When Galactus said that Karl's soul was the most mysterious he had ever encountered, Karl had already begun to feel uneasy.
When he mentioned the altered timeline and the fact that this universe's future could no longer be observed, Karl had nearly retreated into the Shadow World immediately.
In the end, he restrained himself.
Galactus had never shown him any hostility.
Besides, the flagship and everyone aboard it were already safely hidden inside the Shadow World.
But after hearing everything Galactus had revealed...
Karl didn't know what to say.
He hadn't expected something like this to exist within the Marvel Multiverse.
Yet after thinking about it carefully, Galactus's description made a certain amount of sense.
If even beings and civilizations powerful enough to reach the Multiversal level couldn't leave this entire cosmology, wasn't that essentially another kind of prison?
After reaching the Multiversal level, further improvement would become increasingly difficult.
Without some extraordinary opportunity, progress might depend on accumulating power over unimaginable spans of time.
And reaching the Omniversal level was obviously even harder.
It was entirely possible that beings trapped inside this Multiverse could never reach that level at all—
yet still couldn't leave.
Karl recalled what Galactus had described.
A technological civilization that had developed to the pinnacle of the Multiverse had attempted to break through the boundaries of the cosmology.
Then...
"something" appeared.
That entire civilization was erased, along with the universes under its control.
Technology in Marvel could reach absurd levels.
For something to completely annihilate a civilization that advanced...
there weren't many possibilities.
Karl suddenly thought of one.
The One-Above-All.
The supreme existence standing at the pinnacle of Marvel's cosmology.
Of course, Karl had no evidence.
It was merely speculation.
But just considering the possibility sent a chill down his spine.
Galactus had apparently noticed him while he was still only at the Skyfather level.
And now even Death had personally appeared before him.
As for Cyttorak...
Karl couldn't determine when the Lord of the Crimson Cosmos had first noticed him.
Juggernaut's appearance in the outskirts of New York might genuinely have been a coincidence.
But through Cain Marko, Cyttorak could easily have noticed something unusual about Karl.
After all, Cyttorak normally resided within the Crimson Cosmos.
He couldn't possibly spend every moment personally observing every corner of the Multiverse.
Noticing Karl through his avatar made far more sense.
Then another name entered Karl's mind.
Eternity.
Could Eternity have noticed him as well?
"..."
The more Karl thought, the worse his expression became.
Apparently, he had already entered the sight of far more cosmic beings than he'd realized.
Whoosh!
Karl immediately disappeared.
He entered the Shadow World.
Only after returning to the dimension completely under his authority did he finally breathe a little easier.
Looking back...
he had apparently been dancing along the edge of death for quite some time.
Cold sweat appeared on Karl's forehead.
For a moment, he seriously considered activating the Cosmic Gate immediately and taking everyone away from Marvel altogether.
He was only at the early stage of the Super Single-Universe level.
Yet Multiversal-level beings were already watching him.
And if his existence eventually attracted something even higher...
One mistake could reduce him to nothing.
Karl sighed.
The next moment, he appeared upon the throne inside his enormous room.
He had once thought he was finally powerful enough to control his own fate.
Now he realized that he had never truly stepped outside the game.
The realization left him both irritated and helpless.
Yan appeared beside him.
The moment she saw Karl's expression, her own became serious.
Soon afterward, Ganata, Hela, and Black Phoenix arrived as well.
Gaea, Hera, Aphrodite, Persephone, and Hebe also gathered nearby.
"What happened?"
Yan looked at him with concern.
"Won't you tell us?"
Ganata, Hela, Black Phoenix, and the others also watched him worriedly.
Karl looked around at them.
Then he sighed and repeated everything Galactus had told him.
Apart from Yan, everyone was visibly shocked.
Ganata's reaction was especially strong.
Her father had deliberately sent her to Earth because he hoped Karl might eventually take her beyond the Marvel Multiverse?
Before her thoughts could spiral further, Karl pulled her into his arms.
"Don't overthink it."
He gently held Ganata against his chest.
"Your father may have had his own reasons for sending you to Earth, but what happened between us afterward was real."
Karl lightly stroked her hair.
"You know that, don't you, silly girl?"
Ganata gradually calmed down.
Then she wrapped her arms around Karl.
Yan remained silent for a while, analyzing everything he'd told them.
"In other words..."
"Those beings may have noticed you a long time ago."
"But they don't know whether you truly possess the ability to leave this cosmology."
Karl looked toward her.
"So they've been watching you."
Yan continued calmly.
"Their intervention this time may have been connected to that."
"They hope you eventually gain the ability to leave, but they also want you to grow on your own."
"Unless you reach a certain level—or demonstrate an actual method of leaving—they have no reason to interfere directly."
She frowned slightly.
"But then why haven't any of them simply acted against you?"
"Is it because of Galactus?"
"Or perhaps they're afraid that forcing the issue would destroy the very possibility they're waiting for?"
Yan paused.
"Or..."
"Would openly interfering with you attract the attention of something even they don't want noticing?"
Perhaps—
that supreme existence Karl had just been thinking about.
Karl said nothing.
He simply pulled Yan into his embrace as well.
"My King."
Gaea suddenly spoke.
Karl looked toward her.
"I don't think we need to fear them excessively for now."
The Earth Mother's voice remained calm.
"For the moment, the initiative is still partly in our hands."
"If they truly have been observing you for this long without acting, then they clearly aren't in a hurry."
"They've already waited countless years."
"A little longer means nothing to beings like them."
Gaea continued.
"And until your secret is fully exposed, they probably won't interfere unnecessarily."
"We may even be able to use their interest in you to our advantage while gathering resources and increasing our own strength."
Karl considered her words.
Then his expression finally relaxed somewhat.
"Maybe I've been thinking too pessimistically."
He looked toward Ganata.
"At the very least, I'm fairly certain Galactus won't deliberately harm me."
A smile appeared on Karl's face.
"After all, I'm apparently his future son-in-law."
Ganata's face changed slightly.
Before she could respond, Karl reached out and pulled Gaea into his arms as well, pressing the Earth Mother against Ganata.
Then, without hesitation, he kissed Gaea.
Gaea hadn't expected that simply expressing her opinion would immediately earn Karl's favor.
Her eyes brightened with delight.
She enthusiastically returned his affection.
Right in front of Hera and the other Olympian goddesses, Gaea remained in Karl's embrace for nearly ten minutes before he finally released her.
The surrounding goddesses watched with undisguised envy.
Several immediately regretted staying silent earlier.
If they had spoken first, perhaps they would have been the ones rewarded by Karl.
At that moment—
[Sir.]
Vastness's voice sounded.
[Tony Stark has arrived aboard the flagship and wishes to see you.]
[He is currently waiting in the central lounge.]
Karl raised an eyebrow.
He released the three beauties in his arms.
Then—
Whoosh!
He disappeared.
...
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