Richard had to admit, one detail of the meeting genuinely surprised him.
S.H.I.E.L.D.
had been able to detect the burst of energy released when Ultraman appeared.
That was…
inconvenient.
How extensive was their sensor network?
If it relied on satellite coverage, then every future transformation might as well come with a global announcement.
Ultraman has arrived.
Coordinates attached.
Not exactly ideal for maintaining a secret identity.
Richard had assumed he could stay anonymous for quite a while.
Now he wasn’t so sure.
Which led him to a different conclusion.
He leaned forward in his chair and looked directly at Phil Coulson.
“All right.” “If you’re this determined to know…” “I suppose I can tell you something that wasn’t printed in today’s paper.” Both agents straightened almost instantly.
To be honest, neither of them had expected much from this visit.
The energy spike had originated near the Daily Planet, but they’d considered that little more than coincidence.
Richard’s earlier joke hadn’t been entirely unreasonable.
A fifty-meter-tall silver giant wasn’t exactly something you hid in a storage closet.
Coulson’s expression sharpened.
“What do you know, Mr.
Carter?” Richard lowered his voice.
Both agents unconsciously leaned closer.
He smiled.
“I might as well be honest.” A brief pause.
“I’m Ultraman.” Silence.
Richard hadn’t said it on impulse.
He’d spent the last few minutes weighing the consequences.
If S.H.I.E.L.D.
could pinpoint every transformation through its sensors, then eventually someone would notice the pattern.
Every time Ultraman appeared…
Richard Carter just happened to be nearby.
Sooner or later, someone would connect the dots.
He had ways to make that more difficult.
But why bother?
It sounded exhausting.
The only foolproof method of preserving his identity would be to never transform again.
That wasn’t an option.
This was the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Cities were attacked with alarming regularity.
World-ending crises seemed to arrive on a schedule.
Living here without using the power he’d been given felt less like caution and more like deliberate suicide.
Besides…
Richard had never fully understood the secret-identity obsession in superhero fiction.
He enjoyed Ultraman series as much as anyone, but some disguises stretched credibility.
A defense team somehow failing to notice that the same teammate mysteriously disappeared every single time a giant monster attacked?
For months?
Sometimes years?
That required a level of selective blindness Richard simply couldn’t accept.
Even if he managed to hide the truth indefinitely…
Why should he?
He wasn’t pretending to be an ordinary man because he feared humanity.
With only Nexus’s initial form, he still had plenty of reasons to avoid the universe’s true cosmic heavyweights.
But ordinary people?
Government agencies?
He wasn’t particularly intimidated.
If his identity became public, so be it.
What exactly was S.H.I.E.L.D.
supposed to do?
Arrest him?
Dissect him?
Richard found that possibility difficult to take seriously.
His enhanced senses alone made surprise attacks nearly impossible.
Even asleep, his awareness remained far beyond human limits.
After thinking it through, honesty seemed like the simpler solution.
Better to tell them himself than spend years looking over his shoulder.
Coulson nodded politely.
“I appreciate your time, Mr.
Carter.” Richard blinked.
“…That’s it?” The agent reached into his jacket and produced a business card.
“If you remember anything relevant, please contact me.” “Thank you for speaking with us.” He turned toward the door.
Ward followed without another word.
The office door closed behind them.
Richard sat there for several seconds.
“…” Then he laughed quietly.
“So that’s how it is.” Tell people a lie, and they’ll analyze every word.
Tell them the truth…
…and nobody believes you.
Well, he’d done his part.
One day, when S.H.I.E.L.D.
finally realized Ultraman had been sitting across the desk from them all along, Richard intended to remind them he’d confessed on the very first meeting.
Whether they chose to believe him was hardly his responsibility.
With the agents gone, the Daily Planet returned to its usual rhythm.
“Parker!” Richard’s voice echoed across the newsroom.
A young reporter froze mid-step.
“You told me last week you had a lead on the mayor’s rumored girlfriend.” “Where’s the story?” Parker looked helpless.
“Well…
after the giant showed up…” Richard folded his arms.
“And what exactly does a celebrity gossip reporter have to do with a fifty-meter alien?” “…” “I…” “Nice try.” Richard pointed toward the elevators.
“Go get me a story.” “If you come back empty-handed again, I’m transferring you to the humor column.” Parker inhaled sharply.
The humor column?
His dream was to win a Pulitzer Prize.
He wasn’t entirely convinced there was a Pulitzer category for terrible jokes.
“I’ll get right on it!” He disappeared from the newsroom at a sprint.
Richard watched him leave with an amused smile.
The threat was mostly theatrical.
Parker was actually one of the paper’s better young reporters.
Energetic.
Persistent.
Always willing to chase a lead.
Still…
Young journalists occasionally needed a little pressure.
Richard considered that part of good management.
Not long after Parker left, another knock sounded at the office door.
A young blonde reporter stepped inside.
Richard searched his memory.
Kathy?
Katie?
Something close to that.
She’d joined the paper only a few months earlier after graduating from college.
Her eyes were shining with excitement.
“Mr.
Carter!” “I’ve got a huge story!” Richard set down his teacup.
“Really?” He smiled.
“What is it?” “You figured out what caused last night’s attack?” “Identified the Abomination?” “Found Ultraman?” Her enthusiasm faded slightly.
“…Not exactly.” She cleared her throat.
“It’s about a gang.” “The Green Snake Gang.” Richard leaned back into his chair.
“…Oh.” The excitement vanished from his face.
A gang?
Compared to everything that had happened over the last twenty-four hours…
That hardly sounded like front-page material.