"My mission failed, Professor X."
In Xavier Manor, in the X-Men's meeting room, Brian blamed himself helplessly.
After receiving Jonathan's telekinesis, he went directly back to Xavier Manor.
Looking at Brian, who blamed himself, Professor X walked to his side and gently patted his shoulder.
"It's not your fault, Brian. The Red Devil's ability is indeed very difficult to counter."
Professor X comforted him calmly.
Though Jonathan had died, Professor X didn't feel much pain. After all, he was just a stranger. If he died, he died.
Professor X's decision to use his telepathic ability to search after Jonathan was taken away was already a consideration for another Mutant.
"Everyone, we may have been targeted by the Hellfire Club."
After comforting Brian, Professor X spoke with a serious expression.
After hearing Professor X's words, the X-Men felt a sense of unease.
The Red Devil appeared too quickly.
This only meant one thing: the actions of the X-Men had been completely exposed to the Hellfire Club.
This was undoubtedly a heavy blow to the newly established X-Men.
"Hank, we have to work faster," Professor X said, looking at Hank with a serious expression.
Hank nodded, equally serious.
He understood the gravity of the situation. The X-Men might now be fully exposed to the Hellfire Club. At any moment, the Hellfire Club's Black King, Shaw, could attack.
And with the current strength of the X-Men, only Brian could put up any real resistance against Shaw.
They were still too weak.
"Everything rests on you, Hank. Only by developing the brainwave amplifier as soon as possible can Professor X's abilities be maximized."
Brian patted Hank on the shoulder and said earnestly.
"Give me 10 days—no, 7 days—and I can definitely complete the brainwave amplifier," Hank assured Brian.
Brian smiled meaningfully at the determined Hank.
Seven days passed in a flash.
Due to the pressure from the Hellfire Club, Professor X did not issue any combat missions. Only Raven, with Professor X's help, occasionally sneaked into the CIA to gather intelligence.
The other X-Men members remained at Xavier Manor.
In Brian's room, he sat on the sofa, raised his hand, and a glass of beer floated out from the refrigerator and landed in his hand.
The pull ring on the beer can opened automatically.
Brian took a sip, ready to continue his lazy day.
But a surprised shout interrupted his relaxed moment.
"Success! I did it!"
Outside, Hank shouted.
"Oh! Did you finally succeed?"
Hearing Hank's shout, Brian stood up immediately, excitement spreading across his face.
He waved his right hand, and the door in front of him opened.
Brian stepped out of the bedroom and into the hallway.
"Brian, good morning."
Just as he reached the door, he ran into Magneto.
After seven days of recovery, Magneto was finally out of the wheelchair.
Although his injuries hadn't fully healed, he was able to move around without much issue.
"Good morning, Erik."
Brian nodded to Magneto, and the two of them headed outside together.
On the large lawn at the center of the manor, Hank, wearing his lab coat, was holding an instrument and adjusting it, aiming it at the giant radar antenna two kilometers away.
Seeing Homelander and Magneto approach, Hank nodded to them and then turned to Magneto.
"Just in time, Erik. Use your ability to rotate that radar around."
Magneto looked at the massive radar two kilometers away, frowning slightly. He hadn't tried moving an object of that size before.
However, having just recovered, Magneto was ready to show off a bit.
So, facing Hank's request, he didn't refuse.
He extended his hands and activated his ability.
The giant radar, two kilometers away, merely trembled slightly.
"TSK!"
Magneto focused all his energy, trying to turn it.
But no matter how much effort he put in, the radar only swayed a little before falling silent, not budging any further.
"Come on, move for me!"
Magneto shouted, veins bulging as he tried to push his magnetic field control further.
But from this distance, two kilometers away, it was too much for him right now.
Finally, he let his arms drop, shaking his head in frustration.
"No, I can't do it," he said to Hank, feeling deflated.
"Let me handle it."
Brian's voice cut in.
Magneto and Hank both looked at Brian in surprise.
"Brian, isn't your ability like.. um, survival of the fittest?" Hank asked, confused.
He knew Brian's ability had great potential for adaptation, but he also knew that Brian didn't have any means of active attack.
"Remember Jonathan?" Brian replied, avoiding Hank's question directly.
"Of course, that level 3 Psychokinesis Mutant," Hank and Magneto nodded in unison. It had only been seven days since the incident with Jonathan, so they hadn't forgotten.
"When Jonathan displayed his Psychokinesis, my body seemed to adapt to it and evolved," Brian said calmly.
"Brian, are you saying you've adapted to a new variant ability?" Professor X, who had just arrived on the lawn and overheard, asked, surprised.
"Yes. I've adapted to a new variant ability: Psychokinesis," Brian confirmed confidently.
"Great." Professor X didn't question it. He'd already witnessed Brian adapt to the variant ability of memory deletion before.
While Brian's memory deletion was relatively weak, only erasing recent memories in ordinary people, Professor X was simply surprised that Brian had now adapted to a second variant ability.
"So, is your Psychokinesis the same as Jonathan's?" Hank asked curiously.
"No, it's not quite the same. In fact, my Psychokinesis is a little stronger than Jonathan's," Brian replied.
He opened his right hand and aimed it at the giant radar 2 kilometers away. Then, he twisted his right hand.
Boom.
The giant radar 2 kilometers away turned over effortlessly, like a toy, under Brian's Psychokinesis.
Magneto was left speechless, and Professor X and Hank looked on in amazement.
"Ehm! Great, the final step of the brainwave amplifier is complete," Hank announced, quickly adjusting the instrument in his hand and inputting Professor X's brainwave frequency into the giant radar.
"Congratulations, Brian, on gaining a new ability. The Psychokinesis you adapted to is clearly stronger than Jonathan's Psychokinesis control," Professor X said sincerely, genuinely congratulating Brian on his new variant ability.
From start to finish, Professor X hadn't doubted a thing. After all, the idea of acquiring someone else's ability by cutting into their brain was simply too far-fetched.
As for Jonathan's Psychokinesis that Brian seemed to acquire?
Brian had explained that his body adapted to it when Jonathan displayed his ability, evolving the same Psychokinesis variant to counter the one in front.