The atmosphere in the hall became a bit strange. Nick Fury and Black Widow exchanged glances, both feeling a sense of utter bewilderment.
"Coulson, are you saying that the mental patient is Thor?" Black Widow asked, disbelief evident in her voice.
"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying." Coulson replied seriously and placed several photos in front of Nick Fury and Black Widow.
The photos showed a young man in a patient's gown. This young man was almost identical to the image of Thor that Nick Fury had provided.
Such a coincidence was impossible. Though they found it hard to believe, they had to accept the fact.
The "mental patient" was indeed Thor.
However, this only made the situation even more peculiar.
That's Thor, the God of Thunder! He was beating the crap out of Iron Man in that video. How did he end up in such a miserable state?
A "bum," a "lunatic," and he got hit by a car. Somehow, he even lost Mjolnir. This was just... pathetic.
Nick Fury and the others couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable.
It was so embarrassing. No, it was more like... humiliating for a god.
"Nick Fury, what are you thinking?" Black Widow quickly assessed the situation. "Could this be Thor's passive arrival on Earth? Is this when Thor met Dr. Selvig?"
This fit perfectly with their previous assumptions.
Whether he failed to claim the throne or was exiled by Odin, whatever the reason, this downtrodden image certainly fit the hypothetical condition of a passive arrival.
It was also under these circumstances that Thor could have met Dr. Selvig, formed a friendship with him, and confided in him about his true identity.
"Possibly!" Nick Fury nodded, then made a decision. "Coulson, Romanoff, get ready. Let's go meet our stranded prince."
Everyone got straight to work, making arrangements and quickly heading towards the town.
In the afternoon, Nick Fury and the others appeared at the entrance of the town.
"Is this the place, Coulson?"
Nick Fury surveyed the unremarkable, even somewhat backward, town, asking casually.
"Yes, sir, this is it." Coulson nodded.
"You'll secure the area immediately. Don't let anyone near that hammer," Nick Fury ordered decisively. "Romanoff, you're with me to the hospital."
Just as they were about to split up, a flashy luxury sports car drove straight towards them.
It immediately attracted everyone's attention.
In a small place like this, such high-end cars were usually a rare sight.
And the person driving the luxury car was also very arrogant, not slowing down at all even though they were already very close.
It wasn't until he was right in front of them that he performed a beautiful drift and emergency brake, coming to a complete stop in front of them.
Kicking up a cloud of dust.
BANG!
The car door opened, and a figure that surprised no one emerged: Iron Man.
Iron Man had always had Jarvis monitoring information related to Mjolnir, Thor, and so on. So, when someone in this small town shared a photo of the strange hammer on social media, Jarvis detected it immediately.
Therefore, it was only natural that Iron Man would come here.
"Agent, miss me?" Iron Man said to Black Widow, striking a pose in his sunglasses.
"Stark, you're everywhere," Nick Fury said, a bit exasperated, with a hint of frustration.
Their S.H.I.E.L.D., a vast intelligence agency, seemed to have no secrets from Iron Man. He always seemed to stumble upon their operations.
"Alright, cut the chatter. You're here for Thor, right? Let's go. Tagging along with you will save me some trouble!"
Iron Man greeted Nick Fury and the others without any pretense of politeness, then hopped into his luxury car and started the engine.
He really acted like he belonged.
"Let's split up!"
Nick Fury waved his hand to Coulson and Black Widow, and everyone got into their respective cars.
It wasn't long before Nick Fury, Black Widow, and Iron Man appeared inside the town hospital.
Nick Fury and Iron Man, the two big shots, were casually chatting, leaving the legwork to Black Widow.
For example, dealing with the hospital to take Thor away.
This was a piece of cake for Black Widow. After a few words between Nick Fury and Iron Man, Black Widow brought a doctor to them.
"Officer, the patient's emotions are very unstable right now, and he has serious violent tendencies. This is not the best time to take him away," the doctor said kindly to them.
"It's okay, just take us there," Nick Fury said calmly, glancing at the doctor.
The doctor didn't say much, and led the officers to the outside of a ward on the third floor.
"Let me go!"
"Do you know who I am!"
"How dare you treat me like this!"
Even before entering the ward, the group could hear angry roars emanating from within.
The voice was identical to Thor's voice as shown in the video, leaving no doubt about his identity.
After casually sending the doctor away, Iron Man, Nick Fury, and Black Widow pushed open the door and entered Thor's room.
They found Thor struggling and roaring, strapped to the hospital bed. He was wearing a patient gown and fruitlessly writhing against the restraints. It was all in vain.
There wasn't a trace of the domineering Thor they knew. He was really no different from a regular mental patient.
"Nick Fury, I think… are we sure we're not mistaken? He's Thor?"
Iron Man stared at the bedraggled man on the bed, unable to reconcile him with the concept of Thor.
It was just too… off.
"Mr. Thor." Nick Fury ignored Iron Man's comment and went directly to Thor's side.
"I am Nick Fury, from S.H.I.E.L.D. I know your true identity. We are here to take you away, so please, remain calm, alright?"
Nick Fury walked towards Thor, his expression serious.
...