The commotion between Dante and Lex Luthor wasnât small. It even drew the attention of most of the studentsâ hidden sentinels.
But after reporting the situation, they all received the same instruction from Professor X.
Dante? If itâs him, just leave it. Pretend you didnât see anything.
Others might not know Dante well, but Professor X knew him like the back of his⊠bald head.
Dante was actually an easygoing guy.
And Professor X had also heard about Lex Luthor.
A spotless reputation. So spotless there wasnât a single blemish.
That, in itself, was unnatural.
For an ordinary person? Fine. But Lex Luthor was the owner of a massive corporation, the heir to the Luthor family.
Not a single blemish?
Who are you trying to kid?
So Professor X simply decided to give Dante full autonomy to deal with him.
He figured Danteâs deliberate approach and obvious provocation meant heâd already found leverage or clues.
With that in mind, Professor X sent a video call to Fury.
As soon as it connected, he said, âFury, Danteâs causing trouble again.â
âIf youâre talking about him and Lex Luthor, I already know.â
âYou really are omnipotent, Fury.â
âOmnipotent my ass,â Fury said through gritted teeth. âMy car was parked near the buffet. Just now, Danteâs Death Goddess took my eye patch. So Iâm hiding in the car.â
âShe took your eye patch? What kind of fetish is that?â
âHell if I knowâŠâ Fury muttered from inside the car. âBut if a proper goddess needs something of mine, I assume itâs for some great purpose. She canât just be messing with me⊠right?â
He hung up, then switched channels.
âDirector Fury calling Coulson. Respond if you hear me.â
âCoulson here. Whatâs up?â
âDonât let Dante go too far with Luthor in public. Get him to take Luthor to the interrogation room on your teamâs Airbus.â
âYes, sir.â
Coulson agreed, then looked up just in time to see Dante manhandling the loudly shouting Lex Luthor.
âDante! Take him back to the Airbus! Too many people here!â
Coulson waved his arms until Dante looked his way.
When Dante finally put Luthor down, Coulson gave the surrounding agents a look.
What are you standing around for? Move it!
Parent Day just started. Get back to your posts!
âŠ
Dante kicked open the interrogation room door, and he and Hela shoved Lex into a chair.
The place was oddly nostalgic.
The last time heâd been in here was when he staged that little performance with Coulson to fool Skye.
Good times.
That kid had been so easy to trick.
âEverything should be mine! Itâs mine!â Lex glared at Dante, the orange in his eyes deepening. âSuperman⊠and you⊠sooner or later, youâll both be mine!â
âThanks for the offer, just got off the plane, not interested,â Dante said dryly. Seeing Lex about to keep ranting, he smacked him on the head hard enough to rattle his skull. âCalm down now, or Iâll blow that bald head of yours clean off, and your desires will scatter with the wind.â
The slap worked like a charm.
Lexâs eyes cleared noticeably.
Even completely ruled by greed, the threat of death made him dial it back.
The Orange Light dimmed. He almost seemed human again.
âSee? Greed makes you jealous of anyone better, but it also makes you cling to your life,â Dante said, mocking him. Then he got down to business. âThe attacks on Stark Industries, Wayne Group, and Queen Group⊠that was your familyâs doing, wasnât it?â
âThatâs right.â Lex looked almost impressed. âFor a frontline FBI agent, youâre much sharper than those fools.â
âIs that flattery?â Danteâs mouth twitched. âI catch one little move of yours and I get praise from a megalomaniac? Should I be honored?â
âIâm being sincere. I didnât directly start that economic war. I funded the biggest rivals of those three companies and let them make the moves.â Lex shook his head. âFor a businessman, thatâs childâs play. But very effective. And not so easy for agents outside the business world to spot.â
Dante thought of those âsimpleâ business warsâstealing company seals, poisoning the competitionâs money treeâŠ
Yeah. Not that far-fetched.
âAlright, fine. You donât like those three. But why fund Agatha Harkness?â Dante gestured.
Agathaâs undying soul drifted through the metal wall into the room.
The old Lex wouldnât have been able to see her.
But now, tainted by Mammonâs blood and the Greed Light, he could.
Lex actually rubbed his eyes, startled.
âLex Luthor, you didnât expect to see me again, did you?â
âNo⊠impossible. The Chthon summoning failed. You shouldnât have survived.â
âTo be precise, my body is dust, split apart by this agentâs axe. But my soulâs intact.â Agatha smiled coldly. âSo in your original plan, once I was corrupted, I was destined to fight the FBI for Chthon, wasnât I?â
Summoning Chthon was just one part of Lexâs plan.
Using a Grandet clone made from Mammonâs blood to corrupt the Asgardian gods was the backup.
Danteâs voice was cold. âI wonât even press you on funding Agatha. What I do want to know is⊠what price did you pay to target the three Asgardian siblings? Mammonâs blood, Aether Particle intel⊠that wasnât cheap. Why go after them?â
Lexâs eyes narrowed. âHYDRA fought the FBI in Washington, the whole world saw the Star Team. The most dazzling among them? Those so-called Asgardian gods.â
After that battle, Hela, Thor, and Loki were household names.
âYouâre right, but they donât affect you. Why target them?â
âTheyâre not gods. Theyâre just powerful aliens. And aliens canât live peacefully with humans. This is just a façade. Just like that so-called noble Metropolis Boy Scout. If we let this go, humanity will be replaced. Iâm protecting my home.â
Dante clapped. âOhhh, right. I forgot. Youâre a hardcore xenophobe.â
Lexâs eyes blazed. âIf theyâre not our kind, their hearts are different.â
Dante stared at him, resisting the urge to laugh.
Yeah, good luck with that when the real cosmic horrors show up.
Even 1960s media theorists figured out the âEarth villageâ concept. And here was Lex, a so-called genius, stuck in caveman mode.
No wonder Lena turned out better.
Hela had heard enough.
She conjured a Nightsword, ready to end him.
Before she could strike, Dante caught the hilt.
The blade still pierced Lexâs forehead, blood running down his face.
Dante then left the room with Hela and Agatha.
Outside, Coulson was waiting.
âCut all of Luthorâs comms. Notify Queen Group their boss is in FBI custody. Tell them to find a new master.â
Coulson nodded.
As soon as they stepped out of the Airbus, Hela froze, clutching Danteâs arm.
The greed was back.
âElder Sister! What happened?â
Thor came flying in, Loki dangling from his hand.
After landing, both looked at Hela with concern.
During their time together, their sibling bond had deepened.
So when they felt her aura change, they rushed over.
âItâs just Mammonâs blood and the Greed Light. It wonât affect me muchâŠâ
âStill pretending youâre fine.â
Dante patted her hand, then shifted into Green Lantern form. Threads of Willpower Light wrapped around their clasped hands. Hela immediately relaxed.
The best option would be forging an Orange Lantern Ring, but⊠no materials.
So for now, Green Light suppression would have to do.
While Thor fussed over her, Lokiâs eyes flicked between everyone.
âWell, if Iâm not mistaken, we do have a home, right? And in that home, a father⊠called the King of Gods.â
He spread his hands.
âA proper All Father-tier peak dad should be able to fix this, right? Father and daughter, king and crown prince. Weâre bound to meet again.â
âLetâs go back to Asgard.â
(To be continued.)