Flicker~ Flicker~
Inside the Yuri Construction Yard, rows of lights turned on in sequence, flashing rhythmically as if someone were deliberately playing with the switches.
Then, a powerful wave of psychic energy instantly blanketed the base.
Luca felt as if his brain had been struck by a heavy hammer. His entire body jolted violently, snapping him out of his infinitely diverging thoughts.
Startled, he instinctively dropped the Mind Stone.
Clink-clank~
As the gem hit the ground with a crisp sound, the erratic lights in the Yuri Base stabilized.
In that moment, Luca could clearly feel his thoughts slowing down.
No! It's not that my thinking is slow, it's that my thoughts were so hyperactive just now that normal thinking feels slow by comparison!
Staring at the glowing Mind Stone on the floor, a wave of fear washed over him, cold sweat prickling his back.
"I got a little too cocky..."
He had assumed that transforming into his half-dragon form to boost his constitution, combined with using his mechanical arm for indirect contact, would protect him from any negative effects.
But now that he thought about it, the Mind Stone affects the mind, not the body. His half-dragon form offered little to no boost in mental fortitude.
Why did he think a half-baked dragon transformation would let him ignore the influence of an Infinity Stone?
Thank god... it was only indirect contact through the mechanical arm... The movies misled me!
In the movies Luca had seen, the Mind Stone never showed signs of "devouring its master." So, while he had maintained a limited level of caution, he had subconsciously underestimated the gem.
But in reality, every Infinity Stone possesses infinite energy.
The Power Stone just makes this obvious by shredding anyone too weak to wield it. The Mind Stone's backlash is subtler, quieter, which ironically makes it seem gentler.
What Luca didn't know was that in the original timeline, when HYDRA experimented with the Scepter, everyone who directly touched the casing—aside from the Maximoff twins—died horribly.
The Mind Stone was no harmless little lamb.
Even if it's an enhancement, there's a threshold you have to meet, huh? No wonder each stone has its own containment casing...
Luca reflected on his state just moments ago.
When holding the Mind Stone, his thoughts—or rather, his mental power—seemed to be endlessly amplified under its influence.
But perhaps because his base mental strength was too weak, those diverging thoughts were clearly beyond his control.
While his mind was hyperactive, random associations flooded in. If he hadn't been inside the Yuri Base, which inherently possessed strong psychic defenses, he might have been completely submerged in that world of hyperactive thought, never to wake up.
"If I touched the gem directly, the mental boost would definitely be stronger. But whether my original consciousness could survive that flood is a huge unknown..."
"However..."
Although he had nearly killed himself with his reckless experiment, now that the initial shock had faded, Luca's eyes lit up, and an excited grin spread across his face.
After that experience, he was certain of one thing: while the Mind Stone might not be the fabled "Wisdom Stone" that grants infinite intelligence, enhancing the mind and spirit effectively makes the wielder's thoughts and brain more active.
To Luca, this was far more valuable than illusions, telekinesis, or mind control.
If I can build a custom artifact for the Mind Stone...
With the technology Luca now possessed—Devil May Cry items often relied on stabilizing exotic energies, and Yuri's tech was the expert in psychic abilities—he had options.
Asking him to forge an Infinity Gauntlet alone might be a stretch.
But creating a "Mind Gauntlet" to restrict the Mind Stone's enhancement to a safe level? Luca was very confident he could pull that off.
"Besides..."
"Isn't there an even safer method?"
Glancing at the gem on the floor, the corners of Luca's mouth curled up.
In that moment, Luca thought of the "absolute control" his Golden Finger granted over synthesized items.
If he synthesized Vision and then removed the gem from his forehead... would the mark of absolute control remain on the Mind Stone?
Although losing the gem would severely weaken [Vision]...
If he could actually obtain an Infinity Stone branded with a "loyalty mark"...
"Wouldn't I be making a killing?!"
Luca had zero doubt that his Golden Finger could "suppress" the Infinity Stone.
Even though the idea of a "customized gem" was just speculation, looking at the Mind Stone now, he no longer felt disdain for its synthesis recipe.
After all, items like the [Pteranodon Drone] or [Tracking Glasses] didn't come with ownership rights; anyone could use them.
Synthesizing intelligent life is great! If it were just a normal item, it might not even come with a loyalty mark!
"Looks like I need to gather the materials for Vision ASAP!"
If things went according to plan...
With the Mind Stone protecting his mind, the Devil Fruit and Blacklight Virus enhancing his body, and Devil May Cry tech alongside Hextech advancing his mystical capabilities...
Plus an endless mechanical army...
The future might just be...
"I'm untouchable?"
Luca narrowed his eyes, suppressing the wild fantasies in his head.
Although he was sure brief contact via the mechanical arm was safe, this time he didn't recklessly pick up the gem himself.
Without hesitation, he summoned his beloved orange Haro.
"Haro, keep this gem safe for me~"
"Safe Haro! Safe Haro!"
Watching the little bot swallow the Mind Stone, Luca nodded in satisfaction.
The failure to "compress" the Hell Gate had confirmed that the [Dehydration Gun]'s cubes could be destroyed by equivalent dimensional forces.
But Haro possessed "near-invincible defense" stamped by the System, plus concept-level "loyalty." It would be immune to the Mind Stone's influence. Keeping it with the little guy actually made Luca feel safer.
However, even Luca didn't notice...
From start to finish, he never once worried about whether holding the Mind Stone would make him a target for Thanos.