The investigation into the rebellion had come to an end. What followed was the gradual purging of traitors—a process that Victoria Hand and Stephanie had ample experience handling. With the support of the Sisterhood and the Assassins, the matter was fully resolved in under a month. When Solomon read the report submitted by Stephanie and Agent Hand, he did not hesitate to praise their work. After the previous incident, Stephanie did everything she could to inform Solomon of all matters he needed to know, including the integration of new members into the Assassins.
Without his approval, neither Malbus nor the biological laboratory could have carried out the transformations. In fact, without such alterations and memory conditioning, most traitors' spouses wouldn't have had any chance at completing atonement missions. However, not all policies were implemented through brute force—after the Eternal City granted a chance for atonement, the traitors' children effectively became orphans. These children were provided with aid and care from the Eternal City, ensuring that no one could embezzle the assets meant for them. In the future, these children would grow up to become scientists, soldiers, and other professionals who would serve the Eternal City in turn. There were no student loans—every expense was covered by the Eternal City. Compared to the American plutocracy, this was almost dazzling in its benevolence.
Once these children began working for the Eternal City, all records of their parents were destroyed. They would receive falsified documents stating that their parents had made great sacrifices and that they were continuing a legacy of loyalty. It was precisely because of these conditions that most traitors' spouses chose to take the chance at atonement. However, in Stephanie's eyes, this was an act of pure mercy, and she proposed that the opportunity for atonement be limited to a single generation. If the offspring of traitors continued to betray the cause, it meant the blood of treachery still flowed within them—such blood was unworthy of salvation. After thinking it over, Solomon agreed with this proposal and handed its execution over to Stephanie's Ministry of Internal Affairs in cooperation with the Assassins.
"Good evening, Lady Eye of Calamity," Solomon greeted gently, addressing the madwoman who was focused on her meal.
As soon as she saw Solomon, the madwoman quickly looked up and beamed foolishly. Solomon casually took a napkin and wiped the sauce off her face, then smelled her hair to confirm she had bathed properly, hadn't rolled on the ground, and hadn't eaten anything off the floor. Due to the rather austere atmosphere at the Kamar-Taj headquarters, Master Hamill had decided not to send the madwoman to suffer in the Himalayas. After all, considering her mental state, she had already endured enough hardship in her life—she had probably consumed more psychiatric medication than carbohydrates.
Even some of the other archmages found her too far gone. After all, not everyone could accept the Eye of Calamity's worldview—that inanimate objects also possessed life. It was a belief so bizarre that even today's radical environmental cults wouldn't go that far.
So long as no missions were involved, the archmages of Kamar-Taj were not cold-blooded killers but scholars engrossed in magical research. The madwoman's rapidly growing weight symbolized the humanity within Kamar-Taj. "Lord of the Seventh Throne, great King of Pride," the Eye of Calamity once again glimpsed the future. "Would you like some spaghetti? If you do, then there won't be any spaghetti in the future."
"You can see the consequences of my decision?" Solomon asked with curiosity. The reason he had returned to the Kamar-Taj headquarters was to use the Cosmic Cauldron to intercept glimpses of possible futures. Jiaying's confession had brought him a large supply of Terrigen Crystals, now stored in the Eternal City's underground labs.
Ordinary people usually regarded the Inhumans either with envy for their powers or fear of their destructive capabilities. But to Solomon, the Kree-engineered slaves were merely a malformed awakening of potential granted by Celestial genetic engineering and their "Blood of Life." It was an erroneous path of evolution. Because their evolution was incomplete, many Inhumans experienced grotesque mutations, growing deformed limbs, organs, and bones. There was nothing worth studying in such things—they were complete rejects. As for fear, that wasn't even a consideration. He wasn't an American constantly panicking over someone stealing a small plot of land and going to absurd lengths to guard it. Moreover, Inhumans had a very limited upper potential. Once their abilities were understood, they were easily neutralized. For Solomon, a believer in the doctrine of firepower, the threat posed by Inhumans was negligible. If worst came to worst, he could personally intervene or deploy his semi-complete Royal Guard to resolve the situation.
He sympathized with Jiaying's plight, but that did not mean he would let a group of beings who had removed themselves from humanity's bounds usurp the future living space of humankind. Even from a purely rational perspective, his intentions would undoubtedly enrage the Inhumans. That was why he harbored no resentment toward Skye, who was still angry with him. Their last encounter had simply been an opportunity for him to vent a bit and relieve the stress of long days. He wasn't so petty as to mind someone being mad at him.
He was now contemplating whether to throw the Terrigen Crystals into the ocean, allowing their active components to enter the ecological cycle and thereby identify ordinary humans on Earth who carried Kree ancestral genes. He needed to weigh what consequences such an act might bring.
"War," the Eye of Calamity said, blinking her vacant eyes.
Her gaze never focused on the person speaking but on the image of their soul floating in the sea of spirits. Her eyes streamed tears from the constant strain, but she made no attempt to look away. "Much blood, bones, and rotting flesh," she said, burping. "War will follow your footsteps. Carrion beasts will circle overhead, waiting for their feast. Oh, Seventh Throne, this is the sacrifice you make to yourself. The fates of the gods lie in your hands. They are cursing you. They will try every means to defeat you."
"I don't care how many lives it costs. I want to know if this can purify the human gene pool."
"I don't know." She seemed to drift into a trance. "I think now is a good time to sleep."
"It is nearly midnight in New York, so indeed—"
"Oh, I can't sleep! I need to watch Jimmy Feather Show!" the Eye of Calamity screamed, spinning in panic.
"As you wish, madam," Solomon said with a nod. "Would you like some fruitcake?"
"And some butterbeer! I just finished Harry Potter!" the Eye of Calamity mumbled dreamily. "A story about how, in a rigidly stratified society, a child from a wealthy white elite family uses inherited legacy and connections to defeat the illegitimate child of another fallen elite family, all while promoting the idea that the only way commoners can climb the social ladder is through upper-class patronage…"
"Please refrain from shattering the dreams of young people and overanalyzing fairy tales, madam. I'll buy you some cake. Let's wait for the deliveryman to bring dessert. I'll pay. If only you could share more prophecies with me."
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I Am Zeus, KING OF GODS (Chapter 79)
Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 391)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 471)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 677)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 1059)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1418)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1422)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1452)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1504)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld!(Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 703)
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