A certain American comic book's secondary profession master

Chapter 25 What's Hydra called now? S.H.I.E.L.D.!

The air pressure inside the reception room was frighteningly low.

As the video progressed on the computer screen, Tony Stark's expression grew increasingly gloomy.

The arrogant attitude they had when they first came in was completely gone.

It's not surprising; no normal person could remain calm after witnessing their parents being brutally murdered.

The fact that Tony Stark can still sit in a chair shows he has an incredibly strong mental fortitude.

The video wasn't very long and ended quickly.

But Tony Stark still didn't speak.

Li Wei didn't say anything, silently taking a sip of his now-cold coffee—tsk, even more bitter.

"This Bucky Barnes, Captain America's teammate during World War II?" After a long silence, Tony Stark finally asked.

Tony Stark may not care about things he's not interested in, but that doesn't mean he's unaware of them.

Captain America knew a little about his relationship with his father... Although on the surface their relationship wasn't very harmonious, the father and son actually cared for each other a lot behind the scenes. It's just that they were both stubborn and never expressed their feelings directly.

"That's right, it's him!" Li Wei nodded.

"...Shouldn't he be dead? And even if he isn't, he'd be at least seventy, right?" Stark said in a deep voice. "But judging from the video, he doesn't look like a man in his seventies—although the data shows that he underwent some kind of super-soldier modification, I don't recall super-soldier modifications granting immortality."

Although Tony was unaware of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s existence at this time, the Super Soldier program was no secret to him.

Because the Super Soldier program has never belonged solely to S.H.I.E.L.D.

The U.S. military is the real big spender, and over the years the military has never given up on the Super Soldier program, and has tried several times to recruit Tony Stark, a scientific genius, into the program.

However, Tony Stark was not interested in the plan, so he did not participate.

However, not participating does not mean he is completely unaware of the plan.

Therefore, it is known that the Super Soldier program does not have the function of making people immortal—in the cinematic universe, the Super Soldier serum does not actually make people immortal like it does in the comic book universe.

"That's right, super soldiers don't have the ability to make people immortal, but coldness does, doesn't it?" Li Wei nodded in reply.

"Cryonics... So... my father's death was orchestrated by the Russians? As revenge for the impending collapse of the Russian Empire?" Tony asked coldly. "My father was just a businessman! Why target him?"

Because the entire document was in Russian, and all the markings on it were from the Russians—after all, Hydra, as a dark organization, rarely leaves its mark on paper.

Furthermore, the video was taken just before the disintegration of the Russian bear.

So it's not surprising that Tony would make that connection.

"So, Mr. Stark, do you really think your father was just a businessman and an inventor?" Levi pondered for a moment before asking in return.

"What do you mean by that?" Tony stared intently at Levi upon hearing this.

"The literal meaning... S.H.I.E.L.D., you don't know, right?" Li Wei said calmly, completely ignoring the other person's gaze.

"What is that?" Tony disliked this feeling. From the moment he entered the room until now, he had been led by the nose by Levi.

But he had no way to solve it.

Because the information Li Wei provided him was all unknown to him.

"S.H.I.E.L.D., officially known as the Strategic Homeland Defense, Attack and Logistics Agency, was formerly the Strategic Scientific Corps—I think you should already know that," Li Wei said.

"Yes, the Captain America program was led by the Strategic Scientific Corps, and my father was involved, but that organization was disbanded after the war!" Stark said, frowning. "So you mean that this organization was never actually disbanded, and that my father was actually working for it all along?"

Because of Captain America, the existence of the Strategic Scientific Corps is not a secret.

However, according to official propaganda, with Captain America's sacrifice and the victory of the war, the Strategic Scientific Corps, like the Howling Commandos, has been disbanded.

"Not entirely. To be more precise, under your father's leadership, the Strategic Scientific Corps was reorganized into S.H.I.E.L.D. a few years after the war ended—your father didn't just work for S.H.I.E.L.D.; he was the leader of the organization from the very beginning," Levi explained, before going on to explain the main responsibilities and situation of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Tony was completely stunned; he had no idea that his father had this other identity.

The leader of the world's largest intelligence agency—at least on the surface.

He suddenly understood why the Russians had assassinated Howard.

Although S.H.I.E.L.D. has a rather special role, according to Levi's description, it is ultimately an intelligence agency.

It's perfectly normal for the head of an intelligence agency to be hated.

"Wait, something's not right. If, as you've said, S.H.I.E.L.D. had become a world organization recognized by the World Security Council by the later stages, then why would the Russian bear still want to assassinate him?" Tony keenly noticed the problem.

"When did I say that the Winter Soldier was backed by a bear?" Levi retorted.

"Can't you just get straight to the point?" Tony was getting angry!

"Okay, the real mastermind behind your parents' deaths was Hydra!" Li Wei said with a shrug.

"That's impossible! Hydra has been destroyed!" Tony Ten said, standing up.

"That's just the government's opinion, isn't it? If the Strategic Scientific Corps can change its identity and become the unknown S.H.I.E.L.D., why can't Hydra do the same?" Li Wei retorted.

"...You mean, Hydra has also changed its name and continued to exist? What is this organization called?" Tony Stark asked with a grim face.

"Call it S.H.I.E.L.D.!" Levi gave a strange smile and then gave Tony an answer that Tony could not accept.

"Are you kidding me?" Tony was stunned for a moment, then got angry.

"No, I'm telling the truth. In fact, when I first found out, my reaction was similar to yours. After all, Hydra's actions are really outrageous!" Levi replied innocently in the face of Tony's anger.

"What else do you know? Can you just tell me all at once?" Tony Stark sat back in his chair, somewhat exhausted. He was getting fed up with Levi, and even his anger over the truth about his father's death had subsided a bit.

"But I know too much. If I really wanted to talk about it, I could talk for a whole day and still not finish. What can I do?" Levi said in a helpless tone that made Tony want to punch him.

"...Hmph, then tell me why you've come to see me! You wouldn't happen to be someone from this S.H.I.E.L.D., would you?" Tony Stark asked, staring intently at Levi.

"No... Tony Stark, do you believe that anyone can see the future?" Levi asked in an extremely calm tone.

(End of this chapter)