What are you thinking about, Tony Stark?"
Seeing Tony's grim face and silence, Ron waved his hand in front of Tony, interrupting his contemplation.
"Nothing."
Tony was roused by Ron, and his mood improved considerably. Even though he was about to die, at least he would die as Iron Man, a superhero like a savior. Ron, on the other hand, would still be a mere mortal even if he lived to be 100!
So, Tony looked at Ron with a touch of pity, thinking how truly miserable Ron was, being just an ordinary scientist in a world full of mutants and superheroes... It was well known that in most stories, scientists usually appeared as major villains who were eventually defeated by superheroes.
Just like Dr. Curt Connors, who also researched regenerative serums, many stories had already portrayed Curt Connors as an evil supervillain, defeated in short stories by superheroes like Spider-Man and She-Hulk.
Looking at Tony's undisguised pitying gaze, Ron guessed what the guy was thinking.
"Hey, Tony Stark, do you think it's pathetic for me to be an ordinary mortal in such a chaotic world?" Ron raised an eyebrow and asked Tony.
"You guessed it." Tony smiled, venting all the frustration he had previously endured onto Ron: "That's right, I'm mocking you for being an ordinary person, so what? Look at me, I'm Iron Man, and you? You're just an 'evil' scientist defeated by superheroes, hehe!"
"..." Ron's face gradually darkened. Since when did Tony Stark consider himself a superior being, a step above ordinary humans?
Although Tony Stark was extremely arrogant, he had always viewed himself from a human perspective, unlike mutant leaders like Magneto, who disregarded ordinary humans.
So, Ron thought for a moment and decided to hit Tony Stark hard.
"Mr. Iron Man! Do you really think I'm an ordinary person? You're mistaken, I actually have superpowers too!" Ron pulled a coin from his pocket and began to toy with it in his hand.
"What? You have superpowers too? What kind of superpowers?" Hearing Ron's words, Tony's condescending attitude instantly vanished.
He had originally intended to embarrass Ron with his identity as Iron Man, but if Ron really had superpowers, wouldn't that make him look foolish?
Ron, indeed, smiled triumphantly and continued to play with the coin: "My superpower is very powerful, you know, and it's specifically designed to counter 'Iron Men' like you. Do you believe me?"
"I don't believe it, unless I see it with my own eyes, otherwise I won't believe it!" Tony already felt something was off, but he stubbornly insisted.
"Alright, today I'll show you the power of a superpower that can control metal!" Ron laughed arrogantly, then, with the coin in his hand, he placed his hand in front of Tony.
Tony was curious about what Ron was going to do, and the next moment, he saw the coin in Ron's hand float up, rising to his eye level.
Then, the coin circled around him once, and finally returned to Ron's hand.
"It's really a superpower, Ron, are you a mutant?" Tony looked at Ron warily, masking his embarrassment, and asked.
It was well known that the reputation of mutants wasn't very good. Because their abilities were often uncontrollable when awakened, this group had always been ostracized by humans.
If Ron really was a mutant, his reputation would likely be completely ruined if it got out, making him a target for public condemnation.
Although the anti-mutant sentiment had subsided recently, whenever a mutant appeared, ordinary humans would still unhesitatingly attack them, treating them as monsters.
However, the biggest problem between mutants and ordinary humans was that they were difficult to distinguish, and besides mutants, altered humans were also a large group. Captain America's story was still widely spread, and there were too many unclear things involved, so Tony didn't dare to jump to conclusions.
"I can confirm that I am not a mutant." Ron replied to Tony. He didn't explain further, as such things, apart from genetic verification, were hard to clarify. So he didn't explain at all, but continued:
"However, Mr. 'Iron Man,' my ability is truly your natural enemy. Think about it, your Iron Man suit is entirely made of metal. If I activate my ability, never mind controlling your armor, just messing up the parts inside your armor would be enough to give you a hard time, wouldn't it?"
"You're not wrong." Tony's face darkened. This ability was simply his nemesis. Eighty percent of his Iron Man suit was related to metal. As soon as Ron activated his ability, his Iron Man suit would be completely useless.
Seeing Tony become serious, Ron smiled and continued: "And it's not just that, Mr. 'Iron Man.' My ability isn't actually that strong; at most, I can control a few coins. But I know someone whose ability to control metal is strong enough to control a bridge spanning thousands of meters. Isn't that impressive?"
"Who is this person?" Hearing Ron's words, Tony's mood grew even heavier, and he quickly asked.
"Erik Lehnsherr, known as Magneto, one of the leaders of the mutants. If you were to stand in front of him, you'd probably be crushed into dust, you know." Ron replied.
Hearing what Ron said, Tony's brows furrowed deeply, and he was already planning how to extensively modify his Iron Man suit to make it completely immune to metal-controlling abilities.
As a tech fanatic, as soon as an idea popped into Tony Stark's head, he would definitely want to accomplish it as quickly as possible!
So, Tony Stark immediately said to Ron: "Thank you, Ron. I need to go back and modify my Iron Man suit so that when I encounter that Magneto guy in the future, I won't be crushed into dust."
Ron showed a satisfied smile, "Alright, that's the spirit. I have high hopes for you!"
Ron knew that Tony had definitely guessed some of his other motives behind these words, but Tony would still go in the direction he wanted.
Because Tony wouldn't let himself become someone who could be easily controlled. His armor modifications weren't just to guard against Magneto; Ron was actually also among his defensive targets, and definitely carried more weight than Magneto.
Seeing Tony Stark walking towards the door, Ron called out with a smile: "Hey, Tony Stark, you still owe me a million dollars. When are you going to pay me back?"
Tony's body paused. He was silent for a moment before replying.
"I'll pay you back the million after you cure my palladium poisoning!"
...