A few days later, on the weekend, the weather was fine.
The discomfort of her period had completely faded, and the soul fatigue after being purified by Ancient One had long since recovered. Artoria felt that she was in excellent condition, and even the circulation of power within her body was smoother and more harmonious than before.
Perhaps it was because of that successful soul purification attempt that her understanding of the nature of different powers had deepened a layer.
"The weather is nice today. Do you want to go to the city for a walk?" At breakfast, Artoria set down her empty milk glass and suggested, "We're running low on groceries and daily necessities, and besides..."
She glanced at the light blue shirt Minerva had been wearing for a long time. "It's time to get you some new clothes. Wearing the same few pieces all the time, no matter how good they look, will get boring."
Minerva paused as she was clearing the tableware, her optical sensors turning toward Artoria.
"Material replenishment is in accordance with the periodic plan. But 'getting new clothes'... based on the cleanliness, integrity, and functional assessment of existing clothing, it is not a necessary requirement."
"But I want to buy them for you." Artoria said with a smile, her tone carrying a hint of irresistible coquettishness. "I saw how good you looked in the ones we bought last time. Let's try different styles this time. Consider it... a celebration of my full recovery, and also, thank you for taking care of me during this past period."
She said this last sentence very seriously.
Minerva was silent for two seconds, seemingly quickly calculating the priority between "non-essential shopping" and "satisfying Artoria's wishes and potentially improving her emotional index."
"...Understood. If this is your expectation. Do you need me to plan the route and list?"
"Of course, I'll leave it all to you." Artoria nodded happily.
An hour later, they were driving an inconspicuous gray sedan toward a large, well-stocked shopping center in New York, Long Island.
Minerva drove, as steady and precise as a pre-programmed sequence.
Artoria sat in the passenger seat, watching the scenery flying by outside the window, feeling happy.
Today she was wearing a simple white T-shirt and jeans, with a fresh high ponytail, looking like an ordinary college student.
"Based on traffic conditions and mall crowd forecasts, we will arrive at 10:20 AM. The shopping list has been optimized, the path planned by zone, and it is expected that all purchases can be completed within 100 minutes, avoiding the midday peak." Minerva reported steadily.
"Hmm, I'll listen to your arrangements." Artoria leaned back on the seat, relaxed.
Artoria's intuition did not warn of any danger; this seemed to be just an ordinary, casual shopping day.
The shopping center was crowded, and the weekend atmosphere was lively.
Minerva wore a pair of brown flat glasses today to cover her overly conspicuous optical sensors. Her silver-white long hair was tied into a neat low ponytail at the back of her head, and she wore a simple dark gray casual outfit. Her temperament was cold and aloof, and she was still eye-catching as she walked through the crowd, but compared to when she was fully armed or wearing combat gear, she was much more low-key.
Following Minerva's plan, they moved efficiently through the various areas.
In the supermarket, Minerva's "ingredient analysis" function once again showed its power, precisely selecting the freshest and highest-quality fruits, vegetables, meat, and eggs.
In the daily necessities area, she quickly compared ingredients and cost-effectiveness.
Then, it was the clothing area Artoria had been looking forward to.
This time, Artoria pulled Minerva into a brand store that leaned more toward minimalist fashion and unisex designs.
She excitedly picked out several items—a black leather jacket with a clean cut, a beige turtleneck cashmere sweater, khaki cargo pants, and a dark blue long trench coat with a strong sense of design.
"Try them on?" Artoria's eyes lit up.
Minerva seemed to be more skilled at this "fashion show" segment than last time. Although she still had no expression, she cooperatively took the clothes and walked into the fitting room.
The black leather jacket paired with cargo pants made her look like a cool urban Agent; the beige turtleneck and khaki pants made her look intellectual and elegant; and with the dark blue trench coat on, she had a bit more of an unrestrained, artistic temperament.
She wore every outfit with a unique, cold beauty.
"We're buying them all." Artoria made the decision again, ignoring Minerva's weak protests about "functional duplication" and "storage space."
"Artoria, this does not comply with..."
"It's fine as long as it complies with the highest principle of 'I want to buy them for you'." Artoria smiled and swiped her card, taking several exquisite shopping bags.
Minerva silently took the bags and carried them in her hands. Her optical sensors looked at Artoria through the lenses, and she didn't say anything more. But Artoria seemed to feel, beneath her calm exterior, a trace of an extremely faint emotional fluctuation similar to "helpless but accepting."
Shopping completed, both of them were carrying quite a few bags.
Looking at the time, it was just noon.
Artoria suggested eating something simple in the mall's food court before heading back.
They chose a Southeast Asian restaurant with relatively fewer people and ordered light vermicelli noodles and spring rolls.
Just as they were waiting for the food to be served, and Artoria was looking down at her phone at some photos she had secretly taken of Minerva trying on clothes (Minerva seemed to have noticed but didn't stop her), with a smile on her lips—
"BOOM!!!!!!!"
A terrifying roar, dull to the extreme, as if the earth's entrails were being torn open, suddenly came from a place extremely close outside the mall!
Immediately following were the sharp noises of glass shattering over a large area, the moans of twisting metal, the frantic wailing of car alarms, and the screams of extreme fear that erupted from the crowd in an instant!
The entire restaurant, no, the entire mall shook violently!
Dust fell from the ceiling, and the chandeliers swung wildly!
"Earthquake?!" someone exclaimed.
But Artoria and Minerva raised their heads at the same time the moment the loud noise came.
Artoria's intuition was warning frantically—it was not an earthquake!
It was some kind of extremely violent creature or object filled with destructive energy that had erupted at an extremely close distance!
Minerva's optical sensors instantly switched to high-sensitivity combat mode, the blue light behind her brown lenses flickering rapidly. She stood up abruptly, stepped in front of Artoria, separating her from the direction the danger might come from, while her hands were slightly open, with faint energy shimmering at her fingertips, ready to go.
"It's not an earthquake." Artoria also stood up, her face solemn. She "heard" the inhuman pain and angry roar contained in that loud noise.
"It's... something."
Her perception pierced through the noisy screams and chaos, trying to capture information from the outside.
Minerva had already quickly accessed the nearby public surveillance network (in a way that didn't attract attention). In an instant, several fragmented images were transmitted to her processor and also shared with Artoria:
The bank across the street from the mall had its street-facing wall smashed open, leaving a huge hole!
Bricks and cement splashed everywhere like cannonballs!
In the dust and smoke, a blurry, massive figure with an ominous dark green color was waving its disproportionately thick arms, frantically smashing everything around it—cars were overturned and crushed like toys, lampposts were uprooted and used as clubs, and the bank's ATM was ripped out and thrown into the distance!
Green skin, a massive body, tattered pants... and that iconic roar full of pain and rage.
Hulk! Dr. Bruce Banner, for the first time in New York, and perhaps the first time on this World line, had completely lost control and transformed!
And even worse, Artoria saw through the shared screen that several Military-green, heavily armored "Humvee" Military vehicles were approaching rapidly from both ends of the street with screeching brakes, attempting to surround the green giant!
Fully armed soldiers jumped off the vehicles, holding heavy firearms with strange shapes and huge capacitors. The muzzles had already begun to charge, making a buzzing sound.
General Ross's pursuit team! They were actually taking action directly in the downtown area!
"Target identification: Dr. Bruce Banner (Hulk form), threat level: extremely high. Military special forces detected, carrying unknown energy weapons. It is recommended to evacuate this area immediately." Minerva's voice was calm and quick, but Artoria could hear a hint of tension in it.
Facing physical destructive power of Hulk's level, even Minerva would feel immense pressure.
Evacuation was the most rational choice. Artoria almost nodded.
However, in the next second, in the shared screen, Hulk seemed to be even more enraged by the surrounding Military vehicles and those charging weapons.
He roared at the sky, a deafening roar, the sound waves even causing ripples in the image!
Then, he bent down abruptly, thrust his hands into the asphalt road, and roared, ripping up a large piece of asphalt road weighing several tons, preparing to throw it at one of the Military vehicles and the panicked crowd fleeing behind it!
If that piece of road hit, not only would the Military vehicle become a pancake, but at least a dozen civilians behind who couldn't escape in time would instantly be turned into meat paste!
"No!" Artoria's pupils contracted sharply.
Almost without thinking, she grabbed Minerva's arm. "Help me create an opportunity! We can't let him throw it!"
"Artoria! That's Hulk! A direct confrontation is extremely dangerous!" Minerva stopped her sharply; this was a stern tone she rarely used.
"It's not a confrontation! It's pacification!" Artoria urged, her eyes resolute. "Trust me, Minerva! Just like that time with Ancient One! Help me buy a few seconds, get close to him, you don't have to be too close! Then you back away and protect yourself!"
Minerva's optical sensors "stared" fixedly at Artoria, her processor frantically calculating the success rate and risks of various plans within a thousandth of a second.
Hulk's rage, the Military's weapons, stray bullets, collapsing buildings... every variable was extremely dangerous.
But the determination in Artoria's eyes, and the previous example of successfully purifying Ancient One, made her make the choice.
"...Understood. I will create three seconds of line-of-sight and fire interference. You only have three seconds. Once you fail, or if you are under any threat, I will force an evacuation, whether you agree or not." Minerva's voice was cold as iron.
"Deal!"
The two of them rushed out of the restaurant instantly, running wildly along the safety passage toward the bottom floor of the mall.
While running, Minerva quickly operated her micro-equipment.
Outside the mall, the huge piece of road in Hulk's hands had already been lifted, and General Ross's roar in the communicator could faintly be heard: "Fire! Stop him!"
Just as the soldiers pulled the triggers and several blue high-voltage electric nets shot toward Hulk, several hidden fire sprinklers inside the large glass curtain walls facing the street of the mall suddenly burst open simultaneously without warning!
It wasn't water, but a large amount of thick, slippery, pungent-smelling white foam!
This foam instantly enveloped the area where the Military vehicles and soldiers were located, greatly interfering with visibility and shooting accuracy, causing most of those electric nets to miss or be greatly reduced in power.
At the same time, several manhole covers not far from Hulk's feet were violently blown open by a weak directional Impact coming from below, making a loud noise, which distracted him.
The piece of road he held high paused for a moment.
Now is the time!
---------------------------------
I hope you're enjoying the fanfiction so far! If the fanfiction has you hooked and you can't wait to see what happens next, you can unlock 30 or more chapters in advance over on my patreon: patreon.com/FTLGenBen
Also every bit of support means the world to me so if you're loving the ride, don't forget to drop a Power Stone, Thanks.