Marvel x Genshin: Mavuika, The Sun Goddess Rules Asgard — Chapter 205

Chapter 205: Retirement Plan

Mavuika’s gaze swept across the fractured reality, taking in the combatants with perfect clarity.

Standing at the center of the fray was a bald woman clad in distinctive yellow robes. It was the Sorcerer Supreme, the Ancient One.

Mavuika also recognized one of the two figures flanking her. It was Baron Mordo, the Ancient One’s most senior disciple—a serious, solemn man in dark robes, wielding twin rods of crackling magical energy as he battled a dark sorcerer.

The other, however, was a stranger. He was a middle-aged man with a slender build, a handsome, angular face framed by a refined mustache, and he wore robes of a deep, dark red. His gestures with the mystic arts were still somewhat clumsy, a novice’s hesitation clinging to his movements, yet his reactions were swift and his footwork surprisingly agile.

Opposite them, a swarm of sorcerers in dark robes pressed the attack. Their eye sockets were sunken and pitch-black, devoid of eyeballs, revealing only a hollow, chilling darkness. Their skin was an unhealthy, grayish-white, and their lips were tinged with purple. An eerie black energy coiled around them like malevolent serpents.

Leading this grim contingent was a man with a gaunt face, whose eyes burned with a fanatical craze. A twisted, unsettling smile was permanently etched onto his lips. His robes were more exquisitely tailored than those of his followers, and the black energy he commanded was visibly more potent, more concentrated.

Mavuika knew of him: Kaecilius. He was a former disciple of the Ancient One, a promising student who had been seduced by the promises of Dormammu, lord of the Dark Dimension. He had explored forbidden black magic and fallen utterly from grace. The Ancient One had spoken of his betrayal before, a note of sorrow in her voice.

At this moment, Kaecilius and his zealots were besieging the trio from Kamar-Taj. They were numerous and their offensive was relentless, yet the Ancient One met their assault with an unnerving calm—at least, that was how it appeared on the surface.

Mavuika watched her friend, a slight furrow forming between her brows. Something felt off.

Then, in a blur of motion, Kaecilius suddenly accelerated.

His body dissolved into a black shadow, erupting from behind one of his own dark sorcerers. In his hands, he materialized two short blades that shimmered and warped the air around them. They were not forged from metal, but from the very fabric of space—razor-sharp edges formed by folding reality itself, capable of slicing through any matter, even the most resilient of magical shields.

He charged directly at the Ancient One, using the sorcerer before him not as an enemy, but as a human shield and a stepping stone.

Kaecilius’s spatial blade plunged through his companion’s back without a hint of hesitation. The zealot let out a short, choked scream as his body went rigid.

But Kaecilius did not stop. The blade continued its lethal trajectory, bursting from his ally’s chest and driving straight toward the Ancient One’s abdomen.

Mavuika’s expression turned to ice.

In that infinitesimal fraction of a second, the divine power within her ignited. Her form dissolved into a searing streak of gold-red light, a comet of pure energy that tore across the nearly hundred-meter distance separating them. She reappeared directly in front of the Ancient One just as the tip of Kaecilius’s blade was about to taste flesh.

Mavuika raised her hand, her palm open, and caught the blade.

The edge, formed from folded space, bit into her skin, producing a piercing, grating shriek like metal grinding against reinforced glass.

Kaecilius’s crazed eyes widened in disbelief.

Before he could even process what had happened, Mavuika tightened her grip on the spatial blade, using his own forward momentum against him. With a single, fluid motion, she wrenched him from his path and flung him away like a discarded toy.

The Ancient One, too, was stunned for a moment. She dispelled the glowing mandala in her hands, her gaze fixed on Mavuika’s back. A slow, helpless smile began to spread across her lips.

“Your Highness Mavuika.”

Mavuika turned to face the Sorcerer Supreme. In the dim, grayish-white light of the Mirror Dimension, the Ancient One’s yellow robes seemed somewhat muted. There were no signs of injury on her face, and her breathing was even and steady. She appeared to be in perfect condition—except for the complex, unreadable light that swirled in her eyes.

“Sorcerer Ancient One,” Mavuika acknowledged with a nod. “It has been a while.”

Her gaze flickered to the direction where Kaecilius had been sent tumbling, then to Mordo and the man in red who were still engaged behind the Ancient One. Finally, her eyes settled back on the Sorcerer Supreme’s face.

“Is this the disciple you spoke of?” she asked, her tone low. “Kaecilius?”

The Ancient One nodded grimly.

Mavuika’s brow furrowed deeper. “What just happened? How could you fail to react to an attack of that level?”

The Ancient One’s gaze drifted over Mavuika’s shoulder, toward Mordo and the other sorcerer. Mordo was methodically dismantling the remaining zealots, while the man in red was still struggling to cope, his defense strained. Neither of them had noticed the quiet conversation unfolding between their master and the newcomer.

Drawing her gaze back, the Ancient One stepped closer to Mavuika and lowered her voice to a near whisper.

“Your Highness, my retirement plan… you’ve just disrupted it.”

Mavuika froze, stunned into silence for a beat before the implication crashed down on her.

She stared at the Ancient One, her eyes wide with sheer speechlessness. “You mean to tell me you intentionally didn’t dodge? You were going to use this opportunity to step down from your position as Sorcerer Supreme?”

A wry smile touched the Ancient One’s lips. “Not exactly intentional. Let’s just say… I didn’t try my hardest to dodge.”

Mavuika was silent, processing the sheer audacity of the plan.

“To be perfectly honest,” Mavuika finally said, a note of exasperated disbelief coloring her voice, “your retirement plan is a bit terrible.”

She gestured vaguely at the spot where the blade would have struck. “If you die, who will I have tea and chat with in the future?”

The Ancient One was taken aback for a moment, then she let out a soft, genuine laugh.

“Your Highness, you are still so… cute.”

Mavuika chose to ignore the comment, her gaze shifting past the Ancient One’s shoulder to the man in the dark red robes.

The novice sorcerer was currently fending off two zealots. His gestures were still unrefined, but each movement possessed the cold precision of a surgeon. He instinctively understood the weaknesses of the human body, knowing exactly where to strike for maximum effect. His own magical output wasn’t particularly strong, but he used it with clever efficiency, each blow landing on his opponents’ most vulnerable points.

“Is that the successor you found?” Mavuika asked.

The Ancient One followed her gaze, the corners of her mouth lifting in a fond smile.

“Stephen Strange. He was once a brilliant neurosurgeon, but then he suffered a terrible car accident. The nerves in his hands were irreparably damaged, and he could no longer perform surgery. In his search for a cure, he traveled the world and eventually found his way to Kamar-Taj.”

She paused, her eyes still on him.

“He will be the most powerful among us.”

Mavuika’s brow twitched. “The most powerful? Even more so than you?”

The Ancient One nodded, her smile unwavering.

“Yes. It may not be apparent now, but he possesses immense talent, unshakable perseverance, and deep wisdom. More, he has the courage to face failure and rise from it.”

Mavuika watched Strange for a long moment, observing his desperate, intelligent struggle.

“That’s something to look forward to, then,” she conceded.

The Ancient One chuckled softly.

In the distance, a scraping sound of rubble heralded Kaecilius’s return. He crawled out from the debris, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth and his robes torn, but his eyes burned with an even greater, more unhinged fervor.

He spread his arms wide, and a tide of black energy surged from his body, spreading in every direction. The other dark sorcerers mirrored his action, releasing their own power until a corrupting black mist began to fill the Mirror Dimension, corroding everything it touched.

Mordo and Strange were both forced back several steps by the wave of dark magic.

Mavuika watched the scene unfold, then turned back to the Ancient One, a teasing glint in her eyes.

“So, what now? Should I just turn around and leave? You can find another chance to let him stab you?”

The Ancient One considered this for a thoughtful moment, then shook her head.

“Forget it. Since the plan has failed, it must mean the time is not yet right. And since Your Highness has already intervened,” she said, her expression turning serious, “perhaps you would be so kind as to help me deal with this treacherous disciple while you’re here.”