The C team on the east side of the hospital, led by their team leader, had already arrived at the area where Raymond was.
Suddenly, a team member hurriedly reported, "Boss, we've lost all contact with B Team!"
"Lost contact?" The leader's face darkened.
He knew exactly what that meant—B Team's five members had likely met a grim fate.
But what kind of situation could wipe out five fully armed soldiers so quickly that they couldn't even send a distress signal?
A feeling of unease crept into the leader's mind.
This mission was already going off the rails. He had originally assumed that the worst that could happen was that S.H.I.E.L.D. would send a few agents to secretly protect Dr. Raymond.
His team had over twenty battle-hardened soldiers—if it came to a fight, they wouldn't necessarily lose against an equal number of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.
To him, this mission had seemed like a sure win.
But B Team's sudden disappearance had completely thrown him off guard.
Still, retreating now wasn't really an option.
If they pulled out without even finding out who they were up against, he would be held responsible when they returned. Even if he survived, the punishment would be brutal.
"We can't back down!"
He made his decision.
"Send D Team to B Team's area immediately—find out what happened. Also, lift the no-kill order!" the leader commanded in a deep voice.
Lifting the no-kill order meant they were now free to shoot on sight.
Obviously, the leader had realized the seriousness of the situation. If they stuck to their original plan, they might not even know how they died.
"D Team might not make it either," the team member suddenly added. "They're under attack too."
"Do we know who the attackers are?" the leader asked urgently.
"No idea. They're still exchanging fire."
"Tell them to hold their ground—we move now!"
Gritting his teeth, the leader decided to capture the target first and deal with the rest later.
Based on the current situation, B Team would likely be wiped out, and even if D Team managed to hold their ground, they wouldn't escape unscathed. Some losses were inevitable.
If, after all that, they still failed to capture the target, he wouldn't just be facing minor punishment—he might not even make it back alive.
At this point, retreat was no longer an option. He had to keep going.
A low voice from one of his men snapped him out of his thoughts.
Following his subordinate's gaze, he saw something—or rather, someone—in the courtyard about ten meters away.
A person had appeared out of nowhere.
Someone they hadn't noticed at all until now.
In the dim light of the moonlight and the street lamps, they could make out a man dressed in a black suit, wearing elegant round glasses, with a square bandage on his left cheek.
But the most striking thing wasn't his appearance—it was his gloves.
Both hands were covered in claw-like gloves, each fingertip extending into a half-meter-long blade.
"Who are you?! Stay where you are!"
The leader immediately raised his weapon and pointed it at the mysterious figure.
"Tsk, tsk... Weren't you here to capture 'me'? Now that I've come to you, why are you so nervous?" The man adjusted his glasses with his wrist and chuckled.
"You're… Raymond?" There was a hint of disbelief in the leader's voice.
But when he looked carefully, he realized that although the man's outfit was completely different from the photos of Dr. Raymond, his face was an exact match.
Unless Raymond had a twin brother, this had to be their target!
But… why was he dressed ?
The leader remained on high alert.
As a mid-level officer of the Centipede Organization, he knew that supernatural beings existed in this world. The Avengers, who had been making headlines recently, were proof of that.
People from that world had powers beyond imagination—monsters of all kinds.
The Centipede Organization was also researching and developing super soldiers, which could be considered part of that supernatural world.
Looking at the man's strange appearance, a chilling thought crept into the leader's mind—was their target a superpowered individual too?
The possibility sent a chill down his spine.
Seeing that the leader hadn't immediately given the order to attack, the personality controlling Raymond's body—Kuro—seemed a little disappointed.
"Why aren't you making a move? I've been waiting for you all this time..."
"If you cowards won't attack, then I will."
As he spoke, 'Raymond' began walking toward them.
"Stop right there! Don't come any closer or I'll shoot!" the leader shouted.
"Cowards will always be cowards. If you're going to shoot, just do it. Why waste time talking?" Raymond said lazily. "Forget it, I'm tired of waiting. I'll go first—"
A muffled gunshot rang out.
The leader had actually fired!
But he didn't aim for a fatal spot—just the lower leg.
With the silencer attached, the shot wasn't loud, but it still startled his subordinates. They had no idea why their leader had acted so impulsively, opening fire without hesitation.
They didn't understand anything about supernatural beings—they just thought Raymond looked a bit strange.
Since Raymond was known to have mental issues, they assumed his outfit was just another episode of his insanity.
To them, the leader's extreme caution and sudden gunfire seemed unnecessary.
What if they accidentally killed the target? Then their mission would be futile.
A team member suddenly gasped.
At his words, the others also noticed that something was wrong.
The man who had been walking toward them just moments ago had suddenly vanished—like he was never there at all!
"What the hell? Where did he go?"
"He was right there! How did he disappear?"
"Could it be... a ghost? I hear hospitals are full of restless ghosts..."
Fear crept into the team as an icy chill ran down their spines.
But the leader knew—this was no ghost story.
Their target really was a superpowered being!
"Stay alert! We're dealing with someone like a super soldier!" the leader shouted, snapping his team back into focus.
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