"Damn it!"
Eric, looking at the screen, couldn't help but curse under his breath. He found this game to be full of dark humor, always throwing something unexpected at him at the most critical moments.
He had been completely absorbed, fully immersed in the future version of himself depicted in the video, just waiting to kill Sebastian Shaw and finally get his revenge. But right at that moment, the video paused!
Logan raised an eyebrow and glanced at him, "Would you kill him?"
Eric didn't respond, but his gaze made his meaning crystal clear: *What do you think? Isn't that obvious?*
Decades of deep-seated hatred had already shaped Magneto into a cold, tough individual with his own principles and determination. Even though he respected his friend, Charles, that didn't mean he would follow Xavier's orders to the letter.
"The answer to this has to be B."
Peter rubbed his chin thoughtfully and analyzed in a deep voice: "Mr Eric won't let Sebastian Shaw go. He's capable of killing him, but I don't think doing so will bring him peace. Mr Charles is right. If Mr Eric kills Sebastian Shaw, he'll extinguish the light within himself and might even fall into darkness… I believe Mr Eric can understand that!"
Wanda frowned. For some reason, when she saw the immense suffering Eric endured in the video, as well as the countless torments inflicted on him by Sebastian Shaw, she felt an inexplicable sense of discomfort.
Even though they didn't know each other, there was an odd sense of familiarity. It was really strange—perhaps it was fate.
"Doesn't Sebastian Shaw deserve to die? He's a butcher with blood on his hands. Eric isn't his only victim. No one knows how many people or families he's destroyed. Even by legal standards, Shaw could easily be executed ten times over by a military tribunal!"
Wanda clearly didn't agree with Peter's earlier statement.
Her personality was always a bit different from traditional superheroes like Captain America or Spider-Man. In fact, she initially sought revenge against Tony Stark and stood against the Avengers.
No matter how you looked at it, Wanda was someone who believed in clear-cut justice and revenge. However, after joining the Avengers and being influenced by the system, she had begun to abide by some of its rules, even if deep down, she didn't entirely agree with them.
For instance, most superheroes followed the rule of not taking lives. This seemed to be a taboo or bottom line for many. No matter how evil or deceitful a villain might be, heroes would avoid killing whenever possible. Batman was a prime example of this.
Wanda had always been annoyed by this rule. Heroes like Iron Man and Captain America adhered to their moral boundaries, yet during certain battles, innocent people still ended up as collateral damage.
Batman, too, stubbornly clung to his beliefs, repeatedly defeating the criminals who terrorized Gotham, only to send them back to Arkham Asylum. But before long, those same villains would return, even more dangerous than before.
Think about it: Batman spares these villains time and time again, allowing them to continue wreaking havoc on the city. Innocent people get hurt because of it. In a way, doesn't that make Batman an accomplice?
He clearly has the power to end these criminals once and for all, yet he refuses to do so. It almost gives the impression that he's keeping them around on purpose—as if Gotham without its villains would render Batman obsolete.
To be honest, Wanda had never viewed Bruce with such a dark perspective before.
Even though Batman's stone-cold demeanor and constant suspicion of others rubbed her the wrong way, he was still one of them. Wanda had previously sympathized with the struggles of Batman, Captain America, Superman, and even Iron Man.
But after watching her own future unfold in that video, Wanda couldn't help but undergo a shift in mindset. Even though she wasn't thrilled with her future romantic entanglements, and in fact, felt a growing aversion to this predestined love, the video wasn't just about love.
Wanda saw her future self's struggle and rebellion. It was like watching an independent soul being tamed, transformed into a slave bound by certain rules…
Superheroes loved to talk about responsibility. But from another perspective, wasn't that so-called responsibility just another form of chain wrapped around their necks?
Ordinary people could let loose once in a while, but superheroes—constantly tasked with protecting society and the Earth—were held to an impossibly high moral standard. On top of that, they faced the risk of being discarded or betrayed after serving their purpose.
This naturally led to a rebellious streak within Wanda, especially when it came to the question of whether Eric should kill Sebastian Shaw.
In her eyes, he absolutely should.
But in the eyes of Peter, Captain America, and Charles Xavier, killing such an unforgivable enemy wouldn't bring peace, nor would it be a release. It would only lead to the sin of falling into darkness.
Can't they see that these rules, which force people to act like saints, only make them more repressed, like a bowstring pulled too tight?
When that tension finally snaps, who knows what kind of consequences it might bring?
Peter looked somewhat surprised at the deep, conflicted expression on Wanda's face. "You agree that Mr Eric should kill him? Uh… what you said makes sense, but I don't think that's what a hero should do.
Someone like Shaw should face justice. We don't have the right to judge him, nor should we misuse our powers. Otherwise, we'd be no different from Shaw.
Remember the last Wolverine video? Silver Fox could've killed Stryker, but in the end, she didn't."
Wanda shook her head. "There's no point in arguing. I think the answer is A. I can tell Eric has been hunting Sebastian Shaw for so long, burning with the desire to kill him. He won't change his mind so easily."
Peter thought for a moment and said, "I hope the answer is B. But alright, Miss Wanda, I'll go with your choice for this one. By the way, our score is slowly catching up. We've got a real shot at overtaking them and winning this game!"
Just then, the countdown for answering began. All four players simultaneously pressed the buzzer to compete for the answer. Even Wolverine didn't slack off, but the right to answer still went to Team A. Wanda chose A for her team, and on the other side, Eric also chose A. As the person involved, he knew better than anyone what his future self would do.
[Congratulations to Team A for answering correctly! Player Peter Parker and player Wanda Maximoff each earn 4 points. Team B also answered correctly, with player Logan Howlett and player Eric Lensherr earning 1 point each.]
Team A had some good luck. With two correct answers in a row, they narrowed the gap with Team B, leaving only a one-point difference. The competition was intense and neck-and-neck.