His son was going to die—and be murdered?!
No matter how calm Howard usually appeared, the moment he heard this news, he was inevitably stunned for several seconds, his mind seeming to plunge into a chaotic storm.
But Howard was Howard, after all.
After only a few seconds of confusion, shock, and panic, his powerful rationality immediately overwhelmed all other emotions.
Howard recovered his composure with astonishing speed. "What evidence do you have to prove that you're telling the truth and not deceiving me? You don't think I'll believe you based on a few words alone, do you?"
"Of course not." Alvin shook his head. "Mr. Howard is one of the founders of S.H.I.E.L.D. I don't believe I could fool you with a few casual words."
"S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
The people present were dumbfounded again.
"I don't know any S.H.I.E.L.D." Howard frowned and said mockingly, "It seems you don't understand us very well."
"The Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division—S.H.I.E.L.D. for short." Alvin ignored him, snapped his fingers, and looked toward Fury. "This man, Mr. Nick Fury, will be the second director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the future. And, incidentally... the first director will be Ms. Peggy Carter."
"Although S.H.I.E.L.D. hasn't been established at this point in time, I imagine you've already been considering something similar, haven't you?"
As Howard met Alvin's gaze, his expression shifted almost imperceptibly, while stormy waves rose in his heart.
The reason was simple: not long ago, he had indeed discussed something similar with Peggy Carter.
With World War II over and the shadow of the Nazis gradually fading, the Strategic Scientific Reserve needed to keep up with the times in light of possible future supernatural threats, such as Hydra.
Their preliminary proposal had included this very concept: a global strategic defense organization against supernatural dangers.
The