious trouble, they still had their assets and social standing. Even if every hospital in New York was packed, Gina would still get a private room.

Of course, many of the ordinary people who'd been injured or killed would never make it to a hospital. They'd be treated at temporary medical stations instead.

After all, the number of casualties this time was simply too high.

"Father..."

"...Sir's body has already been brought out. The Disaster Control Department will contact the private medical team to take custody of it."

"The company..."

"The Lower District was mostly untouched this time..."

As they spoke, the two of them climbed into the ambulance, which headed toward the hospital.