In the sky, Blaine finally spread his spiritual seeds throughout the city, ensuring that every active robot within range was marked.
At that moment, a brilliant white light flashed beneath the hood of the Hunter suit. It shone from Blaine's eyes—pure spiritual power radiating outward.
Right then, Blaine resembled a predator that had locked onto its prey. His sharp gaze fixed upon his target, and in the next instant, the beast pounced. The prey was already his.
The moment Blaine looked up, explosions erupted across Sokovia. The spiritual seeds detonated simultaneously as Blaine unleashed his psychic energy.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The endless chain of explosions filled the air. The entire city blazed and roared as if celebrating the New Year—fireworks and thunder echoing from every corner.
Hovering high above, Blaine watched from midair. Every street, every skyscraper, every shadowed alley flashed with bursts of light like a thousand flash bombs.
He couldn't help but feel a strange sense of beauty. The sight was so magnificent it could rival a blockbuster film—absolutely breathtaking.
The detonations continued for five full minutes, a testament to how many of Ultron's drones still filled the city. But by the time the explosions ceased, Ultron's entire robotic army had been reduced to scrap, scattered across Sokovia. The battle was finally over.
"It's time to call it a day."
Looking down at his handiwork, Blaine smiled, satisfied, and teleported to the ground in the next instant.
"Oh my God! Mr. Hunter really does have extraordinary skills…"
Tony's armored hand was still raised midair. Moments earlier, he had fired a repulsor blast, and the resulting chain reaction had set off a citywide detonation. For a second, he thought he'd caused it—and was baffled by how his blast had suddenly become so powerful.
But when the Bounty Hunter landed in front of him, Tony immediately realized the truth.
Not that it diminished his admiration. Blaine's strength was something Tony could only dream of. This was what set Bounty Hunters apart. Once upon a time, Tony had wanted to reach that level. He'd designed armor after armor, changed models, upgraded systems—each time believing he was getting closer—only for reality to crush that illusion. The man before him was like an immovable mountain.
"He's gotten stronger again," Tony murmured. "I can't afford to fall behind."
That was his deepest thought.
Under his hood, Blaine smiled faintly. With his mind-reading ability, he didn't need to guess what Tony was thinking—but he kept it to himself. Still a good friend, after all.
"Roar!"
Not far away, Hulk bellowed furiously, as if shouting, 'What the hell happened? Why did everything blow up—and mess up my face?' His glare made it clear who he blamed.
Hulk pointed directly at Blaine, fuming but unable to do anything about it.
Seeing Hulk's singed, blackened face—his once-green skin now an odd shade—Blaine couldn't help laughing. The brute had apparently been holding a robot when the explosion went off, and by the time it detonated, Hulk had taken the full blast himself.
"Add your five billion—fifty-five billion total. I expect it in my account within three days."
Leaving those words behind, Blaine vanished from Tony's sight.
"Well, no problem," Tony said calmly.
To most, fifty-five billion would be unimaginable wealth—what they couldn't earn in eight lifetimes. But to Tony, it was pocket change. If a problem could be solved with money, it wasn't a problem at all.
"Disappeared again. Teleportation? Definitely straight out of a comic book," Tony muttered, staring at the spot where Blaine had been.
With the crisis over, his focus shifted to the next problem—finding a way to bring Sokovia back down safely.
Meanwhile, Blaine reappeared aboard the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier.
In one of the briefing rooms, Nick stood before a massive screen, reviewing battle data and casualty reports.
The numbers weren't good. Sokovia was in ruins. Even if the city could be brought down safely, the overall losses were catastrophic—tens of billions, at least. Over eighty percent of the buildings were destroyed, with massive property damage and heavy civilian casualties. Hulk's collateral damage alone had made things worse.
After this battle, not only would the Avengers need time to recover, but Fury's own position as Director might be in jeopardy. Public and political pressure would be immense. Even the media could turn the tide against the heroes, painting them as destroyers rather than saviors.
He had hoped people would celebrate the Avengers' victory—but instead, critics and rumor-mongers were already stirring chaos online. Soon, the team could be branded as murderers who brought destruction to Earth.
The only bright side was that the Bounty Hunter had been hired beforehand. Without him, the death toll might have been far worse.
"As long as you understand that," came a cold voice from behind. "The job's done. Don't forget to pay."
The sudden sound made Fury's heart jolt. He considered himself a man with nerves of steel, but every time this Bounty Hunter appeared out of nowhere, he felt that familiar tightness in his chest.
"When did you get here, Mr. Hunter?"
"Just now," Blaine replied casually. "Why's the Director of S.H.E.I.L.D. staring off into space? Something on your mind?"
Without waiting for an answer, Blaine dropped lazily into Fury's chair.
As a traveler familiar with Marvel's storyline, Blaine could already guess what was weighing on Fury's mind. His mind-reading ability confirmed it easily. The man's worries were split between self-interest and duty—fear of losing his position, and fear of losing the Avengers.
After all, without Earth's mightiest heroes, the world would be left defenseless, and evil would rise unchecked.
Of course, Blaine couldn't care less. If not for his system's rules, he might have offered a suggestion: 'If the Avengers are gone, so what? Just pay me, and I'll handle it.'
That was just his private thought, though. In truth, hiring Blaine long-term would bankrupt any nation. Even the entire annual income of the United States wouldn't be enough to sustain him alone.
*************************************
You can get access to early chapters on patr*on
If you like my work and you want to support me then you can become my patron on patre*n.
My patr*on account is Lord_Immortal_0170