Marvel: God-Tier Talent—Infinite Critical Strikes!

”Is some huge celebrity arriving today? You people have been waiting here since last night!”

The airport security guard looked at the reporters curiously.

After all, there had been absolutely no indication of anything like this in the recent news. Instead, the story that had spread around the world was Karl’s plan to produce a Batman television series.

The reporters gave the security guard contemptuous looks, seemingly mocking his ignorance.

”What’s the point of interviewing a few people who happen to be in the news? Today, we’re welcoming a true superstar!”

One reporter spoke with genuine excitement.

”The famous archaeologist and Ancient Egypt specialist, Dr. Diana Prince. She’s practically a legend in the academic world. She usually has no interest whatsoever in appearing anywhere without culture or artistic merit, so we should consider ourselves lucky that she’s willing to come to Gotham!”

The situation was understandable.

Gotham City was an extremely wealthy place.

Although it lacked some of the confidence and glamour of neighboring Metropolis, it possessed its own distinctive underworld character.

From the Wayne family of a century ago to the Cobblepot family of the present day, nearly everyone who had made a fortune in Gotham had tried to raise the city’s prestige and elevate it onto the world stage.

As a result, imposing Gothic statues could be seen everywhere.

Even the drainage spouts protruding from the corners of buildings had been sculpted to resemble the stone gargoyles of ancient fortresses, all in an attempt to give Gotham a greater sense of culture and sophistication.

Unfortunately, the result was that an already gloomy city became even more unsettling.

At times, Gotham looked less like a metropolis and more like a nest inhabited by vampires.

”Hey, are archaeologists really that popular?”

The security guard opened his mouth in disbelief.

”And she’s a female doctor too? I seriously don’t understand what’s going through your heads.”

At that moment, a tall woman with an elegant figure appeared in the corridor, pushing a suitcase ahead of her.

A pair of sunglasses concealed most of her face.

Even so, the natural grace in every movement of her hands and feet immediately drew everyone’s attention.

She seemed like a nymph from an ancient Greek painting who had suddenly descended into the mortal world, possessing a presence that almost made people instinctively want to bow before her.

”Dr. Diana! Welcome to Gotham City!”

The reporters shouted at once.

Their fingers hammered down on their camera shutters, as though they intended to exhaust every last frame of film on the woman before them.

There was hardly any need to guess.

Among DC’s characters, a woman named Diana could naturally only be Wonder Woman.

She was regarded as the first major female superhero in comic-book history.

She was the daughter of Zeus, king of the Olympian gods, and Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons of Themyscira.

She was also princess and heir to the immortal Amazons, a nation composed entirely of warrior women.

Recently, while traveling through the mortal world, the princess had received an order from her mother, Hippolyta.

A forbidden artifact that had disappeared nearly a thousand years ago had resurfaced.

And it was somewhere in Gotham City, in the United States.

Hippolyta had ordered Diana to travel there as quickly as possible, recover the artifact, and return it to Themyscira.

At that moment, practically everyone in the airport—including the security guard who hadn’t even known who Diana was a few minutes earlier—was stunned by her appearance.

Her classical beauty seemed almost impossible to approach.

Compared with Diana, every contestant who had ever participated in Gotham City’s beauty pageants seemed noticeably less impressive.

Diana smiled as she walked through the corridor, occasionally waving to the reporters surrounding her.

She treated the airport walkway almost like a runway, effortlessly becoming the center of everyone’s attention.

”My God... No wonder there are so many reporters here.”

After Diana disappeared from sight, the airport security guard remained standing there in a daze.

”Damn. I can’t even think of the right words to describe what that felt like.”

”Exactly!”

The reporters were equally captivated.

”She’s incredible. She’s practically a living work of art.”

”It’s like the story from Homer’s Odyssey. The elders of Troy didn’t want to keep fighting the Greeks over a woman, but once Helen appeared before them in all her beauty, all those men who had opposed the war were suddenly willing to keep fighting for her—even if it meant another ten years of war!”

When Diana left the airport, a car was already waiting outside.

An equally beautiful female assistant opened the door for her.

As Diana climbed inside, the small group waiting there greeted her respectfully.

”Your Highness, you’re several days late!”

The female assistant spoke seriously while driving toward the museum.

It was obvious that she, too, was an Amazon from Themyscira.

Diana didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, she slipped off her high heels, stretched out her long legs across the seat, and gave her assistant a mischievous smile.

”Who could have expected an airport strike and the excavation of a new collection of Ancient Greek artifacts to delay my trip?”

She paused.

”All right, fine. That one was my fault.”

A trace of helplessness appeared between the assistant’s brows before she gave a bitter smile.

”You!”

”You’ve been living in the mortal world for so many years, but you still haven’t changed at all.”

”The Queen considers this artifact extremely important. She ordered us to recover it no matter what.”

”And yet you’re still acting as if none of this matters...”

”Oh, Mother is always like that.”

Diana sounded puzzled.

”She makes a huge issue out of everything.”

”Themyscira has more treasures and ancient artifacts than anyone could count. Besides, this is only one forbidden magical artifact, and it’s already been missing for thousands of years.”

”A few extra days aren’t going to make much difference.”

The assistant could do nothing but sigh at her princess’s complete lack of concern.

Then again, not every Amazon warrior had been blessed by Zeus from the moment of birth.

Not everyone possessed bracelets capable of deflecting incoming attacks.

Nor did everyone carry a lasso capable of compelling people to speak the truth.

And that was without mentioning the large collection of other divine artifacts that had been blessed by the gods.

It was hardly surprising that the princess didn’t take a single forbidden magical artifact particularly seriously.

The full story went back to the time of Diana’s birth.

An Amazon warrior had violated the laws of Themyscira and become pregnant.

She stole a forbidden artifact associated with the island’s darkest secrets and fled.

The artifact served an important purpose.

It suppressed a small, cube-shaped box.

According to legend, the box was capable of opening gateways through space and time and drawing demons from realms beyond their own.

The forbidden artifact was therefore necessary to suppress the box and prevent it from transmitting a signal to its enemies.

After the artifact was stolen, the furious Queen had no other choice.

She ordered the construction of an enormous pyramid in an attempt to weaken and delay the mysterious box’s signal.

”That’s enough.”

Diana suddenly leaned forward from the back seat and playfully wrapped her arms around her assistant’s neck.

”You hardly ever leave Themyscira, so I’m going to make sure you properly experience the mortal world!”

”There are so many delicious and entertaining things here that you simply can’t find on Themyscira.”

”For example, there’s something called ice cream.”

”Even in the middle of summer, you can enjoy something as cold as winter!”

”Your Highness, the Queen sent me here to deliver her instructions and help you recover the artifact.”

The assistant remained stubbornly serious.

”She never ordered me to come here and enjoy myself, so—”

Before she could finish, a disappointed expression appeared on Princess Diana’s face.

She immediately pretended to become stern.

”This again?”

”Mother really is hopelessly old-fashioned. She’s still using methods of communication that belong thousands of years in the past...”

”Maybe next time I can teach her how to make a video call—”

Seeing that her princess was about to launch into another long complaint, the assistant quickly tried to interrupt her.

(End of Chapter)

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