"So, you've taken in a new apprentice?"
"No. She's not my apprentice. At least not yet." Noah shook his head. "Whether that happens later depends on her performance. For now, she's just a troubled teenager. We're helping keep an eye on her."
At the dinner table, Ms. Haifen looked at Wanda, then turned her curious gaze toward Noah.
Noah felt helpless and explained Wanda's situation directly. Honestly, this was the first time he'd dealt with something like this.
A problematic father met a problematic teenager. When he couldn't handle it, he handed it off to Noah.
That left Noah irritated.
He had no idea how to deal with troubled teenagers. If the problematic father weren't his friend, Noah...
Well.
He wasn't even sure he'd keep the girl.
Noah was still a normal person. Knowing someone would be powerful in the future, he would naturally try to guide them early and build a relationship before they rose.
But the current Noah?
It was hard to say whether he'd still be stronger than her after she fully developed.
That made his thoughts much lighter.
"By the way, I went to Kamar-Taj today." Ms. Haifen clearly noticed Noah didn't want to stay on that topic and smoothly changed the subject. "Teacher seems to be in seclusion again."
"Yes." Noah nodded. "That's a good thing. Teacher is facing incredible challenges. She needs time."
"But every time you go, Teacher comes out." Ms. Haifen tilted her head. "Be honest. Are you two researching some kind of magic?"
"Is it that obvious?" Noah laughed softly. "You're right. We are researching something interesting. But it's too early for you. It's not perfected yet and still needs constant modification. I'll teach it when the time comes."
Domain magic was extremely important.
And extremely difficult.
It was already recognized as the optimal path for a mage.
Noah had no intention of hiding it. That had nothing to do with generosity.
The entry threshold alone was absurdly high. Even after Noah's improvements, one still needed to reach the eighth rank just to touch it.
Eighth rank.
There were very few people on Earth at that level.
After reaching the seventh rank, advancing further was unimaginably difficult.
Not everyone was Noah.
Or Thor.
Or Loki.
Talents like Wong, Mordo, and Victor were already exceptionally rare-and even they were still stuck at seventh rank.
To truly open a domain, one had to reach the ninth rank.
There was also another problem.
This magic was simply too difficult.
It required accumulation, elemental understanding, and structural mastery. Even if Noah and the Ancient One taught it together, there was no guarantee anyone could learn it.
So even if Noah made it public, he wasn't worried.
If someone hostile happened to learn it?
He wouldn't fear them.
Noah had been using domains for far too long. If he couldn't suppress a fledgling, he might as well erase his own existence.
That kind of embarrassment was not something Noah would ever allow.
Wong and Dennis were clearly interested in the new magic, especially Wong, who had heard Noah mention it many times before.
But seeing that Noah didn't intend to elaborate, they stopped asking.
Lily and Wanda were much quieter.
Lily wasn't interested.
Wanda simply didn't care.
Magic was terrifyingly unfamiliar to her. Her real reason for coming here was to avoid her biological father.
Of course, one thing was true.
When facing Noah, she felt an inexplicable sense of peace.
It was similar to how she felt around Vision in the original timeline.
But Noah was not Vision.
Vision's effect came from the Mind Stone and his newborn state. Noah's calm came from Occlumency and the system.
The results were similar.
The essence was not.
After dinner, Noah called Wanda over.
He hadn't arranged a room for her yet, but that wasn't important.
He led her directly to the training hall.
Noah wasn't a good teacher, but since she was here, he had to at least go through the motions.
"You're Erik's daughter. He's my friend." Noah crossed his arms, looking at her calmly. "So I have to take some responsibility. Even if it's just for appearances."
"I need to test your level," he continued. "This is just one test. There will be others later. If you don't meet the standard, I'll send you back."
Wanda glanced around the hall. "You mean... combat?"
"Something like that." Noah nodded. "At least let me see what you can do. Though I'm not expecting much."
He stopped there.
That wasn't entirely true.
He did expect something.
But this girl wouldn't release her power unless pushed, so Noah chose the simplest and crudest method.
He tilted his head, studying her.
She was calm.
Too calm.
Noah sighed.
He didn't care anymore.
At least he owed Erik an explanation.
If his daughter failed and got sent back, that wasn't Noah's problem.
With that thought, Noah casually opened a portal, pulled out a book on dimensional and reality space, flipped to his bookmark, and began reading.
Without looking up, he said, "Go ahead. My time is precious. Give it everything you've got."
"You're just going to stand there like that?" Wanda was genuinely confused.
Then her face flushed.
He was looking down on her.
Blatantly.
This was worse than Erik.
At least Erik took their sneak attacks seriously.
This was outright disregard.
Red energy wrapped around her hands.
The next second, Noah's body was bound by crimson power.
He didn't move.
His eyes never left the book.
"The intensity is too low," Noah murmured. "And the power is... touching."
Faint golden light appeared around him.
Strange runes emerged, slowly rotating, mirroring his casual attitude.
Under their influence, Wanda realized something horrifying.
Her power couldn't get close.
The red energy seemed to encounter something terrifying and vanished in an instant.
"Continue." Noah turned a page. "Is that all? You weren't even as strong as I was ten years ago."
That did it.
"Ten years ago?" Wanda snapped. "Were you even ten years old then?"
She didn't know Noah's true age. No one had told her.
The condescension enraged her.
She increased her output without hesitation.
It didn't matter.
The black runes nullified everything.
Wanda frowned.
The man in front of her, barely older than herself, felt like an indestructible turtle.
No matter what she did, she couldn't break through his defense.
She had never experienced anything like this.
Almost instinctively, she shifted tactics, attempting to seize equipment around the hall and hurl it at him.
The moment her power touched the cabinets and pillars, golden light flashed.
She was blown backward.
"Creative," Noah said calmly, still reading. "I support the idea. But there's a prerequisite."
He didn't look up.
"Can you afford the damage? If Erik wants to pay for it, feel free."
Wanda had no answer.
Compensation?
She'd never thought about that.
And asking Erik?
Their relationship wasn't that good-despite knowing he'd do it without hesitation.
She stared at Noah.
He was still reading.
His mind was calm.
Deep.
Like a still ocean.
Almost unconsciously, Wanda struck again.
This time-
She targeted his mind.
"Hm?"
Noah frowned.
He hadn't expected that.
He didn't resist.
He let the power enter freely.
If she wanted to see-
Then he would let her see.
See the entity hidden within him.
That existence filled with darkness.
An existence that seemed capable of destroying the entire world.
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