Boom—!
A terrifying explosion erupted, the ground violently trembling and splitting apart.
Tony bolted like a madman, shouting at Daniel—who was also sprinting for his life:
"How many bombs did you plant!?"
"Not many. About a hundred."
"???"
Tony felt a wave of traumatic memories catching up to him.
Back when the Mark III didn't exist yet, he also had to run for his life exactly like this.
Now that the Mark III was finally completed, life had become better—he could run inside the armor!
Fortunately, this explosion wasn't as powerful as the last one and occurred deep underground.
After the two ran more than a hundred meters, the shockwave finally dissipated.
Looking back, an enormous crater—dozens of meters wide—had opened in the ground.
Tony walked to the edge, staring into the dust-filled abyss, his eyelid twitching.
"Now he's dead for sure, right?"
Daniel glanced at his mission panel.
"No. Not yet."
Boom!
Before he finished speaking, a mangled steel giant suddenly leapt up from the pit!
The Iron Monger armor looked utterly miserable.
After enduring round after round of TNT bombardment, even its formidable defenses had collapsed. Cracks covered every inch of the armor, and even the central cockpit had been blasted open, revealing a battered and grimy Obadiah Stane inside.
"Didn't expect this, did you? I'm back!"
Stane erupted into manic laughter, thrilled to have cheated death.
Tony was dumbfounded.
How could he still be alive after that?
Was "bigger mech = stronger mech" actually the real rule?
He instinctively raised his right arm to fire his repulsor cannon, only for a warning to flash: insufficient power.
Seeing this, Stane showed a cruel grin.
"Haha! Now you're out of options! It's my turn—"
Bang!
A crisp gunshot silenced him mid-sentence.
Stane's smile froze. A neat bullet hole appeared in the center of his forehead, blood slowly seeping out.
Daniel calmly holstered his Golden Desert Eagle and shook his head.
"Who pilots a mech without wearing a helmet."
"…"
Tony stood stunned, unable to snap back for a long time.
He never imagined Stane would go out in such a ridiculous fashion.
Daniel ignored the dazed Tony. His attention was completely absorbed by the system prompts appearing in his mind.
[You have defeated the BOSS 'Iron Monger' Obadiah Stane!]
[Calculating damage rewards.]
[Rewards: 10,000 EXP, 5 free attribute points, equipment 'Give-You-Your-Life-3000', item 'Universal Key', item 'Red Mushroom', item 'Blue Pill', equipment 'BT-7274 Vanguard-Class Titan']
[Equipment: Give-You-Your-Life-3000 (a super hybrid weapon combining ten different killing tools)]
[Item: Universal Key (opens any door… and steals others' WiFi)]
[Item: Red Mushroom (eat it to get bigger)]
[Item: Blue Pill (eat it to get bigger)]
Daniel: "?"
None of this looked remotely legitimate.
But his attention was instantly drawn and locked onto the final reward.
[Equipment: BT-7274 Vanguard-Class Titan]
[Effects: A fourth-generation Vanguard-class Titan mech equipped with advanced AI, capable of neural-link coordination with its pilot. Includes high-speed cannons, missile launchers, energy weapons, excellent mobility and defense, auto-repair, and energy absorption systems.]
[Note: Protocol Three: Protect the Pilot]
"A mech!?"
Daniel's eyes lit up, excitement surging through him.
There was actually a full mech in the reward list!
And judging by the description, its performance didn't seem inferior to Tony's or Stane's armors at all.
If Tony weren't standing right there watching him, he would have summoned it immediately to study.
Boom.
With Stane's life extinguished, the uncontrolled Iron Monger collapsed heavily to the ground.
Tony finally snapped out of his daze. His eyes lingered on Stane's corpse, voice low and complicated:
"I really treated him like family. I never thought it would end like this."
Daniel shrugged.
"His daughter probably feels the same."
Tony: "?"
Moments later, with a screech of brakes, Coulson and his S.H.I.E.L.D. squad arrived.
Coulson looked at the two of them, speechless.
"I gotta say, you two are always incredibly easy to locate."
"That's not my fault."
Tony protested. He was always the victim!
After confirming the situation, Coulson ordered his team to secure the area.
His gaze swept across the Iron Monger's remains, and he frowned.
"We've got an issue. The arc reactor in the chest is missing."
"Missing?"
Tony froze, immediately rushing forward to check.
Sure enough, the chest cavity was empty.
The reactor Stane stole from him earlier had vanished, even though Tony clearly saw it there before.
Tony instantly turned to the most suspicious person on the field—Daniel.
Feeling that scrutinizing gaze, Daniel felt his pure and noble dignity being insulted.
"What are you looking at me for? I didn't steal it!"
He indeed didn't.
He just forgot to turn off the auto-loot function.
The next day, Stark Industries held a press conference.
"The truth is, I am Iron Man!"
With a single sentence, Tony ignited a nationwide frenzy and forced every department of S.H.I.E.L.D. into overtime to clean up the mess he caused.
Even Nick Fury developed dark circles—though thankfully, no one could tell because his skin was already dark.
"Agent Daniel, your surveillance mission is now complete. From here on, Natasha Romanoff will take over contact and evaluation of Tony Stark."
Fury's voice came through the phone, hoarse from all-nighters.
The system chimed again.
[Mission 'Monitor Tony Stark' complete!]
[Reward: +1000 EXP, +30 S.H.I.E.L.D. Reputation, item 'Hive-Tech Smoke Grenade', equipment 'Loitering Munition']
[Item: Hive-Tech Smoke Grenade (releases thick smoke, great for escaping)]
[Equipment: Loitering Munition (launches a controllable drone-bomb that explodes and scatters four smaller bombs. Use it to block a bridge? Highly recommended.)]
Good grief.
He really ought to visit a space launch facility to test this thing.
As Daniel pondered this, Fury's voice sounded again:
"There's an emergency mission for you.
Over the past month, the Bronx has reported multiple missing-person cases—over a hundred people missing, including residents and tourists."
"Preliminary assessment suggests abnormal factors. I need you to investigate."
[NPC Nick Fury has assigned you a new mission]
[Mission: Investigate the Missing Persons]
[Objective: Determine the cause of the disappearances]
[Reward: 500 EXP, +10 S.H.I.E.L.D. Reputation, Random Equipment ×1]