Don't even mention withholding payment.
Herman figured that when dealing with a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, not paying her at all would still be perfectly reasonable.
But then again, he was a kind man.
Ten or eight bucks—he'd still toss her something. At this moment, Natasha had no idea she'd already been written off as nothing more than a cheap tool in Herman's mind.
When faced with his question, she replied smoothly.
"I want to explore broader opportunities, and also..." Natasha paused as if in thought before smiling. "Maybe it's family reasons. Honestly, I'm really interested in playing a superhero."
Hmm.
That part was probably true.
After all, in the future Avengers, only she and Hawkeye would be ordinary humans. If they didn't actually love the superhero profession, who would believe it?
Herman muttered to himself internally but kept his outward smile warm.
"Good story. So which superhero do you want to audition for?"
Natasha didn't even hesitate.
"Starlight, of course. If I'm not mistaken, she should be the female lead, right?"
Such confidence fit perfectly with the ambition of a rising young actress.
"Starlight already has an actress—the lady beside me." Herman had no intention of letting Natasha play the lead.
"Me?"
Skye's reaction was even bigger than Natasha's.
She distinctly remembered Herman saying her acting wasn't good enough.
"What? Didn't you say earlier you wanted to earn more? The lead role's salary—" Herman didn't even have to finish.
The moment money was mentioned, Skye's eyes lit up.
"Of course it's me! That's right! I'm the one playing Starlight!"
"No one's taking this role from me!"
With that, she shot Natasha a sharp look, leaving the other woman momentarily at a loss for words.
Of course Natasha knew exactly what had just happened.
"What about Queen Maeve? The other female superhero?" Natasha frowned, puzzled by why this director seemed to be targeting her.
Had her cover been blown?
Impossible.
She was confident in her abilities.
"With all due respect, your presence and stature don't quite fit that role." Herman gave her another rejection, wearing an expression of reluctant honesty.
A perfectly reasonable excuse.
Natasha wasn't exactly tall.
"I have... an actress friend who's also very interested in this project. I think her look and height would meet your expectations, Director."
Seeing she couldn't land one of the key superhero roles, Natasha naturally shifted tactics.
And that was exactly what Herman wanted to see.
"Oh?"
Herman feigned mild surprise.
"Please wait a moment. I'll make a call and have her come over. She and a few friends of mine are nearby—they came with me for the audition."
Natasha pulled out her phone, offered an apologetic bow, and stepped outside, heading toward the women's restroom at the end of the hall.
After confirming Herman hadn't followed and checking that there were no listening devices inside, she dialed a secret number.
"We've hit a snag. I need some backup… No, Director, nothing combat-related."
"I wasn't able to secure one of the main roles. The director's temper is odd. I'll need a few teammates to audition alongside me."
"No, this isn't making a fuss over nothing."
"That special individual from Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters wouldn't invest in this series for no reason. I believe covering the cost of further investigation is necessary."
"Coulson can't come? He's tied up with a supernatural case… Fine. It doesn't matter who I partner with here."
Even as she spoke, Natasha kept alert for anyone approaching the restroom.
But she didn't realize that the area was still well within Herman's telepathic monitoring range. Every word reached him clearly back in the audition room.
"So it's because Charles invested in my series..." Herman finally got his answer, and relief washed over him.
Of course.
Professor Charles was a walking nuclear bomb of a man. Naturally, S.H.I.E.L.D. would keep him under constant surveillance.
In fact, Charles had to be one of their top-priority targets. Under those circumstances, when someone like him—who almost never left his home—suddenly poured heavy investment into a TV drama, S.H.I.E.L.D. would obviously want to know what was so special about it.
And the 'Director' on the other end of Natasha's call could only be Nick Fury himself — the infamous boss of Coulson, known for dropping that signature 'motherfucker.'
"As long as they're not here to investigate me..."
Herman's mood instantly brightened. Not only did this mean he didn't have to expose anything, but he'd also get himself a free cast of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.
Yes.
The reason he had rejected Natasha twice earlier was precisely because if he was going to do this, he might as well go big.
One S.H.I.E.L.D. agent?
Not nearly enough.
Such an excellent pool of talent—
And dirt cheap, too.
Naturally, he had to rope in more of them.
In fact, Herman felt he was doing a good deed.
Not bragging, but really—wasn't he pointing future unemployed S.H.I.E.L.D. agents toward a second career in acting once the agency inevitably collapsed?
...
(50 Chapters Ahead)
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