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Chapter 214: World's Most Powerful Vampire (1)
🕑 Added 2025-02-08 16:03:15 +0000 UTC'The Margaret' cruise ship departed from New York at the end of December, so by the time it reached Europe, it was already early 1948.
The story of Peggy Carter and Mar-Vell was but a small episode in the relatively long journey.
In fact, the two energetic women clashed no less than ten times during the nearly twenty-day trip. Fortunately, aside from the first intense fight, the rest were more restrained and they didn't break too many things.
However, no one found their actions annoying.
The cruise might have been interesting at first, but after a while it became a bit boring. Their sparring added some excitement to the trip.
In contrast, one of the main characters of this trip, Josh, was almost completely absent—except for a brief appearance when the two women had their first fight.
The only time he showed up was when the cruise passed Gibraltar, where he met Spain's dictator Franco.
The reason for his disappearance wasn’t that he had been sucked dry—though he was indeed tormented by Margaret for an entire night and had to drink a lot of Elixir the next day.
The real reason was that he had been hiding in his cabin, practicing the Five Elements technique.
In his previous life, he was from China, and with the automatic translation of the system and the help of the Elixir, which contained a small amount of magical energy, he managed to make some progress before reaching Austria—he had mastered the Water and Metal Elements.
On a huge cruise ship sailing across the ocean, these two elements were the easiest to train.
Of course, "mastered" only meant that he could barely control small amounts of water or manipulate an iron nail.
His control was still far less efficient than using his hands.
He still had a long way to go to reach the level of the Dragon Emperor, who could use these powers effortlessly.
But it was a promising start.
Toot!
With a long whistle, the cruise ship Margaret slowly entered the port of Trieste.
Trieste had once been the largest port of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, but was taken over by Italy after World War I. It remained under Italian control in his previous universe.
During World War II, the city was first occupied by the Allies, and later divided between Italy and the Yugoslav Federation.
In this world, however, the rise of Austria changed the course of history. After Operation Return to the Eagle's Nest, Austria and the U.S. military took control of the port.
Italy had complaints, but as a defeated country, it had no bargaining power with the U.S. forces.
Later, Austria supported the creation of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and took over Slovenia, using this as justification to jointly control the strategic port with the U.S. military under the name of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
After Austria demonstrated its overwhelming military strength in the war against the Yugoslav Federal Republic, Italy no longer dared to protest.
Thus, amid the cheers of the Austrian people, Trieste—once the Austro-Hungarian Empire’s number one port—officially returned to Austrian hands after nearly thirty years.
"Phew, finally back on solid ground! Cruising was nice, and the facilities were comfortable, but being away from land for too long just feels like something is missing!" Peggy Carter sighed as she stepped off the ship in her deep blue gown.
Her presence immediately drew the attention of those around her.
After all, a tall, strong woman like her was quite rare in all of Europe.
"This is nothing. One day I'll take you on a journey through space, and then you'll see. Compared to the endless ocean of the universe, your so-called Atlantic Ocean is no bigger than a small lake," Mar-Vell bragged, resting a hand on Carter's shoulder.
Just as she said, a mere twenty-day sea journey meant little to her.
She had once spent six months flying alone through space.
"All right, I get it, you're amazing. But could you be a little more mindful of the occasion?" Carter rolled her eyes at Mar-Vell's bragging, though deep down, her words stirred something in her—space travel did sound tempting.
"Peggy, why don't you come back to Hala with me? You're human, but the Kree are not closed-minded. With your abilities, the Supreme Intelligence would definitely accept you!" Seeing Carter's interest, Mar-Vell leaned in and whispered.
Most major space civilizations—whether the Kree, the Shi'ar, or the Nova Corps—were not made up of a single species. Instead, they were made up of one or two dominant races along with countless allied species.
Even Asgard, a powerful and unique realm, was home to both the Aesir and the Vanir—Queen Frigga herself was a Vanir.
On the other hand, empires like the Skrulls, which consisted of only one race, were extremely rare.
So even though Carter was from "primitive" Earth, Mar-Vell believed that as a super-soldier with a physique comparable to elite Kree warriors, she stood a real chance of being recognized by the Supreme Intelligence and becoming a Kree citizen.
"Sorry, but Earth is my home and I have no intention of leaving. There are still many threats here, and it's my duty to protect my home, not to fight for an alien civilization I know nothing about." Carter refused without hesitation.
As a British woman working for the U.S. since the war, she was already considered an outsider by many.
But at least Britain and America had always been allies. Both the Strategic Scientific Reserve and the CIA didn't care much about nationality, so her actions had always been justifiable.
But to leave Earth altogether to serve as a soldier for an alien empire?
Carter wasn’t ready to go that far.
Seeing Carter turn her down so firmly, Mar-Vell could only sigh in disappointment.
"What are you two standing around for? Get in the car!" Josh called from a distance, already sitting and waiting. He had no idea that someone had just tried to steal Carter away.
Not that he would have cared.
With Carter's personality, it would be difficult to recruit her. Besides, Super Soldiers were nothing special to him anymore. Losing one wouldn't make any difference.
"Alright, let's go. It's best not to discuss these things in public. If the wrong people overhear, it could cause unnecessary trouble," Carter said, nodding to Josh before looking at Mar-Vell. Without waiting for a reply, she got into one of the cars behind Josh's.
