As Luca was planning how to deal with Wakanda, things inside Wakanda weren't exactly peaceful either.
In the Wakandan Royal Council Chamber, the elders of the four major tribes were gathered, engaged in a heated debate.
The King of Wakanda, who should have been presiding over the meeting, was absent. Instead, Queen Ramonda sat in the main seat.
However, she looked dazed and distracted, as if she wasn't paying attention to the elders' arguments at all.
But if you listened closely to what the elders were saying, it wasn't hard to understand why Wakanda was in such a state.
"Erik Killmonger has brought back the stolen Vibranium as promised! I don't think there's any need for further debate. Wakanda cannot be without a king!"
The elder of the River Tribe spoke with agitation, the large lip plate on his lower lip trembling violently with his voice.
Clearly, his words didn't sit well with the other elders.
The elders of the Border Tribe and the Mining Tribe spoke up one after another.
"But he didn't bring back the criminal Ulysses Klaue! He only fulfilled half of his promise!"
"Moreover, his operation caused us to lose a fighter jet outside our borders. This could very well have exposed us to the outside world!"
At this point, the elder of the Merchant Tribe, who had remained silent, glanced at the distracted Queen Ramonda and reminded everyone, seemingly trying to mediate.
"But Erik saved Princess Shuri and brought the bodies of His Majesty and Prince T'Challa back to Wakanda..."
"That only earned him the right to return to Wakanda! Capturing Ulysses Klaue was a trial he proposed himself!!"
"But right now, Erik is the only heir to the royal family..."
"We still have Princess Shuri!"
"Are you suggesting challenging Princess Shuri for the throne in the ritual combat?!"
"It is Wakandan tradition. Besides, the cause of death for His Majesty and T'Challa hasn't been..."
"Enough! Shut up!!"
From the main seat, Queen Ramonda, who had been immersed in grief and ignoring the arguments, finally snapped upon hearing the four elders repeatedly mention her dead husband and son. Her expression contorted as she roared in anger, interrupting the endless debate.
The council chamber instantly fell into a deathly silence.
But just then, the massive doors were pushed open from the outside.
The person leading the group that entered was none other than the core of their debate: Erik Killmonger.
Following him were several people the elders knew all too well.
On his left was Princess Shuri, who hadn't been seen for days since returning from the United States.
Behind them stood Okoye, the General of the Dora Milaje, and...
"M'Baku! What are you doing here!"
The elder of the Border Tribe stood up immediately and demanded sharply.
Because the man before them was M'Baku, the leader of the Jabari Tribe, the last of the five major tribes of Wakanda.
Yes, leader, not elder.
Because the Jabari Tribe had always refused to submit to the Wakandan royal family, adhering to primitive hunting traditions and rejecting the use of Vibranium and modern technology.
So this tribe had always lived in seclusion in the snowy mountains. Although they were one of the five tribes, they weren't part of Wakanda's core power structure.
Facing the questioning from the Border Tribe elder, M'Baku simply took a step forward calmly.
But his words were shocking.
"The Jabari Tribe agrees to reintegrate into Wakanda, on the condition that Erik succeeds to the throne!"
As soon as these words came out, everyone's expressions changed slightly.
Their gazes shifted back and forth between Erik and M'Baku, wondering what kind of conditions the late King's exiled nephew had used to persuade the stubborn Jabari Tribe.
But the surprises didn't end there.
After M'Baku finished speaking, Princess Shuri also stepped forward.
"Mother, I also believe Cousin Erik is more suitable to take the throne!"
Now, even Queen Ramonda looked at her daughter in confusion.
However, what Shuri was recalling was the time when she, her father, and her brother went to MIT for an academic exchange and suddenly encountered a rebel uprising.
It was her cousin Erik who descended like a god, saving her from a desperate situation, risking his life to retrieve the bodies of her father and brother, and escorting them back to Wakanda.
Cousin Erik was an MIT graduate and had served in the Marines. Even her brother T'Challa would probably want him to succeed the throne, right?
Thinking of her brother T'Challa, an Oxford graduate who always advocated for openness and exchange...
In Shuri's view, as someone who also received an education abroad, perhaps during such turbulent times, someone like Cousin Erik was more suitable to lead Wakanda.
After she finished speaking, everyone turned their eyes to the last person, General Okoye.
Although she had remained silent since entering the chamber, her presence here alongside Erik spoke volumes.
Seeing this, Queen Ramonda on the main seat no longer remained silent. Sighing softly in her heart, she stood up and walked slowly to Erik Killmonger.
Looking at her nephew, who bowed respectfully and humbly before her, the Queen spoke softly.
"I will prepare the succession ceremony for you!"
But after saying this, she looked at Erik with a serious expression and continued.
"However, you must retrieve that lost fighter jet! Wakandan technology must absolutely not be leaked!"
---
"This is Wakandan technology??"
Inside a laboratory in Sokovia, Luca, directing a swarm of Haros to dismantle the Wakandan fighter jet that had just been brought back, looked at it with utter disdain.
It was hard to say if it was good luck or not.
Because the Wakandan fighter jet used a large amount of Vibranium as its main material...
Even though Wanda's sudden outburst had shot it down, only the jet's thrusters were severely damaged. The overall structure was relatively intact.
However, after dismantling the mostly intact fighter, Luca was greatly disappointed.
It seemed that the reason Wakanda could display a technological level ahead of the times at this stage was mainly due to the miraculous properties of Vibranium.
Roughly speaking, if the outside world's technological level was '1,' Wakanda was merely using Vibranium to make their tech level '1+1.'
At least in Luca's eyes...
If I can understand it at a glance, what kind of high-tech is that?