A little earlier, the Ancient One had returned to Kamar-Taj after finishing her affairs.
Soon she encountered Wong and Daniel, who had just returned from the New York Sanctuary.
She looked at them with mild suspicion, especially noticing their red eyes and exhausted expressions, as if they had suffered a heavy blow.
What on earth had happened?
They hadn't been gone long, yet now they looked as if they had gone through hell.
"Wong? Daniel?"
"Supreme Sorcerer…"
"You've finally returned!"
Wong and Daniel lifted their heads, and when they saw the Ancient One, they expressed relief, almost as if they had seen a parent after a long period of wandering. Their faces were at once full of sorrow and relief.
"What's wrong with you two?"
The Ancient One observed them in surprise.
It was the first time she had seen Wong in such a state.
How could they look so shaken?
It was similar to what had happened with Mordo before…
Wait…
Alaric!
The Ancient One immediately remembered that she had arranged for Wong to take Alaric to the New York Sanctuary to swap shifts with Daniel.
Since Daniel was here now, it was obvious the handover had been completed.
But their defeated appearance could mean only one thing, everything had to do with Alaric.
Daniel remained silent; he probably didn't know Alaric well enough to understand what he had gotten himself into.
But Wong… he had lived in Kamar-Taj. Hadn't his experience with Mordo taught him not to oppose Alaric, who was more like a force of nature than a mere disciple?
"Come inside and tell me everything."
The Ancient One sighed, feeling a slight headache spreading at her temples.
It turned out that promising sorcerers under her guidance, one after another, experienced trauma as soon as they came into contact with Alaric. She could already imagine that as time went on, the three of them Wong, Daniel, and Mordo, would have much in common to talk about.
Finally, after Mordo had recovered and Alaric had left Kamar-Taj, the Ancient One had thought she would finally have some peace.
But now… more problems again.
Truly frustrating!
She sat down and poured tea for the two of them, signaling for them to start talking.
Wong took a deep breath and then began recounting everything that had happened after he had taken Alaric to the New York Sanctuary.
When she heard Daniel mention that he had wanted to test Alaric's strength, the Ancient One fell silent for a moment and let out a deep sigh.
Of course. You brought this on yourself.
Still, she couldn't entirely blame him.
Most of the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj were stubborn and unyielding.
Mordo had been a classic example of such stubbornness, but Daniel was not far from it either.
Such people had firm characters and were not easily swayed by demons or dark forces. Precisely because of this, they were exceptionally well-suited to be guardians of the sanctums.
But the drawback was obvious, their power was stable and balanced, lacking that breakthrough quality that leads to the highest levels of strength.
By contrast, those whose minds and spirits were more flexible and adaptable were Stephen Strange and Kaecilius.
For Strange, one could say he was born for magic, gifted, unconventional, and brave.
Even the Ancient One herself admitted that Strange possessed the potential to become a Sorcerer Supreme superior to her, better than anyone who had ever studied in Kamar-Taj.
Kaecilius also had a flexible mind, but to a lesser degree. Unfortunately, in his pursuit of power, he lost his way, fell under Dormammu's influence, and even accused the Ancient One of hiding certain knowledge from their teachings.
He believed she selfishly used more powerful magic for herself and did not pass it on to the disciples. In the end, he betrayed Kamar-Taj and became Dormammu's follower.
Apart from the two of them, there was now also Alaric.
His audacity was even greater than Strange's!
Even the Ancient One often felt uneasy about his behavior, fearing that one day he might destroy himself if he didn't learn to be more cautious.
For Strange, she hoped he would put in more effort, but for Alaric, she wished he would learn calmness and restraint.
Later, Wong recounted how he had immediately recognized Alaric by the Cloak of Levitation and accepted him as its master.
The Ancient One raised her eyebrows and quietly nodded.
That seemed reasonable to her.
Then Wong went on to recount the entire sequence of events, from the first meeting between Daniel and Alaric all the way to the end.
"Seriously? You can't even handle this, and then you come back and cry?"
The Ancient One raised her eyebrows and looked at them with disapproval.
Was their will really that weak?
Were they truly so fragile inside?
Perhaps Kamar-Taj would have to introduce psychological counseling as a mandatory part of training.
Otherwise, maybe it would be better for some of them to spend a few years meditating with monks in mountain temples before starting to learn real magic.
Their current endurance was truly disappointing.
The Ancient One was inwardly speechless.
It was hard for her to believe that such people were her own disciples.
"It's not like that, Supreme Sorcerer! It's not because of me!"
Wong immediately began to defend himself, quickly shaking his head.
"Daniel was the one who wanted to see how much Alaric had grown."
The Ancient One shifted her gaze to Daniel, who silently lowered his head.
If he hadn't been so curious and brash, none of this would have happened.
At that moment, Daniel clearly regretted his decision.
"So… you wanted to see it too?"
The Ancient One turned her gaze to Wong.
"Y-yes…"
Wong also lowered his head, feeling ashamed.
It was almost humiliating, they had examples from the past, they knew how unpredictable Alaric could be, and yet they had to learn the hard way again.
"And… what did you see then?"
Daniel raised his head, still visibly shaken.
"We saw… the deity of magic!"
Wong immediately confirmed, his voice full of a mix of reverence and shock.
"Yes! Alaric summoned Vishanti himself!"
Daniel quickly added, "Yes, yes, yes! Our eyes aren't red because we were crying, but because of what we saw! I was almost blinded!"
He hurried to explain the redness in their eyes, obviously eager to clarify that they hadn't been crying behind Alaric's back.
The Ancient One fell silent for a moment.
The God of Magic… Vishanti…
So, that was the source of Alaric's power.
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