"It seems that your talk with Tony Stark last night didn't go well," Hill said as she walked into Nick Fury's office, holding a cup of coffee. She couldn't help but tease a bit as she saw the somewhat sullen expression on Nick Fury's face.
Nick Fury gave Hill a slight glance and responded calmly, "As expected. If someone like him could be persuaded with just a few words to join the Avengers, he wouldn't be Tony Stark."
Hill nodded in agreement. She had anticipated that Nick Fury would face resistance with Tony Stark. However, judging by Nick Fury's demeanor, it seemed that Tony had given him quite a hard time, likely with his sharp tongue.
Hill continued, "You didn't reveal the relationship between his father, Howard Stark, and S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
"It's not the right time yet. My main purpose this time was to inform him about the formation of the Avengers and to check on another situation."
"Tony's health?" Hill was puzzled. With top-tier billionaires like Tony, they had access to the most advanced private medical teams in the world. Any slight health issue would be quickly detected and resolved.
What could be wrong with his health?
Seeing through Hill's skepticism, Nick Fury shot her a displeased look but didn't offer much explanation. The matter of Tony's health was something that fewer people knew about, the better. Although Hill was a trusted subordinate, she wasn't in the circle privy to that information.
"Is there anything else you need to report?"
"Director, take a look at this." Hill operated her tablet, projecting the detailed information of an individual onto Nick Fury's large screen.
"Justin Hammer, one of the largest black market arms dealers in the world. His company, Hammer Industries, began expanding its business empire after Tony Stark shut down Stark Industries' weapons division. Recently, they even signed a five-year weapons supply contract with the U.S. Department of Defense."
Nick Fury, listening to Hill's report, asked in disbelief, "Are you talking about that incompetent fool who got rich by smuggling and copying Stark Industries' weapons?"
Hill nodded. This person was indeed an incompetent fool who used his connections to acquire Stark Industries' weapons, sold them at high prices to war zones, and hired mediocre scientists to slap his own label on them as 're-inventions.' But his imitations were always subpar.
Hammer often attended various events, trying to present himself as a genius on par with Tony Stark, claiming the only difference was that he didn't have a father like Howard Stark.
Entrusting the future five-year weapons contract of the Defense Department to someone like him... It seemed like the end of an era for the U.S.
Nick Fury suddenly considered whether he should send someone to assassinate him. Keeping him alive could be a disaster.
Hill played a signing ceremony video, showing this bald man shaking hands with the U.S. Secretary of Defense. This man was also not a decent character, always trying to extend his influence into S.H.I.E.L.D.
There were undoubtedly some undisclosed deals between the two.
"Hill, stop!" Nick Fury suddenly noticed something in the video that looked like a robot. "What's that?"
Hill continued, "This is what I planned to report today—Hammer Industries' latest development, a combat robot. It's claimed to be more powerful than Tony Stark's Iron Man armor."
Nick Fury became even more convinced that the Defense Department had been in contact with Hammer Industries for some time.
Otherwise, Tony's armor had only just been fully revealed in the last two days. How could Hammer have developed these robots in such a short time?
It was clear that after Tony crashed the F-22, Hammer had already gotten a look at the armor through the Defense Department. At that time, only Rhodey knew Tony was inside the armor.
"If successful, Hammer will secure a 20-year contract with the Defense Department," Hill added.
Nick Fury was taken aback. "And how far along is his research?"
Hill sighed in frustration and pulled up another video. As the footage played, everything seemed fine at first. Suddenly, the robot twisted violently, its upper body rotating 180 degrees. Amidst a shower of sparks, it came to a complete stop, but the scientist inside likely didn't fare well.
Nick Fury considered whether he should find someone suitable to eliminate Hammer. If necessary, they could also take out the Secretary of Defense.
"Hill, there's no need to report this to me separately next time. Just have someone release this footage to the public, and then deal with Hammer accordingly," Nick Fury said with some frustration.
However, Hill's next words made Nick Fury reconsider killing Hammer.
"Justin Hammer and the Secretary of Defense are preparing for a military trial against Tony Stark. They want to force Tony to hand over the core technology of the Iron Man suit for national defense."
Nick Fury's lips curled into a smile. Finally, an opportunity for revenge had come.
Just the thought of Tony's relentless and varied insults from last night made Nick Fury fume with anger.
"Spare him for now, let him disgust Tony thoroughly. Also, call Romanoff back. There shouldn't be any more issues with Dr. Banner."
"Yes, the situation there is mostly resolved. But Dr. Banner is still on the run. General Ross has suffered the consequences of his stubbornness. The final battle between the two monsters ended with Dr. Banner's victory. Under the military's strict lockdown, no one knows about this."
Nick Fury raised an eyebrow, "I'm sure quite a few people already know."
After all, for those with strong intelligence capabilities, the so-called military lockdown is practically useless. They're only blocking information from the uninformed public.
"Any updates from Kingpin's side?"
Hill shook her head. "That golden armor hasn't appeared again. Kingpin's men have scoured the entire Thirteenth District, but found nothing suspicious. However, Kingpin seems to be making some moves…"
"What kind of moves?"
"He seems to be planning to rob a wealthy man."
Nick Fury frowned. "Skip it. I'm not interested in these petty gang squabbles. Just call Romanoff back. I have another mission for her."
"Understood…"
...
"Hulk versus Abomination, too bad I wasn't there to witness it."
Alan watched the video playing in front of him, courtesy of the Red Queen. The video showed a green giant and a red giant battling each other on the streets, taking out tanks and other military weapons.
In the end, the green giant won the fight and walked away into the night, disappearing into the darkness.
Due to the military's information lockdown, the Red Queen only managed to retrieve this video two days after the event from the military's database.
"Red Queen, can you track where Bruce Banner went?"
"I can't, Master. He has likely gone to a remote area with no internet coverage."
"What about the investigation into Kingpin?"
Alan continued to ask.
"Master, we have identified all the locations of Kingpin's black market deals tonight, including arms, illegal goods, and human trafficking. There are also records of Kingpin's transactions with terrorists from other countries, including the Ten Rings, who are targeting Tony Stark."
Alan tapped his fingers on the table, looking at all the information the Red Queen had compiled for him.
Originally, he wanted to kill Kingpin—after all, it's not the thief that's scary but the constant threat of the thief. But then he thought, killing Kingpin would be too easy and would require his personal involvement, which could bring about unnecessary trouble.
Kingpin's strength was nothing to be underestimated. His massive frame wasn't just for show—it was pure muscle!
Since that was the case, he decided it would be better to make Kingpin's life a living hell. He would personally watch as Kingpin's empire crumbled. To see his rise, to see him entertain guests, and finally, to see his downfall. That, for Kingpin, would be a fate worse than death.
Meanwhile, Kingpin had no idea what kind of enemy he had provoked. He was in his office, fuming with rage.
"How could several of my men go out and come back completely insane?!"
"And no trace of them on any surveillance footage. We don't even know who they encountered!"
"What the hell am I paying you for?"
In Kingpin's office, the four black-suited men who had gone to find Alan earlier were now disheveled, drooling, and occasionally bursting into fits of silly laughter.
Seeing these men only made Kingpin angrier. With a loud bang, he smashed his desk into pieces.
"Take them away and chop them up for the dogs!"
"Yes, Boss!"
The trembling underlings quickly dragged the four lunatics out. But these men were surprisingly strong, resisting so fiercely that no one could move them.
Kingpin's face twitched in anger, so he turned his head away, out of sight, out of mind.
Just then, a voice called out from behind him, "Boss, watch out!"
One of the crazed men had somehow broken free and was charging at Kingpin, laughing maniacally and drooling uncontrollably. No one knew what he intended, so they quickly warned Kingpin.
Kingpin grabbed the man's neck with both hands. Instantly, a crack sounded as the man's neck snapped, his head drooping lifelessly.
As he spat out blood, some of it splattered onto Kingpin's white suit, staining it with tiny bloodstains.
Kingpin's office fell silent. None of the remaining subordinates dared to say a word as they dragged the other three madmen out.
Kingpin casually tossed the corpse aside, like throwing out garbage, and looked at his bloodstained hands with a gleam of excitement in his eyes.
"It's been a while since I've killed someone with my own hands."
After wiping his hands, he picked up his phone.
"Get over here."
After a while, a subordinate walked in, his expression calm.
"Boss, what do you need?"
"Find out who turned these four men into idiots. Also, send more men tomorrow to find Alan. I want those Stark Industries shares!"
The subordinate hesitated. "Not today?"
"Not today. I suspect the person who drove them mad is still lurking around the Thirteenth District. Alan, you're one lucky bastard. You get to enjoy that money for one more day…"
...
"Alan, when I just got back, I saw someone being dragged out of this building. And from the looks of it, wasn't he our upstairs neighbor?" Gwen, who had just returned and was standing on the balcony railing, asked with a hint of confusion.
That guy had crossed their paths a few times—a very bad-tempered neighbor.
Alan responded casually, "No idea, but I heard he made a false police report. When the detectives questioned him, he wouldn't admit it, and it escalated into an argument, so they took him away."
Gwen nodded, watching the police car drive away in the distance. Someone like him could easily do something like that.
"By the way, Alan, I've got a gift for you. Can you guess what it is?" Gwen suddenly asked with a big smile on her face.
Curious, Alan asked, "Oh? What's my gift?"
"Close your eyes!"
Alan obediently closed his eyes, wondering what Gwen was up to. Was she trying to trick him into closing his eyes, then sneakily do something?
Like… maybe… give him a kiss?
But after waiting for a while, Alan didn't feel any signs of Gwen getting closer. Then he heard her voice, "Alright, you can open your eyes now."
Alan opened his eyes and saw Gwen holding a giant lollipop. "Look, this is the gift I'm giving you."
"Did you buy this on your way back?" Alan couldn't help but chuckle. Gwen, no matter what, still felt like a little girl to him.
Gwen quickly explained, "Of course, I didn't buy it. It's a reward for fighting crime," she said with a hint of pride.
"Today, I took down some bullies on the street and saved a mother and daughter. This lollipop was a gift from the little girl."
Alan nodded, "So this is the first token of justice that our Spider Lady has received, huh?"
"I'll go find a special place to keep it in our home."
As Alan turned to find a spot to store the lollipop, Gwen's face flushed slightly. She jumped down from the balcony and followed him.
Did he just say… our home…?
...