Coulson: No Wonder You're the Boss

"Coulson, move faster. We still have to help Miss Romanoff rescue her sister, Yelena Belova."

Covered in blood, Nick Fury held a gun as he walked cautiously, urging along the limping Phil Coulson.

"Come on, Boss. My leg is crippled like this. It's already pretty good that I can walk at all!"

After complaining bitterly, Coulson asked curiously, "I've kept hearing you mention Miss Romanoff. Who exactly is she? A rookie?"

Nick Fury shot Coulson a sidelong glance. "I wish she were a rookie, but unfortunately, she isn't."

Then he changed the subject and asked again, "Do you remember Carol?"

"Carol?" The confusion on Coulson's face deepened. "You mean Carol Danvers, the one from the Skrulls invasion five years ago who could fire photon energy from her hands?"

Pleased that Coulson remembered, Nick Fury nodded. "That's right. Romanoff is the same kind of person as Carol."

"Oh, hell, it's another alien-related incident!"

As though he had found the reason for his failure, Coulson said in frustration, "No wonder the people in this base managed to capture me. They're all connected to aliens!"

Nick Fury: "..."

Honestly, if the situation had been different, he really would have wanted to kick Coulson in the ass!

"Not aliens. I mean they both have terrifying abilities beyond those of ordinary people!"

"Could that Miss Romanoff fire photon energy too?"

A trace of envy appeared on Coulson's face. "That would be so cool. A few days ago, I even dreamed that I had—"

Watching Nick Fury's already dark face grow even darker, Coulson swallowed the rest of his words.

"Anyway, if we want to win Romanoff over to S.H.I.E.L.D., we need to find a way to do her a favor."

Coulson immediately nodded in understanding, but he quickly spotted a flaw.

"If she's that powerful, then she should have rescued the person already. Can we still earn her gratitude if we go now?"

Hearing Coulson's words, Nick Fury let out a long sigh and put on a sincere, earnest expression.

"Coulson, sincerity is the only ultimate weapon. Even if she has already been rescued, we lose nothing, do we?"

"Boss, no wonder you're the boss. That's absolutely right!" Coulson was instantly convinced.

What he did not know was that Nick Fury had said that only to establish a grand image for himself and highlight his noble character.

After all, he could hardly say that Natasha's pursuers had all withdrawn to chase her, which was why he was certain Natasha had not managed to rescue her sister, could he?

Following the Red House Base map they had obtained, the two soon arrived at the children's training area and dealt with the guards there.

Standing at the entrance to the massive corridor, they immediately spotted the girls training in an enormous room behind the glass to their right.

At the sight, a hint of joy finally appeared on Nick Fury's dark face.

He hurried forward, taking three steps in two, and pushed open the room's door.

"Hey, girls. Hello. We're S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, and we're here specifically to help you escape this place!"

When the girls in the room saw a pitch-black, one-eyed bald man barge in, every one of them warily reached for her weapon.

They did not believe a single word this bald man, who did not look like a good person, said. Their faces were full of vigilance.

"Heh, relax, everyone. I'm not a bad guy!" Nick Fury raised both hands, his gun pointed at the ceiling, and pulled what he thought was a gentle smile.

"Look, I've already dealt with the guards outside. You won't have to continue this inhuman training anymore!"

Through the glass, the girls did indeed see the fallen guards.

But they did not believe Nick Fury because of that. Instead, they drew their weapons even more warily, looking ready to fight at any moment.

After Natasha's escape, the Red Room had staged similar incidents many times, rooting out quite a few girls who wanted to flee and punishing them.

If someone repeatedly refused to learn her lesson, then even if she was not old enough yet, they would brainwash her ahead of time.

In short, after several rounds of intense punishment, almost no one thought of running away anymore.

"Boss, haven't we found Yelena Belova yet?"

Coulson, whose movements were hindered by his injured leg, finally caught up. At the same time, he called out Yelena's name.

"Sounds like more pursuers are coming from behind. We need to find her and get out of here fast."

Hearing Coulson's words, all the girls seemed to realize something and scattered in unison.

Then, with hostile expressions, they surrounded the blonde, blue-eyed girl standing in the middle.

Sensing that something was wrong, Coulson quietly asked Nick Fury, "Boss, did I say something wrong...?"

Nick Fury shot Coulson a vicious glare. Just as he was about to say something else, the girls charged forward, weapons raised.

"Yelena again! Just like her bitch sister, she wants to run away by herself and leave us here to be punished!"

"Take them out! The instructors will definitely reward us!"

"Die, you stinking bitch!"

Seeing her usual teammates rush in and start hacking at her, Yelena was nearly furious enough to explode. She dodged and shouted back.

"Damn it, have you pigs lost your minds? I don't know them at all! I'm not with them!"

"That's right, we're not with her! Stop attacking!" Nick Fury, who was also being chased and slashed at, shouted to muddy the waters.

As he shouted, he pulled out his gun and forced back the girls trying to cut him down. Only after squeezing his way to Yelena's side did he stop shouting and lower his voice.

"Yelena, your sister Natasha asked me to come save you. I know you have a lot of questions, but listen to me first."

"Your sister infiltrated this place too, and she has drawn a lot of fire. The guards outside are extremely weak right now."

"Trust me. Follow me, and I can get you out of here and reunite you with your sister!"

"Do I have any other choice besides trusting you?" Yelena practically gritted out the words.

"Good. Close your eyes!" As he shouted, Nick Fury reached out and tossed a flashbang.

A blinding burst of white light erupted, and agonized screams filled the entire room, including Yelena's, who had not believed him.

"Ah!! My eyes! I can't see!"

"You bastard! You should have explained before throwing it!"

"Stop talking and come with me!" He had swiped that flashbang from the Red Room. He did not have a second one.

Dragging Yelena and the limping Coulson along, the three quickly ran to the corridor entrance, where they ran straight into Melina and Alexei.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. people! Yelena!"

"Red Guardian and the previous-generation Black Widow!"

Both groups were startled. Before either side could even question the other, the base suddenly began to shake violently, followed by a series of explosions.

"Damn it, that madman Dreykov actually triggered the base's self-destruct. Isn't he leaving himself any time to escape!?"

Melina knew the base's self-destruct system extremely well. She had installed it herself, and she had also left behind a contingency plan for emergencies.

She immediately shouted to everyone, "Save the talking until we're alive. Follow me now—I have a backup plan!"