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*****
"Having so many abilities already makes you quite impressive."
Professor X's face carried a look of approval.
"So, why do you want to join our school? You can generate money at will — it's not like you're lacking funds."
"I'm not short on money," George shrugged, "but I am short on people like me. People who don't treat me like a freak."
At that, Professor X sighed softly, then reassured him:
"Don't worry. No one here will ever see you as a freak again. In this place, we're all family — and from now on, you'll be one of us."
"Freak."
It was a label almost every mutant had worn at some point.
No matter what kind of power you had, ordinary people would always see you as something other — something abnormal.
Many of the students who came to the school had run away from home for that very reason.
"A 'freak'… that's just what they call the gifts they envy. Never be ashamed of your abilities."
Magneto had just finished comforting his wife and daughter. Hearing their conversation, he walked over with a calm smile.
Professor X chuckled at his words.
"Erik, we do agree on that much — never be ashamed of one's gifts."
"My friend, aside from our views on humanity, we've always agreed on almost everything else. Our goal is the same — to make life better for our kind."
Magneto turned to George.
"I hear your power lets you transform anything. Mind making us a chess set?"
"Of course."
With a wave of George's hand, a full chessboard appeared before Magneto and Professor X.
"Convenient little trick," Magneto praised, then immediately warned,
"And no reading my mind."
"I don't need telepathy to beat you," Professor X replied, gesturing toward the board. "Your move."
Magneto flicked a piece into motion with magnetic force.
"Consider it a handicap. It's only fair to give you a head start."
"Two lousy amateurs…"
George watched them play for a moment, then shook his head and walked away.
Just two moves ago, they sounded like grandmasters. Two minutes later — hopeless beginners.
Turns out, high intelligence didn't guarantee good chess skills. And chess experts weren't necessarily geniuses.
And funnily enough, it was always the terrible players who loved playing the most — especially when they found someone equally terrible.
"You know why I never play with them?"
Mystique, seated nearby, smiled as George came over.
"I don't want to crush them. So I just watch."
For her, it had been a long time since she'd seen the two of them laugh and enjoy themselves like this.
The last time was back in 1962 — training together at Charles' mansion, united against the Black King.
To her, these two men were everything:
One was the brother who had raised her like family since childhood.
The other was the mentor — and lover — who helped rebuild her confidence and taught her how to fight.
They were the two people she loved most in the world.
"Fair enough," George laughed. He hadn't expected that to be the reason.
He sat beside Quicksilver and noticed him staring at Magneto. With a teasing smile, George asked:
"So, when are you going to tell him?"
"I… haven't decided yet. I want the timing to be right."
Quicksilver glanced at Magneto's wife and daughter, hesitation in his eyes.
"There's no such thing as the 'right time' for this kind of thing. Just say it — sooner said, sooner faced."
"…You're right. I'll tell him once we reach the school."
Quicksilver made up his mind quietly.
The topic shifted, and George asked about Wanda.
"What's your sister doing these days?"
"She's a primary school teacher. She used to dream of becoming a sitcom actress. Her favorite show growing up was The Dick Van Dyke Show."
The moment George showed interest, Quicksilver lit up and began rambling excitedly.
"But acting means exposure — too much of it. She doesn't want her powers seen again. As a teacher, she's only around kids. Even if something slips, who's going to believe a bunch of kindergarteners? And she loves children…"
And just like that, while chatting away, the supersonic jet soon landed back at the mutant academy.
Late that night, when everyone had gone to sleep, George quietly slipped into Jean's room.
She lay on the bed, brows furrowed, clearly trapped in a nightmare.
With every fluctuation of her emotions, a terrifying force stirred within her — gradually awakening, taking the faint form of a fiery phoenix around her.
But sensing the eruption, she fought it back down with all her willpower — suppressing the power before it could burst free.
"So this is the Phoenix Force? As expected — incredible. Let's see if I can drain it."
George placed his hand gently on her forehead and activated his Rokukushen Technique at full power — attempting to devour the Phoenix Force inside her.
But within moments, his brows tightened.
"This much resistance… don't tell me…"
He knew that at his current level, he couldn't drain all of the Phoenix Force in one go.
His plan had been to do it gradually — a little each night, draining it all over the span of a few months.
But the reality was far worse than he expected.
It was draining — but at this rate, it would take twenty years to finish.
Way beyond his original plan.
Logically, no matter how powerful the Phoenix Force was, it shouldn't be this hard to refine.
After all, this was only a small fragment of the Phoenix Force — limited to a single universe. And his strength far surpassed Jean's.
He mulled it over until one conclusion became clear:
It wasn't just the Phoenix Force resisting him.
Jean herself — unconsciously — was resisting as well.
As the destined host of the Phoenix Force in every universe, any instinctive resistance from her would greatly amplify the Phoenix's rejection.
Which meant, if he wanted to speed up the absorption, there were only two options:
One — upgrade his Rokukushen Technique, increasing its devouring power massively.
Two — open Jean's heart. Make her trust him. Make her stop resisting.
"Then I'll do both."
He continued devouring through the night. As dawn approached and Jean began to stir, George teleported away.
Winning Jean's trust wouldn't be hard. He was already a teacher at the school — getting closer would be natural.
Besides, Jean herself didn't want the Phoenix Force.
As for strengthening his Rokukushen Technique — he had an idea.
With his current strength, taking down the Black Dragon wouldn't be difficult. And that creature's innate ability was to devour all forms of power.
If he killed it and absorbed both the dragon and its core crystal — his devouring power would skyrocket.
(End of Chapter)