Chapter 59: Information (Part 1)

Chapter 59: Chapter 59: Information (Part 1)

Maria had just been about to sit down and wait when Daniel returned.

"Where did you go just now?" she asked.

"I went to give a few people a warning," Daniel replied casually. "To make sure nobody causes any trouble."

...

The crash site was located along the shore of a lake.

Even now, traces of the collision could still be seen. Broken rocks were scattered everywhere, and the surrounding area bore obvious signs of destruction.

Daniel carefully observed the environment.

With his enhanced intelligence, it didn’t take long for a clear picture to form in his mind.

Carol’s aircraft had suffered some kind of severe damage for reasons still unknown. It had lost control during flight and entered a crash trajectory.

While falling, Carol had desperately tried to regain control. The fighter jet had smashed through numerous trees along the way before finally crashing into the lake.

Driven by inertia, it had continued skimming across the water until it slammed into the shore.

Most of the evidence around the area had already been cleaned up, so the Air Force personnel had obviously been here.

What struck Daniel as strange was that the crash site seemed to have been deliberately altered afterward.

Someone had gone out of their way to hide certain things. Yet none of the records he had found in the archive room mentioned any of this.

In fact, several documents showed obvious signs of being edited or altered. The information available was practically useless.

’There has to be a secret here.’

’Something the base doesn’t want anyone to know.’

The only thing Daniel had been able to learn from the files was that Lawson had taken an untested aircraft for a flight without authorization...

And that the aircraft had crashed here... nothing more.

"It looks like I’ll have to go back again."

Daniel decided immediately. The crash site had been cleaned up too thoroughly. He hadn’t found a single useful clue.

"Let’s head back," Daniel said to Maria. "There’s nothing left to learn here."

Maria had been searching along the shoreline for evidence. Hearing that, she looked at him in disbelief.

"You’ve been looking for less than a minute, and you’ve already concluded there’s nothing here?"

Daniel nodded.

"That’s related to my abilities."

Maria instantly shut her mouth. Since Daniel could already fly, having other extraordinary abilities wasn’t surprising at all.

At this point, she was practically certain why they hadn’t encountered a single person when leaving the base earlier. That had definitely been Daniel’s doing.

"So where are we going now?" she asked.

"Back to the base."

Daniel’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"Someone covered all of this up."

Maria was a decisive person. She didn’t ask any more questions. Instead, she simply stretched out a hand towards him.

The meaning was obvious... take me back. Even among ordinary people, Maria was exceptional.

Daniel just grabbed her hand, held her body and then flew to the sky. Hovering above the crash site, he stared down at the landscape below.

"I hate this place."

His voice was calm.

"I really don’t like it here."

The moment he finished speaking, crimson light erupted from his eyes.

Heat Vision.

The beams swept across the land below. Within a radius of five miles, everything was annihilated.

The forest vanished.

The lakeside vanished.

Nothing escaped destruction.

At the same time, Daniel left behind a single message.

Land of Abhorrence.

Under the terrifying heat of the energy beams, the words themselves were fused into crystalline structures.

For decades to come, they would remain there without fading away. There was no complicated reason behind it.

Daniel was simply angry, so he wanted to destroy something. And at the same time, leave a warning for whoever came afterward.

He knew that after he left, people would inevitably return to investigate this place, and he didn’t care who they were.

Government agents, military personnel, SHIELD, Hydra... Or some other force entirely.

It didn’t matter. He only wanted them to understand one thing.

Don’t provoke me.

Unless absolutely necessary, Daniel didn’t want to kill people.

Once someone became accustomed to taking lives, they gradually stopped valuing life itself. Eventually, they would begin viewing themselves as superior.

As gods.

Daniel didn’t want to become that kind of person. But if someone insisted on provoking him... Then they would have nobody to blame but themselves.

Maria stared at Daniel’s handiwork. Surprisingly, she looked completely unfazed.

After everything she had witnessed today, her standards for shock had risen dramatically.

Her best friend had vanished, and her best friend’s younger brother had displayed powers beyond human understanding.

Compared to that, flattening several miles of land somehow didn’t seem quite as unbelievable anymore.

One shocking event would be hard to accept.

Two shocking events would be a little easier to accept.

After a certain point, people would simply stop reacting.

Instead, Maria grinned and joked.

"Nice handwriting."

...

A while later, Daniel and Maria returned to the base. After landing, Daniel turned towards her.

"Are Carol’s belongings still here?"

"They should be."

"Could you help organize them?"

Daniel paused before continuing.

"I want to take her things home."

In reality, Daniel was deliberately sending Maria away. This time, he intended to take a far more direct approach.

If Maria remained present, the base leadership would find themselves in an awkward position.

They couldn’t do anything to Daniel. But they could certainly make things difficult for Maria.

Maria was smart, she looked at Daniel for a few moments. Without saying anything, she simply turned and walked away.

Several hours had passed.

Most of the damage Daniel had caused earlier had already been cleaned up. Only the massive hole he had smashed through remained.

A group of workers was still busy repairing the area around it. The moment they saw Daniel, their expressions changed dramatically.

It was as though they had spotted a monster. Nobody wanted to keep working anymore. Several people immediately looked ready to run.

Daniel sighed.

"Relax."

"You can keep working."

"I’m just here to ask a few questions and then leave."

"This time I won’t destroy anything."

Things had already reached this point. Getting angry wouldn’t solve anything.

What Daniel wanted now was the truth. The people working at the base had no personal grudge against him, so there was no reason to make their lives more difficult.

The workers standing beside the giant hole exchanged confused looks. They didn’t know whether they should keep working or stop.

Knowing his presence was making everyone uncomfortable, Daniel glanced towards the administrative buildings where the senior officers were located.

Then he started walking.

As luck would have it, a meeting was already in progress. That saved him some effort.

When Daniel arrived outside the conference room, the guards stationed at the entrance immediately raised their guns.

Their faces were pale. While aiming their weapons, they unconsciously backed away.

One step...Then another.

Until both men were pressed flat against the wall. Seeing their reaction, Daniel felt a little annoyed.

"I’m not a monster."

"What are you so afraid of?"

Then he smiled.

"Don’t worry."

"I don’t eat people."

After venting most of his anger at the crash site, his mood had improved considerably.

More importantly, he was now certain that Carol was still alive. That alone was enough to make him feel much better.

The guards said nothing. Their hands gripped their guns so tightly that their knuckles turned white.

One of them was visibly trembling. Ignoring them, Daniel pushed open the door and walked in.

"Get out."

The slightly overweight base commander spoke without even looking up. He assumed someone had entered by mistake.

Then he noticed that everyone sitting across from him looked terrified. A bad feeling immediately rose in his chest as he looked up.

The moment he saw Daniel standing there, all the color drained from his face.

Daniel casually closed the door behind him, then he spoke.

"I want to know exactly what happened."

"Every detail."

The conference room fell silent. Everyone looked at one another. Nobody wanted to speak and nobody wanted to take responsibility.

Seeing this, Daniel remained calm.

"Call your superiors."

"I think they’ll make the right decision."

There happened to be a telephone in the conference room. The commander hesitated for only a moment before reaching for it.

Soon, the call connected. Apparently, a secretary answered first.

After listening briefly, the commander said, "I need to speak with the General. It’s urgent."

Several moments later, a dignified voice came through the receiver.

"Report."

Only then did the commander speak.

"He’s here."

"He wants to know everything."

Silence followed. The General was clearly thinking. A few seconds later, the same authoritative voice sounded again.

"Tell him everything."

"Don’t hide anything."

"Answer his questions until he’s satisfied."

"Yes, sir!"

The commander replied immediately. A trace of relief and even faint joy appeared in his voice.

After hanging up, he dialed another number.

"Send everyone from this morning’s search and rescue team to the conference room immediately."