The bombing has ceased, the smoke mixed with the scent of earth and snow lingered thickly over the lawn.
Su Ming put away his weapon and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
The Magic Prince, however, wasn't relaxed, instead, he took out the rabbit again to reinforce the protective barrier, just in case.
"What do you think?"
He asked Su Ming. In situations like these, Deathstroke's judgment was more reliable. The surrounding smell made him feel as if he was back on the battlefield, yet this was the United States homeland.
The Americans had stayed away from war for nearly a century; their people had no idea how to face the flames of war ignited on their homeland, and Hydra's army seemed to have already landed, time was short.
"I think it's very strange," Su Ming stated frankly. "Before, we reached a consensus that Hydra couldn't just conjure an army out of thin air, and now, the army's landing speed is unexpectedly fast. Could all the homeland's radar and defenses be just for show? Such a large-scale invasion went unnoticed?"
"Indeed, it does seem off, but I can't figure it out," Monac took a deep breath, looking at the burning magnolia tree not far away, which had fallen, the surrounding snow was also gone.
"If you can't figure it out, put it aside for now. Agent Carter, could you check if the nearby communication facilities are intact? Don't worry, the bombing is over, the enemy should have retreated, having achieved their purpose; they'll move on to attack more valuable places next."
Peggy cast him a glance, walked out of the protective shield without a word. Deathstroke wanted to send her away, what did he find out?
But there was no reason to stay.
Monac watched the uniformed Peggy leave and also withdrew his protective magic. "Speak, she's gone."
"I guess all communication facilities are still operating normally. Next, it's time to spread hate," Su Ming responded blandly, without any emotion. "Their army will attack the most populous areas, maximizing civilian casualties, leaving those alive to harbor hatred in their hearts."
"But people already hate Hydra enough, how does this help?" Monac shrugged, expressing his confusion.
"She might shift the hatred onto the United States government, or between each other. It's just a hypothesis, I can't be certain yet," Su Ming walked towards the street. "Erasing a country, this military power isn't enough, but to dissolve people's spirit and faith, merely a few schemes would suffice."
"I'm more interested in Steve's uniform and shield, and Peggy's military attire. Was the so-called old place this White House? I don't think so."
The Magic Prince followed behind him, stepping over pieces of architectural debris, muttering. The house had only a half wall remaining, the furnishings inside were mostly smashed.
"This is the interesting part. The only answer is that these things weren't sent to the old place but were prepared here, as if they anticipated Steve and the others would surely come...."
He answered with a smile, Monac was doing well, almost catching up with Bo Bo's deduction ability.
"So... there's a traitor in the SSR."
"You are just realizing? Having a traitor is no news to them. Plus, they even accounted for the presence of us two, you know Peggy made a call and we immediately used the Teleportation Gate to get here, yet the shield and uniform were already here long before that."
Su Ming replied indifferently, surveying the broken streets, pulling out a public phone booth from beneath a messy heap of rubble and bricks, and squeezed into the deformed doorway.
"Who do you think the traitor could be?" Monac watched Deathstroke fiddling with the phone, seemingly about to dismantle it.
Su Ming tried dialing the emergency number, unsurprisingly it was busy, based on this, he could ascertain the city's situation:
"Their new director... remember, Monac, once you suspect a department, immediately suspect their leader, nine times out of ten it is spot-on."
"You make it sound like directors being traitors is an SSR specialty..." Monac quipped, British humor actually resonated quite well with Deathstroke. "So what's our next plan?"
"The new director has surely escaped. To have lurked in the United States for so long and even become the SSR director, he must be a clever one. By now, he should have safely withdrawn after initiating his plan, even if we go now, there won't be any clues to find, professionals have plenty of ways to erase traces."
"We can't just wait here either, frankly, it's really cold outside today." Monac quickly rubbed his arms to chase away the chill.
"I thought you'd be completely immune to the cold after living in London for so many years, the damp cold there seems to seep right into the bones." Su Ming threw down the telephone receiver in his hand, turned around. "Teleportation Gate, let's head back to New York to have a look."
"Aren't we going to care about the Captain and the others?"
"The other side anticipated that I would rescue Captain America and foreseen Steve's actions afterward. This means his current and future actions are all within their calculations. Steve is too upright; some actions aren't convenient with him around. We must immediately jump out of the circle to gain a tactical advantage."
Su Ming briefly explained, his gaze seeming to penetrate the walls, seeing Steve arguing with the crowd in the distance.
Monac extended his staff, lightly tapping in the air, uttered a string of incantations, opening a portal directly to the office of the boss at Wilson Enterprises Headquarters:
"If I haven't guessed wrong, when faced with invasion, Steve should return to the military he knows best, then take the initiative to rescue people and identify the mastermind behind it. So the next step, he would go to the SSR headquarters at Caspian Camp?"
"That's logical, given the current situation, he's not foolish. And in this scenario, he knows that even if he's a great fighter, he can't defeat Hydra's large army. He's a banner, not a nuclear weapon. The only people he can trust now are possibly the Invasion Team and Nick Fury's Roaring Assault Team."
Su Ming stepped into the teleportation gate, and now looking out from the office's floor-to-ceiling window, the New York City across the sea was already in chaos.
Explosions and thick smoke could be seen everywhere, and quite a few tall buildings slowly toppled over. It seemed as though the heavy sound of their collapse could be heard from tens of kilometers away.
"Tsk, fortunately, I had foresight. I knew Manhattan wasn't safe; the enemy hasn't turned their attention to Long Island for now." He turned his head and smiled at Monac, smugly taking out a cigarette.
"That's because there's nothing on Long Island except your Wilson Enterprises, Zhongsi Academy, and some vineyards and resort areas."
Monac shook his head, though Long Island has developed well under Wilson Enterprises' operations over the years, it's still far behind Manhattan.
It seems Deathstroke was right; Hydra's goal is to inflict maximum damage on the populace, so a sparsely populated place like Long Island is naturally less of a priority compared to the city.
"It's a pity for those Wilson Supermarkets in cities across the country. Our Christmas stocking has finished, but I doubt we'll sell much this year."
Su Ming picked up a bottle of wine from the table, unscrewed it, took a sip, and a look of regret appeared on his face.
"If you don't think of something, soon no one will be able to buy your stuff; blood is on the Christmas trees." Monac said irritably, puzzled as to why a Supreme Mage needed so much money.
Money can't teach him magic, and at Deathstroke's level, money has very little utility.
Su Ming raised an eyebrow, handed him a glass of wine, and the office felt a lot warmer:
"You're still wondering what I earn money for, aren't you? Hehe, actually, driving world development isn't something I can do alone. And money represents the universal values on Earth. We will face countless challenges in the future, and to counter those risks, I need the entire world's progress... not just Earth, but the entire cosmos."
"Did you see it with the Eye of Agamotto?" Monac asked seriously, looking at Deathstroke's single eye and gripping the glass tightly.
Supreme Mage's words made him ponder deeply.
Su Ming sighed, clinked glasses with him, then downed the drink in one gulp, looking toward the statue in the corner: "You can think of it that way... Adjutant, engage with the United States' radio communication network and statistical data, activate the global Spider Web safehouses, and initiate the defense systems for the enterprise headquarters and Zhongsi Academy."
"Okay, please wait a moment."
The Adjutant, always posing as a statue in the corner, was activated, and as a Cybertron intelligent lifeform, its database contained numerous strategies for this low-intensity war.
Autobots and Decepticons have been at war on Cybertron for tens of thousands of years, even the damage caused by two Transformers is more severe than now.
As her electronic synthetic voice fell, the edges of the ceiling cracked open, revealing silver metallic strips that encompassed the office like a roller shutter.
The view outside was blocked off from them; the entire building appeared unchanged from the outside, but its interior had been fortified with sturdy inner armor.
"What is this?" Monac instinctively felt these silver metals were different, seemingly light but clearly very strong.
He pressed his hand down, and the thin-as-a-cicada-wing metal didn't undergo any deformation.
"Vibranium, Steve's shield is made of Vibranium combined with other materials to create Adamantium. Currently in the universe, there are few ways to break it, either through divine power or a Molecular Rearranger, and right now Hydra possesses neither; the Cosmic Cube is in my hands."
Su Ming waited for the Adjutant's report, wanting to hear about the current situation in the United States.
"I wasn't asking about the metal; I was asking when you equipped your lair with these things?" Monac sighed: "You've long been preparing for a certain war, haven't you?"
"Though it wasn't supposed to be this one... but you're right. I dug the mines myself as a miner; you wouldn't believe how tough it was."
Actually, only Wilson Enterprise Headquarters used Vibranium defenses, mainly for the underground secret laboratory. It contains technological equipment acquired from Doom, and cannot be compromised.
Most Vibranium is managed by the Adjutant, with automatic production lines constructing them at a certain secret dock. At the academy, a lot of automatic turrets have been installed to coordinate with Hamill's defense magic.
With Little Bald Head at the academy, with his superpower, it could be considered the safest place in the United States.
But Charles now has signs of transitioning to a more pacifist philosophy; he doesn't kill, so those turrets are specifically designed to emerge from hidden locations, meant for critical moments to finish off and grab the kill.