Reborn as the God-Emperor in Marvel

The window was slightly open, allowing a gentle breeze to slip through the gap. Morning light shimmered softly, creeping past the dark wool curtains and inching across the open book and scattered yellowed parchment on the solid wood desk.

The bright sunlight didn't recognize the worm-like script on the papers, and it gave up trying to understand them. Instead, it kept moving forward, crawling up a red robe and onto the figure of a young man. The sudden warmth and the soft breeze against his face caused the boy's closed eyelids and long lashes to tremble. The sunlight gently tapped at his eyes, trying to wake the lazy sleeper. "Wake up! It's a beautiful morning!"

"Damn it! Damn Lothander!" Solomon muttered as he groggily turned his head, blinking hard. The annoying sunlight had interrupted his sleep. He stood up from the chair, still half-asleep, and fumbled his way to the window, slamming it shut with force.

Rubbing his eyes, he stretched his stiff muscles and walked around the chair. In front of him was a large bed where two women lay, one with white hair, the other with black. While it had been dawn in Italy, New York was still in the night when he had returned them here, and now a full night had passed.

As for Phoenix, it had already left with the Sorcerer Supreme.

The battle outfits of the witches were woven from their own magic, matching the color of their hair—Bayonetta's was black, Jeanne's was white. The issue, however, was that after they had lost consciousness during the fight with Jubileus, their magic had dissipated, and thus, their clothes had vanished along with it.

Despite the awkward situation, Solomon had managed. He had carefully removed their handguns and glasses and placed them on Bayonetta's large bed. He found a spare blanket from the wardrobe and covered them up, completing the task. After that, Solomon began using the positive energy provided by the Vishanti to cast his dark sorcerer's magic, healing his injuries. Due to significant blood loss, he had become utterly exhausted, eventually dozing off while reading until the sunlight had rudely awakened him.

He headed to the kitchen, opened the fridge, and took out some leftover fish from the previous day. After seasoning it lightly, he fried it, pairing it with sautéed asparagus and an egg. That would be his breakfast.

"Yesterday, a violent explosion occurred at the headquarters of the Ragnar Church in the Isabel Building. It's suspected to have been a terrorist attack. Several buildings collapsed, and the number of casualties remains undetermined. Bader, CEO of the Isabel Corporation, is missing…"

Opening the dish cabinet, Solomon grabbed a clean cup, placed a tea bag in it, and poured in hot water. Setting the steaming tea next to his plate, he sat down at the table, cutting into his fish with a fork and chewing slowly.

The aftermath of the chaos caused by the angels and the dispersal of Kamar-Taj's blockade of Vigrid had exposed Sun Island to the eyes of the wider world. The events on Easter at the Ragnar Church were no small matter. Although Vigrid was under the control of the Isabel Corporation, it still resided within Italy's borders.

Even in a country like Italy, with its strong religious atmosphere, its grammar schools, and fixed periods for religious education, the fanatical fervor of the Ragnar followers had caused alarm. After all, the Pope now resided beyond the Tiber, and the Inquisition was no more. Most Catholics no longer held such fanaticism. Despite Italy having signed agreements with the Vatican to support the clergy, the modern era was an age of science, not the church.

"The Easter events of the Ragnar Church have been canceled. Rescue teams from several nations have arrived at Sun Island to provide aid. The Italian government is urging the Ragnar followers to remain calm…"

"In other news, although the famous arms dealer Tony Stark shut down the weapons division of Stark Industries, his invention of the Iron Man suit has been classified as a new type of weapon by the White House, following the freeway incident and the rooftop battle caused by Stark's robot war. Senator Stern is expected to…"

"The green giant seen in the streets of New York…"

Rescue teams, possibly spies as well, Solomon mused. Isabel Corporation's technology was highly advanced, and European nations wouldn't let such a prize slip away. And Tony Stark—this age wouldn't be as exciting without him.

Solomon's thoughts wandered as he quickly finished his breakfast. A single portion of fish wasn't much. After cleaning his plate, he prepared two more servings of breakfast, adding rosemary and casting a preservation spell on them. Just as he was about to leave, the bedroom door opened, and Bayonetta and Jeanne, now dressed, emerged.

"Good morning, boya, or perhaps it's afternoon? Certainly not evening, right?" Bayonetta leaned against the doorframe, watching as the mystic prepared to cast a spell. "Oh my~ You even made breakfast. Such a thoughtful little guy."

"Cereza, does he live with you?" Jeanne, wearing red-framed glasses and crossing her arms, raised an eyebrow upon seeing Solomon.

"That's right! The Sorcerer Supreme sent him to watch over me." Bayonetta sat down at the table, ready to enjoy the fish. Jeanne, however, wasn't as relaxed. If regular households scared their children to sleep with tales of witches, wolves, and monsters, then witches and sages frightened their young with stories of the Sorcerer Supreme. "If you don't sleep, the Sorcerer Supreme will come and get you." This foolish tale had been passed down for hundreds of years, and nearly every witch and sage knew the stories of the Sorcerer Supreme by heart.

"Then why haven't you kicked him out yet?" Jeanne frowned.

"Because Solomon here is just too sweet," Bayonetta teased. "He's taken such good care of me~ Big. Brother."

Jeanne glanced at the fish on the plate, then at Solomon, before letting out a small huff and sitting down next to Bayonetta to eat. Her peace lasted only a few seconds before Solomon sat across from them.

"I can't tell whether you're Cereza or Bayonetta anymore," Solomon remarked. "How should I address you?"

Bayonetta chuckled. "Call me whatever you like. Do you want me to call you big brother?"

"Alright, Bayonetta," Solomon raised an eyebrow. That "big brother" remark made him uncomfortable, even though Cereza and Bayonetta were the same person. Still, it didn't seem right for her to say it. "I have something to ask you."

"Oh? So eager, are we? I'm just a weak woman who just woke up from a coma—can't you be a little more gentle?" Bayonetta's voice was filled with innuendo, but no one would take it seriously. Solomon had already fallen for it several times, ending up red-faced and retreating in embarrassment. He had learned his lesson by now.

Taking a deep breath, he pressed on, "I want to ask about the demon you and Jeanne summoned at the end. Since you were able to summon her, you must know something."

"That was the Queen of Sheba," Jeanne answered before Bayonetta could, "one of the original demons. Wait… your name…"

"I just want to know how much debt I'm in," Solomon sighed. "Beliar's contract was already bad enough, but I noticed that the Queen of Sheba actually took notice of me."

"Looks like you've got a wandering eye," Bayonetta pretended to be hurt. "Isn't your big sister pretty enough? You've got a thing for demons now?"

"You know that's not what I meant…" Solomon rolled his eyes in frustration, realizing the conversation had taken another odd turn. "Forget it…"

"I have a little gift for you," Bayonetta said, turning to Jeanne. "Remember what we got after defeating Jubileus?"

"You mean… the halo?" Jeanne asked. After killing angels, their halos would solidify, and Bayonetta had often used them as currency to purchase weapons from Rodin.

"Exactly," Bayonetta confirmed. "That thing's not much use to us anymore. I know a fallen angel might want it, but we don't need weapons now. Giving it to Solomon isn't a bad idea. He's a mystic; he'll make the most of its value."

Bayonetta and Solomon agreed that he would return in a few days, at which time Bayonetta and Jeanne would work together to summon the Queen of Sheba and retrieve Jubileus' halo. At the same time, Solomon could further investigate the Queen of Sheba's secrets.

"But before that, where's my Cheshire cat?" Bayonetta asked. "My doll is gone, and now I'm left with just a Cheshire cat."

"You mean my familiar? Cereza gave it that name…" Solomon suddenly remembered the plump, gray short-haired cat that had been forgotten after the battle. Although it was a magical creature, it hadn't been of much help to Solomon lately. Even if the cat had survived the chaos, Solomon was now too far from Vigrid to observe it through the cat's eyes.

"Fine, I'll summon it again," Solomon said. "I'll need to perform a ritual."

The plump gray cat, which had been lounging comfortably in the arms of a rescue worker while munching on a sausage, suddenly disappeared. It reappeared in front of a brass brazier filled with burning wood and incense—part of Solomon's magical ritual. Before the cat could react, Solomon picked it up and handed it to Bayonetta.

"If you like, I can perform a

 familiar transfer ritual," Solomon offered. "The cat can be yours from now on."

"No need. This is our pet," Bayonetta said, stroking the cat's fluffy back with satisfaction, though Jeanne wasn't as pleased. She felt like Solomon was trying to steal her long-lost friend.

Solomon returned to Kamar-Taj. With future plans now in place, he could focus on his studies once more. After all, a sorcerer's main occupation was learning, not adventuring. Of course, it was a well-known fact that a wizard without adventure experience was still a novice. Casting a fireball at every problem wasn't the mark of a clever mage.

As for Jubileus' halo, though Solomon hadn't received it yet, he already had plans for its use. It would be the foundation for his wizard tower. Jubileus' halo was the perfect material for building a pool of positive energy. Beyond his magical studies, Solomon also had a stack of books to read, many of which he had collected from the library of Santa Croce in Florence, including secrets of the Brotherhood of the Sacred Shield that would help him uncover more truths about this world.

But a few days later, the Sorcerer Supreme handed Solomon a scroll. The scroll bore golden patterns against an indigo background. Curious, Solomon opened it and found it was written in runes, which he could understand. The opening line read:

"To the King of Midgard, Sorcerer Supreme Ancient One."

The following lines were filled with elaborate praises, though the praise was not directed at Earth, but at Asgard. As one of the rulers of the Nine Realms, Asgard had once come to Earth when the Sorcerer Supreme was still young, driving back the Frost Giants who had invaded.

According to Asgardian law, Earth, which had not paid tribute and was unaware of Asgard's existence, was technically a rebellious territory. As one of the cosmic powers, Asgard had every right to send an army to crush the rebellion.

Earth's only salvation from that fate was due to the Sorcerer Supreme. By challenging Odin, Father of the Gods, with her magic, she earned Earth the status of a vassal state, and the Sorcerer Supreme became universally recognized as the ruler of Earth. In essence, the Sorcerer Supreme was a feudal lord with the power of life and death over anyone on the planet.

Such was the brutal reality of this universe—only those with great power had a say. It didn't matter whether the governments of ordinary humans acknowledged it; what mattered was that Asgard recognized Kamar-Taj as the legitimate government of Earth, with the Sorcerer Supreme as its leader. Only Kamar-Taj and the Sorcerer Supreme could converse with Asgard as equals.

Earth's independence from Asgard was impossible. As Asgard's vassal state, Asgard had an obligation to defend Earth from invasion, just as it did with Vanaheim. Any force seeking to invade or colonize Earth—whether it be the military powerhouse Kree Empire or the democracy-loving Nova Corps—would first have to face Odin's spear.

As a product of stellar fusion, gold was a universal currency, but even if Earth handed over all its gold, it couldn't repay the centuries of tribute owed to Asgard. Since repaying was impossible, it was better to leave the debt unpaid. The Sorcerer Supreme's magic was far more valuable than gold, and Odin wouldn't provoke the Sorcerer Supreme over a small amount of money.

As long as the Sorcerer Supreme and Kamar-Taj existed, Asgard had no military right to operate on Earth, and Earth would not have to pay taxes to Asgard. That said, Kamar-Taj still had to give Asgard some respect, as evidenced by the scroll.

"A new king's coronation in Asgard? An invitation?" Solomon read aloud as he reached the end. "But it's still at least a year away."

"For Asgardians, who live so long, a year passes in the blink of an eye," the Sorcerer Supreme replied. "I'll be taking you and Mordo when the time comes. Be prepared."

"Prepared? Prepared for what?" Solomon asked.

The Sorcerer Supreme smiled. "A good show."

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