"What, so the United States is like that? Then now, should I address you as the Chief Advisor or as Mr. President?"
Tian Yan—whom Daniel Davis had brought from the days of Old America to the United States—looked at him with a complex expression after absorbing all the news. She had never imagined that this very national mentor from Old America would turn out to be not only the ruler of an empire but also a being capable of traversing different worlds. No wonder, until now, she could never quite fathom the origins of this suddenly appearing American national mentor.
"You may choose as you wish; you can even just call me by my name," Daniel Davis replied nonchalantly regarding titles.
"Tian Yan… I dare not," she murmured.
"Alright then—henceforth, unless the situation absolutely requires you to address me as 'Mr. President,' you may simply call me Daniel. And by the way, I'm counting on you to run the Network."
"Rest assured, Daniel—I will give it my all," Tian Yan answered, her eyes alight with excitement. In Old America, given the constraints placed on women, it was virtually impossible for one to hold true power; being the chivalrous leader of a humble clan was about as high as one could reach. But in the United States, things were different—she was destined to become the one in charge of the Network.
It wasn't just one nation at stake; the forces of the future would span the globe. When Daniel Davis had recruited Tian Yan, he had already confided his ultimate goal to her.
"Daniel… may I make a request?"
"Speak freely—if it's within my power, I'll do it."
"Daniel, could you also bring along Tian Ci?"
"Very well."
Although Tian Yan and Tian Ci were half-siblings, Tian Yan had always been kind to her somewhat dim-witted younger brother. In fact, if it weren't for Tian Meng, Tian Ci might never have been so foolish.
As for her request, Daniel Davis naturally couldn't refuse. (Had it not been for the fact that Mo Ya's end had already been settled, Mo Ya's crew—with their extensive experience running the "Six Doors"—would have been more than willing to help. Even if Daniel had asked, neither Mo Ya nor Ying Ge would have declined. But unless absolutely necessary, he preferred not to disturb Mo Ya's current peaceful life.)
"These fish-people are really full of themselves—if they've got the guts, they should come ashore instead of merely blustering away at the bottom of the ocean."
After finalizing arrangements with Tian Yan, Daniel Davis headed straight to Fishman Island in the Pirate World. His aim was to collect some turtle shells. While such shells could be used to forge shields for his own forces, in terms of overall performance the natural turtle shells of Fishman Island were ideal for assembling a unit of heavy-armored troops.
As always, Hodi Jones was on the offensive with his grandiose rhetoric—claiming he'd rule over humanity. If not for the fact that Fishman Island needed a cleansing of sorts, he would have gladly wiped out the officers of the New Fishman Pirate Crew on the spot.
The situation on Fishman Island was complicated. Not only did the human side need to change its ways, but the fish-people themselves had to evolve too. Long-standing hostilities meant that humans despised the fish-people and vice versa—with Hodi Jones merely being the most extreme example. And only Luffy and his crew could truly alter this entrenched state of affairs; it was entirely different from the situation in Wano Country.
After all, Wano Country was ruled by humans—once you took down Black Coal Serpent and Kaido, the rest was simple. But Fishman Island was a different matter altogether; under no circumstances would the fish-people ever allow a human to rule over them.
"Forget it—let Luffy and Dragon handle that matter."
After all, Fishman Island wasn't the United States. In the United States, Daniel Davis would take the time to change everything. But Fishman Island? There was no such thought. Frankly speaking, if he helped out on Fishman Island, many would suspect his motives—after all, he wasn't Luffy.
Luffy had earned the trust of Fishman Island—with little mermaid Kami and Jinbei playing huge roles there—whereas Daniel Davis had no such friends among the fish-people.
"The World Government has finally made a move. Perhaps it won't be long before Gang Gukong can't help himself and descends from the Red Earth Continent."
After leaving Fishman Island, Daniel Davis returned to Wano Country. It had been a while since he'd been there, and he needed to spend some quality time reconnecting while also getting a handle on the current state of affairs at sea.
The Revolutionary Army was steadily expanding; several allied nations had already seceded from the World Government. Although these nations were very low in the hierarchy—and might soon be expelled for failing to pay their "Heavenly Gold"—for now they remained, and a great battle had erupted between the two sides.
Both the Revolutionary Army and the World Government (along with the Marines) had committed several high-ranking generals to the fray, and their clash had turned an entire country to ashes. In the end, the Revolutionary Army emerged victorious, thereby cementing its control over most of the seas.
The Marines were forced to withdraw most of their forces—retaining only partial control over the seas and the first half of the Grand Line. Even if Sengoku was less than pleased, when facing Zefa he was at a distinct disadvantage; throughout the battle, defections were rampant—even General Aokiji had switched sides.
Yet while the Revolutionary Army's territory expanded, so too did the number of its enemies. For instance, in the North Sea the Germa Legion had clashed with them on multiple occasions.
"Has Star-Lord still not located the Power Stone? That guy sure moves fast."
After spending several days in the Pirate World with Aida and the others, Daniel Davis—after inspecting companies across several worlds and reorganizing supplies—returned to the Marvel World, only to find that Star-Lord's side was still silent.
"Looks like we'll have to keep waiting—I'm still hoping to plant some trees."
When it came to the Power Stone, Daniel Davis was determined to obtain it. Not merely because he might be able to use it, but simply to keep it out of Thanos's hands—that reason alone was sufficient. More importantly, he planned to "plant trees" on Ego's body; given Ego's vast size, he was certain that more than one Chakra Fruit would sprout.
"Oh wow, this is really something. As technology develops, the potential for destruction only grows. If this were to spread here as well, it'd be really something indeed."
Glancing at the latest news, Daniel Davis was astonished to learn that five major cities around the world had already been plunged into darkness. These weren't mere second- or third-tier cities—metropolises like Miami and Los Angeles had all suffered blackouts. In modern society, especially in urban areas, a power outage can be catastrophic.
"Truly, a land of freedom—now running limited-time zero-dollar purchase promotions."
The power outage in American cities had turned into a grand celebration. Free shopping events had been launched, and mobs of rioters filled the streets. Besides the free giveaways, a "watermelon smashing" game had even started—only in this case the "watermelons" were cars parked along the roadside, and many people wielding baseball bats were out there, smashing everything in sight with wild excitement.
"Those Inhuman Resistance types—their framing tactics are really so tired."
But as clichéd as it was, it worked. News outlets were rife with discussions about the Inhumans, and many people were openly denouncing them as monsters and freaks. One particularly fiery female congresswoman even went so far as to practically wish for the death of every Inhuman.
Ever since the Inhuman issue had come to light, the conflicts between them and ordinary people had only escalated.
"Red Queen, check on the situation with the Inhumans."
"Watcher—seems like a classic case of 'the pot calling the kettle black.'"
After Skye's mother had dispersed the Tyregen Crystal, the number of Inhumans had been growing by the day. Soon thereafter, an organization calling itself the Watcher emerged—a group of zealots who harbored an extreme hatred for Inhumans and were determined to exterminate every single one on the planet.
It now appeared that their goal was to stoke nationwide hatred against the Inhumans. With five cities—and perhaps even more in the near future—experiencing blackouts, those in the dark (literally and figuratively) would surely turn against the Inhumans.
"Inhumans probably don't possess such overwhelming power. If a citywide blackout were to occur, it would have to be due to an electromagnetic pulse. Even an electric-type Inhuman would find that difficult; right now, the only one capable of such a feat is Lincoln from S.H.I.E.L.D.—and even he could only black out one city. It's inconceivable for there to be several Inhumans of that magnitude. Besides, when designing their abilities, they're somewhat like Devil Fruit users—similar powers, but never duplicates."
"You bunch of overreactors—Red Queen, from now on, focus on monitoring the Watcher's activities. Locate their stronghold, and, importantly, keep an eye on anyone or any company capable of manufacturing or acquiring electromagnetic pulse devices." After issuing his orders to Red Queen, Daniel Davis decided not to meddle further. After all, with things escalating so dramatically, the Avengers would undoubtedly be deployed—and even the military might intervene.
This was the real world; when problems of such scale arise, neither the authorities nor S.H.I.E.L.D. will wait around for S.H.I.E.L.D. to handle it. They'd be watching from the sidelines, and frankly, with these cities in blackout, every passing second was incurring massive losses.
"A call from Coulson at a time like this—surely it isn't about the Inhumans, right?" Glancing at the number on his phone, Daniel Davis guessed at the caller's intent as he answered.
"Sorry to disturb you." When the call connected, a fatigued Coulson appeared on video. It was evident that, with a crisis of this magnitude, the pressure on his end was enormous.
Thanks to Daniel Davis's efforts, the current strength of S.H.I.E.L.D. far exceeded that of the original stories. Not to mention, there were several Inhumans alone, and naturally, Coulson's position as director had yet to be usurped.
"At a time like this, coming to me—what do you need?" Coulson remarked. He wasn't like Stark; he wouldn't reach out unless it was absolutely necessary.
"It's about May—she seems to have encountered a ghost." Coulson briefly outlined May's situation. Under normal circumstances, encountering a ghost wouldn't have prompted Coulson to contact Daniel Davis—after all, ghosts weren't entirely unfamiliar. But this time was different. Despite exhausting every remedy, they hadn't been able to cure May; worse, accounts from others in similar predicaments warned that if things continued, May would die. Left with no other option, Coulson had reluctantly reached out.
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"I understand. I'll assess the situation once I see May. Where are you now?"
"We're already en route to your location," Coulson replied, relaying a set of coordinates.
"Keep moving forward—I'll start on my end as well. See you shortly."
After S.H.I.E.L.D. had gone underground, Daniel Davis promptly canceled the magical markings on Coulson's plane that had previously allowed free access. For an intelligence organization, having a coordinate that permitted unrestricted entry was far too risky—even if the person wasn't an enemy. (Even within the Avengers, the coordinate Daniel had provided was for a room prearranged with Stark and the others.)
After hanging up the call, Daniel Davis mounted his flying broom and sped toward Coulson's Kun-type fighter jet.
Aboard the jet, after picking up Daniel Davis, Coulson and Simmons looked on with worried expressions. At that moment, May was tightly bound on a single cot. Upon seeing the three of them, she began screaming hysterically, ordering them to get away, as if she had witnessed something truly terrifying.
"May—are you alright?" Simmons asked with concern after Daniel Davis finished checking May.
"It's not too bad—there's just a strange energy swirling inside her mind," Daniel Davis explained as he pressed his right hand to May's head and used magic to siphon the energy from her brain.
"Do we have any intel on this ghost?" Feeling the unusual energy he had drawn out from May's mind, Daniel Davis couldn't help but be curious; this was clearly no ordinary spirit.
"How did I end up here? Daniel, why are you here? What happened?" May, coming to, looked at him in shock before quickly realizing her predicament.
"I'm sorry, May—it had to be done," Coulson said as he immediately stepped forward to free her bindings, then briefly recounted the earlier events.
"That woman…" May's face darkened as memories of the incident flooded back.
"This kind of enemy isn't one you can handle on your own—I'll take care of her." Watching the ghostly image on the video feed and the dire results of the person who had been touched by that female spirit (as shown by Simmons), Daniel Davis nodded slightly. Since he was already here, if he didn't resolve this matter now, he might have to return later to finish it off.
"Coulson, there's a problem—we've detected a new Phantom Knight."
A communication came in from Skye over the jet's intercom. These were chaotic times at S.H.I.E.L.D., and as one of their top agents, she had plenty on her plate.
Skye—now going by Daisy (even though Daniel Davis still thought Skye was a nice name, he respected her decision to change it)—stated, "We're on our way immediately."
"Phantom Knight? What exactly is that?"
After the Kun-type fighter jet landed in Los Angeles, not only did Daisy board, but so did another man—Robbie, the fourth-generation Phantom Knight.
Robbie himself wasn't fully aware of the whole story. All he knew was that he'd been granted a demon's power in exchange for vengeance on behalf of his paralyzed younger brother. He'd made a deal with a well-intentioned stranger—expecting the power to be temporary—but soon discovered he couldn't shake it off. Consequently, he began operating in the shadows as a vigilante, dispensing justice and punishing wrongdoers.
Thanks to his "Eye of Judgment," he wasn't afraid of mistakenly targeting the wrong person. Countless criminals—those who otherwise maintained an impeccable façade—were judged by Robbie, whether it was a schoolteacher who dabbled in bronze alchemy or corrupt police officers.
"The Eye of Judgment… and what about the other Phantom Knights? Is there any way to nullify this power?" Robbie inquired. Under the circumstances, he truly wished he could be free of this burden.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Robbie, but as far as we know, there's currently no way to remove it."
"Daisy, some Inhumans have betrayed us—the list was leaked by them."
Just as Robbie was about to say something further, Daisy's phone rang. When she answered, it was Lincoln on the line. His voice was grave; through the call, one could hear the unrelenting sound of gunfire punctuated by intermittent explosions.
"Lincoln—hang in there. We're coming over right away," Daisy said, rushing toward the cockpit as soon as she realized Lincoln was in danger.
(End of Chapter)
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