Three days later.
Midtown Manhattan, top floor of a prime office building.
Lynt stood by the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, looking down at the city, which resembled matchboxes below.
Behind him was a newly renovated office, full of minimalist and high-tech flair.
The nearly thirty million U.S. dollars in his Swiss Bank account, which had surged due to his long position in Stark Industries, had already been transformed into a legitimate "Angel Investment" through channels provided by Magneto, now sitting cleanly in the new company's ledger.
Adding to that the one million he had just "acquired" from Wanda.
He was now a bona fide billionaire, holding thirty million U.S. dollars.
"How does it feel?"
Raven embraced him from behind, her chin resting lightly on his shoulder.
She carried the fresh scent of a bath, her blue skin shimmering with a strange luster in the sunlight, exuding a… lazy and contented air, like the calm after a rain.
Just now, to celebrate the company's opening, she had engaged in an in-depth exchange with Lynt, under the guise of consolidating strength and preventing an unstable foundation.
Oh no, it should be called a battle.
Raven wanted Lynt to submit, while Lynt gritted his teeth and stubbornly refused.
The battle was so intense that the bed frame would need replacing again.
The office's soundproof glass was highly effective, completely blocking out the clamor of New York outside the window.
Only the faint hum of the air conditioning system remained, along with certain breaths that gradually quickened, eventually becoming prolonged.
Light filtered through the blinds, casting mottled patterns of light and shadow on their skin, which shifted constantly with rhythmic movements, like a silent shadow play.
Lynt lightly touched Raven's lips.
After all, the notifications on the system panel—[Host Comprehensive Strength Increased: x1.1] and [U.S. Dollar Reward Obtained: $10,000]—were real and tangible.
He even felt that this method of celebration could be repeated many times.
"It feels… alright."
Lynt looked out at the World, his gaze profound.
"It just feels like there's still too little money."
Thirty million U.S. dollars was an astronomical figure for ordinary people.
But for the coming great era, for those superheroes and villains who could destroy the World at will, it was merely a drop in the ocean.
What he wanted to do was not to buy mansions and luxury cars, but to use this money as leverage to pry open the entire World.
"Have you thought of a name for the company?" Raven's breath was like orchids in his ear.
"I have."
Lynt turned around and picked up a marker from the desk.
He walked to the blank tempered glass wall behind him, and with a "squeak" of friction, he wrote four grand, sweeping characters and a string of letters.
"Apex Amplification."
He tapped the glass with the pen cap.
"Apex is our goal. Amplification is our core business."
"On the surface, we are a high-tech consulting company offering top-tier security, private customization, and 'potential development.'"
He looked at Raven and smiled.
"In secret…"
"We are the mobile power bank for all strong individuals, the super cheat for all factions."
Raven looked at the four characters, her golden pupils sparkling with excitement.
She liked the name.
She liked even more the future this man described, one where everyone was played in the palm of his hand.
But what she disliked was that he would have to share himself with others again.
Ding-dong.
Just then, a strangely shaped black terminal on Lynt's desk emitted a soft chime.
This was an encrypted device provided by Magneto, claimed to be absolutely untraceable.
Lynt walked over and opened the message.
It was an encrypted message from a black market intelligence broker, which he had paid a hefty price for, containing real-time intelligence on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s movements.
[S.H.I.E.L.D. has marked threats codenamed 'Joker' and 'Mystique' with a threat level of 7.]
[Internal news: Ace Agent Black Widow Natasha Romanoff has submitted a detailed report on the Kingpin incident. The report repeatedly mentions that the target possesses intelligence capabilities and anti-tracking technology far exceeding estimates, and suspects a larger organization supports him.]
[Special intelligence: Agent Romanoff has applied to Director Nick Fury to access a long-sealed file, codenamed — 'Winter Soldier.']
Upon seeing the last line, Lynt's pupils slightly contracted.
Black Widow… Winter Soldier… It seemed the slaughterhouse drama he had orchestrated had deeper repercussions than he had anticipated.
Natasha had clearly linked them to HYDRA.
"Trouble?" Raven noticed the change in his expression.
"No."
Lynt turned off the screen, a playful smile on his face.
"Business is knocking."
He looked at Raven, his eyes gleaming with the light of a hunter seeing his prey.
"Raven, what do you say… if we also develop S.H.I.E.L.D.'s strongest ace Agent into our 'client'?"
"What expression would Nick Fury, that bald egghead, make?"
Raven froze.
In her golden pupils, Lynt's face, with its mix of excitement and calculation, was clearly reflected.
Develop S.H.I.E.L.D.'s ace Agent into a client?
The sheer madness of the idea left her momentarily speechless.
That was S.H.I.E.L.D., one of the top enforcement agencies in the human World.
Black Widow Natasha Romanoff was their ace, a legend who moved in the shadows, her hands stained with blood, yet packaged as a Guardian of humanity.
Provoking her was akin to dancing on a blade's edge.
"Are you insane?"
Raven's voice was cold.
"She's a spy, a human. Her mind is only filled with missions and obedience; it's impossible for us to use her."
Her body instinctively tensed, and her grip on Lynt's arm tightened, like a mother beast guarding her territory.
She would never allow another woman, especially a human woman, to share this source of power that belonged only to her.
The appearance of Wanda Maximoff had already made her feel an unprecedented crisis.
That girl was Magneto's daughter, a Mutant, belonging to the same faction as her in terms of identity.
Even so, Raven's possessive desire grew like wild grass.
Now, Lynt was actually setting his sights on a human Agent.
"Calm down, my Raven."
Lynt patted her hand, his tone relaxed.
"I'm not insane; on the contrary, I'm perfectly lucid."
He pulled Raven to the floor-to-ceiling window, pointing at New York City below.
"Look, Raven.
This World is about to descend into chaos.
Aliens, gods, all sorts of monsters will appear.
Can we really rely on the Brotherhood, those guys whose minds are only filled with muscles and hatred?"
"Magneto is an idealistic madman; his eyes only see Mutants.
But I don't want to go crazy with him; I just want to stand steadily on the top floor of this building, watching them fight to the death, and earn some hard-earned money along the way."
"To achieve that, we can't just rely on force. We also need eyes and ears."
He turned his head and looked at Raven seriously.
"An ace Agent planted within S.H.I.E.L.D. is our best pair of eyes.
She can provide us with intelligence, warn us of dangers, and even, at critical moments, disrupt the enemy's deployments from within."
"This isn't called provoking; this is called 'venture capital.'
And it's a sure-fire deal."