Marvel's Venom, starting with a Hydra undercover agent.

At that moment, he suddenly understood why bosses like to make grand promises and give employees pep talks; to some extent, it's all to comfort the boss himself.

And sometimes, the more they talk, the more it seems like they've actually made the pie, and they expect the employees to continue to be grateful.

Thinking that he couldn't be so shameless yet, Holm felt he still needed to improve.

Clearing his mind of the jumbled thoughts, Holm placed some documents in the middle of the table and began discussing them with Daisy.

After further analysis, they also discovered some anomalies and patterns in the missing persons data.

Compared with previous years, the missing persons reports over the past year show no abnormalities in the data for the first three months, maintaining the same dynamic balance as before.

But then the number of missing persons suddenly increased, and most of the missing persons were concentrated in Manhattan.

If we break down the timeline further, it seems that missing persons cases would start to occur roughly every two months, and then after the month of missing persons cases ended, another two months would pass before another missing persons case occurred.

It happens every three months, and there have been two rounds so far.

It's the beginning of the month again, which means that, according to the pattern, a new round of missing persons cases is likely to occur this month.

“There are men and women, old people and children, and young people... This guy is quite well-rounded in his arrests.” Holm picked up another file with information on missing persons and continued.

"This guy probably used these people as experimental consumables, testing the same reagents on people of different genders and ages to see what the differences were."

Hearing this, Daisy frowned and muttered angrily, "Damn it! He's inhuman!"

“It’s truly inhumane.” Holm shook his head and said in a deep voice, “Based on the time the families reported the cases and their accounts, most of the kidnappings occurred at night or midnight.”

"I think we can check the underground space as planned during the day, and then wander around the streets at night to see if we can run into that guy arresting people."

"Once we find his lair, we can leave the rest to the action team."

Upon hearing Holm's suggestion, Daisy straightened her back with a serious expression and said, "I can act as bait and let that guy kidnap me."

Hearing Daisy volunteer, Holm was speechless and said helplessly, "Have you been watching too many TV dramas? We're secret agents."

"Why don't you use all those high-tech devices instead of acting as a human tracking device?"

"We can just shoot the tracking device at that guy when he grabs him, why do we have to tie our own hands and become bait?"

“But if I go and act as bait, then that guy will catch one less person, won’t he?” Daisy had her own opinion on the matter.

"Compared to ordinary people, I am definitely better at protecting myself, and I can adapt to any special circumstances."

Hearing Daisy's reply, Holm said with a slightly serious tone, "I'll take it as a joke for now, but don't say things like that again."

"I already told you, we're secret agents, you know what that means?"

"We're not superheroes from comic books, you know?"

"You say you have a stronger ability to protect yourself than the average person. In what ways are you stronger? Tell me."

Hearing Holm's serious question, Daisy suddenly became nervous. Holm had been very gentle lately, and his sudden seriousness made her a little uncomfortable.

Although she was a little nervous, Daisy still didn't think there was anything wrong with her ideas, so she met Holm's eyes and responded with some anger and dissatisfaction.

"My physical abilities are superior to theirs, I possess hand-to-hand combat skills, I'm proficient with firearms, and I have combat experience..."

Chapter 25, Wanting to Become Black and White

"Can you smash a wall with one punch?" Holm suddenly interrupted Daisy and asked directly.

"What?" Daisy was a little confused by Holm's sudden question.

"Can you smash a wall with one punch?"

"Or to put it another way, can you just toss a manhole cover around like a frisbee?" Holm repeated the question, adding a new example.

“I…” Daisy suddenly became speechless. Breaking through walls and using manhole covers as frisbees—no normal person could do that.

However... she seemed to understand what Holm meant by asking these questions.

Seeing Daisy speechless, Holm continued, "You can't do it, or rather, no normal person can do it, whether it's an ordinary person, a special agent, or even a battle-hardened special forces member."

"But those lizard monsters can."

“A wall that is solid and unshakeable to a normal person can be smashed by them with one punch, and a heavy manhole cover that requires two or three people to lift is like a frisbee to them.”

"Their claws can even tear the metal off a car."

"So when you're facing them, what do you think is the difference between you and the ordinary people you just mentioned?"

"Perhaps your muscles are stronger than theirs, strong enough to plug their teeth?" Holm made a very hurtful joke.

The joke made Daisy purse her lips and lower her head.

Holm's revelation of the reality was like a bucket of cold water poured over her head, instantly cooling her enthusiasm.

After saying this, Holm was no longer so serious, and his voice became gentle.

“We are indeed different from ordinary people, but these differences are more reflected in our minds and wisdom.”

“We need to make use of these things, instead of foolishly giving up our strengths, showing off our less outstanding aspects and handing them over to those monsters.”

"Using yourself as bait can indeed replace an innocent ordinary person, but we clearly have better methods. If we execute them properly, everyone, whether it's that person or someone else, can be saved."

After his verbal sparring session, Holm was a little thirsty, so he picked up his cup and took a sip of water.

Although Daisy's mind finally caught on to what she had heard, her earlier high spirits and enthusiasm vanished along with them.

His back slumped, his head drooped, and he slumped into the chair.

She's clearly very tall, but now she looks like a wronged croissant, emmmm, a croissant with two long legs.

"How's your aim?" Holm asked, looking at Daisy, who was still in a low mood.

Upon hearing this, Daisy unconsciously raised her head and straightened her back, saying, "Marksmanship? It should be pretty good."

"That's good. The plan is one thing, but the actual execution is another. The situation may change rapidly at night. Remember, the most important thing is to protect yourself," Holm advised Daisy.

After saying that, Holm took out a piece of chocolate from his pocket and handed it to Daisy while smiling, "Here, have a piece of chocolate to cheer yourself up, and then we'll go get the equipment. We'll need quite a few things."

"Okay...okay." Daisy took the chocolate, looked at it, then unwrapped it and put it in her mouth.

The rich flavor spread in her mouth, and the intense texture surprised her; it was the first time she had ever tasted such delicious chocolate.

The novel and wonderful experience dispelled Daisy's gloom considerably.

She glanced up, then quickly and embarrassedly avoided Holm's gentle gaze.

Putting aside her frustration, Daisy reflected on what Holm had just said and realized that her idea had been somewhat rash. She knew there was still a lot to learn to become an excellent agent, and she needed to keep working hard.

Holm was unaware of Daisy's ulterior motives and her now even more determined desire to become an excellent agent.

He was simply marveling at the innocence and enthusiasm in Daisy that was so different from the rest of them.

What he just said makes a lot of sense, but there's another reason he didn't mention: selfishness when it doesn't concern him.

Most people wouldn't risk their lives for a stranger, especially since it's just a mission.

Holm had seen many such people in his previous life, and he admired them, but he himself could not do what they did.

The maximum he can do is take appropriate risks while ensuring his own safety.

If he were asked to exchange his life for that of a stranger in a situation where he was certain of dying, he knew he absolutely could not do it.

While the general public was in a gray area, Holm was doing quite well, since he was just part of the gray crowd and hadn't yet sunk into the black like his current colleagues.

Compared to the people of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra, he could be considered a little more noble.

As a result, in a S.H.I.E.L.D. where most of the organization is dark, Daisy, the little white rabbit who occasionally shines, appears.

Holm still can't understand why Daisy, this innocent little rabbit, insists on trying so hard to become an excellent agent.

She seemed unaware that to become an excellent secret agent, one had to transform oneself into something gray or even black...

"Shall we set off now? Or should we wait a little longer?" Daisy's voice snapped Holm back to reality.

Seeing Daisy sitting upright with her back straight and her spirits lifted, Holm smiled, stood up, and said, "Let's set off now."

......

In the dead of night, the thick darkness enveloped the entire Manhattan.

The cool moonlight shone evenly from the sky, draping the tranquil night in a thin veil.

Holm and Daisy were standing on the top of a tall building, using smart telescopes to observe the area below.

"It's been four days already, why hasn't that mysterious Dr. Lizard shown up yet? There haven't been any missing persons cases these past few days either. Could it be that he's already realized we're targeting him?"

Daisy held up a large telescope and spoke with some confusion. The telescope almost covered the upper half of her face, and the moon's reflection was shown on the reddish lens. The originally cold moon became more alluring after being tinged with red.

The nickname "Dr. Lizard" was a nickname she and Holm used for the mysterious researcher, and she felt it was particularly fitting when Holm suggested it.

Although we don't know if that person is male or female, someone who could do something like that must have not only been crazy but also possess extensive professional knowledge.

While calling a mysterious criminal a doctor might seem offensive to other scholars, this lizard-like monster certainly deserves the title.

As Daisy spoke, Holm was also observing his area with a smart telescope.

They were each responsible for a section of the area, constantly observing to see if anything unusual would happen.

Chapter 26, The Lizard Monster Finally Appears

The reason for choosing this area and standing on this high-rise building to overlook the city is because this is the place with the most people in Manhattan at night.

At this time, everywhere else was completely silent, and there wasn't a soul to be seen on the streets.

Only here are there many fun nightclubs and bars, attracting these restless young people who have nowhere to release their energy.

When they had drunk enough, they would help each other together in twos and threes, and stagger outwards.

In Holm's view, these people were the perfect prey; if he were Dr. Lizard, he would have captured them too.

I heard you have boundless energy with nowhere to vent? Come on! Come with me to the lab as a guinea pig. I guarantee you and everyone else will be completely honest with each other, and you'll all be exhausted afterwards.

Holm observed and thought this way until Daisy's question dispelled the whimsical image in his mind.

“There’s no such thing as a supernatural thing. He’s Dr. Lizard, not a prophet. How could he possibly know in advance that we’re going to deal with him?” Holm answered Daisy’s question.

"Moreover, based on the information we have gathered, you know how reckless he is. The police can also deduce the pattern of his actions, but he still continues to do as he pleases even when the police are on the scene."

"The intervals between the attacks and the locations where they were carried out have remained unchanged. They even arrested a policeman at the beginning of this month."

"The owner of the Daily Bugle is constantly criticizing the police for their inaction on his channel, and I heard that sales have improved as a result."