Walking on the streets of Sokovia, Sebastian frowned slightly as he noticed graffiti on a nearby wall condemning Iron Man and Tony Stark's weapons.

He recalled that Tony had shut down the weapons business years ago, so how were Stark Corporation's weapons ending up in the hands of terrorists in Sokovia still now?

Were they remnants from the past?

He shook his head and decided to inform Tony about this later, letting him deal with it. As for himself, he wouldn't get involved in these matters.

After Sebastian returned home, he stayed there for an entire week, and Alisha never left his side. When he finally set out this time, Sebastian immediately headed to Sokovia to search for Wanda and Pietro. Sebastian suspected they might have been taken by Hydra.

Whether they were captured because their foreign identities were uncovered or for other reasons, that was something Sebastian couldn't determine.

Entering the rundown house before him and seeing the dust on the table, Sebastian realized no one had lived here for some time. After a brief search, Sebastian confirmed that four people had once resided here. He raised his right hand slightly, and a red hair floated up, hovering above his palm.

Holding the hair between two fingers, Sebastian traced a fiery line with two fingers of his other hand and gestured to open a portal, using the hair to locate its owner. This magic was a variation of Kamar-Taj's portal magic, but to Sebastian's surprise, the portal failed to open.

The portal could sense the essence of the hair's owner, Wanda, but it was disrupted and couldn't pinpoint Wanda's location, so the portal wouldn't form!

It was being disrupted. This likely meant the Mind Scepter was involved.

With this realization, Sebastian didn't linger. Since magical methods were disrupted and ineffective, he would have to rely on conventional approaches or simply wait for them to surface to find them.

----------------------------

Triskelion Building, Washington.

Nick Fury sat at his desk, discreetly investigating issues tied to Project Insight. Though he'd verified the plan's integrity multiple times, as a seasoned agent, he sensed something amiss. Recently, S.H.I.E.L.D. felt off, with many matters slipping beyond his grasp.

As Fury pondered, a portal opened, and Sebastian stepped into his office. Facing Fury, Sebastian settled in front of the desk and said, "It's been a while, Director Fury."

"It's been some time. We thought you perished in the Battle of New York." Fury's gaze flicked to the Space Stone on Sebastian's left hand, its glow dim, and added, "I, and all of S.H.I.E.L.D., are relieved you're safe. You're heroes defending Earth. Losing one of you is a tragedy."

"Thanks for the concern."

"If you could show that gratitude by being less antagonistic toward S.H.I.E.L.D., I think our team would appreciate it."

Sebastian smiled at Fury and said, "Director Fury, you're aware of Hydra, aren't you?"

Fury's expression hardened. He lowered his crossed legs, sat upright, and asked gravely, "Sebastian, what are you implying?"

Snap! Sebastian snapped his fingers, sending invisible waves rippling through the office, disrupting all electronic devices, whether active or dormant.

After this, Sebastian said, "Director, do you truly believe Hydra is gone? Why did S.H.I.E.L.D. grow so swiftly in the past? Are there areas within S.H.I.E.L.D. even you can't access? Answer these three questions, and you'll uncover the truth."

After a prolonged silence, Fury met Sebastian's gaze and said deeply, "You didn't come just to warn me, did you?"

"Of course not. I need your help, and those three questions are the price. I want you to monitor two people, using only those you absolutely trust. If you locate them, I'll answer your questions early."

Sebastian pulled out his phone and sent two photos to Fury.

Fury studied Sebastian, then nodded slowly. "Deal."

"Pleasure working with you, Director Fury."

Sebastian stood, opened a portal, and vanished from Fury's office. Once he left, the office's electronics resumed functioning. Fury's face betrayed no emotion as he continued handling his tasks.

Approaching S.H.I.E.L.D. directly risked tipping off Hydra.

But if Hydra were alerted, they'd likely act, possibly separating the Mind Scepter or other items blocking Heimdall's sight from Wanda, Pietro, and others. Then, Heimdall could pinpoint their exact location and track them.

With Heimdall's aid, it was like having a cosmic-level surveillance system, with little escaping his notice.

If Heimdall weren't so devoted to Asgard, Sebastian would eagerly recruit him. Once his magic school is established, Heimdall could serve as its guardian and he can escape his death also, sparing Sebastian considerable effort.

———

"Mr. Shaw, Dr. Kaecilius is available now. You may enter."

Sebastian nodded at the secretary, stood, and walked into Kaecilius' office at the psychological clinic. As the secretary closed the door, Kaecilius rose and bowed to Sebastian.

"Master Sebastian, I knew you were safe!"

"How did you know?"

"I've studied your magic, Master Sebastian, the foundation of the new magical system. If anything happened to you, I couldn't continue learning, and existing spells might falter. Since I've faced no issues, I knew you were unharmed."

"While I was away, your magical studies weren't interrupted?"

"No, everything proceeded smoothly!"

Hearing this, Sebastian grew pensive, a new idea sparking in his mind.

Some time ago, Sebastian was in the X-Men's world, another parallel universe, yet he maintained his connection with Kaecilius, enabling Kaecilius to study his new magical system.

In other words, Sebastian, having begun to forge magical authority, and now held traits of a Dimension Lord and Magic Source. He could bridge vast distances across parallel worlds, linking with those studying his magic in different realms.

His earlier plan to recruit disciples only from this world needed revision. Sebastian realized that for his magic school, he could seek students from multiple parallel universes, spreading magic widely to accelerate its growth. With the Space Stone in hand, this was entirely feasible.

With this new idea, Sebastian paused, then said to Kaecilius, "Kaecilius, how is the mage recruitment I tasked you with progressing?"

"Master Sebastian, the mages have been recruited as you requested, but their loyalty requires improvement. I believe they shouldn't access anything too sensitive yet."

"Very well, proceed as you see fit. Inform them that if they serve us loyally, we'll provide wands and teach beginner magic after one year, intermediate magic after three years, and advanced magic after ten years. If they agree, they can start now. Should they betray us, we'll snap their wands, strip their magic, and leave them as ordinary people."

"Understood!"

"Your next task is to prepare five hundred crows, raised according to my instructions. Also, gather the necessary magical materials promptly. I'll provide the required funds soon. You needn't worry about the magic school's location or construction—I'll handle that."

"Within a year, we'll meet your demands."

"Balance speed with quality, but don't rush recklessly. Prioritize preparing everything I've asked for. A slight delay is fine, especially with the crows—be meticulous, as I have no more of the magic potions I provided."

"Got it!"

Nodding, Sebastian didn't linger. Kaecilius had been liaising with the New York police lately, often tackling cases by analyzing suspects psychologically, keeping him busy. Sebastian had come only to assign tasks, so he turned and left without delay.