Chapter 48: The Haggard Braised Egg

Luke sighed.

When the rain must fall and a mother is destined to remarry, one must ultimately let go. Yet, to his own surprise, he felt a hint of reluctance. What an excellent trio of sparring partners they had been...

As before, Luke brought over a small stool and sat before the glass-walled cell. He looked at the three and said, “Let’s have a talk.”

Black Widow crossed her arms, chest thrust out, gazing down at Luke from above. “Speak.”

Hawkeye responded with a silly laugh. He’d taken quite a few knocks to the head from Luke’s stick lately.

Agent May rolled her eyes, still resentful that Coulson had tricked her into coming here. She was eager to get out and settle accounts with him.

Luke put forward the conditions he’d already considered carefully.

“Letting you go isn’t out of the question. In fact, this whole incident wasn’t even started by me. It was you who insisted on testing me. If you want to blame someone, blame Egghead.”

“Hmph,” Black Widow snorted softly, neither denying nor confirming.

“So really, I’m the victim here. Just imagine—a lovable little kid, quietly at home building models, and you agents just have to come bother me. Aren’t there plenty of super-powered robberies on the streets you could stop? Sometimes I wonder if you’re all evading taxes.”

“…”

The three were momentarily bewildered by Luke’s leaps in logic.

How did this suddenly become about tax evasion? Even if there was tax evasion, that would be Egghead’s problem. And doesn’t S.H.I.E.L.D. not pay taxes anyway?

“Before you two arrived, I’d already told Natasha—I truly meant no harm. My only request is that I don’t want to be disturbed.”

Luke continued, “What happens here must remain confidential even after you leave. You can’t tell anyone else. That includes my adoptive parents. I don’t want them to worry.”

As he spoke, Luke once again adopted an innocent demeanor, ensuring they continued to see him as a mere child—a perception greatly in his favor.

Inside the cell, the three nodded. S.H.I.E.L.D. had always handled such matters with care and swiftness. Except in cases of extraordinary force or rare circumstances, they avoided involving civilians in supernatural affairs. Protecting the world, after all, was S.H.I.E.L.D.’s philosophy.

Luke’s condition seemed reasonable to all of them. Putting themselves in his shoes, they found his words not without merit.

Had they known from the start that the “Apostle” was just a seven-year-old child, S.H.I.E.L.D.’s approach would have been gentler and more discreet.

This situation, they realized, could have been avoided.

Undeniably, being a mischievous child had spared Luke a world of trouble.

Had he been an adult, the S.H.I.E.L.D. trio would not be so accommodating. It wouldn’t be a matter of gentle persuasion—they’d have thrown him in a cell, and for those deemed a threat, perhaps launched him straight into the sun.

Hawkeye and Agent May both looked to Black Widow. Investigating the Apostle had been her mission; she should be the one to negotiate with Luke.

“These terms, I can agree to on Nick’s behalf right now. Do you have any other requests?” Black Widow asked.

“Then I suppose these past ten days were all just a misunderstanding, weren’t they? We can all forgive one another, yes?” Luke smiled brightly.

Black Widow shot him an annoyed look and snorted, “Fine.”

If not for these past few days together, no one would believe this clever and cunning little fellow was only seven years old.

She sometimes forgot his age altogether, at times suspecting a grown man’s mind was living inside this child’s body.

“Damn brat,” Black Widow muttered helplessly. She’d endured more than her share lately.

“So let’s leave it at that. Everyone returns home, all’s well.” Luke smiled in satisfaction. “Tell Egghead I’m safe, and share with him what you saw here. I hope we can get along peacefully from now on, and avoid such misunderstandings.”

“I’ll tell Nick,” Black Widow nodded.

“Christina, open the door.” With a snap of his fingers, the cell door slid open. “You’re free to go.”

“May I have a look around?” After stepping out, Black Widow pointed toward the G-0 War Lord under construction.

“A tour? You may, but don’t steal anything. I’ll be watching you.”

Hawkeye and May crowded closer, curiosity piqued.

It was time to witness the awe-inspiring marvels of celestial technology.

Even unfinished, seeing the G-0 War Lord up close left the three in stunned admiration!

Standing 5.5 meters tall, its body lacked a head and right half, but the lower limbs were complete. Several mechanical arms were busy attaching the left arm, forcing the trio to crane their necks to see.

Without armor plating, the intricate internal structure was on full display—so complex it was dazzling.

All three couldn’t help but wonder what a spectacle it would be when this thing moved.

“You built all this yourself?” May asked, mouth agape.

She’d already witnessed Luke’s physical prowess; now she saw another side of his extraordinary talent.

A true prodigy, she thought.

“Of course,” Luke replied.

The behemoth was already halfway done, and that was with Christina’s assistance. Fifteen days of work so far.

This time, the technology was more advanced and the engineering vastly more complex—at least ten times harder than building the Gale.

The good news was, in another half month, it would be finished.

Just in time for the Hammer Industries Expo.

“How big will it be when it’s done?” Hawkeye asked.

“As you can see, the head isn’t built yet. When it’s finished, it’ll stand six meters tall, and six meters wide as well,” Luke answered, withholding the finer details.

“Taller than an F-22? My god…” Black Widow exclaimed.

Luke thought to himself, this was nothing compared to Kira Yamato’s Strike Freedom Gundam at 18.88 meters tall.

There was little he could do—the blueprints had their limits, and modifying them was no small feat. He had already worked hard to remake the G-0 War Lord according to his own ideas.

Truthfully, the S.H.I.E.L.D. trio was thinking: If this thing could actually be built and put on the market, every nation on Earth would fight tooth and nail to possess it.

That was a terrifying prospect.

And it was all in the hands of a child.

Even more terrifying.

“You’re welcome to stay a few more days. I don’t mind. Give me another half month and it should be finished,” Luke offered.

“Uh, no need. I believe you,” Black Widow replied quickly. There was no longer any doubt about this little genius.

As for staying here a few more days? Not a chance.

“What do you intend to do with it?” she couldn’t help but ask. The thing before her was simply too dangerous. She needed to know Luke’s intentions.

“Obviously, to prevent people like you from breaking into my home again. As I said, I’m a good person,” Luke replied without hesitation.

She could accept most of that, but as for him being a “good person,” all three harbored varying degrees of skepticism.

Little did Luke realize they’d already branded him as a “fearless brat.”

After this episode, they’d added a prefix: “Mech-building.”

Most kids played with plastic models; this kid built the real thing.

A brat with a weapon of mass destruction needed serious ideological education. Otherwise, who knew when he might poke a hole in the sky for real.

Well, best to leave that headache to Egghead.

The three suddenly felt it was a blessing to have a superior.

And, truth be told, Hawkeye found the nickname “Egghead” rather catchy. He’d have to make it popular back at headquarters.

“Let’s go,” said Black Widow.

...

What Luke didn’t know was that, had he delayed a few more days, Egghead would have considered bombing him with a jet himself.

Two teams had reported that since entering the warehouse, Agent May hadn’t emerged. Yet, with no clear danger, he had them stand down.

Strangely, every day, May still checked in on the radio at the appointed time.

This intelligence left Egghead utterly baffled. What kind of game was the opposition playing?

Egghead had lost weight.

The Apostle incident had worn him to the bone. He’d been suffering from insomnia, his nerves frayed, and even his urine had turned yellow.

Fortunately, the three finally returned.

“They’re back,” Hill announced as she entered.

“Who?” For a moment, Egghead didn’t react.

“Agent Barton, Agent Romanoff, and Agent May.”

Egghead paused, then immediately said, “Send them in.”

All three back together?

What on earth had happened in that warehouse?

Egghead instantly became a fountain of questions—he had ten thousand things he wanted to ask them.