A moment later, Jean emerged from the Yashida Corporation building and immediately noticed something unusual on the street.
"Professor? Professor!"
"Over here!"
Charles, already hiding to the side with his wheelchair, waved at Jean.
Jean quickly ran over in a panic, "Professor, what happened?"
"There's no time to explain. We need to leave immediately and get back to the helicarrier."
The assassin could show up at any moment, and he dared not stay there a second longer.
"Alright, I'll call SHIELD to send someone to pick us up right away."
"Good. Let's hide for now."
Holding the USB drive tightly in his hand, Charles felt as though it wasn't just a simple drive, but a dangerous hot potato.
His mind was filled with questions.
Who was that tentacled monster? Why was the mental world filled with chaos and destruction? Who killed him? Was it Umbrella?
What role did Umbrella play in all this? And what exactly was on the USB drive?
..............
Aboard the helicarrier hovering above Tokyo~
Nick Fury stood in the command center, his face dark as he watched the busy personnel moving around.
The situation on Kyushu had largely been brought under control, with all the towns reclaimed.
But what could be done about the millions of zombies? This was now the United Nations' biggest headache, and also his.
In addition to the zombie problem, the origin of the virus remained unknown, and the Security Council was highly dissatisfied with SHIELD's progress.
What troubled Nick even more was that he felt an unseen force within SHIELD, one that was outside of his control.
However, he had yet to pinpoint the source of this threat.
"Click, click, click…"
The sound of high heels echoed as someone approached.
Nick turned to see a tall blonde beauty, "Sharon, have you found the leader of The Hand?"
Sharon, full name Sharon Carter, was the niece of Peggy Carter and currently just an ordinary agent at SHIELD.
A month ago, she had accompanied Nick and Natasha to Tony's mansion.
"Director Fury, we discovered that one of the founders of The Hand, Murakami, is not in Japan."
"Oh? Where is he?"
"America."
Nick squinted upon hearing this.
"What's he doing in America?"
"No solid information yet, but it seems he's searching for something called Dragon Bones, trying to summon something called Black Sky, and has a grudge with some street-level superheroes."
Sharon's tone was indifferent when she mentioned the street-level heroes, as though they were just ordinary people.
In truth, SHIELD, as a global organization, had encountered all sorts of forces and extraordinary beings.
Those whose strength was only marginally above that of a regular human were categorized as street-level heroes—individuals who merely dealt with petty crime.
"Send Barton and Natasha to the States to make contact with Murakami."
"Understood."
With her orders received, Sharon clicked her heels and left swiftly.
Soon after, a woman with short black hair approached Nick.
"Director Fury, Professor Charles and Ms. Jean are back. They seem to have brought important information."
Nick turned his one remaining eye toward his beautiful deputy.
"Ms. Hill, take them to the conference room. I'll be there shortly."
Maria Hill, currently the deputy director of SHIELD, was known for her organizational skills and the way she managed everything seamlessly.
Though she didn't possess any superpowers, her methods were highly effective and sophisticated.
Could she be the hidden hand within SHIELD?
Nick thought about it for a moment, then shook off the idea. He knew Hill too well; she would never betray him.
Maria, seeing that Nick had no further orders, nodded and left.
Nick turned back to the bustling command center, a sudden sense of doubt creeping into his mind.
Was he overthinking things?
Maybe there wasn't a hidden hand after all. Perhaps it was just his anxiety acting up.
A short while later, Nick, dressed in his black leather coat, walked into the conference room.
"What's this urgent matter?"
Charles, already familiar with Nick's straightforward nature, wasted no time and quickly recounted what he had encountered.
After hearing the story, Nick's expression grew serious as he looked at the USB drive on the table.
"A human with tentacle arms, killed with a headshot by someone from Umbrella?"
"I can't say for sure it was Umbrella, but my intuition tells me it was."
"Let's see what's on this USB drive."
Soon, a laptop—completely offline and with no prior data—was brought in. After inserting the USB, the group began reviewing the contents.
There wasn't much on the drive. It mostly contained a basic explanation of a virus called the T-Virus and a record.
Three years ago, in a village called Baru in the Middle East, cannibalistic creatures had appeared. Their characteristics were identical to the zombies on Kyushu.
However, Baru village was soon wiped out, and no reports of the incident ever surfaced.
After reading the information, Nick fell into deep thought.
Jean, however, was still in shock.
"How can such a virus exist in the world?! It can enhance and recombine biological genetic factors. Even the Super Soldier Serum that created Captain America didn't have such a terrifying effect."
A glint of excitement flashed in Charles' eyes.
"Did you miss the part about the side effects? The virus causes parts of the cerebral cortex to decay, resulting in severe cognitive impairment. It turns its victims into mindless beasts."
Jean followed up, "Beasts driven by instinct... which are to feed and reproduce. This behavior is exactly like the zombies on Kyushu!"
Despite their analysis, Nick's frown deepened.
Umbrella was a vast, international conglomerate with enormous influence and reach. Taking action against them would surely provoke significant resistance.
Charles, noticing Nick's expression, felt a sinking sensation in his heart. The situation was clearly more complicated than he had imagined.
Jean, still relatively young and naive to the intricacies of global politics, blurted out, "Director Fury, what are we waiting for? We should order an investigation into Umbrella and find a cure for the zombie virus."
A moment later, Nick raised his head and glanced at Jean before pocketing the USB and laptop.
"This matter is classified at the highest level. No one is to speak of it."
In the conference room, Jean watched Nick leave in a hurry, completely confused.
"Professor, what does Director Fury mean?"
Charles, his expression grave, replied, "Umbrella's influence may far exceed what we've imagined. It's not as simple as it seems on the surface. Don't mention this to anyone for now."
"But what about Scott and Ororo…?"
"Sigh... we'll discuss their situation later."
Charles felt a deep weariness wash over him, not physical but mental exhaustion.
The scene of the tentacled man being shot in the head was far more dangerous and gruesome than anything he had ever encountered.
At this moment, he suddenly missed Erik.
_______________________
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