"Magneto is going to take action himself!"
The moment those words spread through the cathedral, the crowd erupted with excitement. The mutants who had just been stunned by Jack's overwhelming strength suddenly looked energized again.
"This kid is pretty capable if he forced Magneto to step in."
"Too bad no matter how strong he is, he's no match for Magneto!"
"Magneto, kill him!"
"Kill him!"
The entire church filled with wild cheering and bloodthirsty shouts. To these mutants, Magneto was far more than just a leader. Over the years he had gradually become something close to a mythic figure.
In their eyes, Magneto was a living god of war.
Once Magneto made a move personally, they believed there was only one outcome waiting for Jack—death.
The Joker, Bane, Scarecrow, and Wonder Woman all tensed up immediately. Even they could not ignore the threat of Magneto stepping in personally.
"Jack," Wonder Woman called out involuntarily.
"It's fine," Jack said calmly.
He glanced back at her reassuringly before looking up toward the platform where Magneto floated in the air.
"Let's begin."
Magneto frowned slightly. He honestly couldn't remember the last time someone had asked him to make the first move.
"Pfft… clink… clink…"
Magneto slowly raised his right hand. The metal nails embedded in the chairs around the cathedral began to tremble before tearing free and floating into the air.
Under Magneto's control, the nails twisted and reshaped themselves, stretching into razor-sharp blades of different lengths.
The next second, the blades shot forward with explosive speed.
"Boom!"
The sharp metal streaks cut through the air with sonic cracks as they pierced straight through Jack's body.
"Kill him!"
"My God! Magneto killed that kid in one move!"
"Long live Magneto!"
Excited cheers exploded from every corner of the cathedral as the mutants celebrated what looked like an instant victory.
But Magneto himself suddenly turned pale.
His eyes widened with unmistakable alarm.
"Dead already?" Scarecrow muttered in disbelief.
"The boss just died like that?"
The Joker rolled his eyes and sneered. "Idiot. Look closer."
Scarecrow blinked and stared again at Jack's body, which was still standing upright with several blades piercing straight through it.
Then he noticed something strange.
The holes in Jack's body weren't bleeding. Instead, the edges were dissolving like drifting sand.
"Wait… what?"
Scarecrow rubbed his eyes in confusion as Jack's body began fading faster and faster until it completely vanished.
"That's because he moved so fast he left an afterimage," the Joker explained calmly.
"In other words, Magneto never hit him."
"An afterimage?"
Scarecrow looked completely stunned.
"What just happened?"
"Where did that guy go?"
"Was that some kind of superpower?"
Panic spread among the mutants as they realized something had gone terribly wrong.
Magneto's sharp eyes scanned the entire cathedral, but he could not find Jack anywhere.
Without hesitation, Magneto lowered his hand.
The metal plate beneath his feet instantly stretched outward and folded upward, forming a thick protective shell around him like a metallic cocoon.
Just as the cocoon was about to seal completely, a voice suddenly whispered beside his ear.
"My turn."
At the same moment, Jack appeared directly in front of him as if materializing from thin air.
His fist shot forward.
Magneto felt a moment of relief. The protective cocoon would block the attack for him.
As soon as the impact was absorbed, he raised his hand again and attempted to manipulate the metal outside the cocoon.
This time he used every piece of metal in the cathedral. Benches, chandeliers, railings—everything trembled violently as Magneto prepared a devastating counterattack.
But before the metal objects could break free from their positions, Magneto saw the cocoon deform.
A fist punched straight through the metal shell.
"Bang!"
The metal fist smashed violently into Magneto's chin.
The force sent him flying backward uncontrollably, blasting through the cathedral wall and soaring into the night sky.
The punch left Magneto completely stunned.
He quickly stabilized himself using his magnetic field and opened several small holes in the cocoon to observe the outside.
But the only thing he saw was another fist rapidly growing larger in his vision.
"Bang!"
This time even his magnetic field couldn't stabilize him.
Magneto was blasted away again like a missile.
Inside the cathedral, a mutant with telescopic vision kept shouting updates to the crowd.
"Magneto flew out!"
"Magneto got blasted away again!"
"My God… Magneto can't even fight back!"
"Magneto looks like he fainted!"
Silence gradually fell over the cathedral.
When Jack finally walked back in dragging Magneto's unconscious body behind him, the mutants were so terrified they barely dared breathe.
Jack tossed Magneto casually into the center aisle.
"What's the matter?" he said lightly. "Are you all still waiting here for me to treat you to dinner?"
The mutants looked at each other nervously.
Then someone broke first.
One by one they hurried past Jack before sprinting out of the cathedral as fast as they could.
War against humanity?
With someone like this guarding the humans, who would be crazy enough to throw their life away?
"Jack."
Wonder Woman walked over with a smile.
Everyone else knew Jack was powerful. Only she knew he hadn't even used his full strength against Magneto.
"Boss, you're amazing!" Scarecrow shouted excitedly while running over.
"You're incredible! I swear I'll follow you for life. If you eat meat, just let me drink the soup!"
Soon the cathedral fell quiet.
Only three mutants remained.
Magneto.
Juggernaut.
Mystique.
Jack glanced at Mystique with surprise.
"Why didn't you run?"
Mystique looked down at Magneto's unconscious body.
"I'm taking him with me."
Jack raised an eyebrow slightly.
That was real loyalty.
Mystique had once been close with Professor X and Magneto. In the end, she chose Magneto.
"I'm afraid that's not possible yet," Jack said calmly. "I still have some questions for him."
Mystique frowned but didn't argue.
She knew perfectly well she had no advantage against Jack.
If he wanted to keep Magneto, she had no way of taking him away.
"Ugh…"
A deep groan suddenly echoed nearby.
Juggernaut slowly opened his eyes and shook his head groggily. The moment he saw Jack, anger exploded across his face.
"Kid! I'm going to kill you!"
Despite his massive size, Juggernaut moved with terrifying speed as he charged forward like a runaway tank.
But in Jack's eyes, everything looked slow.
Jack stepped forward calmly and caught Juggernaut's incoming fist with one hand.
"Bang!"
A second later, Jack's punch smashed into Juggernaut's head.
Juggernaut's massive helmeted head rocked back and forth twice before his body collapsed to the ground again.
He fainted instantly.
Jack turned back toward Mystique.
"If you answer a few questions for Magneto," he said casually, "you can take both of them with you."
"What do you want to know?" Mystique asked.
Jack glanced briefly at Magneto lying unconscious on the floor.
"I know Magneto didn't come up with this war himself," he said calmly.
"Tell me. Who's the one pulling the strings behind him?"
Mystique shook her head.
"I don't know. I've never seen Magneto privately contacting anyone else."
Wonder Woman stepped forward slightly.
"Should we use the Lasso of Truth?"
Jack shook his head.
"I don't think she has any reason to lie."
Then he asked another question.
"Where is Scarlet Witch?"
Mystique answered honestly.
"To be honest, we've been searching for her too."
"If she joined us, we would definitely win the war against humanity."
Jack fell silent for a moment before nodding.
"Alright. You can take them."
Mystique blinked in surprise.
"You're really letting us go?"
Neither of her answers had really helped him.
"Otherwise," Jack said with a small grin, "did you really expect me to invite you to dinner?"
Mystique hesitated briefly before bending down and hoisting Magneto over her shoulder. With her other hand she dragged Juggernaut along the floor.
After the three of them disappeared outside the cathedral, Scarecrow scratched his head and asked nervously.
"Boss… we're really just letting them go?"
"Isn't that a little too generous?"
"Should we follow them?"
Jack shook his head.
"No need."
He looked calmly toward the night outside the cathedral.
"My goal is already accomplished."
"It won't be long before the one hiding behind Magneto comes looking for me."
…
"Ugh…"
Magneto groaned softly as he opened his eyes.
He found himself sitting in the passenger seat of a car.
Juggernaut lay unconscious across the back seat.
Mystique was driving.
"You're awake," she said while glancing at him.
Magneto rubbed his aching head.
"What happened?"
Mystique quickly explained everything that had occurred after he lost consciousness.
"That magician named Jack is far stronger than we expected," she concluded.
"As long as he's around, we probably can't win this war."
Magneto glanced back at Juggernaut and sighed inwardly.
The war between mutants and humans had collapsed before it even truly began.
Still unwilling to give up, he spoke after a moment of thought.
"Investigate that man named Jack."
"I want to know exactly who he is."
Mystique nodded seriously.
Suddenly a figure appeared directly in front of the car.
Startled, she slammed the brakes.
The car clearly struck something.
But when she looked back, the road was empty.
"Did I just hit someone?" she asked in confusion.
Magneto frowned.
"It doesn't seem like it."
Mystique was certain she had hit something.
Just as she was thinking about it, a woman suddenly appeared outside Magneto's window.
"You're looking for me?"
The sudden voice right beside him startled even Magneto.
He turned his head.
A woman with long red hair stood outside the car window.
"Wanda!" Magneto exclaimed.
The woman outside the window was none other than Scarlet Witch.
Scarlet Witch was one of the most powerful sorcerers in existence. Even Doctor Strange could not compare with her raw magical power.
She possessed many identities.
Mutant.
Sorceress.
Most people only knew about her chaos magic, but few understood the real source of her power.
The Darkhold.
The forbidden book's power had gradually twisted her mind and pushed her toward darkness.
"Wanda," Magneto said quickly, "get in the car. I need to discuss something important with you."
Scarlet Witch glanced at the unconscious Juggernaut in the back seat.
She lifted her left hand slightly.
The car door opened.
A swirl of red mist floated onto Juggernaut's body.
Juggernaut suddenly levitated and was thrown out onto the roadside.
Mystique frowned slightly but said nothing.
"Drive," Magneto ordered calmly.
During the drive, Magneto explained how the mutants had planned to wage war against humanity and how Jack had stopped it.
After listening quietly, Scarlet Witch asked a simple question.
"You want me to kill Jack?"
Magneto smiled faintly.
"If you're willing… I'd be very grateful."
Scarlet Witch thought seriously for a moment before speaking.
"I can help you kill Jack."
"But I have one condition."
"What condition?" Magneto asked.
Scarlet Witch's voice turned cold.
"A powerful mutant has recently been resurrected."
"Not long ago, that person tried to control me."
"Tell me who he is."
"And where I can find him."
Magneto's expression changed slightly.
After hesitating for a moment, he spoke slowly.
"Wanda… all I can tell you is that he is the first mutant in the world."
"And the most powerful mutant to ever exist."
"I know his actions might have angered you."
"But I strongly advise you not to provoke him."
Scarlet Witch sneered.
"You misunderstood something."
"It's not that I want to provoke him."
"He provoked me first."
"I know, Wanda. Let's not talk about this anymore. I—"
Before Magneto could finish speaking, Scarlet Witch raised her hand.
An invisible force grabbed Magneto's throat from across the car.
Before Mystique could react, a powerful force hurled her out of the vehicle along with the door.
The car continued racing down the road at high speed.
Inside the car, Scarlet Witch spoke expressionlessly.
"I don't want to hear any more nonsense."
"Just tell me where I can find him."
Magneto struggled painfully against the invisible grip.
"Wanda… I did this for your own good."
"Even if you kill me, I won't let you go find him!"
"In that case…"
Scarlet Witch tightened her fingers.
"Crunch."
Magneto realized she truly intended to kill him. He immediately used his power to twist the metal of the car, forming a cage that trapped Scarlet Witch inside while he jumped out of the moving vehicle.
....
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