"You two..."
Wanda froze, staring blankly at what had just happened.
The man she loved was kissing someone else, completely oblivious to the world around them. In that moment, her heart twisted in pain, and she felt as if she couldn't breathe. Her eyes were red, her body trembling uncontrollably, as she just stood there and watched it all.
She wanted to say something, but all that came out was a choked sob. She had once wondered if Cassius would ever leave her, but she never expected it to happen so fast... She couldn't accept this reality.
"So, I've been abandoned..."
The reason she was here was that she had finished up some mundane tasks at the Avengers Compound. She had originally planned to call Cassius, but decided to surprise him instead and went directly to his mansion.
When she arrived, she learned that Cassius had gone out with Gwen. She figured Gwen's home was in Queens, so she decided to come looking for him. But she never expected the moment she found Cassius, this was the scene she would witness. She gasped for air, tears welling up in her eyes.
"Wanda, let me explain." As soon as Cassius came to his senses, he was the first to speak. He had intended to wait until their relationship progressed further before breaking the news to her.
"I went to your house to look for you... I couldn't find you..." Wanda's expression was pained, and her voice was broken and halting. She tried her best to stay calm, biting her lip as she glared at Cassius. The event had already happened, and no explanation could change the fact.
In truth, she had always had her suspicions. But as long as she didn't see it with her own eyes, she was unwilling to accept the truth. For example, she had heard a girl's voice at Cassius's mansion. But she had been willing to believe his lie and didn't press him about where the voice came from.
When they went to the supermarket together, she had sensed that something was off about Cassius. But she pretended not to notice and didn't dare to investigate further. Even when he was catching snakes, she had smelled Gwen's perfume on him. But she had secretly convinced herself that she was just being paranoid.
But when she saw this scene, she could no longer control her emotions.
"..." Cassius gritted his teeth, his mind racing for something to say. But the fact remained, and any explanation would sound incredibly weak.
Voom!
Wanda's fists clenched. The surrounding trees and green spaces began to inexplicably tremble. The evening wind suddenly grew strong, rustling loudly. A large number of leaves fell from the trees, swirling between the two of them. It was like a barrier, and the two of them just stared at each other from a distance.
"You two?" Gwen looked at the scene, and even she wasn't so naive that she couldn't see something was wrong. These two were definitely not just friends. She had never considered that possibility before. But in this moment, she realized she was likely the third wheel.
Why else would Wanda stay at Cassius's house when she could have stayed at the Avengers Compound? Why would she ask Cassius to help with something as private as getting her clothes?
"I'm fine," Wanda's expression suddenly became calm, and a crimson glow surrounded her. In a state of extreme sadness, a person's psychological defense mechanisms are triggered.
The next moment, she shot into the sky, propelled by a terrifying force. She finally understood. She should have known a long time ago that a person like Cassius would never be satisfied with just one person.
Besides, she had no reason to stop this from happening. Their relationship had always been ambiguous, and she had just been unwilling to admit it. Now that she had seen it, she completely resigned herself to her fate. Maybe she was never meant to have love. This had all just been her own wishful thinking.
"I'm sorry, Gwen." Cassius grabbed Gwen's shoulder. "This is a bit complicated. I'll explain everything later."
With that, he flew into the sky and chased after Wanda. No matter what, he had to keep an eye on Wanda. Who knew what she would do in this state? He was well aware of how fragile her mental state was.
Whoosh!
Wanda sensed the magic fluctuations behind her and a determined look flashed in her eyes. The crimson glow erupted again, and she flew even faster. She was like a meteor, a brilliant crimson streak across the night sky.
"Mom! Look! There's a shooting star!" A little girl in a thick windbreaker tugged on her mother's arm, pointing at the sky.
"Oh, look! There are two shooting stars. Quick, make a wish! Maybe it'll come true!" The woman looked up and also saw the two crimson streaks of light.
Looking up at the darkening sky, two brilliant shooting stars, one crimson and one dark red, streaked across the sky.
Passersby on the street were all drawn to the sight. They all looked up, and when they saw the scene, they couldn't help but close their eyes and make a wish. It was rare for them to see two shooting stars pass by. Many of them even took out their phones to record it. For them, this was a rare sight.
High in the sky, far from the city.
"Wanda! Wait for me!" Cassius gritted his teeth and caught up, grabbing Wanda's arm. He had to admit, after all their time together, he had developed feelings for Wanda. Although she was a bit of a tsundere, she would always agree to his requests. He had seen her soft side, and he didn't want to give up on her.
"Let go of me!" Wanda shook off Cassius's hand, a red light flashing in her eyes. The beautiful face that was usually so alluring now had a dangerous look.
Voom!!!
The next second, a powerful stream of crimson light shot toward Cassius. The dazzling light was like a beautiful firework blooming in the night sky.
"Listen to me, actually..." Cassius waved his right hand, and the Phoenix Force appeared, creating a barrier around him. He could feel that Wanda was truly furious now. The dense crimson light wrapped around him, tightening like a python. The force of the compression was so strong that his Phoenix Force barrier began to show faint cracks.
"I don't want to hear your explanation! You're a damn liar!" Wanda took a deep breath and pulled her right hand back furiously. Cassius was sent hurtling toward the ground like a bowling ball.
Bang!
In an instant, a huge cloud of dust rose into the air. The ground even shook slightly. Watching Cassius fall, her heart ached. But she knew that a force like that couldn't hurt him. Sure enough, Cassius flew back up.
"I said! Don't! Come! Near! Me!" Wanda's crimson light flared again, and a powerful beam of light shot across the sky. The beam, filled with immense energy, immediately struck Cassius's barrier.
Crack, crack, crack...
Cracks appeared on the barrier he hadn't focused on maintaining.
"Wanda, I know you hate me, but I can't help it! Our family's physical constitution is just built differently!" Cassius took a deep breath and shouted.
Any of Wanda's lingering worry instantly turned into fury. This guy was still thinking about having two women at a time! She poured more of her Chaos Magic into the attack, forcing Cassius's Phoenix Force barrier down into a small mountain.
"This girl is seriously angry," Cassius lay on the ground, feeling the powerful crimson light impacting his Phoenix Force, and shook his head helplessly.
He really hadn't expected Wanda to come looking for him everywhere. And what were the chances she would see that scene? He didn't even know where to begin to explain. He could even vaguely feel that the crimson light Wanda was releasing now was even stronger than when she fought Agatha.
"..." Wanda withdrew the crimson light and gasped for air. She was so angry that her blood was boiling!
Now, she was conflicted. She wanted to harden her heart and give up on Cassius. But when she recalled all the good things he had done for her, her heart ached. But the thought of things being like this forever made her even more unwilling.
"Wanda, I really can't help it..." Cassius appeared in front of Wanda in a flash. "Our family's physical constitution is just built different."
He was telling the truth. After all, the system's rewards had made him incredibly powerful.
"You're so utterly shameless!" Wanda's right hand was wrapped in crimson light as she fiercely aimed a slap at Cassius's abdomen. But just as she was about to hit him, she saw that Cassius wasn't trying to dodge, and she subconsciously pulled back the crimson light.
Slap!
The slap hit his abdomen, and Cassius immediately fell to the ground.
Boom!
With a loud crash, a thick cloud of dust rose into the air, instantly enveloping Cassius.
"Why didn't he dodge?!" Wanda gritted her teeth, her eyebrows furrowed. She had just held back and didn't use her power. She never expected Cassius to not even try to block it. She couldn't help but look at the ground, but there was no movement.
"Is he... okay?" A thought suddenly flashed through Wanda's mind. If Cassius's power needed to be actively activated, then falling might actually cause him to get hurt. And what made her even more terrified was that she couldn't feel his life force from below.
"Cassius?" Her heart leaped into her throat, and she quickly descended. Although she didn't like Cassius's lies, she didn't want to see him get hurt. If something really happened, she would regret it for the rest of her life.
Just before she landed on the ground, she sent a gust of wind with her right hand, sweeping away all the dust.
Cassius lay on the ground, motionless. His chest wasn't rising and falling at all. It was as if he were dead.
"Cassius!" Wanda's face changed drastically, and she knelt down beside him. She couldn't feel Cassius's life force at all. Her heart was now filled with panic. As she leaned in to listen for a heartbeat, Cassius suddenly moved, and a warm embrace pulled her into his arms.
"You... lied to me again!" Wanda tried to struggle free, but her arms had no strength. Tears streamed from her eyes, and she slowly closed them. After a while, Cassius finally let go of Wanda.
"You tricked me again!" Wanda was much less angry now. She just hit Cassius playfully.
"That actually hurt! I feel like I'm in so much pain here," Cassius said, holding his abdomen and looking at Wanda with a pained expression.
"You think I can hurt you?" Wanda didn't believe him. She knew what Cassius's physical abilities were like. He was thick-skinned. How could he be hurt? And that slap just now wasn't even that hard.
"Don't believe me? Feel for yourself." Cassius had a pained look on his face, gritting his teeth and trembling all over.
Wanda looked at his realistic expression and, half-believing him, rubbed his abdomen. "Here?"
"You're not angry anymore?" Cassius smiled happily as she rubbed him.
"You're lying again!" Wanda was annoyed, but the sadness in her heart had also faded a little.
"I really love you, but..." Cassius held Wanda, looking at her with sincere eyes. "I'm sorry, but I can't leave Gwen either."
Wanda gritted her teeth, her heart in turmoil. But every time she looked at Cassius's face, her heart softened. After a long time, Wanda finally spoke softly. "I won't let you go. Just promise you'll never abandon me!"
She knew she couldn't bear to lose Cassius. So she could only reluctantly accept this. All she hoped was that Cassius would never abandon her in the end.
"Don't worry, I swear to the heavens!" Cassius smiled and raised his hand to swear.
"It's okay, you don't have to swear. I believe you!" Wanda grabbed Cassius's hand, her lips pouting.
The moonlight bathed them. They had unknowingly flown to a strait.
"Hey, don't you think this place is beautiful? Not only is the scenery gorgeous, but there's no one for dozens of miles around."
Wanda heard the meaning in his words and blushed.
....
Meanwhile, on a street in Manhattan.
Two graceful figures were fighting. They collided with each other at high speed, the sound of their blows echoing. Finally, both of them kicked out at the same time, sending each other flying back.
"Yelena, what are you doing in New York?" Natasha's expression was alert as she stared at the familiar figure opposite her. It was her sister, Yelena. She had just received a notification from a contact that Yelena had appeared in Manhattan. Because of this, she had rushed over immediately.
"I'm a law-abiding citizen, and I entered the country legally," Yelena said, shrugging her shoulders with a nonchalant look. "Besides, is this how you treat a tourist who came to visit New York?"
"I don't just believe anything a spy says." Natasha knew her sister's nature. She wouldn't come to New York for no reason. If there wasn't a scheme, she would be dumbfounded.
"I'm looking for someone," Yelena's fiery red lips curled up, and she raised her eyebrows mysteriously.
After she returned to her organization yesterday, she was ordered to investigate Cassius, and to do so before S.H.I.E.L.D. and other organizations. It was obvious that Natasha and S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't know Cassius's true identity.
She could take this opportunity to find out who Cassius was before they did. If she could build a relationship with Cassius, it would be a huge asset to her organization.
"Who?" Natasha asked, frowning with an alert expression. But Yelena just shrugged, her tone provocative.
"You guess..."
——————————
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to my Patreon ——— patreon(.)com/PrimalDemon [remove the parentheses ( )]
There are 50+ advance chapters available for you to read!