Cassius temporarily let Wanda go; the sorceress still had a mission to complete.
The next day, on a Saturday, Cassius shuffled down the stairs in his slippers. He still had a bit of sleepiness in his eyes and his steps were a little unsteady.
For him, a lazy day was the most comfortable day. He reached the bottom of the stairs and saw Lorna walking out with a plate of breakfast in a soft, warm pajama set.
"How come you're making breakfast today?" Cassius was surprised. Usually, Imelda was the one who made breakfast.
"I wanted to make breakfast... for you." Lorna said, blushing and stuttering. "Thank you for bringing me back and helping me find my sister."
"No need to thank me. I'll just accept Lorna's kindness!" Cassius pulled out a chair and sat down, but when his eyes landed on the breakfast, the smile on his face froze.
The sandwich on the plate... well, what was supposed to be a sandwich... was slightly burnt. The egg in the middle looked a little off, more like a piece of charcoal. And what was sprinkled on top was probably salt, right?! Because the slightly charred appearance clearly meant a blowtorch had been used. She was supposed to be scorching sugar!
"What's wrong? Is my cooking that bad?" Lorna looked worriedly at Cassius.
"No, it's nothing. I'm just so touched that you made me breakfast." Cassius's eyes were a little red. He hadn't felt this overwhelmed in a long time. What kind of culinary disaster was this?
If he didn't know it was her good intentions, he would have suspected Lorna wanted to inherit his estate. He took a deep breath, picked up the sandwich, and put it in his mouth. Instantly, all the flavors—sour, sweet, bitter, and salty—danced wildly on his taste buds. But facing Lorna's sparkling, hopeful eyes, he still managed to swallow it.
"Mr. Cassius, don't worry. If you like it, I can make it for you anytime," Lorna lowered her head, her voice as quiet as a mosquito's hum. She was very happy to see Cassius eat the breakfast she made.
"No!" Cassius stood up seriously, looking at Lorna with a grave expression.
"What's wrong?" Lorna asked anxiously, her voice a little hesitant. Was my cooking really that bad? Or is Mr. Cassius just being considerate?
"Imelda is our maid here. If you do her job, she'll be out of a job," Cassius said, looking directly at Lorna. "Do you want her to be unemployed?" He certainly didn't want his taste buds to be tortured every day.
"Oh, I see. Then I don't." Recalling the kind and friendly maid, Lorna shook her head. It seemed she would have to give up the idea. She didn't want Imelda to be fired because of her.
Buzz...
Cassius felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He took it out and saw that it was a message from Gwen! And the content was an invitation from Gwen to hang out with him!
"What is this little girl up to?" Cassius was stunned. He had planned to go find Gwen today to explain things, but he never expected Gwen to reach out and invite him herself.
....
On the outskirts of the city, golden leaves from the maple trees fluttered to the ground with a gentle breeze. The autumn wind blew, and everything was so quiet and peaceful.
Cassius looked at the location on his phone and couldn't help but sigh. "Little Gwen has a thing for autumn outings."
Following the location, he quickly arrived at a mostly empty area. As soon as he got there, he saw a figure in a pure white hoodie. He was about to raise his hand to wave, but the smile on his face instantly turned incredibly grim. He saw a tall, unlikable figure. The tall figure turned its head and grinned.
It was the Goddess of Death, Hela, who had been missing for days!
He never expected this woman to appear here, and with Gwen, no less. A dense killing intent radiated from him. Although he didn't know what was going on, if she dared to harm Gwen, he wouldn't mind letting the Goddess of Death know what true death felt like.
"Cassius." Gwen saw Cassius not far away and jogged to his side.
"Are you alright?" Cassius took a deep breath, his voice low as he asked.
"Hello." At that moment, Hela slowly walked toward Cassius, her eyes filled with a meaningful expression. He could even feel the energy inside her body fluctuating.
"Oh, Cassius, this is my substitute teacher, Ms. Shirley!" Gwen quickly moved closer to Hela and introduced her to Cassius.
"Ms. Shirley?" Cassius looked at Hela with a cold smile, saying each word slowly. "Since when did the great Hela change her name?"
If this woman could be a substitute teacher, then hyenas could stop attacking vital organs! He didn't believe for a second that this woman had any good intentions.
"Don't be so tense. I wouldn't harm a child." Hela smirked, spreading her arms. She even made a gesturing motion, her expression incredibly calm.
"Then what do you want?" Cassius pulled Gwen behind him, looking at Hela with caution. Although his power was immense, he was worried that she had some kind of special trick she could use on Gwen.
"What do I want? Don't you know very well?" Hela looked up at the blue sky, her arms wide open, and said word for word with a look of obsession, "I naturally want to invite you to join me and conquer the universe together!"
As long as the Phoenix Force joined her, conquering the universe would be just around the corner. What's more, in her opinion, this place was only limiting Cassius's future. With such immense power, hiding on this damned Earth was a waste of time.
Women? Money? Power?
She could give all of that to Cassius. He could even control countless civilizations. This was far more tempting than a small planet like Earth!
"I'm not interested in your plan." Cassius frowned, and sneered, "Not to mention, you can't even beat a Midgardian, and you want to conquer the universe?"
Besides, if he really wanted to conquer the universe, he wouldn't need Hela's help. He had the System, which was the equivalent of the most terrifying power in the world.
And unless he had lost his mind, he would never choose to join a mentally deranged crazy woman. All she talked about was conquering the universe and the world; he was starting to wonder if she had lost her mind from laughter.
"Midgardian, last time I had just broken free from that damned cage." Hela's voice was calm. "And my power hadn't recovered. If it were now, dealing with you would be no problem at all!"
Although she was beaten badly last time, it was only because she hadn't recovered enough of her power. Although the man in front of her possessed the Phoenix Force, this Midgardian definitely didn't have a good way to control it. And she, coincidentally, had a way to control the Phoenix Force. Therefore, this time Cassius would surely not be her opponent. What's more, she also planned to teach Cassius a good lesson to show him who was truly worthy of his loyalty.
"Are you asking for another beating?" Cassius sighed helplessly. Is she really that much of a masochist? It was ridiculous that she would travel all this way just to get her ass kicked again.
But her baffling self-confidence was also giving him a headache. Although he had a way to suppress Hela, he didn't want to waste so much time. He was a man who hated trouble.
"How would you know if you don't try?" Hela put her hands on her head and swiped backward. Her hair coiled up, forming a helmet of jagged spikes. Her clothes also turned into a tight battle suit. Her lips curled into a smirk, and her eyes filled with excitement.
"I don't have that much time to waste on you. How about we make a bet?" Cassius shook his head. What if she came looking for him all the time after she had her fun? And who knew if this woman would try to harm the people around him? It was better to find a way to end this once and for all so he didn't have to worry about her coming back.
"A bet?" Hela was stunned, then burst into laughter. "Hahaha, that's interesting, Midgardian. In that case, what's the bet?"
She found this man in front of her to be incredibly interesting. It was the first time she had ever heard someone propose a bet with her.
"I'll let you hit me three times. If you can injure me, I'll go with you to conquer whatever you want." Cassius said, stating his terms. There was no point in him fighting Hela; he didn't want to see her pathetic, deranged state.
"Deal." Hela agreed without hesitation. To her, this was too easy.
Cassius formed a rune in his left hand. "This is a Loyalty Pact. If you lose, you have to serve me."
The smile on Hela's face froze when she heard this condition. She, the great Goddess of Death, having to serve someone else?
"If you're too scared, then forget it." Cassius spread his hands, looking at Hela with a look of disdain.
Hela, who was still hesitating, nodded in agreement after hearing this. This was a sure win for her. She didn't believe that Cassius could withstand her attacks. Not even Odin would dare to stand still and take three of her hits!
Gwen, listening to their conversation, gradually turned pale. Even though she wasn't a genius, she could tell that this person was not a substitute teacher, but Cassius's enemy!
"I'm sorry." Gwen looked at Cassius with an apologetic expression. She truly had no idea that something like this would happen.
"It's fine. She'll be a good warm-up for me, and a nice way to kill some time." Cassius said with a smile, ruffling her hair to comfort her. After all, it was just the Goddess of Death, Hela.
"Let's go. Let's find a more secluded place." Cassius started walking toward the distance. After all, someone might see them here.
"Come on!" After making sure Gwen was far away, Cassius stretched his body and smiled provocatively, beckoning her. A dark red Phoenix Force swirled around his body, solidifying into a barrier that protected Cassius.
"I hope you don't die with one hit." A killing intent flashed in Hela's eyes. Although she didn't consider Cassius to be a god, she still knew the importance of using all her strength, even against a weak opponent. What's more, this kid's strength was by no means weak.
"Hah!" With a roar, she raised her hands like eagle claws, and a deep green energy spread in her hands.
Creak, creak...
A terrifying sound came from a nearby mountain, as if some monster was about to surge from the ground. Then, the huge mountain began to crumble rapidly, and Hela actually tore the entire mountain from the ground. The mountain, swirling in the sky, was like a terrifying rock dragon, slamming down on Cassius.
At the same time, the people at a nearby campsite also noticed this terrifying scene. "There's a monster! The mountain is flying!"
"Run! What's going on?!"
"Forget packing, our lives are more important!"
Everyone screamed and ran toward the distance. Even from far away, this terrifying sight made their hearts tremble.
"Cassius!" Gwen in the distance saw this and her heart leaped into her throat. She regretted why she had brought this person here.
This power was terrifying to the extreme. This woman could actually tear an entire mountain from the ground!
But Cassius simply stood there, his hands in his pockets, calmly watching the mountain crash down on him. As the mountain was about to hit, Cassius stood still, not moving an inch!
Rumble...
The next moment, the mountain, carrying an immense amount of power, completely buried Cassius.
"Phew." Hela breathed a long sigh of relief. Moving a mountain that big also took a lot of effort for her. She figured this kid was buried in the ground and couldn't struggle anymore.
Crack!
Just then, a crack suddenly appeared in the mountain. Then a dark red energy surged out, and the mountain was split open! Cassius walked out with his hands still in his pockets, a smile on his face. "No way, that's not even enough for a warm-up."
Gwen saw Cassius walk out unharmed and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hmph!" Hela couldn't believe that Cassius had so calmly blocked her attack. She pulled two blades from her hands, and the green energy began to condense between them. The more it condensed, the more terrifying the power became.
It was on a completely different level from the previous attack. This was a move she rarely used because it took too long to build up. She thrust her hands forward, and the green energy, like a sword blade, shot out.
With a loud swoosh!, the concentrated point of power slammed into the Phoenix Force barrier. The surrounding trees were torn apart by the immense power.
But after it hit, there was no change at all.
"How is this possible?!" Hela's eyes widened, filled with disbelief.
"You forced me!" A murderous look flashed in Hela's eyes. The sky instantly darkened. Black energy surged from the ground, turning the area into a hellscape. One by one, black shadows of ghosts crawled out of the ground. They were the souls of the dead.
"What is that?" Gwen felt a shiver down her spine.
A monstrous black mist shot into the sky, instantly shrouding the entire forest. The people who had been running away from the forest also saw the ominous black energy.
"Die!" Hela was truly enraged. Cassius had humiliated her, the Goddess of Death! Now, she would use what she was best at to show Cassius the true power gap!
"What a coincidence. I can do that too." Cassius was calm. He snapped his fingers.
Snap!
Suddenly, the ghosts changed direction and rushed toward Hela instead.
"..." Hela's face was a mess. She was the Goddess of Death! And her own summoned souls were attacking her! Looking at the approaching ghosts, Hela retreated a little in fear.
The next second, the endless souls instantly overwhelmed her.
Bang!
Cassius snapped his fingers again.
Whoosh!
The souls completely dissipated. Hela was kneeling on the ground, trembling, muttering to herself, "Impossible!"
Tap, tap...
Cassius walked over and condensed the Loyalty Pact. "Do you want me to do it, or will you do it yourself?"
Hela gritted her teeth. "I'll do it myself."
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