Senior Brother, Master has been captured by a demon!

Watching his own body hurtling toward the window, Jos seemed to see himself smashed into a bloody pulp. Yet, unexpectedly, he felt no fear at all. After all, before his transmigration, he had prepared himself for death many years ago; to be reborn once was a rare stroke of luck, and even if he were to die at this moment, he could not bring himself to feel sorrow.

Strangely enough, the girl's expression was even more intense than Jos's. Her eyes, round beneath the hood, were wide with terror. Perhaps she merely meant to kick Jos aside, but her chosen direction was ill-advised, and events had taken an unforeseen turn.

In the very next instant, the girl dashed toward Jos with a speed so explosive that she caught his ankle before he could approach the window, then forcefully flung him backward. Yet after this, she herself lost control of her body. The inertia from her sudden burst sent her crashing through the glass and hurtling out of the building, even faster than Jos.

Clearly, the girl was sent to capture him, most likely connected to Jason or the remnants of Hydra behind him. And yet, at the crucial moment, she risked her life to save him.

Everything happened so swiftly that Jos's mind could not keep pace; he had not yet processed what had happened, nor why the girl had acted as she did.

But his body responded faster than his thoughts. Without hesitation, he reached out and grabbed her ankle, just as she had done for him.

Whatever her intentions, whatever her motives, since she saved him, he could not stand by and let her die.

Though it feels lengthy in the telling, all of this transpired in less than two seconds. Yet as Jos grasped her ankle, he felt a terrifying force pulling them both toward the void.

Under her hood, the girl's eyes were filled with confusion, as if she could not fathom why he would do such a thing.

But she understood that if things continued, both of them would plummet to their deaths.

There was no time to act further; she could only watch as Jos held her foot, and they were carried by her momentum toward the window.

"Stop the horse!" Jos suddenly shouted a cryptic command, so startling that the girl's porcelain-doll face nearly cracked under the shock.

In the next moment, Jos and all the inertia and kinetic energy around him vanished, and their bodies dropped straight to the floor in a manner so unscientific it would infuriate Bruce Banner, the physics Ph.D.

"Stop the horse"—when in any state of movement, simply shouting "Stop the horse" would instantly halt all motion.

Before Jos could recover, the girl he had pulled back landed atop him, sitting squarely on his stomach.

Jos and the girl, who had raised her head from his arms, met each other's gaze. Now that they had finally stopped, both fell silent.

Regardless of what had happened before, in that fleeting moment, each had risked their life for the other, making the atmosphere suddenly strange.

"Can you let go of my foot now?" After a while, a hoarse voice broke the silence, reminding Jos that his hand was still tightly gripping her small foot. He quickly released his fingers.

"I was trying to save you," Jos muttered, pursing his lips.

"I don't recall asking for your help," the girl replied, her cold face showing a hint of a smile. "Besides, even if you hadn’t acted, I wouldn’t have had any problem."

Before she finished speaking, Jos saw a pair of bat wings unfold behind her. Even without her saying a word, he could read her thoughts from her expression.

"Surprised? I can fly!"

He had hoped this would earn her leniency, but now Jos realized his only chance had slipped away.

"So, can you come with me now?"

Though phrased as a question, Jos knew this was an order he could not refuse.

...

"Did you learn anything, Nick?"

Inside Stark Tower, the Avengers and Nick Fury, the head of S.H.I.E.L.D., were conferring.

There were not many present; aside from Steve, Tony, and Black Widow—those Jos had met—only Hawkeye was here. The whereabouts of Thor and Banner remained unknown.

Nick Fury nodded at Steve’s question and tapped the screen, projecting a slew of documents.

S.H.I.E.L.D. had no shortage of agents, and interrogation was their specialty. Unlike the Avengers, Fury had no qualms about employing such methods.

"The situation is dire. You should take a look at this," Fury said, pointing to the screen.

"I investigated those who recommended Jason: his instructors, his examiners. The results were not good... These people are highly likely to be Hydra remnants. But to avoid alerting them, we haven’t taken action yet."

Fury’s face was dark—though it always was—but now his expression was particularly grim. "It’s certain that quite a few Hydra agents have infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D."

A secret that would normally be uncovered only when S.H.I.E.L.D. was on the brink of collapse had now been exposed early.

Seeing the shock on the faces of Captain America and the others, Fury shook his head and continued, "But that isn’t the worst part. The truly grave problem is that there’s a Hydra remnant base right here in New York City!"

"What?!" All but Natasha, who already knew, were so stunned they nearly jumped out of their seats.

Things hidden right under their noses were not rare, but for the enemy to set up shop in their own backyard without their knowledge was truly frightening.

"Relax. It’s called a base, but it’s likely just a small group of a few dozen people. It might not even be closely connected to Hydra." Fury was expressionless, offering only a mild reassurance.

"So, did you discover anything else?" Tony asked, frowning.

Fury nodded. "It was too easy. A bit of questioning and he spilled everything. Either this group is too weak, or it’s a trap set for you."

Steve nodded in understanding. "I see... So our main task is to root out the moles; we’ll leave the base alone for now."

Fury clapped his hands in agreement. Steve’s strategic mind was always reliable, and Fury had no objections.

"As the Captain said, right now we—"

"Nick... Just got word: Jos has been taken, probably by Hydra." Natasha, holding her phone, looked at Fury with a complicated expression.