Days as a Spiritual Mentor in American Comics Chapter 5970 - 4990: Forward Yueke, Forward (8)

But Carter didn’t look like a winner either. She was exhausted. Shiller poured her a glass of water and handed it over, then said, "Agents can’t see psychiatrists, but fortunately, I’m not one."

"Sorry. I just came by to tell you that there’s a city tour for multiverse visitors tomorrow..." Carter couldn’t continue, and she took a few deep breaths.

"Maybe you need some alcohol." Shiller looked at Thor. Thor snapped his fingers, and a few cans of beer fell onto the table. Carter, as if using her last bit of strength, picked up a beer, but her hands trembled so much that she couldn’t open the can. Shiller had to help her.

She mechanically poured the beer into her mouth, drinking an entire can. The dizziness from the alcohol slightly relieved her nervous symptoms, but it didn’t help much with adjusting her psychological state; at most, it slightly reduced somatization.

"One day, Pepper went to see Hill. The two of them knew each other and got along quite well. It seemed she wanted to investigate Iron Man, specifically the two Iron Men that exist in this universe now."

"S.H.I.E.L.D. actually investigated, but Hill wasn’t responsible for the archives, so Pepper came to me. I advised her that if it’s not about matters of the heart, then deal with things as they are — accept what’s good and stop what’s bad; but if it’s about feelings, she should listen to her heart, and there’s no need to add unnecessary worries."

"But Pepper still decided to look. Nick agreed, too. She learned about the origins of the two Iron Men, then decisively dumped both of them and had a whirlwind marriage with a bodyguard."

Shiller paused. Carter seemed to expect him to ask something, but Shiller only said, "Are the origins of the two Iron Men investigated by S.H.I.E.L.D. accurate?"

"They are accurate," Carter said.

"How can you be sure?"

"Because you told us."

Shiller understood; it must have been Greed who told them. After all, this was Greed’s doing; before he left, he surely took care of the aftermath. The origins of these two Iron Men are simple: one is the White Can from the axis of good and evil, and the other is a backup consciousness, essentially the original Iron Man.

"Don’t you find it strange?" Carter asked, "Why didn’t she choose either?"

"She definitely wouldn’t choose," Shiller said. "If Pepper Potts is indulging in love, it must be because she allows herself to do so, not because she truly can’t pull away. In fact, her consideration of reality is certainly more accurate and cautious than most."

"The Iron Man just mentioned is not worth discussing further; he’s too evil and dangerous. Even without looking at what he did in the original universe, he hasn’t done anything good in this one either. Like you said, he doesn’t behave like a superhero; he lacks the steadfast heart of justice."

"What about the other one?" Carter asked. "The other one is the consciousness of her former lover."

"You said it yourself, it’s a consciousness," Shiller said. "Let’s not even talk about whether a backup of consciousness can be considered the person. How do you date a consciousness? Just communicate online?"

"I believe Pepper must have tried, but just didn’t succeed," Shiller continued. "She must have chosen to let go of this relationship after comparing and weighing things."

"Truthfully, I can understand. After everything Tony has been through, he’s matured a lot, but that’s still not enough to enter a stable long-term relationship, let alone start a family." Carter sighed again. "What truly puzzles me is why Pepper would marry that bodyguard. They might have had some feelings, but not enough for a whirlwind marriage. How did it happen..."

"You’ve probably thought she might be doing it to get away from Tony Stark, but if that were the case, she wouldn’t need to find a bodyguard, especially one from Stark Group," Shiller said. "That would only make Stark more paranoid."

Thor was obviously interested in this too, and he asked, "So why is that? I don’t discriminate against bodyguards, I’m just puzzled, why rush into another relationship right after ending a painful one, isn’t she afraid of making the same mistake again?"

"Only she probably knows," Shiller lowered his gaze.

"Share your guess," Carter continued. "Mainly because Tony’s mental state is quite unstable now. If there’s something positive, we might be able to persuade him."

"I don’t have many positive things to say," Shiller laughed, taking a sip of beer, then said, "Were you the one who divorced first, or did Pepper break up with him first?"

"They broke up first, but the timing wasn’t too far apart. At first, Pepper was just investigating. After the New Earth Alliance was established, and I married Captain America, she still hadn’t acted."

"When the war broke out and the split got more severe, that’s when she cut ties with both of them. This further provoked Tony, making things irreversible."

"Some people criticize her for speaking up at that moment. I’m a bit puzzled myself, why she would choose that timing. She knew that further aggravating Tony could lead to serious consequences unless she could no longer bear it. But I couldn’t see any difference in their relationship compared to before."

"Of course there’s a difference," Shiller said, "the difference is that you and Captain America had a falling out."

Carter slightly opened his mouth, he really hadn’t thought about it from this angle. However, Thor immediately understood and said, "It’s definitely because seeing you two like this, she feels that superheroes are unreliable. Marrying a bodyguard might just be a way to make a statement, to steer clear of superheroes from now on."

Carter thought for a moment and said, "It might actually be possible, because the Rebirth Alliance has sent her several job invitations, even if just as an honorary advisor, but she refused them all."

"You have to know, the Rebirth Alliance’s series of contributions to Earth’s development has earned quite a favorable reputation among the public. It’s a time when they’re gaining fame. Even if it was just to earn more goodwill for the Stark Group, taking on an honorary advisor role wouldn’t hurt. I thought she was avoiding Tony, but if that were the case, there’d be no need to marry someone from the Stark Group. Now it seems, maybe she truly doesn’t want to involve herself with superhero matters anymore."

"And what about you?" Thor asked, "Are you disappointed in them?"

"I can’t say I’m not disappointed," Carter replied, "but deep down, I realize that Steve is right. If they don’t have the ability to completely control those mad scientists, then it’s best not to provoke them, or the consequences could be worse. But emotions aren’t something logic can resolve; I’ve endured too much, and if I keep enduring, it will cause irreversible damage to my mind and body. All we can do is divorce."

Thor let out a long sigh, clearly someone who had also felt the sting of love. Carter then asked him in return, "Have you been in contact with Sif or Ms. Foster lately?"

Shiller curiously asked, "Didn’t you marry Sif?"

Shiller wasn’t referring to the Greed universe situation, but in the Prime Universe, Thor and his Earth lover Jane Foster were forced apart, and he rekindled his old relationship with his childhood flame, seemingly saying they were to marry.

"We were engaged," Thor said, "but because I was too attached to Earth, and Sif couldn’t adapt to this lifestyle, she eventually returned to the Divine Realm alone, and the engagement was called off."

It then struck Shiller that in the universe where Greed existed, they got married because Thor ascended to the throne early. Thor didn’t stay on Earth as long as in many other universes, he returned to Asgard and became the Divine King, so it was natural for them to marry.

In the Prime Universe, however, this Thor almost caused a war between the two realms because he moved the Fairy Palace right above New York just to avoid leaving Earth. Let’s just say, if Earth had only one true fan, it would definitely be Thunder God Thor. He was willing to give up anything, willing to cause any trouble to stay on Earth. The irreconcilable differences between him and Sif naturally led to a non-marriage.

"I haven’t disturbed Jane again," Thor, somewhat melancholy. "The time with her was beautiful, but we are indeed not suitable. She suffered kidnapping, attacks, and doubt because of me. This isn’t something she should endure, no one should have to prove they’re worthy of being my lover through such trials, and now, my feelings for her are just guilt."

"Besides, I always felt she liked Blake, who was a careful, gentle, and highly skilled surgeon, not the son of a Divine King, a prince commanding the elements. Moreover, she’s living happily now, I can’t disturb her anymore."

"But you secretly helped her before, otherwise why would I ask about it?"

"You guys knew?" Thor didn’t seem embarrassed, saying, "I’m not really a surgeon, promotion opportunities mean nothing to me. But Ms. Foster is a respected nurse, she deserves better treatment. This decision was entirely based on professional consideration."

"If you say so," Carter shook his head.

"Actually, I think, more than Jane forgetting me, it’s more regrettable she forgot Sif. Sif saved her life and became her mentor, they should have become great friends, but instead..."

Carter sighed as well.

Shiller was still sorting out these somewhat complicated relationships in his mind. Indeed, the love and hate in the Prime Universe were much more complex than those in the universe where Greed existed. In simple terms, Thor’s story went like: when he came to Earth, he fell in love with Jane Foster, but Odin strongly disapproved, creating various trials, nearly causing a rift with Thor.

Later, Odin finally relented, granting Foster immortality by turning her into a Goddess, but Foster herself struggled to adapt and wanted to return to Earth, prompting Odin to erase her memory in anger. Then Thor, in his sorrow, had his memory erased again by Odin.

Eventually, Foster developed cancer, and Thor, sensing her dire state, regained his memory, deeply grieved. Sif, who grew up alongside Thor, couldn’t bear to see him suffer and sacrificed herself to save Foster. The end result was, Thor saved them both.

However, the Foster he saved had amnesia, couldn’t remember her love for Thor, and married her ex-boyfriend Jinkaid. Thor also rekindled his old love with Sif, but unfortunately, they eventually broke up due to the long-distance relationship issue.

One interesting point is that when Thunder God Thor arrived on Earth in the Prime Universe, he had a disguised identity. He pretended to be an excellent surgeon named Donald Blake and used this identity to date Foster.

Then comes the classic love triangle dilemma: Who do you truly love, my disguised identity, or my true self? It’s because when Thor was a surgeon, his personality was entirely different from when he was the Thunder God. He was gentle, meticulous, approachable, and showed none of the prince’s arrogance, being considerate and attentive in the relationship. Otherwise, Foster wouldn’t have endured being kidnapped, pranked by Loki, and more for him.

It’s just a classic case of mistaken identity. When they were deeply in love, Odin disapproved; when Odin approved, Foster couldn’t adapt anymore. They’re indeed famously ill-fated lovers.

Thinking carefully, none of the known couples in the Prime Universe seem to have a love story that’s not filled with turmoil. This might also have something to do with the popularity theory, the more famous a character is, the less settled their love line can be. Otherwise, the story would have nowhere left to go, which is why writers keep twisting and turning. Looking at it now, indeed Deadpool stands out with the most self-awareness.