Tony stood there, his entire body trembling.
Inside him were two overwhelming emotions—
rage and self-blame.
But the rage burned far brighter.
For years, Tony had believed that his parents had died in a tragic car accident.
He had carried that grief silently.
But now—
Someone was telling him the truth.
They had been murdered.
And he, their son, had lived all these years without even knowing who the killer was.
The thought alone made Tony feel like the most useless son imaginable.
At that moment, a single thought formed in Tony's mind.
Whoever killed his parents—
would die.
Even if Tony himself could not do it…
He still had Karl.
As long as he asked, Karl would help him.
Tony knew that without a doubt.
Right now, all Tony wanted was the truth.
Inside the Shadow World, Pepper watched the scene unfold.
Her eyes slowly reddened.
She had been Tony's assistant for many years.
She knew him better than most people.
Tony had always carried deep regret about his parents' deaths.
The last words he had ever spoken to them had not been "I love you."
Now he was learning that they had not died by accident—
They had been assassinated.
How could he possibly remain calm?
Meanwhile—
Steve Rogers' expression changed dramatically after hearing Pierce's words.
"I can tell you," Pierce said quickly.
"But you must have Karl let me go."
"Otherwise, I would rather die than say anything."
Tony grabbed Pierce by the collar, fury blazing in his eyes.
Pierce was desperate.
He knew this was his only bargaining chip.
He had to negotiate if he wanted to survive.
Tony turned toward Karl.
His eyes were bloodshot.
Karl simply nodded.
He agreed.
Seeing that signal, Pierce finally spoke.
"It was Bucky Barnes."
"Back then, the organization sent the Winter Soldier to intercept Howard Stark and retrieve the Super Soldier Serum he was transporting."
"But during the operation…"
"Bucky killed Howard Stark and his wife."
"Impossible!"
Steve Rogers stepped forward immediately.
"Bucky would never do such a thing!"
Karl only glanced at Steve Rogers.
He said nothing.
Howard Stark had admired Steve deeply.
Yet Steve had chosen to hide the truth about Howard's death simply because the killer was his best friend.
Even in the original timeline, Karl had always felt that Tony was the one who had truly been wronged.
"I have proof!"
Pierce shouted quickly.
"I have the video!"
"I have the footage of Bucky killing Howard Stark!"
"Wait—I'll show it to you!"
He hurriedly pulled out his phone.
But before Steve Rogers could move forward—
A terrifying pressure suddenly descended on him.
Even with the Super Soldier Serum, Steve was instantly forced down onto the ground.
He could not move.
Karl had applied the pressure.
He knew exactly what Steve was trying to do.
And there was no way he would allow it.
Karl had originally planned to reveal the truth about Tony's parents much later.
Perhaps during something similar to the Civil War incident.
But his presence had already changed too many events.
The butterfly effect had completely altered the timeline.
Since the truth had surfaced now—
Then Tony would face it right here.
And with Karl present—
Tony could take revenge on anyone.
"Look!"
Pierce unlocked a hidden account on his phone.
After searching through the files, he opened a piece of surveillance footage.
He handed the phone to Tony.
Tony watched the video.
Silently.
On the screen—
He saw the Winter Soldier brutally assault Howard Stark.
Then—
He watched as his mother was strangled to death.
The veins on Tony's forehead bulged violently.
He threw the phone aside.
Then he walked toward Bucky Barnes, who was being restrained by Karl's telekinesis.
Tony raised his palm cannon.
Pointing it directly at Bucky's face.
"No, Tony!"
"He's innocent!"
"He was being controlled by Hydra!"
"It wasn't his choice!"
Steve Rogers struggled desperately on the ground.
Trying to explain.
Trying to stop Tony.
"So…"
"You knew?"
Tony slowly turned toward Steve Rogers.
A hollow laugh escaped his throat.
"My father admired you so much."
"How ironic."
Then Tony turned back.
His palm cannon glowed brightly.
BOOM—!
"NO————!!"
Steve Rogers screamed in despair.
Bucky Barnes was instantly obliterated by Tony's repulsor blast.
Karl watched the scene without emotion.
He did not believe Bucky was innocent.
There was no such thing as innocence in killing.
If someone killed another person—
They had to be prepared to die themselves.
Even if he had been controlled.
Does being controlled erase the lives he took?
Does it bring those victims back?
After firing the blast, Tony stood frozen.
His body seemed hollow.
As if something inside him had finally broken.
Karl suddenly sensed something.
A flash of killing intent.
Coming from Steve Rogers.
And the target of that killing intent—
Was Tony.
Karl's eyes narrowed slightly.
For a brief moment, he considered killing Steve Rogers himself.
BOOM—!
Karl suddenly used his telekinesis.
Steve Rogers was dragged through the air and thrown directly in front of Tony.
Karl decided to leave the choice to him.
If Steve's killing intent had been directed at Tony—
Then Tony should decide Steve's fate.
After all, Steve had also joined Nick Fury in attacking Karl.
His ending was unlikely to be good either way.
"He just showed killing intent toward you," Karl said calmly.
"Think carefully about whether you want to spare him."
"Since he joined Nick Fury to deal with me, even if you don't act, his fate will not be pleasant."
"Think about Pepper."
"Don't make a decision you'll regret later."
Tony took a deep breath.
He looked at Steve Rogers.
Then he nodded.
"I understand."
"Thank you, Karl."
Tony had made his decision.
Steve Rogers would not be spared.
Tony raised his weapon again.
Just as he was about to fire—
"Wait."
"Can you let him go?"
A calm female voice interrupted.
A black sedan slowly drove onto the ruins of the manor.
The door opened.
A blonde woman stepped out.
She wore a professional suit, her long wavy hair flowing behind her.
Everyone present turned toward her.
Karl's eyes narrowed slightly.
He was genuinely surprised.
The woman standing there was—
Peggy Carter.
But something was wrong.
Peggy Carter should have been an elderly woman lying in a hospital bed.
Yet the woman standing here looked young.
Almost identical to how she appeared decades ago.
For a moment, Karl even wondered if he had somehow entered the wrong Marvel universe.
Still, he quickly regained his composure.
After all—
This world had already shown countless anomalies.
Even Spider-Woman had appeared earlier.
"Peggy Carter."
"Why are you here?"
"And what right do you have to ask us to release him?"
Karl asked calmly.
Peggy Carter looked slightly surprised.
"I didn't expect Mr. Karl to know me."
"That's quite an honor."
She smiled faintly.
Then she continued.
"I'm willing to exchange Steve Rogers."
"For a S.H.I.E.L.D. classified item—084."
"Gravitonium."
"Of course…"
"If you're not interested, that's fine as well."
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