223

Chapter 223

Early in the morning, at a café, after drinking a cup of bitter coffee, Strange frowned and thought, "Everything about this place feels off. It always gives me a creepy feeling. Either something is wrong with this town, or... there's something wrong with this world!"

"I will definitely uncover the truth, because I am Sherlock Holmes, and I can certainly do it! Let's start with the stage actor who seems familiar to me!"

Sometimes, once you start to sense that something is wrong, your suspicions grow, and even ordinary phenomena seem unusual. This is particularly true for perceptive individuals.

Strange, whether he was a brilliant doctor before or Sherlock Holmes now, is among the most intelligent people on Earth.

Once he detects something amiss, he takes action immediately...

...

"Ah, my troublesome future disciple..."

Inside the New York Sanctuary, the Ancient One sighed with exasperation.

She hadn't originally been too concerned about the strange phenomena in Long Island, nor had she paid much attention to the witch who had stolen the Kamar-Taj magic book.

The issue was that Strange was present when the mutation occurred, which made things quite problematic...

Wanda had no intention of harming anyone; ordinarily, people in the illusion would be safe. They could each experience their dreams come true.

For instance, Mrs. Hart, who longed for her husband, finally reunited with him. An unemployed young man found work as a courier again, and a piano teacher facing job loss fulfilled his dream of playing the piano.

In a way, Wanda's intent was to create a utopia where everyone was happy. Unfortunately, this happiness was manufactured and scripted...

If you follow the prescribed path, there is no real danger. When the illusion is lifted, you will naturally be freed.

However, it's uncertain whether Strange will expose this falsehood. Moreover, the current Strange is not the future Doctor Strange, but just an ordinary doctor with slightly stronger mental faculties.

Even a minor slip could prove fatal.

The main problem is Thor's unreliability. What was supposed to be resolved swiftly turned into an extended drama as Thor and Wanda enacted a family drama within the fantasy world, much to the Ancient One's frustration...

After some hesitation, the Ancient One decided she couldn't remain idle.

...

Strange looked at the bald woman in front of him and asked with confusion, "This... nun, I have something very important to do. Can you please not stop me?"

Nun???

The Ancient One in front of him was actually a clone created by the Ancient One in the form of an Archon, with black lines on her face.

Still, she remembered her mission and promptly took out a magic book.

"Young man, I see you possess extraordinary abilities and are a rare magical talent. It is up to you to uphold world peace. I have a secret book titled 'Basics of Kamar-Taj Magic'. Since I sense a connection, I will sell it to you for ten dollars!"

"Are you kidding me?"

Strange grimaced in disgust, hesitated for a moment, and then placed a single cent into the hand of the Ancient One's clone.

Ancient One: "…"

...

The Ancient One, observing from afar in the temple, nearly had her eyes pop out.

Since her original body was too powerful to enter the illusion, she created a clone to go in.

The original plan was to knock Strange out and bring him out directly. However, she reconsidered; as the future Sorcerer Supreme, he shouldn't just think of escaping when faced with problems.

Besides, many rules in this virtual world are not very strict, so it might allow him to engage with the magical field in advance, as he would eventually have to confront entities like Dormammu...

A test was in order, and the witch named Agatha seemed suitable.

...

In the illusory space, the Ancient One's clone gave a sinister smile: "Kid, you've forced my hand!"

Saying this, she grabbed Strange's head.

"Oh my god..."

Strange felt his entire body lighten, and then he entered an illusion within an illusion, where countless terrifying mirror images attacked him.

It took several minutes for him to regain full consciousness...

Changing his previous disdain, Strange said, "Master, please accept me as your disciple!"

The Ancient One nodded in satisfaction and then generously presented him with the levitation cloak.

After all, everything in the illusion is fake, so letting him adjust to his belongings in advance is no issue.

...

"Ah! It's a new day!"

Thor woke up in Wanda's room and glanced around. The surroundings still looked like the 1990s and hadn't changed.

It seemed Wanda's condition hadn't fully improved, causing this era to remain static.

Of course, it might also be that the new century had brought so many changes that even chaos magic struggled to adapt.

Gently removing Wanda's hand from his body, Thor stood up, contemplating his next steps. He had entered this space with a purpose, not just to romance the witch and cuck Vision.

Although the past few days had been peaceful, he knew they couldn't continue like this. Wanda seemed to understand this too, often showing a conflicted expression.

The source of Wanda's emotional upheavals was the Mind Stone. Thor was aware of this but was still considering his next move.

"What are you thinking about, dear?"

Wanda suddenly sat up, leaned towards Thor, and asked softly.

"I was pondering what we should do today."

Thanks to his role as a retired agent receiving a generous settlement, Thor didn't need to worry about financial issues or his income source.

If he had to work in this virtual world, it would be a disaster...

"Well, we haven't gone on a trip since we got married. How about we visit the amusement park today?"

Wanda looked at Thor with anticipation.

Thor was puzzled.

He had explored this space the previous day and remembered there was no amusement park in town, right?

Could it be that Wanda had finally figured things out and planned to lift the spell and return to reality?