"You two tore my clothes—you'll have to pay for that," Fenric said calmly.
The moment his voice fell, his mind power surged forth.
"Careful!!"
Jean reacted first, shoving Cyclops out of the way just in time. A split second later, Fenric's telekinetic grip would have snapped his neck like a twig.
Interrupted by Jean, Fenric showed no sign of irritation. His fist, cloaked in white energy, smashed forward and collided with Wolverine's forehead.
Crack!
The air itself seemed to shatter. Wolverine's eyes burst, scattering into bloody fragments, and his brain was reduced to pulp. His body flew backward, crashing through the Statue of Liberty's wall before vanishing into the night sky.
"Adamantium really is tough," Fenric muttered to himself.
Two brothers with healing factors—yet Sabretooth had been obliterated with a single blow, while Wolverine still clung to life. The only difference was the indestructible Adamantium skeleton reinforcing his body.
Under Fenric's immense strength and destructive force, almost anything would have been crushed to dust. But Adamantium endured.
Once, Fenric might have coveted the rare metal. Now, he found it hardly worth the effort. Artifacts like Thor's Ring or Poseidon's Trident were the only treasures that caught his eye.
The lack of a system notification confirmed what he already suspected—Logan wasn't dead.
"His brain's pulp, yet he still clings to life? Logan's regeneration is absurd," Fenric frowned, though only briefly.
Even if the man could heal, it would take time. Fenric had no reason to care about a headless Wolverine.
"Logan!!" Jean screamed.
Above, Storm hovered in the air, her eyes glowing white as she summoned the heavens.
Fenric raised a hand. With a flick of his wrist, a gleaming blade materialized and shot toward the weather goddess like a bullet.
"Jean!"
Startled, Jean's cosmos flared, her telekinesis intercepting the flying blade just in time.
Fenric wasn't surprised. He knew better than anyone how terrifying Jean's potential could become.
"Boom!"
A bolt of lightning tore through the ceiling, striking Fenric dead-on.
Storm had unleashed her full power, calling thunder down in a desperate attempt to bring him down.
Electric arcs danced violently across Fenric's body, cloaking him in blinding light.
But it was useless.
With Thor's Ring on his hand, Fenric was the thunder god's proxy—immune to lightning.
Storm's strongest weapon only served to recharge him. The energy was drawn into the ring and snuffed out like it had never existed.
Fenric stood untouched.
"Better than last time," he said flatly.
"!!!"
Horror flickered across the faces of Storm, Jean, and Cyclops, quickly giving way to despair.
This man wasn't just terrifying—he was inhuman.
"Is he… a god?" Storm whispered, trembling.
Fenric tilted his head, raising his left hand. "No counterattack? Then let me return the favor."
A thunderbolt erupted from his palm, searing through the air at light speed.
Storm had no chance to dodge. The lightning engulfed her, blackening her skin as the scent of charred flesh filled the air. Her body convulsed, then dropped limply from the sky.
"Ororo!!" Jean's scream pierced the air.
"You have slain a mutant. Task progress: 2/1," the system chimed.
Fenric's expression remained calm. He didn't particularly want to kill these mutants, but they had chosen to stand in his way. Besides, his mission required their deaths.
"BASTARD!!" Cyclops roared, grief and rage twisting his face as he charged.
But before he could act, the Statue of Liberty itself rumbled. A deep vibration filled the chamber, followed by the whirring hum of machinery.
Then came a scream.
A girl's cry—raw, agonized.
"That's Anna!" Jean gasped.
Cyclops clenched his fists. "Jean, stop Magneto and save Anna! I'll hold him here!"
"You can't do anything," Fenric said coolly.
And then he vanished.
Whoosh!
A sonic boom split the air as Fenric shot toward Jean like a cannonball. He wanted to test something—to see if he could strike Jean Grey down before the Phoenix within her awakened.
"Jean!"
Cyclops threw himself in front of her, his body blazing with desperation. He would die for her if it came to that.
But to block Fenric's fist with flesh and bone was suicide.
Boom!
The impact detonated like an explosion. Both Cyclops and Jean were hurled away.
Cyclops's body shattered, his limbs torn apart in a bloody spray. He was dead before he hit the ground.
But his sacrifice wasn't in vain.
Jean only suffered the aftershock—enough to knock her unconscious.
Ding—!
"You have killed a mutant. Current task progress: 3/1!"
The system prompt chimed in Fenric's mind. He instantly understood—Jean was still alive.
He had been ready to pursue her, but his expression shifted. Without hesitation, he turned on his heel and left in a flash.
Above his head, beams of light were beginning to radiate outward.
That machine… its energy was spreading.
Any ordinary human who entered that field would have their genes forcibly altered, transforming them into mutants.
Fenric had no intention of becoming one.
What's more, Magneto's device was riddled with flaws. The side effects were severe. A newly created mutant would not live long before their body failed.
Magneto himself was oblivious to this truth. But Fenric knew—he knew the plot.
And so, rather than test his own resilience against that radiation, Fenric chose the safer option: escape.
—---
Elsewhere, on a clearing near the island, the World Summit had already begun.
High-ranking politicians from across the globe sat neatly arranged, listening to the President of America give his speech.
Suddenly, a shout interrupted him.
"Look! The Statue of Liberty—what is that?!"
All eyes turned skyward.
A dazzling white light blazed from the statue, spreading rapidly in every direction.
"Oh my God… is this a miracle?" A reporter whispered.
But the gathered leaders felt a chill run through them. Many panicked, scattering to flee.
"Mr. President!"
Bodyguards rushed to the podium. "We need to evacuate immediately!"
But no matter how fast they ran, the spreading light was faster.
Within moments, the entire clearing was engulfed.
At first, people felt nothing but a racing heartbeat. Confusion replaced fear, and many ceased struggling, choosing instead to marvel at the strange radiance.
"What kind of light is this?"
"Is it truly divine?"
"God bless us!"
"Will this grant us immortality?"
Hopeful whispers rippled through the crowd.
The white light didn't stop. It consumed Liberty Island, then spilled toward New York itself.
At the statue's core, the machine continued to burn the life out of Rogue. Her hair turned completely white, her body withering with every second.
Magneto watched with a triumphant smile.
"Don't fight it, child. You will change the destiny of all mutants! Your sacrifice will be remembered forever! Hahaha!"
His laughter rang wild, like a mad prophet reveling in his success.
—---
Meanwhile, Fenric was sprinting through New York. His mind power and explosive strength propelled him across rooftops like a blazing arrow.
Behind him, the white light chased relentlessly, swallowing citizens one after another.
For half an hour, he ran at full power. The energy drain was immense, enough to kill a normal man outright.
Fenric's physique held, though his breath came heavy. Finally, the light receded.
He slowed, eyes narrowing.
"That radiation… to cover such a wide range. Where did Magneto even get this technology?" He clenched his fists. "It must've only stopped because Rogue's life ran out. Otherwise, the spread would have continued endlessly."
His guess was correct.
Back at the Statue of Liberty, Rogue's lifeless body crumpled, all color drained from her skin. She was nothing but a husk now, sacrificed to Magneto's ambition.