CHAPTER 105: CHAPTER 105: WANDA’S SPECIAL TRAINING PLAN! CASUALTIES AMONG THE ETERNALS!

Gwen was torn.

Would Lorien step in to save the world? Or would they all just move to Cybertron and start over?

But Lorien’s answer was simple:

"You’ll be the one to kill them."

Gwen was dumbfounded.

I’m just Gwen, a part-time superhero because it’s fun. How did saving the world suddenly get dumped on me? I didn’t even do anything!

Wanda was just as curious, glancing at Lorien in confusion.

Lorien only smiled.

"Your Symbiote suit can absorb the essence of slain creatures to grow stronger. In theory, if you slay a Celestial, you can absorb their power and become stronger yourself."

That much Gwen already knew.

"But how am I supposed to kill a Celestial buried deep in the Earth?"

"Rely on the Eternals."

Gwen and Wanda both blinked.

"?"

Weren’t the Eternals supposed to be the Celestials’ lapdogs? Since when were they reliable?

"The Eternals are split. Sersi and Sprite, the ones you saved, don’t want the Celestial to be born. So, in truth, about half of the Celestials’ lackeys are actually traitors. The birth of the Celestial Seed can’t be stopped, but when it first hatches... it’ll be like a chick breaking out of an egg. In that window, with your current strength, killing a Celestial will be no harder than killing a chicken."

That was why Lorien wanted them to wait. He wanted Gwen to be the one to strike—the savior.

Then he turned his gaze to Wanda.

"Your Book of the Vishanti could also be used against the Celestials. But Gwen’s Symbiote armor offers the greatest benefit. That’s why I want her to be the one to kill."

Lorien explained his plan outright, leaving no room for melodrama or misunderstandings.

Sure enough, after Wanda listened, she nodded seriously in agreement.

"Yes, it’s best if Gwen does it. If it doesn’t work, either you or I can step in."

Exactly. Lorien tapped his finger in approval.

If Gwen could handle it, there was no need for him to move. He would only act if Arishem, the Celestial judge, came to Earth. Because against a Universal-level Celestial, only Lorien could fight.

No one else on Earth stood a chance.

In the end, after thinking it through, Gwen understood Lorien was doing this for her sake. She nodded firmly.

"Okay!"

With Gwen’s agreement, the matter was settled.

But Hela spoke up after a moment of thought.

"I know how powerful the Celestials are. The day Odin fought one was the day I felt my seal at its weakest. But honestly, the Eternals are pathetic..."

She glanced at Lorien’s projection, pointing at the one whose eyes could fire beams.

"Only this one seems decent. The rest? What even are these? One just punches. The others have useless powers. These are the Eternals the Celestials created?"

When she finished, Gwen and Wanda both nodded in reluctant agreement. Gwen even added,

"On Cybertron, you’ve got so many Transformers. If they all went into invasion mode, wiping out Earth would be easy."

And she wasn’t wrong.

Lorien looked at the Eternal who fired lasers and sighed with a wry smile.

"Not all lasers are equal."

The three women didn’t understand—until his eyes suddenly glowed red.

A crushing wave of energy filled the room.

"Thump, thump!"

Hela, who had been sitting in front of him, scrambled away, rolling to hide behind him. She was so terrified she didn’t even dare breathe.

Wanda and Gwen were stunned, mouths gaping as wide as they could.

Red sparks crackled in the air.

When Lorien turned his gaze toward them, both trembled violently.

Wanda immediately shrank into his arms.

"That was terrifying!"

Gwen clutched his hand.

"Seriously, that was terrifying just now!"

As for little Hela—she was trembling behind the sofa, still shaken. Just moments ago she had been directly in front of him.

Facing those burning crimson eyes, she had truly thought she was already dead.

Before she even realized it, her legs had already carried her away.

That wasn’t thought. That was pure survival instinct.

But Wanda and Gwen were stranger still. Even as they insisted they were scared, they kept pressing themselves closer into Lorien’s embrace.

For a moment, Lorien couldn’t tell if they were genuinely frightened or just pretending.

But Hela—she was definitely terrified.

"Hela, come out, it’s gone."

"Really?"

Hela first peeked her head out from behind the sofa. Only after confirming Lorien’s eyes had returned to normal did she breathe a sigh of relief and step back into the room. This time, however, she didn’t dare sit in front of him. Instead, she nestled down beside his legs.

After hesitating for a moment, she couldn’t help but ask,

"What was that ability you just used?"

"It’s just ordinary heat vision," Lorien blinked. "But the temperature has no upper limit. If I want, I can release beams hotter than the sun."

Hiss...

Hela’s face twitched at his words. Using the sun as a mere unit of comparison? That was terrifying.

She glanced again at the Eternal with the laser eyes, the so-called low-grade Superman.

"Then this guy really is trash."

And it was true. The beams from his eyes couldn’t even cut through a Deviant. Superman was out of the question. Even Homelander could probably fight him evenly—and the winner would be uncertain.

Lorien checked the time. It was already around seven or eight in the evening.

"Let’s cook."

He rubbed his stomach, then patted the two girls beside him.

"Still scared? If you are, I’ll send you to the bedroom, okay?"

He smiled.

Once they were in the bedroom, things would be different. Fear wouldn’t matter anymore.

Sure enough, at the mention of the bedroom, Wanda panicked the most. She quickly slipped out of Lorien’s arms and hurried toward the kitchen.

"I’ll make dinner."

Gwen, determined to learn how to be a housewife—starting today—followed right after her.

...

That night, after everyone had eaten, they gathered in the little universe’s farmland to relax.

Lorien reclined on a deck chair, enjoying the breeze. When he glanced at Wanda’s plot, he raised his brows.

"Huh? Wanda, your flowers have sprouted."

"Where!?"

Wanda, who had just finished washing dishes with little Hela, rushed over barefoot. Sure enough, the seeds she’d planted that morning already stood as tall as her thumb. They had poked through the soil by midday and fully broken the surface by afternoon.

"That’s great!" Wanda clapped her hands in delight, counting on her fingers. "At this rate, they’ll bloom in less than five days!"

"What’ll bloom?"

Gwen walked over, half-wondering if Wanda herself had been made to bloom. But when she arrived, she saw the little flower field at Wanda’s feet.

"Wow! When did you plant these, Wanda?"

She ran over and crouched down, clearly fascinated. She had always loved things she planted herself.

"Just today," Wanda answered.

Gwen was surprised, but then thought about it. In this place—a little universe—it wasn’t strange at all. She nodded with growing interest.

"Then in the next few days, I’ll bring some seeds too. I want to plant trees!"

"What kind of trees?"

"Any kind."

The two spent quite some time discussing what to plant. But when Gwen finally glanced at the time, she sighed.

"I have to go now."

She waved, then suddenly remembered something.

"Lorien, let’s go see Cybertron tomorrow. It’s been a long time."

Her reminder made Lorien realize it really had been ages since he checked on it.

"Alright. Come early after school tomorrow."

"Okay!"

Gwen waved again, then changed her shoes and left.

Wanda, after admiring her flower seedlings a while longer, returned to her chair and began practicing the Book of the Vishanti.

Lorien smiled as he walked up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"En..."

Wanda tensed, her focus wavering.

"I’m practicing, Lorien..."

"I’m your inner demon. Now you need to practice ignoring distractions—and concentrate on your spellwork!"

Lorien’s face was serious. Only his hands betrayed otherwise.

"I can’t..." Wanda pressed her lips together, already at her limit.

"No!" Lorien’s expression hardened. "You must practice this ability."

"Now listen to me—focus on your ice powers!"

"Alright..."

Wanda closed the Book of the Vishanti, then activated her Demon’s Extract ability.

"Crack!"

In an instant, a scarlet ice flower bloomed before them. But with just a bit of force, Lorien shattered it.

"Crack~"

"Phew..." Wanda gasped for breath.

Lorien smiled. "Keep going."

Though his tone was light, it carried a weight that left no room for refusal. Wanda trembled and could only continue.

She repeated the cycle of condensing and shattering ice over and over, while Lorien steadily raised the difficulty. A genius needed a training regimen that matched their potential—and Wanda’s training was no exception.

At last, with her mana nearly exhausted, Wanda collapsed onto her chair.

Lorien withdrew his hand, still smiling.

"It’s not over yet."

With a wave, the Phoenix Force surged forth. In an instant, Wanda’s depleted energy was replenished.

He scooped her into his arms and whispered softly,

"Don’t forget... there’s still the second round."

His gentle tone fell into Wanda’s ears like a demon’s whisper. She sagged in despair.

"No..."

"No is good."

"Fine then..."

"Good. That means you agreed."

"Uuugh..."

...

The next morning, at nine o’clock, Lorien sat in his office feeling refreshed, one leg crossed over the other.

He picked up an electric shaver and ran it across his jaw. His beard had gotten a little long.

That little detail had caused Wanda quite a bit of trouble last night. Truthfully, though, he hardly had much of a beard, and it wasn’t the prickly kind either. Wanda was just overly sensitive, and there was nothing he could do about that.

"Bzzzz..."

Once finished, Lorien tossed the shaver into his storage space and pulled out a mirror.

He studied his sharp jawline.

"Not bad. Still as handsome as ever."

Satisfied, he put the mirror away, his mood excellent. Though, if he was honest, his good spirits came mostly from last night.

The clash of ice and fire—that alternating rush of scorching heat and numbing cold—was so intense even he had struggled to endure it. Clearly, more practice was in order.

Turning around, he began scrolling through the news.

"Spider-Woman stops a three-headed monster again! They look just like the ones Scarlet Witch defeated before! Could these monsters be a new race?"

"The Face-shaped Planet has vanished! Scientists speculate it’s been pulled into Mars’ orbit!"

"A school bus suddenly turned into a sea of flowers? Is this a new superhero? Has she registered yet?"

"Where is Scarlet Witch? Why has she disappeared again?"

As expected, yesterday’s events dominated the headlines.

The first stories were all about Gwen, with everything else trailing behind.

But since Wanda had chosen the life of a housewife, public news about her had dwindled to almost nothing. People kept asking questions, but no one could answer them—because Wanda simply never left home anymore.

Her days followed the same loop: wake up, wash, cook, tend to the Little Universe, buy groceries, cook again, suffer, and sleep. Then repeat.

You might think—wasn’t that boring?

Lorien didn’t know. He hadn’t asked.

What he did know was that ever since she had the Little Universe, Wanda seemed to feel there weren’t enough hours in the day. Was she bored? Hard to say.

Stretching out on his recliner with his hands behind his head, Lorien closed his eyes.

"Time to slack off. Once the weekend hits, I’ll take Wanda and Gwen out—drop the yacht in the water and sail around the world."

...

Meanwhile, in a remote state in the U.S., Gilgamesh—known as One Punch Man—had prepared a lavish lunch for his companions.

Inside a rundown suburban house, several Eternals were gathered: knock-off Superman, knock-off Flash, knock-off One Punch Man, knock-off Wonder Woman, and so on.

Their former occupations had been even stranger. Some filmed Bollywood movies, some hid away in the mountains, others taught children.

And among them was one who appeared to be a little girl—but in reality, she was over a thousand years old. This was Sprite, the one Gwen had saved earlier.

Now, they were all happily digging in.

The Bollywood Eternal chuckled as he teased,

"The Avengers are such a mess now. Who do you think is leading them? Cap? Or Tony Stark?"

The question was deliberately provocative. After all, Cap had vanished, hiding in Wakanda with the Winter Soldier, and Tony had already announced his retirement. Clearly, the Eternal was just trying to stir up drama.

"I think they’ll rank leadership by strength now. With Cap and Stark gone, who’s the strongest Avenger?"

The question hung in the air. After a moment’s thought, everyone answered in unison.

"Scarlet Witch!"

She really was strong. They had heard of her exploits, and after seeing battle footage, they knew she was terrifyingly powerful.

Sersi then added a reminder.

"Not just Scarlet Witch. Another member of the Goddess Alliance—Spider-Woman—is also very strong."

"She was the one who saved me and Sprite last time."

"To her, those three massive Deviants were like paper. She sliced through them with ease."

"But she wasn’t interested in getting further involved. She left without saying a word to us."

Though Sersi spoke matter-of-factly, her words clearly made Ikaris—laser eyes—uncomfortable.

He was supposed to be the strongest among them. Hearing his teammate heap praise on outsiders, he immediately snapped back,

"That’s only because I wasn’t there. Otherwise, not one of those Deviants would’ve made it out alive."

His declaration froze the table in silence.

Sersi shook her head.

"You have no idea how dangerous it was. That humanoid Deviant had self-healing abilities. And the way it regenerated was very similar to Ajak’s. Have any of you seen Ajak?"

Everyone shook their heads.

Just then, Gilgamesh set down the final dish on the table.

Clapping his hands, he asked,

"The food’s ready. So, what’s the plan?"