Du Mu had no idea where Thor got his blind confidence in Loki to believe such an obvious lie.
Du Mu didn't bother trying to persuade him; maybe it was just a peculiar form of affection between the two brothers.
Just then, Agent Coulson opened the door to the containment room and said to Thor, "Someone is here to pick you up. You are free to go now."
"I can leave?"
Thor scratched his head, a little surprised, and followed Coulson out.
"Hey, Doctor Donald, I'm here to take you back."
The person who came to pick up Thor was an astrophysicist named Erik Selvig. He had fabricated a fake identity for Thor to conceal him from S.H.I.E.L.D., unaware that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s systems had long since seen through the deception.
But Coulson didn't expose them, allowing Selvig to take Thor away.
Clint Barton watched the two figures leave and asked, "We're just letting them go?"
"There's no point in keeping Thor locked up here," Coulson replied calmly. "Let's see what they plan to do first. Agent Du Mu, you'll be responsible for monitoring them next."
"Sure thing."
Du Mu was happy to accept, as he also didn't want to guard that hammer every day.
As he walked out of the base, he bumped into a familiar bald head.
"Well, well, if it isn't Agent Sitwell?"
Du Mu walked up to greet him. This bald man was Agent Sitwell, the same one he had encountered in Pierce's office.
[NPC: Sitwell]
[Affinity: -30]
[Evaluation: Hydra Member]
"It's you."
Seeing Du Mu approach, Sitwell's expression was like he'd just swallowed something foul.
It was clear that he knew Du Mu was the one who had stolen his wallet back then.
Du Mu was cordial: "Don't be a stranger, we're all family here."
Sitwell narrowed his eyes and said cautiously, "I know we are all S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, but we're hardly acquainted."
"Stop pretending."
Du Mu pursed his lips, casually placed his hand on Sitwell's shoulder, and leaned in to whisper in his ear.
"Hail Hydra!"
Sitwell's body instantly stiffened. He hurriedly looked around, and only after confirming no one was paying attention did he let out a sigh of relief.
He glared at Du Mu angrily: "Are you insane! What if you're exposed saying that in a place like this?"
Du Mu showed a look of displeasure: "Why didn't you respond to the slogan? Could it be that you're a S.H.I.E.L.D. mole hiding among us in Hydra?"
As he spoke, he pulled out the Golden Desert Eagle from his waistband.
Sitwell: "…Hail Hydra!"
"Excellent, you're one of us."
Du Mu flipped his wrist, and the Golden Desert Eagle vanished.
Sitwell's mouth twitched.
If he wasn't afraid of losing a fight to Du Mu, he would have already turned on him.
Du Mu put on a serious expression: "I have an important mission now that requires your cooperation."
Sitwell looked confused: "Cooperate with what?"
"It's simple. Hand over your car and your wallet."
"..."
Sitwell was baffled.
What kind of mission required his wallet?
Before he could speak, Du Mu whispered loudly, "Hail Hydra!"
Sitwell: "...Hail Hydra!"
One of the iron rules of Hydra was to never ask questions, which was the secret to their success in operating within S.H.I.E.L.D. for years without being exposed.
As long as the slogan was spoken, they were family, and cooperation was unconditional.
Since Du Mu had already uttered the slogan, Sitwell could only reluctantly hand over his car keys and wallet, feeling completely wronged.
Sitwell watched Du Mu's retreating figure drive away, his mood utterly miserable.
This was so inexplicable; why did it feel exactly like he'd been mugged?
Du Mu, having discovered Hydra's wealth password, drove Sitwell's car and headed to the small town of Puente Antiguo, dozens of kilometers away.
He didn't immediately go to find Thor, choosing instead to check into a motel first.
Naturally, the cost of lodging was also paid for out of Sitwell's wallet.
The next day, Du Mu found Thor in the small town.
The God of Thunder was sitting in a pizza shop, happily gorging himself on food with a look of utter satisfaction.
Du Mu couldn't tell if it was his imagination, but he felt that Thor looked a little rounder than when he first met him.
However, it made sense; Thor was basically eating five meals a day in the containment room, with every meal being a high-calorie, deep-fried delicacy. Plus, since Thor was currently just a mortal, a weight gain was perfectly reasonable.
Next to Thor, besides Selvig from last night, there was also a long-haired woman and a bespectacled girl who looked like she'd never make a fortune.
Du Mu walked straight into the pizza shop, pulled up a chair to their table, and unceremoniously picked up a slice of pizza to eat.
"Hey, that's our pizza," the bespectacled girl immediately protested with dissatisfaction.
Du Mu continued eating the pizza and said cheerfully, "You guys falsified information and took away a suspect. I have the right to arrest all of you."
At his words, the trio's faces instantly changed, and they immediately understood Du Mu's identity.
The long-haired woman, named Jane, frowned and questioned, "Your S.H.I.E.L.D. agents stole our research equipment and experimental data first! Now you want to arrest us? Is S.H.I.E.L.D. always this overbearing?"
"Yep!"
"..."
Seeing Du Mu admit it so directly, the trio were instantly speechless.
They had expected Du Mu to at least try to defend himself, but he couldn't even be bothered to pretend.
Thor, however, was completely unconcerned. Seeing Du Mu, he asked boldly, "Du Mu, you're here! What can I do for you?"
Du Mu: "Nothing much. I was just sent here to monitor you."
Was he really that direct?
The three were dumbfounded, momentarily unsure if they should continue the previous conversation.
But they soon realized that Du Mu seemed to have no intention of taking action, but was purely there to freeload on food and drinks.
The group grew bolder and began chatting about the first time they met Thor. At the time, they all thought Thor was mentally ill, and in a panic, they used a Taser gun to knock him out.
Du Mu nodded as he ate.
As everyone knew, the God of Thunder was afraid of electricity. It made perfect sense.
Afterward, Thor was 'kept'... taken in by Jane, who was responsible for his food, clothing, and shelter.
Of course, not just anyone could manage this; first, you needed Thor's looks and physique.
If Thor were a bit more aesthetically challenged, he would probably have been sent to a psychiatric hospital the next day, left to brag to fellow patients that he was the God of Thunder—only to find that the beds next to him were occupied by Hephaestus, Zeus, Apollo, and Poseidon...
Just as the group was chatting animatedly, they heard a sudden tapping on the glass.
They looked over and saw four oddly dressed men and women standing outside the pizza shop, excitedly waving and greeting Thor.
Upon seeing the newcomers, Thor immediately stood up, overjoyed.
"My friends, why have you come!"
Du Mu scanned the information of the four people and found they were all warriors from Asgard: The Warriors Three—Hogun, Fandral, and Volstagg—and the warrior Sif.
Sif said with a serious expression, "Thor, we have come to take you back to Asgard!"
Thor was slightly taken aback, then shook his head: "You know I cannot return. Because of my mistake, Asgard and Jotunheim went to war, and my father died because of it. I must continue my exile."
As he spoke of his sorrow, tears welled up in Thor's eyes, and he took several fierce bites of the pizza.
Hearing Thor's words, Sif and the others looked astonished.
"Thor, who told you the Allfather is dead? He is only in a deep slumber."
"My father is not dead?"
Thor looked shocked, even freezing his pizza-chewing motion: "But Loki clearly told me Father had died!"
"Loki deceived you!" Sif frowned.
She then briefly recounted everything that had happened in Asgard after Thor was banished.
Listening to Sif's narrative, Thor finally realized he had been tricked by Loki.
Thor looked stunned: "So, Loki didn't kill several million Frost Giants?"
Du Mu: "..."
Seriously, buddy, is that the main takeaway?