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The moment Sebastian lost his helmet, Charles's mental powers seamlessly invaded his consciousness, completely controlling him.
Charles had successfully captured the rare little Pokemon—the Black King Beast!
"Wearing a helmet without fastening the chin strap shows a lack of safety awareness."
Darian looked at Sebastian, who was motionless as if time had been paused, and couldn't help but shake his head.
It was a good habit to wear a helmet, but unfortunately, a single oversight—not having a strap for the helmet—made it so easy to remove.
"We won!"
Seeing Sebastian controlled by Charles, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief, their strained nerves finally relaxing.
Sebastian's ability was simply too overpowered; if it weren't for Charles, a telepath who completely countered him, they wouldn't have stood a chance even combined. If the fight had continued, Logan's fate would likely have been theirs.
Logan: ミ0(°ο°)0 彡
Can someone lend a hand? I'm sinking to the bottom of the sea!
Charles suddenly frowned and said anxiously, "Sebastian Shaw's consciousness is resisting very strongly. I can't control him for long."
"Leave him to me!"
Erik pulled a silver coin from his pocket and floated it in his palm.
He had waited a long time for this day. Years ago, Sebastian had made him control this coin, leading to his mother's death and his own torment. Now was the time for an eye for an eye.
Erik didn't hesitate. The silver coin trembled slightly, then transformed into a sharp silver flash, instantly shooting towards Sebastian's head!
He acted extremely fast, as if afraid someone else would snatch this kill.
Under Charles's full control, Sebastian couldn't use his abilities at all. His body was no different from an ordinary person's. The coin pierced his forehead without obstruction, shooting out from the back of his head, trailing a spray of blood.
Sebastian's body stiffened, then he fell heavily to the ground, completely lifeless.
He truly knew how to make an entrance; even his revenge was so ceremonial!
At the same time, Darian heard the system's prompt in his mind.
[Quest 'Black King's Conspiracy' settlement complete!]
[Rewards obtained: 5000 Experience Points, 20 Charles Favorability, Anchor Fragment * 5, Equipment 'Flying Broom', Item 'Omni Capsule', Item 'Bile Bomb']
[Equipment: Flying Broom (Boys should sit sideways or add a bicycle seat, otherwise there will be a faint sadness.)]
[Item: Omni Capsule (Press to release a fully equipped luxury Villa, allowing you to feel the warmth of home anytime, anywhere.)]
[Item: Bile Bomb (When thrown, it will attract all nearby enemy units. If it directly hits a target, all enemies will lock onto that target and attack for a short period.)]
No one said anything when they saw Erik kill Sebastian.
Everyone knew the two had an unresolvable blood feud, and they would have done the same.
Even Charles, who was usually a pacifist, had no standing to criticize Erik at this moment. Perhaps having spent so much time with Darian, his moral compass seemed to have become much more flexible.
Of course, his moral bottom line remained as steady as an old dog's. This was like Erik's love for showing off; it was something that would never change in his life.
Darian, however, felt a bit of regret.
If Sebastian could have joined the Brotherhood, the guild would undoubtedly gain a powerful general, with the potential to become the second human nuclear bomb, second only to Charles.
However, he also knew that this was simply impossible.
Darian stopped thinking about it, turned, and walked up to Emma, getting straight to the point: "Now that Sebastian is gone, I'll give you another chance. How about joining our Brotherhood?"
Emma's expression was complex.
She hadn't expected such a powerful Sebastian to be defeated.
Facing the members of the Brotherhood, Emma said helplessly, "Do I have any other choice?"
"Yes, get beaten up by us, then join the Brotherhood."
"..."
Emma was silent for a moment, then sighed softly: "Alright, I'll join you."
She didn't feel much sadness over Sebastian's death. Their relationship was more of a cooperative one with aligned goals, rather than deep emotional ties.
Moreover, she was a pragmatic woman. Now that Sebastian had failed, choosing to align with a stronger faction was perfectly reasonable.
Most importantly, the Hellfire Club had offended many forces over the years.
It was fine when Sebastian was there to take the lead, but now that Sebastian was gone, those forces might come looking for her to settle scores. Her fate would be miserable then, possibly even being turned into an RBQ.
"A wise choice."
Darian echoed Sebastian's words, adding, "However, given your previous identity and stance, for now, you can only start as an intern. You're not officially part of the Brotherhood yet. You'll need to pass a probationary period before you can be regularized."
The reason for this was that the member quota for the instance quest was about to be met.
He wasn't sure if the quest would immediately conclude once completed, so he needed to reserve some buffer time to delay the quest's settlement.
"No problem."
Emma was indifferent to this.
Seeing her hopes of World domination dashed, she had given up struggling and chosen to simply lie flat.
Darian was very satisfied after Emma joined. He then slapped Red Devil and Riptide awake.
Facing their bewildered gazes, he directly extended the same invitation.
Seeing Sebastian's still-warm corpse lying nearby, Red Devil and Riptide were too stunned to speak.
But their internal thoughts were similar to Emma's. They had no intention of avenging him. To avoid being targeted by various forces later, they decisively chose to switch sides, even Red Devil, who had negative favorability with Darian, was no exception.
And so, the Hellfire Club members became interns for the Brotherhood.
Raven looked at the three untied individuals and said with some concern, "They were Sebastian's subordinates. Aren't you afraid they'll betray us later?"
Darian said calmly, "Don't worry, Charles is still here. Just have him regularly check their brains."
"If you still think that's not secure enough, then have Hank install some nano-bombs in their necks. If they don't behave, just detonate the bombs, right? A certain Suicide Squad does it that way. This method is guaranteed to work!"
The members of the Hellfire Club were all unnerved.
Is your Brotherhood some kind of evil terrorist organization?!
Could it be that you stopped us because the Hellfire Club was hindering the Brotherhood's plans for World domination?
Just then, Erik suddenly frowned and spoke in a deep voice: "I sense that those human fleets are adjusting their course and approaching us. Their weapon systems are activating, and they are all aimed at us!"
Everyone's recently relaxed nerves tightened again upon hearing this, and they immediately turned to look at the sea.
Indeed, the two national fleets, which had been in a tense standoff, suddenly looked like old friends. Their turrets rotated in unison, all pointing their cannons towards their coastline.
Charles immediately activated his ability, his powerful mental energy sweeping across the sea like radar, probing their intentions.
A moment later, his expression became extremely grim: "The two national fleets just received orders. They are preparing to launch an indiscriminate missile bombardment on our location!"
Raven said angrily, "Are they crazy? Don't they know we're here too?"
Agent Moira, seeing this, immediately grabbed her communicator, attempting to contact the fleet Commander.
"This is XB70, coastal threat cleared! Repeat, Sebastian Shaw has been eliminated, threat neutralized! Cancel attack immediately!"
However, only a chaotic static hiss came from the other end of the communicator. Her urgent call was like a stone sinking into the sea, receiving no response.
Clearly, her voice was being deliberately ignored.
"It's no use. The order has been set to the highest priority, overriding all conventional communications. In their eyes, we are no longer allies or civilians. We are merely targets to be eliminated."
Charles's voice held a hint of bitterness.
They had given their all to stop Sebastian, preventing a nuclear war that could destroy the World. Yet, in an instant, they had become the target of a combined human fleet's encirclement. This kind of betrayal, repaying kindness with enmity, truly sent a chill down one's spine.
"It's probably another one of those shady moves by the higher-ups."
Darian looked as if he was used to it. Earlier, during the Battle of New York, the human higher-ups even bombed their own city, completely disregarding the many Super Heroes fighting and the lives of all the citizens in the city.
If they were so ruthless to their own people, how much more so to Mutants, whom they considered anomalies?
"So what do we do now? Should we retreat first?"
Salvatore flapped her wings, ready to run away at any moment.
"Retreat? Why retreat!"
Darian pulled her back, grinning, "They've practically offered their face, wouldn't it be disrespectful not to slap it? This is a good opportunity to show off our strength, otherwise they'll really think we're soft targets that can be easily manipulated!"
"Old Man, it's time to show them your real skills. Give them a grand spectacle!"
"No problem!"
Erik's lips curled into a gentle, shark-like smile.
A grand spectacle? You've come to the right person!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom—!
A deafening roar suddenly erupted on the sea.
The human fleet fired all its cannons, and countless missiles, trailing fiery exhaust, streaked across the sky like a steel storm, whistling towards them. The scene was extraordinarily spectacular!
The moment the missiles were about to fall, Erik raised his hand and pushed forward.
In an instant, all the incoming shells mysteriously hovered in mid-air, as if hitting an invisible wall. The tail flames still surged wildly, but they could no longer advance an inch.
As Erik slowly rotated his wrist, the missiles suspended in the air all turned their direction, aiming back at the human fleet.
The next second, all the missiles shot back along their original path at an even more astonishing speed!
The soldiers of the two national fleets were completely stunned.
They received orders to launch missiles, but they weren't told there was such an incredible presence on the coast!
What's the point of fighting? Just prepare your last words!
Amidst shouts of despair, the group of missiles suddenly decelerated, finally stopping steadily directly above each warship, warheads pointing down, suspended but not falling, like the Sword of Damocles hanging over the two fleets.
At this moment, a gentle, unfamiliar voice suddenly echoed in their minds.
"Hello, we are the Brotherhood. We have just thwarted Sebastian Shaw's conspiracy and prevented a nuclear war."
"Rest assured, we are completely different from Sebastian Shaw."
"We have never wished to be enemies with humanity; on the contrary, we desire peace."
Looking at the cold, gleaming missiles overhead, the fleet soldiers unconsciously swallowed.
You call this peace?
"We stopped the missiles precisely to avoid unnecessary casualties. We could have retaliated, but we chose not to."
"We love peace, and therefore we will never actively provoke war, but we also never fear war. Any act of provocation will be met with our firm and complete response."
"Remember, this is not a warning, but a reminder."
"True peace is not unilateral concession, but coexistence built on mutual respect and clear understanding."
"We are willing to stop now, and we ask you to put aside your hostility. But if there is another wave of attacks..."
The voice paused, calm but with an undeniable firmness.
"We will no longer hold back. All consequences that arise will be borne by all involved."
Rumble—!!
As the words fell, a deafening roar shook the heavens and earth!
The missile cluster suspended above the warships simultaneously detonated, like a grand fireworks display, with brilliant firelight filling the sky.
Witnessing such a shocking scene, the Commanders of the two national fleets felt that things had become serious and quickly contacted their superiors to report.
The U.S. higher-ups, upon hearing this news, were immediately furious!
This was a provocation!
This was absolutely blatant provocation!
They were a World power, and a few mere Mutants were threatening them!
So, in their anger, they chose to be angry for a moment!
By now, they understood Mutants to some extent, especially the abilities Erik and Charles had just displayed. If they rashly escalated the conflict, the consequences could be disastrous.
Moreover, the other side had explicitly stated that all consequences would be borne by all involved, which clearly included them.
Of course, they weren't afraid; they just felt it wasn't worth it. If they sacrificed themselves, it would definitely be a loss for the entire U.S. They needed to preserve their lives to continue to shine and contribute to the U.S., making the U.S. great.
That's right, that's it!
Besides, even if they really had to take action against the Mutants, they had to wait for the Red Bear Nation to act first.
If they fought the Mutants to the death, wouldn't the Red Bear Nation reap the benefits from behind? That was absolutely unacceptable!
Coincidentally, the higher-ups of the Red Bear Nation were thinking the same thing at this moment; they absolutely had to let the Americans make the first move.
Thus, an astonishing tacit understanding formed between the two nations, and orders were given for the fleets to retreat.
As for the Mutants on the coast...
What Mutants? We didn't see any!
While retreating under threat would indeed weaken a nation's strategic deterrent, not seeing them was another matter entirely.
"They've retreated."
Charles breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the departing fleets.
He truly didn't want to fight, but due to the pressing situation, he had no choice but to harden his heart and say those words.
Surprisingly, it felt quite exhilarating!
Charles looked at Darian: "Those few lines you taught me really worked."
"Of course."
Darian chuckled happily.
Of course, there was another main reason why the two national fleets retreated like that.
[Achievement: Nuclear Peace Envoy (Wearing this title can increase the player's deterrent power against nations.)]