Tony pulled Pepper into the master bedroom and even locked the door behind them.

Kei, who would rather lie down than stand, called for a beach chair from downstairs, placed it behind him, and closed his eyes to bask in the sun.

As for the female SHIELD agents who had arrived by helicopter, they were not the type to hold back.

After stepping off the helicopter, they each threw a flirtatious glance at Wong, who was standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, before changing into their swimsuits. Some indulged in the delicacies laid out downstairs, while others enjoyed a carefree swim in the pool.

Clearly, Tony's mansion was more familiar to them than their own backyards.

Which made sense.

SHIELD had been watching Tony since 2008. By 2009, Fury had personally guided him to discover the new element his father had left behind, all in an effort to recruit him into the Avengers.

If SHIELD's satellites weren't monitoring this place 24/7, that would be the real surprise.

"Aren't you going down to chat with the ladies? If I remember correctly, you don't have a fiancée or a girlfriend, right?" Kei, resting his head on his arms, casually addressed Mordo, who was approaching from behind.

"I do not have much desire for romantic relationships." Mordo gave a slight bow before taking a seat.

Kaecilius, who had followed him, also sat down nearby.

"Now that's what I call a man who stands by his words." Kei raised an eyebrow, a smile creeping onto his lips.

Kaecilius' attitude was understandable. As for Mordo, this noble-born man had likely enjoyed his fair share of wild days in his youth and had now settled down.

As for Wong... Well, he was a man!

It was only natural to appreciate beauty, it was good for the mind and soul, wasn't it?

If someone were completely indifferent to these gorgeous women flaunting themselves... Now that would be scary.

Being able to admire beauty without letting one's inner energy waver, and staying unfazed even when faced with flirtatious glances and seductive gestures, Wong's self-discipline was certainly unmatched at Kamar-Taj.

"..." Mordo scratched his head awkwardly. He could tell that Kei was teasing him, but he had no way to respond to it!

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The sound of something cutting through the air echoed again.

A SHIELD Quinjet hovered above Tony's mansion before landing vertically on the nearby helipad.

Fury and Coulson stepped out from the open rear hatch.

Upon seeing Kei reclining on a beach chair in modern attire, with Mordo and Kaecilius sitting behind him in their ancient-style robes with solemn expressions, Fury's eye gleamed. He truly hadn't expected Tony to come into contact with these mysterious sorcerers, who rarely showed themselves in public.

And now, Tony had even invited them to a party.

"A pleasure to meet you. I am Nick Fury, the current Director of SHIELD. It is an honor to make your acquaintance, Sorcerer Supreme."

With a serious expression, he strode up to Kei. He clasped his hands together in front of him and bowed slightly, which was an old tradition among sorcerers to show respect. He then repeated the gesture toward Mordo and Kaecilius, who stood up and returned the gesture in the same manner.

Their expressions remained largely unchanged.

SHIELD? Back when they were protecting Earth, that organization hadn't even existed yet!

"You've interacted with sorcerers before?" Kei summoned two chairs with his energy and placed them behind Fury and Coulson, motioning for them to sit and talk.

"I met two sorcerers back in the 1990s. Unfortunately, they sacrificed themselves in a battle against a dimensional invasion more than a decade ago. So, I do have some understanding of Kamar-Taj and sorcerers." Fury adjusted the hem of his trench coat before taking his seat.

His knowledge of sorcerers came entirely from his two late sorcerer friends. But even with such limited intel, he understood perfectly well what the title of Sorcerer Supreme represented.

This was an immensely powerful organization that protected Earth on a dimensional level. Their numbers were unknown, but even the weakest among them possessed power far beyond ordinary humans.

That was why, when he received this sudden invitation, he had immediately granted all the female subordinates on the guest list a collective day off.

However… Recalling what he found when he searched the SHIELD database after receiving the invitation, a shadow flickered in his eye.

Logically speaking, as the Director of SHIELD, there shouldn't be any classified files beyond his access. Yet, when it came to sorcerers, the database contained only scattered bits of surface-level information.

And when he tried to dig deeper—Access Denied: Insufficient Clearance.

His clearance wasn't high enough? Then whose clearance was?

"Aren't you curious why I invited you?" Kei asked with interest, watching the ever-composed one-eyed man sitting stiffly in front of him. When dealing with Tony, this guy always carried an air of superiority, exuding an overwhelming sense of pressure.

Yet here, facing him, Fury was humble, polite, and utterly impeccable in demeanor. Clearly, this man hadn't climbed his way up from an ordinary agent just by luck.

"I believe you will give me the answer." Suppressing the countless doubts and questions swirling in his mind, Fury chose to hand over control of the conversation to Kei.

—Buzz!

A high-energy but incredibly subtle fluctuation rippled from the sky.

Still lounging in his beach chair, Kei raised an eyebrow and gestured for Fury to wait a moment.

Then, with a single step forward—

Through the void of Yomotsu Hirasaka, he instantly appeared outside the multi-layered magical defenses of Kamar-Taj.

"I never expected you to become the new Sorcerer Supreme." A weary, ancient voice echoed in his ears.

Odin, who had come seeking help, had been unusually courteous this time, choosing to knock on Earth's door from outside rather than simply hurling Thor and Mjölnir onto the planet.

"The world is unpredictable. I didn't expect it myself."

"As the wielder of the Eye of Agamotto, you must have already seen it."

"Would you care to add a little… extra challenge for him?"

"That is exactly what I had in mind. Asgard will remember our friendship, and you are always welcome as a guest." Odin was clearly furious with Thor. Without a moment of hesitation, he immediately agreed to let Kei increase the difficulty of his son's upcoming trial.

"I'll be sure to visit." Kei smirked.

With a casual wave of his hand, a gap opened in Kamar-Taj's planetary defense array.

The light of the Bifröst shot through the opening, hurling Thor and Mjölnir straight toward New Mexico.

Kei sealed Earth's protective enchantments once again.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the exhausted Odin ended the conversation, and he immediately returned to the top floor of Tony's mansion.

Before Mordo and the others could even ask what had just happened, he swiped both hands in front of him, and two golden, shimmering mirrored projections appeared before the group.

One displayed Mjölnir, which had crashed into the ground and left a massive crater. The other showed Thor, lying unconscious, his fate uncertain.

Kei leaned back into his lounge chair, gazing at the projection as he spoke casually:

"Odin just contacted me. He wants to send his son to Earth for some training."

"Sorcerer Supreme, what should we do?" Fury's one eye gleamed as he studied the man and the hammer in the crater.

"Isn't handling threats and anomalies beyond ordinary human capability exactly what SHIELD is for?" Kei deflected the responsibility onto Fury without hesitation.

He was the noble and righteous Sorcerer Supreme now, getting his hands dirty wasn't his job.

Asgardian bloodline… A unique cellular structure that grows stronger with age… Very valuable research material. Maybe he could pass some samples to Orochimaru and see if there were any interesting results.

As for Mjölnir? Just leave it there and let SHIELD analyze it. Would they even figure anything out?

If they could, they wouldn't have let half of New York get destroyed when the Chitauri army invaded.

Still, he might check it out later. After all, he had already replicated Gungnir, copying Mjölnir wasn't too much to ask, was it?

Fury immediately understood the deeper meaning behind Kei's words. But this burden? He had no choice but to bear it. After all, dealing with extraterrestrial beings was part of SHIELD's jurisdiction.

Still, this was Odin's son they were talking about.

They'd have to be careful… Could Carol even handle The All-Father?

"We'll be taking our leave now."

Seeing Mjölnir, countless thoughts raced through Fury's mind. A powerful extraterrestrial weapon was exactly what SHIELD needed. As for why this Sorcerer Supreme had invited him here? Since the man wasn't in a hurry to reveal his reasons, he wouldn't ask either.

Sorcerers, they always spoke in half-truths and acted mysteriously.

At least, his two previous sorcerer acquaintances had always been like that.

"Don't enter our information into SHIELD's database. From now on, JARVIS will handle all matters related to keeping sorcerer-related data hidden." Kei smiled as he waved them off, casually dropping a reminder to Fury.

The fact that Fury had already noticed irregularities within SHIELD meant… Perhaps it was time to trigger a few changes early.

"…Thank you for the warning."

Fury stood up, gave another respectful nod, and felt his bad premonition confirmed. He couldn't sit still any longer. Hurriedly, he and Coulson boarded the Quinjet and left Tony's mansion.

BANG!

Just as Fury departed, a loud door slam echoed from the master bedroom on the second floor.

Pepper, her face still slightly flushed, stormed out of the room, slipping into a long dress with an expression of pure rage.

Taking a deep breath, she turned to the people on the mansion's balcony.

Forcing a stiff smile, she said, "Apologies, I have company matters to handle. I wish you and your fellow sorcerers a wonderful time."

Kei, who definitely knew what had happened, simply waved a hand, indicating it was fine. Without another word, Pepper hurriedly donned the Mark 6 suit and left the mansion.

Click.

The bedroom door creaked open as a trembling hand pushed it ajar. A curled-up, visibly pained Tony peeked out and immediately called down to the man descending the stairs.

"Wong! Do me a favor and use your magic to send me to a hospital. I think I might need some medical assistance."

Wong adjusted his robes, a hint of amusement on his face.

"Allow me to introduce myself—Wong. Master of the Mystic Arts. Guardian of Kamar-Taj's three Sanctums. Keeper of the Library. Skilled in various forms of White Magic. I am the medical assistance you need."