90 Chapter 90: Seized Thoughts

Instructing Moco to stay hidden, Oaks swiftly transformed into his cheetah form and stealthily dashed toward the target village.

Coco's stealth effect wasn't particularly strong, at least not in front of Oaks himself; he could still see it.

So, it was foreseeable that it could be detected by other powerful individuals or specialized devices.

But in such a peculiar little village, were there powerful individuals or advanced specialized devices?!

What exactly was the meaning behind this peculiar little village?!

Oaks was far superior to Coco when it came to stealth. In no time, he silently arrived at the target village.

"It's strange, too strange..."

Oaks furrowed his brow. After Coco was discovered earlier, the people in the village still maintained their eerie state of carrying out their duties, without showing any interest in the commotion!

Seeing a Ragdoll cat in the Amazon rainforest was as normal as seeing the alpacas they raised themselves. Was that reasonable?

Especially considering that the cat could turn invisible!

Clearly unreasonable!

"The Nature Energy in the surroundings is also peculiar, as if..."

Oaks contemplated while patrolling, trying to make sense of this feeling. He finally realized that something was off:

"It's as if it has been influenced by cosmic energy for a long time. In other words, there should be a target here that possesses powerful cosmic energy."

Oaks quickly identified the special building in the village—

It was the largest house there, resembling a large warehouse.

However, based on the style of the windows, Oaks could tell that it was more like a church or meeting hall.

Did they have religious beliefs here?!

Oaks halted his steps in front of the meeting hall.

He sensed that there was a peculiar target inside.

He had never sensed such a target before—an anthropomorphic being filled with arcane energy, that is, cosmic energy!

Even Thor, as an Asgardian, had never given him this feeling.

Although Asgardians could harness cosmic energy, they were fundamentally still natural beings.

However, this individual in the house stood in stark contrast to the surrounding natural environment.

Despite containing immense cosmic energy and having a human-like form, the feeling it gave Oaks was... as if it were an "it"!

Coco was inside, and while there didn't seem to be a life-threatening danger, it appeared to be in a state of slumber.

This slightly relieved Oaks, who then returned to his human form and approached the door, pushing it open.

"It seems that my cat has disturbed you... I didn't expect to encounter such a unique existence in this rainforest."

"...I also didn't expect visitors to come here."

As Oaks had thought, the interior of the house was arranged like a simple chapel. Sitting at the end of the seats was a short-haired man with a smiling face.

He slightly squinted his eyes as he sized up Oaks, his eyes flashing with curiosity, and a smile formed at the corners of his mouth. However, this smile... always gave people a somewhat sly feeling.

Coco lay next to him on the chair, seemingly asleep, occasionally twitching its ears.

"What a beautiful cat... But it's its owner that surprises me more."

The short-haired man slowly stood up, spreading his hands.

"Welcome to my village. I have been here for... many, many years. But as you can see, I'm not completely cut off from the outside world."

He pointed to the electric lights on the ceiling and shrugged.

"But recently, I haven't gone out.

You can call me Druig. Outsider, why have you come here?"

"Oaks Woods."

Oaks peculiarly observed Druig, who introduced himself as such, before nodding slightly and introducing himself:

"I am a biologist. The Amazon rainforest is my research site, and at the same time, I am a... Druid."

Having said this, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly:

"Druig (Druig), how coincidental, we are only missing one letter (Druid), and we seem to be of similar age."

Indeed, this man who called himself Druig appeared to be in his early twenties, similar in age to Oaks. He also had an appearance similar to Matt, of Irish descent.

But his claim of having been here for "many, many years" was obviously not a joke.

As an individual with special abilities, Oaks wasn't surprised that this person, who possessed immense cosmic energy, would have an extended lifespan.

"Indeed, many people tend to get confused. Among humans, there are remarkable individuals like you... It's fortunate to meet you."

Druig also seemed to have discerned Oaks' uniqueness. If a pet was so extraordinary, what could its owner do?

Furthermore, he had a peculiar feeling—that the red-haired young man across from him, who called himself a "biologist," possessed similar energy to his own.

Although quantitatively far inferior to himself, it seemed to be of a similar nature.

However, he clearly wasn't one of his own kind, nor one of those repulsive monsters; he was undeniably a human.

As for what a biologist was, he understood it well enough.

But a Druid...

"I recall... it originated from the region of Ireland, ah... there is also a Stonehenge in England, right? That is one of their sacred sites as well. But I'm more familiar with the events around the Mediterranean, especially the Tigris-Euphrates valley."

Druig gently stroked the slumbering Coco, causing the little one to startle and instantly enter combat mode—arching its back.

However, upon seeing Oaks beside it, it disregarded its ruffled fur and leaped onto Oaks' shoulder, meowing and scolding away.

"...Go play with Moco for now. This gentleman and I have something to discuss."

Oaks patted Coco's little head, and it conveyed to him that it had no idea what had happened, and its thoughts up until just now were a blank slate.

But it vaguely remembered the feeling of being involuntarily controlled during its last moments of consciousness.

Coco calmed down, obediently concealed its form, and ran out the door to find Moco. It had truly suffered a loss this time and mustn't let the foolish dog find out...

"The Stonehenge... you mentioned earlier, near the Mediterranean, the Tigris-Euphrates valley?"

Oaks' knowledge of the Marvel world extended only until the end of Infinity War/ Endgame, specifically the "I am Iron Man" part.

He had no knowledge of the mysterious person before him.

However, some of the information revealed by the other party seemed to suggest his background.

"Mesopotamian Plain? Sumerian civilization? Greek mythology? Babylon?"

Oaks cautiously inquired about some information he knew, wondering if this was yet another ancient monster emerging from myth?

As he mentioned the earlier terms, Oaks had already noticed a change in Druig's expression. And by the time he mentioned "Babylon," a profound look of nostalgia appeared on his face.

"Babylon... What wonderful memories."

Druig fell silent for a long while, finally snapping out of his somewhat hazy reminiscence.

"That was indeed a long time ago."

"Where do you come from? That was more than 2,500 years ago."

Oaks felt a headache coming on. It seemed he was dealing with an old monster:

"How did you end up here?"

"I have traveled to most parts of the world."

Druig's gaze shifted toward the door, where the villagers returned to their orderly, silent state and resumed their daily routines.

"I came here to protect them... They are from Tenochtitlan."