Arrangements and Gains

"There are always flies getting in the way of us protecting the world!"

Tony snorted and said, "Bert, in a few days, I want to talk to you about Thanos. Next time, the war absolutely cannot happen on Earth again! We need to keep our enemies outside Earth!"

Wang Bert said, "With our current technology, that’ll be difficult unless we take Wakanda."

Tony’s eyes flashed. "Wakanda?"

At that moment, a Quinjet landed. S.H.I.E.L.D. Minister Alexander Pierce walked over with a group of people and said forcefully, "Thank you for defeating the enemy, but now, please hand Loki, the Tesseract, and the Mind Scepter over to us!"

"The Tesseract and the Mind Scepter are my spoils of war!"

Wang Bert looked at Pierce and said flatly, "To avoid any misunderstanding, let me ask you this formally: are you planning to take my spoils of war from me by force?"

Pierce felt an overwhelming chill, but he was no pushover either. He said in a deep voice, "Blood God, the Tesseract belongs to S.H.I.E.L.D.!"

"What does that have to do with me?"

Wang Bert said domineeringly, "I took my Tesseract from Loki, who invaded Earth. It belongs to me now!"

Pierce said unhappily, "Blood God, are you trying to steal something from S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

"No, S.H.I.E.L.D. was the one Loki stole from!"

Wang Bert said, "If you don’t accept that, you can sue me. Of course, you can also make a move, but let me state this in advance: the battle isn’t completely over yet, and the Death Quota in my hands is still valid!"

"Death Quota? That idiot president actually agreed to a condition like that?"

Pierce’s expression turned ugly, but he did not dare stand tough against Wang Bert. He changed the subject. "Then what about Loki? He committed so many crimes. Are you planning to shield him?"

"Don’t try to pin a big label on me!"

Wang Bert snorted. "President Ellis said Loki would be left to him for disposal. Minister Pierce, please remember that this is American territory!"

"President Ellis?"

Pierce gritted his teeth and said, "Blood God, I won’t let this matter go so easily."

Wang Bert said indifferently, "Suit yourself!"

Pierce turned and left angrily. The Blood God was much tougher than before. Nick Fury had been right—the Blood God could not be trusted! Hydra! You won’t be jumping around for much longer!

Wang Bert snorted inwardly. Tony whistled and said, "I’ve wanted to clap back at S.H.I.E.L.D. like that for a long time. But Bert, isn’t it a little inappropriate for someone of your status to be so arrogant?"

"It’s not a problem. I know what I’m doing!"

Wang Bert said, "Enough of that. The war’s over. Let’s go to my manor and celebrate!"

Jessica said excitedly, "I love celebrations! Master, I’m going to drink every bottle of red wine in your cellar!"

Spider-Man said somewhat awkwardly, "Well, this might be a bit of a buzzkill, but there are still a lot of people in the city who need help. I want to go help them!"

Everyone was speechless. Now that he had put it that way, how could they possibly go celebrate?

"Save people first, celebrate afterward. Same difference!"

Wang Bert smiled and said, "Ivan, take Loki and Thor back to my manor first. Thor, we’ll talk in detail later. Oh, tie Loki up so he can’t escape, and gag him too. He’s too disgusting!"

"Definitely!"

Ivan immediately used a machine to gag Loki. Loki could only make muffled noises, but no one paid him any attention.

Thor said to Wang Bert, "Bert, I’ll wait for you. Oh, does your house have, uh, smartphones? I want to video call Jane!"

"Smartphones? Are you sure you’re not insulting me?"

Wang Bert was speechless. He said irritably, "Don’t worry. Not only do I have smartphones, I have holographic projection too. I guarantee you’ll be satisfied!"

After Ivan and the others left, Wang Bert and the others began helping people in the city. Looking at the ruins, everyone fell somewhat silent. Half a day ago, this had still been the most prosperous place on Earth! The Battle of Manhattan had officially come to an end, but the troublesome matters were only beginning: rescue efforts, aftermath management, compensation, accountability, reconstruction, summaries, reflection… all sorts of matters left the government overwhelmed.

Afterward, many people and organizations were condemned. The ones condemned most fiercely were New York City Hall, the White House, S.H.I.E.L.D., and Iron Man!

New York City Hall needed no explanation. Both the mayor and the Police Chief had run away, and furious citizens had nearly stormed the mayor’s home and beaten him to death.

The White House being condemned was only natural. No matter how much President Ellis boasted that America had defeated the aliens, he could not conceal the fact that nearly half of Manhattan had become ruins. Not to mention that the military’s performance had been deeply disappointing!

S.H.I.E.L.D. was condemned largely thanks to Trish Talk. Everyone knew Loki had been brought here by S.H.I.E.L.D.; how could they not curse it? Director Fury was extremely frustrated by this, but he had no time to deal with it now because he had received word that someone was preparing to impeach him!

In the movies, S.H.I.E.L.D. had become famous through this battle and flourished, but in the real world, they did not have such good fortune—they were famous now too, but only infamous! As for why Iron Man was condemned, it was entirely because the greater the expectations, the greater the disappointment. People worshipped Iron Man so much and thought he was omnipotent, yet he had actually been controlled and turned into a puppet. That was far too disappointing, wasn’t it? If they did not curse him out, how could they vent their anger?

Besides being condemned, Tony also had to deal with compensation claims and investigations from all sides. He was utterly miserable!

Some were condemned, so naturally others were praised. For example, the New York Police Department received a great deal of praise this time. Chief George, who had turned the tide at the critical moment, had completely cleared his name and seen his reputation soar. Many people supported his bid for mayor! The ones most praised, without a doubt, were the Super Heroes. This time, they had saved Manhattan, saved New York, and saved humanity! The stock prices of the Osborn Corporation and Watchmen Company soared all the way up, while Super Hero merchandise even sold out. This time, the Super Heroes had truly become wildly popular—not just in New York, but across America and the entire world!

It was worth mentioning that afterward, countless reporters and netizens pressed the Osborn Corporation about what had happened with that divine dragon. The Osborn Corporation did not answer. It only said that the copyright to the divine dragon belonged to them, then unceremoniously began selling divine dragon merchandise.

Leaving that aside for now, at Blood God Manor, Wang Bert handed a beer to the sighing Thor and asked, "Did you argue with Jane?"

Thor drained the beer in one gulp and said, "Jane wants me to go keep her company, but I truly don’t have time. I have to return to Asgard immediately. The Bifrost has been broken, and rebellions have broken out in many places. Bert, Asgard really needs the Tesseract!"

"I know!"

Wang Bert said, "I can lend you the Tesseract. Listen carefully: lend, not give. Once you repair the Bifrost, you must return it to me immediately. I mean immediately!"

"This…"

Thor hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "All right, I promise you!"

Wang Bert looked at Thor and said, "Thor, I trust you, but just in case, I hope you’ll swear an oath!"

"Fine!"

Thor glanced at Wang Bert and swore loudly, "I, Thor Odinson, swear in Odin’s name that once I am done using the Tesseract, I will immediately return it to Bert."

"Good!"

Wang Bert nodded in satisfaction. He was not afraid Thor would refuse to return it, but he was afraid Odin would welch on the debt! Once the matter of the Tesseract had been settled, Thor let out a great sigh of relief. Remembering something, he asked, "Bert, can Loki really not change back?"

Wang Bert nodded. "That’s right. He can’t change back. Thor, this punishment is already the lightest possible one for Loki! If he weren’t your brother, if he weren’t an Asgardian prince, hmph!"

"He truly deserves it."

Thor sighed and said, "Forget it. Once we return, I’ll lock him up. Out of sight, out of mind! Bert, when will you give me the cube?"

"Would you even know how to use it if I gave it to you? Illiterate!"

Wang Bert looked at him disdainfully. "Dr. Selvig and Dr. Banner are researching a miniature device to activate the Tesseract. They’ll have it sorted out within a day or two. Then, as long as you enter Asgard’s spatial coordinates, you can teleport directly back to Asgard!"

Thor said excitedly, "Thank you so much!"

Wang Bert said, "Don’t be in such a hurry. As for Loki, we still need to go through the formalities. No matter what, humanity must be given an explanation!"

Thor asked, "What formalities?"

Wang Bert said, "A trial on Earth, followed by a conviction!"

Thor was somewhat displeased. "An Asgardian prince being tried on Earth?"

Wang Bert asked solemnly, "Thor, do you know how many people died in Manhattan this time? Most of them may have been killed by monsters, but the one who started it all was Loki!"

Thor fell silent. After a moment, he said, "I must return within three days!"

Wang Bert nodded. "All right! Go see Jane. I’ll arrange everything!"

"Thank you!"

Thor said no more. He swung his hammer and flew into the sky.

"That really isn’t very scientific!"

Wang Bert shook his head and turned to go inside.

Inside the house, President Ellis’s holographic projection thanked Wang Bert. "Blood God, thank you so much for this time!"

"I’m part of Earth too!"

Wang Bert smiled, then said, "Mr. President, how do you plan to deal with Loki?"

President Ellis gave a bitter smile. This was a hot potato. He asked, "Blood God, how do you think we should handle him?"

"I suggest trying Loki, convicting him, and then letting Thor take him back to Asgard for punishment!"

Wang Bert said, "That way, we can give the public an explanation without offending Odin!"

President Ellis’s eyes lit up, and he hurriedly asked, "That’s a good method, but will that Thor agree?"

Wang Bert said, "He will, but it needs to be fast. He only plans to stay on Earth for three days!"

"I’ll make arrangements as soon as possible!"

President Ellis said excitedly. Trying an alien, and an alien prince at that, would surely raise his approval rating considerably. After all, this would be the first time in Earth’s history! Then President Ellis remembered something and asked Wang Bert, "Blood God, I heard you have a good relationship with Nick Fury?"

Wang Bert was stunned. "Who told you that? My relationship with him is very ordinary. We don’t even greet each other when we meet!"

"Nick Fury said so. It seems he wanted to use you as a shield!"

President Ellis snorted. Wang Bert was speechless. That bald egg really had no shame, using him to intimidate humanity’s higher-ups?

Wang Bert said, "Mr. President, you don’t need to take me into consideration. I’m not familiar with him at all!"

"Then this will be easy. S.H.I.E.L.D. should have a more capable Director!"

President Ellis nodded and cut off the communication. Then Senator Stern’s holographic projection appeared. He said, "Bert, S.H.I.E.L.D. has been protesting that you took their Tesseract!"

"The Tesseract is mine. I can’t give it to them. If they want the Mind Scepter, though, that can be discussed!"

Wang Bert said. The Mind Scepter had problems, so it was better to let it plague Hydra. Besides, the births of Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, and Vision were all related to the Mind Scepter.

"The Mind Scepter? That works too. What conditions do you have?"

Senator Stern’s eyes lit up. Compared to the Tesseract, the Mind Scepter seemed even more important to Hydra! "I want S.H.I.E.L.D.’s first 084 Item!"

Wang Bert said. 084 was S.H.I.E.L.D.’s designation for unidentified objects, and the first 084 Item was the obelisk Carter had obtained from Whitehall! Senator Stern looked confused. "084? What is that?"

"Pass my words on to S.H.I.E.L.D. They’ll know!"

Wang Bert said, "Senator Stern, I’m only making a deal with them out of respect for you!"

What he meant was, do not push your luck. Senator Stern chuckled and said, "I’ll pass it on to S.H.I.E.L.D.!"

After Senator Stern went offline, Wang Bert thought for a moment and called Carter. "Has Whitehall confessed?"

"Not only has he not confessed, he even tried to persuade me to join Hydra!"

Carter shook her head. Earlier, they had successfully captured Whitehall, but the man had lived for decades. He would not be easy to deal with.

"Then keep working on him!"

Wang Bert said, "Oh, and President Ellis wants to make Nick Fury a scapegoat. I think this is a good opportunity!"

"You mean…?"

Carter thought for a moment and asked, "Are you sure? That man is extremely cunning!"

"Of course I’m sure. I’ll notify you when the time comes!"

Wang Bert put down the phone and sat in his chair, taking stock of the gains from this battle!

The gains from this battle had been quite good. Apart from intangible prestige and money, there had been three major gains!

The first major gain was Absorbing Man’s allegiance. Absorbing Man’s ability was quite useful and could be put to great use.

The second major gain was obtaining the Space Stone. Although it had to be lent out for a while, since Thor had sworn an oath, he would definitely return it in time! As for the third major gain, it was naturally the Chitauri mothership. Wang Bert had hidden it beneath the manor. When he had the chance, he would bring Anton Vanko over to study Chitauri technology.

Although the Chitauri were not particularly powerful, they were still an interstellar civilization. Their starships, Flying Motorcycles, Energy Guns, and energy grenades all had considerable technological value.

Not to mention that they knew how to create bioengineered humans, which would make excellent cannon fodder.

Besides that, Nick Fury’s downfall counted as an unexpected gain. That guy should have retired long ago!

"Next, aside from digesting the gains from this battle, I need to deal with S.H.I.E.L.D. and Wakanda!"

Wang Bert thought for a moment, then called James and instructed, "Get Killmonger under control!"

After hanging up, Wang Bert narrowed his eyes. "T’Chaka, T’Challa, I hope you don’t disappoint me. Otherwise, I’ll have no choice but to use the new ability I developed earlier!"