"This girl finally showed her face."
At this moment, Nick's tense nerves finally relaxed a bit, and he breathed a sigh of relief. He continued to stare at Artoria in the video. This time she finally exposed her power, which seemed no weaker than the big green guy. Last time she used that miraculous weapon to defeat Abomination; this time he wondered if she could turn the tide.
"Director, communication from above."
Hearing this news, Nick's expression clearly changed. This was a critical moment! Those pig-brained guys didn't know what kind of tricks they were going to play this time. But there was no choice; after all, his salary and equipment were all swindled... ahem! obtained from these guys. He couldn't pretend they didn't exist. Helplessly, Nick could only pray in his heart that no more trouble would arise. There were still many civilians who hadn't evacuated, and most importantly, the Avengers were all in the center of New York.
"Hello, this is Nick."
"Director Nick, those 'freaks' of yours still haven't solved the problem."
Highly insulting language came from the other end, making Nick's face look very bad. These were all people he favored. If they were 'freaks', then what was he? The 'head freak'? Normally Nick would have snapped back, but now was not a good time. Once the other party lost their minds and revoked his authority, the next step might be launching a nuclear bomb.
No matter how Nick tried to appease these politicians whose brains were usually offline, Artoria had a bit of trouble on her end. She felt a dangerous fellow had arrived on Earth; her intuition told her so.
"Sister, where's your armor? Did you forget to bring it? Put on my battle suit!"
Tony looked at the tattered suit on Artoria and thought she had come in a hurry and forgotten to wear that set of armor that even he couldn't analyze. How could he know that was Artoria's Spirit Gear, which couldn't be understood with normal logic at all? As long as Artoria called for it, it would immediately appear on her body. Tony, concerned about whether his sister would be exposed, directly told Jarvis to call out a researched Hulkbuster suit. This was currently the Iron Man Suit with the thickest armor and fiercest firepower. He hadn't even tried it yet. The suit he was wearing was based on the nanotechnology provided by Artoria and could turn into a big guy at any time.
This suit was perfect for Artoria. Once Artoria was inside, he would order Jarvis to take her away, which would be even better.
"Is this your sister? She's really beautiful."
Thor also gathered here, looked at Artoria's full chest (Tony: You bastard, where are you looking?) and then at Artoria's emerald green eyes, speaking to Tony.
"Miss Artoria, you should go back! This isn't a place for jokes. Do you need something?"
Dragging Hawkeye, who was trapped in a spider cocoon, Spider-Man came to Artoria's side. Artoria's hot figure caused a huge impact on the underage boy. Fortunately, he didn't embarrass himself with a nosebleed. He used spider silk to stick to a flag; he wanted to give this large piece of cloth to Artoria.
"You guys, really."
This situation made Artoria both angry and amused. Since when did she become the gathering point here? She waved her hand to refuse her brother's Hulkbuster suit and also refused Spider-Man's flag. Pushing away Natasha, who wanted to pull her away, Artoria glanced at Gwen, who was killing enemies, and then snapped the fingers of her right hand.
Blue stockings slowly emerged from her toes, instantly replacing the torn suit pants. Silver battle boots appeared out of thin air, wrapping around Artoria's slender and straight calves. Spirit Gear with golden edges slowly appeared on Artoria's body. A golden crown bound her long blonde hair, and a red cape was gently draped over Artoria's shoulders. The blue tight-fitting top highlighted Artoria's slender waist perfectly, revealing only a touch of snowy white on her chest. After moving her wrists wrapped in gauntlets, the fully changed Artoria looked at the dumbfounded Natasha with a smile; good, this was exactly the effect she wanted.
"Cool, so handsome."
Spider-Man watched Artoria's gorgeous attire, dancing with excitement. Moreover, the other party seemed to be his idol, the Shining Knight. This made Spider-Man even happier.
"You still want to participate in the battle, Artoria."
Tony was a little exasperated, but he still fired every weapon he had at the oncoming Chitauri. With the situation as it was, it looked like Artoria couldn't avoid the fight, so he resigned himself to letting her join the battle.
"Alright, stop crowding around. Where's Captain—did he get knocked somewhere?"
There was no longer any sign of the familiar 'perky rear' nearby. Artoria glanced around and, in passing, crushed a string of Chitauri with her lance. These things were simply too numerous—and, worse, the most dangerous ones hadn't even shown up yet. She glanced toward the top of Stark Tower, the spot that set her instincts screaming; even Loki hadn't made her feel this threatened.
"My Lord, these are the Avengers? Pathetically weak."
A blue-skinned woman in white soft-armor looked down on Artoria and the others, speaking to no one in particular.
"Thanos promised he wouldn't interfere on Earth, my lovely lady."
At that moment the hidden Loki appeared in front of her, his face expressionless. They had already reached an understanding: Earth would be his, provided he delivered the Cosmic Cube to Thanos and wiped out half the Planet's population—then the Planet would be under his rule.
"Watch your tone, second prince of Asgard, Loki. You are not entitled to speak the Celestial Emperor's name so casually."
She gave Loki a contemptuous glance, unable to fathom why her master placed such faith in this fellow, sending him as vanguard to Earth. An hour had passed and they still hadn't pushed past this single city. By their usual pace a Planet was reduced to lifeless rock in ten minutes. She simply couldn't see why anyone would think this incompetent boy worthy of favor.
"Mind your tone and your address. Before you stands Loki, King of Asgard—not a second prince. Remember that."
Loki's previously calm face darkened under Proxima Midnight's provocation, but he didn't back down; he placed his own dignity first.
"Hmph! Were it not for the master's orders, I'd turn you into a puppet that knows only how to eat and drink."
Proxima Midnight, one of the Black Order, was no pushover—especially with her powers, she feared nothing. Linked to her master's mind, she knew full well that, in his eyes, this man was merely a tool for probing. This place's waters ran deep; even her master felt some misgivings. To set his mind at ease she had come personally to test Loki—or rather, Earth's forces. Apart from the woman in the middle, the rest barely warranted a glance.
"How interesting. I can't sense any emotions flowing from you—fascinating."
Ignoring Loki, who was already giving off killing intent, Proxima Midnight's attention was fixed on Artoria.
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