Beep! Beep! Beep!
With a silent Jean Grey sitting beside him, Leo arrived at Tony Stark's mansion in less than half an hour.
But after honking the horn a few times, the gate still didn't open automatically.
Where the hell was J.A.R.V.I.S.? That guy was usually super proactive.
What happened today? A power outage? He couldn't even control the garage?
Thump. Thump. Thump.
A moment later, Banner walked over slowly and started manually opening the garage door.
"Hey, Banner, what's going on? Where's J.A.R.V.I.S.? A power outage? He can't even control the garage?" Leo leaned out of the car window and called out.
Banner smirked. "What do you mean, 'where's J.A.R.V.I.S.'? He got attacked and locked up somewhere. Tony hasn't even eaten lunch. He's down there tinkering with something like a maniac."
Banner's grin grew even wider—he was clearly enjoying this.
That smug bastard Tony always acted like he was number three in the universe, second only to God and himself.
Seeing him finally get humbled? Banner found it deeply satisfying.
Leo suddenly remembered: J.A.R.V.I.S. had been locked up by Red Queen… right, that was on him.
"Hehe… so that's how it is," Leo said with an awkward laugh.
"Hehe, well done. Let him suffer a little. He can't even use his Iron Man armor right now. You can't imagine how depressed he is," He said, gloating openly.
"The great Iron Man has turned into Scrap Iron Man. His fans won't see him for a few days."
In the last battle, the world learned Tony Stark was Iron Man.
His fan base had exploded overnight.
Stark Industries' stock price had gone up for half a month straight—doubling its peak.
Tony had fame, fortune, and more ego than ever.
He'd been basking in praise, enjoying parties every night with models and movie stars.
Meanwhile, Banner, who was quiet and not exactly wealthy, had watched women flock to Tony like moths to a flame.
So now? Watching Tony crash and burn felt amazing.
Ignoring Banner's schadenfreude, Leo led Jean Grey out of the car and into the mansion.
Wanda and Android 18 were both inside.
"My dear, where did you abduct this little sister from? She's too cute," Wanda said the moment she saw Jean Grey.
Leo rolled his eyes. "Can you not? What do you mean 'abducted'? If you can't talk properly, maybe talk less."
"This is Jean Grey. Her father abandoned her, and from now on, she'll be living with us."
The moment Wanda heard that, something clicked inside her. Isn't that just like me?
"Baby, you've suffered. From now on, you're with your big sister. I'll take care of you. We're family," Wanda said, hugging Jean tightly, her eyes turning red.
Jean Grey felt warmth—real warmth—for the first time in years.
The tears she'd held back for two days came pouring out, and she began to sob loudly.
And just like that, the two strongest women in the Marvel Universe hugged each other and cried like children.
Leo quietly pulled out his phone and snapped a few stealth photos of the historic moment.
"Tch. You perverted Master. I despise you," Android 18 snorted, glaring at him.
Smack!
Leo gave her a firm slap on her ass.
"Two days without discipline and you're already trying to flip the house, huh?" he growled under his breath. "I'll deal with you tonight."
"I'm not afraid of you! Two against one—who's scared of who?" 18 shot back, smug as ever.
Leo sighed inwardly. These women really were fearless. He had to remind them who was boss every now and then.
But not now. This was their dramatic emotional bonding moment. He knew better than to interfere.
Dragging the grinning Banner along, Leo headed down to Tony's underground lab.
There, he found Tony Stark slumped on a chair, holding a cup of coffee and posing like Rodin's Thinker—only more miserable.
"Hello, Mr. Iron Man Tony Stark. Did you catch chickenpox or were you just too arrogant and got bricked?"
The moment Tony heard that voice, he didn't even need to look.
"Get lost! Don't you understand not to expose a man's pain? Do you have manners? Sympathy?"
Leo smirked. "What's wrong? Weren't you enjoying boundless glory and a crowd of beauties just a few weeks ago? Everyone online's talking about how Iron Man is the greatest hero after Steve Rogers, huh?"
Tony looked embarrassed. "What do you mean boundless glory? I just made a little money and got a few fans. It's nothing."
He said it with zero shame. Honestly, this man had mastered the art of shamelessness.
Leo stared at him with open contempt, but Tony just forced a sheepish grin.
Then it hit him—he remembered something.
A private equity fund had quietly bought up Stark Industries' stock when it had plummeted. They now owned 15% of the company.
His eyes suddenly widened as the realization dawned on him.
"F***! Don't tell me you secretly acquired Stark Industries' stock!" Tony shouted.
"I remember when you saved me, you said you could know the past and predict the future. I didn't believe it… until later, when I said Obadiah Stane would betray me. And you were right."
"Now, when the stock price plummeted, someone scooped it all up. Who else could've known? It had to be you, you sneaky bastard!"
The more Tony thought about it, the angrier he got.
Leo had used Tony's own disaster to buy into Stark Industries.
He was now the second-largest shareholder. Tony had basically sold himself out—and helped Leo pay for it.
Tony Stark, the self-proclaimed genius, stood there completely broken.
Leo shrugged innocently. "You can't blame me. I'm a good guy. A positive character. It's not my fault none of you believe me."
The more Leo saw Tony suffer, the happier he got. Happiness built on someone else's pain? Chef's kiss.
"Tony," Leo said finally, grinning, "I've got some good news for you."