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May didn't react to his sarcasm—she just turned and started walking.
"We'll follow from a distance," she said. "Don't mind us."
Coulson gave Ethan a reassuring smile.
"Just pretend we aren't here. We only need to gather information."
Ethan muttered, "Hard to pretend when you two are standing right in front of me…"
But he followed anyway.
A few minutes later, Storm, Sharon, and Grant stepped outside, fully awake and ready.
Storm looked at Coulson and May, gave a short nod as greeting, and Coulson began introducing everyone.
"She is Melinda May—my partner on this case," Coulson said. "And you already know Agent Sharon, currently assigned to handle Agent Ethan. Then we have Storm, his bodyguard, and Grant Ward—Storm's disciple."
May gave a polite nod.
On terms of calmness and cool attitude, she was equal to Storm.
Ethan raised an eyebrow.
"So, SHIELD is interested in Wakanda or Vibranium?" he asked as they began moving toward the duel location—a quiet area far from people, chosen specifically for the fight.
"Actually, both," Coulson said with a nod. "We're investigating Wakanda and Vibranium."
"I doubt SHIELD even has proper data on Wakanda," Ethan replied. "Though I wonder if your intelligence network is lacking… or maybe Wakanda is just too good at hiding."
Coulson sighed. "We do have a file, but it's mostly rumors. Until you met a prince from there, we had nothing solid."
"So what do you actually want?" Ethan asked.
"We want to understand what kind of nation Wakanda is," Coulson said simply.
Ethan shrugged. "I don't know much. But I think they're very advanced—especially in technology. They've got good weapons, and probably an entire city full of them. My guess? They have natural deposits of Vibranium. Otherwise none of it would be possible."
Coulson and May exchanged a glance and nodded.
"What else do you know?" May asked.
Ethan shrugged.
"Last time we were chasing each other, they had Vibranium weapons. So I'm guessing, in terms of weapon quality, they're way ahead of the rest of the world. Not to mention—the prince was wearing a full Vibranium suit. So my best guess? They already know exactly how to shape and weaponize Vibranium."
They all got into the car, and it began driving toward the duel location.
Ethan sat in his own car with Sharon, Coulson, and May, while Storm and Grant followed behind in another vehicle with the rest of the SHIELD agents who had arrived with Coulson and May.
Coulson glanced at Ethan.
"Do you think this prince will actually honor the bet if you win?"
Ethan looked away from the window and raised an eyebrow.
"You're pretty confident I'll win."
"I may have known you for a short time," Coulson said with a small smile, "but that time was enough to tell me you're cautious. You wouldn't accept a bet like this unless you believed your chances were high."
Ethan smiled but neither confirmed nor denied it.
"As for your question," he continued, "yeah… I think he'll honor it."
Coulson lifted an eyebrow.
"And why do you think that?"
Ethan thought for a moment.
"His eyes. They were… pure. Honest. He doesn't seem like the type to break his word."
Coulson nodded thoughtfully.
The rest of the ride was quiet. Eventually, they reached the location—an isolated, open area chosen specifically for a duel. It was already filled with Wakandians. T'Challa stood waiting with Okoye and another bald woman in ceremonial armor.
"You're here," T'Challa said calmly.
Ethan stepped out and shook his hand.
"Did you think I wouldn't come?"
"I didn't doubt you," T'Challa said. "But my guard did thought so."
He nodded toward Okoye, who was still glaring at Ethan with the same distrust she'd shown since the first moment they met.
T'Challa then looked past Ethan, noticing the extra people behind him as well as the SHIELD security.
"You have brought more company than expected," T'Challa said.
"So did you," Ethan replied before Coulson could say anything.
T'Challa shrugged. "I am a prince. When my guards heard I was entering a duel, they increased security on their own."
Ethan pointed at Coulson. "Same with me. This smiley bald guy is my mom's old friend. The moment he heard I was going into a duel, he called a whole SWAT team on me."
Coulson just nodded, completely unbothered.
T'Challa gestured for Ethan to follow.
"Come. We will begin shortly. The arena is almost ready."
He pointed ahead, where Wakandian soldiers were finishing a large circular arena filled with loose, soft sand—perfect for a traditional hand-to-hand duel.
Ethan followed T'Challa toward the arena. The air felt tense—Wakandian guards stood all around the place, watching every move from the SHIELD agents.
The arena was almost finished. A circle of sand, about twenty meters wide, sat in the center. Around it were small wooden stands for people to watch.
T'Challa turned to Ethan."You will have few minutes to prepare. Choose your weapon from the rack there."
He pointed to a wooden stand filled with simple weapons—spears, wooden shields, short blades made for training. Nothing high-tech.
Ethan nodded. "Got it."
Okoye stepped forward, still glaring."These weapons are traditional. No tricks. No hidden blades. No enhancements."
Ethan lifted his hands."I know. I'm not cheating…"—he fully intended to cheat using magic, but he definitely wasn't telling her that.
Okoye narrowed her eyes like she could sense he was up to something, but she didn't say anything.
Storm and Grant reached Ethan.
"Best of luck, Ethan-sama," Storm said.
Grant added, "Best of luck, sir."
Ethan sighed. "I told you—just call me Ethan. You're not like Storm. He was trained from a young age to be my mom's guard."
Grant shrugged. "I know we're the same age… but you're still my boss."
Ethan nodded. "Suit yourself."
He then removed his coat and shirt. Even undershirt, showing his bare upper body, his lean, well-defined muscles were clearly visible to everyone. Anyone looking at him now would never think he was some sci-fi nerd who spent most of his time messing with inventions.
Coulson raised an eyebrow. "I guess he hits the gym hard."
Sharon and May both nodded silently looked at that body.
Ethan, meanwhile, walked into the arena and approached the weapon rack. He picked up a long wooden katana-shaped sword. After gaining the Quan Chi template, he had started taking sword lessons from Storm—just enough to know proper stance, balance, and technique.
And honestly? He had gotten pretty good at it.
He gave the wooden blade a test swing.
Smooth. Balanced. Just right.
Ethan stepped toward the center of the arena—calm, confident, and ready.
T'Challa watched him from the other side, spear in hand.