Ethan thought for a moment. If he had not gone to Asgard and happened to encounter this battle with Hydra, what would he have done?

He would definitely have taken action. The reason he had leaked information to Nick earlier was because some Hydra idiots had set their sights on him, so he used Nick's hand to expose these pieces of trash.

He could not even just casually deal with it. He had to display overwhelming power.

This was not just for Hydra to see, but for some other people as well.

After showing off his immense power, no idiot would inexplicably come looking for trouble.

So, once he made a move, Ethan would fly to a conspicuously visible spot in the sky, make himself even more noticeable than the sun, and then use a "Galaxy Explosion" to blast the three Helicarriers into atoms. He could not atomize Kree warships, but these Helicarriers would definitely be no problem, as they had no energy shields and their structural materials could not compare to the starship materials of the higher-level Kree civilization.

To make sure everyone could see clearly, Ethan would display the entire process in a very complete and three-dimensional manner, ensuring everyone could see all the details.

"What a pity!"

He had not expected such a prime opportunity to flex his muscles to be missed.

Even though Tony said Steve Rogers had suggested that the Avengers temporarily not disband but instead launch a full pursuit of Hydra to ensure the evil organization was completely destroyed, which meant a series of actions would follow.

But Ethan was not very interested in actions of that level. Let Steve, the guy who had fought Hydra his whole life, handle it. At least it gave the old soldier something meaningful to do, so he would not feel out of place in the new era all the time.

Tony then complained a bit about his father. If it were not for Howard's opposition and ridicule, the Avengers would have already launched their next move, attacking before the Hydra hidden around the world could fully react, striving to completely dismantle the organization in a short time.

"Hydra is something that cannot stand the light. Once exposed, their demise is inevitable."

Hydra's reputation was too bad. Wiping out Hydra had become the "right" thing to do. Any country, any group, would spare no effort to strike at Hydra. Regardless of any previous private cooperation, at this point they would only distance themselves from Hydra and even kick them while they were down.

"So they're finished. As for the Avengers... your idea is too ridiculous. You actually want to operate such a powerful armed group as a simple private organization? Do you think those people in Washington D.C. will really treat you as ordinary 'civilian groups'?"

Tony rolled his eyes. In fact, his mother, Maria, had already analyzed all the pros and cons for him. Tony was just not interested in that aspect and was not willing to understand, which did not mean he was stupid. After understanding the conflicts involved, he already knew his idea was indeed unreliable. He was just habitually being stubborn and wanted to argue with his own father.

"So I ultimately didn't do it."

In reality, it was not easy to do even if he wanted to. There were many issues to deal with.

For example, Steve Rogers was nominally still a military man. He still enjoyed various military benefits, and even during his time working for SHIELD, Nick Fury had helped him recover all the benefits and salary he had missed during those decades of sleep.

Since he was taking their salary, he had to work for them. Leaving the military was not that easy, especially without a powerful organization like SHIELD to help.

Even if Steve Rogers applied for retirement now, he would still have to go through the fixed procedures. Even quitting a normal company is not something you can just walk away from immediately.

Moreover, Steve was not an ordinary soldier. He also had the status of being the military's only successful experimental subject.

Then there was Bruce Banner, who was currently still on the wanted list. Relying on Tony to handle so many trivial matters would not work. It would depend on what solution Howard would come up with later.

The Avengers could not act, but that did not mean countries would stand by idly regarding Hydra. In fact, many powerful agencies had already begun a series of relentless pursuits based on the clues they had received. For example, the Hydra senator who had clashed with Tony was arrested by the FBI in broad daylight.

In the following days, most of the news was about this kind of thing: various well-known figures were found to be secretly part of Hydra and were arrested under the gaze of countless cameras.

"I told you Hydra was finished."

Whether the Avengers continued to pursue them or not was irrelevant. Except for a few bases containing black technology, most of Hydra's bases were ordinary. Using national power to break into them and make arrests was incredibly easy. Most did not even require deploying the military. Just sending in FBI agents was enough. (The FBI are called agents, but they are essentially police with nationwide law enforcement authority, as each state here largely operates independently, and local police only have jurisdiction locally.)

It really seemed like the Avengers were not needed. Plus, Tony had limited interest in this matter anyway. He just had a bit of friendship with Steve. What annoyed him most was that his father was well acquainted with Steve. If his father regained his identity and even if they just met again privately, he would be a generation lower than Steve.

"Don't worry too much about such things... just treat each relationship separately."

After a few casual words of comfort, Ethan stayed at home for a few days before starting to get busy.

He first went to see Steve, representing Thor to invite him to Thor's coronation ceremony. However, he did not expect to see Nick Fury, the one-eyed director, when he met Steve.

"Were you deliberately waiting for me here?"

SHIELD had been dismantled, but Nick Fury had many trump cards, plus his personal abilities were undeniable, and he was the hero who had discovered and actively exposed Hydra. So he did not have to fake his death and hide in the shadows like in the original storyline.

However, it was basically impossible for him to hold a directorial position in any special agency again. Currently, he held the title of Special Affairs Consultant and received a salary from Washington D.C.

"Yes."

Ethan had not deliberately hidden his movements. He had not used teleportation magic to come see Steve this time but had used normal channels: flying to Washington D.C. on Tony's private jet and then taking a taxi to Steve's apartment.

When he appeared at the airport, Nick Fury received the news. He even found out Ethan's destination and came over ahead of time to wait for Ethan.

Although Steve's relationship with Nick Fury was not great, since the other party said he had important matters to discuss, Steve could not just leave him standing outside. He had to invite him in, chatting casually about SHIELD and Hydra while waiting for Ethan to arrive.

Because of Nick's presence, Steve also knew Ethan was coming, so he was not surprised when he opened the door and saw Ethan. He had even prepared coffee in advance for him.

Ethan sat down calmly and took a sip of the freshly poured coffee. Hmm, authentic instant coffee. It was not very realistic to expect Steve to brew some high-end coffee himself.

"Is there something you need me for?"

"I wanted to ask if you were serious about wanting to recruit Hill?"

Ethan nearly spat out the coffee in his mouth. He had not expected Nick Fury to actually remember that. Was this the rhythm of arranging all his old subordinates before retiring?

He quickly realized something was off. This guy was not an honest person, and Ethan had not hidden his thoughts at all, looking at Nick Fury with extreme suspicion.

Not just Ethan, even Steve, sitting nearby, was scrutinizing the one-eyed director with suspicious eyes, wondering what this guy was up to.

"Don't look at me like that. I have no ill intentions."

"I know you have no ill intentions, otherwise I wouldn't still be sitting here drinking coffee." Ethan interrupted what Nick was about to say. "I don't like beating around the bush, and I especially dislike conversations that are like guessing games. I want to know why you want to send Maria Hill to me? I want the truth. I don't believe it's as simple as just wanting to find Hill a new job."

After hesitating for a while, Nick finally decided to state his true thoughts.

He had interacted with Ethan quite a few times now and had gradually figured out the personality of this mage from another world.

Overall, Ethan was a very simple person. His thoughts were similar to most ordinary people, and he possessed considerable self-control. Even with great power, he would not act recklessly based on that power.

Furthermore, Ethan did not like playing mind games. But this did not mean the mage had no scheming ability. If someone tried to scheme against Ethan, treating him like a fool, it would only provoke a very fierce retaliation.

"I hope Hill can go out with you to broaden her horizons, or learn something and bring it back."

"Huh?"

If you were to say who on Earth, besides Tony and the others who had learned a lot of "truth" by following Ethan, and the Ancient One in Kamar-Taj, knew relatively more, it would be Nick Fury.

He deeply felt how backward Earth was, but there was nothing he could do. The more he knew, the more he felt Earth's weakness. How exactly could such a weak world be protected?

Superhero groups were one solution, especially since Tony and Thor seemed to get along, which could somewhat connect them to Asgard.

But as an excellent agent, he could not always place hope on others. He had to find a way from within himself.

The simplest way was to improve himself. He was self-aware and did not suggest personally following Ethan out to see the vast world. He knew Ethan did not like people like him and certainly would not let him join. Therefore, finding someone the other party could accept, and whom he absolutely trusted, became the best choice.

(To be continued.)