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*****
Phinney stood at the entrance for a brief moment before finally buying a ticket and heading inside. He had actually visited the Captain America Museum once when he was a child, but back then, it was solely to verify the state of this world. He hadn't truly taken the time to explore it properly.
Once inside the hall, the first thing he encountered was an introduction to Steve Rogers' life. Although there were certain elements of romanticization and fabrication, the majority of the content was surprisingly factual.
However, regarding his ultimate fate, the exhibits described him as having sacrificed himself for the war effort. Indeed, no one at the time could have imagined that he could be frozen in ice for seventy years and still come back to life.
Next were several items used by Captain America during World War II. Phinney even spotted the shield; he didn't need to think twice to know it was a replica.
After wandering through the museum, Phinney gained a deeper understanding of Captain America. He had to admit that, judging solely by the museum's records, Steve Rogers was framed as an almost perfect human being.
He recalled that Captain America was also scheduled to be discovered sometime this year.
Thinking of this, Phinney let out a soft sigh. As expected, ever since Tony made his debut, the world had become increasingly chaotic. Fortunately, he now possessed at least some measure of self-protection.
Leaving the museum, Phinney continued to wander around, specifically looking for secluded, remote locations without surveillance cameras. He was scouting locations to prepare for sudden teleportations in the future.
The day passed by imperceptibly in this manner.
The next day, Phinney went to school as usual. Entering May, perhaps because summer vacation was fast approaching, the students' moods had been exceptionally high lately. Groups of students could often be seen gathered together on campus, deep in conversation.
"Hey, Phinney."
Among them was his classmate Billy, a friend he usually got along well with. Billy leaned in and whispered to him as soon as he reached the classroom, "I heard Stark Industries is planning to recruit interns recently. I'm thinking of giving it a shot during the summer break. Do you want to come along?"
"Uh... Stark Industries!?" Phinney was momentarily stunned. Since he hadn't needed to grind for experience lately, he hadn't contacted Tony in over a month.
"No thanks, I'll pass!"
Working a job was out of the question. Phinney had decided he didn't want to work for anyone else in this lifetime. He had already made a significant amount of money, and selling fried chicken rolls was a much faster way to earn cash. There was no need to go laboring for others.
"But that's Iron Man!" Billy continued to urge him, his face full of excitement and anticipation. "Maybe you'll even get to see Tony Stark in person!"
"So what if I see him?"
Phinney curled his lip inwardly. During their time fighting together recently, the two had bickered constantly. Their relationship had actually become somewhat worse rather than better.
Seeing Phinney's cold reaction, Billy was actually a bit taken aback. Iron Man's biggest audience was young people in school; in any given school, at least eight out of ten people were Iron Man fans.
"Alright then!"
Billy didn't push it, but then he asked curiously, "Then what do you plan to do over the holidays? Are you going out to have some fun with Dante?" As he spoke, he wore a smirk on his face.
"Who knows!"
Phinney shrugged with an air of indifference, which immediately sparked a wave of jealousy in Billy. Billy began to mutter under his breath, "I'm clearly very handsome too, so why are you the one who's so popular!?"
"Do you know the difference between the two of us?" Phinney couldn't help but shoot back.
"What difference?" Billy blinked, asking involuntarily.
"It's because I have a pair of normal eyes!"
Having said that, he ignored the confused Billy and began to pack his textbooks in preparation for class. It took a while before Billy realized what he meant. He complained indignantly next to Phinney, "I am handsome; it's just that you guys haven't noticed it yet."
"Yeah, we aren't blind like you are," Phinney replied while previewing the contents of his textbook. While Billy wasn't ugly, he certainly couldn't be called handsome—at the very least, there was a significant gap between him and Phinney.
The two then engaged in a heated debate surrounding this issue until the teacher arrived.
Phinney felt that this mundane daily life was quite fulfilling. In essence, he was still a relatively ordinary person. Although he wished for greatness in his heart, he wasn't particularly looking forward to a life of constant slaughter.
However, in the Marvel Universe—especially in New York—living a simple and peaceful life was no easy feat. Many things were already quietly unfolding.
S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters
It had been over half a year since Iron Man's debut. Looking at the apologetic face of Agent Coulson before him, Nick Fury felt incredibly weary.
"Agent Coulson, please tell me the results of your investigation over the past seven months. Who exactly is the Silver Knight?"
Nick Fury stared intently at Coulson with his single eye. He had always trusted Coulson's abilities, but now he was beginning to doubt his own judgment.
"I'm sorry, sir. I don't know!"
The honest Coulson spoke the truth, his face carrying a look of helplessness. If he could, he obviously wanted to complete the mission.
Unfortunately, every time Phinney arrived, he appeared directly via a portal, and he never allowed Jarvis to keep any records of his existence. Therefore, he hadn't been detected even once in over half a year.
In fact, out of desperation, Coulson had considered having agents sneak into Tony's villa to install listening devices. Unfortunately, the agent was discovered the moment they entered. It had taken everything Coulson had to pacify the enraged Tony afterward.
What he didn't know was that being discovered so easily was actually because of Phinney. Because of Phinney's very first "intrusion," Tony had extensively remodeled his workshop.
Consequently, while the "Anti-Phinney Workshop" had failed to stop Phinney, it had successfully countered S.H.I.E.L.D. It was truly a cause for celebration.
"You don't need to be responsible for this matter anymore."
Nick Fury decided to change his strategy. Continuing to have Coulson investigate this matter wouldn't yield any results, so it was better to try a different approach.
"Yes, sir!"
Having been sidelined for so long, Coulson was also anxious. Now that he heard he was no longer responsible, he actually felt a sense of relief.
Nick Fury, whose face was already dark enough, didn't say anything more. After dismissing Coulson, he called in a female agent with a graceful figure.
"Agent Romanoff, I have a mission that needs your attention."
Nick Fury got straight to the point. "Assess Tony Stark and produce a report. At the same time, find a way to uncover the identity of the Silver Knight."
"That genius playboy!?"
Black Widow raised an eyebrow, appearing to find it interesting. She continued, "And that person's identity still hasn't been uncovered yet?"
Fury kept a straight face. "So, can you complete these two tasks?"
"Rest assured, sir!"
Black Widow replied confidently and then turned to leave the office, leaving Nick Fury alone to reflect on his thoughts.
While Black Widow was being sent to Tony's side as an undercover agent, far away on Asgard, a major event was also being prepared.
The Prince of Asgard was about to be crowned King in the near future!
The Golden Palace was filled with a joyful atmosphere. Almost every Asgardian had a look of curiosity and anticipation on their face, wondering what kind of changes their new King would bring.
Except for Loki—officially the second prince, but in truth the third child.
Loki felt the festive atmosphere surrounding him and forced a smile onto his face, though his heart was filled with an indescribable bitterness. He didn't know if he should congratulate his brother, whose head was filled with nothing but muscle.
However, he believed that if he were to become King, he would surely make Asgard more prosperous than Thor ever could!
Meanwhile, in a remote factory in Brazil, Dr. Banner was also deeply troubled by the matter of the serum. Having tried all sorts of methods, he was still unable to resolve the problem within his body.
(End of Chapter)