PFC Chapter 3955 MU Superbody Major Event (35)
Chapter 3955 MU Superbody Major Event (35)
Chapter 3955 MU: The Superbody Incident (Thirty-Five)
The car slowly pulled up beside an apartment building. The three men got out. Schiller didn't take the sniper rifle; instead, he grabbed a pistol, opened the trunk, and tossed the Punisher's equipment to him.
The Punisher slung a composite bow over his shoulder, carried a rifle, and had a dagger for close combat at his waist. He nodded to Schiller.
“It’s up to you now, Bruce,” Schiller said, looking at Bruce. “Go to Dr. Pym’s room and find out who kidnapped him. The two of us will protect you.”
Bruce nodded and headed towards the apartment building. The Punisher followed behind him, turning to Schiller and saying, "With an accomplice like this, things are a bit easier for you, aren't they?"
“He was brought in to do this job.” Schiller quickly followed Bruce.
This was an older apartment building on the edge of Manhattan, so there were no security guards or property management, and certainly no security cameras. While this made things easier for the killer, it also made things easier for the three people investigating. They even took the elevator to the 18th floor.
There are three apartments per floor. Pym's apartment is on the east side. The door has a fingerprint lock. Bruce looked at it carefully for a moment, then held out his hand to Schiller.
Schiller took a pair of gloves out of his pocket. Bruce put them on, fumbled around on the fingerprint lock for a bit, and somehow a keyhole suddenly appeared at the bottom of the lock.
He pulled a lock pick from his pocket, fiddled with it in the keyhole, and the lock was quickly pried open. He pushed the door open and went inside, explaining, "These older fingerprint locks are all fake fingerprint locks. To prevent damage to the internal electronic components that would make them impossible to open, they leave a spare keyhole. It's very easy to pry it open."
“It seems he’s not just good at deduction,” the Punisher said, looking at Schiller.
"Yes, he's quite good at petty theft."
The three entered the apartment. As soon as they stepped inside, they were startled by the chaotic scene before them. The entire living room was a jumble of charred marks: there were long, scar-like lines, dotted holes, and a large section of the floorboards had been torn up, with the pipes underneath all burned.
The sofa, which should have been perpendicular to the door, was smashed to pieces. The television fell off the wall and landed face down on the floor, its screen shattered. The chandelier crashed nearby. Even the curtains were torn in half, and a window pane was broken.
“Looks like there’s going to be a big fight here,” Bruce said.
He crouched down and carefully examined the charred mark closest to him. Then he stood up, looked around, and after pausing for about four or five seconds, shook his head and said, "It's not Doctor Strange."
“Isn’t this a trace left by magic?” Schiller asked.
Bruce shook his head and said, "It could be a coincidence."
The Punisher also examined the charred marks, then half-squatted on the ground, one hand on his knee, and said, "But these aren't marks left by modern weapons. It's not a firearm, and rocket launchers and Molotov cocktails are even less likely. A flamethrower is a possibility, but those would have outward-radiating charred marks, completely different from these."
Schiller then looked at the long, narrow scars on the wall and said, "Laser weapons?"
“It might be similar,” Bruce said. “It’s a new weapon we’ve never seen before. It’s similar to a laser weapon, but it’s more flexible and more destructive. The marks on the wall weren’t plowed out by a laser, but rather more like they were whipped out by some kind of energy.”
"That's precisely why it's easy to associate it with magic—because magical energy forms a whip that can leave such a shape. But this isn't Doctor Strange's fighting style, and it's even further removed from Iron Man's."
“Perhaps he did it on purpose,” the Punisher said. “A murderer wouldn’t deliberately use his signature moves to leave traces. Perhaps he deliberately used some uncommon methods to confuse the situation.”
“Completely wrong,” Bruce said. “The biggest problem is that if it were Iron Man and Doctor Strange, there would be no need for them to fight at all.”
The Punisher was taken aback for a moment before realizing that Doctor Strange and Iron Man were acquaintances of Doctor Pym. Although they might have had some disagreements before, they were not enemies and would not start fighting as soon as they met.
Schiller, however, was thinking much more. Judging from Spider-Man's earlier words, Dr. Pym wanted to admit his mistake, proving he knew he was in the wrong. He probably wouldn't resist even if the police came to arrest him.
If Doctor Strange and Iron Man wanted to take him away, they wouldn't actually need to use force. They could simply explain the situation to him and then take him away. They wouldn't even need to come in person; they could just send a Stark Industries employee to invite him to Stark Industries.
The marks in the room were clearly left by Pym in a fierce resistance—he was hitting the walls and tearing up the floor, looking like he was swatting flies. It's possible Pym had transformed into Ant-Man, and the other side did this to capture him.
“Energy weapons…” Schiller suddenly said, “Norton Experimental Science.”
Bruce turned to look at him. The two exchanged a glance, clearly thinking the same thing.
The Punisher was a former Marine Corps instructor who had handled almost every modern weapon, especially individual soldier equipment. There wasn't a weapon he hadn't seen, nor even one he hadn't used; he could truly be called a master of modern weaponry. Since he said the marks in the room weren't from modern weapons, then they definitely weren't.
But if it's not a modern weapon, then Doctor Strange, who possesses magic, wouldn't need to do this, leaving only one possibility: it's a completely new, previously unseen energy weapon.
Norton Experimental Science has long claimed to be researching particle energy weapons. While Spider-Man says they conduct human experiments, this kind of research can lead to many different outcomes. The same research direction can yield various byproducts; what if they actually manage to develop one?
"It seems the preparations we made before weren't in vain," Schiller said. "What's the situation in Manhattan? Has Kingpin made his move?"
“Not yet,” the Punisher said. “I haven’t received any news yet; he’s probably still observing…”
Just then, his phone rang. The Punisher glanced down, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Perfect timing. Kingpin has started working on the puzzle. A friend of mine is already on his way. Let's go now."
The three got back into the car. Schiller, who was driving, turned to Bruce and said, "I'll take you back to base first."
“No need,” Bruce said. “I’ll just stay in the car and won’t wander off. If you’re going to Long Island to investigate, you might need me.”
Schiller didn't argue, but as they entered Brooklyn, he said, "You'd better stay in the car. If you go out and get shot, no one can save you."
Bruce nodded, then a gun was tossed to him from the back seat. The Punisher's head appeared out the passenger window and said, "You know how to aim and pull the trigger, right? Good luck, kid."
Schiller and the Punisher walked into the alley. Before they even entered the street, they heard a series of crackling sounds from inside. Their movements were perfectly synchronized; they retreated to the left and right, leaning against the wall and peering inside. Kingpin's men and the Puzzle's men were already engaged in a gunfight, using the buildings as cover in the alley.
The Punisher gestured to Schiller, and the two quickly bypassed the alley to the other side. There was a back door there, which seemed to have been used by someone who had just escaped; it wasn't fully closed and a sliver of light was leaking out.
The Punisher tiptoed forward and opened the door a crack, only to meet another pair of eyes.
"Puzzle!" the Punisher whispered.
He had already raised his gun, but the door was designed to open outwards. He couldn't push it in, but Puzzle pushed it out easily. The scarred Puzzle shoved the door open and fled past the staggering Punisher.
The Punisher was about to give chase when he remembered Schiller was blocking his way—this professional assassin could easily capture someone. So he simply gripped his gun tighter and strode towards him.
But to his surprise, he only saw Schiller standing at the back of the alley. He hurriedly ran over and asked, "Where's the puzzle? Did you let him get away?"
“He can’t escape,” Schiller said with certainty. “Is that room his lair?”
"Looks like it is."
"Let's go, let's go there."
The Punisher grabbed him, looked at him, and said, "Are you crazy? Kingpin will be here soon. He always likes to kill those who provoke him with his bare hands. Aren't you just walking into a trap?"
Do I look a lot like the puzzle piece?
“Uh…” The Punisher choked for a moment, but still said, “But he didn’t get the puzzle piece, so he might take his anger out on you. Besides, weren’t his men killed by you? Aren’t you afraid Kingpin will find out?”
“Since I dare to go, I’m naturally not afraid of him,” Schiller said calmly. “Such a small commotion won’t lure out the Manfred family. I have to make a deal with Kingpin.”
After saying that, he took out his phone and walked towards the door. The Punisher had no choice but to follow him. As the two of them walked in one after the other, Kingpin also happened to walk in with his suited gangsters.
Kingpin's pupils contracted the instant he saw Schiller, and his henchmen immediately raised their guns. Schiller simply removed his hat and said, "Nice to meet you, Mr. Kingpin. Puzzle has escaped; you probably won't be able to avenge your subordinates today."
The Punisher behind him widened his eyes upon hearing this: "Seriously, man, you talk to Kingpin like that? Aren't you afraid he'll beat you up?"
The Punisher wasn't afraid of the fat man, but the other side outnumbered him. You want to make a deal, is it really okay to provoke them right off the bat?
“Killing you is the same, Mr. Killer.” Kingpin’s chubby face twitched as he said, “How much did the puzzle piece pay you? When did this guy become so rich?”
“You’re smart. I wasn’t hired by the puzzle master. I’m not here to clean up his mess; I’m here to find you.”
"Looking for me? You want to kill me?"
“Nobody’s buying your life. I’m here to make a deal with you—do you know the Manfreddy family?”
You mean those Italians?
“That’s right. Even though you kicked them out of Manhattan, they’ve never given up. I can tell you with certainty that Norton Experimental Science, which they invested in, has created a revolutionary energy weapon…” Schiller pulled up a picture on his phone—a photo he had taken of the charred remains in Dr. Pym’s house.
“You should have people among your subordinates who are skilled in modern weapons. You can have them examine whether these marks were made by any known modern weapon. Or you can ask your old adversary…” Schiller turned to the Punisher and said, “I believe you are well aware of his expertise in the use of modern weapons. His conclusion is the same as mine.”
Kingpin frowned the moment he saw the marks. While he enjoyed sumo wrestling and hand-to-hand combat, that didn't mean he was completely ignorant of modern weaponry. The irregular charred marks were clearly not from a rifle, nor did they look like they were from a laser; they were definitely not the work of any known modern weapon.
"How can you prove that these things weren't forged by you?"
Schiller shook his head and said, "I don't need to prove it. Because even if they don't, they will soon. The picture shows Dr. Pym's house. If you haven't heard of him, you should at least know Ant-Man, one of the founders of the Avengers."
Kingpin suddenly looked up at him. Schiller remained unhurried and said, "If the Manfredi family kidnapped Dr. Pym, what do you think they could create using his intelligence? At that point, would you still have a place in Manhattan, or even in all of New York?"