Chapter 198: Attacked
By the riverside.
The night was enchanting, a gentle breeze flowing, neon lights flickering across the city skyline on both banks.
"This can't get out. Whatever happened today, you have to keep it a secret when we go back."
Skye lifted a slender, snow-white finger and pressed it lightly against Xi Nian's lips, lips that still carried the faint warmth and softness from earlier.
"No problem."
Xi Nian suddenly had the urge to bite down playfully, but he restrained himself.
Skye gently wiped away the smudge of lipstick at the corner of the boy's mouth. Realizing her words and her actions both seemed to stray far from her usual agent-like composure, she quickly pulled her hand back as if startled, turning her face aside.
The last glow of the sunset brushed across her perfect profile, before fading back into her usual cold, indifferent beauty.
"What do we do next?"
Xi Nian thought for a moment and left the choice to Skye. It suited the role of the high school student he was playing.
Skye considered, then said, "First I need to contact S.H.I.E.L.D. to confirm the situation. Those men attacked right in the middle of the city, even targeting the Director's personal car. And with the Winter Soldier showing up… this wasn't some ordinary organization."
"Wait a sec." Xi Nian blinked. "Did you say… the Director's car?"
"Yes. When I left S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters this morning, I switched cars with the Director in the parking garage…"
Her words froze. Skye's beautiful eyes widened bit by bit.
"No way."
She hadn't overlooked this earlier—she simply never considered it possible. Who would dare make a move against the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in broad daylight? She had dismissed the thought without realizing.
But thinking back now…
That kind of setup, that kind of precision, that kind of ambush—it clearly hadn't been meant for her and Xi Nian.
…
New York. Beneath an unremarkable building in a busy street.
This was one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s hidden facilities.
It contained not only armories and intel rooms, but also an advanced emergency ward equipped with top doctors and surgeons.
At this moment, outside the emergency ward—
A woman with fiery red hair leaned against the wall. Her gorgeous face showed traces of fatigue, her beautiful eyes filled with sorrow and remembrance.
No one knew how long she had been silent.
Down the dim corridor, a pair of figures approached.
"Natasha." A cold but youthful woman raised her hand in greeting.
"You're here, Daisy."
Natasha looked up at her fellow agent, but quickly her eyes widened in shock as she turned toward the young man at her side. "Why are you here?"
"Been a while… no, more like a month, Teacher Natasha, my former instructor."
The boy stepped into the light, smiling as he greeted her casually.
"Daisy, why is he here?"
Natasha ignored Xi Nian's reply, staring intently at Skye. A wild thought flickered through her mind—could it be… she's fallen in love?!
Skye instinctively stepped in front of Xi Nian, raising her hands. "He's the one Director sent me to Washington to pick up today. We were attacked by the Winter Soldier because of that."
"I see." Natasha finally let out a breath of relief.
"How's the Director?" Skye asked urgently.
"You're too late." Natasha's eyes dimmed as she gestured to the window of the emergency ward.
Skye stiffened as if struck, hurrying forward.
Through the wide observation window, she saw inside: a surgeon with bloodied hands pulled a white sheet over the tall, broad frame of a one-eyed Black man lying on the operating table.
Who else could it be but Nick Fury?
Natasha sighed and spoke lowly. "The wound was too severe. The bullet was a Soviet-made specialty round with terrifying penetration. Even though we rushed him here, we couldn't save him. Just now, Captain Rogers was here as well—he watched Fury die with his own eyes."
"How could this happen?" Skye clenched her fists, shaken.
But the truth lay before her.
Nick Fury, the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., was dead. The man who had guided her onto the path of an agent was gone…
Lost in grief, none of them noticed—
Xi Nian staring at the "corpse" covered in a sheet, his expression flickering.
Fury might fool Captain America, Black Widow, Skye, and everyone else in this facility.
But he couldn't fool Xi Nian.
With his perfect Spider-Sense, Xi Nian could clearly detect the faint life-force still pulsing from Fury's body—even with his heart apparently stopped.
And Jarro, too, confirmed it. He could feel Fury's energy and spirit, steady in a state of suspended animation.
This old man… really something.
Xi Nian rubbed his chin.
He had to admit—when it came to faking death, Fury was professional enough to earn applause.
But since the man still owed him pocket money, Xi Nian simply kept his mouth shut.
Thirty million well spent.
…
"Captain has already gone after whoever ordered Fury's assassination. What about you?" Natasha asked Skye, voice heavy.
"I'll join in too. But first, I need to finish my current mission." Skye glanced back.
"No problem finishing your mission."
Natasha looked at the boy's departing figure. After a moment's hesitation, she warned, "But be careful. Don't let curiosity get the better of you. Don't… get too close to him."
"What do you mean? He's dangerous?" Skye frowned in confusion, locking eyes with Natasha.
"Just listen to me. If you don't, one day you'll regret it." Natasha said mysteriously.
In terms of combat strength, Skye—with her seismic Inhuman powers—was stronger than Natasha. But in one area…
Experience.
And that boy…
He was like a bucket of paint—once you touched him, you'd never be able to wash him off.
…
New York, outside on the street.
"What did my former teacher tell you just now?" Xi Nian asked curiously.
"Nothing." Skye shook her head. She studied him, then asked in return, "I didn't know Natasha once investigated you?"
Xi Nian smiled. "Yeah. A month ago, she posed as a substitute teacher in my class for half a day. I only learned about her real identity a few days ago—from Fury himself."
"Xi Nian."
Skye gazed into his eyes. The look in hers flickered between caution and fear. She couldn't stop herself from asking, "Who exactly are you?"
Xi Nian didn't answer directly. He only shrugged. "Whoever you think I am… that's who I am."
Looking ahead at the neon-filled streets, he asked softly, "Skye, are you still going to continue the mission?"
"Of course."
Skye turned her head, fixing her eyes on the same horizon as him. Her voice was firm. "Until I get you to S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, I'll protect you."
And when that time came, everything would end.
Perhaps, they would never meet again.
Skye thought to herself.
[Please give powerstones if you're enjoying the story.
500 stones = 1 extra chapter
patreon.com/GuessMyName33 10$ for 80 chapters ahead]