Chapter 25: All Is Done
As Sherlock's ice pick plunged deeper, Sherlock watched Obadiah Stane's eyes transform from initial terror to hysterical madness, and finally to nothingness, losing all their light.
Looking at the ice pick almost entirely buried in Obadiah Stane's chest, Sherlock stood up, let out a deep breath, and then with a flick of his wand, Obadiah Stane's corpse was instantly reduced to ashes by Fire.
After completing all this, having personally slain his enemy, Sherlock instantly felt as if a great weight had been lifted from his heart, and a sense of enlightenment welled up within him.
Sherlock even felt that those magic problems he hadn't understood before became incredibly clear in that moment, as if a huge stone in his heart had suddenly been put down.
Perhaps it was because Sherlock had helped the original owner fulfill his wish of personally killing his enemy; Sherlock even felt as if his connection to this World had become a little tighter.
Just as Sherlock was experiencing this unprecedented clarity, Tony, controlling his armor, landed beside Sherlock, opened his faceplate, and looked at Sherlock, who was standing still, with a worried expression.
"You brat, you… "
Tony's words were cut short by Sherlock.
"Don't, don't get all sentimental, my dear Uncle Tony Shi Da Ke. Obadiah Stane's matter has nothing to do with you. You just don't blame me for personally killing your uncle."
Hearing Sherlock's outlandish words, Tony finally rolled his eyes in exasperation, patted Sherlock's shoulder with great force, and then continued.
"What are you thinking, you brat? That's not my uncle. You know I almost died at that guy's hands, twice!!"
Tony seemed to have forgotten he was still wearing his armor. That pat almost made Sherlock, who was still in his human body, kneel directly. Sherlock reasonably suspected that this guy was retaliating against him for stealing his enemy.
Even when facing Iron Monger, Sherlock could remain calm and composed. If he were really made to kneel by Tony, Sherlock's newly established powerful, cold, and mysterious persona would probably collapse completely.
Sherlock rolled his eyes at Tony, who stood beside him with a smug expression. For a moment, Sherlock even considered letting Tony experience the joy of being turned into a sheep.
A sheep in armor would definitely be a very interesting thing.
Sherlock's face was hidden beneath his helmet and the thick black mist, so Tony had no idea he had almost faced a sheep-transformation crisis, and he still looked at Sherlock with a very smug expression.
Looking at Tony's demeanor, Sherlock finally sighed helplessly. Seeing the men in black suits constantly converging towards them from afar, and Pepper running at the front, Sherlock decided to let Tony off for now and find a time to get revenge later.
Looking at the dilapidated battlefield around them, Sherlock, with the idea of seeing a good deed through to the end, gently waved his wand, and under the effect of restoration.
The surrounding environment, which had been dilapidated and full of debris and rubble, instantly seemed to have been put on pause.
The next second, the broken environment began to rewind as if a fast-reverse button had been pressed.
Broken stones slowly gathered together, turning back into a complete stone, and then were pulled by an unknown force back to their original position.
The twisted and broken cars that had been affected also began to return to their original state with the sound of twisting metal in that instant.
In just a few breaths, what had looked like a Syrian street returned to its original appearance; even the walls of the Stark Industries area that the two had broken through were perfectly repaired.
Looking at the changes in the surrounding environment, Tony whistled happily, then looked at Sherlock and said.
"Cool! Dear, you saved me a huge amount of compensation!"
Sherlock just smiled at Tony's words. After all, what Tony didn't know was that Sherlock had only restored the state of the street; Sherlock's magic had no way to help the injured and frightened people.
And most importantly, Sherlock very cunningly did not repair the damage caused by their fight inside the Stark Industries park, so Tony would still have to pay whatever he owed, possibly not a penny less.
It was simply that Tony, as a rich man, didn't care much about that money.
Looking at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents getting closer and closer to them, and Pepper running ahead of the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents, Sherlock, who didn't want to reveal his identity yet, felt an increasing headache.
Looking at Tony beside him, Sherlock suddenly had an idea and quickly said.
"Dear Uncle Tony, I'll leave the rest to you. After all, I've already solved the most troublesome part, haven't I?"
After saying that, regardless of Tony's reaction, he disappeared from the spot amidst a crackling sound of space distortion, leaving only Tony, who hadn't reacted yet.
Looking at the vanished Sherlock, Tony was stunned for a moment, then just smiled and cursed "you brat," before opening his arms to embrace Pepper, who was rushing towards him.
The first thing Pepper did when she arrived was not to give Tony a hug as he expected, but rather to repeatedly examine Tony's entire body.
Under Sherlock's magic, Tony's armor at this moment didn't even have a single scratch; it was in a state of having been on the battlefield but not effectively on the battlefield, still maintaining its brand-new factory appearance.
Seeing that Tony was fine, Pepper finally breathed a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to ask about Sherlock's situation, she was stopped by Tony's gaze.
The extremely intelligent Pepper immediately swallowed the words that were already on her lips and followed Tony's gaze to Coulson, who was standing not far from them.
Facing Tony and Pepper's gaze, Coulson remained unfazed, maintaining his professional smile, and asked Tony.
"Hello, Mr. Stark, I believe this isn't our first meeting. May I ask about your relationship with that amazing mister who just displayed such great power?"
Facing Coulson's probing, Tony responded smoothly.
"Ah, you're… let me think, that thing from some country, some bureau, some logistics… what was it called?"
"Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, Phil Coulson."
Seeing that Tony seemed to want to play dumb and change the subject, Coulson gave Tony no chance.
Facing Coulson's relentless pressure, Tony was equally unceremonious.
"Alright, Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, that name's a mouthful. Let's just call you S.H.I.E.L.D. As for that amazing mister you mentioned, I'm sorry, I don't know him. Perhaps he was just a kind-hearted person who stepped in to help, don't you think, Coulson?"
"It's Coulson. Never mind, I understand. We'll take it from here, Mr. Tony. I think Ms. Pepper has had enough fright for tonight, don't you?"
Hearing Coulson's words, Tony no longer hesitated. He gave a shout and directly pulled Pepper towards his Stark Industries park.
It wasn't until Tony's figure disappeared that Coulson placed his hand on his earphone.
"Director, he denied it."
Hearing Coulson's words, the person on the other end was silent for a moment, then continued to issue orders.
"Leave the rest to me, Coulson. Maintain the scene, and I'll arrange for the science department to conduct tests."
"Understood, Director."