Noon.
Dripping with fragrant sweat, Cho Chang rested her head against Harvey's chest. Listening to the powerful thump-thump of his heartbeat, she had already fallen into a dazed, euphoric state.
"Get up, go take a shower."
"Sigh~ don't move, let me catch my breath first." Cho Chang lifted her small head, casting a shy, coquettish glance at him.
Harvey took the opportunity to scoop up Cho Chang, whose skin was flushed pink, and walked into the bathroom accompanied by the beauty's coquettish protests of "No! You bastard..."
Wanda, wearing a thin, big-eyed bunny nightgown, had been out fighting crime until the early hours of the morning last night, resulting in poor sleep quality.
At this moment, she was rubbing her eyes, walking out of her bedroom bleary-eyed.
"Yawn~"
Stretching her back as she walked, her two massive, bursting breasts nearly popped the buttons off her collar.
Still groggy, Wanda pushed open the door and stumbled into the bathroom.
And then.
"Excuse me, I'm sorry!"
"Don't go, sister, come help me quickly! I'm about to break..."
...
Just past Christmas, inside the Director's office at S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters, the atmosphere was incredibly heavy.
Nick Fury was watching a holographic projection of two agile female superheroes fighting crime in New York.
"Flame Witch, Scarlet Witch... these titles are actually quite fitting."
He chuckled self-deprecatingly.
"One likes to summon flames to intimidate enemies, and the other's eyes glow with scarlet light. This world is truly getting crazier and crazier."
He looked at Natasha, who stood behind the holographic projection, and asked:
"Agent Romanoff, do you think they might have some sort of connection with that sorcerer of unknown origins?"
Still wearing her black, skin-tight combat suit, a visibly exhausted Natasha replied:
"Perhaps. Either way, I've tracked them for two days and two nights, and I haven't managed to dig up a single piece of useful information."
"But they frequently disappear into camera blind spots. I suspect both of them possess the ability to teleport."
That sounds very much like the abilities of that sorcerer.
Nick Fury said thoughtfully, "Have you made contact with them?"
Natasha understood exactly what the Director was asking. She shook her head and said:
"Although they like fighting criminals, they don't seem to be very fond of official organizations. I've invited these two before, but they both refused to join S.H.I.E.L.D. or the Avengers."
Nick Fury's face darkened, and he said with a tough tone: "Diplomacy first, then force. It looks like we have no choice but to do this the hard way."
"Has the Bait Plan been finalized?"
Last night, the Black Egghead had already paid a visit to Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters and obtained the consent of the headmaster, Professor Charles.
They would dispatch mutants to assist S.H.I.E.L.D. in capturing that mysterious sorcerer who had committed numerous atrocities.
Therefore, Nick Fury had Natasha formulate the Bait Plan: to draw out that mysterious sorcerer named Harvey by arresting the Flame Witch and the Scarlet Witch.
As for what to do if Harvey didn't show up?
The Black Egghead would naturally make the best of a bad situation, "inviting" the two witches with abilities similar to Harvey's back to S.H.I.E.L.D., and having scientists figure out a way to research the true mysteries of magic.
At this moment, upon hearing the Director's inquiry, Natasha's face showed a hint of vexation.
In truth, she had absolutely no desire to do this kind of dirty work.
The rest of the Avengers also held varying opinions on this Bait Plan.
Captain America and Dr. Banner both didn't want to coerce the innocent Flame Witch and Scarlet Witch just to draw out Harvey.
Everyone had seen the actions of these two recently debuted superheroes; their deeds clearly placed them in the friendly faction.
Captain America, possessing an incredibly strong sense of justice, staunchly opposed using a conspiracy to coerce them.
Stark, on the other hand, had been very irritable lately. He stated that as long as it could draw Harvey out, he felt telling a "white lie" wasn't a big deal.
His newly researched "Anti-Magic" armor was already thirsting for battle.
As for Natasha and Hawkeye, although they didn't explicitly state their stances, they both belonged to the Black Egghead's subordinates, so naturally, they could only follow orders.
Right now, no matter how much Natasha didn't want to answer, she could only say: "The special agents are all in position, and the disguised crime scene has been set up. Now everything is ready, all we need is the east wind."
Nick Fury reminded her with a solemn expression, "Remember to notify the military. I'm worried the situation might spiral out of control."
"If we fail to stop the enemy or an accident occurs, once that mysterious sorcerer starts a massacre, only the military can send troops to salvage the situation."
Natasha replied expressionlessly, "Understood, sir."
Nick Fury's right thumb tapped unconsciously on the desk. According to the current plan, as long as they successfully drew Harvey out...
The success rate of arresting him was as high as 99%!
The frantic "beep-beep" sound of an emergency communication rang out.
Nick Fury clicked on the small red dot on the holographic screen.
[Director, Target One has entered the designated area!]
[The target has appeared near the Rand Building in Midtown Manhattan. Do we execute as originally planned?]
"Execution approved."
Subsequently, Nick Fury looked up at Natasha and ordered, "Notify Stark. The Bait Plan is officially launched!"
"Yes, sir."
Natasha turned expressionlessly and walked away quickly, letting out a silent sigh in her heart.
...
Eight o'clock in the evening. The neon lights of the New York metropolis flashed, and the streets of the central district were still jammed with lines of cars honking their horns incessantly.
Wanda, wearing her Scarlet Witch combat suit, walked into the Rand Building with practiced ease, greeting a pure-looking girl with twin-tails at the front desk.
"Hi, Daisy. How are you doing today?"
"Same as always. But New York is particularly quiet today. All those street thugs and hooligans seem to be hiding at home, too afraid to come out."
"By the way, did Cho Chang not come today?"
Daisy Johnson was the hacker support for the Defenders. No one knew her background, and she was always vague about it herself.
Ever since the battle with The Hand, the Defenders had officially made a name for themselves.
People also realized that the world didn't just have the Avengers; there was another new group made up of superheroes.
Daisy had found out the secret meeting address of the Defenders through her own channels, and came to the Rand Building last month to volunteer her services.
Therefore, after obtaining the preliminary consent of all the members of the Defenders and Daniel...
Daisy was ostensibly the receptionist at the Rand Building, but in reality, she also served as an intern network technician for the Defenders.
At this moment, Wanda was stumped by this pretty girl's question.
Both Daisy and Cho Chang were of mixed Eastern and Western descent, so they were relatively close.
But no matter how close they were, she didn't really want to answer this kind of question concerning Cho Chang's privacy.
After considering it for a moment, Wanda chose to ignore the other party's question.
"How many people are at the old place today?"
The 'old place' referred to the Defenders' secret base, located on the fifth basement level of the Rand Building.
It featured a large indoor training ground, a medical bay, a conference room, a cafeteria, and an armory. The facilities were fully equipped, making it convenient for all members of the Defenders to rest and make pre-battle preparations.