Leander finally allowed himself to relax, sinking onto his bed. The message from Kay, seemingly innocent, still played on his mind.
Gold-titanium alloy.
He recalled the fleeting encounter at the factory near the Queens-Staten Island border—the ordinary-looking van carrying extraordinary, high-quality metal. He'd been so nervous, grabbing only three small pieces before making a hasty retreat.
Was Kay testing me? The thought was irritating. If Kay had access to the gold-titanium, it meant two things: first, the supply chain for advanced alloys was closer than he thought; second, the slow pace of his current cultivation was unsustainable.
Leander threw the current iron rod he was absorbing onto the carpet. It only increased his Golden Eye Enhancement by a miserable 2% after an entire session.
"This steel is too slow," he grumbled internally. "At this rate, even with all my resources, it'll take another fifteen days just to max out this one enhancement. If Kay really has a line on the good stuff, I need to find out. This feeling of being so small and weak is getting old fast."
He shook his head, focusing on the current reality. Thanks to the intense fight with the Abomination and the ensuing media frenzy, the police presence on the streets felt palpably heavier. More police equals less freedom of movement. Time to train hard and grow up fast. Being small is absolute torture in a city like this.
After a routine family dinner, Leander resumed his relentless cultivation.
In the quiet domesticity of the living room, six-year-old Peter Parker was glued to the sofa, watching Saturday morning cartoons. Uncle George was immersed in a Yankees game, and Aunt Jenny was tidying up.
Meanwhile, somewhere in a penthouse high above the city, Tony Stark, still navigating his early days as a public figure (and likely nursing a slight hangover), watched a news brief about the recent monster chaos. He swirled his glass of red wine.
"Jarvis, you awake?"
"Always at your service, sir. The structural integrity reports on your new Malibu vineyard are ready."
"Forget the grapes, J. New project folder. Call it: 'Jericho Missile Mk. I.'"
The gears of the larger MCU machine were beginning to turn, unconcerned with the small metal master in Queens.
Two weeks later, the new routine was solid. Leander and Peter were inseparable at school; Peter's gentle nature and uncanny knack for complex math (which even Aunt Jenny noticed, remarking, "Little Peter is even smarter than Leo was at that age!") made him an instant favorite.
Leander, despite his initial, mild jealousy, quickly conceded: "Yeah, the kid invented Web Fluid later. I guess I really can't compete with that level of genius. My skill is more... alchemical."
But the biggest change was in Leander's own body.
Standing in front of a full-length mirror, Leander examined his eyes. They were intensely black, like polished obsidian, constantly radiating a faint, warm golden light deep within the iris.
The System showed the status: Golden Eyes (99%).
He widened his eyes, focusing all his mental energy into the final push. The golden light surged, shining brightly. Two blinding beams of golden light shot out, hitting the mirror's surface.
The light that reflected off Leander himself returned normally, but the golden energy that impacted the mirror did something extraordinary. A strange, fractal mark appeared and spread rapidly, quickly consuming most of the reflective glass surface.
Leander immediately closed his eyes, cutting the power source. The strange marks stopped spreading. When he opened his eyes again, they looked normal, but the damage was done.
The majority of the mirror in front of him had completely turned into a metal plate. The surface was rough and dull, and the new metal was tightly bonded to the remaining glass.
He tapped the new metal plate with his finger. It felt solid, heavy, and metallic. The most common, cheap teppanyaki grill metal on the market, he determined.
New ability confirmed: Metallization.
He immediately took down the ruined mirror. "Well, I need to cover this up." He quietly ordered a replacement full-length mirror online. "Tonight, we complete the Golden Eyes enhancement."
After school, Leander finished an entire box of Dove chocolates—the rapid conversion of the high-calorie snack sending a potent surge of energy directly into his mind. Though his stomach was empty, his mental reserves were full. He licked his lips, the phantom taste of richness lingering.
He picked up his last two remaining metal rods. He closed his eyes and poured his entire mental focus into the consumption.
The golden light flared. The collected energy from his weeks of grinding cultivation, combined with the power of the rapidly dissolving chocolate, rushed into his eyes.
The final surge was immense. The energy accumulated in his eyes detonated, turning his entire eyeball into a blinding, solid gold orb. Leander felt his mind being violently drained, the energy surging out of his spiritual core.
His eyes, like scorched, dried sponges, were absorbing every last drop of stored power.
CRACK!
The two metal rods in his hands simultaneously fractured and snapped, falling onto the carpet, their purpose fulfilled.
Two dazzling golden beams shot out, briefly illuminating the entire room, before vanishing abruptly.
Leander checked his status, his heart pounding in his chest.
Control Point: 52 (Up from 51)
Strength: 7
Defense: 7 (Up from 6)
Speed: 8
Spirit: 19 (Up from 17)
Skill: D-Rank Metal Control, D-Rank Body
Enhancement: Golden Eyes (100% COMPLETE), Copper Skin (11%) (Up from 10%), Steel Bars (0%), Iron Bones (0%)
Derivative Skill: Golden Eyes of Truth (Unaffected by any abilities, sees through all illusions, enhances visual observation, and can metallize objects)
The massive leap in Spirit—two whole points—made him laugh out loud. His mental stamina was now nearly double that of a peak adult male. The brief light and movement in the deep night went unnoticed.
He silently commanded: "Golden Eyes That Insight Through Illusion."
Two pinpricks of golden light exploded in his dark pupils, rapidly dyeing his eyes gold and imbuing them with a strange, pulsing glow.
He looked around. With a thought, the walls of his house completely vanished. He could see his entire neighborhood—figures moving, details hidden from normal sight. He could see through the clothes on his own skin. Focusing slightly, he could even dissolve the skin layer, seeing the underlying muscle tissue, blood flow, bones, and meridians.
He blinked and immediately returned to normal vision, clutching his rapidly beating heart. The power was exhilarating.
He picked up a nearby porcelain coffee cup—a cartoon design Peter loved. Concentrating, a golden light shot out from his eyes and pooled onto the cup's surface.
In less than two seconds, the golden light subsided. The fragile porcelain cup in his hand had transformed completely into a metallic cup.
He squeezed it slightly. The cup twisted and crumpled easily. "It really is metal! Manipulable metal!"
But upon closer inspection, he frowned. "The quality is incredibly low. Worse than the cheap iron I buy online."
Since the material was useless for absorption, he tested the reverse process. He extended a finger and gently touched the cup. With a strange energy fluctuation, the twisted metal returned to its original, unbroken porcelain form.
He then looked at the metal plate that was once his mirror. He tried to revert it. Nothing happened.
Heuristic confirmed: Once metallization lasts more than three minutes, the change is permanent and irreversible.
Having successfully tested the limits of his new, powerful skill, Leander felt the exhaustion of the day melt away.
Keep practicing!
He casually pulled out a new metal rod. The golden light reappeared in the dark room, and the grind continued.
Meanwhile, far away, in the industrial drop-off zone, Kay stood next to a flatbed truck carrying the massive, covered Gundam model.
The black cover was removed. Kay's hands trembled as he touched the smooth, hard metal lines, tracing the precise texture of the parts. It looked, felt, and was exactly like a life-sized piece of advanced machinery.
"Ah! Yes!" Kay cried out, his voice a mixture of awe and obsession, his entire body shaking as if he'd just experienced a transcendental moment.
"As expected, big is king!" he exclaimed to the truck driver. "I need a large model too! A really big one!"