RNP Chapter 4748 X Royal Newcomer (27)
Chapter 4748 X Royal Newcomer (27)
Chapter 4748 X Royal Family: New Life (Twenty-Seven)
The Avengers hurriedly left, while the mutants still needed to hold an apology conference, the theme of which was to apologize to the various forces that had attended the banquet. Although it was clear that they had been framed, as the hosts, they still felt they had failed in their hospitality and had frightened their guests, so they had no choice but to apologize to each and every one of them.
However, the guests who haven't left yet don't really mind. Frankly, dealing with mutants is never without risk. They've already been frightened and taken the risks; running away now would be unwise. Staying at least allows them to owe the mutants a favor, which might come in handy later.
There were actually quite a few clever people like this. For example, the envoys from S.H.I.E.L.D. and Wakanda stayed, and even the people from Latvia didn't leave. Charles personally promised them that the mutants owed them a favor, and they would definitely do their best to help them if needed in the future, which could be considered a blessing in disguise.
Don't be fooled by the mutants' poor performance on the island; they even struggled to handle a volcanic eruption. That's because the island itself imposes restrictions on mutants, limiting Omega-level mutants to Beta-level. The eruption was also sudden, making the response less effective. However, once they leave the island, they encounter planetary-level powerhouses. Gaining their favor would be an unexpected bonus.
However, these people left quickly, knowing the mutants had family matters to attend to. These matters were far more important than diplomacy. It was obvious to everyone that there were moles on the island, and quite a few of them, with a high level of efficiency and clearly well-trained.
“I won’t say more,” Charles said after the others left. “Even if I wanted to put all the blame on the Avengers, it would be impossible. Anyone with a brain knows that it couldn’t have been them; it could only have been the mutants on the island.”
"What are you planning to do?" the White Queen asked. She had naturally come to such an important banquet, even though she knew she might no longer be able to join Clarkia. But she was a businesswoman, and maintaining good relationships with all parties was essential; even if she didn't join, there was no need to offend anyone, so she naturally came.
"The first thing to do is stop blaming each other. You should have expected that this situation would occur as soon as Clarkia shouted the slogan 'Never give up on any mutant.' Because not all mutants are on the side of mutants, it's inevitable that some will be mixed in."
Apocalypse nodded, arms crossed, and said, "That's right. Many mutants have lived in human society for too long. They value their social status in ordinary people's society more and are reluctant to leave their ordinary parents. If someone coerces or entices them, they are very likely to defect."
Namor frowned deeply: "The only possibility is that there's something wrong with those mutants you recruited from the continent. If we, who came here voluntarily, really wanted to cause trouble for Clarkia, we wouldn't have come at all. I'm a king, and I don't need to come here to suffer with you."
Many mutants nodded in agreement. They had all come to Magneto's aid after Magneto changed his ways. While not all of them were wealthy or powerful, they were all self-sufficient and had their own support; they were not homeless or weak mutants. They hadn't come to Clarkia seeking refuge, but rather had actively dedicated themselves to the cause of a mutant utopia.
It's highly unlikely that such mutants would do something like this, because they would have given up a better life to join a fledgling company facing numerous challenges, hoping that the company would grow and support them. Making sabotage before the company has even left its startup phase would not benefit these investors at all.
However, while that's what they said, no one dared to be too definitive. They themselves thought this way, but their subordinates might not. What if someone had already infiltrated their ranks and then discovered it? If they spoke too confidently, they themselves might also be attacked.
“How about this,” Apocalypse said, “I can open my brain to you, and you can conduct a brainwave examination on me. You can publish any suspicious points and let everyone judge them together. That should clear my name, right?”
His words caused another uproar among the mutants. To be honest, despite Professor X's always benevolent demeanor, most mutants both respected and feared him, mainly due to his abilities. Being able to view everyone's thoughts and memories at any time was still quite terrifying.
However, it is precisely because of this that Apocalypse's attitude earned him everyone's respect. He's so utterly guiltless; has he lived from ancient times to the present without ever doing anything wrong?
"Whatever I've done, my starting point has always been for the good of mutants," Apocalypse said, raising his head slightly. "Even if I've attacked many of you, it's only because I want to rule mutants first, and then rule the whole world. I have a clear conscience."
After he said that, no one else dared to say anything. You could say he was overestimating himself, but Apocalypse was the progenitor of mutants. In his time, mutants were powerful and influential, but in modern times, mutants have suffered terribly. It's understandable that he felt his descendants were disappointing and wanted to try harder himself.
“I can also be examined,” the White Queen said. “Although I am also a psychic, I can only resist the Professor’s brainwaves when my body is in diamond form; at other times, I cannot. I will not use my mutant abilities to resist, ensuring the accuracy and truthfulness of the examination results.”
“Then I can too,” Polaris stepped forward and said. “I have nothing to hide. Besides, I trust the professor’s character; he’ll only investigate this matter. If he really wanted to see our private lives, he would have already done so. Nobody has secrets from Professor X, right?”
Many young mutants also stepped forward, most of them Professor X's students, and some from the younger generation of the Brotherhood of Mutants. They genuinely trusted Professor X's character, knowing that even if he saw something, he wouldn't reveal it. This trust had been built up over many years.
Ultimately, most mutants agreed to the investigation, while a small group of outside mutant factions had reservations. However, they were hesitant to speak out, as opposing it at this point would easily make them appear as traitors, and they reluctantly agreed in the end.
“Then come to me,” Charles said. “I’ll wait in my office and examine whoever comes. Once they’re cleared of suspicion, they can go back and rest, and I’ll announce the results soon.”
"Are we going to be examined too?" Captain America from the main universe asked. "It's not that we're unwilling, it's just that we've never been subjected to mind reading before, and we're not sure if this will..."
“You don’t need to,” Charles said. “Iron Man and Doctor Strange are already gone. And your character speaks for itself. Of course, if you’d like, I wouldn’t refuse; it would be even better if you could prove your innocence.”
Although they knew this might allow a lot of information to fall into the hands of the central universe, there was no better way. Besides, without Iron Man and Doctor Strange, the remaining people were all relatively mild-mannered and felt that being able to prove their innocence was a good thing.
"And what about us?" Matt asked.
“Iron Man can skip the inspection,” Charles said. “His efforts in this matter are evident to all, and he’s not in good condition, so he should go back and rest.”
No mutant objected, because Polaris had already explained the entire engine repair process to them; it was indeed Iron Man from the central universe who saved the day. If he were the mastermind, he wouldn't have needed to do this, and it's perfectly normal for him to be exempt from scrutiny.
The others had no objections; after all, Charles was one of their own and wouldn't say anything he saw. However, since the mutants had investigated first, they went back to rest.
Stark had already been sent back to bed, and the others sat down on the sofa, letting out a long sigh of relief. Strange couldn't help but complain, "What's Charles up to?"
“You noticed it too,” Matt said. “I thought I was the only one who thought that.”
“What did you see?” Natasha asked.
“Charles orchestrated this whole thing himself,” Schiller replied. “There was no mastermind behind it all; he was the one who broke the engine.”
“I thought it was you,” Natasha said bluntly. “It looks a bit like your style. Although the volcanic eruption was a bit petty, I thought you went easy on him out of respect for Charles.”
“Although I knew it from the beginning, it really wasn’t me,” Schiller said, shaking his head. “I’ve warned you all before, always trying to steer the conversation in this direction, but none of you seem to have noticed.”
“I had a feeling,” Matt said. “This whole hot spring thing is pretty strange. Like I said, given all the sanctions and pressure from all sides, it’s obviously not normal for mutants to be the first to build hot spring resorts.”
“I think it’s like Charles’s tactics,” Strange said. “He’s causing trouble in the Andromeda Galaxy and then pinning it all on the three great empires. They’ve been tricked like this by him several times already.”
“I see.” Steve nodded and said, “I was just thinking about it. Although it seems like mutants have lost a lot on the surface, they have actually gained even more.”
"What did they gain?" Bucky asked. "All I can see is guilt from the local Avengers, what else?"
“Of course we can openly and legitimately catch the mole,” Schiller suggested. “Without a pretext, no one would agree to suddenly say that we need to conduct a brainwave investigation. But with such a big incident, everyone is eager to prove their innocence, so the investigation will be a natural course of action, and this can quickly eliminate the mole in Krakia.”
"But they have also offended ambassadors from many countries."
“Didn’t the important ones all stay?” Steve took a sip of water, then put down his glass and said, “A few close friends are worse than a bunch of fair-weather friends. This principle holds true in any era. At the United Nations, it seems that whoever has the loudest support is powerful, but outside the conference hall, it still comes down to the actual strength of the support.”
“That’s right. As long as mutants have value, their allies won’t abandon them. The worse the situation in Krakia, the more aid the allies will provide. This incident is a legitimate reason for them to ask for aid, and it’s also a reasonable excuse for the allies to provide humanitarian assistance without violating international treaties.”
"Moreover, the Avengers' guilt is also key. At the very least, it can incite Stark Industries and the Avengers themselves to go against Washington, which issued the sanctions order. Given Iron Man's temper, he won't rest until the sanctions are lifted."
"With allies in the international community stepping up to help, and the sanctions being severely sanctioned by the Avengers, the current diplomatic predicament of Clarkia can be resolved quickly. Furthermore, eliminating the mole will allow those certified by Charles to trust each other more, become more united, and stabilize the internal situation."
Schiller paused for a moment before saying, "Once this move is used, Clarkia's predicament, both internally and externally, won't last long."