A Complex Mystery

After leaving the conference room, Nick quickly made his way to his office. Staring at the USB drive in his hand, he fell into deep thought.

After about ten minutes.

"Get Sharon here."

Five minutes later the door opened.

Sharon walked in briskly, her high heels clicking against the floor, "Director."

"I have a very important and dangerous mission for you. Infiltrate Umbrella and retrieve the research reports on the T-Virus."

Without a moment's hesitation, Sharon nodded.

"Okay."

Watching his subordinate in front of him, Nick still felt a bit uneasy and added, "As far as I know, Umbrella is not as simple as it appears on the surface. Be careful."

"Director, if there's nothing else, I'll set off now."

"Go ahead... stay safe."

Hearing Nick's unusually repeated warnings made Sharon feel an invisible pressure before even setting out.

It seemed this mission was far from ordinary.

After Sharon left, Nick thought for a moment and called Maria in.

"Maria, take this USB drive to the Security Council and report the situation. Tell them there's evidence to suspect that Umbrella is responsible for the zombie crisis on Kyushu Island."

Looking at the USB drive, Maria asked in confusion, "Where did this come from?"

"You don't need to worry about that. Just do your job."

"Yes, Director."

After Maria left, Nick summoned Sam.

Soon, a young Black man entered the office.

Sam, full name Sam Wilson, also known as Falcon, possessed the ability to communicate with birds and had a pair of high-tech metal wings.

"Director, you wanted to see me?"

"Yes, I have a task for you. Three years ago, a village named Baru in the Middle East was wiped out. Some say there was a virus outbreak there similar to the zombie virus. You should take a team to investigate and report back."

"Yes, Director."

With the mission in hand, Sam left the office.

Nick, still in the office, began thinking if there was anything he'd overlooked.

The breakthrough on the Yashida Corporation side would take some more time, and the zombies on Kyushu Island were under control.

The Hand shouldn't pose much of a problem. They were just an assassin organization, unrelated to the zombie virus, likely caught in the crossfire.

The only remaining challenge was to find the antidote.

As long as they could confirm Umbrella was behind the creation of the zombie virus and secure the antidote, the issue would be resolved.

While he was lost in thought, a subordinate suddenly entered.

"Director, just now, Mariko Yashida announced her candidacy for the next Prime Minister position."

"She also pledged a billion U.S. dollars to co-found a zombie virus antidote research company with Umbrella Corporation."

"What!"

Nick stood up, his expression grim.

Time was running out.

If they really developed the zombie virus antidote, even if he later found evidence, it could be easily dismissed by their success in creating a cure.

............

At Yashida Corporation's press conference, Mariko Yashida walked off the stage with a satisfied smile, waving to the reporters as she left.

A few minutes later, back in her office, she saw a beautiful woman in a red ninja outfit and waved off her subordinates.

"Erika, you're here. What orders does the master have?"

"Go to the secret chamber."

"Okay."

A short while later, the two entered the secret chamber.

Erika opened a briefcase. Inside were two vials—one blue, one green, "This is the T-3 virus, and this is the T-virus antidote."

Mariko's eyes lit up immediately as she saw the vials, and her breathing quickened.

With these two items, she would gain immense power, eternal life, and control.

But in the next second, Erika abruptly snapped the briefcase shut with a "click."

"The master discovered that the head you submitted last time was fake. Masanobu Tanikawa is still alive."

"What? Impossible! I personally decapitated him!"

"Fake is fake. Do you think the master would lie to you?"

Upon hearing this, Mariko immediately knelt on the floor, "I wouldn't dare."

"Your top priority now is to send people to find Masanobu Tanikawa at all costs."

"Yes."

After casting a reluctant glance at the briefcase, Mariko's reason eventually prevailed.

The woman before her was no ordinary person.

....

Nightfall came quickly~

High in the skies over Tokyo, aboard a S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier, Nick sat behind his office desk, his face dark and brooding, while Maria stood before him, reporting.

"Director Nick, the Security Council rejected our request. The Russian representative in particular demanded concrete evidence, not vague assumptions."

"Otherwise, they're considering questioning S.H.I.E.L.D.'s professionalism and potentially replacing leadership."

"Hmm."

Nick nodded, clasping his hands under his chin. His remaining right eye emitted a chilling coldness.

As expected~

Umbrella's global network had grown too vast, even the Security Council was reluctant to act.

After all, the tentacles of interest reached everywhere. Who knew how many were tied to Umbrella's interests?

But as an organization committed to protecting humanity from extraordinary threats, S.H.I.E.L.D. couldn't just stand by and do nothing.

"Maria, if we were to return to the U.S. immediately, recall all personnel, and launch a full-scale assault on Umbrella, what are the chances of success?"

Maria set the USB drive down and shook her head.

"Director, I strongly advise against such a move. I can't even guarantee how many within S.H.I.E.L.D. would fully follow your orders."

While the Security Council granted S.H.I.E.L.D. the greatest authority, they naturally had their own people in place to ensure the organization didn't go rogue.

"I see."

Seeing that Nick had nothing more to say, Maria left the office.

Nick glanced at the USB drive, opened it, and inserted it into his laptop.

Seeing that none of the data had been tampered with, he sighed in relief.

"Looks like she really is trustworthy."

Nick's greatest trait, and the reason he had survived this long, was his heavy suspicion, always doubting everyone around him.

Had he overthought this time?

"Knock, knock…"

At the sound of a knock, a subordinate entered.

"Director, the autopsy report on the tentacle man from this morning is in. He had 100% human DNA, including the arm. No abnormal genes were found."

After dismissing the subordinate, Nick felt increasingly bewildered.

That tentacle arm wasn't something a human should possess, yet the DNA was entirely human.

The implications of this defied logic.

"Umbrella....just how many secrets are you hiding?"

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