"Still want to fight?" Wonder Woman looked at the defeated Atreus with a pleased expression.
"Fight! Why wouldn't I?"
It was rare to find an instructor with similar strength who could still overpower him, and sparring with them for free was an opportunity only a fool would pass up.
For the next hour, the basement reverberated with loud crashes, making Atreus's bodyguards nervous, as if Godzilla were battling King Kong inside.
Finally, the sparring session ended with Atreus beaten black and blue.
"Don't be discouraged. For the short time you've trained, your skills are actually quite impressive! In terms of strength, you've surpassed many Greek demigods." Wonder Woman smiled as she comforted him, but then her tone shifted: "However, I feel like you're still holding something back, not using your full power."
Atreus wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with a grin. "These days, who doesn't have a few tricks up their sleeve? Those moves are only for life-or-death situations."
Even after absorbing Achilles' skills, Atreus couldn't fully master them in such a short time to beat Wonder Woman in hand-to-hand combat. After all, Wonder Woman is one of DC's strongest physical fighters, second only to Superman. Above her, there are no pure hand-to-hand combat experts.
In real combat, Atreus could still use his chariot of war, The Tragedy of Troy, to leave Wonder Woman in shambles, or surprise her with Flash Step.
When the methods go beyond simple combat, the ways to take down an opponent multiply.
But those aren't suitable for sparring.
Confident in his backup tricks, Atreus didn't mind being a punching bag. After all, the skill upgrades from the system notifications were incredibly satisfying.
What concerned him more was that, at his current level, it would be extremely difficult to improve further.
After all, finding another humanoid with such an obvious weakness as Achilles was a rare opportunity.
Atreus couldn't help but wonder: now that he had defeated Achilles, could Shazam still use Achilles' powers?
His thoughts drifted.
"What are you thinking about?" Diana asked.
"Nothing. I was just wondering if there's anything out there that could really challenge me," Atreus mumbled as he walked out of the basement.
After using his money to calm his frightened bodyguards, he returned to the villa's living room, where the TV news was broadcasting: "Hammer Industries has announced an upcoming press conference to showcase their 'Advanced Weapons System.' Reportedly, Hammer Industries has successfully developed humanoid drones rivaling Iron Man. Following this news, Hammer's stock price soared."
Upon hearing this, Atreus became annoyed and made a phone call: "Hey, Sarah, notify my contacts on Wall Street..."
Less than an hour later, Wall Street was shaken.
The renowned stock sniper, hailed as the new generation's 'Stock God,' Atreus Wayne, publicly opposed Hammer Industries.
His video message was direct: "Current drone systems are just a pile of 'junk.' These oversized toys can't guarantee loyalty to the nation. Only manned suits like Iron Man's are the future of the world."
In the video, the sexy reporter interviewing Atreus provocatively displayed her assets, swaying her hips as she asked, "Mr. Wayne, does this mean you're siding with your good friend Tony Stark?"
"Of course! I'm betting on Tony! That's why I'm shorting Hammer Industries."
The interview ended there.
No one saw Atreus casually throw the reporter's slip of paper into the trash.
No one knew that Hammer Industries' boss, Justin Hammer, was furiously shouting behind closed doors: "What the hell? You think you can short Hammer Industries? I'll pump the stock price and make you pay!"
With that, Justin immediately contacted Tony's old rival, Whiplash Ivan Vanko.
Justin knew Ivan wasn't trustworthy, but he was short on talent and could only hope Ivan would rewrite the drone's software to make it a match for Iron Man.
What happens when you hand over your high-tech weapons to someone else for programming?
Hammer's drone army going rogue is the perfect illustration.
When Tony, who had solved his palladium poisoning and developed a new power core using his father's data, flew Iron Man to the Hammer Industries press conference, he found himself targeted by his old friend, James Rhodes, in the military version of Iron Man's suit, War Machine.
"Hey, man, what are you doing?" Tony saw a barrage of warning messages pop up on his helmet's display, leaving him bewildered.
"Tony, something's wrong! My weapon system has locked onto you."
"Your doing?"
"No! It's not me! War Machine has been hacked. Damn, someone is overwriting the suit's programming and taking control." Watching the rapidly changing data on his display, James was genuinely panicking.
Not just War Machine, but all the drones simultaneously raised their weapon-laden right arms toward Iron Man.
This was bad!
Tony's first instinct was to get away from the scene. With hundreds of innocent spectators attending the press conference, any fighting there would result in massive casualties.
Without hesitation, Iron Man engaged full thrusters and flew out of the venue.
Chasing him were War Machine and over a dozen aerial combat drones controlled by Whiplash, tearing through the sky at high speed.
This scene unfolded almost exactly as history had recorded it.
However, just as the ground drones moved through the crowd and fired air-to-ground missiles at the distant Tony, a strange, two-meter-tall, sleek, white mech suddenly appeared outside the venue.
If any time traveler were present, they would instantly recognize it as the Unicorn Gundam.
Of course, there were no Gundams in this world.
Because this was Atreus's new suit!
Far away at Hammer Industries, Whiplash, chewing on a toothpick, was stunned for a second: "What the hell is that?"
Not only him, but everyone else was also curious about which company had produced this 'drone.'
Before anyone could react, the ground drones opened fire with their machine guns, unleashing a terrifying barrage at the Unicorn Gundam.
The next moment shocked everyone.
Despite the fact that the thrusters on the back of the white mech didn't seem more powerful than Iron Man's, it suddenly accelerated to an insane speed, leaving a trail of afterimages on the ground.
While the Unicorn Gundam's armor might not be enough to withstand 20mm machine gun fire, its sheer speed allowed it to outrun the drones' targeting systems.
In the next second, the seemingly advanced Unicorn Gundam attacked in a shockingly primitive way.
Boom!
A thunderous crash echoed through the scene.
Justin Hammer was left speechless: "What... is this?"
The Unicorn Gundam had punched one of the ground drones, completely flattening its head.
Inside the mech, Atreus muttered to himself: "Incredible! It blocked my punch with its forehead!"
—