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*****
Ross's righteous tone made the Guardians freeze for a moment.
"But if it's not Mike Kent—if the Kent family doesn't do it—then who will punish those who fueled the war? Who can punish them?" someone asked.
Ross's expression stiffened. He glared furiously at Rhodes and barked, "Rhodey! You're a soldier—don't forget your duty!"
Falcon Sam muttered under his breath, "He's not wrong though."
When Ross shot him a fierce look, Sam added quietly, "I'm retired."
Ross snorted and looked up at Mike standing high on the platform. He drew in a long breath and took one step forward, then another.
No matter what, he had to at least try to stop Mike—even if the hope was so faint he could barely pretend to see it.
Because he was a soldier. He was Ross. He was a general.
As Ross moved, Mister Fantastic's expression shifted. His three teammates turned to him, clearly waiting for him to decide.
It was obvious that within the Guardians, the Fantastic Four formed their own smaller unit.
Mister Fantastic hesitated.
From the very start, when they got dragged into the X School conflict and were ordered to attack those kids, he had felt nothing but resistance.
Besides, against Mike Kent, they couldn't possibly win.
And there was another thing—deep inside, a voice told him that what Mike Kent was doing now was right.
Just as Rhodey had said: if Mike Kent didn't punish those people, who would? Who dared?
Ross glanced again at his teammates and cursed inwardly.
He'd known it—he never should've recruited these types. Soldiers who followed orders mindlessly would've been easier to use than this group.
Just then, two figures suddenly appeared among them.
One was the Secretary of Defense, his face twisted with panic. The other was a fully shrouded figure in a hood—Rasha.
The Secretary, eyes wide with terror, stared at Mike Kent.
If Rasha hadn't teleported him away just in time, he would already be dead.
"Leon Cohen?" Ross muttered, then asked, "Why didn't you—how did you end up here?"
"Enough nonsense! You Guardians, take him down now!" Leon Cohen snapped, but then noticed the Guardians' hesitation and his heart sank.
Suddenly, his expression froze.
He felt two icy, piercing gazes fall on him.
He turned and met Mike's eyes—eyes that looked ready to kill him at any moment.
"Damn it! If you won't act, then I'll do it myself!"
He said quickly, eyes flashing. "Rasha—do it!"
In that instant, the fully covered Rasha vanished and reappeared beside Invisible Woman and the Human Torch, pressing a hand to each of their faces.
"Ah!"
Both cried out in pain as their powers were rapidly drained.
"You lunatic!" Mister Fantastic roared. He stretched his arms to intercept Rasha, and the Thing charged forward in fury.
Nearby, Rhodes and Sam both flinched in alarm and prepared to strike.
Ross stared in shock and rage at the Secretary of Defense. "You're insane!"
Not only were they here—there were soldiers everywhere. And reckless reporters. If word of this got out...
"If you won't fight, then give your powers to Rasha! Maybe then we'll stand a chance!"
The Secretary's eyes were wild.
He didn't care anymore. If he didn't gamble now, he was doomed anyway.
Rasha's eyes gleamed. Flames suddenly ignited across her body—everywhere except for the hands she was using to drain power.
Seeing this, Mister Fantastic's eyes narrowed. "Ben! Stop!"
He wrapped his arms around the Thing and restrained him.
Rasha was using Invisible Woman and Human Torch to threaten them.
The two glared at Rasha and the Secretary, seething with anger.
Fortunately, after only about ten seconds, Rasha released the Human Torch.
Then she grabbed Invisible Woman and walked toward Mister Fantastic.
He sighed, looked at Invisible Woman with pained eyes, and reached out his hand voluntarily.
The intent was clear—she would drain their powers, but not kill them. If they resisted...
Rasha's hand clamped onto him. His consciousness blurred and pain rippled through him, forcing a cry from his throat.
Seconds later, Rasha tossed him aside and looked at the Thing.
The Thing cursed but didn't move.
She pressed a hand to him and drained his power as well. Then her gaze swept past Rhodes and Falcon without the slightest interest.
The two men: "…"
They felt thoroughly insulted.
"Go, Ross!" the Secretary barked, cold sweat trickling down his forehead.
If Mike wasn't killed, there was nowhere left to run.
He looked at Mike and saw the man watching them with amusement—like someone observing a struggling insect.
Fear, rage, frustration, hatred…
He stared at Mike with venom, cursing the entire Kent family in his heart.
Ross let out a roar. His skin flushed red as he began transforming.
But just as he completed the change, Rasha appeared beside him and pressed a hand to his body.
Ross's eyes widened—then his senses slipped into numbness.
A dozen seconds later, he stared at his weakened body in anger and disbelief.
Just like Mister Fantastic and the others, his powers had vanished—for now.
Ignoring their glares, the Secretary looked to Rasha.
Rasha let out a low shout. Her entire body bulged with power, her skin turning faintly red with cracks of stone spreading through it. Flames flared around her. Then she vanished again.
Not teleportation—but invisibility.
In an instant, she combined several abilities at once.
An instant later, invisible Rasha used teleportation to appear right behind Mike, hand outstretched to strike.
Mike didn't move—he didn't even seem to react.
At that moment, Clark descended from the sky, landing at Mike's side. He reached out and grabbed Rasha.
She startled and noticed the blue glove attached to Clark's suit.
Clark said quietly, "As long as I block your power, that's enough."
Rasha let out a harsh shout and unleashed several abilities at once—
Strength. Fire. Shockwaves.
Clark didn't budge.
Then her arms and legs suddenly stretched like a serpent, trying to coil around him.
Clark vanished and reappeared, holding a psychic inhibitor in his hand.
Last time, Rasha had absorbed his power to keep up with his speed. But this time…
Crack.
Clark crushed the device. Rasha's eyes widened, and before she could attack again, psychic power slipped into her mind and froze her in place.
"Another mutant child turned into a weapon," Mike murmured.
Rasha—was this Rogue?
He looked down at the Secretary with nothing but mockery.
A man who hated mutants and wanted them wiped out—yet his greatest trump card was a mutant girl?
How… laughable.
"Dad, she's a victim too. Please don't harm her. I'll find a way to bring her back to normal."
Charles's voice sounded in Mike's mind.
Charles had clearly been monitoring the situation here.
Mike gave a thought, and Rasha fell unconscious.
He turned his gaze to the Secretary. The man's eyes shrank. He looked around for someone to protect him, but found no one.
The five Guardians had already been 'taken out.' The other two still standing only watched him warily. The nearby soldiers—after seeing him order Rasha to attack his own people—now feared him more than anything.
"Damn it! Falcon! War Machine, you—"
Pfft.
A single soft sound, and a hole appeared in his forehead. His body slumped to the ground.
Mike cast a glance at the corpse as if it were nothing and resumed his work of punishment.
At that moment, the Avengers descended from the sky in a jet.
Tony's missiles, Wanda's energy blasts, Hawkeye's arrows, Hulk's roar, and Pietro—who was first to reach Mike—all launched an attack the moment they appeared.
Clark moved instantly.
He flung Pietro aside, then charged straight at Hulk, slamming him from mid-air to the ground. Heat vision flashed from his eyes, detonating all of Tony's missiles in one sweep. He caught Hawkeye's arrow with his bare hand and used his body to shield against Wanda's blast.
Boom!
With a loud detonation, Hawkeye's arrow exploded.
Clark stepped through the flames and looked at the Avengers.
He stood like an unbreakable shield.
If they wanted to strike his father—they would have to get through him first.
"Avengers! Adva—"
Steve Rogers roared, but before he could finish the word, he collapsed with a thud.
At the same time, Tony fell from the sky. Wanda rolled her eyes and dramatically spun to the ground. Pietro simply fainted mid-fall. Black Widow and Hawkeye slumped together, both out cold.
Mike's eye twitched.
Well then. They're putting on a show—for me?
"Hrrraah!" Hulk roared, legs tensing like he was about to erupt in fury.
Seeing this, Mike nodded inwardly.
At least Hulk was being serious—
But the next moment, Hulk screamed and collapsed face-first with a crash.
"…"
So he was the real master of acting?
Mike's brow twitched again. He gave everyone below a flat look as light shimmered around his hand and more portals began to open.
Moments later, once the portals stopped appearing, everyone who deserved punishment had received it.
Mike sat quietly on the throne, his gaze cold as he looked around.
"The punishment is over. For the next three days, while the mutants retreat, I'll remain here. If anyone wants to challenge me, I welcome it at any time."
"Take her away first," he said to Clark, pointing at the unconscious Rasha.
Clark nodded and carried her off.
(End of Chapter)