Chapter 40: The Black Widow Goes Missing

"Then let's talk about that square."

"The square?"

"The one you bombed. As far as I know, it's still under quarantine and lockdown," said Black Widow.

"Uh..." Luke was well aware of what she meant. The aftermath of his last righteous descent still lingered.

Around the square, now a crater from the explosion, plastic barricades had been erected. Every day, soldiers in white hazmat suits went in and out. The news reported on it daily.

A typical explosion wouldn't have caused such a spectacle, but what Luke used was a second-generation grenade mixed with magic crystal powder.

After the blast, the lingering magical energy was obviously detected by the military. Though the residue was faint and unlikely to yield much research, the military would never let such a thing pass. At best, they'd waste their efforts.

"And then there's France—the battle on the highway. You and Stark finished up and walked away, but the French government is now overwhelmed with the aftermath. The French president has filed several stern protests with SHIELD in recent days."

Luke listened, slightly surprised at the extent of his illustrious deeds.

But he insisted, "I never hurt good people. At most, I deal with gangs—never the innocent. You should be looking for the Green Giant, not me."

Black Widow smiled gently and brought up the incident in France where Luke tore apart a plane.

"And how do you explain that? You openly defied national authority—"

Before she could finish, Luke interrupted, "I said during my interview with the French media that it was self-defense. The pilot survived, didn't he?"

"He did."

"There you go," Luke spread his hands.

"But when you threw him out, the altitude was a bit low. His parachute deployed late. The poor pilot broke a leg."

"..." Luke refused to shoulder the blame. "I warned him. I have dashcam footage to prove it!"

"Dashcam?" Black Widow always found the term odd when Luke used it.

Everyone spoke English—why such a gap in expressions?

The dashcam inside Luke's armor had recorded the entire battle, minus the edited confidential details. The rest was sent to French television.

The footage was a treasure trove, broadcast countless times in their news and licensed to major networks like BBC, CNN, and CCTV.

Luke's words at the time—"Follow my example: give a warning in advance. That's humanitarianism."—were now familiar to people all over the world, famous as a catchphrase.

"You must admit, your actions are a challenge to the world order. Not to mention, you've exposed the existence of extraordinary powers to the public, which SHIELD has always tried to prevent."

Black Widow spoke kindly, not as a reprimand.

To her, Luke was like an unruly child suddenly wielding unknown power. Perhaps, as he said, he wasn't a bad person, but Black Widow felt obliged to impart some guidance.

"Exposed? What about Tony?" Luke retorted.

"He's already been warned," Black Widow replied.

Luke scoffed.

Extraordinary powers were commonplace in the Marvel universe. Ordinary people might not encounter them only because the time hadn't come yet.

He wouldn't tell her that in a year or two, the whole world would know about evil aliens. Humanity was never alone.

By then, people would crave more powers for self-defense. Why did the Avengers last so long? Because Earth needed these so-called freaks to protect them.

No point in arguing further. Luke was now thinking about how to deal with Black Widow.

Luke stepped out for a moment.

When he returned, he brought several large panes of tempered glass.

He made no effort to conceal his actions. Under Black Widow's astonished gaze, he summoned these massive glass panels, each several meters wide, from his storage space.

"What are you doing?" Black Widow, still bound to the chair, asked curiously.

She had tried to escape earlier, but failed.

Luke ignored her, directing several robotic arms to quickly assemble a tempered glass room in the center of the warehouse.

Black Widow was transferred into the glass cell.

Luke conducted a thorough search, uncovering a trove of gadgets that left him embarrassed.

Pepper spray and stun guns were child's play.

Lipstick pistol, ear drill, tear gas ball, micro grenades—each more alarming than the last.

Grappling hooks, ropes, folding knives, lockpicks—all hidden in her clothing, even her underwear.

There were also restraints and gag balls... What were those for?

Black Widow watched Luke with a half-smile, saying, "Planning to imprison me?"

"Just limiting your freedom for a few days."

Once he confirmed she was clean, Luke untied her, then stepped back instantly.

He knew Black Widow was formidable. Her capture had been more due to surprise—and the brick attack.

Luke now hailed the brick strike as a divine technique. One blow knocked out even Black Widow, enhanced by the Red Room and possessing resilience. If that wasn't divine, what was?

Everyone who tried it praised it...

"I need to use the restroom," Black Widow said, rubbing her wrist, a half-smile on her lips, showing no intention of attacking.

Luke tossed her something.

Black Widow caught it, then stared in confusion. "What's this?"

"A stainless steel basin."

"......"

"Handle it yourself." Luke left the glass cell and locked the door.

Black Widow gritted her teeth, cursing, "Damn brat!"

During the search, Luke was very proper, but some contact was unavoidable.

Throughout, he looked upright and calm, but his heart raced. Black Widow didn't think much of it.

But making her use a steel basin... That was intolerable!

For several days, SHIELD lost contact with Black Widow.

She was supposed to check in every other day but missed two windows. It was clear she was captured, perhaps worse.

Pepper was also baffled—her new secretary had skipped work so soon?

At SHIELD headquarters, Fury knew well that Black Widow's disappearance was likely tied to her mission.

Intelligence said Tony had locked himself in his lab recently, even Pepper couldn't see him. Excluding Tony, there was only one possibility left.

Fury, face dark, pondered for a while, then picked up the phone.

Hawkeye, enjoying family time at home, was summoned to headquarters with a single call from Fury.