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London.
The gray sky hung low over the city, covering the streets with a dull, cold atmosphere. The usual noise of traffic and pedestrians continued as normal, but beneath that ordinary life, the world was changing rapidly. News about Jack, the mysterious and terrifying Humankind's Public Enemy, had become almost impossible to escape.
Inside a restaurant, beside a large window overlooking the busy London street, a man and a woman sat across from each other. The woman had been holding an unusually large menu in front of her face for several minutes, using it as a convenient shield.
"Jane, do you have something that you can't let go of?"
The man speaking was Richard.
The woman hiding behind the menu was Jane Foster.
The reason they were having lunch together was because of Jane's mother. Her mother had arranged this meeting and insisted that Jane should at least get to know the man properly. Jane had reluctantly agreed, but from the moment she entered the restaurant, she had been looking for any excuse to escape.
She lowered the menu slightly and gave Richard a polite smile.
"Richard, I'm very good. What do you think I have that I can't let go of?"
Jane finally placed the menu down.
Richard studied her carefully.
"For the past ten minutes, you've been hiding behind that menu. And among all the dishes, you've only considered three. Vegetables, fish, and chicken. I guess you have something on your mind. Perhaps it's related to a man."
Jane's smile froze for a moment.
Her thoughts immediately drifted toward someone she had tried very hard not to think about.
Jack.
She quietly clenched her fingers beneath the table.
"It's a long story."
Richard leaned forward slightly.
"He's still by your side?"
"No. He has already left."
Jane's expression became complicated.
"He's a swindler."
Richard gave her a sympathetic look.
"I've also experienced something like that. I once dated a woman who went to New York to work. In the end, the relationship couldn't withstand the distance. She was continuously sleeping with another man."
"That's not what happened."
"Yes, it is."
Jane stared at him speechlessly.
Before she could say anything else, someone suddenly approached their table.
Richard looked up.
"Waiter, bring us a bottle of red wine."
"I need some too."
The newcomer immediately sat down without waiting for permission and began eating as though she had been starving for days.
Jane stared at her.
"Darcy, what are you doing here?"
Darcy Lewis continued eating while speaking.
"I went to the laboratory. It's your mother's place, so I thought I'd see you wearing pajamas and wandering around the room while eating ice cream. You know, the usual Jane Foster lifestyle. I never forget somebody."
Darcy glanced at Jane from head to toe.
"But you weren't there. Instead, you wore proper women's clothing. You even took a bath, right?"
Jane forced a smile.
"You rushed here, so there must be something important, right? Just say it. What happened?"
Darcy swallowed her food and reached into her bag.
"Remember that scientific instrument you lost nearby? You can have a look now."
She took out a small, square-shaped device and placed it in Jane's hands.
Jane immediately became serious.
She examined the small screen and the strange readings appearing across it.
Her eyes widened.
"This was impossible."
She tapped the instrument against the table several times.
"It crashed."
Darcy smiled.
"I thought that too, but apparently science decided to surprise us."
Jane carefully examined it again before finally shaking her head.
"There's no issue."
Darcy gave her a look.
"It doesn't seem like there's no issue. These readings are actually very similar to what you talked about before with Erik. My friend Erik Selvig, the famous astrophysicist."
"Darcy, you can be needless to say."
Jane's tone became impatient.
"I think he'll be interested in these."
"He has no interest, and I have no interest either. You can leave."
Darcy shrugged.
"Good. Wishing you happiness."
Richard looked between them before suggesting, "I think we can order the meal. 0.1 perch, how about it?"
"Perch, perch, perch, perch, perch…"
Jane repeated the word several times, clearly irritated.
Richard shook his head.
"Jane, don't talk about perch. Go with your friend. Let me talk about the perch here."
"Thank you. The lunch is very happy."
Jane stood up and walked away impatiently.
For her, the entire lunch had become a painful experience.
Outside the restaurant, Jane walked toward Darcy's car.
Darcy was already sitting inside.
"I knew that you would come. Right, who was that gentleman?"
"He is the man my mother arranged for me to meet."
Jane opened the vehicle door and sat in the passenger seat.
"He is not my type."
Darcy started the engine.
"I thought that you had forgotten Jack and were preparing to start a new life."
Jane immediately clenched her fist.
"On the surface, that super-big swindler."
Darcy smiled.
"Good. At least you haven't forgotten him."
Jane looked out of the window.
She hated how easily Jack still occupied her thoughts.
She hated that even after everything he had done, merely hearing his name could disturb her emotions.
Darcy suddenly remembered something.
"Good, have you seen these days' super flash news? The President of the United States was killed. The biggest suspect is Wu Yang. That fellow is really capable of doing anything."
Darcy shivered.
"Think about it. I've actually spoken with one of the top terrorists in the entire world."
"I know."
Jane's voice was quiet.
"Jack is really fierce."
A male voice suddenly came from behind them.
"I know. I know. Jack is really fierce."
Jane was startled and immediately turned around.
A young man was sitting in the back seat.
"Who is this?"
"My intern."
"You have an intern?"
"Naturally."
The young man smiled excitedly.
"Dr. Foster, hello. My name is Ian. It's really an honor to work together with you as colleagues."
Jane nodded.
"You said a moment ago that Jack is very fierce?"
Ian's eyes immediately lit up.
"Naturally. He is too fierce. Many of my schoolmates worship him. They say a man should be like Wu Yang—unscrupulous, unmatched in the world, willing to do anything, unrestricted, and super flamboyant."
As Ian spoke about Jack, his eyes shone with admiration.
Darcy reached over and patted him on the head.
"Your ideas are really frightening. You actually worship Humankind's Public Enemy?"
Ian rubbed his head.
"I know that he is the enemy of humanity, but he is very fierce."
Jane shook her head.
"Apparently, there are actually people who worship him. This world is really strange."
"I don't think this is strange," Darcy replied with a smile. "But there are also people who like him. That is what's strange."
Jane turned her face toward the window.
"Drive quickly. You two are always talking about nonsense."
"Driving."
Darcy pressed the accelerator, and the vehicle moved toward their destination.
---
Outside an Abandoned Factory
After some time, a red car stopped outside an abandoned factory.
The building looked old and forgotten. Rust covered the metal walls, broken windows allowed the cold wind to enter, and weeds had grown through cracks in the concrete.
Jane stepped out and looked around.
"Isn't it here?"
"Yes."
Darcy looked toward the abandoned building.
"This is it. How thrilling. Intern, watch carefully."
Jane sighed.
"I called Ian."
The three of them entered the abandoned factory.
Their footsteps echoed through the empty building.
Everywhere they looked, there were broken machines, rusted metal parts, discarded boxes, and layers of dust. The atmosphere was strangely quiet, almost as if the factory had been abandoned in a hurry.
Jane carefully examined everything around her.
Her scientific curiosity was beginning to overcome her uneasiness.
Then suddenly—
A pigeon flew out from behind a pile of equipment.
"Ah!"
The three of them were startled.
The pigeon flapped wildly through the air and disappeared through a broken window.
Jane took a deep breath.
"I don't want to do science anymore. I want to go home."
Darcy raised a hand.
"That, we are U.S. citizens."
Jane stared at her.
"You thought saying it like this would make us welcome?"
Darcy smiled awkwardly.
The three continued walking.
Behind a number of large, abandoned boxes, a faint movement suddenly caught Jane's attention.
Three figures slowly appeared.
They were three young children.
Two boys and one girl.
They stood together in the shadows, watching the three visitors cautiously.
Jane stopped walking.
Her expression became serious.
Something about these children felt wrong.
The strange scientific readings, the abandoned factory, and now three children hiding here—it was too much of a coincidence.
Darcy also noticed them.
The atmosphere inside the factory suddenly became much heavier.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Jane looked at the three children carefully.
"Who are you?"
The children exchanged glances.
None of them answered.
A cold wind passed through the broken windows, causing a piece of loose metal to creak somewhere in the darkness.
Jane's instincts told her that this was not an ordinary encounter.
Whatever had brought them here was connected to the strange readings.
And judging by the cautious expressions of the three children, they clearly knew something that Jane, Darcy, and Ian did not.
The three children remained silent.
The mystery surrounding the abandoned factory had only just begun.