Putting down the goblet, Sebastian walked to the other side of the house. While everyone's attention was focused on Angela, he quickly followed the direction Tessa and Kane had taken.
Sebastian's magical powers hadn't yet recovered enough for him to practice Apparition. Otherwise, it would have been much more convenient to use Apparition for tracking. Tessa's house was very close to Sean's house, both properties belonging to the same real estate company.
He opened the door and found the home empty. Tessa shook her head in disappointment, then turned to Kane, motioning for him to come inside with her. This was the only comfort she could offer herself—having someone by her side, even if she had to use unconventional methods.
At that moment, Kane's phone rang. He remained by Tessa's side, not intending to answer it.
Tessa didn't need to look to know it was from Kane's parents. Kane had been with her for some time and hadn't gone home, which naturally caused his parents to worry. However, Tessa didn't want Kane to leave her side.
"Kane, hang up the phone and turn it off."
Following Tessa's command, Kane immediately took out the phone and hung up the call.
"I think it's better for you to let him go home. Otherwise, when his parents call the police, it will only lead to more problems for you," a voice suddenly suggested.
Tessa's expression changed dramatically as she quickly turned to see a man standing there, his figure cloaked in black smoke. The unusual state of the person made Tessa take a sharp breath, and she instinctively wanted to run away.
But then, after a moment of thought, she realized that she was no longer the same as before. She turned and stood behind Kane, staring at the figure in front of her, who was covered in black smoke, as if wearing a robe made of the stuff.
The man who had suddenly appeared was none other than Sebastian. At this moment, he was certain that the Tessa before him indeed possessed the same ability as Kilgrave.
"You... Who are you?" Tessa asked.
Sebastian had no interest in wasting time with small talk. Ignoring Tessa's question, he asked directly, "Where did your ability come from?"
At this point, Sebastian's magical power hadn't fully recovered, so he was unable to use Legilimency. If he had been fully restored, he wouldn't have needed to ask directly.
Tessa's face turned pale when she heard Sebastian's words, and she quickly denied them: "I don't know what you're talking about. If you don't leave my house immediately, I will call the police!"
Without wasting time on further conversation, Sebastian raised his hand, waved his wand, and cast a Petrification Charm on Kane. A beam of white light shot out, and Kane was instantly frozen in place, like a stone statue.
Seeing Kane's sudden transformation, Tessa gasped. She glared at Sebastian and shouted, "Leave me! Get out of my house! I command you to leave!"
As her surroundings began to distort with chaos, Sebastian quickly performed Occlumency, which served as an effective defense against Kilgrave's ability. He wasn't afraid of Tessa, who appeared to have inherited a distorted version of Kilgrave's power. Despite her best efforts, Tessa couldn't control him.
Eventually, Tessa realized her powers were ineffective against him, and a look of despair spread across her face.
Stepping back, Tessa's voice trembled as she begged for mercy: "Please, please don't hurt me."
"Tell me, where did your ability come from?" Sebastian pressed, his tone calm yet firm. "If you tell me the truth, not only will you be safe, but this boy named Kane will live as well."
"I…" Tessa hesitated, visibly torn.
Seeing her hesitation, Sebastian waved his wand, causing a vase beside her to explode. The shattered fragments rained down on Tessa's body, making her scream in pain.
"I'll ask you one last time," Sebastian said, his voice cold. "Tell me how you got your ability. If you tell the truth, I promise I won't harm you. This is your last chance."
"I… I found it in my father's company. When I went there before, I stumbled across some files on his computer. The password was my mother's birthday, and I always knew…"
Tessa paused, her voice faltering as she recalled the event.
"I didn't mean for it to go this far. I just wanted them to pay more attention to me, so I secretly took a potion from my father's lab. He kept it there, and I was always curious. Plus, Angela and I had been after Kane, and I just… I couldn't resist using that potion."
Tessa's words were jumbled, but Sebastian understood the core of what she was saying.
To put it simply, in order to attract Kane's attention, she had stolen a potion from her father's laboratory. This potion had granted Tessa the same ability as Kilgrave — the power to control others!
"Where is your father's company?"
Tessa's face turned pale with fear, and she instinctively took a step back. But she had already backed into a corner and had nowhere else to retreat.
She looked at Sebastian, panic written all over her face, and begged, "No, no, you can't hurt my father, please!"
"If I wanted to hurt your father, you wouldn't be spared," Sebastian said coldly. "I'm letting you go because I'm not interested in hurting your family. I only care about that potion. Tell me where your father's company is, and I can spare you and your family. Otherwise, I'll wait here for your father to return… and I can take care of him as well."
Sebastian's patience was wearing thin. He longed for the days when he could use Legilimency in his past life. Back then, there had been no need for long-winded threats or coercion.
"My father… my father is the lead researcher for a technology pioneer company..." Tessa choked on her words, tears streaming down her face.
Sebastian couldn't help but feel a slight sense of frustration. There was no satisfaction in coercing a girl who was clearly scared out of her mind.
A tech pioneer? He thought back to what he remembered. It was a medium-sized tech company. But how could they have developed a potion that bestowed the same power as Kilgrave's? Was this company somehow linked to S.H.I.E.L.D.? Or perhaps Hydra?
"I hope you're telling the truth," Sebastian said, his voice firm. "If you're lying to me, I will come back and make you regret it. But if you're truthful, we will never meet again. And as for today… I expect you to keep everything that's happened here to yourself. I trust you understand what I mean."
After speaking, Sebastian levitated away from the open door of the house and quickly disappeared into the shadows.
Although Tessa had ignored his warning to notify her father in advance, Sebastian still managed to find the detailed address of the technology pioneer company. Without hesitation, he headed there immediately.
The taxi pulled up on the side of the road, a block away from Tech Pioneer's headquarters. Sebastian paid the driver and stepped out of the car.
Standing on the sidewalk, he looked up at the towering building of the technology pioneer company. The kinds of medicines they researched and the abilities they could grant didn't particularly concern him. What mattered now was determining whether Kilgrave was truly dead. If he was alive, Sebastian would make sure to end him again and ensure he disappeared from this world for good.
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Author's Note –Hey there, readers! 👋If you've made it this far, thank you for sticking with Into The Marvel Universe: The Reborn Sorcerer! I'd love to hear your thoughts—what you liked, what surprised you, or what you're hoping to see next.
Drop a quick review or comment—it means the multiverse to me! 💫—Daoist_Kalyug