Chapter 1480: Reward and Grudge

Phil couldn’t help but walk around the virtual 3D projection a few times. He couldn’t hide the satisfaction on his face. “Not bad, not bad at all.”

Luke finally said, “Of course. This is the only two-model Thousand Faces System.”

As he spoke, his gaze was fixed on the shiny forehead of the second model. I’ll keep this feature for you. You don’t have to thank me.

Phil turned around. “Remove Thousand Faces System.”

The nanomaterial quickly turned back into that translucent mask. He took it off and solemnly put it back in the box. “Thank you.”

Luke gestured for him to sit down before he said, “No need. This is a business transaction.”

Phil’s expression changed. “What do you want?”

Luke said, “If you find some Hydra people but can’t do anything about them, please let me do it.”

Phil frowned. “I’m afraid that isn’t possible.”

Luke chuckled. “No, just tell Nick Fury what I said when you go back.”

Phil was relieved.

He indeed couldn’t make the decision, and could only refuse.

If it was just passing on a message to Nick Fury, he was happy to help. If appropriate, he could even persuade Nick Fury to accept at least some of the conditions.

Phil didn’t know how many Hydra people there were inside SHIELD.

But his current investigation wasn’t optimistic at all.

After half a month, he actually couldn’t lock onto a target.

It wasn’t that he didn’t have any suspects, but that there was no evidence to suggest that there was something wrong with them.

Nick Fury was in a lot of trouble right now, and there weren’t many people he could trust. If Batman was willing to help for free, Phil was tempted.

Pondering for a moment, he ventured, “You don’t have any other requests?”

Luke tapped the bar counter. “Hydra targeted Batman, so I’m targeting them. This is the best reward for me.”

Phil was speechless. Sure enough, this guy was petty.

On this point, a lot of bigshots had no doubt.

There was no need to gather related intelligence; the fate of those who had provoked Batman was enough to prove this point.

Previously, when public opinion had turned against Batman, it was the mother and daughter who had come out of it the least unscathed — at the very least, they could live in a different city and wait for the public to slowly forget.

Other forces had suffered.

Anybody who had taken part in this matter would have a black mark on their record; it would be difficult for them to climb higher in the future.

At worst, they would be sent to a secret prison for interrogation. After confessing everything, they would be locked up for decades.

The unlucky fellows wouldn’t even be interrogated before they were killed.

According to Batman, the people who had used public opinion to attack him were part of Hydra.

Phil had yet to find any leads on Hydra from these people, but Batman was free to bear a grudge against Hydra.

He couldn’t care less.

Hearing Luke’s words, he relented. “If that’s the case, we should be able to talk. I’ll try to give you a reply as soon as possible.”

Luke nodded. “That’s all I want, so you better tell me if you have big news. Don’t hide all the information.”

Phil finally smiled bitterly. “We’re not that stupid.”

Luke chuckled. “No, I’m afraid that Nick Fury is too smart and wants to close the net in one go, so he’d cut me out of the loop.”

Phil fell silent.

He could guarantee that the director would definitely do that.

Luke said, “Help me remind him that if he cuts off one head, two will grow. Hydra isn’t something that can be taken down just once or twice.”

Phil nodded silently.

Luke said, “Tell him to be careful. When he uncovers Hydra’s big secret, Hydra will be the one to kill him. A dead SHIELD director won’t be able to solve the Hydra problem.”

Phil nodded again, but didn’t think much of it. Kill Nick Fury? You don’t know how “dead” he can get.

From what Phil knew, his director had “died” three times, and yet still firmly held the director’s position.

Contrary to Phil’s thoughts, Luke knew that Nick Fury wouldn’t die so easily.

This guy was too paranoid. Killing him wasn’t any easier than killing Batman.

This was just doing him a small favor. After the director was shot, he would remember this warning.

What if he wasn’t shot? That was impossible.

People like Nick Fury had either already been blacklisted or were going to be.

It was only a matter of time before he was shot.

At that point, Luke pointed at the box and said, “Put this on before you go out. I think it’ll be easier to fool people with Model 1. There’s another compartment at the bottom of the box with two Life Daggers and two Life 1s.”

Phil looked conflicted. “I don’t think I have the money to buy them.”

“It’s for you,” Luke said. “Don’t work too hard. The next time it happens, you might not survive.”

Phil smiled bitterly. “Alright, I’ll try my best.”

In fact, without the two life-saving things provided by Batman, he really would have died right away at Loki’s hands.

Fortunately, Loki had looked down on Earthlings at the time. After Phil was stabbed in the heart, he was able to say a few words before he blasted Loki out of the Helicarrier with an energy gun.

The mechanical gloves Phil had been wearing sensed an abnormal change in his pulse, and immediately injected him with Life 1.

When Nick Fury arrived and found Phil heavily injured but not dead, he immediately used his dagger to help heal the wound. Only then did Phil survive.

Putting the Thousand Faces mask back on his face, Phil hesitated for a moment before he said, “Activate Model 2.”

He turned into an ordinary-looking middle-aged man again, then nodded at Luke. “I’m too busy, so I’ll take my leave first. I’ll try to give you a reply tomorrow.”

Luke nodded and got up. “Okay. I’ll see you out.”

When they reached the door, Phil quickly pressed a few buttons on his clothes and didn’t forget to explain to Luke, “Some tracking devices. It’s best to turn them off when I’m out like this.”

Luke nodded and didn’t say anything.

After the yacht stopped and the door opened, Phil stepped onto the pier and waved goodbye at Luke before he quickly left.

The door closed swiftly and the yacht sped away.

After walking dozens of meters, Phil turned around and looked at the yacht that had disappeared in the rain. He couldn’t help but sigh.

He had thought about it for some time before turning off the trackers.

What should he tell Nick Fury when he went back this time?

If it were anyone else, he wouldn’t be so hesitant.

However, Batman wasn’t their enemy. He was half an ally, and had saved his life.

Now that Batman had given him these things, Phil was truly full of doubts. Was Batman related to that old friend of his? Otherwise, there really was no need for him to be so generous.

He wasn’t stupid.

It made more sense to bribe Nick Fury than to bribe him.

Batman, on the other hand, had never met Nick Fury and had clearly indicated that theirs was just a business relationship. On the other hand, he was too nice to Phil.

Come to think of it, these things were for preserving Phil’s life.

Apart from some old friends, nobody else would have the time or the ability to care about him.

Then, who on earth was that person?