Chapter 89: Soft in His Arms, Not Daring to Move with Warmth Against Her Ear
The metal door of the isolation ward closed behind them, pressing the defeated, dog-like roars and gasps of Reed Richards back into the room.
The corridor lights were bright, and the air held a lingering, crisp scent of disinfectant, separating it from the filth inside the ward like two different Worlds.
Susan's body had not fully recovered, and she leaned most of her weight against Lin Nuo's side. Her high heels clicked against the smooth floor with unsteady steps, and the hem of her skirt was crumpled by her own tight grip.
The physical crushing and mental execution just now had drained away the dignity she had been desperately maintaining.
Lin Nuo sensed her weakness. His palm didn't stop at her waist but slid half an inch higher along her side, his fingertips catching the line of her spine beneath the fabric of her back. The pressure wasn't heavy, but it made it impossible for her to pull away.
"Haven't you recovered yet?"
He spoke close to her ear, his warm breath grazing her auricle and stirring a few loose strands of hair.
"Relax. If you're this tense, how can I lead you steadily?"
Susan bit her lower lip, offering no reply.
She could only bury her face in his chest, smelling the cold, woody scent on his shirt, mixed with the lingering disinfectant from the ward—a scent so clean it was dangerous.
Lin Nuo chuckled softly and raised a hand to tuck back her stray hair. His fingertips lingered on the soft skin of her nape, as if offering a casual comfort, or perhaps confirming that his control over her was secure enough.
"It was just disposing of a piece of trash."
He led her forward, his tone gentle to the point of cruelty.
"You'll get used to scenes like this in the future. Of course, if you can't stand steadily, you can always lean on me."
Susan's ears burned, and her fingers tightened on his shirt.
The fabric was already crumpled by her grip, and his tie had been knocked askew during the previous chaos, yet Lin Nuo maintained an impeccable composure.
He was in no rush to tidy himself, only looking down at where she was gripping him, his gaze behind his lenses falling on the wrinkles.
"Gripping so tightly—are you afraid I'll run, or are you afraid you can't bear to let go?"
Susan looked up at him, wanting to retort, but the words were blocked at her lips.
Lin Nuo didn't press her further, holding her as they walked to another observation room at the end of the corridor.
This place was closer to a high-tech command center. Dozens of holographic screens hung in mid-air, with various biological data syncing back from the isolation ward, curves and parameters refreshing rapidly.
In the center of the room, several researchers wearing the specialized research uniforms of the Star Umbrella Groupwere busy organizing the results.
Seeing Lin Nuo enter, they immediately stopped their work and bowed in unison.
"Boss."
The lead researcher handed over a transparent data pad, his voice steady.
"After the target's outburst, his gene chain suffered a secondary, irreversible disintegration. Cell activity is rapidly declining. We estimate that within twelve hours, he will lose the ability to move independently and eventually degenerate into biological tissue."
Lin Nuo took the data pad, scanned the curves and parameters, and set it casually on the console.
"As expected."
After saying this, he raised a hand to pull out a chair for Susan, but didn't let her sit down immediately.
His hand gripped her slender wrist, his thumb stroking along the wrist bone as if checking her pulse.
"Don't move around before sitting down. The Water is deep here; I'll test the depth before I take you over."
The words sounded serious, but to Susan's ears, they burned intensely.
She turned her face away and tried to pull her fingertips away gently, but couldn't break free.
The communicator in the corner of the observation room lit up at that moment, and Reed Richards' hoarse, distorted voice came from the isolation ward.
"The data... my data... you can't crack it... that spatial ray frequency conversion model... that is my life's work... you Bandits... you will never understand it!"
His body had been crippled, but the arrogance of a genius, rooted in his bone marrow, still propped up Reed Richards' last line of defense.
He would rather believe that his research results would rot away with his body than accept them being easily taken away by the Star Umbrella Group.
The researchers in the observation room had strange expressions, and no one spoke.
Susan's shoulders tightened.
She had once believed in Reed Richards' genius, believing it was a peak untouchable by ordinary people, believing that all his coldness and neglect could be justified by his great research.
Lin Nuo sensed her change. His palm moved to the back of her neck, his fingertips pressing back and forth against that soft skin twice.
"Can't take it already, just as we're starting?"
He leaned against her ear, his tone carrying a gentle malice.
"Where did that stubbornness from just a moment ago go, Susan?"
Susan's breathing faltered for a beat, and she whispered, "Don't say things like that here."
"I'm comforting you."
Lin Nuo answered candidly, even raising a hand to adjust her collar.
His fingertips brushed over the small shadow above her collarbone, lingering for just the right amount of time—not crossing the line, yet enough for her to clearly know he was doing it on purpose.
Subsequently, he pressed his wristwatch.
A deep blue holographic projection rose from the dial, spreading into a huge screen in mid-air, displaying complex mathematical formulas and three-dimensional structural models.
"Dr. Reed Richards, can you hear me?"
Lin Nuo spoke into the communicator, his tone as slow as taking roll call in a classroom.
"Regarding that bottleneck you treasure so much—the one that has plagued you for three years, the core algorithm that made you willing to leave Susan alone on Earth just to verify it in outer space."
He paused for a moment, and the gasping on the other end of the communicator briefly stopped.
"I regret to inform you that while you were unconscious, I took a moment to look at it. It took about three minutes, and I have already fully derived it."
"No! Impossible!"
Reed Richards' roar came through, filled with the panic of someone on the verge of collapse.
"That requires hyper-spatial geometric knowledge... it's impossible for anyone on Earth..."
"Oh, I forgot to tell you."
Lin Nuo cut him off, tapping lightly on the light screen.
"Your algorithm is wrong from the foundation. Using basic arithmetic to solve calculus—the direction is wrong, so no matter how hard you try, you'll only be spinning in circles."
The complex string of formulas was crossed out by red lines, and then a new, more concise, stable, and oppressive algorithmic model was unfolded.
"This is the correct answer."
The other end of the communicator went silent.
Susan looked at the model on the light screen, her professional instinct allowing her to quickly understand its meaning.
The level of technology represented by that algorithm was a full era ahead of Reed Richards' research results.
She finally understood that when Lin Nuo called Reed Richards' research trash, it wasn't out of spite or humiliation.
It was just a judgment.
In the face of an absolute technological gap, the things Reed Richards had spent years chasing indeed had no value worth treasuring.
Inside the observation room, the researchers' gazes toward Lin Nuo had shifted from awe to an uncontrollable fervor.
The problem that they had spent six hours on, even mobilizing the central server of the Star Umbrella Group, couldn't solve—the Boss had done it in just three minutes.
Intermittent murmurs came from the communicator from Reed Richards.
"No... no..."
His last pillar of support, in the field he was most proud of, was crushed by Lin Nuo in the easiest way possible.
Lin Nuo closed the holographic projection, and the observation room returned to brightness.
He picked up the paper cup next to the console; the rim still bore the faint lipstick mark left by Susan when she drank Water earlier.
In front of everyone, he took a sip of Water along that mark, his movements unhurried, yet his gaze fell on Susan's face.
Susan's face turned even redder. She wanted to reach out and grab the cup, but hindered by the people around, she could only glare at him from the corner of her eye.
Lin Nuo put down the paper cup, his tone still gentle.
"Send out a notice. The core database of the Star Umbrella Group does not need waste products with logical errors."
He looked at the lead researcher.
"All research data regarding Reed Richards is to be formatted and permanently deleted."
"Yes, Boss!"
"And, cut off all power supplies to his underground laboratory."
Lin Nuo's gaze shifted to the communicator.
"Sell the equipment inside as scrap metal if possible; if it can't be sold, destroy it on the spot. I don't want to see anything related to the name Reed Richards in any corner of New York again."
These arrangements shattered the remaining hope and future of Mr. Fantastic.
"As for the man himself..."
Lin Nuo looked at the surveillance monitor of the isolation ward, watching that body that had completely lost the ability to resist, and gave the final disposition.
"Inject the minimum amount of nutrient solution to ensure he doesn't die immediately."
He raised a hand to straighten the tie that Susan had crumpled, and deliberately guided her hand to the tie knot, letting her straighten it for him.
"For the rest of his life, let him stay quietly in a cage and serve as a biological mutation observation sample for the company."
Susan's fingertips touched his tie knot, her palm pressing against the front of his shirt, feeling the steady rise and fall beneath the fabric.
She knew there were researchers here, yet she couldn't pull her hand back immediately.
Lin Nuo looked down at her, his voice lowering.
"Don't be nervous. If you fasten it too tightly, I'll think you want to undo it yourself."
Susan's breathing became erratic, and her fingertips slid off the tie.
There was no response from the other end of the communicator again.
Reed Richards, this former Mr. Fantastic, was at this moment, from a mental to a physical level, completely ruined by Lin Nuo.
After finishing everything, Lin Nuo looked back at Susan.
He reached out and wiped away the damp trace from the corner of her eye.
"Let's go. The show here is over."
Chapter 90: Pressed Against the Window, His Reward Leaves Her Weak
The private elevator to the top-floor CEOs Office ascended smoothly.
The metal car was so quiet that only the sound of breathing remained, along with the faint friction of fabric brushing against fabric.
Susan leaned against the elevator wall, everything that had happened downstairs still churning in her mind.
Reed Richards's wretched screaming, Lin Nuo's dismissive disposal, and the hand currently wrapped around the small of her back all made it difficult for her to detach herself from this loss of control.
A chime sounded; the elevator reached the top floor. The doors slid open to both sides, but Lin Nuo did not rush to let go.
His palm remained pressed against the spot just above her lower back, pressing against that curve through the thin fabric of her business attire, not too light and not too heavy, as he guided her out of the elevator.
The CEOs Office had no main lights on. The New Yorknight view outside the floor-to-ceiling windows covered the floor, and the distant traffic dragged out long, thin ribbons of light. In the office, the scents of cigars, whiskey, wood, and the faint smell of her skincare lotion floated and intertwined in the enclosed space.
The heavy solid wood door locked behind them. The soft click of the latch closing made Susan's shoulders tense.
Lin Nuo gripped her slender wrist. He controlled his strength well—it didn't hurt, but it was enough to narrow her path of retreat.
He turned her around and pressed her against the floor-to-ceiling window that occupied the entire wall.
Susan's back pressed against the cool glass. Beneath her feet were hundreds of meters of empty air, and before her was Lin Nuo's chest pressing close, the heat seeping through his shirt and her outer jacket bit by bit.
Her knees went weak; she could only rely on the glass behind her and the man in front of her to support her body. When her fingertips grabbed his shirt, she crumpled that piece of fabric into fine creases.
Lin Nuo's hand supported the small of her back, while his other hand moved up along her wrist, his thumb and forefinger locking onto her wrist bone. He lingered patiently, as if confirming that this beautiful, slender wrist had already been claimed by his palm.
He lowered his head, his gold-rimmed glasses illuminated by the neon lights. His gaze fell on her reddened lips, then moved to her disheveled collar.
"Well done."
His voice was low, carrying a slight hoarseness from the alcohol. Falling into the quiet office, it sounded more dangerous than any order.
"That statement about breaking off the engagement—you said it crisply and clearly. I like it very much."
He was too close when he spoke; his breath swept across her lips. The mellow aroma of whiskey mixed with his warm breath, causing Susan's judgment to be eroded bit by bit.
"To deal with someone who only knows how to take and cannot even provide basic returns, one should be like this—leaving no room for doubt."
Lin Nuo said this, his fingertips sliding to the back of her neck. His palm cupped that patch of soft skin, his thumb rubbing back and forth as if evaluating where it would be most appropriate to strike.
Susan wanted to turn her head away, but as soon as she moved slightly, he gently pressed her back into place.
"Don't move around."
He leaned close to her ear, warm air pouring into her ear canal. A few stray hairs were blown onto her cheek, and the itch traveled all the way to her heart.
"Relax. You're so tense—how am I supposed to get in?"
He said this with a straight face, but the tail end of his voice was wickedly suggestive.
Susan's cheeks burned. Her hand pressed against his chest, her palm touching the steady, undulating muscles beneath his shirt, which only brought the two of them closer.
"Don't talk about things like this as if they were work arrangements."
When she spoke, her voice was so soft that even she felt flustered.
Lin Nuo chuckled softly, his fingers trailing down the back of her neck, stopping near the small button on her back.
That button had originally been fastened neatly, but it had been skewed by the tugging earlier.
He slowly straightened it for her, his fingertips grazing the slightly protruding bone line on her spine. His movements were restrained, yet it made her whole body tense up even more.
Lin Nuo's hand stayed there without immediately retracting.
"Are you done yet?"
Susan bit her lip, a very light swallowing sound emerging from her throat.
She knew he was asking about the button, but those three words, falling beside her ear, were rubbed into something ambiguous by him.
"Work arrangements also depend on the occasion."
Lin Nuo's fingertips moved away from the button and deliberately slid back to the small of her back, pressing against the fabric.
"Dealing with waste downstairs, dealing with rewards upstairs."
Susan turned her face away. The window reflected their shadows.
She was trapped between the glass and his chest. Her shoulder line was outlined in soft contours by the night, her collar was pulled awry by half an inch, and the crispness of her professional attire was rubbed into dangerous disarray.
"What do you want to do?"
She asked softly, sounding both like a protest and a confirmation.
Lin Nuo did not rush to answer.
He raised his hand to take off his gold-rimmed glasses, placing them casually on the low cabinet nearby, then picked up the water glass she had accepted but not finished before the elevator.
There was a faint lipstick mark on the rim of the cup.
Right in front of her, he took a sip along that mark. His movements were unhurried, his gaze always pressed upon her face.
Susan's ears burned even hotter. She reached out to snatch it, but her wrist was caught by him again.
"What's the rush?"
Lin Nuo put the cup back, his thumb grazing the beating pulse on the side of her wrist.
"You can't take it already? Where did that stubbornness go when you were talking about breaking off the engagement with Reed Richards over the comms earlier?"
"Lin Nuo."
Susan lowered her voice, her shyness and anger hiding a bit of panic at being pushed to the edge.
"Don't go too far."
"Too far?"
He brought her hand to his necktie, letting her fingertips grip the knot she had wrinkled earlier.
"Who was it that was halfway through tidying it for me earlier, only to deliberately pull it so tight?"
Susan wanted to pull her hand away, but he held it so she couldn't break free. She could only watch her fingertips sink into the dark tie, making the wrinkles even messier.
Lin Nuo looked down at her actions, his tone gentle and proper, but the content was not innocent at all.
"If you want to untie it, do it thoroughly."
His palm covered the back of her hand, pulling that tie knot down by half an inch.
"Don't stop halfway. I'm a person who is allergic to giving up halfway."
Susan's breathing lost its rhythm. The traffic outside the window swept by in the distance, light and shadow sliding across her face.
She clearly should have pushed him away, and she should have ended this dangerous tug-of-war with a firmer tone, but her hand remained on the tie, her fingertips pressed by his palm, the heat seeping in layer by layer.
Lin Nuo sensed her hesitation, his palm returning to the small of her back, tightening slowly through the fabric.
He didn't cross a more dangerous line, but he stuck every pause at the point she could bear the least.
"This is a reward."
He spoke against her ear, his voice lower.
"A reward for your decisiveness, and also a reward for your willingness to finally walk out of the wrong answer."
Susan closed her eyes, her fingertips clutching his tie, her voice filled with irrepressible annoyance.
"You call this a reward?"
"Of course."
Lin Nuo lowered his head, his lips grazing the edge of her earlobe.
"You can order me around now; the entire top floor listens to you."
Susan understood.
He said she could order him around, but in reality, he handed the initiative to her, then used his palms and breath to force her to admit with her own mouth what she wanted.
"I want you to stay away from me."
She looked up at him, her tone trying hard to maintain composure.
Lin Nuo obediently stepped back half a step, but his hand still held her wrist.
There was half a palm's distance between them. The air didn't get lighter; that little gap was even hotter.
"Fine."
He looked down at her wrinkled cuffs and smoothed them out for her bit by bit.
"But you have to tell me first: is it far enough to breathe, or far enough to regret?"
Susan was blocked by him and couldn't speak.
Lin Nuo raised his hand, tucking the messy hair by her cheek behind her ear, his thumb sliding along the ear contour, stopping on the delicate skin behind her ear.
Her body tensed, and the hand pressing against his chest lost its strength.
Lin Nuo felt her loosening, his voice becoming even slower.
"Susan, I gave you a choice."
He leaned down close, his forehead almost touching hers, their breath intertwined between them.
"You can push me away, or you can hold on to me."
He paused for a moment, his gaze falling on the tie clutched in her fingers.
"But right now, you're holding my tie."
Susan lowered her eyes, only to realize her hand was still gripping that dark fabric.
The tie was wrinkled by her grip, and his shirt collar was pulled askew, revealing a hint of shadow at the edge of his collarbone.
This bit of disarray appeared on the usually impeccably dressed Lin Nuo, making him look more like an elegant villain who had just stepped down from the judgment seat.
She wanted to let go, but her hand was held by Lin Nuo.
"Don't let go."
He said in a low voice.
"You already let go of the wrong person downstairs earlier; don't make the same mistake again tonight."
Susan's throat tightened.
She knew this sentence was dangerous, and she knew he was using his most proficient way to dismantle her defenses.
But after being left behind by Reed Richards, no one had ever told her in such a strong way that she could be chosen, could be fought over, and could personally throw away a mistake.
Lin Nuo's hand loosened from her wrist and changed to supporting the back of her neck.
This time, he gave her a way out.
But Susan did not retreat.
Her fingertips followed the tie upward, stopped at his shirt collar, and gave it a gentle tug.
Lin Nuo chuckled softly and leaned down close.
Outside the window, the lights flowed silently. In the office, only the friction of fabric, rapid swallowing, and the breath of the two of them, pressed so close they could no longer disguise it, remained.
This reward was fulfilled by him personally.
Chapter 91: Fingertips Brush By, Rough Sensation Makes the Body Shudder
Time slipped by for a week under the rapidly turning gears of the Star Umbrella Group.
The scientific genius Susan Storm, who once yielded into the dust for love, had been left behind by the high-rise lights of New York.
Standing now in the center of the core R&D B-7 laboratory was the Global Head of the New Energy Project Department of the Star Umbrella Group, Director Susan.
She wore a dark gray professional suit, tailored to fit with clean lines. Her narrow waist was cinched by a belt, creating a sharp curve, and the hem of her skirt stopped at a position that was compliant yet dangerous; one more step, and the fabric would pull into tiny creases at the side of her knees.
Her long golden hair was tied high, revealing a fair, slender neckline. Rimless anti-blue light glasses suppressed the sharpness between her brows, adding a touch of the coolness expected of a research head to those azure eyes.
She stood before a massive holographic data waterfall, her electronic pen sweeping through the air as several curves separated, reorganized, and merged back into the model.
"Group A, optimize the energy conversion model for the space curvature engine by another three percent. I want to see the final report before you leave today."
"Group B, Reed—no, the bio-armor power supply modules left behind by the former Osborn Industries—replace them all with Ark III reactors. Start the compatibility tests immediately."
Her tone was clean, her instructions clear, and even her pauses carried the oppressive air unique to the upper management of Star Umbrella.
The researchers around her were in awe of her and convinced by her ability.
Over the past week, Susan had used her scientific talent and work efficiency to solve several technical problems that had been delayed for months.
No one would associate this director, who was like an ice goddess, with the woman in the top-floor office forced to take off her glasses, her breathing rhythm corrected in a low voice by a man.
By day, she controlled projects, budgets, teams, and the futures of countless people.
At night, in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking New York, that director's badge would be casually placed on the table, silently witnessing another set of rules alongside a crumpled tie, half a glass of whiskey, and a faint lipstick stain.
The automatic laboratory door slid open.
Lin Nuo walked in, wearing a white shirt and dress trousers, accompanied by several executives. Gold-rimmed glasses pressed against his brow bone, and his cuffs were so neat that not a single flaw could be found.
"Boss."
The researchers in the lab stopped their work and bowed to pay their respects.
Susan turned around and gave a slight nod: "Mr. Lin."
She kept a professional detachment in her expression, but the electronic pen in her palm turned half a circle, the cap brushing against her fingertips, revealing a nervousness she herself was unwilling to admit.
Lin Nuo did not cross the line in public; he simply walked to her side, his gaze fixed on the holographic screen.
There was half a step of distance between them, but the clear, woody scent from his white shirt pressed in, mingling with the smell of disinfectant from the lab's climate control system, drilling into Susan's nostrils.
"How is the project progress?"
He asked casually, sounding like a routine inspection by a superior.
"Everything is going smoothly."
Susan turned to report, her shoulder line tensed even straighter than before.
"The preliminary model for the curvature engine has been built, and we expect to conduct the first physical ignition test within three months."
She raised her hand to bring up the next set of data, her gaze behind her lenses avoiding his cufflinks, which were close at hand.
"The modification of the bio-armor has also entered the second phase. The output stability of the Ark III reactor is better than expected, though the backup energy circuit still needs to be handled conservatively."
Lin Nuo reached out, pointing to a tiny node on the screen.
His arm crossed in front of her, his cuff brushing against the lapel of her jacket; fabric touching fabric, creating a very light rustling sound.
"The energy circuit here is designed too conservatively."
His fingertips paused in mid-air, the projection light falling onto the back of his hand.
"Increase the backup energy output power by fifteen percent."
Susan looked where his fingertip pointed, her brow furrowing: "Mr. Lin, that would exceed the safety threshold."
She tried her best to keep her voice professional, but because he was leaning in too close, the end of her sentence was a bit lighter.
"When the main energy source fluctuates, high-power input from the backup source could cause the engine to overload."
"I know."
Lin Nuo looked down at the electronic pen in her hand, his voice falling right against her ear.
"But I need limit data, not a safe report that's only pretty enough to put in a display case."
Warm air poured into her ear, stirring a few stray hairs at her temple, a subtle itch drilling down from behind her ear, yet she couldn't pull away.
Susan's hand tightened on the pen, the tip drawing a short blue line in the air.
Lin Nuo acted as if he hadn't seen her reaction, picking up a paper document from the workbench nearby and handing it to her.
"The latest material mechanics analysis. Sign it, and execute my order."
Susan reached out to take it.
Just as their fingertips were about to touch, Lin Nuo lifted his wrist half an inch.
His calloused fingertips brushed across the back of her hand, pausing for a moment along the edge of her wrist bone before pressing down on the corner of the document.
The movement was very light, but in a public setting, it only magnified every inch of sensation.
The pages rustled; in the lab, some were typing on keyboards, others were flipping through data, and no one dared to let their gaze fall this way.
Susan's breath hitched.
Her fingertips were cold, but the back of her hand felt uncomfortably hot where he had just touched it.
Lin Nuo nudged the document into her palm, his fingertip still resting on the pulse at her wrist, as if verifying the signing process, or perhaps measuring how long she could hold out.
"Relax."
He lowered his voice, audible only to her.
"If you're this tense, how am I supposed to push the data in?"
The tips of Susan's ears turned a faint red. Her gaze behind her lenses darted away briefly before she forced it back to the document.
"Mr. Lin, please be mindful of the setting."
She took the document, her nails pressing into the edge of the paper, trying hard to maintain the coldness expected of a director.
Lin Nuo did not back away; instead, he lowered his head to sweep a glance over the black gold ring on the back of her hand.
"I am always mindful."
He tapped the signature line with the end of his electronic pen.
"You can't handle it when we've only just started? Where did that stubbornness from the meeting go?"
This sounded like he was reprimanding her about the project progress, but to Susan's ears, the meaning had completely changed.
Her throat moved slightly as she picked up the pen and signed her name.
The tip of the pen scratched across the paper, the sound so faint it was maddening.
After signing the last stroke, she handed the document back to him, her movements half a beat faster than usual.
Lin Nuo, however, was in no rush to take it.
His hand clamped around her slender wrist, his thumb pressing against her wrist bone through her sleeve. The force wasn't heavy, but it held her hand captive in his palm.
"The water is deep here, don't move around."
He said in a low voice.
"I'll test the depth first, then I'll take you across."
Susan lowered her eyelashes, her professional expression nearly crumbling.
She knew very well that while this sounded like it referred to the high-risk test zone, it was actually a reminder that for every boundary he defined, she had to wait for him to personally lead her across.
Not far away, a researcher looked up, wanting to report, but upon seeing the overly close distance between the two, immediately moved their gaze back to the screen.
Susan took the opportunity to pull her hand back, rubbing her fingertips along the edge of the folder, trying to wipe away the lingering warmth on her wrist.
Lin Nuo took the document, his posture remaining refined and proper.
Before turning around, his fingertips casually adjusted her badge.
The metal badge was pressed against the outside of her suit, and with his light touch, her breathing beneath the fabric momentarily lost its rhythm.
His fingertips didn't linger, only pressing along the edge of the badge, as if pinning her daytime identity back into place.
"Director Susan, send me the new parameters before tonight."
He looked at her, his tone purely professional.
"If the data doesn't cooperate, I'll teach you how to adjust it myself."
Susan raised her eyes: "I will submit it on time."
She paused for half a second, then added.
"It won't trouble Mr. Lin."
Lin Nuo chuckled, his voice mostly covered by the sound of the laboratory equipment running.
"When you trouble me, it's usually not during the day."
Susan's fingers tightened on the electronic pen, the cap digging into her palm.
She didn't retort, simply pulling the holographic screen back to the main interface and issuing subsequent instructions with movements that were excessively calm.
"Per Mr. Lin's requirements, increase the backup energy output power by fifteen percent, establish three protection models, and keep the raw data for all tests."
"Yes, Director Susan."
The researchers immediately busied themselves.
The sound of keyboards, equipment starting up, and the low-frequency hum of the reactors intertwined, pressing the earlier secret confrontation into the depths of the laboratory's light.
Lin Nuo watched her regain control, his gaze behind his lenses lingering on her flushed ear tips for two seconds before moving away.
He didn't say anything else and walked toward the other side of the lab.
Susan didn't look back, watching his figure leave only through the reflection in the projection.
He took the document with him, but left behind the sensation of his touch on her wrist bone, which became an annotation only she could read.
On the other side of the glass wall was another laboratory with equally top-tier configurations.
A woman wearing a white lab coat, her chestnut curly hair draped behind her shoulders, was frowning as she stared at the real-time data transmitted back from the astronomical telescope.
On the screen, the star map slowly rotated, and anomalous energy bands pulsed within the deep space coordinates.
That was the head of the Astrophysics Department of the Star Umbrella Group, Jane Foster.
Lin Nuo stopped in front of the glass wall between the two laboratories.
The glass reflected his neat, well-dressed shadow, as well as Susan's side profile in the distance as she forced herself to remain calm.
He raised his hand to adjust his gold-rimmed glasses, his gaze passing through the glass and landing on that patch of deep space data in front of Jane Foster.
The new hunting ground had already lit up.
Chapter 92: Hands-on Guidance, A Late-Night Invitation Beneath a Lip Print
The core R&D area of Star Umbrella Group is jokingly referred to internally as the Forbidden Zone of Gods and Demons.
It gathers the World's top minds and era-defying technology; in the deepest part of this forbidden zone are the Twin Star Laboratories, separated only by a special glass wall.
On the left is the New Energy and Spatial Physics Laboratory led by Susan Storm, responsible for Star Umbrella Group's conquest of the microscopic World.
On the right is the Astrophysics and Space Exploration Laboratory led by Jane Foster, carrying the group's ambition to reach into deep space.
Two research goddesses, both possessing top-tier intelligence and stunning beauty, have begun a silent contest here.
They have no public disputes, but the speed of submitting academic reports, the efficiency of research breakthroughs, and even the duration of working late into the night have become indicators for their secret rivalry.
There is only one person who is the final judge of this contest.
Lin Nuo stood in front of the glass wall, hands in his suit pockets, gold-rimmed glasses resting on his brow bone, his gaze sweeping over Susan on the left before falling on Jane on the right.
Jane Foster noticed his arrival and lifted her head from behind the astronomical telescope; her chestnut curly hair was scattered across her face from long hours of leaning over her desk, adding a touch of weariness to her intellectual demeanor.
She nodded to Lin Nuo in acknowledgment, her movements restrained, though the recording pen in her fingers slowed by half a beat.
Lin Nuo understood, but instead of entering Jane's laboratory first, he turned and pushed open the door to Susan's side.
He walked to the central console, his fingers sweeping across the operation panel.
The laboratory's main lighting extinguished, leaving only dozens of holographic screens and instrument indicator lights emitting a ghostly blue glow.
The dimness lowered the sounds within the laboratory; the tapping of keyboards, the low hum of equipment, and the faint friction of fabric brushing against fabric were all amplified to the ear.
"Mr. Lin?"
Susan looked at him, her anti-blue light glasses reflecting the cold light of the screens, the electronic pen in her hand pausing in mid-air.
"The light is too bright; it will affect the observation of details in high-dimensional models."
The reason Lin Nuo gave was professional enough to be flawless, yet what he did was not the least bit well-behaved.
He walked behind Susan, closing the distance; the cold, woody scent on his white shirt overwhelmed the smell of disinfectant in the laboratory, drilling into her breath.
Susan wanted to step aside, but just as her heel moved, Lin Nuo's arm had already reached past her side.
He did not directly hold her waist, but simply placed his palm over the back of the hand she used to hold the mouse, his thumb and forefinger locking onto her wrist bone, his thumb pressing against the pulse on the side of her wrist.
Susan's shoulders tensed, her fingertips enclosed in his palm, unable to even scroll the mouse wheel herself.
"Here, the singularity of the curvature engine cannot be calculated as a single-point impact; it must be spread into a plane."
Lin Nuo spoke close to her ear, warm breath pouring into her ear canal, stirring a few stray hairs, the itch crawling down her nape.
"Relax. You're so tense, how can I push the parameters in?"
Susan's throat moved slightly as she forced her attention back to the screen.
"Mr. Lin, this is a laboratory."
"I know, that's why I'm only teaching you the model."
Lin Nuo held her hand to move the mouse, dragging out a new energy transmission path on the holographic screen.
His chest pressed close to her back through her professional suit; the distance was not completely closed, yet it was positioned exactly where it was hardest to ignore.
On the screen, the previously chaotic curvature lines were reorganized, the energy plane spread from the center to the edges, and the overload alarm curve dropped accordingly.
Susan stared at the data; her professional instinct told her this plan was effective, but the spot on her wrist where he held her was burning hot.
Lin Nuo's other hand reached over her shoulder to straighten her crooked name tag, his fingertips sliding along the metal edge, then reaching half an inch inside the back of her collar, stopping beside that tiny button.
The button had been nudged askew when she was leaning over her desk just now.
He slowly buttoned it properly, his fingertips brushing over the slightly protruding bone line below her nape, the duration of the pause short enough to be considered unintentional, yet long enough to make Susan's breathing go haywire.
"Is that better?"
He asked very softly, sounding as if he were asking about the button, and also as if he were asking if she could still hold on.
Susan bit her lower lip and took back control of her mouse.
"I understand the model now. Mr. Lin can go check on Dr.Jane."
Lin Nuo chuckled softly, and before withdrawing his palm from the back of her hand, he tapped her wrist bone with his fingertips.
"You can't take it when we've only just started? Where did that stubbornness from when you were fighting for the budget in the meeting go?"
Susan didn't turn around, only saving the new path into the project file, her earlobes unable to hide their redness in the ghostly blue light.
On the other side of the glass wall, Jane Foster saw this scene clearly.
The recording pen in her hand pressed against the paper, the tip leaving a long ink smear, and the data that should have been entered into the star chart system was off by a decimal point.
Jane quickly deleted the wrong data and re-entered the coordinates, but her gaze still crossed the glass, lingering on Susan's wrist, which was enveloped by Lin Nuo.
That kind of distance was too familiar, and too glaring.
Lin Nuo finished his guidance, turned off the auxiliary markers on Susan's screen, and his expression returned to the gentle and appropriate demeanor expected of a group boss.
He turned and pushed open the internal passage door connecting the two laboratories, walking over to Jane.
"Dr. Jane, encountering a difficult problem?"
His tone was gentle; the ambiguity he had just created next door had already been blocked off by that glass door.
Jane suppressed her chaotic emotions and pointed to the coordinate point on the star chart.
"There is a Nebula gravitational anomaly; I suspect there is an undiscovered ultra-small black hole there, but the data model cannot be matched."
Lin Nuo scanned the star chart without answering immediately.
His gaze fell on the mug beside Jane's workbench.
The cup was printed with the Star Umbrella LOGO, only half a cup of coffee remained, and a pale pink lip print was left on the rim.
Jane noticed his gaze and reached out to move the cup away, but she was a step too late.
Lin Nuo had already picked up the mug.
He did not avoid the lip print; instead, he turned the rim to face his fingertips, looked at it for two seconds, and then brought it to his lips.
The bottom of the cup tilted gently, and the remaining coffee was drunk by him along that lip print.
The sound of swallowing fell clearly in the quiet laboratory.
Jane's hand paused in mid-air, neither retracting nor continuing.
Lin Nuo put down the cup, his fingertips brushing over the residual temperature on the rim, then wiping the coffee stain from the corner of his own mouth.
"This cup is too bitter, not sweet."
Jane's ears burned, but she still braced herself with the composure expected of a research lead.
"Mr. Lin, if you have any opinions on the coffee recipe, you can have the Administration Department adjust it."
"The Administration Department cannot adjust this flavor."
Lin Nuo leaned over to look at the star chart in front of her, his finger pointing near the Nebula, his other hand resting on the back of her chair, trapping her between the screen and himself.
He wasn't leaning too close, yet it allowed Jane to smell the woody scent on him, along with the slightly bitter aroma of the coffee he had just drunk.
"The gravitational anomaly here is not a small black hole; the coordinates are off by three degrees."
Jane looked where his finger pointed; the screen light fell on her face, and the train of thought that had been disrupted by emotions was pulled back to the model.
"If it's off by three degrees, the waveband does match, but the mass estimation would exceed the upper limit."
"So don't use standard Earth models."
Lin Nuo lowered his head, his voice brushing against her ear.
"The water is deep here. Let me test the depth first, then I'll take you there."
Jane's hand holding the recording pen tightened, the pen cap leaving an indentation in her palm.
"Mr. Lin, do you always guide your subordinates like this?"
"It depends on the person."
Lin Nuo raised his hand, tucking the curly hair that had slipped to her face behind her ear, the back of his fingers brushing against the skin behind her ear, then stopping at that soft spot on the side of her neck.
"Some people are suited for standard answers; others are suited to be taken into deeper models."
Outside the glass wall, Susan looked up once, then quickly dropped her gaze back to her own holographic screen.
Jane saw Susan's reaction, and the bit of defiance in her chest was stirred up again.
She zoomed in on the star chart, her tone returning to calm.
"Then please prove, Mr. Lin, that your depth is enough to convince me."
Lin Nuo looked at her, the gaze behind his gold-rimmed glasses pressing very close.
"Come to Manor No. 1 tonight."
He pushed the mug back to her side; the lip print on the rim had been faded by his drinking, and the residual warmth from his fingertips remained on the cup.
"I'll take you to taste what true sweetness is."
Chapter 93: The Lanyard Tightens, Forced to Tilt Back and Endure Everything
Star Umbrella Group, CEO's Office.
At three in the afternoon, the sunlight of New Yorkstreamed through the massive one-way floor-to-ceiling windows, sliced into several golden slants that fell onto the dark mahogany desk. The desktop was blindingly bright, yet the temperature inside the office felt heavily suppressed.
The hum of the central air conditioning was faint, mixing with the metallic rhythm of knuckles tapping against the desk—one beat after another, so persistent that one's breathing had to slow down to match it.
Lin Nuo leaned back in his custom-made executive chair, his white shirt buttoned to the very top, gold-rimmed glasses resting against his brow bone. He appeared impeccably clean, without a single flaw in his demeanor.
His leather shoes were polished to a shine, the tips tapping rhythmically in the air to the beat of his knuckles. His posture was languid, yet it gave the impression that the distance could be closed by him at any moment.
Beside the large desk, Natasha Romanoff knelt on one knee on the marble floor, her red hair draped along the side of her face, holding a Military-grade encrypted tablet in her hands.
She wore a black skin-tight tactical suit, the high-elastic fabric clinging to the lines of her trained physique. Her shoulders and back were trim, and the weapon holster at her waist pressed into a sharp, capable curve.
This posture was meant for an Agent's report, facilitating both anti-eavesdropping measures and the ability to counter-attack at any moment.
Yet, in front of Lin Nuo, this work protocol was forcefully imbued with a different meaning.
Whenever Lin Nuo lowered his gaze, he could see the back of her neck exposed as she bowed her head.
A few strands of red hair clung to that patch of skin, swaying gently with the movement of her fingers tapping the screen.
The tips of his shoes were less than half an inch from the edge of her tactical boots, separated by this pitifully narrow gap.
He didn't touch her, yet he had clearly measured her retreat.
Natasha's fingertips slid across the tablet, her pads pressing against the edge of the screen. Her speed was steady, though her knuckles were taut and overly beautiful from maintaining the pose for so long.
"Communication signal source locked. Eighty-two degrees north latitude, fifty-eight degrees east longitude, located in the permanent ice cap region of the Greenland Sea."
Her tone was calm and professional when she spoke, devoid of any unnecessary inflection, as if she were completely unaware of the scrutiny from above.
"Signal decryption in progress. Three-layer dynamic encryption, highest Military level."
The blue light from the tablet screen reflected on the side of her face, her eyelashes casting low shadows as she dragged the final decryption key into the cracking box.
"Decryption complete."
The surveillance feed popped up, with snow and static covering half the screen.
A white ice sheet filled the frame, with cold winds swirling snow particles across the equipment casing. Nick Fury, wearing heavy polar anti-cold gear, stood beside the ice-breaking equipment, directing the Agents to set up their perimeter.
A large laser cutter was aimed at the hundred-meter ice sheet, the energy beam pushing downward. The ice surface cracked into a precise opening, snow mist was steamed up by the high heat, and the edges of the image trembled constantly.
Deep within the ice, the outline of an old-fashioned twin-engine propeller bomber was revealed. The red, white, and blue star insignia on the wing was covered by thick ice, yet it remained clear.
Lin Nuo watched Fury's face on the screen, which was tightened into a bitter expression, and stopped the finger tapping on his desk.
The rhythm in the office broke as well, leaving only the sound of the air conditioning blowing overhead.
"It seems our Director Fury truly has no more cards to play."
Lin Nuo's voice was low, the tail end of his words pressing against the mahogany desk. It sounded gentle, but the content left no room for maneuver.
"When the available Agents aren't enough, he goes digging up old debts. He's even in a rush to thaw out a World War II popsicle that's been frozen for seventy years."
Natasha's hand holding the tablet paused for half a second.
As a S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent, she should have retorted, and she should have removed the name Captain America from Lin Nuo's disparagement.
But his shoe tips were too close to her, so close that if she moved her knee, the edge of his leather would brush against the side of her tactical boot.
What was more troublesome was Lin Nuo's scent—the woody fragrance seeping from his white shirt was clean and restrained, but when it reached her, it tangled with the scent of coffee, leather, and the cool-toned fragrance in the office, making her throat go dry.
Natasha completed the data backup, closed the tablet, and prepared to stand up and retreat according to protocol.
Just as her knees were about to exert force, Lin Nuo's leather shoe nudged forward half an inch.
The side of his shoe pressed against the outer edge of her tactical boot. The force was light, non-aggressive, yet it perfectly cut off her path to stand.
Natasha's movement was forced to a halt. She remained on one knee, her spine tightening, and her red hair slid down along her shoulder.
"Don't be in such a rush to leave, Miss Agent."
Lin Nuo leaned forward, his arm crossing the edge of the desk. His slender fingers didn't touch her face, nor did they touch her shoulder; they only hooked onto the black nylon lanyard around her neck.
The lanyard was attached to her S.H.I.E.L.D. ID card. When he lifted it with his fingertips, the card tapped lightly against the front of her tactical suit, making a faint, hard sound.
Natasha looked up at him, her red lips pressed into a thin line. Her trained vigilance meant she could counter-attack at any moment, but right now, that lanyard was in his fingers, representing both her identity and the leverage she had while infiltrating Star Umbrella.
Lin Nuo wasn't in a hurry to exert force; he only used his fingertips to slowly push aside the few strands of red hair pressed beneath the lanyard.
His movements were so refined they could be categorized as grooming, yet his fingertips paused against the side of her neck. Across an extremely short distance, his warmth fell upon the edge of her skin.
Natasha swallowed slightly, and the ID card swayed against her clothing.
"Fury digging up his popsicle, that's his business."
Lin Nuo pulled the lanyard slightly closer to himself, forcing Natasha to tilt her head back. Her gaze crossed his lenses, meeting his gaze, which was so quiet it was dangerous.
"Our accounts here haven't been settled yet."
His fingertips moved upward along the surface of the cord. The movement wasn't fast, the nylon material sliding beside her skin, bringing out a faint itch.
Natasha's shoulder line tightened, and she pressed the tablet against her knee, the metal edge digging into her palm.
"Mr. Lin, if this is an interrogation, I suggest you follow the formal procedure."
"Formal procedures are too slow."
Lin Nuo looked down at the ID card on her chest, the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo on the card shining under the office lights.
"You are wearing someone else's credentials, kneeling in my office, and reporting someone else's secrets to me."
As he said this, his fingertips pressed lightly on the clasp of the lanyard, loosening it by half an inch before he pinched it back into place.
"Natasha, does this count as having too broad a scope of work?"
Natasha lifted her chin, trying hard to steady her breathing.
"My scope of work is always determined by the mission."
"Then I'll give you a new mission now."
Lin Nuo's voice came even closer, his warm breath falling against her ear and blowing a few loose strands of red hair.
"Relax. You're so tense, how am I supposed to verify the permissions?"
Natasha lowered her eyes, her fingertips moving from the edge of the tablet toward her waist, but she stopped before touching the weapon holster.
Lin Nuo seemed to have calculated this reaction long ago. His leather shoe didn't increase the pressure, merely pressing gently against the edge of her boot, letting her understand that any action would first fall into his rhythm.
"Can't take it just as the verification has started?"
His fingertips tapped lightly on the frame of the ID card, the metal card holder making a short, crisp sound against the tactical suit.
"Where did that stubbornness from when you were reporting the coordinates go?"
Natasha stared at him, her red lips parting, her tone still beautifully steady.
"Mr. Lin, what do you want?"
"I want you to explain to me just how deep the Water in S.H.I.E.L.D. runs."
Lin Nuo released a segment of the lanyard and then used the web of his hand to grip her slender wrist that was holding the tablet.
The temperature of his palm pressed down through the edge of her tactical glove. The force was well-controlled—neither painful nor allowing her to pull away.
"This place has deep Water; don't move recklessly."
He lowered his eyes to look at the pulse jumping at her wrist, his fingertips pressing slowly over the buckle of her wrist guard.
"I'll test the depth before I take you across."
Natasha smiled, a very light smile, carrying the probing nature typical of an Agent.
"Sounds like you are quite skilled at leading people through dangerous areas."
"Depends on who it is."
Lin Nuo raised his hand to straighten the collar that had been mussed by the lanyard.
His fingertips brushed against the edge of the collar. He didn't go deeper, yet he smoothed that piece of fabric perfectly into place.
He groomed her earnestly, as if correcting the page margins of a document, yet every touch landed on the places she found hardest to ignore.
Natasha's breathing was forced to slow down, the temperature of his words from just a moment ago lingering beside her ear.
"This lanyard of yours is tied too tight."
Lin Nuo cradled the ID card in his palm, his gaze falling on the name field below her photo.
"As the boss, I have an obligation to adjust my subordinate's equipment so it doesn't affect work efficiency."
Natasha did not retreat, nor did she pull her wrist from his palm.
She held her face up, her red hair sliding down from her shoulder. The vigilance in her eyes was intertwined with a certain suppressed emotion.
"Mr. Lin, are you sure you're just adjusting the equipment?"
Lin Nuo's fingertips paused on the lanyard clasp, his thumb giving it a light flick, and the clasp made a tiny sound.
"Of course."
He spoke in a low voice, his tone remaining refined and appropriate.
"However, if you keep looking at me like that, I'll practice with you right here and now."
Chapter 94: Embracing Both, Public Kisses Incite Revenge
S.H.I.E.L.D., Triskelion Headquarters.
The air was a mixture of disinfectant, the scent of metallic rust, and the stifling atmosphere that had accumulated after long-term confinement.
The cold, hard alloy walls blocked out the sunlight, and the LED light strips on the ceiling shone in rows, casting a pallor on everyone's faces.
This was the last fortress Nick Fury could hold onto, and it had become a place for a group of losers to lick their wounds.
In the central tactical command room, an emergency meeting was underway.
Beside the massive circular conference table, only a few figures sat; there were more empty seats than people, and the atmosphere was so oppressive it made one's throat go dry.
Tony Stark leaned back in his chair, his shirt collar unbuttoned, his face pale, his eye sockets deeply sunken, and his eyes bloodshot.
After losing the top-tier computing support of Star Umbrella Group, his development of the new armor was stuck halfway, and the palladium poisoning was inching closer to the limits of his body.
His fingers repeatedly traced the empty shell of the watch on his wrist; the dial had long been dismantled, leaving only the metal frame pressing against his skin.
That was once something Pepper Potts had personally fastened when she arranged his schedule; now, there was nothing left but cold metal without a trace of residual warmth.
Not far from him, Peter Parker sat with his head down, wearing a cheap hoodie washed to the point of fading, his hands clenched on his knees.
Ever since the battle at the Brooklyn Bridge, every time he raised his hand to fire a web, Lin Nuo's words—"a child who doesn't understand responsibility"—would echo in his mind.
Gwen Stacy had stood by at the time, not rushing over, not defending him, simply watching as Lin Nuo took control of the situation with steadier power.
That scene gnawed at his self-esteem repeatedly, wearing down the heroic dream he had always believed in until it felt hollow.
In the shadows of the corner, Thor sat in silence, wearing Earthling civilian clothes, his tall frame still looking out of place in the surroundings.
After losing the recognition of Mjolnir, the once-proud Asgardian deity now sat in a chair, palms pressed against his knees, his knuckles tightening inch by inch.
At the end of the conference table stood a massive, cylindrical life-support pod.
Green nutrient solution circulated slowly inside the pod, with several tubes connected to the base, extending to the neural transmission equipment nearby.
Mr. Fantastic, Reed Richards, had already lost his normal human form.
His body had been completely destroyed by Lin Nuo's final strike at the molecular level, leaving only a mass of soft flesh that could not stably aggregate, slowly writhing in the nutrient solution.
The electrodes on his brainstem were still working; his terrifyingly intelligent brain had become the only think tank S.H.I.E.L.D. could rely on at this moment.
Nick Fury stood before the holographic projection screen, his single eye sweeping over everyone at the conference table.
"I know, everyone has been having a hard time lately."
His voice was hoarse, the lack of sleep for an extended period making the end of his sentences drop very low.
"We have made the same mistake: underestimating Lin Nuo."
Fury raised his hand, and data related to Lin Nuo popped up on the screen: Star Umbrella Group, Culver University, the Brooklyn Bridge incident, the record of the stripping of Thor's rights to Mjolnir—file after file flipped through the blue light.
"He took your technology, your wealth, your reputation, and he also took the people you thought would never leave you."
After these words fell, even the hum of the equipment in the conference room became distinct.
Tony's breathing grew heavier, his fingertips pressing against the edge of the empty watch casing, the metal shell emitting a faint sound.
The liquid in the life-support pod churned; Reed's remaining body pressed against the pod wall, then slid back into the nutrient solution.
Peter kept his head down, his palms pierced by his nails, beads of blood falling onto his trousers, blooming into dark stains.
At this moment, the heavy alloy door opened from the outside.
Two fully armed Agents walked in, dragging a massive metal cage, the arm-thick Vibranium chains dragging across the floor, scraping out a harsh sound.
Inside the cage, a thin, frail man huddled in the corner, his face deathly pale, his glasses crooked on the bridge of his nose.
That was Bruce Banner.
Ever since Hulk was crushed head-on by Lin Nuo, he had been secretly controlled by S.H.I.E.L.D.
"Fury, what are you doing?"
Banner saw the injection gun in Fury's hand and recoiled, his back hitting the cage wall.
Inside the injection gun, a high-concentration gamma solvent glowed with a blinding green light.
Fury did not look away.
"Sorry, Dr. Banner, we need power."
Banner shook his head, his voice tight.
"No, you can't do this. Hulk has already lost control once; you will get everyone killed."
Fury gripped the injection gun and approached through the cage.
"We need a kind of rage that can go head-to-head with Lin Nuo; we can't wait for you to slowly learn how to control it."
Banner lunged to the side of the cage, grabbing the bars with both hands.
"That's not control, that's a disaster!"
Fury released the safety catch, and the needle pierced the side of Banner's neck.
Banner's scream hit the alloy walls, and the alarms of the monitoring equipment sounded one after another.
His frail body expanded rapidly, his skin stained dark green, muscles bulging, and bones stretching under the skin, emitting a series of crisp cracking sounds.
The Vibranium chains were pulled taut, and the fixing bolts at the four corners of the cage began to deform.
His figure was even more massive than before, his facial features twisted, saliva dripping from his lips, and his eyes filled only with the mania to destroy everything before him.
This had already exceeded the scope of Hulk and had become an Abomination forcibly birthed.
Abomination roared and slammed into the cage wall, the alloy floor vibrating with fine cracks, the two Agents pushed back by the recoil, their muzzles raising in unison.
Fury raised his hand to signal them to hold, then pressed the switch for the projector.
The holographic screen switched images.
A star-studded charity gala appeared before everyone.
The banquet hall was gorgeously lit, guests were dressed in elegant attire, and reporters' cameras flashed continuously around the central area.
The protagonist of the scene was Lin Nuo.
He was wearing a well-tailored haute couture suit, his gold-rimmed glasses reflecting the lights, the collar of his white shirt spotless; he looked so refined and appropriate that no fault could be found.
Pepper Potts stood to his left, her crimson evening gown hugging her waistline; the former queen of Stark Industrieswas now leaning against him naturally.
Lin Nuo's left hand rested lightly on her waist, his palm not pressing too hard, yet bringing the distance between the two very close.
Pepper Potts held half a glass of champagne, a faint lipstick mark left on the rim.
As the camera zoomed in, Lin Nuo lowered his head to speak to her, his breath brushing against the loose hair by her ear; Pepper Potts tilted her head, a relaxed and bright smile appearing on her lips.
Tony Stark stared at the hand resting on Pepper Potts's waist, his Adam's apple bobbing, as if someone had gouged a piece out of his chest.
Lin Nuo held a champagne glass in his right hand, the custom Patek Philippe watch on his wrist, engraved with "L.B.," sweeping past the camera.
Standing on his other side was Gwen Stacy, who had attended in full dress.
She looked up at Lin Nuo, her expression filled with trust, reliance, and the composure of someone who had made a public choice.
Seeing this scene, Peter Parker's shoulders stiffened, and the blood from his palm continued to drip down.
Lin Nuo noticed the camera; he first turned to the side to fix the shawl Pepper Potts had had jostled by the crowd, his fingertips sliding from her shoulder to her back and pausing steadily, as if to shield her from all external gazes.
Subsequently, he lowered his head and planted an intimate kiss beside Pepper Potts's cheek.
Pepper Potts did not dodge; instead, she raised her hand to straighten his bowtie, an action so familiar that it made Tony Stark's expression look even worse.
Lin Nuo then turned to Gwen Stacy and touched her forehead lightly—polite, restrained, yet enough to make everyone who had once stood by her side understand whose camp she had joined.
Finally, he looked up at the camera, locking eyes with every man in the conference room through the holographic projection.
That face remained gentle, yet the composure of a victor was not even worth hiding.
An outburst of extremely suppressed commotion erupted in the conference room.
Tony Stark stood up from his chair, the chair legs scraping against the floor, emitting a harsh sound.
He stared at the hand on Pepper Potts's waist on the screen, his voice hoarse.
"How dare he."
Reed Richards in the life-support pod thrashed wildly, the nutrient solution churning, and the electrodes emitted intermittent static.
Peter Parker lifted his head; the youthful naivety on his face was gone, replaced only by the stubbornness forced out after being humiliated.
Thor clenched his fists, veins bulging on the back of his hands, the back of the chair warped under his pressure.
And that newly born Abomination was thoroughly enraged by the scene on the screen.
It roared and slammed into the cage, the Vibranium chains pulling taut one after another, and the warning lights on the wall began to flash.
Fury stood before the projection, watching all of this without stopping it.
What he wanted was never just a team.
What he wanted was hatred, jealousy, and the rage of those who had lost everything and could never turn back.
The men in this conference room were finally tied together by the same name.
Lin Nuo.
Fury turned off the projection; the blue light receded from everyone's faces, leaving only the white overhead lights shining on those faces on the verge of losing control.
His Avengers were made.
A true Avengers composed of a group of losers who had been stripped of everything, existing only to reclaim everything from that man.
Chapter 95: Soaked on a Rainy Night, Defeating Black Widow's Defenses with One Hand
On the top floor of the Star Umbrella Group, in the CEO's Office, Lin Nuo had just finished a remote call with Kamar-Taj.
That old fox, the Ancient One, had become far more polite than last time after witnessing his physical anti-magic methods and having him expose the secret of her absorbing power from the Dark Dimension.
The Kamar-Taj library was now open to him, and the basic coordinate maps of the Multiverse dimensions had also been sent over; nominally for exchange, but in reality, it felt more like paying protection money.
Lin Nuo leaned back in his executive chair, twirling a silver data ring between his fingertips, while the intel on the Avengers assembly, intercepted by the system, hung in a projection above the desk.
That list was truly interesting; Tony, Peter, Reed, Thor, and the Abomination, ripened by rage, were all tied together by the same name.
Lin Nuo watched for a moment, let out a low laugh, and pressed his fingertip to turn off the projection.
The office door was pushed open silently, and a black figure slid in through the crack, closing the door behind her with a backhand motion.
Natasha had returned.
She was still wearing that tight tactical suit, with raindrops from her stealth mission on that rainy night clinging to the black fabric, rolling down along her shoulder lines and waist, only to be stopped by her tactical belt.
Her slightly damp red hair was scattered along her neck, with a few strands clinging to her cheeks, making her lip color appear more vivid than usual and adding a touch of disarray to her professional coldness, as if ruffled by the rainy night.
She walked to the desk and raised her hand to set down a chip, her leather gloves brushing against the surface with a faint friction sound.
"Boss, the Avengers have finished assembling. This is their latest force configuration map."
After speaking, she stepped back half a pace, her hands hanging naturally at her sides; her posture looked relaxed, but her toes were always kept at an angle ready to exert force at any moment.
Lin Nuo did not go to take the chip.
His gaze shifted from the desk to her, first seeing the water dripping from her hair tips, then the touch of red behind her ears soaked by the cold rain, and finally resting on the complex tactical belt at her lower back.
The belt was loaded with small equipment: a micro-taser, flashbangs, lock-picking tools, and a dagger coated with neurotoxin, each placed exactly where she could reach it most easily.
Lin Nuo rose, his white shirt cuffs sliding up his wrists by half an inch with the movement, the gaze behind his gold-rimmed glasses dimmed by the play of light and shadow.
He walked around the desk, approaching step by step; his shoe soles made little sound on the carpet, yet it caused Natasha's breathing rhythm to slow down.
She did not retreat.
Black Widow never turned her back to anyone, but before she entered this door tonight, she had already delivered the real intelligence to the person it was meant for.
Staying with Nick Fury, she was an insider, not a pawn.
Lin Nuo stopped in front of her, raised his hand to remove a tiny, rain-dampened tracking patch from her shoulder, his fingertips grazing along the seams of her tactical suit before stopping at the edge of the zipper above her collarbone.
Natasha's throat moved slightly, and she forced herself not to turn her head.
"Were you discovered by them?"
"No."
She answered quickly, her tone remaining professional.
"Fury only thinks I am confirming the defensive vulnerabilities on your side; he won't suspect me."
Lin Nuo lowered his head, his breath brushing against her ear, the warm exhalation curling into her ear canal and lifting a few damp strands of hair, sending an itch drilling deep inside.
"So good at acting; no wonder that black-egg-head is comfortable letting you out."
Natasha looked up at him, a hint of provocation pressing at the corners of her lips.
"And are you comfortable, Boss?"
Lin Nuo did not answer.
He raised his hand to clasp her wrist, his thumb and forefinger locking onto her wrist bone; the force wasn't heavy, yet it made it impossible for her to pull away.
The next moment, he turned her around and pressed her against the floor-to-ceiling window behind her.
The coldness of the glass pressed against her spine through the tactical suit; the lights and rain streaks outside the window were all pushed behind her. She could see the traffic downstairs and hear the faint sound of her own swallowing.
Lin Nuo rested one hand on the glass, while the other dropped to the metal buckle at her lower back.
His fingertips slid along the edge of the buckle, first pressing the latch, then probing half an inch inside the waist belt, as if checking the equipment, and also as if measuring how much longer she could hold herself together.
Natasha's shoulders and back tensed, her red hair pressed against her earlobes by his breath.
"Boss, this is a S.H.I.E.L.D. custom-made structure; forcing it open will trigger an electric shock."
"Relax."
Lin Nuo's voice was low, his words drilling into her ear bone.
"With you tensed up so tight, how am I supposed to take it apart?"
Natasha's breathing faltered for a beat.
She knew perfectly well that this sentence referred to the equipment, yet she was still scalded by that word "take apart," and even the skin on her lower back that his fingertips had grazed felt hot.
Lin Nuo's hand still rested there, not rushing to open it.
He was like an overly patient researcher, searching for an entry point along every seam of the mechanism; occasionally, when he touched the most ticklish spot on her waist, he would pause for half a second before continuing as if nothing had happened.
The office was too quiet; the sound of rain outside was separated by the glass, leaving only the soft rustle of fabric, the subtle clicking of the metal buckle, and her deliberately suppressed breathing inside the room.
"You brought quite the complete set of equipment."
Lin Nuo said, pressing close to her, his nose almost touching her cold, damp red hair.
"Taser, flashbangs, lock-picking tools, poison blade—did Fury stuff you with so much because he's afraid that after you come back, I'll keep you and not let you go?"
Natasha turned her face away, the side of her neck tensed into a beautiful line.
"He only required me to get the intelligence."
"And did you get it?"
Lin Nuo's fingertips pressed against the inside of the buckle, his tone gentle in a way that was infuriating.
"Or are you planning to hand over the person as well?"
Natasha clenched her back teeth, not taking the bait.
She shouldn't be led by a single sentence, and even less should she let her breathing spiral out of control at this distance, but Lin Nuo just happened to know how to twist mission terminology into another meaning.
The more serious he sounded, the more she could hear the wickedness underneath.
Lin Nuo chuckled softly, his fingertips giving the metal buckle a light push before stopping again.
"Can't take it when it's only just begun?"
He lowered his head, looking at the red patch on her earlobe, his voice pressing even closer.
"Where did that stubbornness you showed in front of Furygo?"
Natasha closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, her tone was a bit hoarse.
"Is your method of interrogating your own people always this excessive?"
"Your own people?"
Lin Nuo repeated these three words, his palm sliding up her nape, his fingertips rubbing back and forth over that soft flesh as if confirming whether she was lying.
"I like that term, but even 'one of our own' needs to be inspected, especially a dangerous item like you who would come into my office with a full set of tools."
Natasha's fingertips curled, wanting to speak, but she was cut off by his action of pressing down on her nape.
That hand wasn't rough; on the contrary, it was too steady—steady enough that even her resistance turned into a form of cooperation.
Lin Nuo finally caught the last hidden lock.
"Click."
The sound of metal unlocking rang out in the quiet office.
That complex buckle, which required a special technique to open, was taken apart by him with one hand.
"Things that are too heavy will slow down your reaction."
Lin Nuo said, pressing against her ear, his tone like he was planning tactics.
"Take it off."
He let go.
The tactical belt lost its support and slid from her waist; the heavy leather and metal hit the wool carpet with a dull thud.
The micro-taser rolled to the table leg, the flashbang pressed against a water trail left by a damp lock of hair, and the dagger slid out half an inch before its edge was swallowed by the carpet.
Natasha's waist was empty.
That emptiness wasn't as simple as missing a piece of equipment; it was more like the distance she was accustomed to had been dismantled by someone's own hands, and even the boundaries Black Widow relied on for survival had been pressed between Lin Nuo's fingers and unraveled layer by layer.
Her back was pressed against the glass, in front of her was the narrow space Lin Nuo had carved out, and behind her was the night view of all of New York.
All the paths were still there, yet she didn't want to take a single step.
Lin Nuo lowered his head to look at her, his fingertips moving from her lower back to her wrist, slowly and deliberately removing the micro-blade hidden at the edge of her glove.
"How many more?"
Natasha pressed her lips together, her voice light and slightly dangerous.
"You can find them yourself."
Lin Nuo's gaze landed on her face, pausing for a moment.
"Natasha, are you inviting me to search you?"
She did not answer, only turning her face toward the window.
The glass reflected the shadows of the two; Lin Nuo stood behind her, his white shirt excessively clean, while Natashain her black tactical suit was soaked by the rain, looking like someone who had just retreated from the battlefield only to be cornered in an even more dangerous place.
Lin Nuo raised his hand, his thumb wiping a drop of rain from her lips before he placed it to his own lips to taste.
"Tastes like rain."
He evaluated with a straight face.
"And a little lipstick."
Natasha finally couldn't help but curse in a low voice.
"Shameless."
"Thanks for the compliment."
Lin Nuo leaned down, his voice falling against her earlobe.
"I don't have many virtues, but I excel at being honest."
Natasha's breathing completely lost its rhythm.
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s mission, Nick Fury's suspicion, that group of Avengers just pieced together by hatred—all retreated far away at this moment.
She only felt the emptiness at her waist, his finger-warmth still remaining on her nape, and her ear burning from his whispered words.
In her mind, only one thought remained...
She wanted him.