Marcus shook his head, giving Jane a bit of hope.
Yeah.
There’s no way…
“You humans aren’t the only species on Earth,” Marcus said calmly.
Meaning…
Cows, sheep, pigs, dogs, tigers, wolves, and every other animal would also get reduced in half.
That number…
Would be insane.
Now,
Not just Natasha and Jane, even the S.H.I.E.L.D agents watching through the monitors were shaken.
Even Fury, who stayed calmer than the others, looked serious.
He picked up the phone and ordered immediately,
“Send people to NASA right now.
Shut down the damn broadcast functions on Voyager 1 and Voyager 2, then bring them back immediately!”
“What procedure?”
“Have Rumlow lead STRIKE and do it directly.
Free fire authorized.”
After hanging up,
Fury thought for a moment, then sent the translated information to the Skrulls using a special device.
Real aliens.
A reply quickly came back.
[Although I have never heard this exact theory, the logic is sound.
Many civilizations in the universe have indeed been destroyed this way.]
[As for the M78 Nebula, we have never heard of it.
The universe is too vast.]
Fury’s eyes narrowed.
So…
The Dark Forest Theory actually had some basis?
Just thinking about it was enough to scare people.
The Skrulls were refugees themselves, so even their information about the universe was limited.
With that thought,
Fury gave another order.
“Natasha Romanoff, ask him if there are any other universal threats.”
“Don’t push too hard on topics he refuses to answer.”
“Proceed with Plan G.
Stay close to the target.”
Natasha calmed down after hearing Fury’s orders.
Then she smiled.
“Thank you for the warning, Mr.
Marcus.
Are there other similar threats in the universe?”
“Ah, it’s nothing,” Marcus scratched his head.
“You people probably don’t casually send radio signals and broadcasts into space, right?”
Natasha: “…”
Jane: “…”
Marcus frowned.
“Things like launching probes into deep space…”
Natasha: “…”
Jane: “…”
“And also…”
Marcus listed several examples in a row, naming all kinds of signals and probes humanity had launched into space over the years.
Natasha and Jane’s expressions kept getting worse.
At this point…
Earth surviving this long was honestly lucky.
“Seriously,” Marcus sighed, “you guys did so many suicidal things, and I was the first one to find you.”
“No, wait.”
“There’s a good chance other civilizations already noticed Earth and even sent advance scouts hiding somewhere on the planet.”
Jane immediately looked at Natasha.
“Has S.H.I.E.L.D found any traces of aliens like that?”
Natasha shook her head.
“I mainly handle field operations against secret organizations.
I’m not deeply involved with extraterrestrial cases.”
While she was talking,
Marcus suddenly stood up like he realized something terrible.
“No!”
“This planet is too dangerous!”
“It could get wiped out any day now!”
“I need to move somewhere else!”
That panicked reaction really looked like someone trying to run from disaster.
There was no way Natasha would let him leave.
She immediately stood up to chase after him.
But Marcus moved hundreds of meters away in a flash.
He was almost gone…
Natasha could only shout,
“Five superpowered women!”
Marcus stopped.
But he still looked hesitant.
“Ten!” Natasha raised the offer immediately.
“I guarantee at least two succeed!”
Marcus looked tempted and turned back slightly, but still didn’t come closer.
His voice came from far away.
“Twelve in one year, minimum three successful.”
Natasha: “…”
Good lord.
Twelve in a year?
One every month?
Man’s already calculating everything.
But right now, S.H.I.E.L.D needed him more than he needed them.
She could only grit her teeth and agree.
“Deal.”
Marcus instantly smiled.
Didn’t expect this bluff to work out so well.
As for the Dark Forest Theory…
Earth was protected by Asgard, and the Ancient One was still around.
Honestly, Earth could mess around however it wanted.
In a flash, Marcus returned to Natasha.
“S.H.I.E.L.D should have a lot of powerful weapons,” Marcus said with a smile.
Natasha immediately became cautious.
“What are you planning?”
Weapons were different from people.
The more women Marcus had on Earth, the more connected he became to the planet.
But weapons…
Who knew where those would end up?
“Relax, I’m not asking for free stuff,” Marcus said.
“Equivalent exchange.
Information, missions, rescues, employment, all fine.”
So…
That was acceptable.
Marcus’s combat ability was obvious to everyone.
Trading fairly was better than getting nothing.
“Transactions are possible,” Natasha said carefully, “but not on a large scale.
At most, we can increase the variety.”
“That’s fine.
I mostly collect them anyway,” Marcus agreed easily.
After all…
His family system hadn’t developed much yet.
Having too many identical weapons was just decoration.
Different items were more valuable.
Since they were already outside,
Marcus didn’t bother going back to finish eating and looked at Natasha.
“When will the identity documents you mentioned be ready?”
He still wanted to marry Darcy quickly and see what reward the system would give.
“Oh, right.”
“Women on your planet care a lot about ceremony too, right?”
“Help me plan a proposal.”
As long as it wasn’t about saving the world, S.H.I.E.L.D.’s efficiency was actually pretty high.
Private theater, luxury decorations, candlelight dinner, and finally a carefully prepared proposal ring.
They even wrote a proposal script for him.
But Marcus didn’t use it and prepared his own speech instead.
He looked at Darcy Lewis, who covered her mouth in shock.
Then he said seriously, “My mission is to grow my race, which means I’ll have many women in the future.”
“I can’t give you exclusive love, but I can promise this love will never disappear.”
“Will you spend the rest of your life with me?”
Darcy’s mind went blank.
Sure, she liked handsome guys and all that.
But…
They had only known each other for one day!
And now…
He was proposing already?
At this speed, were they having kids tomorrow or what?
Still…
The one proposing to her was a handsome, mysterious, insanely powerful alien.
No way she could resist that.
Darcy nodded without hesitation and held out her hand so Marcus could put the diamond ring on her finger.
Then came a passionate kiss.
With the healing effect of the [Horse Talisman], even if her body was sore, she recovered almost instantly.
Honestly…
If Marcus wanted, he could probably even fake a “first time” effect.
…
Marcus had a pretty damn good wedding night.
Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton stood guard nearby.
“His personality is decent, but he’s very vindictive,” Barton reminded her.
“Dr.
Erik Selvig only showed a little suspicion, and Marcus already changed his attitude toward him.
If he finds out he was manipulated…
it could be even more troublesome than dealing with Tony Stark.”
As expected of Hawkeye.
His observations were sharp.
Natasha smiled bitterly.
“This time, the director wanted me to…”
“Infiltrate him at any cost.”
“But I failed.”
“The way he looks at me is the same way he looks at you.”
“That astrophysicist who liked Thor was way more attractive to him than I was.”
The reason…
She could roughly guess it.
As agents trained by the Red Room, they had gone through too many missions.
And As a final part of their graduation and to ensure they had no distractions or “higher loyalties” than their missions, they were forcibly sterilized
There was basically no chance of having children.
For Marcus, whose entire goal was to expand his race, that probably made her no different from a man.
As the person who originally recruited Natasha into S.H.I.E.L.D., Barton naturally knew all this.
But there was nothing he could do about it.
Suddenly, he remembered something.
Marcus had said even disabilities could be completely healed.
So…
…
The next morning.
Marcus woke up feeling refreshed.
He pushed away the sleeping Darcy, who was clinging to him for air.
Then he opened the system notification.
After the successful proposal last night, S.H.I.E.L.D.
had officially registered his identity.
[Congratulations to the host for marrying “Darcy Lewis.” In order to provide better nutrition for future offspring, you have received the reward “Human Enhancement Serum KW89”;]
Name: [Strength Enhancement Serum];
Grade: [D Grade];
Description: Enhances body cells and increases physical abilities by 3 to 12 times that of an average human!;
Slogan: Whether you’re unlucky or insanely lucky, one sip tells the truth!;
Marcus: “…”
How was this a proper enhancement serum?
The randomness wasn’t about success or failure, but about how many times stronger it made you.
Still…
At least there were no side effects.
With a thought,
A tube of golden serum floated in front of him, making Marcus pause.
Wait…
Only one tube?
Was this meant for him or Darcy?
Obviously…
He was using it on himself first.
The [Twelve Talismans] were an A-rank item, their upper limit was way higher than this.
If Marcus’s base physical strength was “1”, then the boost from the [Twelve Talismans] was “100”.
Right now, it was:
“1 × 100 = 100”
But if his body was enhanced by even the minimum 3 times…
Then his combat power would jump straight to “300”!
“I’ll make it up to you later.”
Marcus grabbed the [Strength Enhancement Serum] and prepared to drink it.
Then he noticed a flash of gold from the corner of his eye.
Wait!
Didn’t the [Gate of Babylon] have a recovery function?
So…
Could the [Strength Enhancement Serum] be duplicated as many times he want?
No harm trying.
First, Marcus stored it inside the [Gate of Babylon]’s treasury space.
Then he pulled it back out through the [Gate of Babylon].
And drank it in one gulp.
“Tsk.”
“Sweet and sour.
Tastes kinda like yogurt.”
There was no classic painful transformation scene.
Marcus only felt warmth spreading through his body before he yawned comfortably.
Then he hugged Darcy again and rubbed against her face.
Back to sleep.
Half-awake,
Marcus reached out beside him, but found nothing there.
He slowly opened his eyes and took a moment to process things.
Then he remembered.
He had taken the serum and passed out from how comfortable it felt.
It was already dark outside.
But instead of feeling hungry, he felt full of energy.
After checking his condition briefly,
He realized the magical power he could draw from the [Twelve Talismans] had increased ninefold!
If he fought the Destroyer Armor again now,
One punch would probably smash it into a frisbee.
“Not bad.
Guess my luck isn’t totally trash.”
Marcus turned over and used the [Gate of Babylon] and tried to retrieve the [Strength Enhancement Serum].
Then…
Another golden serum actually appeared inside the treasury.
Marcus’s eyes widened.
Holy fk!
Did this exploit actually work?
Suddenly!
Marcus’s vision went black.
“Holy fk?”
“What the hell is happening?”
…
Re@d adv@nce ch..@pters on p@t
guilt_free_daoist
Jo!n d!sc0rd I!nk in synops!s.