Sebastian, Tony, and Reed returned to New York together, each heading in different directions to pursue their investigations. Tony took Reed to find his protégé Peter Parker first, while Sebastian Apparated directly into the Pioneer Technologies building.
It was clear from the building's modern decor alone that the aesthetics of Pioneer Technologies' executives were far superior to Hydra's outdated style. At least compared to the gloomy, last-century villain lair aesthetic, the interior of Pioneer Technologies now looked like a futuristic tech company with sleek design.
Casting a Disillusionment Charm on himself, Sebastian walked through Pioneer Technologies building undetected. Following the instructions displayed in his contact lenses that Tony had provided, he arrived at the room where the building's computer servers were stored. He used magical interference on the server to block the security monitors and inserted what resembled a USB flash drive into the main server.
Quickly, the program inside connected to Tony's remote server and, with his expert help, quickly breached the server's firewall, copying and extracting all the data within the system.
Once the data was completely copied to their secure location, Tony's voice rang out again through the communicator in Sebastian's ear.
"Sebastian, all the data has been copied successfully. There is hidden data on the server, which I have also found. It will probably take some time to crack the encryption. You can first investigate the people within Pioneer Technologies. Perhaps they know something useful, or maybe they are actually from Advanced Idea Mechanics!"
"Okay, I understand!"
Pulling out the USB-like device, Sebastian once again became invisible and headed for the top floor of the building. He intended to find the person in charge of Pioneer Technologies. If Pioneer Technologies was truly connected to Advanced Idea Mechanics, then its leader must be deeply involved.
Like a ghost moving silently, he arrived at the top floor of Pioneer Technologies. There was only one office there, which was where the Pioneer Technologies leader worked from.
Just as Sebastian was about to Apparate to enter through the walls, the door of the office suddenly opened on its own. The leader of Pioneer Technologies, wearing a pair of special goggles with glowing lenses, looked directly in Sebastian's direction and said clearly, "We are sorry to have failed to welcome the famous Dark Wizard properly."
Revealing his figure and dropping the Disillusionment Charm, Sebastian looked at the other person and said, "I have to say, you really surprised me. You can actually see through my invisibility magic."
The middle-aged man who was the leader of Pioneer Technologies slowly stood up from his desk. He looked at Sebastian with a smug expression, took off his goggles, and said to Sebastian, "Although magic and technology are very different in many ways, they also have many similarities. As long as your magic does not make you disappear completely from this dimension, then we will find a way to detect and find you. It is not a very difficult thing, right?"
"So you really have changed the master behind the scenes, from Hydra to Advanced Idea Mechanics, right?"
Looking at Sebastian in surprise, the middle-aged man nodded and said, "As expected of a Dark Wizard, a former Avengers veteran, and the initiator of the Illuminati, you do know a lot of things, but the information you have is not entirely accurate.
Of course, maybe Hydra does not know that this technology company, which looks like their subordinate research institute, has been a part of Advanced Idea Mechanics from the very beginning. The relationship between Pioneer Technologies and Advanced Idea Mechanics is obvious, right?"
"It has been a part of Advanced Idea Mechanics from the very beginning... I see now!"
Sebastian then understood why Kilgrave's samples and genetic data were mastered by Advanced Idea Mechanics, and some corresponding mind control drugs were developed from them. It can almost be regarded as Hydra personally delivering the research materials to Advanced Idea Mechanics. It is of course normal for them to be able to research and develop those drugs.
Looking at the middle-aged man again, Sebastian said, "Alright, please come with me now. If you resist, I will not be polite."
The middle-aged man looked at Sebastian without the slightest hint of nervousness or fear. He simply smiled and said, "Mister Dark Wizard, are you not curious why I found you and waited for you here?"
"I am not interested in your explanations. Since you do not want to leave with me, I can only be rude to you."
With that, Sebastian raised his wand. However, the Stunning Spell he was about to cast did not work at all.
Seeing something unusual happening, Sebastian waved his wand again, finally discovering something amiss in this area.
For some reason, all magical energy was blocked here. He could not mobilize any magical energy from the environment, and even his own magic power had become like a stagnant pool, unable to be mobilized at all.
Sensing something terribly amiss, Sebastian immediately retreated, leaving the office quickly. He could use magic outside the office, so the magical barrier must be within this specific area!
Sebastian's judgment was indeed correct.
However, just as Sebastian was about to enter the office, the middle-aged man had taken the initiative to open the door and usher Sebastian in, so that Sebastian would not immediately notice anything unusual about the room. The moment Sebastian stepped in, the man had already made preparations for the next step of his trap.
Of course, the details of these events were irrelevant; the key question was how this forbidden magic area was created, and Sebastian was eager to know the answer.
"Mister Dark Wizard, we at Advanced Idea Mechanics have conducted rigorous analysis and calculations of you. Beyond your magic, your physical strength is roughly that of an average, stronger person. You possess no high-tech weapons, and your hand-to-hand combat proficiency is merely amateurish at best.
So, when you can cast magic, you are a Dark Wizard few on Earth can rival. But without it, you are just an ordinary young man. For someone like me, who has undergone dozens of genetic enhancements, you are no match!"
As his words fell, the middle-aged man's body suddenly expanded dramatically. He ripped his coat apart, revealing muscles taut as if they were made of armor plating.
A cruel grin formed on his face as he spoke again, "Though the higher-ups need you alive for interrogation, they have not forbidden me from playing games with you. I am particularly drawn to people like you, once a powerhouse, now reduced to a lamb for slaughter!"
"Really? But I am truly sorry, I am not interested in your games at all."
As soon as he finished speaking, a simple crow mark appeared between Sebastian's eyebrows, and a magical power that should have been sealed suddenly escaped from Sebastian's body!
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