Marvel: The Psychologist Who Stole Wanda and Gwen's Hearts!

The three left the temple. Along the way, every sorcerer they passed bowed respectfully to the Ancient One.

If Lorien were a vain man, he might have wished for those bows to be directed at him as well. The way to make that happen would be for the Ancient One to announce his identity as the Supreme Sorcerer’s godfather. But that would be ridiculously foolish. And besides, Lorien preferred to receive respect from those in high positions rather than from ordinary people. Prestige mattered more.

They stepped out onto a road paved with massive stones, crossed the courtyard, and made their way to the training ground. It was still morning, and the sorcerers there were in the midst of their daily exercises.

Some practiced with Sling Rings, conjuring spells mid-air. Others wielded long staves—close-combat weapons, not slender wands like calligraphy brushes.

"How do sorcerers usually train?" Hela asked curiously.

"They’re not yet true sorcerers," the Ancient One replied. "A true sorcerer must be able to cast spells without fear, no matter their surroundings. And they must first master all the basics—especially close-range spells."

In Kamar-Taj, all novices began with close-combat techniques: rubbing their hands together to conjure a pair of glowing, shuriken-like constructs. Perhaps this was because sorcerers had poor physical defense and needed to compensate for it early on.

Hela nodded in understanding. She herself had no such weakness—she could use death magic, melee techniques, and ranged attacks. She was more like a well-rounded battle mage.

At that moment, the Ancient One and Lorien’s attention turned to one particular trainee—Stephen Strange. Among all the apprentices, his aura of worldliness stood out the most. While others focused quietly on their practice, Stephen was still plagued by self-doubt.

Ever since the car accident, he believed his inability to perform magic came from his injured hands, not from any flaw in himself. After several failed attempts to spark golden energy, frustration began to set in.

He glanced around, hoping to pick up something from the others—then his eyes landed on Lorien and the Ancient One standing nearby. His eyes widened.

What is Lorien doing here?!

Why is he here?

Is he... learning magic alongside me?

"Stop looking around!" Wong barked sharply at his side. "The first rule of practicing magic is complete focus! Do you think you’re doing that right now?!"

Complete focus? With you shouting in my ear? Stephen thought irritably. But when he glanced at the others nearby, he saw they hadn’t been distracted at all. They weren’t even curious about what was going on—each continued drawing their spell diagrams in perfect concentration.

...Alright. Maybe it really was just him. Feeling embarrassed, Stephen touched his nose and lowered his head.

From a distance, Wong glanced at the Ancient One, then at Lorien, and gave a small nod before turning back to Stephen.

"Magic requires absolute dedication. At this rate, you’ll never master it!"

Stephen lifted his trembling hands.

"It’s my hands. They’re what’s holding me back."

Wong frowned. "There are sorcerers who can cast spells without hands at all. If they can do it, why can’t you?"

"Without hands...?" Stephen’s skepticism was clear.

"Yes. Without hands," Wong affirmed.

By then, the Ancient One and Lorien had walked up beside him. Stephen looked at Lorien first, but Lorien’s expression was unreadable. Then Stephen turned to the Ancient One, knowing she was the highest authority here.

"Is that really possible? Without hands?"

The Ancient One gave no verbal answer. Instead, she motioned to a nearby sorcerer—one with no hands—who stepped forward and, right before Stephen’s eyes, conjured a flawless close-range spell.

"This..." Stephen was stunned.

He turned to Lorien, silently asking for confirmation.

Lorien didn’t answer his unspoken question. He simply said, his voice calm and even...

"Doubt is the most powerful enemy."

Lorien’s words silenced Stephen instantly.

Yes... he had always been doubting.

Doubting whether he could do it.

Doubting whether his hands could do it.

Doubting everything.

Simply put, he was both proud and insecure.

Seeing this, Lorien gave him a calm reminder.

"Don’t let your past pride blind you. Time is still on your side—only by keeping the heart of an apprentice can you truly escape your predicament."

After those words, Stephen fell silent again. But strangely, Lorien noticed that the Ancient One, Hela, and Wong beside him had also fallen silent.

After a long pause, the Ancient One nodded in gratitude.

"Even I have benefited greatly from what you just said."

Wong didn’t speak. Instead, he bowed deeply toward Lorien.

"Thank you, Sorcerer Supreme Godfather."

When Stephen snapped out of his thoughts, confusion immediately crossed his face.

"Godfather?"

Those two words made the Ancient One smile. She glanced at Stephen.

"You’ll find out in time."

She was already looking forward to the day when Lorien would stand before Stephen and say, You don’t even want to call me godfather.

At first, Wong wasn’t confused. But the Ancient One’s comment made him pause.

What did she mean?

She was speaking to Stephen... Did that mean Stephen would one day become the Sorcerer Supreme?

Wong turned to look at Stephen again.

Could this guy really do it? Could he grow into the Sorcerer Supreme?

He had to admit... yes, he could.

After all, the core of Marvel’s male leads was simple—they grew absurdly fast. Spider-Man, Iron Man, the Sorcerer Supreme, Ant-Man... it didn’t matter.

A few months ago, they could be street punks. A few months later, they were saving the world.

That was just how it went.

...

After watching Stephen and giving him just three sentences of guidance, Lorien could tell that he had already thought things through.

Lorien nodded and looked at him.

"Practice hard. Your past—whether it was money or fame—is already over. Now you have only the path of a sorcerer. Don’t give up. When there’s only one road ahead, you have to smash through that wall."

Hearing this, Stephen nodded seriously.

"I understand. Thank you, Lorien."

Lorien gave a brief nod, patted his shoulder, and left with the Ancient One and Hela.

As the three walked away, Wong fixed Stephen with a firm look.

"The Godfather and the Ancient One both think highly of you. Don’t let them down, you hear?"

Stephen blinked in surprise.

"Lorien is the Godfather?!"

Wong shot him a glare.

"You’re not in a position to know that. Now get back to training!"

Chastened by Wong’s tone, Stephen immediately threw himself back into his practice.

...

The three returned to the temple.

The Ancient One thanked Lorien.

"Stephen’s mindset is now in the best state—and you only used three sentences."

Sometimes, there was no need to praise someone outright with words like That’s amazing, You’re incredible, or Well done. Just those two sentences from the Ancient One were enough to show Lorien’s ability.

Hela, standing nearby, chimed in with a grin.

"Lorien, you should come to Asgard and be the god of hypnosis. Or go to another dimension and become an evil god. That way, so many girls will—"

"Oh, really now!"

Before Hela could finish, Lorien pinched her ear and lifted her up.

Hela stood on tiptoe, yelping.

"I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I really am sorry! I won’t talk nonsense anymore!"

Hearing her immediate apology, Lorien chuckled and let go of her ear.

Once back on the ground, Hela clutched her ears and backed away, but in her heart she still muttered, I’ll dare again next time!

The Ancient One smiled helplessly at the scene. So even gods had been mischievous when they were young.

Hela, after all, was Elder God–level in strength. But now, in her loli form, she was no different from a child. Her combat power hadn’t dropped below the Elder God level, but her mentality certainly had.

...

Lorien and the Ancient One continued their discussion in the temple.

One of the topics the Ancient One raised was the fate of Earth—should survival depend on proactive action, or passive acceptance? In other words, should they actively seek change, or simply accept whatever came?

For Lorien, the answer was simple.

"Doing whatever you want doesn’t make you strong. True strength is when you refuse to do what you don’t want to do."

The same applied to Earth. Wanting to change the planet didn’t mean you were truly changing it. But being able to ensure it would never become something you didn’t want—that was real strength. The ability to refuse was true power.

The Ancient One smiled at this, both nodding and shaking her head.

"I cannot predict where our enemies might be. There are still far too many unknown, powerful forces in the universe. Even the Celestials I know of are beings Odin and I cannot resist."

Both she and Odin were Sky Father–level, yet to the Universal-level Celestials, they were insignificant. The gap between them was as vast as the difference between a single house and the entire Earth—perhaps even greater.

The Ancient One understood this, so Lorien didn’t elaborate. When the difference in knowledge was too great, more information only bred despair—like knowing too much yet being powerless to act.

And behind the Celestials, there were beings even stronger, such as the Five Abstract Entities. But telling her that was pointless, and the Ancient One knew it.

The topic ended there.

That was the way of the wise.

...

Before long, Wanda returned with several female sorcerers.

As soon as she entered, Lorien noticed the two Sling Rings on her hands. Unlike ordinary ones, these were scarlet, perfectly matching the Scarlet Witch. Clearly, the Ancient One had crafted them for her.

Lorien glanced at the Ancient One, who nodded in confirmation.

"Lorien, look."

Wanda came to his side and showed him the Sling Rings.

"These can help me draw on my magic faster and control it more precisely—at least a fifty percent improvement!"

Lorien took them for a look.

"Not bad."

He handed them back.

"When you become a true sorcerer, I’ll give you even better magical gear."

"Really?" Wanda’s face lit up. "That’s great!"

This wasn’t Lorien being generous for no reason. It was part of a reward system to speed up her learning. In fact, what he planned to give her was the Darkhold—currently in Westview. He could simply take her there to retrieve it.

After chatting with Wanda for a while, Lorien checked the time, then rose and spoke to the Ancient One.

"Then I’ll leave Wanda in your care. She’ll only be free to move between Kamar-Taj and the outside world once she’s learned teleportation magic. Until then, she’ll stay here. It’s her choice."

The Ancient One gave Wanda a slightly surprised look. She had thought that with someone as strong as Lorien as her partner, learning magic would just be something for Wanda to pass the time. She hadn’t expected her to be so determined—refusing to leave until she mastered teleportation.

Many sorcerers never learned that spell in their entire lives.

Although Wanda already had a foundation in magic, her determination alone made her worthy of the Ancient One’s full attention.

The Ancient One nodded seriously.

"I will."

With that, the conversation came to a close.

Lorien turned and hugged Wanda, who had been waiting with open arms. He patted her back, speaking with quiet encouragement.

"With your talent, we might see each other again very soon. Believe in yourself, Wanda. Even the greatest sorcerer in the Nine Realms wouldn’t compare to you. You have no idea how much potential you hold."

Wanda clung to him, her voice a little low.

"You’re putting me on a pedestal."

"No, I’m telling you it’s nothing special." Lorien patted her shoulder. "One day, when you look back, you’ll find all of this was nothing more than a simple task."

"Mm."

They stayed like that for a moment before Wanda gently pushed him away.

"Go on back, and be careful. If you get bored, call Gwen to keep you company... or let that funny loli entertain you."

Lorien smiled. "Alright."

But Hela, standing nearby, immediately protested.

"Who are you calling ’funny’~?"

"Hey~!"

"Alright, alright." Lorien caught Hela with one hand, then nodded to Wanda.

"Goodbye. I’ll be waiting for you to surprise me."

"I will!"

With Wanda’s reluctant gaze and Hela’s embarrassed frustration lingering in the air, snap—Lorien’s fingers clicked, and he and Hela vanished from the spot.

...

Inside the temple, Wanda watched them go. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, her gaze burned with hunger for knowledge.

She turned toward the Ancient One.

"Other than sleeping and eating, I can devote all my energy to learning magic!"

The Ancient One found herself liking Wanda more and more. She smiled and nodded.

"And I will give you my full support."

...

Elsewhere, the snap brought Lorien and Hela instantly to the doorway of the second-to-last floor of the northern building.

Hela suddenly turned quiet.

"Hm?" Lorien gave her a curious look. "Why the sudden change?"

Hela shot him a sideways glance, folded her arms, and put on a deliberately old-fashioned tone.

"Hmph, you’re so slow. I was helping you put on a show for Wanda—so she won’t worry about you later."

Her words caught Lorien off guard, but then he grinned.

"Not bad, not bad. You actually did something useful for once, Hela."

"Hmph!" She pouted. "I’m telling you, I’m very smart."

Despite her words, the corners of her mouth curved upward, turning the pout into a crooked smirk—like a lopsided dragon’s grin.

By then, Lorien had already opened the office door.

"It’s Monday. Time to work."

"Ah~?" Hela groaned, dragging out the sound. "What’s the point of that?"

Lorien stepped inside, snapping his fingers to clear the dust.

"This place has a PS5, a top-spec PC, iced milk tea, and every kind of snack and dessert. If you don’t feel like cooking, you can order takeout. Basically, aside from not being at home, it has everything."

Before he could finish, a green-haired girl in a skirt came rushing in.

"Hela’s here~!"

...

(80 Chapters Ahead)

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