Even though the Hydra agent felt a flicker of fear toward Mercer, as a true Hydra soldier, he pushed it aside. His mission came first.
"I understand, sir. So... was the mission a success? Was the Super Soldier candidate changed?" he asked, his tone much more respectful than before.
Seeing the man's attitude change improved Mercer's mood slightly, but the moment he mentioned the mission, his expression darkened again.
"No." Mercer clicked his tongue in annoyance. "That stubborn old goat Erskine refused to listen to anyone. He wouldn't even consider changing the candidate."
The Hydra agent frowned.
"Then... can that Steve kid be persuaded to join Hydra instead?"
Mercer didn't answer immediately. He continued spinning the globe slowly with one hand, his fingers absentmindedly tracing its surface.
Steve Rogers...
Steve's calm smile and unwavering words flashed through his mind once again.
"Then maybe my life will spare someone else's."
Mercer narrowed his eyes.
"Not possible," he finally said. "I still can't fully read that kid, but one thing is certain." He let out a quiet scoff. "Joining your Hydra? Impossible."
Mercer paused. The globe slowly turned beneath his fingertips as if matching the gears turning inside his mind.
"But..."
A faint smile gradually appeared on his face.
The Hydra agent immediately leaned forward.
"Then I'll just kill the kid. That way our man will still have a chance of being selected."
"Stop! Don't do that." Mercer immediately rejected the idea. "Even if that kid died, it's not like Johnny would suddenly be selected. It'd just be a wasted effort."
For a brief moment, Mercer fell silent.
Besides... killing Steve now is an unnecessary risk. I have a much better idea.
Before coming to this era, I heard enough rumors about people who recklessly changed history. Some were said to have simply disappeared, while others were hunted down by mysterious guardians who protected the timeline. I don't know how much of those stories was true. Fortunately, I obtained an item that supposedly conceals my existence from them.
Supposedly...
I have no intention of testing its limits by gambling with my own life.
The Hydra agent frowned.
"If you'd actually done what the leader ordered and learned the Super Soldier formula through Erskine's assistant, we wouldn't even need a plan like this," he muttered under his breath.
Mercer heard every word and let out a dismissive laugh.
"Do you really think I was going to waste my time pretending to be someone's assistant?" he asked mockingly.
He leaned back in his chair.
"After a few conversations with Erskine and watching him work, it was obvious. He doesn't trust a single American enough to reveal the complete formula. Even if I had followed him around for months, it would've been a complete waste of time."
Besides, why would I waste my time chasing after a flawed Super Soldier Serum? Mercer thought.
My Lizard Serum is already superior. Strength, regeneration, intelligence... it surpasses Erskine's work in every way.
The only thing left is fixing the appearance. Once I solve that, Erskine's serum will become nothing more than obsolete junk.
That damned Plumber leader forced me to retreat before I could remove the side effects... and begin the next stage of my plan.
Thinking about his defeat, Mercer's frustration rose once again.
"Then what do we do?" the Hydra agent asked.
"Don't interrupt me. Let me finish," Mercer said calmly. "We can't make him join us willingly. But what if we brainwash him into believing he's been an undercover Hydra agent all along?"
The Hydra agent frowned.
"Do we even have that kind of technology?"
Mercer smiled faintly.
"I don't know if you people do, but I have something that can temporarily create a completely new personality inside a person's mind."
"If it's only temporary, that doesn't help us. He'll break free eventually, and then it'll be a disaster," the Hydra agent pointed out.
Mercer let out a small chuckle.
"I'm not an idiot. I've already thought about that."
He leaned back in his chair.
"Normally, yes. The personality only lasts for a while before disappearing."
The Hydra agent looked confused.
"Then how does that help us?"
Mercer smiled confidently.
"I don't know the full Super Soldier formula, but I learned enough from Erskine's research to understand one important thing."He raised a finger.
"The Super Soldier Serum doesn't just enhance the body. It amplifies what's already inside a person."
A mocking smile appeared on his face.
"A good man becomes even better. A bad man becomes even worse. That's exactly why that stubborn old goat insisted Steve was the only suitable candidate."
The Hydra agent's eyes slowly widened as he began to understand.
Mercer continued.
"Now think about it. What if Steve isn't Steve when he receives the serum?"
He tapped the desk lightly.
"If my device convinces him he's a loyal Hydra agent before Project Rebirth begins, then that temporary personality will be the one receiving the serum."
A cold smile spread across Mercer's face.
"The serum will amplify that personality instead. By the time my device wears off, it won't matter anymore."
He slowly closed his hand into a fist.
"Because that fake personality will have already become his real one."
For a brief moment, the room fell silent. Then the Hydra agent slowly smiled.
"This... this is a brilliant plan. Then he will become one of us."
Mercer's eyes gleamed with ambition.
Captain America won't belong to Hydra. He'll belong to me.
The world's greatest symbol of hope, unknowingly working for me from the inside. The heroes, SHIELD, even those Plumbers... none of them would ever suspect him.
Every secret. Every plan. Every weakness... he'd hand them over himself.
And once Hydra has outlived its usefulness... I'll deal with them too.
After all, why should I help those fools when I can make them serve me instead?
A satisfied smile appeared on Mercer's face.
"The leader will be pleased to hear we didn't fail the mission," the Hydra agent said with a grin.
Mercer gave a slight nod.
"Then we move today. We're out of time. Tomorrow morning is Project Rebirth."
On the other side...
"Morgan, we have to help Steve. We can't let Mercer brainwash him," Emma said, grabbing Morgan by the shoulders.
"I know!" Morgan replied. "We can't let him succeed. Lucky for us, we already know his plan. If he'd pulled this off without us finding out, we would've been completely caught off guard."
Emma let out a long sigh.
"Yeah... I can't even imagine Captain America turning into Captain Hydra."
She quickly shook her head, trying to throw the terrifying thought out of her mind.
A/N: The Patreon version is already updated with 20 advanced chapters. If you'd like to read ahead of the public release schedule, you can join here:
👉 patreon.com/BenBlazecraft