The Avengers Initiative

"What kind of deal?" William immediately covered his backside and asked.

"As long as you remain loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D., I guarantee we won't trouble you again."

Nick Fury said, "We won't pry into your background, nor will we ask about your future or your abilities."

So that was it. William understood what Nick Fury meant; the words sounded sincere, but they were riddled with traps.

It seemed S.H.I.E.L.D. already knew about him summoning the dragon soul as Hanzo—perhaps Coulson or another agent had witnessed it.

While Soldier: 76's tactical visor and gear could be explained away by high-tech, Hanzo's magical abilities were harder to justify. How was William supposed to explain that? That people from the Shimada Clan were born with the ability to summon dragon souls?

S.H.I.E.L.D. was conflicted, or rather, Nick Fury was. Truth be told, William was an uncertain, dangerous variable to S.H.I.E.L.D. They weren't sure what his true capabilities were or what his real identity was.

For such dangerous individuals, S.H.I.E.L.D. usually employed one of two methods: capture and imprison, or eliminate.

But they couldn't do that with William because he was actively helping them. Even if his motives were unclear, he was undeniably assisting S.H.I.E.L.D.

From his warning to Tony Stark to protecting Pepper Potts and helping Iron Man defeat Iron Monger, Nick Fury had seen it all.

Nick Fury was always suspicious of everything around him; he could count the people he truly trusted in S.H.I.E.L.D. on one hand. He couldn't see through the veil of mystery surrounding William, and sometimes he really wanted to sit him down and ask:

William, what is your true purpose? Why are you helping us?

But he knew he couldn't ask. Some things could be managed as long as they remained unspoken, but once the window paper was pierced, everything would spiral out of control!

At first, Nick Fury thought William was just a meta-human with advanced technology, but the appearance of Hanzo—or rather, the dragon soul—had left him completely baffled.

Magic? Technology? Who exactly was this William?

There was no other way. After discussing it with Coulson all night, they decided to bring William fully into the fold of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Not as a consultant, but as an agent. They would give him a rank and place him under Coulson's supervision. Only by having Coulson keep a close eye on him could Nick Fury finally rest easy.

"You want me to truly join you?" William asked.

"That's right. I'll give you a new position, starting as an agent." Coulson, who had been sitting on the sofa in silence, spoke with a serious expression:

"We will no longer grant you special privileges; you will be under the strict management of S.H.I.E.L.D. But we won't trouble you again, and we won't ask you any more questions. This is our show of good faith."

"Good faith?" Hearing those words, William couldn't help but roll his eyes. He walked over and grabbed a poster. "Don't think I don't know you installed cameras in my home. Is this what you call good faith?"

It was a Captain America poster. Nick Fury's expression shifted instantly, while Coulson covered his face and said nothing.

Just a few days ago, William had accidentally discovered the pinhole camera on that Captain America poster.

He had originally intended to go and confront Coulson, but thinking that the other party was likely just worried about his abilities, he couldn't be bothered. But today, with S.H.I.E.L.D. acting all high and mighty, he felt like stirring up some trouble.

A broken organization that would soon fall, acting so arrogant in front of me?

"Do you understand that this is an invasion of privacy?" William threw the Captain America poster in front of Coulson and said, "I hope you didn't install these monitors in my toilet and bathroom too!"

"Apologies, Mr. Lister, for the inconvenience. This is merely a precautionary measure by S.H.I.E.L.D." Nick Fury explained.

William retorted sharply, "Precautionary measures? I help you because I'm willing to. If I don't help you, you can't threaten me. You wouldn't want to make me angry. Do you really want to become my enemy?"

The air grew thick with tension. Nick Fury's gaze sharpened, and he couldn't help but reach for the pistol at his waist.

Seeing this, Coulson quickly waved his hands and said, "Mr. Lister, we've had many misunderstandings in the past. We guarantee this won't happen again. Deals are negotiable—do you have any other suggestions?"

"It's not impossible for us to make a deal," William said coldly. "But I have conditions!"

"First, no interfering with my privacy. No more surveillance!"

"Second, aside from the two of you, no one else can know the secret that I am a transmigrator!"

Hearing William say this, Nick Fury's brow furrowed immediately.

"Third, I don't want to be a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. I still want to help you as a consultant!"

William was never one to follow orders, and he certainly didn't like living under the shadow of S.H.I.E.L.D. While dealing with S.H.I.E.L.D. was inevitable in the Marvel world, expecting William to be their lackey? Sorry, that was impossible.

"These things are negotiable," Coulson said with an awkward smile. "But what about our benefits?"

Deals were usually mutually beneficial unless they were lopsided. William knew he couldn't push for conditions that were too excessive, so he said:

"I will still help you as I have before, but you cannot force me to take on missions. I don't want to become your enemy, so don't push me."

William didn't want to burn bridges with S.H.I.E.L.D. either; after all, until Hydra emerged from the shadows, S.H.I.E.L.D. remained a very powerful force. However, if the cooperation with S.H.I.E.L.D. were to collapse, he had considered whether he should cooperate with Hydra instead.

Nick Fury's expression was dark and indecisive, as if he were weighing his options. "If you can continue to act as you have—helping us without causing trouble—I can agree to these conditions."

"People like you are dangerous, but you possess great power. I actually need many people like you to protect this world!"

"Oh?" Hearing Director Fury say this, William couldn't help but think of something.

"I've already discussed this matter with Tony Stark," Nick Fury said with a serious expression. "If you are willing to join this initiative as well, I can consider your terms."

"What initiative?" William couldn't help but ask.

"The Avengers."

No wonder Nick Fury had traveled all the way from Washington to New York. He must have already visited Tony's luxury villa, as Tony's public declaration of being Iron Man had caught the Director's attention.

However, whether he and Tony had reached an agreement remained unknown.

"Is this strange name some kind of game guild?" William feigned ignorance.

"No, it's a special organization," Nick Fury replied solemnly. "The members will be extraordinary individuals or superheroes like you. You will be tasked with dealing with threats that exceed conventional capabilities!"

William curled his lip and said, "You plan on gathering a bunch of freaks together? Before I consider joining, I want to ask if this organization has any other members yet?"

"My two most elite agents have already met the requirements. I've spoken with Tony, but he doesn't seem very interested," Nick Fury said helplessly. "Then there's you. Honestly, that only makes four people so far."

Well, it seems things haven't been settled yet after all.

"If the danger is truly beyond the norm, four people definitely won't be enough," William said meaningfully. "If you really want to assemble a league like this, you need more people. You need more heroes!"

Nick Fury thought to himself that it wasn't as if superheroes were as easy to find as vagrants, but William was right; when a real catastrophe broke out, a four-man squad certainly wouldn't cut it. They needed greater power.

"How about this: until your Avengers are truly established, I will continue to assist S.H.I.E.L.D. in the capacity of a consultant," William said with a solemn expression.

"The day the war begins, just come find me. You know where I live. I will help you repel the enemy as an Avenger!"