"You still haven't checked the asylum yourself, have you?" Ryuuto asked, folding his arms.
"I told you already," Hank replied, jaw tight. "I'm a Mutant too. They don't allow me anywhere near the asylums. Not with this thing around my neck."
He tugged lightly on the metal collar, the faint red light glinting against his fur. "Once they strapped it on, I lost all personal freedom. The only reason I'm here is because I told them you might give a peace speech. That's the only excuse they'd accept."
Ryuuto frowned. "And you actually asked for their permission to come? Hank, that collar only detonates if you use your powers. As long as you don't—"
"You're wrong," Hank interrupted bitterly. "They can control it remotely. The 'failsafe' story is just for show. If the order comes down, they can blow me to pieces anytime they want. And when they do, they'll wipe out everyone in the asylums, too."
Ryuuto's expression darkened. "…Still crazy enough to think you can reason with them?"
"Please, Ryuuto," Hank said, voice heavy with exhaustion. "You could end this before it starts. If you give a speech, tell Mutants to stop fighting, you'd buy us time. Maybe even uncover whoever's pulling the strings. Once the truth gets out—that the riots were manipulated—the government might back down."
Ryuuto let out a quiet laugh, one with no warmth in it. "You really haven't changed. Still dreaming about peace between humans and Mutants."
To him, that dream was nice—but naïve. Whether Mutants could live peacefully among humans wasn't his problem.
But if the government actually decided to erase Mutants from existence… then yeah, he'd make it his problem.
He'd flip their entire system upside down if he had to.
Still, Ryuuto had no interest in being anyone's puppet or symbol. Giving a speech? That'd be the same as bowing down—and that wasn't his style.
He was a transmigrator, not a saint.
So even when Hank pleaded, voice cracking, almost ready to kneel—Ryuuto didn't budge.
When Hank finally left, Ryuuto turned to Susan. "How far's the nearest shelter?"
"At your full speed? Ten minutes."
"I'll be taking you and Katie with me. Gotta factor that in."
"Half an hour, then," she said.
"Good enough." Ryuuto grinned faintly. "Let's go stretch our legs."
He called over Katie Dee, who was busy teasing Natasha Romanoff again, and the three of them set out toward the nearest Mutant shelter.
Meanwhile, at the Brotherhood Headquarters—
The television flickered with news footage of riots, chaos, and propaganda.
Magneto sat in silence, watching it all. Mystique stood beside him, equally grim.
"Guess who's behind this," Magneto finally said.
Mystique blinked. "What?"
"The one controlling those Mutants. I've been monitoring reports and online chatter. It's clear now—most of the rioters were being manipulated. Someone's using psychic control, similar to Charles' ability. But only one person I know ever rivaled him in that field…"
"Who?" Mystique asked, her voice low.
"The White Queen. Emma Frost."
Mystique's brow furrowed. "But… didn't she vanish after World War II?"
"She did," Magneto said, eyes distant. "Back then, Sebastian Shaw tried to spark a global conflict—the Gulf War between the US and Russia—to ignite World War III. He led the Hellfire Club and hoped to profit off destruction."
A faint, bitter smile tugged at Magneto's lips. "Charles and I stopped him. Shaw could absorb any energy—nearly immortal. But I took his helmet. The very one I wear now."
He tapped the metal casing. "Charles invaded his mind, froze him solid… and I avenged my mother by driving a coin through his skull."
Mystique stayed silent as Magneto continued, voice turning reflective.
"After that, Charles and I parted ways. I founded the Brotherhood; he founded the Xavier Institute. Different methods, same goal—Mutant survival."
He paused, gaze darkening. "But whoever's behind this doesn't care how many Mutants die. That alone makes them my enemy—and Charles's."
"Do you really think it's Emma Frost?"
"Can't be sure," Magneto said. "New Mutants awaken every day. There might be someone else out there with psychic strength on her level."
"So what now? Wait and see, or move first?"
"Wait and see," Magneto replied, a sly smile crossing his lips. "Ryuuto will make his move soon enough. Let's sit back and watch the chaos unfold."
Mystique said nothing. Magneto leaned back, fingers steepled.
"Our first priority is still Wanda. It's been over two weeks since she vanished. If she's truly lost at sea, the Brotherhood suffers a heavy blow."
Mystique frowned. "Her powers are uncontrollable. If she loses it again, we might all die."
Magneto chuckled softly. "That's Wanda's charm, isn't it? Her power defies logic—and because of that, I need her back. To unleash her, and destroy those who stand in our way."
"Starting with Ryuuto?"
Magneto's smile vanished. "He warned me once—said if I caused trouble, he'd stand against me. That means he's already marked me as an enemy. And as I am now… I can't defeat him."
"So you're betting everything on Wanda," Mystique murmured.
Magneto didn't answer—but his silence said everything.
As Magneto spun his dangerous hopes, Ryuuto and his team arrived near the asylum.
For him, the plan was simple—find whoever was pulling the strings, and rip them out by the root.
Just as he approached the gates, Shion's lazy voice echoed in his mind:
[Ding! Main Quest Issued — Unmask the Telepathic Puppeteer]
....
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