I Became a Knockoff Arms Dealer in the Marvel World

At the time, even though Tony had already turned over a new leaf, he was still almost completely mesmerized by Natasha.

This embarrassing memory had stayed with him ever since, and his so-called "plan" just now was nothing more than an act of defiance.

Tony believed that the reason he had lost wasn't because of his own shortcomings but because Carl's girlfriend, Wanda, was just too strong.

So, he devised a "special" tactic to drive a wedge between the couple and sabotage their relationship.

Don't judge this approach as underhanded—Tony felt that as long as it led to the downfall of Umbrella, the nefarious arms corporation, a bit of shamelessness was a small price to pay.

The meeting room fell silent once again. The idea of seduction seemed unreliable, so what else could they do?

After so much time had passed, even Captain America—who had hardly spoken throughout the meeting—clearly understood the crux of the issue.

Carl and Wanda, representing Umbrella, were simply too strong. A direct confrontation was not feasible, nor would it be wise. Resorting to force would only lead to major upheaval.

At this stage, S.H.I.E.L.D. had no effective means to deal with Umbrella, this colossal multinational criminal organization.

In truth, Steve's perspective was somewhat different from the others in the room. He didn't think Umbrella had committed any particularly heinous crimes.

As an arms company, Umbrella's greatest offense was perhaps bending a few rules, selling weapons to Middle Eastern nations.

To be honest, from Steve's understanding, many American arms corporations had done far worse.

These capitalists, driven by profits, would stoop to any level.

Selling weapons to African warlords, dictators, and so-called freedom fighters was routine.

Some even deliberately instigated conflicts to sell weapons to both sides of the war.

Compared to the military-industrial complex entrenched at the top of American society, Umbrella seemed almost insignificant.

In fact, Steve might even consider them a lesser evil.

Even though Umbrella had once conducted mind-control experiments on him, Steve didn't view the company as the greatest threat.

At the moment, he thought S.H.I.E.L.D. was a far bigger problem.

After all, Steve had spent years battling Hydra during World War II, and his wariness of them was deeply ingrained.

When he learned that Hydra had infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D., it sent shockwaves through him.

If he weren't still trying to confirm the accuracy of the intelligence, he might have already begun purging Hydra from within S.H.I.E.L.D.

Because of this, Steve appeared distracted throughout the entire meeting.

The room was silent for a long time. Everyone was deep in thought, trying to come up with a better plan.

Five minutes later, the silence persisted.

Tony, already impatient, began to feel like this meeting was a colossal waste of time.

"If no one has a better plan, then let's adjourn and go home to think things over.

Without the strength to crush the enemy, these amateurish schemes and baseless speculations are completely meaningless!"

Nick Fury, seeing the low morale of everyone in the room, let out a sigh and called the meeting to a close.

"In that case, let's wrap this up. If Carl makes any big moves, I'll inform you immediately."

Tony, already itching to leave, was the first to stand up and head out.

Dr. Banner followed shortly after, his expression still dazed. This two-hour-long meeting had produced no results and ended so abruptly. What was the point of all this?

Captain America picked up his shield from the floor, slung it over his back, and left without saying a word.

When he stepped outside the S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, he glanced around in confusion.

At this point, everyone entering or leaving the headquarters looked like a Hydra agent to him.

But since the situation was still unclear, he couldn't afford to alarm them prematurely.

After thinking it over, Steve decided to visit Peggy. Perhaps she could shed some light on the matter—after all, she had founded S.H.I.E.L.D.

If there were internal problems within S.H.I.E.L.D., Peggy might have noticed something.

Right now, the only person Steve could truly trust was Peggy Carter, the woman who had waited seventy years for him.

After Tony, Steve, and Banner left, the meeting room was left with only Nick Fury, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Hill, and Coulson—the core S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel.

Nick Fury swept his single eye over the room, his gaze sharp as ever, and began assigning tasks.

"Clint, I need you to continue round-the-clock surveillance on the manor where Carl is staying."

"Hill, keep investigating the seven new bases Umbrella has established globally."

"Romanoff, find a way to bring General Ross's daughter, Betty, here.

If necessary, use... unconventional methods. No matter what, Banner has to see her.

I don't want to see a giant green monster rampaging through S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.

If General Ross causes trouble afterward, I'll handle it."

Hawkeye wasn't surprised to be assigned another surveillance mission. After all, his eagle-like vision and unparalleled marksmanship made him the perfect candidate.

As he left the room, Clint muttered under his breath, "Easy job, sure, but it's so boring."

Hill showed no reaction to her assignment, promptly leaving to resume her previous work. She had only been called to New York for the meeting; now it was back to business as usual.

As for Natasha, her task was the most troublesome, but she already had a plan.

Making Banner meet Betty? Simple. She'd just kidnap her if necessary.

After all, the boss had her back.

With that reassurance, Natasha left the room with a sway in her step and a relaxed smile.

After assigning tasks to his trusted subordinates, Fury handed Coulson a check for a staggering $1 billion.

"Coulson, I need you to deliver this check to Carl and discuss the possibility of cooperation with him face-to-face."

Fury wanted Coulson to approach Carl with sincerity. There was no need for outright confrontation.

If they could resolve past misunderstandings, establish limited cooperation, share critical intelligence, and even order military supplies from Umbrella, it would be worth it.

With the Hulk now part of S.H.I.E.L.D., Fury felt they finally had the leverage to stand up to Umbrella.

But open conflict was the last resort. The best-case scenario would be to persuade Carl and Wanda to "peacefully" defect.

As the king of spies, Fury had noticed Umbrella's peculiar obsession with dominating the arms market.

Globally, Umbrella's weapons accounted for 47.3% of the market share, yet the company was still unsatisfied.

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