Chapter 98: Agent Mei's Fear of Naughty Children

The situation had briefly spiraled out of control. Yet, in the end, it was brought back under control, the misunderstanding cleared up, and nothing happened that Lotus would have found pleasing.

However, the warehouse was destroyed.

When Luke woke up this morning, he never would have dreamed that those troublesome kids would tear the place apart today.

The devastation of the warehouse was beyond mere words: the roof was gone, vanished without a trace, leaving the warehouse exposed to the open air. On the ground, various pieces of equipment lay smashed to bits, scattered in disarray everywhere. Tables and chairs were almost completely ruined, their oddly shaped remains piled haphazardly.

The entire scene looked as if it had been ravaged by a category four typhoon.

Most of the damage was caused by Crystal’s magic.

Luke’s feelings could no longer be described as mere surprise; he was utterly shocked.

In just a few seconds, Crystal alone had unleashed four types of magic—fire, frost, air, and earth.

Dazzled and overwhelmed, Luke barely had time to organize his thoughts, and before he knew it, the warehouse had turned into this ruin.

Fortunately, the misunderstanding had been cleared up. Agent Mate was no fool; she was the first to lower her gun, allowing Luke to quickly explain the situation.

Upon learning it was all a misunderstanding, Crystal’s face flushed with embarrassment.

She blushed as she apologized and offered to make amends.

“Compensation?” Luke was momentarily taken aback, then turned to the snowman Christina with displeasure. “What kind of tetanus? Huh? What kind of tetanus?”

“Master, I was wrong...” Christina tearfully conceded.

Crystal was terrified. She quickly said, “You can’t be compensated with tetanus! But... but...” Her anxious and conflicted expression was quite endearing as she racked her brain for what she could offer Luke as recompense.

Luke waved his hand magnanimously. “Don’t worry about it, Crystal. Although the warehouse is destroyed and my loss is huge—huge enough to break my heart—well, I believe you didn’t do it on purpose. If it really can’t be helped, then let it be.”

“How can that be?” Crystal’s pretty face stiffened, her voice firm and resolute. “The Inhumans never refuse to admit their mistakes. This is my fault. I will compensate you and make sure you’re satisfied!”

Just what Luke was waiting to hear. He scratched his head and smiled, “That’s very kind of you.”

“Rest assured, I’m the one in charge of this matter. I will take care of it.” Crystal’s regal demeanor was genuine; in Attilan, her status was highly respected. The Inhumans valued strength above all, and what she had just demonstrated spoke volumes.

Crystal’s face turned serious as she declared, “I’ll go back now and handle this. Wait for me.”

Without waiting for Luke’s reply, Crystal grabbed Tetanus and teleported away in front of everyone.

What a whirlwind of a young lady, Luke chuckled.

He wasn’t about to turn down a gift like this. It seemed the time had come to extort some compensation from the Inhumans. With that thought, Luke pointed at the roofless warehouse and said to the snowman Christina, “Assistant, smash it! The more destroyed, the better!”

“As you command, Master!” Christina shouted.

Suddenly, the Warlord revealed himself; with a single punch, a wall of the warehouse crumbled instantly, dust billowing everywhere...

Nearby, the little spider’s mouth hung wide open, filled with admiration for Luke.

“So cool. Where will we stay now?”

“Can’t help it; we’ll have to lie low for a few days. You can come to my place. I’ll find someone to talk to about post-disaster reconstruction.”

Agent Mate left without a word.

It seemed she had been quite shaken by the experience.

Luke hadn’t expected that Agent Mate, on her very first day, would come to him asking to resign.

“Commander, I request a transfer!”

Agent Mate had practically barged into Commander Egg’s office and blurted out those words.

Since returning, she had developed a severe fear of troublesome kids.

Now, just thinking about children between the ages of seven and thirteen made her scalp tingle, followed by headaches, dizziness, and nausea—a strong physical reaction, even though she knew it was mostly psychological.

No matter what, she refused to stay with Luke any longer. There were just too many rambunctious kids there. Why hadn’t the intelligence bureau warned her? What had Hawkeye been doing lately? Damn it!

“State your reasons,” Commander Egg asked calmly from behind his desk, clad in his black trench coat.

After hearing her explanation, Egg’s decision was clear: denied. She was to return to her post.

Agent Mate felt as if the sky had fallen.

She thought of Coulson.

It was all his fault! She cursed him a hundred times in her heart: Coulson, go to hell! I’ve had enough!

There was cause and effect here; Shield had to take responsibility for the collapse of Luke’s warehouse this time.

Luke made a call to Egg, and after a stern protest, Egg reassured him that Shield would fully fund the reconstruction of the warehouse.

Egg even offered to help Luke pick a better location, but Luke declined.

His reason was simple: he was already used to this place.

So Egg went ahead and bought the land, and Shield became the owner of the warehouse, suddenly turning into Luke’s landlord.

When Luke learned this, he just snorted.

He knew all too well what Egg was up to. He couldn’t be bothered to argue.

He wasn’t going to stay in this warehouse forever; the limited space would constrain his future growth. Once the Warlord rose even higher, this warehouse simply wouldn’t suffice.

In fact, he had already asked Christina to help him choose a small island near the East Coast.

Once he earned enough money, he planned to buy that island.

Then, humph... far from prying eyes, he could conduct nuclear experiments there without anyone interfering.

With the warehouse matters left to Christina, Luke returned home.

“Luke, when are you going out to stir things up?” Lotus was displeased with the current calm atmosphere. If not for Luke’s intervention today, it would have been delighted. It didn’t care whose warehouse got wrecked; it had only one goal: to cause a commotion.

“What’s the rush?” Luke replied irritably.

It was all this guy’s fault. He had said, “This is a trap,” which instantly made the atmosphere tense, ultimately leading to the warehouse’s destruction. Apart from Christina’s adventuring group, Luke would have to halt operations for several days.

“Right now, the storylines of Iron Man 2 and Thor have concluded. Soon, the watershed event of Phase One in the Marvel Universe will begin: the Avengers saga. When that happens, are you still worried about not getting a chance to make a move?”

“Tell me more!” Lotus perked up instantly.

“Well, it all starts with the Avengers organization. Egg, do you remember? The guy you said you liked—dark, brooding, with a black heart? He’s the one who orchestrated its formation.”

Luke explained, “The organization’s grand purpose is to defend Earth. But in reality, Egg wanted a strong private army to do his dirty work, like fighting Hydra. You ask what Hydra is? Let me think... it all begins with a remarkable man named Steve Rogers...”

“I know him!” Lotus said solemnly, as if facing a formidable enemy. “I remember you said he’s fifty-fifty against anyone, no matter how strong.”

“Fifty-fifty? Something like that,” Luke nodded thoughtfully. “But for a fifty-fifty matchup, I only respect Kamijou Touma.”

“Who?”

“Never mind. He’s not from this world,” Luke smiled. “As for Captain America, his shield is the real deal; he himself is just peak human. But when it comes to dating younger women, even his niece, Cap easily ranks in the top three. You can’t help but admire him...”

That night, Luke recounted to Lotus all the opportunities for stirring up trouble to come, leaving it thoroughly satisfied, its beastly blood boiling with excitement.