I sparked a mysterious resurgence in Marvel.

Chapter 536 Unexpected Digestion

After half an hour.

Because of an unexpected event created by Duke, the bodyguard who was marked as a Skrull by Erin just happened to have the opportunity to be alone with Duke.

The Skrull, who had only intended to monitor Duke's every move, was suddenly overcome by a strong impulse due to this unexpected turn of events, and he then put that impulse into action.

He attacked Duke.

He quickly strangled Duke, and after Duke's body grew cold, he stood beside Duke's corpse and brazenly activated his Skrull powers, transforming into Duke's appearance.

Just as he was about to take off his Duke clothes, put on Duke's attire, and truly disguise himself as Duke.

The other two bodyguards, who had just finished doing what Duke had instructed and were about to return to report to him, pushed open the door and happened to see this scene.

Then one of the bodyguards drew his pistol without hesitation and attacked the monster that had transformed into Duke's appearance right in front of them.

"Bang bang bang..."

Taking advantage of the moment when his companion launched his attack, another bodyguard rushed towards Duke, who was lying on the ground, his life hanging in the balance.

Duke's bodyguards were all elites he had handpicked, and the guy who pulled out the gun was a sharpshooter comparable to a sniper in the army.

The Skrull who had transformed into Duke tried to dodge immediately, but was caught off guard and struck in the right hand by the bodyguard.

"Damn it!"

The Skrull who had rolled over and was hiding behind the sofa saw the blue blood flowing down his right arm and muttered a curse under his breath, his face turning extremely ugly.

He wasn't left-handed, and the bullet that hit his right arm had essentially rendered him mostly incapacitated. In this state, he might not be a match for those two bodyguards.

Just then.

The bodyguard who rushed to Duke's body lying on the ground suddenly shouted at the other bodyguard who was holding a gun, "The master is still alive, cover me!"

The Skrull hiding behind the sofa suddenly narrowed his eyes upon hearing this, revealing an expression of disbelief.

impossible.

That guy's heart had stopped beating, and his body was getting cold. How could he still be alive?

No way, this must be a trap to lure me out.

Just as the Skrull who had strangled "Duke" with his own hands was constantly denying all of this in his mind, believing that it was a trap set by that guy to lure him out.

From the other side of the sofa, a weak cough suddenly came, followed by heavy footsteps moving quickly away.

"That voice..."

Although he had just infiltrated Duke's private villa, the Skrull still vividly remembered Duke's voice due to the Skrulls' special abilities.

So, upon hearing that weak yet rapid cough, he recognized Duke's voice almost immediately.

"Damn it, could that guy really not be dead?!"

This Skrull knew Duke's identity, and it was precisely because of Duke's identity that he couldn't resist his impulse and attacked Duke when they were alone together.

Then they tried to replace Duke to alleviate the predicament they are currently facing.

After the Skrulls' existence was exposed, they had a difficult time.

Furthermore, with their patron Nick Fury suspected by the World Security Council and slated for secret arrest, the Skrulls sought another person who could provide them with protection.

In his view, Duke, as the deputy director of S.H.I.E.L.D., would be a good choice.

Furthermore, Duke is the one secretly investigating Nick Fury's relationship with the Skrulls. If this identity is used well, it is entirely possible to help them and Nick Fury get out of their current predicament, or at the very least, give them a breather.

And that is the real reason why he wants to replace Duke.

However, all of this was based on the premise that his plan would succeed and that he would replace Duke's identity.

But what if he fails to replace Duke and instead exposes his Skrull identity due to the failed assassination attempt?

Even if Duke hadn't died.

Then there is no doubt.

The Skrulls will surely face Duke's fierce retaliation.

Their already difficult lives will be made even worse.

Therefore, Duke absolutely cannot be allowed to survive.

Even if it costs me my life, I can't let Duke survive.

With this strong belief, the Skrull drew his pistol from his waist with his left hand, then rolled and rushed out of the sofa where he was hiding.

Using that fleeting glimpse of his vision, the Skrulls quickly locked onto Duke, who was being helped along by another bodyguard as he ran rapidly toward the passageway.

"That guy actually didn't die, but I clearly saw him just now..."

Although he couldn't understand why Duke, who should have become a corpse, suddenly "came back to life," he obviously didn't have time to delve into the question right now.

To avoid being run into another room next to the corridor by Duke, the Skrull rolled over and rushed out of his hiding place, firing wildly towards the entrance of the corridor.

"Bang bang bang..."

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Almost at the same time the Skrulls fired, the sharpshooter bodyguard who had locked onto him the instant he peeked out also raised his gun and fired.

The Skrulls who fired the gun with their other hand instead of their right, despite the injury to their right.

The accuracy of that sharpshooter bodyguard's shots was immeasurably superior.

Every shot hit the Skrull's body, and one bullet even struck the Skrull's eye with pinpoint accuracy, blowing his head off.

After blowing the Skrulls' heads off.

The sharpshooter bodyguard did not relax.

Amidst the continuous gunfire, he emptied his pistol, forcefully blasting the Skrull's neck, heart, and other potentially vital organs before quickly changing the magazine. He then pointed warily at the corpse on the ground, which had rapidly transformed into a green monster.

Upon recognizing the green monster as a Skrull, the sharpshooter bodyguard immediately shouted to his companion, who was dragging Duke into another room down the corridor:

"Damn it, it's a Skrull. Ben has been replaced. Ang, watch out for McLean. He was in the same group as Ben. He might have been replaced by the Skrulls too. Level 1 alert. Don't trust anyone until the alert is lifted."

Inside the villa's monitoring room.

McClain, who had just been adjusting the placement of several covert cameras and debugging the equipment as instructed by Duke, was working on the project.

Because he was looking down at adjusting the equipment, he didn't notice the footage captured by the several hidden cameras that he had just repositioned according to Duke's orders.

They also didn't discover that Ben, who was in the same group as them, had been replaced by the Skrulls at some point.

McLean was suddenly awakened when the gunshot rang out.

Immediately afterwards, McLean saw what had just happened through the surveillance footage.

Upon realizing that Duke had been attacked, McClain immediately grabbed his sidearm and rushed toward the room where Duke was.

But before he could even arrive at the scene...

As McLean sprinted forward, he heard the sharpshooter bodyguard shout.

Walter?

That idiot Ben was replaced by the Skrulls?

Even I might be replaced by the Skrulls, damn it, what kind of mess is this?

Although I was in the same group as him, I wasn't replaced by the Skrulls!

Although he felt extremely aggrieved by the sharpshooter bodyguard's shout, he also knew that such suspicion was perfectly normal under these circumstances.

Who told me I was paired with that idiot?

To avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings, McClain slowed his pace. Once he approached the room where Duke and the others were, he called out, "Hey, Ang, don't get me wrong, it's me, McClain. I wasn't replaced by the Skrulls. By the way, how's the boss? Should I call an ambulance?"

········

soon.

A large group of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, having heard the news, arrived at Duke's private villa along with the ambulance.

at this time.

Although Duke, who was firmly protected by two bodyguards, was conscious, the bluish-purple ligature mark on his neck was particularly noticeable.

The green Skrull corpse on the ground was particularly jarring.

When a Duke faction intelligence officer arrived at the scene, he saw the Skrull corpse lying on the ground and the bluish-purple ligature mark on Duke's neck. His expression turned extremely grim.

"Skuru, Chief, it's that Nick Fury guy..."

Before the bald, shiny-headed officer could finish speaking, Duke waved his hand to stop him from saying what he was about to say.

"Some things are better left unsaid until you have evidence; just keep them to yourself."

Hearing this, the bald officer said angrily, "So you're just going to leave it at that? If it weren't for this accident, and if you were lucky enough to survive, you would be dead."

Accident?

Touching the bruises on his neck, Duke sneered inwardly, "This is never an accident."

Speaking of which, that guy was really strong. If I hadn't used the corpse collector's ability to temporarily disguise myself as a corpse, I would have been strangled to death by him.

However, since I'm not dead, it's now the Skrulls and Nick Fury's turn to suffer.

Thinking of this, Duke's eyes turned cold as he said, "Let it go? Of course not. Since these Skrulls failed to kill me, it's my turn to collect their corpses."

"My surveillance system happened to capture footage of that Skrull attacking me, then transforming into my appearance in an attempt to replace me."

"Heh, even someone like me, the deputy director of S.H.I.E.L.D., is attacked by these Skrulls without any scruples, who want to replace me. I'd like to see how those people on the World Security Council ultimately decide to deal with these Skrulls."

······

Inside the villa.

In a secluded corner, where no one noticed, Erin looked at the Skrull lying in a pool of blood, and Duke, who was leaving with a group of people filled with righteous indignation, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

Just now, he felt that a trace of the magic potion in his body had been digested.

Recalling the Skrull who had been secretly influencing him and then suddenly attacked Duke, a sudden realization flashed in Erin's eyes.

The puppet master's puppets are never just those puppets that have been turned into puppets.

Those who act according to Erin's ideas under his guidance are also Erin's puppets.

Erin, who originally only wanted to help Duke improve that plan, unexpectedly helped herself summarize a rule of conduct.

"This is truly a delightful surprise!"

In high spirits, Erin, holding the property documents for Sokovia Castle, quickly disappeared into Duke's private villa after Duke vanished from his sight.

······

After receiving the video from Duke, the Skrull saw the Skrull replace Duke's bodyguard, then sneak into Duke's private villa, attack Duke without restraint, and even impersonate Duke, nearly replacing a high-ranking deputy director of S.H.I.E.L.D.

The representatives of the World Security Council all looked grim.

Fearing that they might also be captured by the Skrulls, they did not hesitate to issue arrest warrants for any Skrull.

Faced with the threat to his life, even the guy who had previously sheltered Nick Fury fell silent this time.

In an instant, the search for the Skrulls intensified several times over.

The blood analyzer that Tony Stark and some military doctors had previously invented was being produced at an accelerated pace, with staff working overtime to expedite its production.

The next few days.

Under intense enforcement.

People surrounding high-ranking officials from the federal government and other countries were subjected to focused testing.

During this search, they actually found quite a few high-ranking officials who had been replaced by the Skrulls, as well as their relatives.

Instantly.

Under pressure from officials whose relatives had been replaced and from countries around the world, the once-powerful UN Security Council suddenly faced immense pressure.

This time, even those who had previously provided protection for Nick Fury dared not continue to shield him.

Under the orders of the World Security Council.

Nick Fury, who had previously provided shelter to the Skrulls, was removed from his post as director of S.H.I.E.L.D. before he could even settle into it.

Take this opportunity.

Duke quietly disposed of the entire Sokovia castle, transferring it completely to Erin's ownership.

······

When Duke took that video and quickly stole what originally belonged to Nick Fury for himself.

Arryn, along with hundreds of dwarves, moved into the castle that now belonged to them.

After carefully examining the ancient castle and discovering the secret passage leading directly into the mountainside, Elder White Fang made a sweeping gesture, incorporating the entire mountain, including the castle, into the war fortress renovation plan.

(End of this chapter)