Blaine had the skill [Mind Reading], so naturally, he could read what the two of them were thinking, and he couldn't help but laugh.
Damn, as expected of Shadow Stealth.
Mysterious and eerie.
One person recognized him but didn't dare admit it, while the other directly thought he was an alien.
Nick Fury and Natasha, upon hearing his words, as if struck by the same realization at the same time, exclaimed in unison, "Bounty Hunter?!"
"That's me."
Blaine stepped out from the shadows and domineeringly sat down in Nick Fury's director's chair, teasingly saying, "Put down your guns. Weren't you the ones who hired me? I'm not afraid—what are you scared of?"
Scared of what?
Of you, of course!
Sure, we did hire you—but who knew you had such bizarre abilities?
Nick Fury grumbled in his heart but kept a calm expression as he lowered his handgun. Of course, he stayed ready to fire at any moment.
Natasha did the same.
Neither of them were fools who'd just put down their weapons because of a few words.
If they were that stupid, they'd have died countless times already.
Nick Fury stared at Blaine in thought.
The Shadow Stealth technique Blaine just displayed had left a deep psychological shadow on him.
Let's put it this way:
What would you feel if you suddenly learned that someone could silently emerge from a shadow, undetected even by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents? Even if the odds of being the target were low, you'd still lose sleep over it—might even get scared just seeing shadows, right?
That's more or less how Nick Fury felt. Especially someone in his position—many people wanted him dead. If someone with that ability were hired for an assassination, they'd really have no way to stop it…
He must not be allowed to do evil. If recruitment fails, they still can't afford to offend him!
Also, from now on, he'd need to be extremely cautious around shadows.
Blaine read all these thoughts in Nick Fury's mind and smiled subtly but didn't expose him. "What's wrong? Got a lot of time on your hands right now?"
"Oh, right!" Nick Fury snapped back to reality.
Now wasn't the time to be overthinking—there was still a huge grey-brown monster rampaging outside.
Whatever else could wait.
The priority was dealing with the current crisis.
"Bounty Hunter, huh? What's your name?" Nick Fury asked in a deep voice.
"Blaine."
"Mr. Blaine… Were are you from?" Nick Fury's eyes gleamed slightly.
"You seem to be overstepping, Nicholas Joseph "Nick" Fury."
Blaine chuckled, and Nick Fury's heart skipped a beat.
In the Marvel movies, Nick Fury's name often graces the big screen. But in reality, the name of the S.H.I.E.L.D. director was treated with more secrecy than most classified documents!
Nick Fury exhaled and suppressed the unease in his heart. "Alright then, let's talk compensation, Mr. Blaine."
"I believe you already understand why we hired you."
"We want you to take down that monstrous creature rampaging through Manhattan, New York."
"And once the job is done, you'll receive a bounty of three hundred million."
If it had been before, Blaine might have agreed immediately.
After all, 300 million was pretty tempting—his total earnings from previous missions didn't even come close to half of that.
But now things were different. He had the skill [Mind Reading], and his strength far surpassed Nick Fury's. He could clearly read his inner thoughts.
While Fury was saying all that...
Here's what was actually going on in his mind:
[Nick Fury: 'Based on what Natasha reported the other day, 100 million was enough to buy a brand-new element unknown to Earth. This guy probably isn't that high-level. Three hundred million should be more than enough.']
Blaine looked at the way Fury's face twisted into that 'painful struggle' expression, as if this 300 million were being torn out of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s flesh—and couldn't help but sigh.
Damn, all these agents are real actors. Natasha is one, and you, you bastard Fury, are another.
These agents are nothing but schemers, always looking to screw others over.
As he mused over this, he fell silent for a moment.
Fury mistook that silence as him seriously considering it.
Wanting to give him a push, he gripped his gun tightly and said, "Mr. Blaine, the 300 million will be transferred to your account immediately after the mission is complete."
[Nick Fury: 'From the looks of it, 300 million should be enough to get him to act. Whew… trading 300 million for eliminating that monster is well worth it. Otherwise, if the UN decides to deploy heavy weaponry, the damages in New York could exceed billions—and that's not counting the loss of agents, SWAT, and civilians.']
Blaine let out a cold laugh. "Nick Fury, I know your every thought."
"1 billion. I won't take the mission for a cent less. Three hundred million can't even tempt someone as 'low-level' as me. Don't waste your breath."
By reading Nick Fury's mind, he could tell that 1 billion was probably S.H.I.E.L.D.'s absolute bottom line. Running an organization as massive as S.H.I.E.L.D. must burn through endless funds.
And all of it came from the top.
That 1 billion was likely the absolute most they could offer.
Otherwise, not just the higher-ups—even Nick Fury himself would probably rather authorize heavy weapons.
Regardless, Blaine was determined to spread his wings right at the edge of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s limit.
After all, without [Mind Reading], he really might've been scammed by Fury.
The gap between 300 million and 1 billion was 700 million—a full six times what Blaine had earned up to now.
At the same time, he was grateful.
Good thing he bought that [Mind Reading] skill.
It only cost ten million, and it had already earned him a return of 700 million. That's more than just a good deal—it was a god-tier investment.
Trying to scam me? Then I'll bleed you dry!
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