Chapter 73: The Eye of Agamotto

"I'm here to talk," Doctor Strange said.

"Talk?" Peter replied, an awkward smile on his face as he pulled a few spider threads off the table, rolled them into a ball, and tossed them into the trash can.

Doctor Strange extended his hand and said, "I'm here to give you this."

"Is this... the Time Stone?" Peter froze momentarily, puzzled by Doctor Strange's gesture.

Before him was an eye-shaped necklace—the Eye of Agamotto.

In the comics, it was an artifact Doctor Strange obtained from Agamotto, the all-seeing being of another dimension, literally made from Agamotto's own eye.

In this cinematic universe, however, it served as the container of the Time Stone. Initially owned by the Ancient One, it was passed down to Doctor Strange after her death.

Doctor Strange's ability to observe the past and future came from the power of this artifact.

But its most iconic moment was during the confrontation with Dormammu.

At first, Doctor Strange was utterly powerless against Dormammu, dying repeatedly upon each encounter.

Yet, with the Eye of Agamotto, he resurrected himself over and over, ultimately forcing Dormammu to compromise and "negotiate" with him.

According to the original plan, Doctor Strange wasn't supposed to hand it over to Peter until tomorrow, just before their mission began.

This was because Iron Man would handle the offense, Captain America would act as the main tank, and Peter, being the most agile superhuman warrior, was the most suitable candidate to safeguard it.

Without further explanation, Doctor Strange handed over the Eye of Agamotto, instructing Peter to keep it close, and then left without another word.

This left Peter feeling anxious, pacing nervously around the room.

He fiddled with the Eye of Agamotto, turning it over in his hands.

If viewed in isolation, it simply looked like an antique work of art, something with a vaguely ancient design akin to styles from Elro.

But the moment he remembered that he was holding one of the most powerful artifacts in the universe—the Time Stone—his heart began to race wildly.

For a fleeting moment, a greedy thought crossed his mind: the desire to keep it for himself.

However, he quickly suppressed that thought.

For one, the chances of him successfully stealing it from Doctor Strange were practically zero—a number Peter confidently felt was accurate. Even if he managed to take it, he couldn't perform magic or break the seal of the Eye of Agamotto.

After rationalizing this, the allure of the artifact diminished sharply.

Soon, another thought naturally arose in his mind.

Why had Doctor Strange handed it to him now?

In fact, Peter had found it odd from the start that Doctor Strange agreed to use the Time Stone as bait.

The Eye of Agamotto's value went far beyond its ability to manipulate time. It symbolized the mantle of the Sorcerer Supreme.

Possessing it was equivalent to holding the title of Sorcerer Supreme.

So why was Doctor Strange so willing to take it out, and why had he entrusted Peter to guard it?

Reflecting on Doctor Strange's recent, inexplicably kinder demeanor toward him, Peter began to form a theory.

Could it be that Doctor Strange had seen something in a future vision that made him act this way?

Wait… could it be… am I the one who snaps the fingers in the end?

Peter suddenly recalled Avengers: Infinity War, where Doctor Strange viewed 14,000,605 possible outcomes and then gave Tony Stark that cryptic look.

Chilling to the Bone!

"Damn it, how could I ever do something like that?" Peter shuddered at the thought.

But if it really came to that, wouldn't it mean Thanos still managed to gather all six Infinity Stones?

Despite all their meticulous preparations—far more thorough than in the original timeline—they still ended up at this juncture?

Peter felt that, whether in terms of logic or emotion, he simply couldn't accept such an outcome.

Even more unacceptable was the idea that he might one day find himself with that kind of resolve.

"It must be something else," Peter thought, quickly coming up with an excuse to reassure himself.

But a seed had already been planted. Whether it would drown like a seed of infatuation in a torrential downpour or sprout and grow like a seed of hope nourished by rain, only time would tell.

At that moment, a melody echoed in his mind:

"Nessun dorma!"

No.

It was more like: "Tonight, only I cannot sleep!"

The next morning, Peter yawned and realized he had somehow ended up lying on the floor.

After splashing water on his face in the bathroom to wake himself up, the events of the previous night began to come back to him.

He had been overthinking Doctor Strange's strange behavior. The more he thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed, and he just couldn't sleep.

After all, how could anyone sleep soundly after suddenly suspecting they might die in the near future?

Eventually, he climbed onto one of the webs he had spun.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but at some point, he finally fell asleep—right there on his web.

In the middle of the night, the web dissolved and disappeared, causing him to fall to the floor.

Since it was only a few meters high, it posed no threat to his life, so his Spider-Sense didn't even trigger.

It didn't even hurt, so he didn't wake up.

The Eye of Agamotto, meanwhile, remained hanging around his neck like a necklace.

Peter rubbed his face and muttered, "I can't just leave this unresolved. I need to ask him for some answers!"

Determined, Peter marched out of his room, full of resolve.

At the door, he noticed there was still a steward on duty, though it wasn't the same one from yesterday.

"Probably a shift change," Peter thought.

"Excuse me," Peter said to the steward. "Can you tell me which room Doctor Strange is staying in? The one who came here with me."

The steward replied, "Are you referring to the gentleman in the cloak, the one who looks like a sorcerer?"

"Yes," Peter nodded. It wasn't surprising that the Wakandans had briefed the staff about their team's appearances and attire.

The steward said, "He left for the dining hall a few minutes ago. Would you like me to take you there?"

"Oh, no need. I'll head there myself. Thank you," Peter replied.

The steward, as instructed, didn't insist. They had been told to let these individuals do as they pleased, no matter the circumstances. Even if they wanted to cause destruction, the staff wouldn't be able to stop them.

Peter soon found Doctor Strange in the dining hall.

When he spotted him, Doctor Strange was chatting with Tony Stark.

Surprisingly, the two middle-aged men seemed to be getting along well.

Peter overheard part of their conversation.

Tony was saying, "You know, I was supposed to be on my honeymoon with Pepper. Last night, she told me she was planning to bake a pizza for me… my pizza."

Doctor Strange asked, "Didn't your wife used to strongly oppose you being Iron Man? What changed her mind and convinced her to marry you?"

Tony looked at him seriously and said, "Love, I guess. Don't you have someone you love, Sorcerer Supreme?"

Doctor Strange: "...?"

Tony shrugged and added, "Oh, right. Sorry, I forgot. You guys probably have rules about that—no romance, no attachments, am I right?"

Doctor Strange: "...?"

(To be continued)

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