When he heard the name Jennifer Susan Walters, Lorien didn’t immediately recall who she was.
The name was long, not exactly familiar. How could he be expected to remember everyone?
But then came the words lawyer and gang-related case—and Lorien remembered.
Wasn’t she Bruce Banner’s cousin?
The one who later became She-Hulk!
And this She-Hulk’s potential even surpassed Banner’s Hulk.
Why?
Because later on, she could actually break the Fourth Wall.
She could confront her own editor and comic artist—then forcibly rewrite the ending of her story.
Turn a ruined ending into a perfect one.
Of course, the beginning, her birth, and the main process couldn’t be changed. Those were set in stone.
But the ending? That could be altered.
At the very least, she could turn a bad ending into a decent one.
Characters who could break the Fourth Wall were always troublemakers... like Deadpool.
Like the official Spider-Man.
Like She-Hulk.
And another one...
Yes, there was even a Deadpool version of Gwen.
You heard right. There was only one Spider-Gwen across the entire Multiverse, but there was also a Gwenpool—and only one of her too.
They looked only slightly different.
But Gwenpool was a complete Fourth Wall breaker.
Her very existence meant she had already read her own comic.
And on top of that, she was a hardcore otaku, hopelessly obsessed with anime.
But her personality?
She loved causing chaos.
Ah, well... Forget it.
For now, Gwenpool was far out of Lorien’s reach. She had already broken the Fourth Wall, so unless she chose to enter the Multiverse, no universe would contain her.
Only when she decided to appear would Gwenpool manifest in a universe.
So, for now, she didn’t exist.
...
Back to the main point.
Lorien glanced at the folder belonging to the future She-Hulk.
"So, you want me to diagnose a patient’s psychological condition based solely on the physical data compiled by the hospital?"
Jennifer Susan... Forget it. From now on, he’d just call her Jennifer.
Jennifer blinked, looking a bit innocent.
"Is that not possible? Isn’t that what hospitals usually do these days?"
"...."
Was this lawyer seriously a medical layman?
You want me to deduce a patient’s psychological state from raw data alone?
Do you even hear yourself?
"Sigh..."
Lorien rubbed his chin.
Seeing him sigh, Jennifer thought he was troubled, so she quickly explained further.
"My client has been under constant persecution and threats from a gang."
"So she’s been diagnosed with severe depression and bipolar disorder, among other conditions."
"Now she sometimes loses control... even tries to kill herself."
"What?"
"You know all that already?"
"Then why ask me?"
Lorien let out a helpless sigh.
"You already know the diagnoses. That should be enough to win your case. Why come to me?"
"I’m not a dentist, ophthalmologist, or gynecologist. If you hand me a patient’s records and expect me to give you answers, at most I can point out a few issues."
In the United States, personal and mental freedom were valued extremely highly.
So if depression was determined to have been forced onto someone, even the victim’s parents would face harsh punishment.
Yes, parents couldn’t force their children to study something against their will. As long as the child wasn’t going astray, their freedom had to be respected.
Even when it came to studying, parents couldn’t push too hard.
If a child was driven into depression, and the school or neighbors found out, the parents would absolutely face warnings and consequences.
Oh, right. There was one condition.
The victim had to be white.
Lorien had almost forgotten to mention that.
But Jennifer already knew, so she added—
"This gang is very powerful. They threatened me not to defend my client in court, but I have to help her."
"So I need to present strong evidence."
"The trial will be broadcast live on TV. As long as I can present compelling proof and it circulates online, then even if the judge is bribed, I won’t be afraid."
"Because by then, the whole internet will be watching this case. The mayor of New York won’t be able to ignore it!"
Well said.
Jennifer’s plan was nearly flawless. If she pulled this defense off, her career as a lawyer would skyrocket.
A rookie lawyer, with intelligence and determination, single-handedly dismantles an underground gang to seek justice for the victim!
Oh~, how righteous, how inspiring.
But what Jennifer didn’t anticipate... was the darkness of this society.
Did she really think she’d get the chance to argue in court? What was she thinking? She’d be lucky not to be assassinated on the way there.
Lorien shook his head helplessly and reminded her,
"Miss Jennifer, even in a world with superheroes, there are still places the light doesn’t reach."
"Or rather, wherever there’s light, there must also be darkness. They coexist. Pure light doesn’t exist."
"So can you accept all the consequences that might follow after taking on this trial?"
Reality is far darker than most realize.
He didn’t spell it out, but there was no need. It was like a person before they went blind—they’d never truly understand what blindness felt like. You’d think it was just darkness. But no, it was an endless void.
Jennifer nodded firmly.
"I can accept it!"
"Alright, then. In that case, I’ll do what I can."
Lorien reached out his hand toward the documents.
Delighted, Jennifer quickly handed them over.
And what could he do? Analyze psychological disorders, of course. Nothing more than that. The rest was on her.
Lorien flipped the file open.
Good lord. The U.S. medical reports were thorough—pages full of data, charts, and metrics. Even psychological evaluations came with standardized diagrams.
After all, psychological tests involved both physiological response monitoring and brain-based assessments. The results were neatly marked down—how the patient reacted to different scenarios, the patterns that emerged.
Of course, these advanced tests weren’t cheap. Ordinary ones didn’t even come close. You only got as much as you paid for. Full medical checkups in the U.S. were notoriously expensive—especially for mental health. And don’t even mention dentistry.
Page by page, Lorien studied the report.
Even without the Phoenix Force, he was still a top-tier psychologist. His expertise was not to be underestimated.
Meanwhile, Jennifer watched him nervously, waiting for his reaction.
After a long pause, Lorien flipped back to the very first page, pointed to a column of data, and pushed it toward her.
"Do you know what this data represents?"
Jennifer examined it carefully, then read aloud from the header.
"Visual psychophysiological reaction and memory psychophysiological reaction."
"Yes." Lorien nodded. "In short, it’s called active psychophysiological response."
He ran a finger down the column, flipped a few more pages, and said,
"Take a closer look at this section. Tell me what you think."
Jennifer took the report and read the section he had pointed out. She went over it with focus and care.
After a moment, her eyes widened.
"Active psychophysiological reactions are much stronger than passive ones!"
"And the responses to recall-based questions and envelope-shaped stimuli are extremely high!"
Hearing this, Lorien nodded.
"You’re right."
But Jennifer still frowned.
"But... what does that mean?"
What did it mean? Something very useful to her case.
"This indicates that your victim has extreme fear tied to memory recall and envelopes."
"If you want to land a decisive blow in court..."
"You need to prepare beforehand. Find out exactly what memories your victim fears, and what kind of envelopes or images trigger it."
"Then, at the start of the trial, prove that the victim’s mental state is already beyond their control."
"After that, indirectly bring up the very triggers tied to their fear."
"Finally, the victim will have an uncontrollable reaction—right there in court, in front of a live broadcast."
"And that’s when your goal will be achieved."
"Though it may cause secondary trauma to the victim, it may also be your only chance at justice."
The plan Lorien gave her was nearly flawless.
But there was one condition: Jennifer had to actually make it to court. Otherwise, no matter how brilliant the strategy, it wouldn’t matter if she was silenced on the way.
Still, Jennifer was thrilled by the insight.
She immediately pulled a notebook and pen from her bag and began jotting down notes. Lorien had said a lot, and she wanted every detail recorded for careful planning.
Seeing this, Lorien nodded with satisfaction.
At least she was taking the matter seriously. And he didn’t dismiss her resolve, even though he was far stronger in secret.
This wasn’t about status, gender, or ability. It was about mutual respect.
Just like how both the wealthy and the ordinary could show—or lack—basic decency.
A short while later, Jennifer finished taking her notes.
She asked Lorien a few follow-up questions about details, and he answered them all.
At last, she tucked away her notebook like a treasure, pulled out her bank card, and said gratefully—
"Thank you so much, Dr. Su. Without your help, I wouldn’t have made such great progress."
Lorien took the bank card and smiled.
"You’re welcome."
It was money—nothing worth thanking him for.
After swiping Jenny’s card, he handed it back. She tucked it away and lingered for a bit of small talk.
Still, Lorien found it strange. Jenny had only graduated a few years ago, right? For an ordinary person, this kind of high-end psychological consultation was ridiculously expensive. Didn’t she feel even a little distressed spending that much? It wasn’t as if She-Hulk came from a wealthy background.
"Ding ding~~"
Suddenly, Jenny’s phone rang. She glanced at the screen—Bruce Banner.
With an awkward smile, she stepped aside to answer. She assumed Lorien wouldn’t hear, but to him it was no different than covering your ears and pretending the bell had stopped ringing.
The call connected, and Banner’s voice came through first.
"Jen, why is my phone showing a huge withdrawal from my bank card?"
"Uh... I needed more evidence for a case, so I found a psychologist recommended by someone..." Follow current ɴᴏᴠᴇʟs on novel⸺fire.net
"But that’s the salary card I gave you to hold onto when I became a superhero," Banner cut in. "If I died on duty, that was supposed to be your compensation. I’m not dead yet, Jen."
"But he’s a very skilled psychologist, and his fees were too high. I didn’t have enough, so I had to use yours... I’m sorry."
"It’s fine, as long as it was for something important. But wait—what’s the psychologist’s name?"
"Lorien Su, at the Northern Tower."
"..."
"What’s wrong, cousin?"
"Huff... nothing. I’ll tell you when you get back. This seems serious, though. I’ll go with you on the day of the hearing."
"What? No way! If people find out the Hulk is my cousin, my whole legal career will be ruined. How could I ever live a normal life again?"
"..... Fine. Then I’ll just drop you at the courthouse, okay? I won’t go inside. I’ll wait outside until you’re done."
"That’s fine. We’ll talk when I get back. I’m still with Dr. Su, hanging up now."
Jenny ended the call.
And with that, Lorien understood why she hadn’t hesitated to spend so much. She was using Banner’s salary card! Why would she feel guilty about draining her cousin’s funds?
Cough cough.
Well, maybe not that extreme. More likely, Jenny simply placed enormous value on this case. It tied directly to her career.
If she won, her name would spread fast. And given how much lawyers could earn in the U.S., she’d pay back her brother’s "consultation fee" in no time.
After hanging up, Jenny checked the time, picked up her bag, and said,
"I need to get going. Before dark, I want to visit the victim’s home and check her condition."
"Alright. Goodbye."
"Goodbye."
Click.
And with that, Jenny was gone.
But Lorien knew that the next time they met, she wouldn’t be ordinary Jenny anymore. She would be She-Hulk Jen.
Even if the details of the story changed, her emergence was inevitable under the Sacred Timeline—unless the Time Variance Authority itself ceased to exist.
...
After she left, time passed until it was 5:00 PM.
"Clocking out."
Right on schedule, Lorien stepped outside with Bella and Aria, locked the office door with a click, and checked out mentally.
Thinking about the next two days off, he felt like tonight he had all the time in the world.
Well, first things first—time to check on Wanda and Gwen. Were they awake yet?
He went to the bedroom but found it empty. Searching around, he eventually heard the sound of splashing water and playful laughter.
"Gwen, you washed off all the marks, but the pink heart still won’t come off~!"
Even from outside, Lorien could tell Wanda was gloating.
"You dare tease me? And your fuzzy love mark looks any better?"
That was Gwen, retorting in embarrassment.
"But once mine grows back, I can just shave it all at once. A few months and it’s done. Yours is permanent~~"
"Hmph! Permanent is permanent! I’ll just keep it like this! It proves Lorien loves me—he left his mark of love on me!"
"Then you..." Wanda stopped there, unable to continue.
Deny it? That would be bold—if Lorien found out, she’d be in real trouble.
Admit it? That would only make Gwen smug.
So Wanda fell into silence.
"Hmph~" Gwen giggled happily. "You—"
Splash!
"Ahh~!" the two girls yelped in unison.
They jumped in surprise when Lorien suddenly stepped inside.
"No, Lorien! We just finished washing our bodies!"
"You misunderstood me."
Lorien pulled out the two Infinity Stones he had gotten from the blind box. One was the purple Power Stone, the other the yellow Mind Stone.
"This is the Power Stone. Gwen, take it and slowly absorb the power inside."
"This is the Mind Stone. Wanda, take it and slowly absorb its mental energy."
The two girls instinctively covered themselves, staring at the gems with skepticism.
"Then just leave them there. We’ll come out and take them later."
"Cough, cough." Lorien smiled slyly.
"But there’s one condition to giving them to you."
"What condition?"
"Installation included."
"Ahh—you’re so bad!"