What If I Mind?

Although it might be considered somewhat impolite to change the meeting time at the last minute, there was no need for politeness when dealing with S.H.I.E.L.D.

S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were typical opportunists, always looking for an advantage.

Dealing with them, the more polite you were, the more they took advantage.

S.H.I.E.L.D.

New York Division.

Coulson, who was currently handling paperwork, suddenly received a message from No. 3.

11:30?

Looking at the meeting time displayed in the message, Coulson, whose hairline had receded significantly, cursed silently in his mind.

"Agent Romanoff, come with me to the Octopus Monster Headquarters."

Coulson picked up the phone on his desk and dialed Natasha's number.

"Alright, I'm on my way!"

Natasha replied immediately.

A few minutes later, Coulson and Natasha drove in a black Chevrolet SUV favored by the American police towards the Octopus Monster Headquarters.

Coulson had no intention of taking his antique car there.

Although flying there in his car would have been more convenient, Coulson abandoned the idea considering the strained relationship between S.H.I.E.L.D. and Russell.

New York's traffic was as bad as ever.

Even though it was past the rush hour, the traffic on the streets hadn't improved much.

11:25!

Relying on a slightly "rude" driving style, Coulson and Natasha finally arrived at the Octopus Monster Headquarters.

Led by the staff, they reached the top-floor office and saw Russell sitting on a sofa in the meeting area, sipping whiskey.

"Mr. Bradley, long time no see!"

Seeing that Russell had no intention of getting up, Coulson put on a professional smile and greeted him.

"It's only been a little over a week, not that long!"

Russell glanced at Coulson and Natasha, then pointed to the sofa next to him, indicating that they should sit down.

Although his attitude was somewhat disrespectful, neither Coulson nor Natasha said anything and sat down directly in front of him, looking calm.

Coulson was still wearing his timeless black suit, his hair meticulously groomed.

In contrast to Coulson, who exuded an aura of seriousness from head to toe, Natasha's attire was much more casual.

She didn't wear the uniform that highlighted her curves but instead opted for a slightly loose casual outfit, giving off the impression that she had just come from the gym.

Unfortunately, no yoga pants!

"To cut to the chase, your AI assistant contacted me, saying you want to talk about the ownership of the symbiote dragon."

Russell said casually, looking at Coulson and Natasha.

"That's right! Mr. Bradley, you may not be aware, but initially, it was us who discovered the symbiote dragon."

"Due to some unexpected events, the symbiote dragon escaped from our laboratory."

"If you don't mind, we'd like to retrieve this symbiote dragon."

Coulson said politely.

Although his tone and expression were polite, the words he spoke were far from it.

Retrieve Grendel?

Russell had never intended to give up something that belonged to him, let alone give it to S.H.I.E.L.D.

"What if I mind?"

Russell looked at Coulson and asked.

"Mr. Bradley, we don't want to conflict with you. The symbiote dragon belongs to our S.H.I.E.L.D. Hope you can understand."

Coulson said calmly.

"Let me correct you, Grendel was never yours. You just happened to dig him out."

"By the way, Grendel is the name of that symbiote dragon."

"I've talked to him and I know what you mean by 'unexpected events,' so you don't need to use official rhetoric to fool me."

Russell said disdainfully.

"Mr. Bradley, we understand that it may be difficult for you to hand over Grendel to us, but rest assured, we won't let you sacrifice your interests in vain."

"As long as you're willing to hand over Grendel to us, we're willing to share all the profits with you."

"These are some of the research results we've obtained so far. You can take a look."

With that, Coulson took out a tablet and handed it to Russell.

Although he had no intention of giving Grendel to S.H.I.E.L.D., Russell didn't mind taking a look at what S.H.I.E.L.D. had researched.

He put down his glass and took the tablet from Coulson, quickly browsing through it.

Russell had expected the research data on the tablet to be related only to symbiote agents, but to his surprise, it also contained information about the medical field.

Symbiote!

Looking at the contents on the tablet, Russell paused for a few seconds, mourning for the second-generation symbiote that Natasha had brought back to S.H.I.E.L.D.

Symbiotes had powerful healing abilities, that much was clear without any research.

S.H.I.E.L.D. was well aware of this and had conducted further research.

By studying the healing abilities of symbiotes, they had developed several drugs for incurable diseases such as cancer and AIDS.

Interesting!

If S.H.I.E.L.D. had only used symbiotes for military purposes, Russell wouldn't have been surprised.

However, he hadn't expected that S.H.I.E.L.D. would also apply symbiotes in the field of medicine.

"The report is interesting, but I don't see any cooperation opportunities here."

"Although Octopus Monster Labs hasn't been around for long, we can research these things just as well."

Russell put the tablet on the table and looked at Coulson.

"I don't doubt that Octopus Monster Labs has the capability, after all, they've already started developing gamma drugs."

"But in the field of medicine, Octopus Monster Labs has no foundation."

"If you're willing to share Grendel with us, S.H.I.E.L.D. will fully support Octopus Monster Labs, making it a dual giant in both the military and medical fields."

Perhaps they had learned from their experience with the military or maybe S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't want a fierce conflict with Russell. This time, S.H.I.E.L.D. offered a completely different solution.

They didn't plan to forcibly take Grendel; instead, they proposed jointly developing the symbiote.

From S.H.I.E.L.D.'s perspective, this was already a significant concession.

"Director Coulson, do you think I'm a bit foolish?"

Russell suddenly asked.

"Why would you think that, Mr. Bradley? Why would you have such an idea?"

Coulson immediately denied.

"Is that so? But your current approach is no different from dealing with a fool."

"Indeed, Octopus Monster Labs may not have a foundation in the medical field, but if I want to, even without S.H.I.E.L.D.'s help, Octopus Monster Labs can still become a giant in the medical field."

"Finances, personnel, equipment, materials—I have them all. Even if there are some official procedures to enter the medical field, I can handle them."

"Trying to negotiate cooperation with me when I don't need your help, isn't S.H.I.E.L.D. being a bit too self-important?"

Apart from their official background and support, Octopus Monster Labs could do everything that S.H.I.E.L.D. could, and perhaps even better.

Wanting to take Grendel from him with just a so-called offer of help, S.H.I.E.L.D. seemed to be overestimating themselves.

"Mr. Bradley, this is just a preliminary proposal. If you have other needs, feel free to speak up. As long as we can do it, we can discuss it!"

"No need, we have nothing to discuss. I won't hand Grendel over to anyone, and if you insist on taking him, you can try."