Chapter 66 No Losing Money
Loki tightened his grip around the Mind Scepter slowly.
Blue light gathered faintly near the gemstone at its tip again.
This mortal doctor had already exceeded his acceptable level of unpredictability.
An unknown variable capable of resisting the scepter's mental domination—
And accurately identifying his identity—
Represented danger.
Perhaps eliminating him directly would be safer.
"Don't look so tense," Lynn said calmly.
As though he had already analyzed Loki's thoughts completely.
He took two slow steps forward.
Now standing directly between the unconscious Thor and Loki himself.
"I already told you."
"I'm a doctor."
"I treat patients."
"I collect payment."
"As for two royal brothers fighting over a throne…"
A slight pause.
"That's a family issue."
"I'm not interested."
Loki stared at him silently.
Lynn's expression never changed.
No reverence.
No fear.
No anger.
Only pure rationality.
"But," Lynn continued evenly,
"if my patient dies inside my operating room…"
"No matter who kills him…"
"It damages my reputation."
"My reputation is valuable."
The words sounded absurd.
Yet Lynn's tone carried complete sincerity.
He raised one finger slowly.
"So let's make a deal."
"You leave now."
"I pretend this entire conversation never happened."
"I say nothing to the armored agents outside."
"In exchange…"
Lynn's gaze locked onto Loki's eyes through the gold-rimmed glasses.
"You stop interfering with Thor until he leaves my care."
For several seconds—
Loki simply stared at him.
He had imagined many possibilities before entering the chamber.
Resistance.
Pleading.
Fear.
Threats.
But not this.
A mortal calmly negotiating business terms with a god.
And the truly unsettling part—
Was that Lynn genuinely seemed unafraid.
Not pretending.
Not bluffing.
Just…
Unconcerned.
Loki suddenly felt a strange instinctive discomfort rising inside him.
The doctor standing before him resembled no human Loki had encountered previously.
His calmness felt too absolute.
Too cold.
As though he viewed gods, kingdoms, and even succession wars merely as variables inside a calculation.
For the first time since arriving on Earth—
Loki experienced a faint trace of dread.
"What…"
His voice lowered unconsciously.
"What are you?"
"A doctor."
Lynn answered immediately.
Silence filled the isolation chamber afterward.
Ten full seconds passed.
Finally—
Loki extinguished the glow surrounding the Mind Scepter.
"Hmph."
"Interesting mortal."
Green illusion energy spread gradually around his body.
His figure began dissolving into smoke-like shadows.
Before vanishing completely—
Loki spoke one final sentence.
"I hope you remember your promise."
Then he disappeared.
The isolation chamber returned to silence.
Lynn walked calmly toward the communication panel near the door and pressed the switch.
"Director Fury."
"The surgery is complete."
"You may enter."
Several seconds later—
The reinforced chamber doors reopened rapidly.
Nick Fury and Phil Coulson entered first.
The moment they saw Thor's stabilized vital signs—
Both expressions changed visibly.
Stable pulse.
Stable respiration.
Regenerating tissue activity.
The supposedly dying extraterrestrial now resembled a patient recovering normally after major surgery.
One gray-haired S.H.I.E.L.D. physician approached the monitoring equipment almost shakily.
"Incredible…"
"Cellular activity increased by nearly four hundred percent."
"Internal bleeding completely gone."
"The energy destabilization reaction disappeared."
He looked toward Lynn almost as though seeing something impossible.
Lynn ignored him.
Because he already knew the real trouble had only begun.
Battlefield Domain remained active continuously.
And at this moment—
He could feel another will descending upon the desert.
Colder than Loki.
More direct.
Pure destruction.
…
The following morning—
Sunlight spread across the New Mexico desert like molten gold.
After surviving the previous night's chaos, the temporary S.H.I.E.L.D. base carried a noticeably more relaxed atmosphere.
Thor remained unconscious.
But all vital signs remained stable.
And his injuries healed at visibly abnormal speed.
Several researchers surrounded the bedside excitedly recording every biological fluctuation.
To them—
Thor represented the greatest extraterrestrial discovery in human history.
Meanwhile—
Lynn sat calmly inside the temporary dining area eating breakfast.
Eggs.
Toast.
Coffee.
Surprisingly decent quality for an emergency military base.
Beside him rested a metallic briefcase.
Inside:
Fifty grams of raw vibranium ore.
Along with multiple rare extraterrestrial metal samples promised previously by Fury.
Reluctantly—
Fury had honored the agreement.
Then suddenly—
The entire base alarm system activated.
A harsh emergency siren tore through the morning silence instantly.
"Attention all personnel!"
"Unidentified high-speed metallic object entering atmosphere!"
"Repeat—"
"Unidentified object approaching at extreme velocity!"
Phil Coulson's voice erupted through the loudspeaker system carrying unmistakable tension.
Lynn placed the coffee cup down calmly and walked toward the dining hall window.
Far in the distance—
A blazing object streaked downward across the sky trailing enormous fire.
Then—
Impact.
Boom!!!
A violent explosion erupted near the nearby town.
Shockwaves spread visibly across the desert landscape.
Dust clouds rose hundreds of meters upward.
And from the center of the impact zone—
A gigantic silver figure slowly stood.
Over three meters tall.
Its body consisted entirely of metallic Asgardian armor engraved with ancient patterns.
The faceplate opened gradually—
Revealing blazing orange-white energy gathering within.
Destroyer.
One of Asgard's greatest war weapons.
Sent personally by Loki.
Without hesitation—
The Destroyer began advancing through the town.
Each footstep cracked the streets beneath it.
Each energy blast erased buildings entirely.
Orange-white beams swept across structures—
Reducing entire sections into burning ash instantly.
S.H.I.E.L.D. tactical teams attempted interception immediately.
Armor-piercing rounds.
Rocket launchers.
Heavy machine guns.
Completely ineffective.
The ammunition produced only sparks across the Destroyer's surface.
Nothing more.
The defensive perimeter collapsed almost instantly.
"Lynn!"
Coulson's desperate voice burst through the communicator.
"We need assistance!"
"That thing is beyond our capability!"
Lynn now stood atop a high observation ridge near the edge of the base.
Binoculars rested calmly in his hand.
He observed the burning town in the distance almost like someone watching fireworks.
Then pressed the communicator button calmly.
"Agent Coulson."
"I believe there's a misunderstanding."
"I'm a doctor."
"Not a mercenary."
"This is not the time for negotiation!"
Coulson nearly shouted over the sounds of explosions and screaming civilians.
"No," Lynn corrected calmly.
"Now is exactly the time."
"My emergency consultation fee inside New York starts at one hundred thousand dollars."
"Interstate emergency treatment doubles the cost."
"And combat involving giant extraterrestrial armored weapons…"
A slight pause.
"That requires separate pricing."
Inside the command center—
Fury slammed one fist heavily against the table.
"That bastard…"
But he couldn't deny the reality.
Lynn was not a S.H.I.E.L.D. subordinate.
Their relationship had always been transactional.
Fury possessed no authority to command him.
"Besides," Lynn continued mildly,
"destroying a lifeless metal construct provides no direct benefit to me."
"No abilities to copy."
"No reputation gain."
"A purely unprofitable activity."
"I don't enjoy losing money."
At that exact moment—
The Destroyer suddenly stopped moving inside the distant town.
Then slowly turned its head.
The burning orange light inside the faceplate intensified sharply.
Its targeting system had locked onto the strongest life signal nearby.
Lynn.
The faceplate opened fully.
An orange-white annihilation beam brighter than sunlight gathered instantly.
"WATCH OUT!"
Coulson's voice exploded through the communicator in panic.
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