"I'm not interested," Ryuuto said flatly, lounging back in his chair. "The idea of showing up to class on time, pretending to care, fighting to stay awake, and dodging pop questions from professors—no thanks. I've had enough nightmares that start exactly like that. I'd rather let my brain rust than sit through lectures again."
Tony raised an eyebrow. "I could arrange a private schedule for you. You'd get your own lab, classes only when you feel like it. You could even nap through half of them."
"Sure," Ryuuto snorted. "But what's your real goal here?"
"Goal?" Tony grinned, that trademark Stark smirk in full swing. "I just want to sharpen that clever head of yours. Maybe one day you'll co-design armor with me."
"Oh, so it's about using me," Ryuuto said with mock offense. "I'll keep that in mind. If I ever get the sudden urge to torture myself with school again, you'll be the first to know."
"There are a lot of pretty girls in college," Tony added with a teasing grin.
"Not interested."
Tony blinked. "You sure you're a man?"
"If your definition of a man is someone who sleeps around, then yeah—guess I'm not your kind," Ryuuto replied dryly. "By that logic, guys who visit brothels would be the pinnacle of masculinity. No thanks, Stark. I'm not turning into another playboy who flirts just because he can."
Pepper chuckled beside them and gave Ryuuto a discreet thumbs-up.
Tony sighed in mock defeat. "Fine, fine. Pretend I never said it. But if you ever change your mind, tell me. I'll have you enrolled anywhere in the world."
"Deal," Ryuuto said, nonchalant.
"Now let's grab a drink," Tony said, heading toward the villa. "Pepper, you're in charge of pouring."
The three disappeared down the hill, laughter trailing behind them.
Moments later, faint footprints appeared in the sand near where they had stood. The air shimmered, and a figure materialized—Susan Storm, the Invisible Woman.
She had been tailing them the whole time, careful to avoid J.A.R.V.I.S.'s scanners. Now that the coast was clear, she let herself breathe again.
"Mutant experiments… huh," Susan murmured. "Looks like I just struck gold. If someone's trying to create artificial mutants, the world's in for chaos. I need to tell Reed."
Still cloaked, she turned and vanished toward the coastline.
Susan Storm—Invisible Woman of the Fantastic Four—had little contact with other hero groups these days. The Four had been the first superhero team, long before S.H.I.E.L.D. formed the Avengers or before Superman's Justice League ever took flight.
But fame fades fast.Once, the U.S. government begged for their help. Now, they were politely ignored, even asked to join the Avengers. To Susan, that was a slap in the face.
If they accepted, the Fantastic Four's name would disappear.She'd just be "the Invisible Woman of the Avengers."That thought alone made her stomach twist.
So, they left government oversight entirely. They acted independently, a free team again.
A few days earlier, while tracking a Hulk rampage, Susan had stumbled onto something unexpected—Ryuuto, codename Red Mirage.
She'd followed him out of curiosity, boarding the same plane, sneaking into his quarters, and later tailing him to Malibu. What she discovered there shocked her: Tony Stark was researching artificial mutants, and Ryuuto was involved.
Now, Susan opened a secure channel."Reed, it's me. You're not gonna believe this. Stark's experimenting on mutant tech."
"Can you get his Manhattan lab's location?" Reed's voice came through, calm but tense.
"Why do you need that?" she asked.
"Because artificial mutants can't exist, Susan," Reed said. "If they succeed, the mutant population will explode overnight. You mentioned they're trying to control the abilities too, right? Imagine hundreds—no, thousands—of people with powers identical to Ryuuto's. One Red Mirage is already enough to flatten a rainforest. Ten thousand could level the entire country in an hour."
Susan's heart skipped. "You can't be serious…"
"I ran the numbers," Reed said grimly. "I am serious. Find that lab. Stark has to have data somewhere in his workshop."
"Easier said than done," Susan muttered. "Even invisible, I still register on most sensors. You know how tight Stark's security is? If a fly sneezes in his workshop, the system vaporizes it. If I walk in, the alarms will blare before I take three steps. He'll catch me instantly."
"I don't care how you do it," Reed pressed. "Just find the address."
"Reed, what's gotten into you lately?" she snapped. "You've been… different since that fight with Loki. Don't tell me you've still been studying that scepter?"
The comm went silent. The only reply was the faint hum of static.