It was fortunate.
The apartment where Elena lived, though having a large hole in the middle—likely caused by either the Hulk or Abomination—had sustained only minor damage beyond its exterior walls.
Overall, it hadn't suffered any major destruction.
When Elena anxiously opened the door to her home, Eren also saw an elderly woman with a full head of silver hair, standing by the window with the support of a cane, gazing into the distance.
As the elderly woman heard the noise and turned around—
Eren noticed that her eyes did not reflect the slightest fear of the devastation outside. Instead, they remained as calm as a still lake, completely undisturbed, as if everything before her meant nothing.
However, when she saw Elena—
The tranquility in her eyes was instantly shattered.
Her expression of disbelief seemed to question why Elena was standing before her at this moment.
Soon, that disbelief turned into confusion and bitterness.
"I specifically enrolled Elena in a class in Queens. Right now, she should be in Queens."
"Why… why is she back at this moment… Why has everything returned to the beginning?"
"Is fate truly immutable?"
Hmm?
When the elderly woman's murmurs reached Eren's ears, he froze slightly, his eyes narrowing as he quietly observed her.
At that moment—
Elena, standing beside Eren, suddenly rushed forward in excitement, embracing the old woman at the window.
"Thank goodness, Grandma! I knew you'd be okay!"
"I'll take you away from here right now…"
Feeling Elena's warm embrace, full of unconcealed affection and worry, a touch of comfort flashed through the elderly woman's eyes.
She gently stroked her granddaughter's back, quickly dispelling the confusion and bitterness from earlier.
"No, I can die, but Elena is still young. Her life should not end here. Even if everything is already predetermined, I will risk this old life of mine to create a chance—one where she can escape this fated catastrophe…"
Hearing this, Elena raised her head and protested, "Grandma… you're talking nonsense again!"
"Right, we need to leave now. The middle of this building has been blown apart—who knows when it might collapse? We have to get out of here quickly!"
The elderly woman sighed lightly and patted Elena's shoulder. "Alright! Grandma will go with you!"
"Great!"
At this moment, Eren, who had sharp eyes, pulled a folding wheelchair from the corner and said, "Now isn't the time for talking. Let's get out of here first!"
"Thank you, big brother!"
Elena sweetly called out to Eren before letting go of her grandmother and quickly helping her into the wheelchair.
With Elena's help, the old woman sat down, and Eren immediately pushed the wheelchair, swiftly leading them out of the dangerously damaged building.
...
After walking for a while—
Eren suddenly asked, "By the way, Ms. Christine, what did you mean earlier by 'everything has returned to the beginning' and 'the fated catastrophe'?"
By now, through casual conversation, Eren had learned that the old woman's name was Christine.
Likewise, Christine had learned from her granddaughter that Eren had saved her from the chaotic stampede.
Because of this, Christine held great affection for the young man who had rescued her beloved granddaughter.
After a brief hesitation, Christine finally spoke:
"Everything in this world, every fate, is actually already determined. In fact… this catastrophe had omens long ago."
As she spoke, she glanced at the distant battlefield—
Where Abomination and the Hulk, amidst a hail of bullets, smashed buildings into rubble and reduced them to ruins.
She murmured, "Do you know? The battle between those two monsters… is merely the prelude to something even more terrifying and desperate."
"The crimson blood and despairing souls will become the fuel to awaken the devil…"
"When the ultimate devil descends, everything will be reduced to ashes in fear and despair…"
Just as Christine was about to say more—
Elena suddenly interrupted with a pout, "Grandma…"
Cutting off Christine with a single word, Elena turned to Eren and gave an apologetic smile.
"Sorry, big brother. My grandma often has strange dreams."
"She's old, so sometimes she mixes up dreams with reality and says odd things. Please don't mind her…"
This is not nonsense.
That dream was not just some random dream—it was a well-known prophetic vision.
Back in my youth, I was the most famous medium in Connecticut.
Had I not retired from the spiritual world after getting pregnant with your father and chosen to live in seclusion, I might have become the most renowned medium in the entire federation.
Looking at Elena apologizing to Eren, Christine almost blurted out these words.
But in the end, she held them back.
The mystical world was far too dangerous and eerie.
There were some things Christine had never told her beloved granddaughter. She didn't want Elena to know too much.
Because Christine knew—
Once some things were learned, there was no escaping them.
Even after decades had passed, the hidden dangers from her days as a medium still clung to her.
They had even cost Elena's parents their lives.
She did not want Elena to follow the same tragic path.
Now that she thought about it—
Regarding the prophecies, Christine had always been cautious, fearing that revealing too much might alter the trajectory of fate.
So why had she explained so much to this young man?
Why had she even mentioned the impending catastrophe to him?
Strange.
Was it because she had already decided to defy fate for Elena's sake?
Or was it because he had saved Elena, making her instinctively say more?
…
Eren, pushing the wheelchair with one hand, gently ruffled Elena's hair with the other, smiling as he said:
"I don't mind at all. To be honest, I've always been quite fascinated by these mystical matters."
"Interested in the occult?" Christine shook her head. "That's not a good habit. Sometimes, curiosity about the unknown can bring disaster upon oneself."
"Really?"
"Actually, I find those disasters… quite intriguing."
As he spoke, a dazzling light suddenly burst forth in Eren's eyes.
[Disillusioned Stare]
...
A few minutes later—
Using Disillusioned Stare and Mental Palm Seal, Eren finally managed—after much effort—to extract some of the information he wanted from Christine, whose mental strength was unexpectedly formidable.
After obtaining the details he was after, Eren wasted no time. Before the effects of hypnosis wore off, he swiftly escorted Christine and Elena out of the core battlefield.
He even arranged for two "kind-hearted" police officers to personally escort them far away from Harlem.
Watching Christine and Elena being taken away by the officers, Eren's gaze deepened.
A medium from ancient legends and so-called prophetic dreams?
Interesting.
Everything was becoming even more intriguing.
Initially, Eren had only come here to take advantage of the situation. Yet unexpectedly, he had stumbled upon a shocking revelation from Elena's mysterious grandmother.
A prophetic dream?
Could the bloody battle between Abomination and the Hulk truly lead to an even more terrifying catastrophe?
Something that had never occurred in the original timeline—was it really going to happen?
Wait—
In the original battle between Abomination and the Hulk, Tony hadn't appeared.
But now, Tony had shown up early.
Adding to that, both himself and Bucky, the Winter Soldier, were now here as well…
The original course of events had already been altered.
If an unforeseen disaster were to follow, it wouldn't be all that surprising.
With this realization, Eren's eyes sharpened.
Since that was the case—
He had to make further preparations.
Just then—
Eren's phone rang.
Hmm?
Glancing at the caller ID, he was surprised to see that it was Tony Stark.
His eyes flickered. And as he subtly raised his gaze—
His sight landed on a rooftop several hundred meters away.
There, atop a ten-story building, stood Tony Stark, staring directly at him.
...Huh.
That guy…
How did he spot me?
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Eren had disguised himself before coming out. While he hadn't changed his face completely, his appearance was significantly different from usual.
A normal person wouldn't recognize him at a glance, especially from such a long distance.
And yet—
Tony, standing hundreds of meters away, had seen through his disguise?
That was far too unbelievable.
With a hint of suspicion, Eren answered the call.
As soon as he did, Tony's exasperated voice came through the speaker:
"Well, damn. I didn't actually think it'd be you, kid."
"Have you not noticed the severed limbs and wreckage all over this street? I have no idea how you managed to sneak past the police and military blockades, but you'd better get your ass out of here now. Otherwise, I'm calling Pepper and having her personally drag you back."
?????
What the hell?
This guy was actually threatening to call a parental figure on him? How shameless could he get?
Ignoring Tony's words, Eren asked instead:
"How did you recognize me?"
The moment he spoke, Tony scoffed.
"Pfft, with that pathetic disguise? How could it possibly fool—"
"Jarvis' eyes."
"I just upgraded Jarvis' algorithm a few days ago. Now, it can analyze identities based on height, weight, body structure, and walking habits. Your 'disguise' is basically useless to it."
…
In reality—
The new algorithm Tony had given Jarvis wasn't nearly that advanced.
The real reason Tony had found Eren so quickly—
Was because Eren's Aston Martin still had a tracking device installed.
As soon as Eren drove into Harlem, Tony—who had flagged him as a high-priority subject due to his connection to Pepper—was notified by Jarvis.
From there, using security cameras that were still operational, Jarvis continuously cross-referenced footage—
Until he identified Eren while he was escorting Christine and Elena out of the battlefield.
The moment Tony learned that Eren had wandered so close to the danger zone, he nearly had a heart attack.
Of course—
At the time, Jarvis couldn't confirm with 100% certainty that the disguised individual was Eren.
So Tony had simply called the number to test it out.
And the moment Eren answered—
He immediately confirmed his identity.
Which explained his first reaction when the call connected:
"Well, damn. I didn't actually think it'd be you, kid."
On the other end of the line—
Eren, of course, wasn't about to let Tony fool him.
He scoffed.
"If Jarvis' algorithm was really that powerful, you wouldn't have been surprised when I picked up the phone."
"Let me guess… you tracked my phone's location?"
Observing Tony's emotional fluctuations through spiritual vision, Eren noticed that his aura hadn't changed.
Meaning—
That wasn't the answer.
"Huh, so that wasn't it?"
"Then… could it be that Aston Martin you gave me…?"
As soon as the words left his mouth—
Eren saw Tony's aura flash orange—a sign of surprise.
Instantly, he knew he had guessed correctly.
Upon realizing this, Eren's expression darkened.
"Damn, so it really was the Aston Martin. I can't believe you, Tony Stark! You actually had the nerve to plant a backdoor in a gift?!"
"I totally misjudged you!"
Hearing his character being questioned, Tony immediately defended himself.
"Ahem! Hold up—don't get the wrong idea. I'm not that kind of guy! I only installed a GPS tracker before I gave it to you, for convenience's sake."
"How was I supposed to know you'd never remove it? After you drove the car off that day, I didn't touch it at all. So really—this is all on you for being too lazy!"
After making his case, Tony couldn't help but wonder—
How the hell did that kid figure it out?!
There was no way he had known before!
Was… was fortune telling really this powerful?
Could he have foreseen this through divination?!
(End of Chapter)
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