Once This Battle Is Over, I'll Go Home and Get Married

Russell was quite surprised by the situation at the concentration camp. The troops ostensibly stationed there were not Soviet troops, but American soldiers escorting German Army prisoners of war. This meant that Hydra's influence had infiltrated the America military, and this influence was known only to Schmidt, with other high-ranking Hydra officials unaware of it.

Russell pointed to the map. "What is the strength of the concentration camp? How many German Army prisoners are there?"

Natasha recounted the intelligence she had gathered. "The registered America forces number 200, and the German Army prisoners are less than 1,000, but according to my investigation, their daily consumption in the town is far more than that number."

"Other Hydra agents have infiltrated; they are Schmidt's covert influence in the Soviet Union," Russell stated definitively. Schmidt had already sensed the trouble within Hydra; he was becoming increasingly cautious, and this time he had to be eliminated.

"Boss, we can't handle so many people on our own. What do you plan to do?" Natasha asked, Bucky also looked at her questioningly.

"No, I won't take action. At most, I'll get close to the battlefield to confirm Schmidt's death." Russell shook his head and chuckled. "Let the Soviet Union and the America fight it out. Although Schmidt's terrorist attack was unsuccessful, it terrified the Allies. They are more afraid than anyone else of Schmidt doing it again."

Natasha was puzzled. "Boss, as far as I know, Schmidt has a very high level of technology. Why would he share the profits with others for nothing?"

"You mean energy weapons, right?"

"Yes."

"It's not some high-tech thing, but Tesseract, a treasure that Schmidt obtained while studying Norse Mythology. He simply channeled its energy," Russell said succinctly.

"You just said... Norse Mythology!?" Natasha wondered if she had misheard.

"That's right, the Tesseract is Odin's treasure, and Schmidt just found it." Russell shrugged. "Odin left his treasure on Earth; I don't have the guts to steal it. Let the America take it and court death!"

"Boss, this is Siberia," Natasha reminded them. Siberia was Soviet Union territory, and even if Schmidt was defeated, the Tesseract should have been seized by the Soviet Union.

"The Soviet Union only knew that Schmidt had the technology for energy weapons, while the America knew about the existence of the Tesseract. The two sides attached different levels of importance to it, and naturally, they put in different efforts." Russell was full of confidence that the America would definitely obtain the Tesseract, no matter what price it would have to pay.

For no other reason than that Dr. Zola, at his behest, revealed all the information about the Tesseract.

"Boss, isn't it too easy for the America to just leave the Tesseract to them like this!" Natasha switched roles quickly, or rather, she had already accepted her fate. After switching jobs, she devoted herself to advising Russell.

Russell gave a meaningful smile, "No, this is also part of the plan. It is more in my interest for the America to take it."

It's impossible to say that Russell had no interest in the Tesseract, but he wasn't overly fixated on keeping it under his control. Giving the Tesseract SSR was essentially finding a scapegoat—avoiding risk while still gaining access to research data—a win-win situation.

As for whether S.H.I.E.L.D.. would block the Tesseract, he was never worried. They were all on the same side, and any small problem could be solved in a meeting.

Natasha was completely baffled, and since Russell didn't say anything, she wisely refrained from asking further. As for Bucky, he didn't utter a single word from beginning to end; he didn't care much about any of this, only wanting to see Steve as soon as possible.

Bucky was well aware of his current situation; there was no hope of betraying Russell and returning to the America. Therefore, he wanted to meet with Steve to say goodbye, which could be seen as cutting ties with the past.

That night, Natasha went out to gather intelligence, while Russell and Bucky were assigned to two rooms on the top floor of the inn. Russell slept in Natasha's room; the other rooms were too smelly, but this one smelled wonderful.

The freezing cold of this godforsaken place offered little to offer, so Russell spent his time indoors with the Thunder Beast, practicing his body-strengthening skills until late at night before finally falling asleep wrapped in his blankets. Over the past two years, he had never slacked off in his cultivation and had made considerable progress.

[Host: Russell]

Strength: 42 (27+15)

[Body: 58 (44+14)]

[Intelligence: 35 (17+18)]

Wealth: 127,900

With significant improvements in both major attribute points, he's becoming more and more like a qualified mage!

In the dark room, Russell slept soundly with his eyes closed, his breathing steady, while the Thunder Beast curled up on the covers, snoring softly. A soft sound came from the door opening; the Thunder Beast twitched its ears, and Russell squinted, looking towards the doorway.

"Natasha?" Upon recognizing the visitor, Russell turned on the bedside lamp and leaned against the headboard.

"Boss, I'm sorry to bother you so late, but I have some information that I must tell you now." Natasha crossed her arms, her eyes twitched when she saw the Thunder Beast lying by the bed, and she walked to the other side.

"..."

Russell looked puzzled. The situation was less like a work report and more like a new employee onboarding, showing off their best side in the middle of the night.

As expected, Natasha took off her bodysuit and crawled directly into Russell's bed.

"Don't do this, this isn't the superior-subordinate relationship I want." Russell frowned; inappropriate relationships between superiors and subordinates are a major taboo. He resolutely refused, but when he couldn't push him away with force, he didn't give up and instead used both hands to push him away.

The serum modification was very effective; Russell tried to push it for a long time but couldn't get it to move.

"Boss, I understand your concerns, but please believe me, I keep my work and life very separate."

Are you sure?

"Of... um, of course..."

"Alright then, this is the last time. I'll reluctantly spare some time to listen to your information."

"..."

In the next room, Bucky sat on the edge of the bed, feeling very frustrated. It was too noisy, and he couldn't fall asleep at all.

Queen of Heaven, the concentration camp!

Five military trucks arrived at the barbed wire checkpoint, and the drivers were talking to the Sentinel. They were clearly American trucks. It was already late at night, and the concentration camp was pitch black except for the searchlights from the Watchtower.

The Sentinel guarding the gate, holding a flashlight, finished reading the document in black and white, saluted, and said, "Please wait a moment, I need to consult with my superiors."

The documents indicate that the truck was crammed with the German Army prisoners of war who were sent to this concentration camp and would be sent back to Germany after the war ended.

This left the Sentinel speechless. The concentration camp had been infiltrated by Hydra, and the underground base was working overtime to produce energy bombs, making it impossible to accommodate German Army prisoners. It was like a counterfeit meeting the real deal; even if Schmidt had the idea of expanding the camp, he would have to get Schmidt's permission first. Otherwise, with so many people flooding in, who knew what might happen?

"Dude, look closely at the signature on the document. This is a special approval document from the General Staff. What rank is your superior? Does his word carry more weight than the General Staff?" The driver was very annoyed and complained bitterly, "This damn place is really cold. If the car hadn't broken down several times, we would have arrived during the day. Hurry up and open the checkpoint. Once the prisoners get off the car, we'll complete our mission and leave."

The Sentinel remained unmoved and shook his head in refusal. "No, there are orders from above that all vehicles entering and leaving must be approved."

"Damn it, are you just going to make us wait here?" The driver got out of the car angrily. "I thought we'd be more lenient with fellow countrymen here, but you guys are even more annoying than those Russians."

The Sentinel went on alert, placing a hand on his gun at his lower back. "Keep your distance..."

"Pfft!"

A hand covered the Sentinel's mouth from behind, a sharp blade piercing his heart, his chest soaked in blood. The Sentinel struggled a few times before falling lifeless. This scene unfolded inside the makeshift wooden hut at the checkpoint. The Sentinel at the gate were quickly eliminated, and the same was true on the Watchtower; a few dark figures moved about, and then corpses were thrown down.

The checkpoint opened, and five trucks drove in one after another. Well-equipped America soldiers jumped out of the vehicles and dispersed to various parts of the concentration camp in small squads, carrying bombs.

Howling Commandos!

SSR, having received intelligence from Schmidt, knew the importance of the Tesseract. Instead of contacting the Soviet Union, the America authorities secretly dispatched an elite team to carry out the mission, aiming to complete the attack and evacuation in the shortest possible time.

SSR didn't consider whether the information was true or not; the Tesseract was too important, so even false information would be treated as true. The fact is, something was definitely wrong with this concentration camp.

The most eye-catching figure was a man holding a shield. With the help of the moonlight, the star stripes on the shield and the half of his face under the mask could be vaguely seen.

Captain America, Steve!

"Captain, there are no German Army prisoners in the concentration camp. We've found the entrance to the underground base, and we also have Hydra's Energy Gun."

Steve glanced at the time on his pocket watch, then his eyes fell on Carter's black and white photo. A tender look crossed his eyes. He closed the pocket watch and put it in his pocket. "Get everyone on alert. Detonate the bomb in two minutes and storm the underground base."

"I have a feeling Schmidt is inside. After this battle, the damn war will be over." The soldier was in high spirits.

"That's right, the war is about to end."

Steve tightened his grip on his shield. After this battle, he would go back to Brooklyn to get married!