The wind on the rooftop was quite strong, almost blowing Steve's cowl askew.
The atmosphere was somewhat frozen.
On one side were the fully armed, panting first generation Avengers, exhausted.
On the other, a blonde man in a custom-tailored suit, hands in his pockets, not even a single strand of his hair out of place, with the Asgardian prince in a bizarre bodysuit sprawled at his feet.
The contrast in styles was too stark, like editing scenes from 'The Godfather' and 'Teletubbies' together.
"Sir!"
Although Steve didn't know who this person was, his radar-like sense of justice told him that the man in front of him was very dangerous.
He raised his shield, his face serious. "This is a battlefield, it's extremely dangerous. No matter who you are, please leave immediately."
"Leave?"
Frieza raised an eyebrow, a signature, elegantly irritating smile appearing on his lips, the kind that made one want to punch him.
"Captain Rogers, I think you've got one thing wrong. This is my building—though it still bears Stark's name in name, soon, this entire area will be renamed Frieza. I'm inspecting my future assets, is there a problem?"
Tony, in the air, opened his faceplate, revealing a face covered in sweat and grease.
"Frieza? The real estate upstart who's been acquiring ruins like a mad dog lately?" Tony clearly recognized the face.
"Listen, buddy, I know you're rich, and maybe even know a few tricks, but now isn't the time for business. That big hole in the sky is spewing aliens, and standing here, you will only get in the way."
Although Tony was surprised with how Frieza dodged Steve's shield just now, he didn't believe a real estate developer could handle an alien army.
"Get in the way?"
Frieza seemed to have heard a hilarious joke, his shoulders subtly shaking, emitting that hair-raising laugh.
"Oh ho ho ho... Mr. Stark, you're too confident in those tin toys you made. Instead of worrying about me, you should worry about whether those fly-like aliens will sting you to death."
He extended a slender finger, elegantly pointing to the sky.
As if in response to his words, the portal suddenly vibrated violently.
"Roar—!"
Several deafening roars sounded, followed by three more massive Leviathans pouring out of the wormhole, with dense swarms of Chitauri soldiers trailing behind them.
The Avengers' faces instantly turned pale.
The previous wave had already exhausted them, was there no end to this?
"Shit!" Tony cursed, his faceplate instantly closing.
"Captain, I'll leave this to you! I'm going to lure those big guys away!"
"Natasha, Barton, hold the ground! Hulk... Go smash those things!"
Steve no longer bothered with the strange real estate developer, shouting out orders.
"Roar!"
Hulk roared, leaping out like a green cannonball, clinging to the outer wall of a building.
"Sir, although I don't know your purpose, for your safety, please stay behind cover and don't move."
Steve dropped his final warning and charged with his shield towards several newly landed Chitauri soldiers.
Watching this busy group of superheroes, Frieza yawned boredly.
It was like watching a bunch of ants fighting to the death over a few breadcrumbs. It was fresh at first, but after a while, it was just meh.
He turned around, his gaze falling on the humming spatial device.
The Space Stone emitted an enchanting glow, and the pure energy shield surrounding it, an insurmountable chasm for others, was merely as hard as plastic wrap to him. If he wanted to, he could reach out and pluck it off right now to play with like a marble.
But...
Frieza looked at the big hole in the sky, then at the constantly updating system backend.
[Ding! The Chitauri army is pressing, New York citizens are panicking, Fear Points +10!]
[Ding! Fear Points +10!]
[Ding...]
Although the Fear Points were increasing slowly, it was continuous. If he closed the portal, wouldn't this free buffet stop?
That wouldn't do.
Doing business is about the long game. Even if the flow is a bit slow, it's still profit. Besides, the real feast hasn't been served yet.
"Let this door stay open a little longer, it's Stark's electricity bill anyway."
Frieza contentedly found a relatively clean step to sit on, crossed his legs, and even considered asking Loki to give him a leg massage.
Unfortunately, Loki was currently sprawled on the ground, his eyes furtively darting between the Space Stone and Frieza.
As the God of Mischief, Loki never missed an opportunity to escape.
That terrifying monster seemed to be in a daze now?
And those Avengers were too busy to care about this side. As long as he could get the Space Stone, or jump off the building amidst the chaos, escaping with his illusions would be as easy as pie.
Then he'd hide in some deserted place, wait for this storm to pass, and then return to Asgard or go to another planet.
Loki's fingers twitched slightly, ready to cast a phantom shift.
"I think you'd better retract that foolish thought."
A lazy yet bone-chilling voice, like a thunderclap, rang in Loki's ears.
Loki stiffened, mechanically turning his head, meeting Frieza's eyes that were smiling yet not smiling.
"Loki, your current position is highly sought after."
Frieza extended his hand, making a 'twisting' motion in the air, as if unscrewing a bottle cap.
"Do you know how many people in the universe are lining up to be my dog? If you don't cherish this opportunity, I don't mind twisting your head off like a champagne cork, with a 'pop,' that scene would surely be beautiful."
"Then, I'll strip off this cool battle suit and put it on that big guy called Thor. I think he'd be more obedient than you."
Loki gasped, a vivid image instantly flashing in his mind: his head being separated from his body, and then Thor dancing in this shameful bodysuit.
How malicious!
"No! Master! I didn't! I just... I just wanted to see if the floor was dirty and if you needed your shoes shined."
Loki instantly sprang up from the ground, frantically wiping Frieza's spotless leather shoes with his sleeve, his face plastered with a fawning smile.
What god's dignity, what Asgard's glory. Nothing was more important than his life.
Frieza nodded in satisfaction.
This watchdog was almost trained. Although a bit cowardly, he was obedient.
Time passed by minute by minute.
The battle below had entered a white-hot stage. Tony's energy was almost depleted, Hulk was bruised and battered from being focused-fired, and Steve's shield was almost sparking from being swung so much.
Frieza yawned repeatedly, even feeling like taking a nap.
It was too boring. Nothing but explosions, no novelty at all.
Just then—
Frieza's super vision, enhanced by the Frieza template, keenly caught a small black dot on the horizon.
It was a uniquely shaped black bomber, dozens of kilometers away, breaking through the clouds and rapidly flying towards Manhattan Island.
A B2 Spirit bomber.
And in its bomb bay, a massive object was mounted.
The prominent nuclear radiation symbol on it, even from afar, gave off a sense of world-ending destruction.
"Oh?"
Frieza's eyes instantly lit up, like a child seeing a desired toy.
Finally, it's here.
Is this the legendary "American rescue"?
If you can't solve the problem, you solve the person who raised the problem, and flatten the place where the problem occurred along the way.
The smile at the corner of his lips gradually widened into an extremely excited, maniacal laugh.
This is humanity, willing to sacrifice their own city and millions of people without hesitation for the sake of "safety."
This ruthlessness...
It certainly suited his taste.
At the same time.
Tony, struggling in the air, received an urgent alert from Jarvis.
"Sir, a nuclear missile has been detected, targeting downtown Manhattan! Estimated detonation time: two minutes and thirty seconds!"
"What?!"
Tony's voice changed pitch. "Those lunatics! There are millions of civilians down here! And my tower!"
"The director is already trying to intercept it, but that's a direct order from the Security Council and cannot be revoked."
Tony looked at the portal that was furiously spewing energy, then at the missile that had already appeared at the edge of his vision.
This energy shield couldn't even be broken by Thor's hammer, how could it be closed?
The only way...
Tony's gaze turned to the massive spatial wormhole.
"Jarvis, divert all energy to this target and plot an interception course."
"Sir, that's a one-way ticket."
"Do as I say!"