When Coulson saw Tony Stark's annoying tone, a surge of anger welled up inside him, but his professionalism as an Agent allowed him to suppress it.
He wasn't here to argue with Tony Stark, but to talk and gather some information.
"Mr. Tony Stark, I've already provided you with some information."
"Now it should be my turn to ask, shouldn't it?"
So, Coulson, suppressing his anger, said politely.
"You may ask."
Tony Stark was somewhat surprised to see Coulson clench his fists, clearly angry, yet manage to suppress it in mere seconds.
However, Tony Stark was also a man of his word, so he allowed Coulson to ask.
"Mr. Tony Stark, how did you get out of..."
Coulson began his inquiry.
Tony Stark told him everything he could, except for the fact that he had created the Ark Reactor himself.
He spoke of creating the Iron Man Armor to escape, and even the subsequent modifications.
Because his modified Mark 2 had already made its debut to the World.
After listening, Coulson was absolutely certain that the armored man, Iron Man, rumored to be outside, was indeed Tony Stark.
He was also sensible enough not to say anything about Tony Stark handing over this technology to the country.
"I see, as expected of Mr. Tony Stark, your mind is a great treasure."
Coulson directly praised Tony Stark with admiration.
"Isn't it already a well-known fact that I'm a genius?"
Tony Stark, hearing this, accepted the compliment without any modesty.
"Then, may I ask, Mr. Tony Stark, what exactly do you intend to do with the Armor you created?"
"You saved some of the people in Gomira, Afghanistan; was it to clean up some of the mess left by Stark Industries' weapons?"
"Or do you feel you have the ability, and therefore want to help them?"
However, Coulson, looking at Tony Stark's smug response, had no intention of deliberately criticizing or arguing, but rather sought to confirm Tony Stark's intentions.
A superhero must be kind-hearted, and Tony Stark used to be an unrestrained playboy.
Whether such a person was truly kind-hearted and possessed great love, willing to contribute to the World, Coulson could only put a question Mark on it before he had a concrete understanding.
"Both, I suppose."
Tony Stark paused, thinking of Ethan upon hearing Coulson's words, and then spoke.
Ethan had sacrificed his life to save him, and Gomira was Ethan's hometown; he couldn't bring Ethan back to life, but he could at least protect Gomira's peace.
"Will you continue to help others in danger in the future?"
Coulson's eyes lit up when he heard "both," and he asked again.
"I'm not sure; Gomira is the hometown of a friend of mine, which is why I wanted to protect it."
"As for others, I'll only know the answer when I encounter them."
Tony Stark spread his hands upon hearing this.
"Mr. Tony Stark, in fact, due to the existence of aliens."
"The World's current situation is not optimistic."
Coulson, hearing this uncertain remark, hesitated but decided to reveal more information.
"I already know that; isn't that God of Death you mentioned from some Void?"
"And when he talked to me for a few sentences, he also touched upon the Universe."
"He said my technology is only powerful and advanced compared to humans, but still too weak compared to the Universe."
Tony Stark waved his hand upon hearing this, his eyes showing some dissatisfaction as he spoke.
Since he took over Stark Industries, he had invented advanced technology for humanity time and time again.
He had always been proud of it, but that God of Death actually said his technology was still too rubbish, how could he be convinced?
"Mr. Tony Stark, aren't you curious why our Bureau arranged to meet Mr. God of Death?"
"Before I explain that, there's something I need to tell you: decades ago, aliens had already visited the World."
"At that time, a superhero with superpowers appeared on the World and helped us humans successfully resist the alien invasion."
"The duration of alien existence is unknown, but it's certain that their technology is more advanced and developed."
"They master technologies such as space jump, Cosmic Warship, and so on, which are currently beyond the reach of us humans on the World."
"It was from that time that my Officer, Nick Fury, wanted to establish the Avengers to guard against the threat of future alien arrivals."
Coulson sensed Tony Stark's unconvincing attitude, so he decided to try and win him over by explaining.
"You're not looking for super-powered individuals but coming to me; it seems your progress isn't going smoothly."
Tony Stark, after listening to this lengthy explanation, immediately grasped the meaning in Coulson's words.
"Yes, the World has indeed seen super-powered individuals in the past, proving that there are other super-powered individuals among humans."
"However, humans are an exclusive race, and also fearful of others seeing them as anomalies; almost all people with superpowers will hide, making them difficult to detect and find."
"You've also seen some of the rumors and records of God of Death circulating on the dark web."
"Some of the missions he completed are beyond the scope of human capabilities."
"After investigation and discussion, we unanimously believe that Mr. God of Death is very likely to be a powerful individual with superpowers."
"Even if he isn't a super-powered individual, his strength far exceeds that of ordinary people."
"Therefore, we arranged to meet him a few months ago."
"Until he appeared, we didn't know how long he had been here, nor did we know how he got here."
"In a sense, we were right; Mr. God of Death is indeed a powerful individual whose strength cannot be judged."
"But unfortunately, he is not a native of the World, but an alien."
As Coulson spoke of these things, his face was filled with emotion and disappointment.
He had followed Officer Fury for nearly two decades; Officer Fury had become Director, and his Agent rank had continuously risen during these two decades; he was currently an Agent with relatively high status and authority within the Bureau.
While carrying out missions and investigating various strange occurrences, after decades, he was finally able to find a super-powered individual.
Coulson was naturally overjoyed, but what followed could only be described as having as much joy as disappointment.
And they also learned that the legendary God King Odin's lifespan might not be long.
The World might no longer have protection; if they didn't find some powerful heroes to form the Avengers and have some countermeasures.
Then what humanity would face would most likely be slaughter or even enslavement by aliens.
However, Officer Fury had said not to spread the news about Odin possibly dying soon.
Because if what Mr. God of Death said was true, God King Odin and Asgard had always been protecting the World.
When the people of Asgard truly arrived on the World, and they were talking about God King Odin's limited lifespan.
Then even if Asgard had originally intended to protect humanity, they would still incur their resentment.
Tony Stark could tell that everything Coulson said was true, because the emotion and disappointment on Coulson's face could not be faked.
"So you came to me because you thought I suddenly developed superpowers, which is why I was able to escape Afghanistan?"
However, Tony Stark, putting himself in Coulson's shoes and understanding the implication of his words, immediately realized.
"That's right, but I never expected, Mr. Tony Stark, that you would rely on your brilliant mind to create an Iron Man Armor comparable to the latest model of fighter jet."
"Although you are not a super-powered individual, in my eyes, you are equivalent to one."
Coulson did not hide it upon hearing this, directly expressing his thoughts and admiration.
"According to your Bureau's operating policy, you specifically investigate people who may possess superpowers."
"So your previous contact with Harvey Anberaka means...?"
Tony Stark accepted this admiration and praise without any embarrassment, then thought of something and asked.
"That's right; previously, we suspected Mr. Harvey Anberaka might be a super-powered individual."
"Because it's as if he's covered by the Goddess of Luck, so even if his superpower might not be combat-oriented, it could still come in handy."
Coulson nodded upon hearing this, answering almost every question, as these were not top-secret messages.
"So, what was the result?"
Tony Stark's eyes flashed when he heard that Coulson and the people from that so-called Department of Homeland Security, like himself before, simply thought Harvey Anberaka was just lucky.
"Based on the results of two contacts, we determined that Harvey Anberaka does not possess superpowers."
Coulson shook his head slightly, saying with some regret.
"None, huh..."
This answer made Tony Stark recall some of the things Harvey Anberaka had discussed with him on the balcony outside the ball.
At that time, the calmness and indifference Harvey Anberaka inadvertently showed when talking about Obadiah Stane.
It was as if Obadiah Stane was truly insignificant, like trash, in Harvey Anberaka's eyes.
It seemed Harvey Anberaka had some kind of reliance.
However, regardless of whether Harvey Anberaka possessed superpowers, the result was that Tony Stark and Harvey Anberaka clearly had no intention of joining the Avengers.
"I understand what you mean; the World is in a time of crisis, and your Bureau wants to establish the Avengers to jointly resist potential alien invasions that could happen at any time in the future."
"However, Stark Industries is currently undergoing a transformation, and I have a pile of things to do."
"So, I need to consider joining the Avengers further."
"But if any major disaster or potential threat appears on the World, you can contact me to see; perhaps I'll lend you a hand."
Tony Stark thought of this and said to Coulson.
The appearance of that God of Death made Tony Stark have to believe that there are aliens in the Universe, and those aliens have already quietly arrived on the World.
It was also for this reason that he needed to find a way to successfully transform Stark Industries and get it on track as soon as possible, so he could fully devote himself to the research of the Iron Man Armor.
Unfortunately, he didn't know what kind of abilities and strength God of Death possessed, so he couldn't specifically create an Armor.
However, since God of Death was on the World, he would surely know one day; he just hoped that day wouldn't be too late.
"Alright, thank you very much, Mr. Tony Stark."
Coulson's face lit up as he stood up upon hearing Tony Stark's response.
After thanking him, Coulson also took the initiative to bid farewell and leave.
Coulson was in a very good mood; although Tony Stark didn't join directly, he still got a promise from him.
If a major disaster truly occurred in the future, there would be an opportunity to work together, proving that his contact on this trip was quite successful in terms of outcome.
With a good start, it wouldn't be long before they officially brought Tony Stark into the Avengers.
Third update delivered, this is the first one.