Marvel's New Magneto

No matter whether the X-Men accepted it or not, Stryker had already successfully escaped a great disaster and saved his life. Although this made Scott more hostile toward Erik, he couldn't do anything about it. After all, Erik was the key figure in ensuring the safety of the invasion.

Through a conversation with the returning members, Erik learned about the events that had transpired over the past few days.

On the night he left Hank's place to clear his mind, the mischievous Mary sneaked over, unable to sleep, hoping to chat with him. However, she ended up mistakenly entering Logan's room. At that moment, Logan was having a nightmare, and in his dream, he swiped his claws, accidentally injuring the girl. When he woke up, he realized that he had almost killed her. He panicked and screamed. In order to save herself, Mary had to use her power to absorb Logan's life force to heal her fatal injury. The commotion attracted students who saw Logan lying on the floor in a corpse-like state, causing them to distrust Mary. Fortunately, Logan was immortal, and his self-healing abilities soon restored him, though it left Mary deeply regretful.

Initially, this small disturbance would have naturally settled down after a while, but an external force intervened, altering the course of events. Someone disguised themselves as one of her close friends in the academy, stirring up Mary's insecurities and driving her to run away from the academy. The Professor, worried that she was connected to the recent Brotherhood of Evil Mutants attack, used the mind-enhancing machine to locate her among the crowd. When his devoted students tried to convince her to stay, they inadvertently exposed Magneto and his group. It turned out that Magneto had designed a device that could mutate the genes of ordinary humans into mutant genes to oppose the human registration act. In order to carry out this plan, he needed to use his own abilities and life force. To protect himself and complete the plan, Magneto attacked the X-Men and kidnapped Mary, intending to use her power to replicate his own and operate the machine to complete the entire process.

Thus, in order to stop Magneto's plot and save Mary, Wolverine Logan and the X-Men fought a fierce battle against Magneto and his group on the Statue of Liberty. After overcoming many obstacles, they finally defeated them, saving both the world leaders attending an important conference and the people of New York.

Having suffered quite a bit, Mary appeared more composed, and her two new streaks of white hair showed just how much she had been through in the past two days.

However, due to Logan's desperate rescue, her bond with him had improved significantly. While she used to be closer to Erik and had been somewhat afraid of Logan, she now clung to her savior, Logan, and seemed to have grown much closer to him.

This battle, involving both the human government and Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, caused a huge uproar. Many young students were excited, wishing they could have been a part of it. The kids eagerly chattered about the events that happened at the academy, surprising their older counterparts.

Stryker, taking advantage of the Professor's injury, had plans to use the Professor's position to exterminate all mutants. Just this alone was enough to shock all the X-Men. If it weren't for Erik, mutants might have already been wiped out by now.

Erik's actions saved the academy and all mutants, which made everyone look at him in a new light. When the students repeated the words Erik had said to Stryker in the basement, everyone felt like a window had opened before them, showing them a new world. Mutants had many abilities, and their training methods were diverse. In the past, everyone had focused on strengthening their powers and emphasized abilities directly related to combat. Erik's words, however, were like a wake-up call, urging them to reassess their former beliefs.

Logan, however, didn't care much about any of this. Perhaps because he had lived so long, he was indifferent to external affairs.

Jean and Storm, however, gazed at Erik with shining eyes, admiring him. This scene caused Scott to feel a pang of jealousy. With a scoff, he turned and left.

When he left, the atmosphere grew awkward. Jean hesitated, glanced at Erik, but ended up following Scott.

The Professor, having suffered serious injuries and later being kidnapped by Stryker, had been holding up for a long time. Now that the immediate danger had passed, he couldn't keep going any longer. He was old, and his energy was running out. After receiving some basic treatment, he went to rest.

Storm had been calming the children, and after such a long night, it was time for them to sleep.

Soon, the bustling main building returned to peace.

"I always feel like you don't belong here. You don't fit in with them," Erik said, not heading to his room but standing alone outside, admiring the night sky. Mystique, with her blue skin, had somehow appeared behind him.

Erik felt that the Professor had always known about Mystique's existence, but their complex relationships had led them to choose to ignore it.

"Why do you say that? Is it because I don't get along with Scott?" he asked.

"It's a difference in philosophy," Mystique said as she walked over, standing beside Erik.

"You and they are fundamentally different. I grew up with Charles and followed Erik Lehnsherr for a long time. I've seen too many mutants, and my ability to change shape has given me my own understanding of humans. The guy with the glasses looks very radical, but in reality, he's been deeply influenced by Charles. He's always suspicious of humans from the bottom of his heart, but he instinctively wants to please humans and earn their acceptance. These two opposing thoughts clash within him, and he can't find his own way. Hank thinks he'll end up like Magneto, but I think Hank is overthinking it. He's just a well-trained dog. If you poke him in the right spot, he'll bare his teeth and bark, but it's very hard for him to break free of the leash and bite anyone."

"That makes sense. What about Storm?"

"I thought you would ask about the red-haired beauty first." Mystique teased, then continued:

"I have high hopes for Storm, but her issue is the same as Cyclops's. Following Charles's path is her firm belief, but to say she has no doubts inside? That would be impossible. In fact, under Charles's guidance, every student in this academy faces the same issue."

"Even Charles himself, I'm afraid, is struggling with his willpower. His belief is to help humans and mutants coexist peacefully. This is both his source of pain and his strength. He would never abandon this belief, because if he did, his life would lose its meaning. But he cannot avoid the fundamental problem: human rejection. On one hand, he can't escape humanity because he must protect them from mutant harm. On the other hand, he can't escape humanity's relentless persecution of mutants. This wound will only grow over time, and self-doubt will make them suffer immensely. That's why I follow Lehnsherr. At least with him, I don't see any hesitation. He is a man who, once he decides on a path, will walk it without looking back."

"As for you, you're the second person I've seen who is so firm. You seem to be repeating Charles's old path, letting your enemies go too easily. But I don't feel the kind of restraint and tolerance that Charles had. Why is that?"

Hearing Mystique's question, Erik chuckled.

"Your wisdom surprises me. I must admit, I underestimated you."

"So, you're admitting that letting Strick go was part of a bigger plan?"

"No, I didn't have any particular plans with Strick. I just think having an open enemy can benefit us greatly. Even though he's dangerous and could bring threats like today, through repeated struggles, he gets to know us, and we get to know him."

"Humans' wariness of mutants didn't start with Stryker. He's not acting alone; he's backed by the military and supported by powerful families and corporations. Eliminating a familiar enemy is certainly gratifying, but it could lead to more unfamiliar enemies joining the fight against mutants. It's better to maintain the current situation. It keeps mutants alert, helps with internal unity, and by having a common external enemy, we can avoid a full-scale internal war. After all, we can't just rely on the old friendship between Charles and Magneto."

Hearing Erik's explanation, Mystique pouted. "You're not really a mutant, you're more like a schemer. But no matter how you look at it, your actions are refreshing. That's not enough, though. I hope you'll grow quickly."

This was the second time Erik had heard such words. The first time was from Hank. From what Mystique said, he sensed a hint of farewell and couldn't help but ask:

"Are you leaving?"

Mystique nodded.

"I hope you'll stay," Erik said sincerely. Though he had a sense of belonging to the academy, it wasn't enough. Mary now had Logan, Jean was dealing with Scott, and Storm was busy. He felt somewhat isolated. Even though today's events would improve his situation, he still longed for someone to talk to.

But Mystique refused his offer.

"I'm not a little girl anymore. I'm used to acting alone. Erik... the other Erik is dangerous. I have to save him," she said, slowly retreating into the shadows.

"Grow up quickly. Once he's out, he'll definitely come looking for you. I hope by then you'll have enough power to face him."

With that, Mystique left. Her parting words vanished with her figure into the night wind, leaving Erik alone.

Erik gazed at the starry sky, just as he had so many times in the world of the main god, watching the deep blue night sky gently embrace the stars. It felt like the silent murmuring of a mother holding her child. This sensation intoxicated him. No matter how many worlds he had experienced, the starry sky remained as beautiful as ever. Under this sky, he didn't feel lonely.

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