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Something's happened!
Kevin didn't need to say anything; just hearing the screams from inside, the action team knew something had definitely gone wrong.
D-19, still by Kevin's side, quickly shielded Kevin behind him, pulled out his Time Stick—a weapon similar to an anti-riot baton—and aimed it at the unfinished building.
Inside the unfinished building, within that dark area, a figure flickered in and out of view.
D-19 vigilantly shouted, "Who is it!?!"
But as soon as his voice fell, an activated Time Stick flew out of the darkness, heading straight for D-19's face!
A seasoned Time Hunter would naturally not be ambushed by a suddenly flying 'baton.' D-19 blocked it with his own Time Stick, knocking the incoming projectile to the ground.
However, at the same time, the figure that had been faintly visible in the darkness vanished once more.
Seeing the unfavorable situation, Kevin pondered for a moment, then quietly took out his TemPad and slowly retreated.
He had likely already guessed who attacked the Time Hunters, and he also understood that perhaps this Time Variant, whose appearance caused the anomaly, was a bait thrown by that person to the TVA.
But understanding aside, Kevin had no intention of staying here to fight her.
Exposing his abilities and unique qualities to the TVA and Kang during the Sacred Timeline phase was an unwise choice.
Anyway, all he needed to do now was wait, and Kevin would be able to contact Loki, and even contact Inventor Kang. At that time, having Inventor Kang and OB work together to develop the Time Restraint Device would be much better than risking helping the person in front of him now.
So...
Run away!
Kevin took out his TemPad, ready to retreat immediately.
But just as he took out the TemPad, he felt his hand being grabbed.
Turning his head, a Mysterious Man cloaked in black appeared behind Kevin at some unknown point, even evading Kevin's perception!
Damn it! Is Sylvie's magic that strong? Strong enough to even evade my perception?
Startled by the person beside him, Kevin immediately threw a punch at the person behind him.
His speed was intentionally controlled, not exceeding human limits, and thus was easily dodged by the person behind him.
But Kevin also broke free from that person's grasp because of this, and at the same time, he attracted the nearby Time Hunters, and a battle was on the verge of breaking out!
Seeing the attacker appear, two Time Hunters quickly advanced, engaging in battle with the attacker.
Kevin, on the other hand, hid outside the battlefield, like an agent not skilled in combat, his expression shifting as he stared at the cloaked figure.
After the brief contact just now, Kevin completely confirmed who the person in front of him was.
She was another Variant of Loki, a female Loki.
Or rather, she could be called Sylvie; that was her name.
Sylvie had been taken away by the TVA since she was young, and thus held deep hatred for the TVA. After escaping from the TVA, she had been thinking about how to deal with this behemoth standing above the timeline.
Then Sylvie thought of a method.
Create a void in the TVA, then take the opportunity to invade the TVA and kill the nominal administrators of the TVA, who were the three Time Keepers.
To achieve this, it was necessary to instantly trigger various different branches on the Sacred Timeline.
To trigger different time branches, it was necessary to influence multiple different time points simultaneously.
That's why Sylvie had attracted various Time Hunter teams before that, to seize the Reset Devices from them that could reset the timeline.
This was also why Kevin encountered Sylvie here.
"But Sylvie's magic shouldn't be able to evade me... Sure enough, Loki has done something again."
Realizing that his perception couldn't sense Sylvie, Kevin felt unsurprised.
After all, this was Loki's 'love.' How could Loki allow Kevin to harm the person he liked?
It was good enough that the perception magic was ineffective against Sylvie's magic; Kevin was just afraid that if he acted against Sylvie, his time would be reset to the first day he arrived on the Sacred Timeline.
He had finally managed to sort things out with OB and have him keep an eye out for the Time Restraint Device, only to have to start all over again and stay idle in the TVA for such a long time.
That was what Kevin truly couldn't accept.
Although Kevin knew this was just his conjecture, he had a premonition that if it were Loki, he might actually do as Kevin thought.
Since mastering magic, and even divinity, Kevin now strongly trusted his premonitions.
So, if he didn't want to start over, Kevin had best slip back now.
D-19 and the other Time Hunter had good combat skills, but they were still a bit weaker compared to the Gods of Asgard.
Moreover, this was a God whose abilities were not restrained by the TVA.
As a result, in just over ten seconds, two TVA Time Hunters fell at Sylvie's feet.
Seeing this, Kevin didn't hesitate in the slightest, quickly diving into the Time Portal that had just opened.
He had no intention of communicating with Sylvie; after confirming that the other party was hostile towards him, Kevin immediately made his escape.
Sylvie did not pursue. She still kept her head down, her face hidden by her cloak, quietly watching Kevin depart.
...
"It's a trap!"
Back at the TVA, Kevin immediately put his acting skills, honed in The Boys world, to use. With a mix of anger and lingering fear, he shouted at Mobius:
"I can't believe I encountered something like this on my first mission! It was a trap to lure us there! If I hadn't run fast, I'd probably be finished like D-19 now!"
"Calm down, calm down, Kevin. Who exactly did you see?"
Mobius tried to calm Kevin down.
They were currently in the TVA's interrogation room. A judge would question Kevin later, and Mobius was just getting a preliminary understanding.
Taking a few hurried breaths, Kevin tried to 'calm' himself, exhaled slowly, and recalled, "I don't know... But I'm sure he's a very dangerous person. He understands our TVA's pursuit process, knows how to use the Time Stick, and even... even uses magic!"
"It's the fugitive Time Criminal."
As soon as Kevin finished speaking, someone at the door interjected.
It was a Black woman, her hair pulled back, wearing a crisp judge's uniform, walking in with a file.
Behind her were several other TVA judges.
In the TVA, the judges were the absolute core of the TVA. They handled all matters, big and small, on behalf of the Time Keepers. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they were the leaders of the entire TVA.
And the one Kevin saw before him was the head of the judges.
Her name was Ravonna Renslayer, and she was a crucial character throughout Loki's first and second seasons.
Seeing Ravonna Renslayer enter, Kevin and Mobius immediately fell silent. Mobius nodded to Ravonna Renslayer, then mouthed to Kevin, indicating that he should say whatever he needed to later.
Only then did he step aside to observe.
Ravonna Renslayer also nodded in acknowledgment to Mobius, then her gaze swept over Kevin. Without another word, she sat in the main seat.
Her reaction made Kevin raise an eyebrow slightly, his mind deep in thought.
Kevin had previously met Miss Minutes, the artificial intelligence created by Kang. Logically, she should know the name of every employee in the TVA down to the last detail.
This meant that if Kevin's identity truly had issues, Miss Minutes would definitely have discovered it.
But Miss Minutes didn't.
However, Miss Minutes was an artificial intelligence, and it wasn't impossible for a loophole in an artificial intelligence to be exploited by Loki, who then arranged Kevin's identity through it.
But Ravonna Renslayer...
She had created the TVA with Kang, and was nominally the highest-ranking person in charge of the TVA.
Although the current Ravonna Renslayer might have forgotten about this, she shouldn't be indifferent to Kevin's existence.
Unless, in Ravonna Renslayer's eyes, Kevin's identity truly had no problems whatsoever.
Not only did he fool Miss Minutes, but he also fooled the contingencies left by Kang... Should he say, as expected of the Story God?
Kevin praised Loki a little in his mind, but then felt that it didn't seem like much.
After all, he was the Story God who spanned multiple multiversal timelines. If he couldn't even do this much, that would be truly laughable.
While Kevin was thinking, Ravonna Renslayer and the other two judges had already sat down in the seats in front of him.
Among the three judges, Ravonna Renslayer was in the center, flanked by two judges, one male and one female, both elderly and looking as if they didn't have many years left to live.
Especially the male one, who kept dozing off.
It made one worry if he would just fall asleep and never wake up.
"Agent, we're going to question you now."
After Ravonna Renslayer sat down, she first spoke to Kevin, placing her notes on the table and asking him, "Are you sure the person who attacked your team used magic?"
"Yes, I'm very sure! At least I can tell the difference between magic and superpowers!"
"The magic glowed green, didn't it?"
"That's right, because it was night when we went, and the glow from his magic was very obvious."
"Could you tell the person's gender? Do you think that person was a man or a woman?"
"I'm not sure. He... they was completely covered by a cloak. From the appearance and height, I couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman."
Ravonna Renslayer asked question after question, and Kevin answered each one.
All the questions she asked were related to Sylvie, not to Kevin himself.
It seemed Ravonna Renslayer truly had no suspicion of Kevin.
Her focus was entirely on Sylvie.
This was natural, as Ravonna Renslayer was the one responsible for pruning Sylvie back then.
Ravonna Renslayer was partly responsible for Sylvie escaping from the TVA.
However... it's hard to guarantee whether this was intentional on Ravonna Renslayer's part.
Because Kang had erased her memory of creating the TVA, she now genuinely wanted to know the truth about the Time Keepers and the TVA.
Perhaps Sylvie's escape was even at Ravonna Renslayer's instigation.
It's just that now Sylvie has probably broken free from her control.
Kevin multitasked, analyzing these thoughts in his mind while answering Ravonna Renslayer's questions.
About an hour passed before Ravonna Renslayer stopped her questioning and told Kevin, "Agent, the interrogation is over. You can go back to work."
"That's it?"
"Yes, this operation to apprehend the Time Variant had an accident, which was an oversight by the Analysis Bureau, and it has nothing to do with you. You can go back and rest now, and wait for your next assignment... Mobius, stay here, I have a task for you."
After Kevin left, Ravonna Renslayer kept Mobius behind.
Kevin confirmed there was nothing else for him here, gave a slight bow to the TVA executives, and then left.
Walking out the door, Kevin remained at the entrance and didn't leave immediately; he was waiting for Mobius to come out.
Although Ravonna Renslayer didn't say anything to Kevin, she didn't even interrogate him. It seemed as if the matter was concluded, as if a period had been placed on it.
But Kevin knew very well that this matter wouldn't end so simply.
Involving Sylvie, a Time Variant who had been on the run for who knows how long, Ravonna Renslayer would certainly take it seriously.
That's why she kept Mobius.
If Kevin wanted to get involved in this matter and make contact with the Loki variant, he would have to build a good relationship with Mobius, and even assist him in apprehending Sylvie.
This might also be why Loki arranged for him to have an agent identity.
"Ouroboros, huh..."
Kevin once told Barry to punch himself, the one who ran into the Time Bowl, to send him to the DC Universe after Flashpoint.
There would be no beginning, no end in between, but the moment the cycle completed, it would loop endlessly.
No beginning, no end.
This was the Ouroboros.
And now, Kevin and Loki seemed to be in this very theory.
If Kevin contacted Loki, helped him change the TVA, and helped him become the Story God.
Then Loki would send the future Kevin here to accomplish Kevin's goal.
The two's cycle would thus form, with no beginning and no end.
Although Kevin didn't think he had such great influence to make Loki personally help him.
But Kevin, who had been unable to understand Loki's purpose during this period, could only think this way for now.
For this, he would have to make contact with Loki and complete the time loop.
Kevin stood outside the door, idly waiting for Mobius. After a long time, Mobius finally pushed the door open.
He saw Kevin still outside the door and was immediately surprised:
"Why are you still here?"
"Waiting for you. I'm very curious about that Time Variant."
Kevin smoothly pulled out the excuse he had already prepared.
Upon hearing this, Mobius looked left and right, pulled Kevin closer, and told him, "You don't need to worry about this matter..."
But before he could finish, Kevin interrupted him, "Because this matter is now your responsibility? Who is that Time Variant? Why does he seem so familiar with the TVA?"
Kevin rattled off a series of questions.
Mobius really wanted Kevin to go back, to keep him away from this matter.
But when his eyes met Kevin's, Mobius somehow changed his mind.
He sighed, looked around again, patted Kevin's arm, and said, "Alright, if you really want to know, let's go to the break room, get two hot chocolates, and talk while we drink."
...
Perhaps because they were colleagues, or perhaps because this matter wasn't much of a secret among agents, Mobius told Kevin about Sylvie.
Including her identity, her origin, and what she had done over the years.
"So it's just this little girl... and after all this time, we still haven't caught her?"
"This matter was originally handled by Ravonna Renslayer, but she's a judge now. After the agent responsible later had an accident, no one has been in charge of this matter since."
"And now?"
"Lucky for me, this job has been handed to me now."
Mobius said casually, sipping his hot chocolate.
Sure enough, Ravonna Renslayer had kept him behind just for this matter.
So now, it shouldn't be long until the plot of Loki Season 1 begins.
"I'll help you too."
Kevin 'hesitated' for a long time before saying to Mobius.
Mobius immediately refused: "No, absolutely not! Each agent is only responsible for one specific variant, and most 'Loki' variants are very cunning, not something you can handle right now."
"But you saw, my first time leading a team, I failed, proving I'm not mature enough. I need to learn apprehension experience under a more experienced 'senior.'"
"Do you think your excuse can fool me? Although I don't know what you're here to do, I'm sure you're definitely not coming with me to learn apprehension experience!"
Because there were other people in the lounge, Mobius whispered to Kevin:
"I know you might be frustrated after suffering a setback, but this is non-negotiable. Even if I agree, Ravonna wouldn't."
Mobius might have misunderstood something; he thought Kevin was unwilling to accept his first mission's failure, which was why he wanted to go with him to apprehend Sylvie.
But first, this matter did not comply with regulations, and Mobius didn't have the final say on it.
Even if he wanted Kevin to come along, Ravonna Renslayer wouldn't allow it.
Kevin's request was rejected by Mobius. No matter what he said, the other party just wouldn't budge.
In the end, Kevin gave up on the idea of dealing with Sylvie with Mobius.
After all, it was indeed difficult to talk to Ravonna Renslayer.
If Kevin still wanted to stay at the TVA, it was best not to deal with the TVA's higher-ups to avoid any problems.
Moreover, even if Mobius didn't let Kevin get involved, Kevin wasn't completely without options.
When Loki arrived at the TVA, there would be plenty of opportunities to contact Loki.
Having figured out this key point, Kevin started to be idle again in the TVA.
Because time was not obvious within the TVA, after a long time, Kevin didn't know how long he had stayed there.
He only remembered that during this period, he dealt with two Time Variants, and then watched Mobius bring back two different Lokis, who were then pruned by the TVA...
Then it was day after day of repeating a boring routine.
And during this time, there was still no progress with Ouroboros's Time Restraint Device, and everything repeatedly fell into stagnation.
Just when Kevin was bored to the point of going crazy.
Finally, one day at breakfast... or rather, after his first meal upon waking, he saw the person he wanted to see.
Loki.
Or rather, that Loki who escaped with the cosmic cube after the Avengers traveled through parallel universes.
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