"Cheers!"
The two glasses collided with a sharp clink.
In the noisy bar, Leon and Barton sat in a corner, enjoying their leisure time after work.
The dim, yellow light reflected off Leon's young and handsome face, adding a touch of mystery to his appearance.
If it weren't for the stern-faced Barton sitting opposite him, many of the hot girls in the bar would surely have approached Leon with their drinks. However, the provocative glances thrown from afar from time to time still allowed the observant "Hawkeye" to notice his subordinate's charm.
Watching Leon down his whiskey in one gulp, Barton's eyes lit up. "It seems you have a decent tolerance for alcohol..."
"It's alright. Back at the military academy, I drank more beer. Since joining the Rangers, my tastes have changed."
After speaking, Leon picked up the bottle and refilled their empty glasses.
Looking at the young man before him, Clint Barton felt a strange sense of kinship.
Although they had known each other for less than twenty-four hours, Clint Barton wanted to get to know Leon better because of his relationship with Coulson, as well as the calm attitude and combat skills he displayed during the mission.
Especially seeing the way the other man drank, Clint Barton—a reserved man who rarely showed his emotions—felt as if he had met a kindred spirit.
"I've seen your file. With your SAT scores, you could have gotten into any top university in the United States. Why did you choose to go to a military academy?" Clint Barton asked casually while tracing the rim of his glass.
Hearing this question, Leon felt a slight sense of wariness in his heart.
This question was not easy to answer...
He couldn't exactly say that he was a soul from another World; nor could he say he knew this was a dangerous World where superheroes were everywhere and aliens invaded at the drop of a hat. To protect himself, he had to do everything possible to increase his combat power...
Fortunately, he knew that once he entered a massive intelligence agency like S.H.I.E.L.D., he would definitely be watched by HYDRA and that bald, one-eyed dragon of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Therefore, he had long prepared a set of excuses for various questions he might be asked.
"Oh, speaking of that, it was actually because of Uncle Phil."
"Phil?" Clint Barton was curious.
"Phil made you go to the military academy?"
"No." Leon waved his hand and explained, "You know Uncle Phil is a huge fan of Captain America. He practically wants to cover all the walls at home with Captain America posters."
"And since he's my only family, being constantly exposed to it naturally made me interested in the military he talked about..."
"So that's how it is." Clint Barton nodded in understanding.
"However, I didn't expect that I'd actually have some talent for military operations..." Leon laughed and boasted a bit, then picked up his glass and drained it.
"Yeah, more than just'some' talent..." Clint Barton muttered to himself.
Accepted into the famous Virginia Military Institute at seventeen, he graduated early in just two years, becoming the first graduate in the history of VMI to receive an 'Excellent' in every single subject!
Recruited into the Rangers at nineteen, he broke promotion records at the fastest speed to become the youngest deputy company commander.
Now, on his first day at S.H.I.E.L.D., he planned and participated in the completion of a Level 5 rescue mission... Such an achievement was unique even within the elite-filled S.H.I.E.L.D.
Clint Barton was somewhat surprised by Leon's humility in victory and resilience in defeat.
Few young people remain so composed when achieving such remarkable results.
From the looks of it, the task Coulson gave him to look after Lyon would be much easier than expected... Thinking of this, Clint Barton suddenly remembered something and asked Leon, "By the way, I heard from Phil that when you were in the Rangers, you took first place in the combat specialty during the Four Major Forces Joint Competition."
After saying this, he suddenly sized Leon up with a "lecherous" gaze, as if he were looking at a beautiful woman.
Lyon felt a bit unnerved by his stare. "Um... what is it?"
"There's a boxing gym nearby that I'm familiar with. Let me see what you've got!"
"Eh?!"
Before Lyon could react, Clint Barton slapped a twenty-dollar bill on the table, grabbed Lyon, and led him out of the bar.
The two walked out of the bar and, under the cover of night, got into a black chevrolet suburban and drove toward Queens, New York.
The boxing gym was not very far from the bar.
After driving for less than ten minutes, the car pulled up in front of an unremarkable-looking building.
Outside the building's entrance stood an aged LED sign.
Looking at the words on the sign, Lyon couldn't help but read them aloud: "Meyer's Boxing Club?"
"It's a boxing club run by a friend of mine." Clint Barton explained briefly before heading into the building alone.
Lyon looked at Hawkeye's back, shrugged, and followed him inside.
Following the familiar Hawkeye, the two arrived at the third floor, where the boxing club was located.
Interestingly, the club's door was tightly locked. Moreover, it was pitch black inside, not looking like it was open for business.
"Huh? It's not open today?" Lyon turned and asked Clint Barton.
However, Clint Barton didn't answer him. Instead, he bent down, lifted the rug in front of the door, and pulled out a key.
"Eh?!" Seeing all this, Lyon was a bit bewildered. "How did you know there was a key there?"
As Clint Barton used the key to open the door, he explained, "When this place isn't open for business, it's my private time to use it."
"I see..."
Entering the club and turning on the lights, the entire boxing gym was revealed under the illumination.
Three boxing rings were arranged in a triangle across the space.
With a rough glance, Lyon estimated that the club's area was at least over two hundred square meters.
Before he could habitually map out the terrain and escape routes, Clint Barton took off his jacket, leaving only a gray tank top, and impatiently climbed into the largest ring.
"What are you just standing there for? Get up here