Once Eren and the others finished cleaning the battlefield and erasing all traces of their presence, they swiftly evacuated the scene via their prearranged escape route.
At that moment, the sound of police sirens began to draw closer.
Bucky glanced at the time on his wristwatch and scoffed,
"First time I've ever seen the cops respond this fast."
"That's perfectly normal," Eren replied with a smirk. "After all, Alexander Pierce wasn't just anyone—he was a high-ranking minister of the World Security Council. On the international stage, that's some serious clout. With someone like that getting attacked, those police officers would have to be suicidal not to move this quickly."
After the jab, Eren and Bucky picked up the pace and vanished into the night.
…
Not long after they left, a senior official from the NYPD—who lived nearby—personally led a response team to Pierce's villa.
One by one, the tactical unit officers poured out of their armored vehicles and immediately took control of key positions around the property.
Once the perimeter was secured, a white-haired NYPD executive, his chest adorned with a golden-blue badge inset with four stars, stepped down from the vehicle.
The moment he saw the villa, his eyes widened in shock.
The former grandeur of Pierce's estate had vanished—it now looked more like a bombed-out warzone in the Middle East.
The air was thick with the stench of gunpowder, and corpses were scattered everywhere.
It wasn't quite rivers of blood—but it was close.
Every officer who laid eyes on the scene immediately went on high alert.
After taking a deep breath, the silver-haired commander—Chief Mooney—turned to the head of the tactical squad beside him and barked an order:
"Ryan, take a team inside. We need to confirm Pierce's condition immediately. If he's still alive—rescue him at all costs. If he's dead, then those bastards are going to hell with him!"
"Yes, sir!"
Fully suited up in tactical gear, Captain Ryan signaled to his team and charged toward the villa with over a dozen officers in tow.
As Ryan led the breach, Mooney turned to his assistant:
"Send word back to HQ. Lock down every route in and out of the district. Investigate anyone suspicious."
"If… if something really has happened to Minister Pierce, we cannot allow the perpetrators to escape."
"Oh, and—get word to S.H.I.E.L.D. and the World Security Council. Tell them to send a joint task force. With Fury having been attacked recently, and now Pierce hit just after taking over as acting director… I suspect a connection."
"Make sure they understand—this mess is not the NYPD's alone to carry."
Though Mooney's hair was graying, his eyes gleamed with razor-sharp intensity.
"Yes, sir!"
The assistant immediately pulled out his phone and began dialing furiously.
He understood exactly what Mooney meant between the lines.
…
With Mooney's orders in place, the NYPD went into full operational mode.
The unprecedented mobilization caused some trouble for Eren and his team, who were still within the perimeter.
Thankfully, thanks to Eren's divination, they managed to avoid most obstacles. Even the final checkpoint before exiting the lockdown zone was easily bypassed—Eren simply hypnotized the officers using his psychic field.
…
Just as Eren left the area—
Captain Ryan came rushing out of the villa.
Seeing his haste, Mooney had a sinking feeling. Before Ryan could even speak, Mooney demanded:
"Well? Did you find Minister Pierce?"
"Sir, the villa has been through multiple explosions. Many of the bodies are unrecognizable. We haven't found Pierce's body yet, but it's likely one of them."
"There's no one alive in the house. And from what we can tell, the assailants were long gone before we arrived. They even had time to clean up."
"In these circumstances, the chance of Pierce surviving is extremely slim."
"Also… we found the body of a red-robed cardinal inside."
The moment Mooney heard that, his vision went dark.
"Get help! The chief fainted!"
…
Elsewhere—
Having escaped the NYPD's cordon, Eren's team used their prepared transports to return to Hell's Kitchen in staggered groups.
Upon arrival—
The special unit members, fresh from a brutal battle, resumed their normal routines. They greeted friends, trained, made small talk—even planned their after-hours drinking spots.
As if nothing had happened at all.
To them, in a way, the night's battle hadn't happened.
Miracle Group was still not strong enough to weather major political storms. To ensure nothing leaked, Eren had hypnotized the entire squad—erasing all memories of the mission.
Of course, they would still receive a generous bonus for their "hard work," under a different pretense.
…
Back at Miracle Tower—
Bucky collected a vial of the [Witch's] potion from Eren, then took a long leave of absence and departed.
Watching him disappear into the night, Eren's expression turned thoughtful.
He knew that the next time Bucky returned, he would have shed his past entirely and be reborn—a true [Witch].
What kind of "witch" Bucky would become… was anyone's guess.
Eren couldn't help but feel a flicker of curiosity.
After shaking the thought, he left Hell's Kitchen and returned to Chinatown.
For Eren, this battle—
Not only was it revenge against HYDRA for attacking his past self, and closure for Bucky, but it also gave him a powerful new ally.
More importantly—
He'd gained some incredible loot.
Eren was practically buzzing with anticipation to examine his spoils.
But just as he was about to enter the Balance Space—
His phone rang. Gwen was calling.
Since their relationship had deepened, they'd grown closer—and their nightly calls had quietly become a habit.
After wrapping up the call with Gwen—
Feeling oddly relaxed, Eren finally entered the Balance Space.
Inside—
He pulled out the brass ring he'd taken from Alexander Pierce.
As soon as the ring appeared, the illusory scales above the river of fate emitted a white light and bathed the ring.
Ding!
A notification rang out in Eren's mind.
[Ding!]
Appraisal Complete: Congratulations, Host has obtained—Lucky Ring.
Lucky Ring: A brass ring forged from the divine essence and blood of a slain goddess of luck, created by a blasphemer who hunted her down.
Anyone who wears this ring will gain extraordinary luck.
Note: Every single bearer of this ring has died an unnatural death. Since its creation—born of deicide—it seems the ring carries a hidden curse.
In a way… perhaps this unnatural luck is itself a misfortune.
"…What?"
Forged from the divine essence of a luck goddess?
Eren stared at the ring in his palm, eyes glinting with surprise.
He'd assumed it was merely blessed by a deity—not forged from her corpse.
And clearly, its drawbacks were greater than expected.
That final note—"every owner dies unnaturally"—suddenly brought Pierce's gruesome demise to mind.
Blown to pieces with a grenade in his mouth, not even a full body left behind.
Considering the side effects… maybe it should be called the "Cursed Ring" instead.
Still—
The Lucky Ring's power was undeniable.
In many cases, luck was the strongest weapon of all.
After witnessing Pierce's seemingly impossible good fortune with his own eyes, Eren would never underestimate such a force again.
Without the ring, Pierce—a regular human—would've been killed by Eren's clone long ago.
Even with Eren fighting in person, Pierce had managed to survive for a long time.
Had Eren not been so prepared, and if their power levels weren't so different, someone else might have been killed by Pierce's twisted luck.
As HYDRA's leader, Pierce had access to countless resources. Paired with that ring, anything was possible.
Case in point—his final weapon, that energy gun, had made Eren feel genuine threat.
Thinking of that weapon—
Eren pulled out the rest of his spoils and laid them before the Balance Scales for appraisal.
Other than the Lucky Ring, he had three additional items from Pierce's villa.
Under the shining white light, the scales returned the results to Eren's mind.
Energy Shooter: A cutting-edge weapon created by Dr. Zola, using energy extracted from the Space Stone inside the Tesseract. The energy is stabilized into special magazines, producing devastating firepower.
Note: Due to technological limitations, its firing speed is slow. However, the energy within is powerful enough to destroy an armored vehicle with ease. That said, each clip only holds five shots. After decades of decay, the remaining charge is now only three shots.
Eren examined the sleek weapon—it resembled a Ruger, but far more stylish.
He shook his head slightly.
Had Zola completed this tech earlier, and had HYDRA managed to mass-produce these weapons and their energy tanks during WWII…
Honestly, Eren couldn't imagine how the Allies would've won.
Even today, energy weapons like this remained highly advanced and rare.
Still, while the gun packed a punch, its limited ammo was a major issue.
Once those three shots were gone… there was no telling where he'd find a refill.
With a quick spin of the gun, Eren twirled it into a flourish before storing it back in the Greed Ring.
The final two items from Pierce's basement?
A music box—and a painting.
Juli's Music Box: A music box that embodies Juli's deepest wishes. After hearing a melody once, the box can reproduce it perfectly.
Note: It can store up to 8 distinct melodies.
Trait: In memory of Juli's wish, a new song must be played before it each week. Songs cannot be repeated within 8 months—or the box will bombard your ears with unbearable noise.
Currently, Pierce had been using this music box as a brainwashing tool. It held eight hypnotic melodies crafted by master-level hypnotists.
Paired with the right setting, each one could manipulate an ordinary person's will.
Staring at it, Eren suddenly understood why those HYDRA soldiers had been so loyal.
(End of Chapter)
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