Above Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, a golden rift silently tore open—like a golden eye splitting the heavens.
Levi stepped out of it, the magnificent interdimensional passage behind him quietly sealing shut. He stood in midair, the air beneath his feet solidifying into invisible steps.
Five meters away, in the corridor, Professor Charles sat calmly in his wheelchair—as if he had been waiting for some time. There was no surprise in his azure eyes, only deep curiosity.
"You went to Egypt."
His mental power had already sensed the unsettling spatial fluctuation that had spanned half the globe.
"Mm."
Levi didn't deny it. His figure flickered, and he landed soundlessly before Charles. "A problem. Temporarily dealt with."
Charles turned his wheelchair, moving alongside him toward the main building. A gentle yet powerful psychic force extended toward Levi, capable of soothing even the most violent souls.
Yet the moment it touched him, it didn't hit a barrier. Instead, it was like a drop of water falling into an endless, silent ocean—instantly losing all feedback and direction.
Charles's fingers trembled slightly on the armrest.
That wasn't a shield. It was something beyond his understanding—an all-encompassing consciousness that transcended everything.
"Your power…"
There was a trace of awe in Charles's voice. "It has reached another realm."
"Had a bit of a clash. Just the aftereffects."
Levi spoke lightly as he pushed open the heavy oak doors.
Inside the hall, Jean Grey was talking with Sean and Angel.
When they saw him, all three stopped at once.
Jean's gaze fell on him, her beautiful eyes flickering with confusion—and unease.
She sensed that Levi had changed. He was no longer just powerful. There was now a vast, cosmic depth to him—like a sea of stars. It inspired instinctive awe… yet also drew her in uncontrollably.
"Are you… alright?"
She stood and walked toward him, concern slipping into her voice before she realized it.
"Better than ever."
Levi sat down on the sofa, sinking into its softness. "I added a few safeguards to that problem. It won't be a threat anytime soon."
Charles stopped across from him, studying him. "Safeguards?"
"Space, time, and mind."
Levi raised his hand. A shifting golden light appeared in his palm. "And this."
The light compressed and reorganized violently, instantly forming a brilliant crystal with a dizzyingly complex internal structure.
The next moment, it silently collapsed into mist and dissipated.
Sean stared wide-eyed. "W-what was that?"
"The reconstruction and decomposition of matter at its most fundamental level," Levi said calmly.
Charles tapped his fingers rhythmically on the armrest.
He couldn't imagine how such godlike authority could be wielded so casually by a single person.
Jean sat beside Levi. She could feel the terrifying power within that energy—a force of both creation and destruction.
"That ability… is dangerous," she said softly, her voice trembling.
"I know."
Levi glanced at her, understanding the shared fear in her eyes. "But it's useful."
He stood and walked to the center of the hall, placing his hand on the marble floor.
A shocking scene unfolded.
The solid ground softened under his touch, flowing like warm clay. It rose and reshaped itself under an invisible will.
Within seconds, an elegant stone chair "grew" from the floor, seamlessly connected before hardening into rock.
Sean walked over and knocked on it. Thunk, thunk. Solid as steel.
"My God… that's a miracle."
Angel looked envious. "How many abilities do you even have?"
Levi just smiled, offering no answer.
Charles turned toward him again, serious. "There are always contingencies. What if that problem returns?"
"It won't."
Levi sat back down. "I reconstructed and locked its internal energy cycle. Unless a force of equal level interferes from outside, it will stay asleep for a long time."
"And after that?"
Jean leaned forward slightly. "What will you do then?"
"It still has value."
Levi didn't deny it. "More importantly, when it wakes up, the world will need a force strong enough to face it—or something even worse."
Charles fell silent, then sighed softly.
"The future… will it really be that dangerous?"
"The universe is never calm, Charles."
Levi's tone was flat, yet heavy as a hammer. "What you see now is just ripples before the storm."
Sean and Angel's expressions darkened—they couldn't argue.
Charles closed his eyes, then reopened them with understanding. "You're right. Just standing before you, I can already feel that gap."
He paused, then looked at Jean, his gaze complex. "But Jean is different. The power within her… may have the potential to change everything."
Jean's body tensed.
She knew what he meant—the dark, violent, destructive force buried deep inside her.
Levi said nothing. He knew exactly what it was. But the timing wasn't right yet.
"Let's leave that aside."
He stood. "I need a few days to get used to this new power."
---
Levi went alone to the training field in the backyard.
Standing at the center, he raised his hand and grasped at empty air. The surrounding atmosphere compressed toward his palm.
Gas molecules were forcibly condensed—first into a liquid droplet, then further into a faintly glowing blue crystal—
Solid oxygen.
He released it. The crystal fell, instantly sublimating into white mist.
He walked to a discarded steel plate and pressed his hand against it.
At his will, the atomic structure rearranged—denser, more ordered, forming a superalloy far beyond conventional limits.
He stomped the ground. The alloy plate beneath his foot dented—but the one he modified remained flawless.
Next, he approached another scrap of metal. It melted like wax, becoming liquid metal, reshaped into a slender, elegant blade in his hand.
The blade gleamed like autumn water.
With a casual swing, he sliced a nearby alloy target in half.
The upper portion slid off with a crash.
The cut surface was mirror-smooth.
This wasn't sharpness—it was direct molecular disassembly.
Levi let the blade fall. It disintegrated midair, reverting to ordinary metal.
He looked up—and met Jean's gaze.
She stood at the edge of the field, watching… for who knew how long.
"This is a public space," she said softly, stepping closer. "What you're doing… goes beyond what 'mutant' can explain."
"The definition of mutant was never clear to begin with," Levi said. "Charles can connect to every mind on Earth. Erik can move the planet's magnetic field. Is that normal?"
Jean fell silent.
After a moment, she asked quietly, "Charles asked me to ask you… when are you leaving?"
"When I fully control this power. Two or three days."
"And then?"
She pressed on. "Where will you go?"
Levi looked toward the distant horizon, but didn't answer.
A strange unease rose in Jean's chest.
She stepped forward, standing in front of him, gathering her courage.
In his eyes, she saw stars being born and dying—an endless cosmic cycle. It made her heart tighten.
But deep within that vastness, she glimpsed something else—
Fatigue. Loneliness.
In that moment, she forgot everything.
Standing on her toes, she closed her eyes and pressed her lips gently against his.
Levi froze for a split second, surprise flashing in his eyes.
It was a clumsy, innocent kiss—soft, trembling, yet filled with reckless courage.
She pulled away quickly, cheeks flushed, but her gaze remained steady.
"I just… don't want you to be someone who passes by."
Levi looked at her.
For the first time, ripples disturbed the still ocean within his heart.
He raised his hand, hesitated, then gently brushed her hair.
"Jean…"
---
Back in his room, Levi closed the door and raised his hand.
Molecular Manipulation.
The power to reconstruct—and to destroy—everything.
If it lost control, it would be a disaster in itself.
He walked to the window, looking at the scattered lights across the manor.
In his perception, Jean still stood in the corridor—not lost, but filled with a new determination.
At the same time, deep within her mind, that dormant, suppressed power stirred slightly.
The Phoenix Force.
It was tied to her emotions.
Levi's gaze deepened.
His original plan required a stronger stimulus—a trigger powerful enough to break all her restraints and force her to face her deepest fears.
But now…
An unexpected variable had appeared.
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