Chapter 403: Silence Is New York Tonight (Part 2)

Schiller stood in front of the door holding the phone. The hands on the dial behind him kept turning. As the "click-clack" sound of the second hand kept ringing, the sky gradually darkened. The last ray of sunset fell below the horizon. After Schiller finished the last phone call, he walked to the wall to turn on the light.

And at this time, the door was knocked. It was a very standard three light knocks, carrying a dull atmosphere, which complemented the night that had just arrived.

After Schiller turned on the light, he turned and walked back, not looking at Grant Ward who pushed the door and entered. He walked back behind the table, then gently tapped the desktop with his finger, signaling Grant to sit opposite him.

Grant sat down, but he sat a bit far away. Schiller stared at him and asked, "Why are you sitting so far away too?"

Grant didn't speak. Schiller knew it was the fault of his other personality again. He sighed, flipped out the medical record from the shelf, and said, "Let me see... depression, and a bit of obsessive-compulsive behavior. Last time you said you refused to take medicine. If there are no accidents, the situation should have become more serious."

Grant didn't answer at all. Schiller said somewhat helplessly, "Do you know why you have only been an ordinary agent for so many years? I don't require you to learn how to flatter, but after I speak, shouldn't you give some reaction?"

Grant gave a "hmm", and then didn't make a sound again. Schiller decisively closed the medical record and put it away. To tell the truth, a psychologist is not afraid of a patient's symptoms being very complex, nor is he afraid of a patient being unreasonable, but most afraid of the patient being a mute.

"If the Hydra who called just now was like you, then I'm afraid I would really have to worry." Schiller couldn't help but sigh: "It seems that talking less has some benefits."

"I'm not talking less." Grant denied, saying, "Before, you told me to shut up and listen, and ask less why."

"It seems that life in S. H. I. E. L. D. has awakened a bit of your self-consciousness, and before this, you were strictly controlled by Garrett."

"What do you want me to do?" Grant asked.

"This kind of awakening is very limited. Although you know in your spirit that this state is wrong and want to break away, in action you are still giving up on yourself. You are convincing yourself that killing for anyone is killing, and working for me and working for Garrett is no different."

"Isn't it?" Brant looked into Schiller's eyes and asked.

Schiller shook his head and said, "He is a patient, and I am a doctor."

"There are some people in this world who just like to stimulate others spiritually, or use various means to control others. Seeing you in pain because you cannot violate his will, they will feel satisfied, commonly seen in unreasonable control of children by parents."

"But whether it is in the strong position or the weak position, taking the performance of others as a spiritual pillar is actually a very serious psychological defect. Once no one listens to his control, what follows is the collapse of spirit and personality, also commonly seen in parents and children."

Schiller sighed and said, "It's a pity, in that situation, I had to kill Garrett. Otherwise, helping you break away from his control and then observing his reaction would be considered a good experiment."

"It can be seen that breaking away from his control, you feel that freedom is too much, suddenly having a kind of panic and confusion. At the same time, you are surprised to find that you want to take revenge for Garrett, to take revenge for this person who has been controlling and hurting you. This kind of emotion makes you feel more afraid."

"If you don't have a mission, I'm leaving." Grant had no reaction, just said so.

Schiller sighed again. From the perspective of a killer, Grant is not particularly excellent, but from the perspective of a patient, he simply collects all kinds of difficult characteristics.

"Fine, I do have a mission." Schiller took out a book from the bookshelf next to him and handed it to Grant. Grant took it and looked at the words on the cover, saying, "Who is Hydra?"

This was not him asking a question, but the cover of this booklet was written with these few words—"Who is Hydra?"

It must be said that this question successfully aroused Grant's interest. Other Hydras shouted slogans, he also followed to shout slogans, other Hydras shouted Hydra, he also shouted Hydra, but he actually didn't know what Hydra was at all.

He opened the first page of the booklet, but found that this was not a popular science book, but more like a religious classic, because it started from Norse mythology.

Norse mythology is considered to be relatively well-popularized among many kinds of mythology. Many people have heard the name of the World Tree more or less. Precisely because of this state of half-understanding, Grant suddenly found that the story told in this book was quite interesting.

Soon, he finished reading the first chapter, and then began to read the second chapter. In the second chapter, the worldview became more magnificent. They proposed that the nine realms on the World Tree were called "Midgard", which was a huge castle, and winding around the castle was a huge python with its head and tail connected—the Midgard Serpent Jörmungandr.

The second chapter focused on introducing the great power of Jörmungandr, and focused on expounding a fable. In the Ragnarök of Norse mythology, the great serpent would perish together with the strongest Thor, drawing a period to the fate of the gods.

The magnificent battle epic was equally attractive, and when it came to the third chapter, things became a bit magical. The third chapter emphasized that Hydra was actually the incarnation of Jörmungandr. At first, He only had one head, and in order to deal with the nine realms in the World Tree, He split into nine heads, bringing disaster to all life on the World Tree.

Seeing the end, Grant's gaze fell on the last sentence of the whole book—"Yesterday divided into nine, today united as one."

When he put this book on the table, his fingertips trembled a bit. He looked at Schiller and asked, "Do you know what you are doing?"

"It seems that your basic logic has not been affected." Schiller inserted the needle from every sentence he said. The last time he had this feeling was when he was taking a university exam.

Grant immediately shut up. Schiller then explained to him: "Don't you think that Hydra, as a spy organization, is slightly outdated?"

"Whether it is a pyramid scheme organization or a cult organization, they have gone further in personnel screening, personnel structure, and organizational ability. Since Hydra is not starting from scratch, therefore, the pyramid scheme organization should not work."

"Are you planning to preach?" Grant asked.

"Do you know what the essence of religion is?"

"What is it?"

"It is an outer skin, you can choose to put it on any kind of skeleton."

"Do you think they will believe it?" Grant felt this was very absurd.

"Why haven't you understood yet? This is not an ideology, just a business. The purpose of this mythology is not to let those bottom-level agents believe it."

Schiller threw the pen on the table and said, "You can imagine it as a match. What it can ignite are only those who were already restless."

"They just need an excuse, a name, to blatantly fight for power, kill allies, and sit on the only throne."

Grant recalled again what he saw in that manual. In the last chapter, the so-called Ragnarök prophecy was actually implying that Hydra no longer needed nine heads. The Midgard Serpent that could bring Ragnarök to the gods only had one head, only needed one god, and therefore only needed one pope.

"You can understand this as the spread of an extreme ideology. Anything with uniqueness can cause people's more extreme emotions."

"Grant, I think you should be able to see that the situation is changing. This great purge against Hydra has brought many contradictions buried under the water surface to the surface. The struggle between the old and the new, the struggle between the top and the bottom, the struggle between regions..."

"Many people are more eager than me for a big reshuffle. Everyone knows that if you want to shake the inherent class, fight for more benefits, and become the ruler of the new era, there is only one method..."

"Sarajevo." Grant slowly spat out a noun, but then he asked again: "But just a story, the persuasiveness is not enough. They are all very cautious and will not be willing to be the first bird."

"Did you see the prophecy in the last chapter? About Ragnarök."

"Saw it, but that's just a prophecy."

"Yeah... but what if I colluded with the gods?"

As Schiller smiled, the weather color behind him turned from dark to bright. The sun rose from the horizon, and it was another sunny morning. The shadow cast on the table gradually changed its shape. The person sitting opposite Schiller became Loki.

His dress was still gorgeous, his clothes and hairstyle were still meticulous, but he couldn't hide his exhaustion. He shook his head and said, "The situation in Asgard is not very good."

"What's wrong? Did Thor have a problem?"

"On the contrary, this time only Thor didn't have a problem." Loki revealed a complex expression. He said, "I really can't believe that one day, Thor would be the most normal one."

As he spoke, he put his hands on the table and crossed his fingers, explaining: "Thor went back from Earth. He took back his divine power. Not only that, he went further. This is a good thing for Asgard, right?"

Schiller nodded. Loki continued: "Thor suddenly understood the meaning of honor. That should be his weapon, not his shackles, and should be the scepter for him to rule his subjects, not the whip to drive him."

"He is determined to change the status quo of Asgard. He wants to stop this war chariot and find a more sustainable way to let the country and the people develop more steadily, instead of rushing toward destruction all the way. This is also a good thing, right?"

Schiller drank coffee and said, "But someone is unwilling, right?"

"That's right. In the eyes of many Asgardians, war is a quick and simple way to get everything they need. They have become accustomed to this way. Their ancestors have lived like this for generations. We are Vikings, a fishing and hunting nation, and also pirates."

"Wanting to let such a civilization learn to slow down or even stop is almost impossible."

Loki pressed his forehead with his finger and said, "The problem is that the All-Father doesn't support Thor either. It's not that he likes war, but he feels that in the face of the coming Ragnarök, Asgard must have enough powerful strength."

"If you stop this war chariot now and dismantle its wheels, then when Ragnarök comes, maybe we won't be able to run out."

"Odin might not know that even if the war chariot keeps driving, maybe it won't be able to run out, but he doesn't dare to gamble. If he continues to move forward and accumulate strength, maybe there is some room for resistance, but if he gives up strength and captures without a fight, then it is truly a fish on the chopping block." Schiller summarized.

"That's right." Loki nodded helplessly and said, "Thor is attacked from both sides. Many people are taking this opportunity to shake his position as heir." ===== CHAPTER 404 =====

"That's right." Loki nodded helplessly and said, "Thor is under attack from both sides, and many people are taking this opportunity to shake his position as heir."