Lynch spoke in a Sichuan-accented Mandarin, leaving Natasha completely bewildered.
It sounded almost like a rap.
After all, who doesn't have a hidden freestyle up their sleeve?
Lynch wasn't even sure if Hu Tutu existed in this world. But who cares? He had already said it was fake, so if they believed it, that's on them.
Natasha maintained her unchanged, almost mask-like smile. Clearly, she didn't fully understand what he said.
That was normal; it just meant her Chinese teacher wasn't a heavily accented Sichuan native.
But it didn't really matter if she understood or not—someone out there could.
S.H.I.E.L.D., ever resourceful, had already arranged for a translation and quickly extracted the information. After a round of searching, they found nothing—there was no Hu Tutu in this world.
By now, Natasha felt things were getting a bit out of control.
As an expert in microexpressions, she could tell that Lynch, who seemed untrained and unable to hide his thoughts, wasn't lying.
Given Lynch's almost prophetic knowledge, his familiarity with Tony Stark, Fury, and even herself, his claims seemed credible.
But...
The claim was too shocking, too hard to accept.
More terrifying than if he had admitted to being Superman—because that would imply the existence of Superman in this world.
An omniscient being had arrived in her world?
What could his purpose be?
...
"Alright, I really don't understand what you just said."
Natasha feigned helplessness, "So should I believe your truth?"
"That's up to you guys," Lynch said indifferently.
"So your world is pretty similar to ours?"
Lynch thought for a moment.
"More or less the same."
Natasha pondered his words and continued, "Can you tell me how you ended up here?"
"How would I know?" Lynch said helplessly, "Some unknown accident suddenly brought me here."
"The day you met Tony Stark?"
"Yes." Lynch sighed, "A terrible first day, almost got me killed."
"But it's all in the past now, right?"
Lynch didn't respond immediately, staring at Natasha quietly for a moment before walking back to his lounge chair with disinterest.
He put on his sunglasses, stretched out on the chair, and said, "It will never be over, Natasha. Once something happens, it leaves a mark, doesn't it?"
Lying on his back, his large sunglasses covering most of his face, Lynch's expression was hard to read.
"To be honest, I'm a very lazy person."
"Too lazy to be a hero, too lazy to be a villain, too lazy to make friends, too lazy to make enemies, and even too lazy to live properly..."
"In this world, I'm just a passerby, too lazy to go to any great effort."
"But when I follow my heart and decide to do something, I will give it my all, holding nothing back."
"So you guys can just pretend I don't exist. That way, no one will have any troubles."
With his back to Natasha, Lynch waved his hand from the lounge chair, "I'm not seeing you out."
Natasha quietly listened to him, then got up to leave.
"One more thing—Tony asked us to tell you he's holding a press conference tomorrow. Are you going?"
Lynch tilted his head.
A press conference? The iconic scene!
Should he go?
Lynch decided in a second.
"Where is it?"
Natasha took out an invitation and placed it on the table.
"I've left it on the table. Tomorrow at nine."
"Ok."
Lynch closed his eyes, but didn't hear Natasha leave for a long time.
"Something else?"
"Yes, but I'm hesitating about whether to ask..."
"If you're hesitating, just do it. You'll only know if it's right or wrong after you've done it."
Then Lynch felt Natasha's heartbeat gradually calm.
"Alright, I want to ask—was I at peace when I died?"
Lynch thought carefully.
Was she at peace?
Natasha's later life, after joining the Avengers, gave her companions who were like family, but she was still the unfortunate soul tormented by her past.
Her body was altered, leaving her unable to have children, which might be a reason for her being childless and single. Her career as a spy had stained her hands with blood, and the most painful memory was executing an innocent person for the first time...
But Lynch thought she should have found peace when she died.
Though she never married or had children and never experienced love, her actions when obtaining the Soul Stone clearly showed that Barton's most beloved person was her.
Though she had killed innocent people and committed many atrocities, her sacrifice secured the Soul Stone and saved half the innocent lives in the universe.
So Lynch said softly, "The place where you died was desolate and dead, a place where no one could reach for ten thousand years. No grave, no epitaph, no flowers, no songs..."
Hearing this, Natasha couldn't help but laugh, though her gaze dimmed.
After a pause, Lynch continued in a different tone, "But when you died, the person who loved you the most was by your side. Everyone on Earth remembers your sacrifice, and half the innocent lives in the universe were saved by you."
Lynch turned his head, firmly saying, "I think, in that case, you should have found redemption."
Natasha was silent, then gave Lynch the most sincere and charming smile of the day.
"Lyn, can I ask you for a favor?"
She looked at Lynch with a pleading expression.
"If what you said is true, please don't change it."
...
After Natasha left, Lynch squinted, thinking about the gains and losses from today's conversation.
He hadn't planned on hiding his origins. Telling lies didn't align with the reality.
How could an ordinary person disguise themselves in front of a group of the world's top agents?
It was impossible.
So it was better to be open; it saved Lynch the trouble of racking his brain.
So what if they could guess a few things?
If one day you learned your world was a story created by someone else, and you were just a fictional character in another world, what would you do?
Feel sad, despair, suffer, or try to escape and break free?
Too much thinking—of course, you just go on with your life.
Have you paid off your loans? Gotten your house or car yet? Found a partner?
Is your brick not warm enough, or do you have too few assignments?
Knowing these things would make no difference to most people.
Life itself is more tear-inducing than any of these trivial, irrelevant matters.
Instead of worrying unnecessarily, it's better to put more effort into life.
Besides, even if they knew these things, what could the people of this world do to him?
Those who could pose a threat to him were, on the contrary, the ones most bound by rules and constraints.
The Ancient One only cared about protecting Earth from other-dimensional entities, not human conflicts. Her role was "Protect Earth," not "Protect Humanity."
Odin, with his life nearing its end, found it hard to wield his power easily. His main concern was finding a reliable new king for Asgard. His attitude towards humanity was like the Ancient One's: as long as you stay out of the Nine Realms, do what you like.
Other members of the Avengers? They're no match for Superman.
So what was there to worry about?
Of course, he could speak freely and say whatever he wanted.
Basking in the sun, Lynch slowly drifted off to sleep.
[AN - Mc looks like Dean cain version of superman, so yes that makes sense why he is Asian ]