Shadow trail of the beautiful world

Chapter 166 14. Mysterious old man 【89100】

That Steve's cooking is really good.

The pies he made were almost the most delicious that Merlin had ever eaten, as well as the delicious seafood soup and handmade desserts, which made Merlin feast on this ordinary afternoon.

And this old man is very talkative.

During the time the three of them ate together, he and Merlin had a good chat.

It can be seen that he is very knowledgeable and has experienced many things. He even has a deep understanding of magic.Especially after Ms. Carter told him that Merlin was a rare wizard, the mysterious Steve told the story of his past.

"Magic, this thing does exist."

He sat on the chair and talked to Merlin:

"When I was in World War II, I saw those magicians who served the Communist Party. They would use weird witchcraft to curse our soldiers, but they were very mysterious and very few in number. During the period when Hitler was about to be defeated, They deserted him. After the war, I heard nothing more about them."

"However, I have never heard of the Magical Congress of America."

Old Steve said to Merlin:

"I know there is a place in New York where a powerful mage lives, but he should be different from you."

"Oh?"

Merlin became interested. He looked at old Steve. The old man didn't seem to be bragging, so Merlin asked:

"Why is it different?"

"In my memory, he didn't need a wand to cast spells. He always claimed to be an esoteric mage, and the magic he released was really powerful."

Old Steve said with a look of reminiscence:

"Together we have faced a terrifying enemy unimaginable to ordinary people. He is a very powerful man. I have seen with my own eyes that he used magic to stop the violent flood of millions of tons. It was very easy, as if he had done it. Like a trivial thing."

"What's the name of that powerful mage?"

Merlin says:

"Maybe I know him."

"No, no, you can't possibly know him."

Old Steve smiled, and he said to Merlin:

"At least at this point in time, it is impossible for you to see him. Oh, by the way, I heard from Peggy, do you still know Tony?"

Merlin keenly felt that the old man in front of him was changing the subject, but he still nodded and replied:

"Yeah, I know Tony, a rich kid who's annoying, a young man who's been through pain, a newspaper swinger, but he hasn't been bothering me much lately."

Merlin shrugged and said to Old Steve:

"He's a really annoying guy."

"Yes, Tony did."

Old Steve seemed to be very familiar with Tony Stark. He drank a cup of tea and said to Merlin:

"But believe me, Tony hides a good soul under that annoying exterior. He just hasn't met his fate, hasn't been polished by time, like a rough stone, uncut , cannot become a dazzling treasure. But he is indeed a trustworthy person and a good friend."

"Destined?"

Merlin looked at old Steve, he said:

"You mean, Tony will encounter a disaster in the future? Are you a wizard too? Or, do you know divination or something?"

"No, I'm just an ordinary person, Merlin."

Old Steve didn't change his expression, he laughed and said:

"But someone like Tony, he always gets into trouble, one after another, until he can't solve it. It doesn't take any prophecy to know that, it's just the wisdom of a weather-beaten old man."

"Well, that's exactly what you said."

Merlin nodded, he always felt that the old man in front of him was a bit mysterious, and he always felt that his face was very familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere.

"Okay, gentlemen, the time for small talk is over."

Ms. Carter had finished her lunch, and she said like a hostess:

"I'm going to take a nap, can you two clear the table and cutlery?"

"of course."

Merlin stood up immediately, picked up the cutlery on the table, and old Steve helped Ms. Carter back to the room.

A few minutes later, Merlin was washing the tableware in the kitchen, while old Steve took out two bottles of beer from the refrigerator, stood at the door of the kitchen, and said to Merlin:

"Do you want to go out for a walk? Young people, you need to exercise after eating so that you can keep yourself healthy. Put those plates there, I will clean them up, and Peggy really, where is there any way for guests to do it?" reason."

"Okay."

Merlin turned back and smiled at old Steve. He wiped his fingers clean, then took the wine bottle handed by old Steve, and the two men walked out of the house, strolling in the garden of Ms. Carter's manor under the sunshine Walk and continue the topic they just talked about.

"Speaking of which, Steve, how did you and Ms. Carter meet?"

Merlin took a sip of his wine and asked:

"Have you seen Captain America Steve Rogers? Do you know the past of that legendary hero and Ms. Carter?"

"I know, I've seen it too."

Old Steve was basking in the sun, he replied slowly:

"You know Rogers has a Howling Commando, right? I'm part of it, I've been on missions with Silver Bullet, Bucky, and Steve. After the war, Steve disappeared..."

Old Steve paused, looked up into the northern sky, and said:

"It was a very bad time. Carter lost his love and was at a loss. Fortunately, God gave me a chance to replace Rogers and accompany her...I accompany her until now. We support each other, but I I still owe her a lot."

Merlin didn't speak. After a few minutes, he suddenly said:

"I suspect now that you are Captain America Steve Rogers, who has been missing for almost 60 years, but I have no evidence."

"Me? Hahahaha."

Old Steve turned his head, laughed and patted Merlin on the shoulder, he said:

"Believe me, Merlin, I'm not him. What's more, hasn't Agent Fury been secretly looking for Steve Rogers? Their expedition team in the Arctic Ocean has almost searched the entire Greenland, maybe...they are very There will be a discovery soon, and at that time, you will know that I am really not the Captain America, the legendary hero you imagined."

Old Steve took a sip of his wine and said to Merlin:

"I'm just an ordinary old man, I just experienced more than others."

"Ok."

Merlin shrugged:

"I'm just skeptical, too."

"Doubt is the nature of agents. This proves that you are a good agent."

Old Steve said:

"Just as Carter told me, you are a new star in S.H.I.E.L.D., and you may succeed Fury in the future. But I'm also curious about some things, Merlin, I heard that a few years ago, you were in Oakland killed the Winter Soldier?"

"I'm not sure if he's really dead."

Merlin sat on the steps of the garden, raised his head calmly, and said to old Steve:

"I found only the Winter Soldier's mutilated right arm in the wreckage of the explosion. It was a metal arm. I thought he was dead at the time, but with my understanding of super soldier serums, I have a feeling now , maybe he escaped the destructive explosion at that time, and now he is hiding somewhere in the world."

"Ok."

Old Steve nodded, a gleam in his eye, and he said:

"The Winter Soldier is actually quite a pathetic guy. During the Cold War, Peggy and I have confronted him more than once. He was brainwashed by that organization and turned into a ruthless war machine. In fact, if you are really in Oakland Killing him, on the contrary, gave him real relief... After all, he has done many wrong things, and his hands are covered with the blood of innocent people."

The old man took a sip of his wine and said:

"If he really died, he deserved it."

"You say you have confronted the organization that controls the Winter Soldier?"

Merlin's gaze became sharp at this moment, and he asked:

"Can you tell me more? About that organization, although they haven't appeared since the Oakland incident, I can feel that they are still there!"

"They are still there, Merlin."

Old Steve's expression also became serious, and he said to Merlin:

"That organization, called Hydra, used to be the government's intelligence agency. A lunatic named Red Skull Schmidt once controlled it and confronted the Strategic Science Corps for almost the entire World War II. After the war, not only did they fail On the contrary, it has been passed down through more secret means. Their eyeliner is all over every corner of the whole world...even in S.H.I.E.L.D...."

Having said that, old Steve stopped suddenly, and he seemed to have revealed some terrible secret.

"what?"

Merlin looked at old Steve, he said:

"What did you say about S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

"It's nothing."

Old Steve was drinking, he said casually:

"I'm just saying that S.H.I.E.L.D. may not be safe either, and that organization has very, very strong infiltration capabilities. Merlin, if you decide to pursue them, you'd better keep an eye out, maybe some familiar people around you are their members."

"Hydra..."

Merlin nodded, and he said solemnly:

"Thank you for the reminder, I will pay attention. However, I still think you are very mysterious, Steve, who are you?"

"I'm an old secret agent."

Old Steve said to Merlin calmly:

"An old agent who followed Peggy Carter and has been with her all the time. You think I am mysterious just because I have experienced many things. From decades ago to now, I have experienced those weird encounters. It's like these things that S.H.I.E.L.D. is trying to deal with now, supernatural events, supernatural events, war lunatics, mutants, Asgardians, Kree, etc."

Old Steve shook his head:

"What you have experienced is like a portrayal of the things I have experienced. As a member of S.H.I.E.L.D., these embellishments will never be missing in our lives."

"Wait, Asgardian?"

Merlin raised his head and looked at old Steve, a trace of curiosity flashed in his eyes:

"Asgardians, do they really exist? I thought they were just myths and legends?"

"They do exist, Merlin."

Old Steve said firmly:

"More than 1000 years ago, when the channel between Asgard's God's Domain and the Earth was still open, those God's Domain people often traveled between the two worlds as gods, and those characters who left rich and colorful stories in the legends actually came from another world. The world... Well, you can understand it as aliens. Although in their civilization, there is indeed the concept of 'godhead' and 'divine power'."

"But in this era, the channel of communication between Earth and God's Domain has been closed."

The old man said to Merlin:

"In some ancient, undiscovered ruins, you may find traces left by the Asgardians, some magic items, some tomes, or some questions... wait, you hold What is it?"

While old Steve was talking, he saw Merlin put on his gloves, and took out a silver cane about 1 meter long from the narrow pocket.

"This is what I found following an ancient legend."

Merlin put the Berserker cane in front of Old Steve, and he said:

"Look at the text on it."

"This thing looks incomplete?"

Old Steve squatted in front of the cane. He was very careful not to reach out to touch it. He took out a pair of reading glasses from his pocket and put them on his eyes. He carefully looked at the patterns on the cane. After a while, He said to Merlin:

"It is indeed a rune, a text only used by Asgardians and their worshipers. This thing is a magic item, look at the colorful light it emits in the sun, Merlin, this is Ugly Lujin, even in the civilization of the Asgardians, is a very rare magic metal. It should indeed come from the hands of the legendary blacksmiths of the people of God's Domain."

"Can you understand the text?"

When Merlin asked, old Steve nodded, shook his head again, and said:

"I am not a full-time linguist. I can only barely discern the meaning of these words through my past experience."

"It tells a story, about the Legion of Berserkers, but the runes are broken, and I can't understand what the story is about unless you find the whole staff...but I can tell you , Merlin, this cane is not as simple as it appears on the surface."

Old Steve said with a serious face:

"During the Cold War, Peggy and I discovered and contained or destroyed many dangerous magic items. This cane feels similar to those items to me. Once it becomes complete, it is difficult for mortals to control.. .You may not be clear, but from my experience, Asgardian weapons have a will of their own..."

"Those people from God's Domain like to play tricks like this."

Old Steve stood up and said helplessly:

"They always like to set up a lot of trials. Only those who have passed those tests are eligible to use such things. This is a powerful item. I think you'd better find it. It may become your help in the future. "

"That's the problem, Steve."

Merlin put the broken cane back into his pocket with some regrets, and he said to the old man:

"The clues in my hand are remnants, and I can't find the remaining two things."

"Well, that's really a pity."

Old Steve was also a little helpless. He looked back at the mansion and said to Merlin:

"It's getting late, I have to go back and clean up those dishes. Otherwise, Peggy, who loves to clean, will wake up and yell at me again. She has a bad temper."

"Also, recently, Peggy and I are going on a long trip around the world."

Old Steve said to Merlin:

"We are not young anymore, we have to seize this last good time, so the last few years, we may not be in New York. Please pass this on to Fury, of course, if you can, please hide my existence."

"Why? Old Steve."

Merlin looked at him and asked:

"Why don't you want to be known?"

"Because of the secret."

Old Steve pointed to his own heart, then pointed to Merlin's heart, he said:

"We are all people with secrets. Only by protecting the secrets can we better protect our lover and relatives. Carter left some past materials for you in the garage, which may help you..."

"Merlin, be careful of those around you."

(End of this chapter)