"It's no problem if you want a laboratory, but are you sure you can control this thing?" Artoria looked at Victor with some surprise. It was quite funny that this person would actually come to find her. A villainous boss coming to find a publicly promoted superhero—one had to admire Victor's courage. Wasn't he afraid she would hand him over to S.H.I.E.L.D. directly? Especially since there were wanted posters for Victor everywhere, with a bounty reaching a million dollars. This wasn't a small amount, and she wondered who Victor had offended. To give such a high bounty, this matter was definitely not simple. But Artoria didn't care. She had planned to refuse Victor directly, but when the Symbiote on Victor emerged and tried to attack her, Artoria changed her mind upon seeing it.
"But this is a powerful force, Ms. Artoria. Please rest assured, I will definitely control it."
Sensing that his body and the Symbiote were unable to move, as if a pair of large hands were gripping them tightly, this feeling didn't make Victor feel afraid. Instead, he looked at Artoria thoughtfully. This power was definitely obtained from being infected by that powerful cosmic storm in outer space, just like Reed and the others. But even so, he hadn't heard that Ms. Artoria possessed such powerful telekinesis-like abilities. It was evident that Artoria was already an outstanding powerhouse before this. The more he analyzed it, the more he felt that Artoria was a mystery. Seeing that Artoria had agreed to his request without even mentioning what she needed in return, Victor assured Artoria.
"I Hope Mr. Victor can train his little pet well and not let it run around."
Artoria looked with interest at the Symbiote, which was baring its fangs and brandishing its claws at her. The Symbiote was currently connected to Victor on one side, and that slime-like mass formed a ferocious head, opening a mouth full of sharp teeth and roaring at Artoria, seemingly wanting to 'eat' her or perhaps wanting to parasitize her. No one knew the thoughts of this Symbiote, but judging by its appearance, it was very interested in Artoria.
"Saturday, prepare a quiet laboratory for Mr. Victor."
After carefully observing the appearance of this Symbiote, she discovered that this guy was neither 'Venom' nor 'Carnage', nor was it 'Anti-Venom'—it wasn't any of the Symbiotes she knew. This made Artoria lose interest in this Symbiote instantly. After all, the more famous Symbiotes were just 'Venom' or the descendants of 'Venom' and 'Carnage', and those whose strength was displayed were very powerful. Symbiotes not related to Venom or 'Carnage' were basically cannon fodder. Although she lost most of her interest, Artoria was curious about what kind of sparks Victor and the Symbiote could create in the end.
"Just as I thought, Ms. Artoria. You are not some hypocritical messenger of justice, but a genuine powerhouse and businesswoman. Thank you for investing in me; I will not let you down."
After finalizing this, Victor's attitude was the complete opposite of the arrogance and rudeness he showed when meeting S.H.I.E.L.D. He assured Artoria very politely, like a modest gentleman. If Phil or Nick saw this, they would definitely be so angry they'd faint! This guy was not only a superficial person who judged by appearance, but he also had heavy sexism. He was arrogant and rude to men, but in front of women, he pretended to be a refined gentleman. It was truly speechless.
"I Hope you can gain something."
Listening to Victor's assurance, Artoria smiled indifferently. That line should be used to fool those ignorant young girls! Having been a man in her previous life, Artoria knew there wasn't much feasibility in that statement; it was just polite talk. Since this side decided to pay the price, it meant that Artoria was confident in squeezing out utilization value from Victor. As for what Victor did, that was his own business. If Artoria lost money, it could only be considered her own bad luck for not calculating well; she couldn't blame Victor. Conversely, if Victor lost, it would mean he was inferior in skill and had to admit defeat. That was the potential meaning of Victor. He was a businessman who preferred trading with people rather than making losing deals with political organizations. Therefore, he wouldn't cooperate seriously with Nick and the others. But Artoria was different. She disdained to participate in any organization. The influence of the stark family was global, and no one wanted such a giant to enter politics. As long as she went to make her own money, no one would provoke her. He liked doing business with people like this.
"What an ambitious guy."
After sending Victor away, Artoria sat on the sofa, watching the S.H.I.E.L.D. video that Saturday had stolen from the computer. It contained footage of Victor doing experiments. Ever since Victor appeared in front of her, Artoria had asked Saturday to investigate some of Victor's recent affairs. Nothing could be hidden from Saturday, this artificial life form. Soon, the video was placed on Artoria's desktop. Watching the experiments Victor did and the final explosion, Artoria finally understood the ins and outs of the matter. In other words, this guy couldn't stay in S.H.I.E.L.D. anymore and came to seek refuge with her.
Using the Symbiote as a bargaining chip, he hoped to make her invest in him. After Artoria calmly finished watching all the videos, she didn't look angry at all. The deal had been reached, and she never regretted what had already happened. She was just very curious about what kind of surprise Victor could bring her. After all, Victor, who carried the bloodline of a Witch, actually possessed super-strong magical talent. If the Symbiote replicated it, wouldn't there be a Symbiote that could use magic? Artoria was curious about what kind of turmoil the world would face after such a Symbiote appeared. This thing really liked to eat people!
"The thing this world lacks the least is ambition. I just Hope your ability is worthy of your ambition!"
Artoria suddenly said this while watching the video. She didn't know if it was said to Victor, but the warning tone in it was very strong. The Symbiote strengthened the body while also devouring the host's life. Once the energy supply was insufficient, it was possible for the Symbiote to eat the host. She didn't know if Victor could beat the Symbiote or who between the two of them would survive. It was truly something to look forward to.
"By the way, tell Mr. Victor to take two pieces of material from the Symbiote and send them to Tony and Maya, and let them both study it. Compared to this 'unreliable' Mr. Victor, Maya and my brother are clearly more reliable."
As she got up to have another cup of milk tea, Artoria suddenly remembered. In the comics, Tony possessed a silver Symbiote suit. Although the Tony in that Marvel Universe belonged to a cruel monarch character, it was undeniable how powerful and cool the Symbiote suit was. Since the Tony of that world could manufacture it, the Tony of this world could do the same. As long as the Symbiote was in place, Artoria believed that this Symbiote suit could definitely be stronger than all the suits in the Mark series.
"Yes, Master."
After hearing Saturday's cute reply, Artoria let out a deep sigh of relief. If possible, it was best not to touch things like Symbiotes; this thing was too dangerous. Especially the God of Symbiotes, Knull—that was a threatening evil God who used the All-Black the Necrosword to decapitate a Celestial. He was a ruthless character. Who knew if these Symbiotes would eventually be connected and controlled by this evil God! Anyway, Artoria didn't intend to touch this disgusting thing unless it was a half-biological, half-mechanical Symbiote suit modified by Tony. To be honest, Artoria didn't really like having something with such self-awareness living in her body.
"Speak! What else are you hiding from me."
Just as Artoria began to set to work on the Symbiote experiment, a new matter arose at Kamar-Taj. Steve looked at the mages who had returned and clearly felt that their numbers were not right. What was going on? Looking at Wong, who had drifting eyes on the side, he understood. This guy definitely had something he was hiding from him. So he sternly questioned Wong. Seeing that he couldn't hide it anymore, Wong finally sighed and led Steve into a room. Inside lay five mages; three were completely dead, and two were on their last breath, the magical fluctuations on their bodies having completely disappeared. This surprised Steve greatly. After becoming a mage, no matter how weak the mage was, there would be obvious traces of magical floating on their body, just like a cook who was covered in the smell of spices. But now that this situation had occurred, it meant that someone had extracted their magic, and those three people had clearly died from having their magic extracted.
"It was Mordo who did it. He has returned."
---------------------------------
I hope you're enjoying the fanfiction so far! If the story has you hooked and you can't wait to see what happens next, you can unlock 30 chapters in advance over on my Patreon: patreon.com/TLHimejima1
Every bit of support means the world to me so if you're loving the ride, don't forget to drop a Power Stone and let me know.