Inside the dining room of the Sanctum Sanctorum, the magic-based superheroes summoned by Doctor Strange gathered together to discuss how to resolve the conspiracy Mephisto had initiated when he previously smuggled himself into Universe 616. With everyone assembled, Strange began his briefing on the entire incident.
"First of all, what we can confirm is that after Mephisto arrived in our world, he basically did not make contact with any cultists or similar forces, nor did he cultivate any forces of his own—not counting the Ghost Rider, that is."
Strange did not look at the Ghost Rider as he spoke, and Johnny did not see any issue with it either, merely continuing to listen. Strange went on: "Mephisto made a fortune in Las Vegas relying on his own magic, and then within a mere few months, he engaged in a wave of stock trading. Ultimately, he hoarded a massive amount of shares belonging to the Roxxon Energy Corporation."
At this point, Strange paused and looked at Peter. Peter then quickly chimed in: "According to what the Avengers have learned, Agger, the CEO of Roxxon Energy, is in cooperation with Malekith of Svartalfheim, as well as Loki of Asgard, among others. They have formed a faction attempting to rule the entire Nine Realms. Furthermore, like the Hand, Roxxon Energy is one of the subordinate organizations of Hydra."
A.I.M., the Hand, Roxxon Energy—and of course, one must not forget S.H.I.E.L.D. and the numerous internal forces within the Soviet Union that had already been dismantled. Aside from its own core organization, Hydra had also nurtured a vast number of subordinate institutions. These institutions possessed a considerable amount of independence, allowing them to carry out various activities relatively autonomously. In fact, the relationship between many of them and Hydra had evolved into semi-independent organizations based on mutual exploitation.
Take the Roxxon Energy Corporation, for example. The fact that it had caused such a massive stir and had even gotten involved with Malekith showed that its level of influence had already exceeded Hydra's control. To say that Hydra completely agreed with the Dark Elf's conspiracy to conquer Earth would be absolutely impossible.
However, to say that Hydra did not secure some benefits for itself while tripping up Malekith would also be impossible.
"In other words, if we plan to deal with this... Mephisto, we also need to pay attention to Hydra." After listening, Moon Knight Jake expressed his first opinion. "Um, who is Mephisto?"
Everyone present fell silent. Strange looked at Moon Knight. "Have you read Faust?"
"No."
"Don't you play DND? Or Diablo?"
"I drive a taxi."
Strange was speechless. He let out a helpless sigh and skipped past the topic. "In short, that is a part we need to be vigilant about. Of course, what requires even greater vigilance is Mephisto himself. Although he has already left our universe, we need to be careful. Mephisto is not just a powerful demon controlling the entirety of Hell; he himself is also an incomparably powerful dimensional demon lord..."
Illyana raised her hand. "We killed a dimensional demon lord once. Or maybe we didn't kill him, but we beat him up and chased him away."
"First of all, we deployed a sufficient amount of force just to fight Belasco. Secondly, although Belasco is not among the weakest tier of dimensional demon lords, he is merely in the middle tier..."
Illyana gave an astonished "Wow." "Unbelievable, Belasco isn't even the weakest? Then what level is considered the weakest tier of dimensional demon lords?"
Strange sighed helplessly. "If you choose to take a step further and master Limbo, then you would be in that tier."
Thus, Illyana and Strange began to bicker. Moon Knight sat there completely uncomprehending, while Blade turned around to ask Wong, who was standing to the side, "Aren't you going to serve everyone a cup of coffee or something?"
"First of all, I am not the Sorcerer Supreme's butler," Wong said solemnly. "I am the Sorcerer Supreme's deputy and assistant."
"I don't see any difference."
"Secondly, Kamar-Taj generally does not drink coffee. We drink tea."
"I wouldn't mind that either."
Out of personal etiquette, Iron Fist said nothing. Out of professional wizardry, Brother Voodoo spoke not a word. Out of a general lack of concern for the people present, Elsa Bloodstone was busy wiping her gun.
Since no one dared to stare at him, Johnny Blaze raised his head and stared at the ceiling.
However, Moon Knight was not the only one present who was entirely oblivious to what was happening. Wanda sat next to Peter, and since she only knew Peter and Strange, she took advantage of the moment Strange and Illyana were arguing to converse quietly with Peter. "What's going on? How did a demon from literary works like Mephisto end up showing out here?"
"...It's a long story. Let me give you the short version."
Ultimately, this matter still traced back to Peter. Back when they were dealing with Nimrod, Peter had used his ability to tear a rift in the reality barrier of Earth-616, which allowed Mephisto to slip in for a period of time. Later, when the Kang Dynasty erupted and Mephisto's plans were forcibly interrupted, he could even have been considered an ally.
Of course, during that process, he was discovered by Strange and sent away.
By the time Peter finished explaining to Wanda, Strange and Illyana had also mostly finished their argument. After pressing Illyana back down into her seat, Strange explained an important piece of information. "What I want to say isn't about that. What I want to say is that during the time Mephisto stayed on Earth, he purchased a vast—one could say astronomical—amount of stock in the Roxxon Energy Corporation."
Moon Knight chipped in again, "You said that once just now."
"I know that! What I want to say is that these stocks have undergone a change now! Nearly all of these stocks have been dumped, and what's very strange is that they were dumped to a large number of retail investors rather than some wealthy tycoon."
After retorting to Moon Knight, Strange rolled his eyes helplessly. "And because they are retail investors, these stocks have been distributed among thousands of people, and the circulation is incredibly rapid."
"You mean, if Mephisto tampered with these stocks, then everyone whose hands they passed through is a suspect."
After listening, Bloodstone shook her head. "This isn't a hundred years ago. Stocks nowadays are nothing more than a string of electronic symbols."
"It's not that simple," Johnny offered a contrary opinion. "These stocks are still considered 'contracts,' and demons are the most adept at manipulating contracts."
At this point, as the person most familiar with Mephisto, he looked toward Strange. "Do these people share any common characteristic?"
"Yes. All the retail investors trading these stocks live in New York."
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