A subtle downgrade in reception, a test of house arrest through lodging arrangements
Gwen Stacy's breathing was perfectly steady.
The man in front of me, who called himself Mobius, had a smile on his face that was just right—neither overly enthusiastic nor lacking in professional decorum.
But Gwen Stacy had seen this face in the old files sealed in the basement of the Triskelion. It was a black and white photograph of a young man with sharp eyes, wearing a 1970s S.H.I.E.L.D.. field uniform. In the upper right corner of the file, two words were stamped in red: "Killed in the line of duty".
Her heart skipped a beat, then returned to normal.
"Hello, Deputy Director Mobius." Gwen Stacy extended her hand, a professional smile on her face. "I'm Gwen Stacy Stacy. The system malfunction is a technical issue, which is understandable."
They gently clasped hands, then quickly separated.
Mobius's hands were warm, unlike those of someone who lived in archives.
"Commander Stacy is indeed very understanding." Mobius stepped aside, gestured for them to proceed, and led them towards the open door. "The delegation has traveled a long way and must be tired. We have already arranged accommodations for everyone."
Hela snorted coldly and didn't move.
The Undead Guard behind her remained in battle stance, the chilling aura of Death Energy making the surrounding air seem stagnant.
Mobius paused, turning back to look at Hela. His smile remained unchanged, but a hint of amusement flickered in his eyes.
"This must be Director Hela from the Stability Maintenance Office, right? I've heard so much about you."
Gwen Stacy walked silently to Hela's side, using her body to block Mobius's view.
"Director Hela is in charge of the delegation's security; being highly vigilant is her duty." Gwen Stacy's words were calm, as if explaining a trivial matter. "Could we first get a look at the specific schedule?"
She steered the conversation back on track.
"Of course." Mobius readily agreed and continued leading the way, "However, there's a small matter that needs to be discussed with Captain Stacy beforehand."
As he walked, he said in a relaxed tone, "According to the 'No. 11 Interdimensional Biochemical Safety Management Regulations' jointly issued by the Battleworld Security Committee and the Health and Quarantine Department, all delegations entering the country for the first time need to undergo a 48-hour quarantine period."
They've arrived.
Gwen Stacy caught a glimpse out of the corner of her eye that Wanda was adjusting the movements of her wrist terminal, and slowed down for a moment.
"During this period, to ensure everything goes smoothly and for the absolute safety of all our distinguished guests, we will arrange for you to stay at the Battleworld No. 3 Guesthouse. The environment there is very quiet, the facilities are complete, and there will be absolutely no outside disturbances."
Mobius's words were perfectly watertight.
It's not isolation, it's "epidemic prevention silence".
It's not house arrest, it's "absolute safety".
It's not that it's remote, it's that the "environment is quiet".
Hela raised an eyebrow, about to speak, but was stopped by a look from Gwen Stacy.
"We understand and respect your regulations." Gwen Stacy nodded, her tone sincere. "Procedural compliance is the foundation of effective communication. We will follow Deputy Director Mobius's instructions."
A hint of approval flashed in Mobius's eyes, seemingly very satisfied with Gwen Stacy's "sensibility".
"Commander Stacy is a really sensible person. Dealing with sensible people is so much easier."
After walking through a long white corridor, they boarded an interior shuttle bus. The bus was completely enclosed, with no windows, only soft lighting.
The car started almost silently and traveled smoothly on the unknown track.
The atmosphere inside the train carriage was oppressive.
Hela crossed her arms and closed her eyes, but her tense jawline betrayed her impatience. Wanda, on the other hand, kept her head down, her fingers flying across the terminal screen as if she were recording something.
Gwen Stacy sat upright, looking at her blurry reflection on the smooth metal wall opposite her.
The file Lynn gave her contained a prediction of the Battleworld style of the officials: they would use rules to disguise their arrogance and procedures to set traps.
In the first round, the opponent tested the waters with forced review, which I countered with treaty rules, resulting in a draw.
In this second round, the other side used the excuse of downgrading the reception level according to epidemic prevention regulations. It seemed like a legitimate strategy, but in reality, it was a test of the delegation's obedience. If we reacted strongly at this point, we would fall into the other side's trap of "not cooperating with official business," and all subsequent negotiations would be put on the defensive.
Therefore, it must be accepted.
And you have to appear to be doing it willingly.
After an unknown amount of time, the shuttle bus slowly came to a stop.
The car door slid open, and a breath of fresh air rushed in.
The so-called "No. 3 Guesthouse" is a stand-alone white building, located in the center of a spacious square. There are no other buildings around it, making it appear particularly lonely.
Mobius led them into the hall.
"Your rooms are ready. Your meals will be delivered to your door at regular intervals. If you need anything, please contact us through the communication system in your room." He smiled and gave his final instructions. "Oh, by the way, during the silence period, to avoid unnecessary signal interference, the external physical communication ports of the guesthouse area will be temporarily closed. We apologize for any inconvenience."
This last sentence is the true reveal of the scheme.
Cutting off physical communication means that Wanda cannot transmit any probe data back to Negative Zone through conventional means.
They became an Information Island.
"Thank you for your hard work, Deputy Director Mobius." Gwen Stacy extended her hand and shook his again. "We will definitely abide by the regulations strictly."
Mobius nodded in satisfaction, then turned and left with his men.
As the door closed silently behind them, the entire guesthouse lobby fell into a deathly silence.
"This is the 'program' you were talking about?"
Hela's icy voice echoed in the hall. She turned around and stared intently at Gwen Stacy.
"A metal box without windows, a run-down building where even the gods wouldn't defecate, and now they've even cut off our internet! Gwen Stacy Stacy, you, the leader, are you just leading us to jail?"
Gwen Stacy remained calm in the face of Hela's anger.
She took off her glasses and gently wiped the lenses with a soft cloth she carried with her.
"Director Hela, what do you think is the purpose of our trip?"
"Of course we should bring Erik back! If it weren't for that Lin guy's repeated insistence..."
"So, your plan is to start a war without knowing the enemy's true strength?" Gwen Stacy interrupted her. "And then what? Raze this place to the ground and then be besieged by an even more powerful force from the Battleworld? Or trigger a higher-level conflict and have Commander Lynn personally clean up our mess?"
Gwen Stacy put her glasses back on, and her gaze sharpened.
"He sent us not to fight, but to gather intelligence."
"Gather information? We're locked up here now, how can we gather information?" Hela retorted.
"Who said we're locked up?"
As soon as Gwen Stacy finished speaking, Wanda, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up.
"Backdoor program has been installed."
Wanda looked up and turned the terminal screen on her wrist toward them. On the screen, a 3D structural diagram of the guesthouse had taken shape, with countless green Data Stream flowing through it, converging into an inconspicuous node, and then disappearing.
"During our handshake just now, I attached a miniature Chaos Beacon to his cuff," Wanda explained. "As long as he doesn't leave the Battleworld administrative region, we can use him as a springboard to complete the initial infiltration of the entire Foreign Affairs Office system."
The anger on Hela's face froze.
She looked at Gwen Stacy, then at Wanda, her expression complex.
It turns out that Wanda wasn't sulking in the car earlier; she was actually setting everything up. And Gwen Stacy had tacitly approved of this clandestine operation from the very beginning.
Just then, Wanda's terminal emitted a soft beep.
On the screen, a faint red dot is flashing irregularly, indicating the location of the basement level on the hotel's floor plan.
"What is this?" Hela, leaning closer.
Wanda's fingers moved rapidly across the screen, zooming in on that area, and a series of complex Data Stream began to be compared and analyzed.
A few seconds later, a line of analysis results appeared.
"High-intensity Magnetic Field energy reaction... Mutant Power frequency... is undergoing decay-like fluctuations..."
Wanda looked up at Gwen Stacy and Hela, her voice tinged with disbelief.
"This signal frequency has a 93% similarity to Erik Lehnsherr's original Mutant Power data in our database."