Chapter 269: Banner Joins the Ranks — and Loki Descends
"Dr. Banner. Nice to finally meet you," Ethan said, seated comfortably on the couch, smiling at the man across from him.
This was actually the first time the two had ever properly met — their paths simply hadn't crossed before. Now that they had, Ethan figured it was well worth inviting Banner to the Lucky Dragon for a real conversation.
Banner returned the smile, something like deep gratitude in his eyes. "Nice to meet you too, Mr. Cross. And — thank you. Genuinely," he said, meaning every word.
Even though this was their first meeting, Banner's gratitude toward Ethan ran deep. Ever since the Hulk had taken up residence inside him, his entire life had been turned upside down.
He'd spent years on the run, dodging military pursuit, all while living with the constant fear that the Hulk might seize control of his body without warning at any moment.
Before all of that, Banner had been an elite academic — seven doctorates to his name, a life that wasn't necessarily perfect, but was at least stable and full.
The Hulk had changed everything.
He'd lost the woman he loved, and found himself hunted relentlessly by her own father, day after day. That stretch of his life had felt like an actual hell.
Fortunately, he'd eventually found refuge in Hell's Kitchen — and there, he'd met Ethan.
Ethan had given him not just a safe place to live, but had actually developed a working suppressor capable of containing the Hulk.
For the first time in years, Banner finally had something resembling a peaceful, stable life again.
Which was exactly why, sitting across from Ethan now, Banner's chest was full of gratitude.
He knew, plainly, that without Ethan's help, he'd probably still be out there running, living in constant fear.
And now, finally, he could actually start building something like a real future for himself.
"You give me too much credit," Ethan said, waving it off lightly. "Honestly, I didn't do anything that special. Even without me, I think you'd have gotten there eventually — your own willpower and intelligence would've carried you through."
Privately, Ethan knew the truth: in the original story, this version of Banner eventually did learn to control his transformations at will — but it took him roughly a decade of grinding struggle to get there. All Ethan had really done was use the System to speed that process along a bit.
There was one key difference, though, between this world's Banner and the comics version. Comic-book Banner had struggled with something closer to a genuine multiple-personality condition — other identities inside him constantly fighting for control, making managing the Hulk exponentially harder. This world's Banner, while still dealing with the Hulk himself, at least didn't have that added layer of internal fragmentation working against him — which made his path to control considerably smoother.
"Still — thank you, for taking me in, and for helping me exactly when I needed it most," Banner said, a little sheepishly.
He thought back to the incident where he'd been sent, under S.H.I.E.L.D. orders, to assault Hell's Kitchen. It hadn't been his choice, and thankfully nothing had really come of it — but he still felt genuine guilt over it, especially remembering how coldly S.H.I.E.L.D. had treated him afterward. That memory still stung, mixed with real anger.
"I honestly don't know how to properly thank you. Whatever you need, whenever you need it — I'm here," Banner said, completely sincere.
Ethan laughed and waved a hand. "Don't worry about it, Bruce. I didn't take you in expecting anything back. I just think you're talented — genuinely full of potential.
And I know you're not really a fan of violence — you'd rather help people through knowledge and understanding. So how about this: stay on at the school. Teach the kids. They need your guidance a lot more than I do."
Hearing that, warmth flooded through Banner's chest. He hadn't expected Ethan to value him this much — let alone entrust him with actually teaching children. It felt like a genuine honor.
"Thank you, Ethan. I'll do everything I can for those kids," Banner said, voice solemn and sincere.
Right then, the System's notification chime rang out in Ethan's head:
「Congratulations, Host! Bruce Banner's Friendship Level has risen to ★3!」
「Congratulations, Host!...」
「Congratulations, Host! Bruce Banner's Friendship Level has risen to MAX (★6)!」
「Congratulations, Host! Bruce Banner is now your Family!」
「Congratulations, Host! You have gained all of Dr. Banner's skills!」
The moment the notifications finished, Ethan felt his own physical strength surge noticeably — and, at the same time, sensed something else stirring at the edge of his mind. A new personality, forming.
Without hesitation, Ethan brought the full force of his telepathic power down and crushed it instantly.
He had zero interest in carrying around some uncontrollable extra presence inside his own head. Unlike Banner, Ethan wasn't the type to just tolerate someone else living rent-free in his own skull.
A moment of intense focus later, the personality was gone completely, snuffed out.
He let out a quiet breath of relief.
Banner, noticing Ethan's eyes had briefly closed, asked with genuine concern, "Mr. Cross, are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Just a minor hiccup — already handled. Anyway, would you be interested in staying for a meal? I've got a lot of academic questions I'd love to pick your brain about."
"Of course. It'd be my honor."
. . .
"This time, Ethan didn't even have to lift a finger, and Revenant still got taken down. Clearly Hell's Kitchen has gotten stronger yet again over this stretch — if this keeps up, there's not going to be anyone left who can stand against them. So let's hear it. What's our next move?"
Pierce rubbed his temples as he spoke.
He didn't show it outwardly, but every agent in the room could tell — Director Pierce was furious.
Pierce, at this point, finally understood the misery Nick Fury must have felt dealing with this place. Hell's Kitchen was an absolute nightmare to deal with.
Nobody in the room dared say a word, terrified of setting Pierce off and inviting a fate none of them wanted to imagine.
Just then, a strange ripple of energy pulsed outward from the center of the conference room. Pierce and every agent present snapped their heads up — a gray, shimmering rift had opened out of thin air right in front of them.
The sudden intrusion shocked everyone in the room.
Nobody could believe it — S.H.I.E.L.D.'s heavily fortified headquarters had just been breached, out of nowhere.
Agents drew their weapons instantly, training them on the strange rift with wary precision.
Just as they braced to move, two figures stepped out of the portal.
They came through one after the other. The first was a man in flowing robes, unmistakably a sorcerer — his expression carrying a distinct air of arrogance, like the entire room around him wasn't worth his attention.
Behind him came another man, casual and loose-limbed, carrying some kind of blue weapon.
The moment Pierce laid eyes on the two of them, his face went pale.
"Mortals," the robed sorcerer said, gazing down at Pierce with icy disdain, "this facility is under my authority now. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Loki — of Asgard. I carry a purpose far beyond what creatures like you could ever hope to comprehend."
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