Chapter 125: The Compromise of the Red House

“What exactly are you people...?”

With a large-caliber pistol hovering in the air and trained on him, Taras raised both hands, arching an eyebrow as he finally realized that he had kicked an iron plate.

He looked unwillingly at Natasha, draped over Logan’s shoulder, then slowed his tone and said calmly, “Whatever the circumstances, you cannot take our people away. This area is under the close watch of the Soviet military. If anything happens, the nearest Soviet military base will send troops here.”

“The Soviet army?” The hooded young man smiled faintly, showing not the slightest sign of restraint or apprehension.

“Why do I feel as if I’ve seen you somewhere before?” Taras stared fixedly at him, his brow furrowing deeply as an ominous premonition welled up in his heart.

“Taras.”

Perched on Logan’s shoulder and knowing that she was safe, Natasha blinked and spoke with mockery in her voice. “You’re a senior member of the Red Room, well versed in intelligence from every country in the world. And yet you can’t even recognize the man standing right in front of you.”

Taras frowned and turned his gaze toward the hooded youth leading the group of three. He examined him carefully from head to toe. At that moment, the young man looked directly back at him. Beneath the hood, half of his face was revealed—handsome and cold, with features as sharply carved as a blade. His bright azure eyes radiated confidence, along with an indescribable majesty and pressure.

“Wait... you’re...” Taras sucked in a breath as recognition struck him. His entire body began to tremble, and his shock was beyond words.

Good heavens! What was that demonic fiend doing here?

“Mr. Kyle, what brings you to our Soviet territory? Premier Stalin has wanted to meet you for a long time. Couldn’t the American State Department have given us some notice?” Taras forced out a bitter smile, cursing himself for not realizing it sooner. The only man capable of making Natasha defect at the first sign of trouble and disregarding the military’s threats on Soviet soil was the man standing before him.

American Kyle—the symbol of peace, the legendary figure who had ended the Second World War, and the superhuman hero worshiped like a god across the Americas.

“You should know that I’ve retired from the American military, shouldn’t you? I’m acting solely in a personal capacity now.” As he spoke, Kyle lowered his hood, revealing a head of dazzling golden hair.

A demonic smile spread across his face. “During the war, your Red Room owed me something. With interest, the debt has grown considerably. If you don’t mind, I can go to the nearby base with you and sit down for a leisurely discussion.”

“I understand.” Cold sweat streamed down Taras’s face as he nodded heavily.

The moment he learned Kyle’s identity, he understood that this was not something he could handle on his own.

Deep within the Wasteland Mystery Zone lay the Soviet Red Room base.

“Commander Taras is back!”

The armed soldiers stationed at the base entrance stood at attention and were preparing to open the gates when they suddenly froze in confusion.

The usually arrogant and overbearing Taras was now bent forward, following humbly beside a young man as he led him toward the base entrance. Behind them came a little girl carrying a sword and a large man carrying Natasha over his shoulder.

“What are you waiting for?” Taras shot the guards an anxious glare, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeve. “Open the gates at once! And send someone to notify the higher-ups. Tell them that some ‘distinguished guests’ have arrived! There is an important matter requiring an emergency meeting!”

“Yes, sir!” the guards answered hurriedly.

This was the first time the Red Room had ever received an uninvited guest from outside. More importantly, their visitor’s background was so formidable that the slightest misstep could trigger a disaster threatening national security.

The Second World War had only recently ended. The hero who symbolized peace had come calling of his own accord, enough to make anyone panic—let alone the Red Room, which knew perfectly well that it was in the wrong.

Kyle and the others were seated in the reception hall of the Red Room’s main building. The trainees of the next generation were summoned as servants to attend to them.

Taras requested ten minutes to confer. He then entered a conference room with two other senior Red Room officials, shut the door, and began discussing how they should respond to and resolve the emergency.

“How did he find us?” asked Norris, the supreme leader of the Red Room. “We’ve remained undetected by outsiders for all these years.”

“That no longer matters.” Taras clutched his head in frustration. “What matters is that our reckless mission offended Kyle. Now he has come to our doorstep with his people, demanding an explanation and repayment of this so-called debt.”

“He said he has already retired and is acting only in a personal capacity. He has no intention of turning this into a conflict between nations.”

“Isn’t one man enough?” another senior Red Room official said helplessly. After a moment’s thought, he continued, “If we can pay some price and resolve this peacefully, persuading him to leave Soviet territory, that would be the best possible outcome.”

A reasonable settlement would naturally be ideal. No one wanted to cross swords with that man in earnest.

“The problem is that Kyle is determined to take Natasha with him, and Natasha herself has already agreed to betray the organization. There’s something else...” Under the astonished gazes of the other two, Taras sighed. “He wants us to hand over the formula for the super-agent serum.”

“Absolutely not!” Norris and the senior official rejected the demand in unison, their faces changing dramatically.

Norris’s expression hardened as he said coldly, “The super-agent serum formula is the foundation of the Red Room’s ability to create elite operatives. It can never be handed over!”

“I know that, of course. But Kyle also said that if we don’t produce something sufficiently sincere, then in ten minutes...” Taras glanced up at the clock and gave a bitter report. “No, less than five minutes from now—he will destroy this place.”

The senior official’s mouth fell open, and he stammered, “How is that negotiation? That’s an outright threat!”

“Absolutely outrageous.” Norris slammed his fist onto the round conference table in fury. The dull impact reverberated throughout the room.

Taras moved his lips, but held back one final remark.

The truth was that Kyle genuinely possessed both the power and the means to threaten them. He did not need to say it aloud; the three men seated among the Red Room’s highest ranks all understood it perfectly.

After another round of discussion, with only one minute remaining on the deadline Kyle had given them, the three senior Red Room officials finally reached a compromise.

First, Black Widow Natasha could be abandoned. That was acceptable.

Second, they would never yield the super-agent serum formula. If necessary, they would fight to the bitter end. Even if the Red Room base were destroyed and countless lives sacrificed, they could not allow America to acquire the means to manufacture super-agents.

However, to ensure that Kyle would accept their terms and withdraw peacefully, the three men added one more item as a substitute for the serum formula.

In the reception hall of the main building, Kyle sat calmly in a chair beside the window. The Red Room’s buildings were all spacious, old-fashioned single-story structures, and every floor-to-ceiling curtain was a uniform blood red. Under the sunlight outside, the entire room glowed crimson.

Logan and Yutong were equally free of concern, as calm as if they were sitting in their own manor.

Any one of the three could have destroyed the Red Room base alone. With all three of them present, there was essentially no chance whatsoever for their opponents to turn the tables.

That was what Kyle meant by swift victory: leave in the morning and finish everything before nightfall.