Originally, Ethan had planned to take Illya to the Marvel Universe for a visit. After all, the Marvel Universe is a world I frequently visit and have already established very stable relationships in, whether through genuine friendship or mutual benefit. On top of that, most of my current resources come from this world, making the Marvel Universe a very important logistical base for me.
However, Illya is currently tutoring her younger brother. After staying in the Harry Potter world for over two years, Illya has gained a certain understanding of the situation aboard Artemis and knows that she will likely be staying on the ship in the future, which is fine by her. Illya feels that it's all the same wherever she is.
What's bothering her is her younger brother, Shirou. From what she heard from Logan, Ethan values Shirou's cooking skills because their team has lacked a proper chef for many years.
She has no doubts about Shirou's ability in that area, but there isn't a single ordinary person on the team. If Shirou is just a regular person, or rather a completely low-level mage, he wouldn't have any standing in a group like this.
Because of that, Illya decided to give Shirou some serious tutoring, not just in magic, but also in actual combat skills.
To that end, Illya even brought Scáthach over, planning to use the Queen of the Land of Shadows' skill in training disciples.
The newcomers wouldn't be coming along, and the veterans, aside from Hill who had gone to the Special Forces world, weren't interested in heading out for a change of pace. After all, Ethan was only going to notify Tony that the Marvel Universe was now connected to his world and, incidentally, give Tony a tracking device to ensure he could be reached when needed.
Besides Tony, Ethan also planned to give Thor and Loki each a device. These three would have the authority to contact Luna directly for reverse teleportation.
As for the Ancient One, there was even less to say. Ethan only needed to give her the specific location, and now that he had established the connection, she could travel over herself without needing anyone else's help.
Other than that, those with relatively weaker relationships would have to go through these few to reach Ethan.
"Oh, right, that cat named Auriel..."
As he walked toward the teleportation room with Bruce Banner, Banner suddenly mentioned Auriel, who Ethan hadn't seen in quite a while.
"I noticed that little guy keeps burying magic stones at the foot of the mountain."
Bruce had thoroughly studied the various technologies aboard Artemis. Of course, he recognized magic stones and knew that Ethan used to rely on them as the core of many devices, though he had gradually phased them out due to the difficulty of maintaining a stable supply.
Currently, the magic stones stored aboard Artemis basically serve as food for Auriel. Banner had once asked Ethan what would happen if Auriel, as a creature, needed to rely on consuming magic stones to survive, and one day they ran out.
Ethan hadn't given the question much thought because it wasn't a big deal.
Magic stones are a unique product of the Empire. The ones Ethan and his team use are collected from the training grounds, and everything in those grounds is created by the system, a massive piece of equipment.
Magic stone mines are essentially renewable, clean energy sources. The Empire's technology in this area is highly developed. Once Ethan and the others find the planet where the Empire civilization is located, they can acquire this technology. Betty, of course, knows nothing about this tech.
When the time comes, getting a dedicated device for manufacturing magic stones to serve as Auriel's cat food won't be a problem.
If the supply runs out before then, Ethan could also just modify Auriel's constitution so it can eat something else.
Based on Ethan's observation, Auriel eats magic stones mainly to absorb the massive energy inside them. For Ethan, high-energy items aren't hard to come by.
For example, there's a hot spring containing arcane energy on the island. At worst, he could open another one for Auriel to drink its fill.
What surprised him was that Auriel had already started trying to solve its own food problem. Was this guy planning to dig a hole, bury something, and count one, two, three, four, five?
"I'll go check when I get back."
Considering Auriel's intelligence, it shouldn't be doing anything too absurd. Maybe this little creature really knows how to grow magic stones?
Standing on the wide teleportation platform, Banner looked around. He noticed there was an operating console next to the platform, meaning that if they didn't want Luna to handle the teleportation, they could use the console themselves.
"You don't need to stand by the console. You can operate it directly using the holographic panel."
Luna, the AI, handles the operations. There's the holographic panel, the physical console, and if both are down, you can only contact Ethan directly.
"Very well designed."
The teleportation activated. A bluish-white light filled their vision. When it faded and they could see clearly again, Ethan and Banner had arrived in the Marvel Universe, specifically in Ethan's mansion.
"Welcome back, Mr. Ethan."
"Thanks, JARVIS. Where's Tony?"
Having JARVIS manage the mansion had a huge benefit. Ethan no longer needed to avoid all the house staff. Under JARVIS's control, they didn't need to know whose mansion this was, or where the owner went, or what he did.
They just showed up for regular maintenance when notified by JARVIS, then left once the job was done.
"Mr. Stark is currently at the Avengers Headquarters in New York."
"Notify him that I..."
Ethan suddenly paused.
"JARVIS."
"Yes, sir."
"How did you recognize me?"
Banner, who had been standing off to the side, only now realized this too. Ethan wasn't in his original appearance. He currently looked like a young child.
And with that appearance, JARVIS had recognized him the moment he showed up. Banner hadn't even noticed this at first, likely because he had grown used to Ethan walking around with this face.
"Mr. Stark has archived comprehensive data on all Avengers members, as well as his relatives and friends. While Mr. Ethan's appearance and physique have undergone significant changes, key identifiers such as mental energy fluctuations, voiceprint, and retina match. Physical appearance ranks relatively low in Mr. Ethan's identification parameters."
Ethan nodded slightly, then signaled JARVIS to stop.
His body had indeed been reforged, but those characteristics hadn't changed. They still matched his original data, which is why JARVIS didn't mistake him for someone else.
Also, based on JARVIS's report, the primary identifier used was mental energy fluctuations. This was even more unique than fingerprints. No two people's mental energy was exactly alike, making it a very reliable identification method.
Since Tony became a qualified mage, he had clearly upgraded his various devices. JARVIS's recognition systems now included many features related to the mystical.
"Tell Stark I'm coming now."
"Mr. Stark is already waiting for you, sir."
Ethan gave Banner a look, then used teleportation magic to travel directly to the Avengers Headquarters in New York.
Located on the outskirts, far from the city center, the Avengers Headquarters spanned a huge area and had all kinds of facilities, including its own small airport.
With so much ground to cover, Ethan didn't want to walk all the way from the main gate. Tony wouldn't run to the gate to pick him up either. Without any contact, the two of them met in front of the main building, both knowing the other's habits well.
Unsurprisingly, Tony paused for a moment when he saw Ethan, then took off his sunglasses dramatically, wiped them twice, and put them back on.
"If you want to see better, why are you still wearing sunglasses?"
"It looks cooler." Tony paused, then deliberately glanced down at Ethan with a mock serious look. "Didn't anyone teach you to be more respectful to your elders?"
"Are you sure you want to keep this up?"
"Ahem, relax, just messing with you. But I really didn't expect you to turn into a kid."
Tony had expected Ethan to become a teenager at most. He hadn't thought he would turn directly into a child. He subtly used his sunglasses to snap a bunch of photos and even recorded video.
"JARVIS, remember to encrypt and save these photos and videos."
"Yes, sir."
Ethan stared speechlessly at Tony. It wasn't that his senses were so sharp that he could hear the smallest sounds, but that Tony didn't even try to hide it.
Maybe realizing that Ethan would definitely be annoyed and might retaliate, Tony immediately ran off after saying hello to both Ethan and Banner.
"I have something to take care of at the equipment warehouse. Anyway, you know this place well. Just walk around. Or you could say hi to Steve and the others?"
After saying that, and not giving Ethan time to respond, he vanished with a Blink spell.
Ethan shrugged. He had come here to explain some things to Tony, but the guy had slipped away the moment they met. Still, he couldn't hide forever. At the latest, he'd have to show up at dinner.
"I'll look around a bit. Got anything you need to do?"
Banner had nothing urgent. He planned to head back to his room. The two of them agreed to meet later in the lounge, and Ethan went off on his own.
Unexpectedly, not long after they separated, a young woman in a red jacket stopped him. She looked concerned and asked, "Little friend, why are you here alone? Are you lost from your family?"
"..."
Ethan suddenly realized that he really shouldn't have separated from Banner.
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)