Chapter 165

Bruce had been on the Helicarrier for 2 days while he continued to improve his search algorithm to find the Tesseract.

This surprised several people who knew him, as the normal thing would have been for Bruce to want to leave as soon as possible.

Indeed, Bruce wanted to leave as soon as possible, but he didn't want to stop the search without first having results. Leaving the Scepter and the Cube lingering was a hidden danger in his opinion.

In the future, it would definitely come back to bite them.

As his greatest wish was to live a peaceful life with Betty, he was doing everything possible to eliminate any threats.

Suddenly, his algorithm sounded an alarm indicating that it had found something.

He quickly displayed on a map the area where the Cube had last been seen.

Bruce promptly sent a message to Fury, telling him he had found traces of the Cube.

After a few minutes, Fury arrived, although it was more to thank Bruce and send him home.

"Director Fury, I found the last location of the Cube. I'm not sure what's special about this place," Bruce said, pointing at the screen.

"We'll find out, don't worry Dr. Banner, your job is already done," Fury said seriously.

Bruce looked at Fury with suspicion but still nodded as he slung his backpack over his shoulder.

"Do you want me to leave it in New York?" Fury asked, looking at Bruce.

"Please," Bruce said, nodding.

Fury quickly assigned an agent to take Bruce.

A few minutes later, Bruce was in a Quinjet heading towards New York with a pensive expression.

There was definitely something strange about all of this. It was as if Fury already knew where the Scepter and the Cube were, but didn't want to say.

Bruce was hesitant to get involved in these matters, as they could drag him into trouble. He was on the verge of reclaiming his normal life, and the last thing he wanted was to run away again.

The Quinjet quickly arrived in New York, and Bruce disembarked before hailing a taxi.

After a few minutes, the taxi dropped him off at the familiar house where he had lived with Betty years ago.

Bruce approached with nervousness on his face, his heartbeats were quite fast; if it weren't for his training, he would have transformed already.

With slow deliberation and a final sigh, Bruce rang the doorbell while he waited anxiously.

After a few seconds, a beautiful woman with black hair opened the door and was surprised to see Bruce.

Seeing Betty looking at him in surprise, Bruce opened his mouth to say something, but he didn't know exactly what to say.

Before he could say anything, Betty hugged him tightly while her eyes turned red.

"Betty," Bruce said softly, hugging her back.

"Are you leaving again?" Betty asked while hugging him.

"I'm not leaving again," Bruce said, hugging her tightly.

"Hm," Betty said, nodding her head within the embrace.

They both embraced for a long time in front of the door until Betty finally broke the hug and, still with a tearful smile, invited him inside.

"How have you been all these years?" Betty asked, patting Bruce's body to check him.

"I've been good, trained to control my transformation. Now I can almost live a normal life," Bruce said, looking at Betty with a slight smile.

"I traveled from Europe to Asia, finally settled in India when I gained some control over my transformation. I was the doctor of a small town until Natasha came to find me."

"Natasha?" Betty asked, looking at Bruce confused.

"The red-haired woman from the Avengers," Bruce said, laughing.

"Oh, you mean the Black Widow?" Betty asked, understanding.

"Yes, her. It's just that it's not a nickname that suits her. In fact, I heard she has a husband and daughters," Bruce said, shrugging.

"By the way, can I borrow your computer for a moment?" Bruce asked, looking at Betty.

"Of course," Betty said before quickly going to fetch it.

Bruce quickly opened a map and entered the coordinates where the Cube had last appeared before zooming in as much as possible on the image.

Betty, who was beside him, saw the mansion at Bruce's coordinates and was surprised.

"Do you know this place?" Bruce asked, frowning.

"That's where the king of Madripoor, Damian, lives," Betty said, nodding, looking a bit puzzled that Bruce didn't know, as the mansion was quite well-known.

Bruce furrowed his brow, thinking about the intricacies that could be involved in all of this.

Furthermore, Fury seemed to already know that the Cube and the Scepter had fallen into Damian's hands, but he didn't say anything.

That didn't align with what Bruce had analyzed of Fury's personality. He was a paranoid and controlling person who didn't leave anything to chance.

There was definitely something suspicious, but since Bruce wasn't one to meddle, he decided to leave things as they were.

...

Half a year passed in an instant.

This half-year had been the most peaceful in a long time. There were no international conflicts or problems of any kind.

Even the criminals seemed to have taken a vacation.

All countries seemed to be silent.

The reason for this was the large amount of alien technology that had been introduced to the world.

Every country had, in one way or another, remnants of the aliens.

It seemed a technological race had begun among all the countries, seeing who could learn and master the new technology.

In Damian's opinion, it was only the calm before the storm.

With new technology, it was inevitable that many would feel emboldened and conflicts would arise.

But that was the Avengers' business.

Damian had also been living in Madripoor for half a year now. The whole family had already gotten used to it and had actually realized that it was more enjoyable than New York.

Carol found it amusing to manage the city and arbitrate conflicts.

Ana, on the other hand, occasionally went to work at a school to prepare herself for teaching magic.

Ophelia was simply lounging around at home while taking care of the girls. She had already experienced everything in Madripoor.

Their three daughters continued to play every day, eagerly awaiting their school enrollment.

That day, Damian finished breakfast with his family before heading to the construction site of the school with the scientist.

More than a school, it looked like a magical castle with multiple towers.

The castle was at the edge of the cliff, and a bridge extended towards the sea, connecting to a tower.

Expansive gardens surrounded the castle, giving the place a beautiful and magical appearance.

"What is the approximate capacity of students?" Damian asked, looking at the scientist.

"With an organized schedule, I don't think there should be a problem admitting about 50 thousand students," the scientist said, calculating in his mind.

"That's little," Damian said, furrowing his brow.

"We have approximately 3 million children under 18 years old. It's impossible to fit them all in one place, even if we coordinate schedules," the scientist said, shaking his head.

"You're right. In the end, we still need to change the study materials in the other schools. I'll prepare things with Cortana and send them to you," Damian said, nodding.

"My lord, shouldn't we also establish a school for knights? What about those who can't or don't want to be wizards?" the scientist asked, clearing his throat. He had done some research on the matter and read a few novels.

"Come on, don't joke. I've already given humans a fairly comprehensive magic system. If they want to create another system, let them do it themselves," Damian said, refusing.

"Besides, just by having magic and strengthening their bodies, they should have some strength. There are billions of humans; I'm sure some genius will come up with something," Damian said, shrugging.

"That's true. It's just a little exciting. To tell the truth, I prefer fighting with my fists. Although it doesn't seem like it, I was the third-best fighter of my generation," the scientist said proudly, remembering his times at the academy.

Damian looked at the scientist, who had the typical blue skin of a Kree with a relatively robust body. With his impression of him, he really couldn't imagine him fighting.

"Then I'll sign you up to be an instructor for hand-to-hand combat," Damian said, nodding.

The scientist's smile froze before he gave an ironic smile. It seemed he wouldn't be spared from teaching.

"Let's go back," Damian said before disappearing.

...

Steve was in a taxi with a rather nervous expression. The taxi driver looked at him constantly, a little incredulous that an Avenger was in his taxi.

After a few minutes, the taxi stopped in front of a hospital before Steve got out and walked quickly.

Steve didn't even approach the reception and went straight to the elevator before going up to the top floor.

Walking quickly down the hallway, Steve looked at the numbers on the doors before finding the right one.

Steve stopped in front of the door for several seconds before knocking softly.

"Come in," said a very familiar voice to Steve.

Steve slowly opened the door to see Peggy's aged face. Despite the wrinkles and gray hair, he could still see that she was his girl.

"Peggy," Steve said, his voice trembling a little.

"Steve," Peggy said, smiling slightly at seeing him.

Unlike Steve, who had just found out she was alive, she had known about Steve for a long time and had had time to calm down and accept it.

"You didn't make it to our dance. Although you haven't changed, I see you're still just as dramatic," Peggy said, laughing at seeing him frozen in the doorway.

"Peggy," Steve said softly, approaching and sitting in the chair next to the bed.

"I'm sorry I didn't make it," Steve said, lowering his head, and feeling a burning sensation in his eyes.

"It's okay. Destiny had a different plan for you. I just regret not being able to be a part of it," Peggy said with a calm smile.

"Tell me about yourself. What did you do after the war? Did you... get married?" Steve asked, not knowing where to look. His feelings were confusing.

He hoped Peggy had found someone to continue with her life, but a selfish part of him also wished she hadn't.

"After the war... your loss hurt me a lot," Peggy said, smiling sadly.

"The first few months, I hoped you would suddenly appear at my door, that against all odds you would survive like you always did. When time passed and you didn't come, it was very hard."

"I almost lost my motivation for work, but Stark helped me. He told me that you wouldn't have wanted to see me like this. He never stopped looking for you," Peggy said, smiling sadly as she shook her head.

"You and him?" Steve asked with doubt, while at the same time thinking about Tony and his mind started racing.

"Of course not," Peggy said, bursting into laughter before starting to cough.

Steve panicked and quickly handed her water while helping her.

"You're so old now but you still don't understand," Peggy said, smiling.

"After Stark motivated me again, we created SHIELD. From then on, I just tried to work and work to stop thinking about you. The years passed, and I really never found anyone."

Steve took Peggy's hand and lowered his head, closing his eyes.

The woman he loved gave him her whole life. Now that he's back, he won't be able to give her his.

"It's okay," Peggy said, smiling as she caressed Steve's hand.

She had had 70 years to think about it. She was already at the end of her life, and fortunately, she was able to see him again. She was satisfied with just that.

Steve's eyes trembled before regaining his composure and looking at Peggy with determination.

"I've heard that science is very advanced nowadays, especially in Madripoor," Steve said as if he were talking to himself.

"Maybe... we can still have that life," Steve said, kissing Peggy's hand before standing up.

"Steve, although I'm no longer in charge of SHIELD, I know what you mean. But let me tell you, it's impossible. No one has achieved whatever it is that Madripoor has to extend their age."

"Besides, I'm already at the end of my life. Even with advanced technology, I'm afraid it's too late."

"Of course, my words won't make you give up," Peggy said, smiling slightly as she saw Steve about to open the door.

"Just remember, I'd rather die than see you forced to accept things that go against your principles," Peggy said with a very serious voice.

Steve completely warped the doorknob before nodding and leaving the room.

As he stepped into the hallway, he found a doctor walking towards him.

"Tell me, what does the patient in that room have?" Steve asked, looking at the doctor.

The doctor was a little intimidated by Steve, who was not in the best mood.

"The patient, besides being over 90 years old, also has stage 2 Alzheimer's," the doctor said after looking at the room he referred to.

On that floor, there were only really important people, so it wasn't hard to figure out who he was talking about.

"Hm, thank you," Steve said, nodding before walking to the elevator and starting to descend.

----

Remember that you can support me and see 10 advanced chapters at patreon.com/Fast_Reader