Looking at the shoe prints all over the floor, the overflowing trash can, and the stains on the living room table, Lu Wen felt the veins in his temples throb.
"Which... bastard did this!!!"
He had only been out for a while. Why had his home turned into someone else's place?
Fuck, this was going too far!
"Venom, clean the house."
The next moment, black tendrils emerged from Lu Wen's body, quickly finding tools and getting to work.
Venom could sense Lu Wen's mood, so he did not dare say a word.
A few minutes later, the house was back to normal. The floor gleamed, the trash bag had been replaced, and the stains on the table had been wiped away.
Venom withdrew into Lu Wen's body, quiet as though nothing had happened.
Standing in the middle of the living room with his hands on his hips, Lu Wen looked around. Only then did his anger subside a little.
"Not bad. Nice work," Lu Wen praised Venom.
Venom replied timidly in his mind, "Boss, could you not make me scrub the toilet next time..."
"I'll try..."
"...Okay, boss."
After walking through the house, Lu Wen sat down on the sofa, puzzled.
Nothing had been added or taken, so these people had simply stayed in his house for a while, then inconsiderately failed to clean up after themselves.
He had locked the door properly before leaving. Who had picked the lock and come in? People from S.H.I.E.L.D., or Serpent S.H.I.E.L.D.?
No, no, no. Judging by Black Nick Fury's attitude before, that didn't seem right either...
Before he could figure it out, the doorbell rang.
He got up to answer it. Outside stood a woman in a dark gray coat, her reddish-brown hair tied in a low ponytail. Her expression was relaxed, giving off an air of "I was just passing by."
"Mr. Lu." Natasha gave him a slight nod. "Good to see you again. Director Fury sent me to have a chat with you."
Natasha openly stated her purpose, something Nick Fury had specifically emphasized.
Lu Wen stepped aside. "Come in."
Natasha entered the living room and sat on the sofa with her gift. She did not deliberately look around, her posture casual, as though she really were visiting a friend.
Once Lu Wen sat down opposite her, Natasha pushed the gift box over.
"Chocolates. I hope you like them."
"Thanks, but what brings you here? Did that Black Nick Fury send his beautiful ace agent to fish for information?"
Hearing Lu Wen call Nick Fury "Black Nick Fury," Natasha pictured that big, bald, black head and failed to keep a straight face, the corners of her mouth curling upward.
Quickly composing herself, Natasha asked her first question as casually as if she were discussing the weather.
"Where did you go while you were missing? Fury couldn't find out, and Tony wouldn't tell us, so he had to send me to ask you in person."
Lu Wen studied Natasha's expression, then slowly gave his answer. "Business trip."
"What sort of business trip takes you somewhere even S.H.I.E.L.D. can't track down?"
"That, I can't tell you. But I'm curious. I'm not the only person with superpowers S.H.I.E.L.D. knows about, am I? Why pay so much attention to me?"
Lu Wen was a little puzzled.
Natasha lowered her eyes and fell silent for a moment, then repeated Nick Fury's exact words.
"You're certainly not the only metahuman, but your performance during the Battle of New York stood out too much. You're in the spotlight now, so it's only natural that various factions are watching you!
"And the level of combat power you displayed warrants attention too."
With that, Natasha glanced at Lu Wen's chest. Her meaning was clear.
"Heh." Lu Wen gave a helpless chuckle.
So he had shown off too much and caught people's attention.
"Then did Nick Fury tell you whether he knows who came to my house and left it in such a mess?"
Natasha nodded. "Yes. He said that if you asked, I should tell you they were General Ross's people. They wanted to recruit you into the military's camp, but you never showed up.
"Also, after you appeared in New York, the first car you kicked over belonged to people Ross sent to bring you to him! Another belonged to government personnel. We still haven't identified the last one.
"But don't worry. Nick has kept them in check for you. Ross won't come looking for you again for now, but if you cause a stir out there, he won't be able to hold him off for long."
"Then thank him for me. When you get back, tell him I just want to settle down here. I'm not interested in anything else. There's no need to guard against me like I'm an alien."
Natasha nodded in acknowledgment.
Suddenly, everything fell quiet. Neither Lu Wen nor Natasha continued speaking. They simply looked at each other in silence.
Natasha leaned forward, resting her chin on her clasped hands with her elbows on the table, displaying her curvaceous figure before Lu Wen.
"We did fight side by side, after all. Now that business is out of the way, don't you want to talk about something else?" Natasha's tone grew less formal, taking on a faint, elusive allure.
"I don't think we're at the point where we need to start discussing our family backgrounds," Lu Wen said solemnly.
"Hm?" His inexplicable remark caught Natasha off guard, but she quickly recovered her earlier manner.
"I thought you might invite me to dinner."
"Then you thought wrong. My pockets are cleaner than my face. You came to the wrong place if you're looking for a free meal." As he spoke, Lu Wen even turned out his empty pockets for Natasha to see.
Natasha's expression froze for an instant. Suddenly, she felt there might be something wrong with Lu Wen's head.
Such a beautiful woman was practically asking him out, and this was his reaction???
She lowered her clasped hands and leaned gently against the sofa, her tone carrying just the right amount of disappointment. "You'll hurt my feelings, talking like that."
"I don't know whether your feelings are hurt, but I do know your agent training includes a course called 'Body language and emotional manipulation,' and you're definitely one of its star students! Right, Agent Romanoff?"
Lu Wen sounded as matter-of-fact as if he were commenting on a dish. "Besides, I'd advise you not to try that routine on someone like me. It tends to kill the conversation."
Natasha looked at him. The curve of her lips remained unchanged, but the affected seductiveness in her eyes noticeably receded.
"Someone like you? What kind of person is that?"
"A poor person."
Natasha fell silent for two seconds, then suddenly smiled. Unlike those carefully arranged smiles from before, this one was relaxed and natural.
She opened the box of chocolates on the coffee table, took one, and bit into it. "Fine, no more pretending. Want one? They're pretty sweet."
"I'm not hungry yet."
"You really are no fun."
"I think fun people are generally already on that list of yours marked for special attention."
Natasha finished chewing her chocolate, brushed the crumbs from her hands, then stood and straightened her coat. "All right, that's it for today. I'll pass what you said on to Fury."
"Thanks for the effort. Tell him to bring something expensive next time."
Natasha reached the door and glanced back at him. "You really can't tell me where you went on that business trip?"
"No."
"What if I bring something expensive next time?"
"That depends on how expensive."
"All right. Bye."
The door closed, and her footsteps receded down the hall toward the elevator.
Lu Wen stood where he was and glanced down at the opened box of chocolates on the coffee table. He reached for one and tasted it. It really was sweet, without the taste of cocoa butter substitutes.
"Agents bring pretty decent snacks."
He closed the chocolate box and set it aside, then took out his phone. Tony had sent him a message.
"When are you coming to take Baymax back? I think JARVIS is enough for me."
Lu Wen typed back, "Give it a while. I think letting Baymax heal you is a great idea! What, don't you like that sweet, adorable white chubby guy? You really are cold and heartless."
Tony replied instantly: "Fuck you!"
Lu Wen chuckled, put his phone down, and leaned back on the sofa, slowly chewing the chocolate.
"Boss, could you get me more of this stuff?" Venom's voice suddenly piped up.
"Oh, right. I forgot to get you some chocolate."
Although the energy from his cells was more than enough to keep Venom alive, phenethylamine was a symbiote's primary food.
It was like how people could fill up on vegetables alone, but if they went without staple foods for long enough, they would always feel something was missing.
In short, Venom thoroughly enjoyed that box of fancy chocolates.
Before you continue