The news ends here. Mike glanced at it; it was a replay.
"Miss Potts will be fine, won't she?" Skye showed a worried expression.
"She'll definitely be fine, otherwise the news would have been all over it by now."
If Pepper died, Stark would go insane. If Pepper was kidnapped, he would likely mobilize all his resources to rescue her, including hiring Mike.
Since Stark hadn't called... just then, Mike's phone rang, and the caller ID showed Stark.
"I hope I haven't jinxed it," Mike's eyelid twitched.
"Mike..." Stark's voice was low, "You saw the news, didn't you?"
"Yes, I saw it," Mike asked, "Is Pepper okay?"
"She's fine, just a bit shaken... I wasn't with Pepper when she was attacked, I..." Stark felt his heart being eroded by some emotion.
Now he feels guilty?
What was he doing before?
Pepper had been making frequent public appearances recently to instill confidence in shareholders. Her attack was likely related to Stark closing the weapons division. Ultimately, Stark still had to bear the blame.
"If you want to confide in someone, find a Doctor." Mike was about to hang up.
"Wait!" Stark was anxious, "The three kidnappers have been caught, but they were just paid to do it and don't know anything..."
"So you want to commission me to find the mastermind?"
"No!" Stark suddenly said seriously, "I want to personally find and catch these bastards. The problem is that perfecting the Mark III will take a few more days, so... I need you to protect Pepper for a few days, five days at most."
System Prompt:
[Stark's Commission: Protect Pepper.]
[Commission: 20,000 U.S. dollars (after deducting fees, the system takes a 90% cut)]
[Mission Description: Protect Pepper until Stark completes the Mark III, maximum five days.]
"This is possible?!" Mike stared dumbfounded at the White and Gold light clusters floating out of his phone.
"Yes, you know the rules."
"I understand."
"One hundred thousand U.S. dollars."
Faintly, Stark's voice came from the phone: "Jarvis, transfer the money, immediately."
"Yes, sir."
Then Mike heard the sound of a text message. Although identical, the sounds of deduction and arrival felt worlds apart in his ears.
"When do we start?" Mike asked.
"As soon as possible." Stark was uncharacteristically embarrassed, "Can we start tonight?"
It was already past ten at night, and he had just finished a commission today. Couldn't he get a break?
If he hadn't just had his funds heavily deducted by the system, leaving only tens of thousands of U.S. dollars, Mike would have liked to put on a show of "unyielding to power, uncorrupted by wealth, and treating money like dirt."
Poverty shortens one's ambition, alas.
"Alright, I guess I must have cuckolded you in my past life... consider it paying off a debt."
When Mike hung up, Skye asked from the side, "What's wrong?"
"Stark wants me to protect Pepper for a few days." Mike prepared to go upstairs to pack.
"Leaving again..." Skye pouted, meaning: Baby isn't happy!
Mike lightly kissed Skye, "Five days at most."
Chloe covered her eyes, her fingers spread, revealing curious eyeballs.
Little Fire Dragon also covered his eyes, but his eyes were big and round, and his palms were chubby and small, so he couldn't cover them at all.
Suddenly, Mike had an idea, "Why don't you come along too?"
"Me too?"
"That's right, as a top mercenary, having an assistant is perfectly reasonable."
"But, I can't help much..."
"How can you not help? Your hacking skills are very useful, you know."
Skye hesitated; it was clear she wanted to go. Firstly, she could be with Mike, and secondly, she liked interacting with people and enjoyed adventure. She was just afraid of being useless and dragging Mike down.
"It's okay, the mission isn't difficult anyway." Senbonzakura's offense and defense in one made Mike more confident, "Go, consider it practical experience."
"I haven't even learned the theory yet." Skye became even more embarrassed.
"A philosopher once said: People, before learning to walk, should preferably learn to run, and if they can fly directly, it would be even more perfect."
"Which philosopher?"
"Me!" Mike pointed to his nose: "It's decided then. Go pack three sets of clothes. You have ten minutes, hurry!"
Skye: (￣ω￣;)
She hadn't even agreed, so how was it "decided"?
Mike didn't give Skye a chance to refuse and went straight upstairs to pack his clothes.
A few minutes later, he came downstairs. Skye was already sitting upright with a black backpack. Chloe and Bobby were in the same posture.
"Private Skye, are you ready?"
"Reporting, Officer, ready, can depart at any time."
The two smiled at each other.
Chloe was saying goodbye to Bobby, taking out a small bag of treasured fruit candies. "Bobby, these are the only ones left. They're all for you. You have to eat them sparingly, okay? Three a day, no, two a day."
"Kani!" Bobby nodded solemnly.
Skye put Bobby into a Pokeball.
"Wow!"
Seeing Mike drive the Gold saleen s7 out of the garage, Skye couldn't help but want to whistle.
"Where did you get it?"
"Stark." Mike patted the steering wheel, "Want to try it?"
"Baby, I'm coming!" Skye's eyes lit up like a dazed man seeing a beautiful woman.
Amidst the roaring engine, the Gold sports car launched.
Immediately, numerous "friendly" greetings came from the surrounding buildings, and some even threw down used "condoms." However, the saleen s7 accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.8 seconds, leaving only a trail of exhaust.
"So exciting!" Skye said excitedly, "This is my first time driving a sports car!"
Mike: "..."
It's your first time driving a sports car, and you're revving the engine like that?
Pepper was staying in the Four Seasons Hotel's Warner Penthouse Suite, over thirty thousand U.S. dollars a night.
The car stopped at the hotel entrance, where only people helped with parking. The private butler in a tuxedo had an air of British pretentiousness, which Mike found truly awkward.
"Mike." Pepper and Mike lightly shook hands, "Sorry to trouble you again. Stark is a bit overreacting."
"Heh heh~ I charge a lot."
"Worth every penny." Pepper gave a very fair assessment, then shook hands with Skye, "We've met before, at the supermarket last time. Sorry, I couldn't properly greet you then."
Of course, with Stark's fate uncertain, Pepper had no mind for etiquette and socializing.
"Skye, it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Potts."
"Just call me Pepper."
Mike added, "Skye is my assistant."
Just then, Natasha Roman walked out of the room. "We meet again, Mike."
"Oh, I remember, the woman with Coulson last time, her hair seemed to be auburn then?"
Mike certainly remembered. At the time, he had just rescued Lisa, but the sights at the Vampire factory had left him in a very foul mood, so much so that he wasn't in the mood to greet the famous Black Widow.
"Occupational hazard." Black Widow replied with a smile. According to statistics, Stark has a special fondness for blond women, so dyeing her hair blond made it easier to approach Stark.
To save Pepper, her spy identity was exposed prematurely.