139

Chapter 139: Sif's Invitation

Inside the modest wooden house, when Bruce Banner sensed something amiss and attempted to leave, he found the door already blocked by Natalia.

"You should have taken the money first, Banner."

Natalia joked, "This place really is an ideal spot for seclusion. Just like the big hermit mentioned in the city."

Banner shrugged, "No, I just happened to be here and thought it was a decent place."

Surveying his surroundings, he remarked with a smile, "If I'm not mistaken, this place is already surrounded, right?"

Natalia shook her head. "No, that's not necessary."

"Oh? You're quite confident."

Natalia smiled. "I'm not confident, but I trust her."

Karla walked slowly to Natalia's side. Banner's pupils dilated as the Hulk within him issued a warning.

Banner steadied his emotions. "So, are you prepared? Are you here to capture me, or to kill me?"

Natalia shook her head. "No, I'm here to persuade you to come back."

"And if I refuse?"

"I'll convince you."

"And if the Hulk refuses?"

At this moment, Karla spoke up. "I'll make him agree."

Banner smiled wryly. "Tell me what's going on."

Natalia pulled out her phone and showed him a picture of the Tesseract. "This is the Tesseract, used by S.H.I.E.L.D. to develop new energy sources. If successful, the energy crisis in this world will be resolved. That's what Nick Fury told me."

Banner glanced at it and asked, "What do you need from me? Do you need to eat it? The Hulk probably won't be thrilled about that."

He had heard rumors that the Tesseract had been ejected from a cat's mouth.

Natalia shook her head with a smile. "The Tesseract was stolen by an alien claiming to be a god."

Banner nodded. "So, you're here to retrieve it? Are you counting on the Hulk for that?"

He looked at Karla. "If I can do it, she should be able to as well."

Natalia shook her head. "First of all, she's still young. We need to find the Tesseract's location. It emits weak gamma rays, and you're the best at detecting gamma rays."

"So you're here for Bruce Banner? That's good news."

Banner chuckled. "So, you represent S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

"No, the Avengers."

Compared to Tony Stark and Bruce Banner, Captain America was much easier to deal with.

"Captain, the world needs you again."

"Alright, tell me who's involved."

"It's a long story. In short, the world has changed drastically from what you remember."

Steve shook his head. "I've even seen gods from other realms. I doubt there's anything that can surprise me."

"I'll bet you ten dollars you're wrong."

On the enormous aircraft carrier deck, Steve Rogers, Bruce Banner, and Tony Stark finally reunited.

Feeling the salty sea breeze, the three exchanged introductions, and Natalia interrupted. "If you have anything to discuss, save it for later. You should come inside now."

"You'll be out of breath here soon," Natalia added.

Banner laughed. "Really? Don't tell me it's a submarine and you want me to hide in an airtight container?"

"No, it's an aircraft carrier. I've seen one in my time," Captain America said frankly.

Natalia smiled mysteriously. "As the name suggests, how could an aircraft carrier not fly?"

As she finished speaking, there was a violent tremor, and the aircraft carrier—no, it should be called a helicarrier—began to lift off slowly.

"Uh... I've learned something new."

Captain America touched his nose in embarrassment, followed Natalia inside, and took out a ten-dollar bill, handing it to Nick Fury.

Nick Fury accepted it readily.

Maria Hill looked at their peculiar interaction with suspicion and reminded, "Captain, Director Nick is not a waiter, so no need to tip."

Nick Fury: "Um..."

The helicarrier followed the trail that Bruce Banner was tracking, heading towards the suspected location of the other party, the Flightman.

After ruling out various locations, they eventually arrived at Berlin.

Meanwhile, Thor was at home with a dejected Karla.

"What's the matter, girl? Did you lose the fight?"

Thor joked.

Karla shook her head, disheartened. "No, that big guy was too cowardly to come out. He just wanted to retreat."

When she fought Hulk previously, though it seemed like she had won, Hulk had merely retreated after an exhausting fight, remaining unharmed.

Young Karla had been hit several times in the process, which had worried her greatly...

Thor laughed and said, "Don't worry, there will be another chance. Next time Hulk loses control, you can give him a good thrashing. I'll help you too."

Karla smiled. "I think so too. You obviously want to beat him up yourself."

"Can't I?"

Thor said sternly, "Thanos can beat me. Can't I handle Hulk?"

Karla was speechless.

At that moment, Sif walked by and brightened upon seeing Thor. "Thor, you're back! By the way, can you come to my room? I need to ask you something."

"Sure!" Thor nodded and told Karla, "Play by yourself, I'll be back soon."

Following Sif to her room, Sif got straight to the point. "I heard Loki has been secretly on Earth these past few days?"

"Yes, and he took the Tesseract. I don't know what he's up to. This guy is always causing trouble."

Thor waved his fist. "I haven't had a chance to deal with him for about seventy years. It's time to make up for lost time!"

Sif couldn't help but laugh. "You shouldn't say that. In fact, Loki is just trying to prove he's not as bad as you think and to get attention."

"Really? Not necessarily."

Thor smiled mysteriously.