"How about it? Want me to go on stage first to warm up the crowd?"
Looking at the sea of people and the enthusiastic audience outside, Tony's old habits kicked in again. Without giving anyone time to respond, he just went straight up. Sure enough, the moment Tony appeared, cheers erupted from the crowd.
"That guy Tony is still as popular as ever. Hm, isn't this kind of stealing the spotlight?"
Hearing the cheers and Tony's flamboyant speech, Tohka could only force a laugh as she turned to Miku. With Tony doing his usual showboating, the pressure on Miku, who had to follow that act, could only be imagined.
"No problem, leave it to me. If it really doesn't work out, don't forget I still have—mmph!"
Okay, she hadn't even finished her sentence before Tohka covered her mouth. Couldn't she see there was an enemy agent present? If she wanted to use it, she should do it secretly—what's the point of saying it aloud?
"Mmhmm." Having her mouth covered and sensing both Tohka's stare and Black Widow's intense gaze from not far away, Miku Izayoi immediately understood what she meant. She nodded to indicate she got it.
"Now, let's welcome our true star of the evening—Miss Miku Izayoi."
To be fair, Tony really knew what he was doing. Once the atmosphere was warmed up, he tactfully stepped back and gave the stage to Miku Izayoi.
"Hello everyone…"
As expected, Miku was born for the stage. If it were Tohka up there, she might've frozen up. But Miku only shone brighter with a bigger crowd. She quickly raised the energy even higher, and the music began.
"Mm, no issues at the moment. Director, everything's normal."
At that moment, Black Widow was carefully observing the surroundings. Confirming there were no abnormalities, she reported to Nick Fury. Clearly, S.H.I.E.L.D. was on high alert for this event.
"I understand. If there's no issue, don't take action." Nick Fury's voice responded through the comm, then fell silent again.
"Um… Director, are we really okay doing this?" Just then, Hill, who stood behind Fury, asked with some uncertainty.
The atmosphere in S.H.I.E.L.D. was a bit odd. Originally, their goal was to monitor this concert.
But now, the carrier's main screen and nearly all the researchers' monitors were broadcasting the concert. And Miku Izayoi's singing was genuinely good—some agents were even humming along.
Thanks to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s powerful projection tech, it felt like they were actually there at the concert. S
o really, instead of saying they were monitoring, it was more like they were just watching the performance. The mood was a bit awkward—this was something they'd never done before.
"Hmph, all of you get serious. Don't forget our mission." Looking around at everyone, Fury's eyelids twitched.
He couldn't shake a weird feeling, though he couldn't pinpoint exactly what was off. But even he had to admit—this really did sound good.
"Miku Izayoi is using her powers again. Ugh, she's already talented enough—why even bother?"
Others might not have noticed, but Tohka, who shared a source of power with her, was keenly aware. From the start, she had felt a very faint spiritual energy wave nearby. It wasn't strong enough to control people, but it could slightly influence their state of mind. Of course, this kind of influence wasn't much—some hypnotists could pull off similar effects.
Still, Tohka thought it was unnecessary. Miku Izayoi's singing was genuinely good—there was no need for such tricks. It seemed after everything that had happened, Miku still lacked confidence.
But seeing how fired up the audience was, Tohka finally relaxed. She knew the concert was already a success, so there was nothing more to worry about. But… was that really true? Don't forget—this was New York.
"What? Something's happened again?" Just then, as the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were enjoying the concert, the screen suddenly changed, and Spider-Man's voice came through.
"What's wrong now? What trouble have you gotten into this time?" Hearing Spider-Man's sudden voice, Nick Fury asked, confused. Everything had seemed fine, so what now?
"Eh… it's nothing major," came Spider-Man's forced casual voice, though he quickly dropped the act: "I'm being chased by a group of perverts in black suits. And their powers are really similar to mine. Man, I'm freaking out! I already told Tony, but I don't think just him will be enough."
"Alright, I'll send backup immediately." Hearing this, Nick Fury's expression darkened.
This kid was on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s payroll, yet the first person he contacted was that unreliable Tony. Still, Tony wasn't the enemy, so Fury didn't dwell on it. Instead, he turned to Hawkeye outside and ordered, "I'll send you the coordinates. Leave the concert area immediately. Go support Spider-Man—something serious is happening over there."
"Yes, understood."
Meanwhile, atop a tall building outside the venue, Hawkeye—who had been watching the event through binoculars—immediately responded. He quickly packed up his gear and rushed toward the location Fury gave him.
At the same time, inside the venue, Tony made his way to Tohka.
"What's wrong? Something happened again?" Seeing Tony's expression, Tohka knew right away—something was definitely up.
This guy had been smiling while enjoying the music just moments ago, but now he looked dead serious. That could only mean trouble.
"Spidey's in trouble. He sent me a video—take a look." Hearing her question, Tony held his phone up to Tohka. What she saw on the screen made her frown.
The video shook violently—it was obviously Spidey swinging through skyscrapers. But soon, Tohka noticed several figures dressed in Spider-Man-like suits following him. However, what they shot out wasn't webbing—it was some kind of black substance.