Marvel: Starting with the Glint-Glint Fruit.

Chapter 206 Baron Strucker the Hydra (Seeking monthly votes)

Amidst the blowing snowflakes in the cold wind, the lights were on in a slightly larger office on the second floor of the main building of the Petrovacs Charity Home in the working-class district of Novig, the capital of Sokovia.

It shuts out the harshness and desolation outside the window.

The old wooden floor was covered with wear and tear, and years of dust accumulated in the gaps, exuding an atmosphere of poverty and decay, which was no different from the turbulent and desolate city outside the window.

Inside the stone fireplace in the corner of the room, dry firewood crackled and burned.

The warm steam slowly diffused, dispelling the biting chill and making the simple office a little warmer.

This is the director's office at the shelter.

There was no relaxation whatsoever; instead, only solemnity remained.

Domino sat on a chair in front of the long table, took a sip of the steaming hot water, and felt no burn at all as the boiling water scalded her mouth.

It's just a little bit of temperature; it won't cause any harm to someone with her physique.

This also shows that her attention was elsewhere.

A female Raven Warrior, dressed in an ordinary black turtleneck sweater, leaned against an old wooden table against the wall, her fingertips counting the hand-drawn topographical map and encrypted intelligence papers spread out on the table. The papers were densely marked with Sokovia's official letters and tactical red dots.

This is not the result of just a few people like Domino.

On the contrary, it was the director of the shelter who was secretly organizing the people's investigation results.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Just then, there was a knock on the door, but no one in the office was surprised.

"Come in," said a blond-haired Astartes, the highest-ranking commander on site, in a deep voice.

With a creak, the wooden door opened, and an elderly man walked in.

It was the director of this asylum.

He was also a contact person whom the organization had already developed in Sokovia.

Vermier Petrovacs.

This old man is a legend.

He was born in Sokovia and was once an official with some status and wealth, but he was dissatisfied with the corruption in Sokovia and once called for reform.

Unfortunately, after experiencing repeated conflicts of interest between the resistance forces and the government, and with his wife and children dying in the war, he saw through the situation and chose to leave the government in despair.

He founded this asylum, which has been in operation for thirty years.

Over the past thirty years, he has taken in countless orphans displaced by war.

Surrounded by darkness, Vermeer was powerless to do anything about it and could only do what he could.

Unfortunately, the country was rotten from top to bottom, and the asylum was already running out of money. Half a year ago, someone suddenly approached him, and after a conversation...

Vermeer saw a glimmer of hope.

Therefore, he did not hesitate to become a contact person for his downline.

The wise old man had contacted some people he trusted beforehand and launched an investigation into Sokovia, which actually uncovered some things.

They waited until Donino and his group arrived.

"Dean Vermeer."

Everyone respected Vermeer because he deserved it.

Vermeer was holding a plate of simple Sokovian Eastern European food, which he himself would have been reluctant to eat in the past.

But now he is willing to entertain Domino and the others.

The asylum wasn't short of funds or food, but in this damned environment, it couldn't openly display its wealth, or it would attract greedy eyes.

Especially the government and gangs.

"Have something to eat."

Vermeer's wrinkled and weathered face was ruddy; after receiving hope, he no longer had a headache over daily necessities.

I've been in a good mood lately.

Especially after seeing the arrival of Domino and his group.

After delivering the items to the group, Vermeer didn't ask any further questions and chose to leave.

He knew something about the person who sponsored him, though not much.

But all he needed to know was that it wasn't the Sokovian government or those American capitalists.

He trusted his eyes and his intuition.

The fact that they were able to fund an orphanage in a chaotic place like Sokovia speaks volumes.

He could only hope.

Domino and the others exchanged glances, and, not wanting to disappoint the kind old headmaster, sat down at the square table and began to eat.

Although the food was a bit rough, everyone ate it up greedily.

After finishing his meal, Astartes, the commander of the Inch Squad, spoke up, slowly and clearly recounting the precise intelligence he had compiled.

"Based on the intelligence gathered by Dean Vermeer and our people, and through tracing the clues, we can basically confirm, based on the existing markers located within Sokovia, that these places highly overlap with Hydra's base."

After saying that, he stood up and took the hand-drawn picture from the table by the wall and spread it out on the square table.

He stood up, bent down and pointed to the hand-drawn map, his finger pointing to the most prominent red dot on the map, a high mountain in the northwestern suburbs of the capital, his tone calm and resolute.

"This base is located in an ancient mountaintop fortress, twelve kilometers northwest of Novigator, and was modified from the original mountain rock strata."

.

"This area is equipped with a double-layered mountain-mountain explosion-proof structure and a ring-shaped air defense fire net."

"The outer satellite defense system forms a ring-shaped protective structure, completely blocking access channels."

"The underground bunker in the abandoned industrial area on the eastern outskirts of Novigator served as an arms storage and field operations reorganization base, stockpiling a large number of Hydra standard light weapons, experimental consumables, and field combat supplies."

"Secondly, this outpost in the river valley outside the city in the southwest is responsible for intelligence screening, personnel duty, and border interception. It is the base's eyes and ears to the outside world."

"There are also hidden sites in the underground mezzanine of the city government district, deeply infiltrating the Sokovian public service system, responsible for bribing officials..."

To cover up the experiments and clear Hydra's tracks, the abandoned heating station bunker on the edge of the slums was ultimately used as a temporary base for sheltering the wounded, transferring personnel, and evacuating in emergencies.

A raven warrior spoke up at the opportune moment, providing crucial tactical intelligence and completing the loop of clues.

"All outposts share a single encrypted frequency band communication link, with the main base at the mountain fortress as the signal core, and the remaining satellite stations relaying the signal in layers. There are no external redundant signals, making it extremely stealthy."

"The rotation of personnel, the transportation of supplies, and the transmission of intelligence at each location are all carried out with fixed time differences and dedicated secret channels, forming a closed-loop defense system that makes it impossible for conventional reconnaissance and raids to break through the layers of defense."

An Astartes echoed in a deep, cold voice: "Tracing the source has confirmed that all recent unusual disappearances, covert armed movements, and unofficial energy consumption within the country point to this network."

The commander looked at the densely packed intelligence markings, his eyes flashing with a cold light: "The clues are complete and closed, but it's not enough. Domino, go visit our finance officer and those officials. I need to confirm this intelligence further before reporting it to headquarters."

'

Yes, sir.

Domino grinned.