"For real?"
Tony looked at Mantis, his eyes full of curiosity.
Even though they had already seen a glimpse of Mantis's abilities on the battlefield in Chernobyl earlier, they were still full of curiosity about this newcomer alien.
"Speaking of which, I haven't had a good rest in a while... Come, let's see what you've got."
Hearing this, Mantis instinctively glanced at Peter, who smiled and nodded at her.
She then carefully reached out and touched Tony's hand with her finger.
After sensing for a moment, her beautiful brows furrowed deeply:
"Such a strong sense of responsibility, or rather... guilt?!"
Mantis looked at Tony with pitying eyes, as if looking at a small animal, making Tony feel quite uncomfortable.
"Actually, you don't have to be like this. You shouldn't let these emotions crush you. Perhaps you should try to enjoy more things that make you feel relaxed."
"So you mean I should call up a hundred or so girls once I get back and have a wild time?"
Tony habitually put on the persona of a playboy to hide his inner vulnerability.
"That is bad behavior; you habitually hide your true self under your armor,"
Mantis shook her head like a caring older sister, then spoke persuasively:
"You should try to show your truest emotions. That's the best way to relax, and I can help you."
While Harry, standing nearby, couldn't help but imagine some inappropriate scenes, Mantis's pupils suddenly dilated until they almost covered her entire eyes.
At that moment, Tony suddenly burst into loud wailing.
The sound was so filled with extreme sorrow that it sounded more like a tragic laugh, giving everyone present goosebumps.
They watched in shock as Tony first cried until he was breathless, then pulled out his phone and frantically poured out his love to Pepper on the other end.
This complete contrast in behavior made them all shudder.
Consequently, the way they looked at Mantis was even more fearful than how they had looked at Wanda before.
This woman is the real monster!
She wouldn't take their lives, but she could cause them social death at any moment.
"Uh..." Harry looked at the heart-wrenchingly sobbing Tony and couldn't help but ask:
"Are you sure he won't kill you once he snaps out of it?"
"Why would he kill me?" Mantis tilted her head innocently, her large eyes filled with confusion.
"You can probably understand it as him not wanting his vulnerable side to be seen by others," Peter explained reasonably.
"Is that so? Earthlings are so strange," Mantis muttered, then placed both hands on Tony's temples:
"Forget everything that just happened."
Tony's sobbing stopped abruptly.
He sniffled and looked at the phone in his hand with a look of utter confusion, not knowing when he had taken it out:
"What just happened?"
"Nothing, nothing!" Everyone waved their hands repeatedly, insisting nothing had happened, while instinctively moving two steps further away from Mantis.
Good grief! Not only would they suffer social death, but they wouldn't even remember how it happened afterward!
Who could handle that!
Noticing their behavior, Mantis puffed her cheeks out like a little bun and asked Peter aggrievedly:
"Do they not like me?"
"Don't worry," Peter gently patted Mantis, then spoke with a profound expression:
"Many of them will likely seek you out for private chats later, and I guarantee they will like you very much."
Just as he spoke, his phone suddenly rang.
Peter pulled out his phone and saw that the caller was Coulson.
"What's up?" Peter put it directly on speakerphone.
"Director, we just received news of a massive explosion in Eastern Europe. Based on our analysis, the underground facility is very likely the HYDRA headquarters in Eastern Europe!"
Hearing this, everyone present immediately forgot about Mantis and turned their eyes to Peter, waiting for him to make a decision.
"Are there any survivors at the scene?" Peter asked.
"None."
Coulson's voice came through the speaker. "Experts judge it was an internal detonation. The explosive yield was equivalent to two hundred tons of TNT. It seems to have happened very suddenly; the entire Base was wiped clean, leaving not a single soul alive."
"Internal detonation?" Daisy's eyes widened instinctively.
"What's this? Warrior spirit? Knowing you'd definitely come after them, they just decided to blow themselves up?"
Harry couldn't help but chime in:
"Man, they're literally giving their lives just to spite you!"
"It's not that simple!" Captain America, however, gave a different answer.
"I know those guys. They're a bunch of lunatics. Under normal circumstances, it's impossible for them to make such a choice!"
"Based on my understanding of them, once they feel they've reached the end of the road, their first choice would definitely be to strap on bombs and take it out on society, not gather together for a mass suicide!"
Hearing this, Gwen couldn't help but add:
"So you mean... they might be cutting off their own tails to survive? Sacrificing a large number of subordinates just to hide the truths they don't want us to find?"
"Most likely!" The Captain gave Gwen an appreciative look.
Then he looked at Peter and said:
"Director, let Bucky and me investigate this. Consider it a way for us to settle a long-standing wish in our hearts."
Peter also felt that HYDRA's actions were definitely not that simple.
But even he couldn't imagine what kind of desperate turnaround those weaklings from HYDRA could pull off in this situation, so he simply ordered:
"In that case, I'll leave it to you. I'll have Agent Coulson take full responsibility for intelligence coordination with you. Also..."
He looked around at everyone present, hesitated for a moment, and then said:
"Natasha, I'll leave it to you to protect them."
The current Natasha, with the boost from the Okuchi no Makami Fruit and the symbiote suit, was no longer the bottom-tier combatant of the Avengers from the original story.
Her current individual combat power was second only to Felicia, who possessed the Ten Rings, and Daisy, who had Quake abilities.
More importantly, Natasha was a teammate Peter cherished. The status bar of Stand United allowed him to monitor her health at all times to determine if she was in danger.
Once Natasha encountered a crisis, Peter could instantly arrive at the scene to provide support!
After seeing the Captain and Natasha off the jet, it just so happened to strike midnight.
A system notification rang in Peter's ear right on time:
"[Countdown reached zero]"
"[Monthly items have refreshed. Welcome, Host, to browse and purchase!]"
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