章 101: Chapter 101: The Lucky Star of the Timid Brother

"Miraculous Healing" was the phrase Clark had inscribed on a banner he once gave to T'Challa, and he had quite the time explaining its profound meaning to the latter. Seeing these words again, Clark could only think of three words: What a mess!

After trying on the cloak and looking at himself in the mirror, he felt a surge of superhero vibes. As for the back...

Cough cough, let's not sweat the details. A bit of paint to cover it up should do the trick.

Testing the Kimoyo Beads and the cloak, he was thoroughly pleased with their functionalities, which even brought him some pleasant surprises.

Now, if a worthy opponent were to appear, it would be perfect to test the cloak's power.

Should he head to Hell's Kitchen to practice on some thugs? The thought barely crossed his mind before Clark decisively dismissed it.

Hell's Kitchen was Daredevil's territory, which had become quite peaceful under his watch, making it not so easy to find thugs.

Thinking about trying out the gear in the backyard's training area, he worried about disturbing others.

"Knock! Knock! Knock!"

As Clark was indecisively pondering, someone suddenly knocked on his door. It was Sharon Carter.

"Why haven't you left?"

Impression points from Sharon Carter ＋456!

What do you mean why haven't I left? Do you even know how to converse? Despite her years of training as a special agent, Sharon maintained a polite smile, "I just drove everyone home and was chatting with Hope. I was about to leave. Seeing you've returned, I thought to say hello. Aren't you going to invite me in?"

Noticing her glance at the red cloak, Clark swiftly took it off and casually brushed off her inquiry, "No need to sit down. It's late, and it's not proper for men and women. Since you have nothing else, you should rest early."

Impression points from Sharon Carter ＋789!

Sharon was initially hoping to get closer to Clark and probe for information, but his dismissiveness made her lose interest.

Luckily, she went straight to the point, "I received a call from an agent named Coulson, asking me to inquire about something on his behalf."

"Why didn't he call me himself?"

"He said he doesn't have your number."

Nonsense! If you have my number, how could he not?

However, Clark didn't call her out but directly asked, "What is it?"

Sharon gestured for silence and thoughtfully spoke, "He wanted me to inform you that the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division has been renamed to S.H.I.E.L.D."

"Oh?" Clark gave Sharon a meaningful look, "You have a good memory, remembering such a complicated name. But did he call just to tell you this?"

"Of course not," Sharon replied seriously. "He sent me a document, asking for your opinion on it."

After fiddling with her phone, she handed it to Clark, who saw a medical record.

"90-Year-Old Man Poisoned by Gamma Rays, Investigation Reveals Accidental Consumption of Imported Brazilian Beverage"

Below the title was a photo of an elderly man lying in bed, looking peaceful.

"Received impression points from the cosmic will, automatically converted into 'Random BGM Lottery Card' one piece!"

Clark was startled by the sudden system notification.

Really? It seems the cosmic will is indeed omnipresent.

After reading the report, Clark handed back the phone, "This is just a monster accidentally created by the military while researching the super soldier serum, like Captain America's. It's their own fault. By the way, is that old man okay?"

"He's fine." Sharon's interest wasn't in the old man. After a brief reply, she asked, "Can you explain in more detail?"

"I think they should focus on investigating the internals of S.H.I.E.L.D.," Clark suggested.

Having received a 'Random BGM Lottery Card,' Clark realized keeping Sharon around might be beneficial as she seemed to bring him luck.

For example, Tony's incident and now this document. Without her timely intervention, the former could have caused him trouble, and he might have missed out on a BGM.

To thank her and to make her feel needed, Clark decided to share a small spoiler: "For instance, there might be Hydra's presence within S.H.I.E.L.D."

Sharon nearly dropped her phone, "Wasn't Hydra eradicated by Captain America during World War II?"

"Not so easily," Clark shook his head. "It's a vast organization; Red Skull was just a representative, not the entirety."

Sharon was anxious, "Do you know the names of Hydra agents within S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

"How would I know?" Clark rolled his eyes but then counted on his fingers, "Nick Fury, Phil Coulson, Natasha Romanoff, Maria Hill, Sharon Carter..."

With each name, Sharon tensed, but upon hearing her own name, she relaxed, knowing she wasn't Hydra.

This guy was just messing with her! But then, Clark suddenly changed his tone, "None of these!"

Impression points from Sharon Carter ＋666!

"Boss, don't use the process of elimination for this."

Clark shrugged, "I only know a few people in S.H.I.E.L.D. I was just joking about the last few names, don't mind them."

He wasn't joking at all!

Sharon was sure of it, so she bid farewell to Clark and immediately called Nick Fury upon leaving.

After hearing Sharon's report, Fury's expression darkened.

If Clark knew only a few people in S.H.I.E.L.D., and none were Hydra according to his elimination, it meant if S.H.I.E.L.D. was infiltrated by Hydra, they weren't among those Clark knew.

Though uncertain, Fury couldn't ignore this and decided to investigate secretly.

___________________

Read Ahead

Patreon.com/INNIT