The atmosphere on the balcony became terrifyingly quiet for a moment.
The night wind seemed to hold its breath, not daring to stir the congealed air.
Only the distant lights of New York City silently bore witness to this scene.
Leon's voice remained gentle, even with a hint of a smile.
Thor and Tony, however, were different.
"What did you say? Another fight?"
"Damn it, don't you even realize what you're saying?!"
Thor froze in place, his spine, which had just straightened from awakening the power of the God-King, curved again.
He wasn't afraid of fighting; he just felt it was utterly unfair.
Fight?
How to fight?
And with whom?
With this guy in front of him, whom he had almost smashed into scrap metal with one hammer strike, but who was now casually revived and super-boosted by Leon?
This wasn't fighting a mortal; it was contending with Leon's power!
If it were just that mortal, Thor vowed not to hold back, he could directly swat his armor, including the guy inside, with a single slap.
Thor's heart roared and bellowed.
He had just awakened even greater power!
Yes, that was the glory of the Odinson bloodline, the power of the God-King!
He should be invincible, he should announce his return with thunder!
But he didn't dare.
He didn't dare to wield his hammer in front of Leon.
He had no doubt that if he dared to utter the word "fight," the smile on Leon's face would instantly become brilliant.
Then, he would, like a referee, announce the start of the second round.
And no matter the outcome, he would be the only one ultimately humiliated.
What if he won?
It would merely be defeating a mortal, forcibly catalyzed by Leon, under Leon's grace.
What kind of glory was that?
This was simply a disgrace!
But what if he lost?
Thor couldn't imagine that scene.
If he couldn't even defeat a mortal casually enhanced by Leon, what right did he have to call himself Thor?
What face did he have to return to Asgard?
How should he choose?
How could he choose?!
He could only remain silent, then, in a fit of rage, in a fit of rage...
As the saying goes, where there is sorrow, there is joy.
Tony was the joyful one; he flexed his left arm, feeling the surging energy within his armor.
And with Jarvis's constant energy reserve reports, he began to calm down.
Anger?
Of course, there was.
Humiliation?
He was almost numb to it.
But at this moment, excitement occupied the high ground of his thoughts.
What exactly was Leon?
Repairing armor, reshaping matter, and before that, repairing terrain—this already surpassed the technological scope Tony could comprehend.
Compared to Thor, Leon, whether in personality or strength, resembled a god.
But the question arose: what did he want to do?
Did he really just want to watch a more exciting warm-up?
No, absolutely not just that.
Tony Stark never believed in coincidences, much less that a guy with divine power would make meaningless moves.
He repaired his armor, forcibly infused himself with energy, and then provoked Thor, forcing him to act again.
Behind all of this, there must be another purpose.
Tony felt that he might be testing.
Yes, he was testing.
Testing the limits of Thor after awakening new powers, and also testing the limits his armor could reach after carrying energy that didn't belong to it.
They were Leon's lab rats.
This battle was a data collection experiment.
This realization sent a chill down Tony's spine.
Deep down, he felt some anger.
Fear?
Yes.
But even more, excitement!
This was an opportunity!
An opportunity to observe, analyze, and even steal the secrets of the divine realm up close!
Leon's power was incomprehensible, but not unobservable.
The energy fluctuations produced when he repaired the armor, the golden divine power he injected into his body.
All of this was an invaluable treasure to Tony!
As long as he could decipher its mysteries, it would be enough to advance his technological level by a century!
As for fighting?
Who the hell still wanted to fight that golden-haired brute!
What technical content was there in brawling with a reckless man who only knew how to swing a hammer?
True combat should take place in the laboratory, between data and formulas!
Countless inspirations and ideas rapidly emerged in Tony's mind.
He had already begun to conceive an Arc Reactor model specifically designed to absorb and transform this divine power.
What he wanted to do was not to be Leon's lab rat.
What he wanted to do was to slowly grind Leon into his own nourishment!
...The atmosphere on the scene remained tense.
Darcy tugged at Jane's sleeve and whispered.
"Hey, Jane, what are they doing? Playing a game of 'whoever moves first loses'? What's the stake? The loser buys Mexican chicken rolls?"
Jane Foster's mind was in turmoil at this moment; she had no mood to pay attention to her complaints.
She looked at Thor and Tony, feeling her heart almost leap out of her throat.
She took a step forward, about to say something to break the damned silence.
However, Leon saw through everyone's thoughts and spoke first again.
He looked at the two stalemated individuals, his smile unchanged, and gently shook his head, letting out a sigh of disappointment.
"Alas."
"How boring."
He waved his hand, his tone disappointed.
"Never mind, no more fighting."
"Looking at you two, you don't seem to be in the mood anyway. The party atmosphere has been ruined by you two."
Everyone:??? What are you talking about?!
Weren't you the one who started the fight just now?
Thor and Tony were stunned. "No, no more fighting?"
"That's it?"
"Well... that's really great!"
Thor let out a sigh of relief, unable to help but want to snicker.
After a brief moment of surprise, a sense of absurdity welled up in Tony's heart.
This guy!
What exactly did he take them for?!
To be summoned and dismissed at will?
He charged and repaired them when he wanted them to fight.
And when he didn't want them to fight, he just said, "Never mind, not in the mood"?
Damn Leon!
Tony felt his lungs were about to explode with anger.
He swore he had never been so humiliated.
But no matter how they felt, Leon's next action directly caused him to break down on the spot.
Leon slowly walked in front of Tony, extended his hand, and gently tapped on his mask.
"Thump, thump."
It made a crisp sound.
"Alright, Mr. Stark," Leon said in a relaxed tone.
"Warm-up's over, put away your armor. Don't you find it stuffy wearing this tin can?"
As soon as he finished speaking.
Tony hadn't even had time to react.
"Click!"
A soft sound.
His armor began to disengage on its own without his authorization.
Countless pieces of armor, as if alive, rapidly disassembled, folded, transformed, and then, with a whoosh, flew back into the suitcase in the corner of the balcony and reassembled.
The entire process was fluid and lightning-fast.
So fast that Tony didn't even have time to say "fuck."
Thus, one second he was the majestic Iron Man.
The next second, he reverted to an ordinary man in a suit.
There was still a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth, his face pale, looking very weak.
The New York night wind blew, and Tony felt a chill on his body, but an even greater chill in his heart.
He looked down at his hands, then looked up at Leon's gentle smile.
What was Jarvis doing... he could directly control my armor's shutdown procedure?
Damn it, who exactly is Iron Man?!
....
Thank You For Reading Up to This Point.
Please Donate Power Stones
And Read More Chapters At Patreon.com/Destiny07