The tail behind him had been following for three full blocks.
It had to be said that the man's surveillance skills were excellent. If someone lacked proper counter-surveillance awareness, it would have been extremely difficult to notice the tracking at all.
Jarvis, for example, had not detected anything suspicious from beginning to end.
Unfortunately for the man following him, every move he made had already been completely exposed.
Rorschach had locked onto the man's heartbeat long ago.
Not only that—thanks to his extraordinary senses, Rorschach had even heard the man's earlier conversation with his superior through the communicator.
"Report the target's current position."
"Sir, the target is heading north along 71st Street."
"I've dispatched a special operations team. They should reach you in twenty minutes. Keep your eyes on him."
"Understood, sir."
Rorschach leaned quietly against the seat.
"A special operations team?" he thought silently.
"That's a bit excessive."
Whoever was behind this operation clearly took him very seriously.
Of course, with Rorschach's current abilities, he had nothing to fear.
Still, it meant one unfortunate thing.
He might not arrive at Stark's dinner on time.
"Jarvis," Rorschach said suddenly, sitting upright, "could you pull over ahead for a moment?"
Jarvis glanced at him through the rearview mirror, slightly puzzled.
"Is something wrong, Mr. Rorschach?"
"I just remembered that I need to deal with something immediately," Rorschach replied calmly. "Don't worry, I'll still come to the dinner once I'm finished."
He paused briefly.
"I might be a little late, though. I'll try to hurry."
Jarvis considered the situation.
He wanted to ask what kind of urgent matter required immediate attention at a time like this, but his relationship with Rorschach was still relatively formal. Asking too many questions would be inappropriate.
After thinking for a moment, he made a polite suggestion.
"Mr. Rorschach, is there anything I can assist you with? I've worked with Mr. Stark for many years. I'm capable of handling certain matters if needed."
Rorschach shook his head.
"No need. It's a personal matter, and it's nothing serious. I can handle it myself."
Jarvis nodded slowly.
"Then at least allow me to drive you there," he said. "Once you've finished, I can take you directly to Mr. Stark."
"Thank you, Jarvis," Rorschach replied, "but there's no need to trouble yourself that much."
Seeing that Rorschach had already made up his mind, Jarvis didn't insist any further.
"In that case," he said politely, "I will inform Mr. Stark about the situation."
He guided the car toward the roadside and gently brought it to a stop.
Rorschach opened the door and stepped out without hesitation.
The moment he left the car, another vehicle that had been parked quietly nearby also stopped.
The flat-headed man stepped out.
He resumed following Rorschach at a careful distance.
Rorschach walked forward calmly as if he hadn't noticed anything at all.
Block after block passed.
Gradually, the streets around them became quieter and more deserted.
The flat-headed man frowned slightly.
The target seemed to be heading toward increasingly remote areas.
Had he been discovered?
That seemed unlikely.
The man mentally replayed the entire surveillance process from beginning to end.
Nothing appeared wrong.
Perhaps he was simply overthinking it.
Just then—
A sharp car horn sounded behind him.
The man turned his head.
Five black vehicles were approaching quickly in a tight formation, driving with the unmistakable confidence of official vehicles.
They stopped one after another along the street.
The flat-headed man made a quick hand gesture toward the arriving agents.
"The target is ahead," he signaled.
"Move in."
Inside the first vehicle, Wade sat in the passenger seat. He quickly scanned the scene and immediately spotted Rorschach walking calmly down the street.
"Got him," Wade muttered.
The convoy surged forward.
Within seconds, the vehicles surrounded Rorschach and blocked the road in front of him.
Doors burst open.
Twenty heavily armed agents stepped out from the five vehicles, forming a tight circle.
Every single rifle was aimed directly at Rorschach.
Rorschach glanced calmly around at the scene.
Then his gaze landed on one particular figure among the agents.
He immediately understood everything.
"Stryker," he said quietly.
"I know, I know!" a cheerful voice replied.
Wade stepped forward from the circle of agents and walked toward Rorschach with an exaggerated swagger.
"You're probably wondering who we are," Wade began enthusiastically. "What we want. Whether we're going to kill you. Lots of questions, right?"
Without Stryker standing beside him, Wade's natural personality was fully unleashed.
He started talking nonstop.
"Let me help clear things up for you," Wade continued. "About a month ago, you killed a certain beast at an amusement park in Ohio. Ring any bells?"
He leaned slightly closer.
"Of course, not exactly a beast. More like a man who looked like one."
He winked.
"But I'm sure you know who I mean."
Rorschach sighed.
"You talk too much," he said flatly.
At that moment, he suddenly understood why the Monkey King in certain legends had once wanted to eliminate his endlessly talking companion.
A constant stream of chatter really could drive someone crazy.
Just moments ago, Rorschach had genuinely felt like a swarm of mosquitoes was buzzing beside his ears.
"Let's keep things simple," Rorschach continued calmly. "Tell me what you want."
He looked directly at Wade.
"Then I'll decide whether or not to kill you."
"Deal?"
Wade blinked.
"Hey, hey—I was talking," he protested. "You interrupted me."
He pointed a finger toward Rorschach.
"But interestingly enough, you didn't deny killing the beast earlier. Which basically means you admitted it, right?"
Rorschach snorted softly.
"At this point, does it even matter whether I admit it or deny it?"
Inside the command center, Stryker was listening through the communication channel.
He rubbed his forehead in frustration.
"Good lord, Wade," he muttered.
Then he spoke sharply into the transmitter.
"Stop wasting time and complete the mission."
"Understood," Wade replied reluctantly.
He swallowed the rest of his endless commentary.
"Fine," he said, turning back to Rorschach. "You need to come with us."
He spread his hands.
"Simple enough?"
"Come with you?" Rorschach repeated thoughtfully.
Then he asked very seriously, "If I go with you, will you start walking with your left foot first… or your right foot first?"
Wade stared at him.
"What difference does that make?"
He genuinely tried to think about it.
But he couldn't figure out why such a tiny detail would matter.
Still, Rorschach looked completely serious.
"Uh… right foot?" Wade answered cautiously.
Rorschach nodded.
"Sorry," he said calmly.
"I don't like people who step forward with their right foot first."
His eyes suddenly began to glow red.
"So I'll just kill you instead."
.....
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