"He's really cautious."
Following Agent Hill into S.H.I.E.L.D., Hawking keenly noticed the surveillance cameras in every corner rapidly adjusting to focus on them, turning as they moved.
It seemed any slight movement they made would be captured by these advanced, high-end monitoring devices.
Moreover, the staff inside all appeared very agile, and the handguns on their waists were made of special transparent material, not looking like metal.
"Charles?"
At this moment, Magneto glanced at Professor X, who shook his head.
Clearly, Magneto wanted to confirm if Professor X's abilities were still usable, and Professor X shook his head, indicating they were being interfered with.
"Please rest assured, gentlemen, we have no hostility. This is merely to ensure fairness in our upcoming discussion. The Director very much hopes for a friendly exchange this time."
Perhaps noticing Magneto's somewhat displeased expression, Agent Hill immediately explained with a sincere face.
Professor X smiled: "I understand. I hope for the same."
Magneto, however, snorted coldly.
Hill maintained her smile, guiding Hawking and the other three into the elevator.
"Director's Office."
"Yes, Agent Hill."
As Hill's voice faded, the elevator responded mechanically and immediately ascended rapidly.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. already has artificial intelligence in this era?"
Hawking couldn't help but exclaim inwardly at the sight.
It was the year 2000; at this time, most cell phones outside were still flip phones, yet S.H.I.E.L.D. here was already maturely applying artificial intelligence programs.
One could only say that in this Marvel World, the general public's technological level was no different from the real World, but for some special organizations, their black technology far exceeded reality.
In fact, the Mutant School was also like this, with no shortage of black technology products.
"The Director wishes to speak with Mr. Charles and Mr. Eric alone."
At the door of the Director's Office, just as Hawking was about to push Professor X in, he was stopped by Hill, and Mystique was also stopped.
"Is this to pick us off one by one if the talks break down?"
Hawking's heart stirred.
Professor X and Magneto evidently also thought of this, but Professor X didn't mind:
"Then Agent Hill, please find a place where young Hawking and Raven can rest."
He hadn't come with hostility and believed the negotiations would go smoothly, so he naturally didn't mind.
This also served to show their sincerity to Nick Fury.
"Mr. Charles, please rest assured, we have prepared a special lounge."
Hill still maintained her professional smile.
Hawking didn't care much about this.
He felt that unless Nick Fury was brain-dead, he wouldn't start a conflict with them in Washington, a capital city teeming with high-ranking officials.
And given Professor X's temperament, he would likely prioritize peace.
Even if a conflict did occur, even if he couldn't transform into a Great Ape, with Professor X and Magneto present, there would be nothing to fear.
This was a city, full of steel and concrete. If Magneto unleashed his full power, the entire S.H.I.E.L.D. building would be ruined, and the large disruptors would be instantly disintegrated.
So, instead of going in and listening to the three of them discuss trivial matters, it was better to rest outside. Anyway, with his current status, he wouldn't be able to interject even if he went in.
"Gentlemen, this way, please!"
Closing the door to the Director's Office, Hill led Hawking and Mystique to a lounge far from the office.
There were plenty of snacks and drinks prepared.
However, two Agents were also stationed at the door, and they were familiar faces: Hawkeye and Black Widow.
"Did you do it?"
After sitting down in the lounge, Mystique immediately subtly asked Hawking.
Hawking smiled and nodded: "Don't worry, he won't see tomorrow's Sun."
Mystique's face immediately broke into a brilliant smile upon hearing this.
"No wonder Eric admires you so much, you're truly excellent."
Given her painful experience of being dissected and experimented on, she most hated disgusting humans like Stryker who experimented on Mutants.
If Hawking hadn't acted, she would have found an opportunity to eliminate the target herself afterward.
"Brother and Sister at the door, why don't you come in and sit down, make some friends."
Leaning back on the lounge sofa, looking at Hawkeye and Black Widow standing like door gods at the entrance, Hawking's eyes darted, and he enthusiastically waved at them.
Currently, it seemed unlikely that a conflict with S.H.I.E.L.D. would occur in the short term. It would be better to take the opportunity to build a relationship with these two future Avengers; perhaps it would be useful in the future.
Human nature is complex; sometimes today's enemies can become tomorrow's friends, so there's no need to be so rigid about relationships.
When there's no personal grudge, having more friends opens more doors, which applies everywhere.
Seeing young Hawking, with an innocent face, waving towards them, Hawkeye and Black Widow exchanged glances, then walked in together.
Their mission was to monitor Hawking and Mystique, especially Hawking.
Being inside the room was clearly better for monitoring than standing at the door, and if they could gather intelligence about Hawking through conversation, Nick Fury would undoubtedly be very pleased.
Compared to the almost transparent intelligence on Professor X and Magneto, they knew nothing about Hawking, this student from the Mutant School.
The only information they had was what they had witnessed firsthand during the battle that day.
Actually, S.H.I.E.L.D. couldn't be blamed; Hawking had appeared out of nowhere, and in war-torn Sokovia at that, and was taken away directly by Professor X not long after.
Even with S.H.I.E.L.D.'s intelligence capabilities, they couldn't have found anything.
"Hmph!"
Seeing Black Widow and Hawkeye enter the lounge, Mystique snorted coldly and closed her eyes.
She didn't like humans.
"My name is Hawking, what should I call you, Brother and Sister?"
Hawking proactively picked up two bags of potato chips from the table, offering them to Hawkeye and Black Widow.
"Natasha."
Black Widow took the potato chips, revealing a harmless smile, only stating her given name but not her surname.
"Clinton, or Barton."
Hawkeye did the same, but compared to the disguised Black Widow, Hawkeye's expression was not as natural; he had been knocked unconscious by Hawking with a single strike.
If he hadn't later seen footage of Hawking transforming into a Great Ape and battling Captain Marvel, it would have been a stain on his career as an Agent.
After introducing themselves, Black Widow proactively leaned in close to Hawking and began chatting about everyday things, attempting to build rapport with him.
One could only say she was worthy of being the most talented spy trained by the Red Room. Black Widow, who appeared to be only sixteen or seventeen at the time, already possessed master-level skills in conversational techniques and psychology.
Even though Hawking knew Black Widow was trying to extract information from him, he didn't feel it was abrupt or annoying at all.
However, he was naturally not foolish enough to actually leak his own information.