章 118: Chapter 118: Eternal Portal!

Chapter 118: Gwen And Wanda Gossip! Eternal Portal!

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If Gwen wore a suit now, her father would definitely grow suspicious. He'd probably think, My daughter's hanging out with troublemakers?

So, Lorien shook his head and said, "That'll have to wait until Gwen goes to college. She's not exactly free to dress however she wants yet."

Natasha Romanoff nodded thoughtfully. "That's right, her father is a sheriff, and the family is pretty strict, especially with the church."

Strict is an understatement, Lorien thought. If Gwen's father had any inkling about her hanging around him, he'd have already shown up at his doorstep, probably with a shotgun in hand. And even if someone were to call the police, it would be Gwen's father answering the phone.

"Who's filing a complaint against my daughter's boyfriend?" Lorien imagined.

After finishing their conversation about Gwen, Natasha Romanoff pulled out a chair and sat down. She reached into her jacket and produced a business card from the inside pocket, placing it on the table. Before she could say anything, Lorien interrupted.

"Wait, wait... don't you have pockets? Why do you always pull things from the front of your jacket?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "Is it really that spacious? Can it hold all those things?"

Natasha zipped up her jacket and gave Lorien a playful wink. "Why don't you find out for yourself when you have time?"

Lorien pursed his lips and nodded. "You just wait."

I'll show you the original 13 tricks when the time is right, Lorien thought, biting back a grin. His serious tone made Natasha Romanoff chuckle.

"Why wait? How about now?" she teased. "No time like the present, right?"

Lorien seriously considered it for a moment but decided against it. "It's work time, and if I start now, things will spiral out of control," he reasoned. He'd broken that rule before and knew where it led. So, he gritted his teeth and said, "Next time!"

Natasha smirked and winked again. "Alright, next time it is."

With the playful banter out of the way, Natasha pushed the business card toward Lorien. He picked it up and gave it a quick look.

"Isn't this the one Tony gave you?" Lorien asked.

Natasha smiled. "You really do pay attention."

"Of course," Lorien replied, handing it back to her before retrieving something from his small safe. He placed it on the table and said, "Tony came to me two days ago. Said he wanted to live in seclusion."

"Two days ago?" Natasha was surprised, then quickly realized what that meant. She smiled wryly. "We Avengers only found out last night. So, the first person he confided in after deciding to retire was you."

Lorien raised an eyebrow, amused. "Should I feel honored?"

He put the card back on the table and asked, "So, what's the Avengers' stance on Tony retiring?"

Natasha thought for a moment. "We only found out last night and started discussing it. But most of us understand where Tony's coming from. He's been physically and mentally drained for years. We've seen it."

She hesitated before continuing, "And... well, the Avengers these days..."

She trailed off, and Lorien finished her thought. "They're not the real Avengers anymore, huh?"

Natasha nodded. After the Sokovia Accords and the United Nations' interference in the Avengers, everything had changed. What once was a group dedicated to protecting Earth had become a symbol of politics, power, and regulations. Freedom was a thing of the past, and even doing good deeds required paperwork.

Lorien nodded, understanding. "I get it. But you're still part of the Avengers because, despite everything, the world still needs you. There's always a sliver of hope, and the city needs your help."

Natasha nodded silently, acknowledging the truth in his words.

"Beep, beep, beep…"

At that moment, Natasha Romanoff's agent phone rang. She took it out, answered, and after a brief conversation, nodded.

"I understand," she said before hanging up.

Turning to Lorien, she added, "Sorry, it's not urgent, but I'll need to leave soon. There's a gang of weapon smugglers hiding out in New York City. What happened last night was probably their doing, so I need to investigate."

Ah, so it's about that, Lorien thought as he waved her off with a casual smile.

"Alright then, see you next time. Remember, we'll find some free time to hang out. Don't stress too much about the case—it might even solve itself by tomorrow."

Natasha winked at him, then turned and left the office.

As she stepped into the elevator, she recalled Lorien's last remark. Suddenly, it dawned on her—there was a hidden meaning in his words. He'd hinted that the situation would resolve on its own. Who could take care of it? Spider-Woman? Or maybe Scarlet Witch?

As Natasha disappeared from sight, Lorien leaned back in his armchair and stretched. That was a good chat, he thought. And it's almost time to clock out. Perfect.

He glanced around, noting that Hela still hadn't come downstairs to play video games. Probably still sulking, he mused, satisfied with how smooth his day had been.

When the clock hit 5:00 p.m. sharp, Lorien locked his office door, mentally checking off his end-of-day tasks. As for any rewards he'd been anticipating—he'd just keep saving them for now.

But as soon as the door clicked shut, he noticed something odd. Scarlet sparks flickered in front of him. Wait a second... isn't Kamar-Taj's magic supposed to produce golden sparks? Then it hit him.

"Wanda," Lorien muttered under his breath.

As expected, the scarlet sparks swirled into a circle. Lorien, without hesitation, encouraged her. "Come on, Wanda, you're almost there!"

With his support, the sparks gradually formed a full portal. And through the opening, Lorien saw Wanda standing on the other side, looking exhausted but smiling—a smile he hadn't seen in a long time.

Seeing the portal open, Lorien stepped forward without hesitation, entering the magical doorway.

Before he could even greet her, Wanda lunged forward, wrapping him in a tight embrace.

"Congratulations, Wanda," Lorien said softly, proud of her.

Wanda, however, remained quiet for a moment before confessing, "I'm sorry, Lorien. I'm slow. Compared to the others, my progress with learning the portal spell is embarrassingly slow."

"Huh?" Lorien raised an eyebrow, surprised. Slow? He mentally calculated the time she'd been practicing. It did seem like a while, but Wanda was no ordinary sorcerer—she wielded the powers of chaos magic. How could she be struggling?

"That's impossible," Lorien stated firmly. "You're not slow, Wanda. You've got extraordinary abilities. Here, try closing the portal and see how it feels."

Encouraged by his words, Wanda stepped back from his embrace and concentrated. She made two attempts but found herself stumped.

"Why can't I close it?" she wondered aloud, stunned. It should've been easier to close a portal than open it, yet something wasn't right.

"What's going on here?" a voice called out.

It was Wong, the librarian and protector of Kamar-Taj. He hurried over, noticing the strange scarlet portal and Lorien's presence. Bowing slightly in respect, Wong then turned his attention to the portal.

"That's odd," Wong muttered, his brow furrowing as he examined the magical doorway. "No one's portal looks like this."

Lorien frowned, sensing that something was amiss as well. "Wanda," he said, "go grab the magic book you've been studying."

Wanda nodded and hurried off to retrieve it. Once she returned, Lorien and Wong quickly flipped to the section on teleportation magic.

Wong's eyes widened as he read. "The Eternal Portal?!"

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