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Its battle with the X-Men escalated because of Quicksilver's intervention, which in turn forced Scarlet Witch to step in.
And that inevitably dragged the entire community of sorcerers into the conflict as well.
Truthfully, most sorcerers were fairly independent—put bluntly, selfish. Quite a few had already wanted to flee.
But today's gathering had been called personally by the Sorcerer Supreme.
Normally, the guardian of Earth's magical dimensions did not interfere in Earth's internal affairs. But if that old white-bearded man set his sights on you… did you still plan on living on Earth afterward?
So unless he gave the nod, nobody dared leave.
Once Scarlet Witch made her move, the others naturally followed suit. After all, not a single sorcerer from Kamar-Taj had withdrawn either.
If they truly wanted to leave, they could have opened portals and vanished instantly. Who could possibly stop them?
For now, the sorcerers merely kept their distance, standing ready.
And so Manhattan, New York—having only just resolved the Sentry crisis—was plunged into another great battle.
The only fortunate thing was that this conflict was nowhere near as intense as its earlier clash against the Void.
With prior experience in using speedsters to harass and restrain opponents, Quicksilver managed to keep the enraged figure confined within a limited area. That allowed Cyclops, Storm, and the sorcerers to attack safely from the perimeter.
As someone trying to stop both sides from escalating, Quicksilver naturally did not allow Cyclops or Storm to freely attack it either.
Even if he doubted the two X-Men veterans could actually penetrate that steel-like body, there was still a difference between not attacking and failing to break through its defenses. Those were not the same thing.
Thus, the harassment tactics were not suffered solely by the unfortunate helper Quicksilver had recruited earlier—even Cyclops and Storm were driven nearly crazy by the speedster's interference.
Storm was the first to give up.
Cyclops, however, still burned with hatred.
Whether because he despised the man already, or because Jean still remained writhing in agony, Scott Summers had every reason to be furious.
Just as Superman himself had once gone mad after the death of the woman he loved.
As for Professor X…
Because of Jean Grey's condition and Cyclops's impulsiveness, he immediately linked minds in an attempt to restrain his students.
Then he risked connecting to its consciousness as well, hoping to persuade it and calm it down.
The result?
He got mentally silenced again.
Angry or insane though it might be, its mind was still perfectly functional. Since Professor X had failed to learn his lesson, why should it spare him?
The real reason Quicksilver believed this situation could still be salvaged was the magical assault led by Scarlet Witch and the sorcerers.
As long as they kept dragging things out and let it vent the fury in its chest, things would eventually settle down.
After all, this had been the very strategy the man himself proposed years ago when Jean Grey lost control.
Now Quicksilver was putting that method into practice.
These magical attacks were not elemental blasts or physical strikes.
Instead, they directly targeted the spirit and soul, layering all sorts of negative effects and interference.
Scarlet Witch saw things clearly:
Any attack capable of directly causing damage—whether magical or otherwise—could not harm that man in the slightest.
Thus, they could only rely on restraint tactics while also trying to avoid provoking him further.
But how long could this restraint last?
Even if they somehow maintained it forever, would this situation ever truly end?
How were they supposed to resolve things afterward?
Unlike her brother, Scarlet Witch had no confidence that the problem would simply disappear if they stalled long enough.
Thinking of all this, she could not suppress the discouragement in her heart.
After all, she and her brother had been the ones who recruited this helper, even if it had been under the Sorcerer Supreme's orders.
And now things had turned out like this.
She could not help feeling guilty, causing her attacks to hold back just a little more.
Strangely enough, the sorcerers discovered something odd:
In a true life-and-death battle, holding back even slightly usually meant courting death.
Yet here, the more restraint they exercised, the less pressure they felt in return.
The same applied to Quicksilver.
Otherwise, as a pure speedster, he would have been flattened into meat paste long ago.
The fiercest part of the battle centered around Cyclops.
Jean Grey was still kneeling in agony, while Professor X had fallen unconscious once more. As both her boyfriend and Xavier's student, Scott Summers simply could not deal with the situation rationally.
What he failed to realize was that without Quicksilver mediating in the middle, he probably would have become meat paste already.
Cyclops, however, only grew angrier at Quicksilver's interference. His actions became increasingly aggressive.
Again and again, he warned Quicksilver to stay out of the way, even sweeping his old teammate into the range of his attacks.
All of this was observed by the uninvolved Kamar-Taj sorcerers watching from afar.
Tony Stark was among them.
Thoughtfully, he said,
"Master… is this why you forbade us from mentioning anything related to magic to Henry? So that when something like this happened, magic could still be used against him?"
"Regrettably, yes," the Ancient One admitted calmly.
"If he had come into contact with magic too early, he would have found ways to counter us.
"And then today's matter would have become impossible to resolve. We could only rely on him to deal with the Sentry, while magic remains our sole means of dealing with him."
Though he had not witnessed the earlier events personally, Tony Stark believed Charlize Theron's death was the turning point behind the man's drastic personality shift.
That said, he still had no idea why the guy insisted on dressing in Superman's red-and-blue costume—with the red cape and underwear worn on the outside no less.
Looking at that tasteless outfit, Tony Stark only wanted the man to regain his senses soon so he could properly mock him for it.
The Book of the Vishanti had long since been put away, while the Eye of Agamotto hung quietly upon his chest.
Tony Stark said,
"Master, you should understand that the key to ending this situation isn't defeating someone with magic, is it?"
As he spoke, Tony Stark began forming a casting stance—
Only for the Ancient One to seize his arm.
The Sorcerer Supreme said,
"On the first day I taught you, I already explained the taboo of white magic.
"Sacred magic must never challenge death. Anyone who violates that taboo will not escape simply by saying 'sorry.'
"Not only will the person you wish to save remain unsaved—you yourself will be dragged down as well."
"I see."
Tony Stark suddenly spoke those words while looking at his teacher.
"All my senior brothers sought out Kamar-Taj on their own in pursuit of magical truth. I'm the only one you personally approached.
"You already foresaw today's events, didn't you?"
Tony Stark was not some naive genius ignorant of the world. He might deceive himself at times, but he still understood human nature and worldly realities.
And now he finally understood why his path into Kamar-Taj had been so different.
Releasing her grip on her student, the Ancient One sighed regretfully.
"I truly believed you were qualified to inherit the title of Sorcerer Supreme."
"But now I think magic isn't interesting anymore."
What Tony Stark left unsaid was that following someone with ulterior motives had soured his feelings as well.
Because of the taboo, he had abandoned the idea of using the Book of the Vishanti.
Tony Stark did not consider a bargain worthwhile if it required sacrificing his own life while still failing to save the other person.
So he could only choose another path.
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