Chapter 17 Mr. Hyde

"Understood," He acknowledged before shifting his gaze toward the formidable creature by his side.

Natasha, glancing at the screen on her wrist, silently calculated the time. Speaking in a composed manner, she remarked, "We're almost there."

"What do you mean?" Colin's face twisted in confusion upon hearing Natasha's remark.

At that moment, Natasha took a step forward and boldly marched into the thick fog, heading straight toward the looming monster.

"Please be careful!" Smith's worried expression reflected his concern. Although Colin didn't display it as overtly, he too was intrigued by the methods the enigmatic Black Widow would employ to subdue the creature before them.

However, the expected battle never transpired.

As Natasha vanished into the fog, the monstrous figure swiftly dwindled in size, transforming into a disheveled middle-aged man as if by prior arrangement.

"You look worse, Hyde..." Natasha pressed a mechanism at her waist, injecting a prepared potion into Hyde's neck. She closely observed his reaction and advised, "You might want to consider reducing the hormone dosage."

The injected potion visibly took effect as Hyde's pained expression significantly eased after a few seconds.

Opening his eyes, Hyde gazed at Natasha and croaked, "It was just an accident. The Hyde Formula I developed for transformation is already stable without any issues. There's no need for a reduction; it's flawless."

"Then how do you explain what just happened?" Natasha furrowed her brow, confronting Hyde's stubborn stance.

Hyde fell silent for a moment, then shook his head, his voice raspy as he responded, "I've already told you it was an accident. I'll take control of everything."

"Let's hope so."

Clearly, there were complexities within the ranks of the Thunderbolts, with relationships that were far from solid.

Natasha and Hyde's conversation was candid, concealing nothing.

Colin stood nearby, listening to their exchange, his face revealing a pensive expression.

As for Hyde, Colin shifted his gaze towards him, a stern-looking middle-aged man with hair that matched the length of the monster's, but lacking the indestructible pants after the transformation, perfectly aligning with the image in Colin's mind.

So, it wasn't the Hulk or Bruce Banner after all.

"Smith, is this Hyde person also a member of the Thunderbolts?"

Colin turned his head to the cameraman next to him and asked, noticing from the latter's behavior that he seemed quite familiar with the Thunderbolts.

Of course, it could also be just Natasha he was familiar with.

"That's Mr. Hyde," Smith responded to Colin's question without taking his eyes off Black Widow, who had just appeared.

The Thunderbolts were a legally registered superhero group, and their members' information was semi-public. Mr. Hyde, for example, stood before them.

According to the federal government's superhero registration and regulation website, Mr. Hyde, also known as Hyde, possessed an impressive shapeshifting ability that allowed him to transform into a gigantic creature.

Mr. Hyde explained that his fascination with the transformation in the novel "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" by Robert Louis Stevenson since childhood motivated him to develop this ability. He invested significant resources and effort until he succeeded in acquiring the power to transform into a giant creature, naming it Mr. Hyde, after the character in the novel.

Colin turned his head and glanced at Hyde, who stood not far away, after hearing Smith's explanation.

As time passed, the smoke from the surrounding explosions gradually dissipated, revealing the devastated streets. The most prominent feature was the massive crater caused by Hyde at the center of the block.

Examining the shattered pit up close, Colin couldn't help but be awestruck by the sheer power of Hyde's monstrous transformation.

Despite sustaining such injuries, it was astonishing that Hyde could now stand in front of Natasha and engage in a conversation as if nothing had happened.

"Ah!"

A sudden piercing scream from above made Colin instinctively cover his ears, his face contorting with discomfort.

Smith also covered his ears, but his expression held a peculiar mix of pain and excitement. He exclaimed, "It's Songbird! Songbird is here!"

Colin turned his head towards Natasha and Hyde upon hearing the cameraman's shout.

Both of them calmly endured the situation, seemingly unfazed by the scream.

As Colin's gaze shifted, the source of the "scream" had already landed on the ground.

"Oh, so you guys are here..."

Dispersing the wings formed by sound wave energy from her back, Songbird, also known as Melissa Joan Gold, casually looked at Natasha and the others in front of her.

"Nice to find you."

"Sorry," Natasha quickly apologized upon Songbird's arrival. "I forgot to contact you."

"It's okay."

Shaking her head, Songbird's tone lacked reproach despite her complaint. "Since you're here, Natasha, there shouldn't be any problems. By the way, who are they?"

Songbird turned her head and directed an inquisitive gaze at Colin and the others standing aside.

"They are reporters from a television station. They probably stumbled into the block by accident and happened to encounter Hyde after his transformation," Natasha explained, glancing at Colin and the others in the distance.

"Well, they got lucky. They didn't end up torn to pieces by Hyde," Songbird remarked with a hint of irony, shifting her gaze back to Colin and the others.

"All my transformations are intentional and under my control, so it's impossible for the unrelated people you mentioned to be accidentally torn to pieces. Your joke isn't funny at all," Hyde retorted, maintaining a cold expression and raspy voice.

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