Chapter 169: Missile Attack
"Finally done~" Silas stretched. After being busy for a long time, the report was finally finished. Meanwhile, the Black Shadow Ninjas had cleaned Peter and put him back in bed.
Silas put away the report, casually passed through the wall, and entered Peter's room. Seeing Peter sound asleep, Silas was slightly surprised. "He still hasn't woken up."
It seemed Peter was truly exhausted, and badly so. Fortunately, Spider-Man's physique was excellent; he just needed one more night of rest.
"Have sweet dreams, Peter." Silas turned and went back to his own room. He needed to take a shower.
Morning
"What are you doing, Tony?" Pepper stood in the living room, looking at the fully armored Tony in confusion.
Tony quickly turned and said, "Uh... Just testing the functions of the new suit. Coffee, Jarvis."
"Certainly, sir," Jarvis replied. A cup of coffee rose from the table, and steam wafted from the cup.
"Thanks, but I don't need it right now. Honestly, being CEO is tiring. I have to fly to Russia later," Pepper said, rubbing her head.
Tony came up behind Pepper and said, "Do you want me to give you a head massage?"
"Forget it, Tony." Pepper looked Tony up and down in the armor. She figured one light touch might be enough for him to have to replace the next CEO.
"My bad." Tony sheepishly withdrew his hand. After the last major battle, he was especially sensitive. Especially after revealing his home address last night, he hadn't taken off the armor for a moment, guarding against a sudden attack from those people.
"Tony, something's not right with you. Since the last time, you've been staying in your lab, working on those suits." Through months of observation, Pepper naturally noticed Tony's anxiety. He was no longer as relaxed as before, but rather somewhat neurotic and more sensitive.
Tony took a deep breath. Since the Battle of New York, he had constantly doubted himself. Without this suit on the outside, was he really a superhero? Look at the other superheroes; they were all agile and could defeat enemies without relying on external devices. Only he needed to hide inside this armor to barely survive. Without the suit, he was nothing.
"I understand. I've arranged for private doctors to treat me, and they all say I'm fine." Tony opened his faceplate and smiled.
"You're always like this, always thinking you can shoulder everything yourself. I can share this burden with you, Tony." Pepper knew Tony too well; he was obviously lying.
"Don't worry, I'm okay." Tony wanted to hug Pepper.
Pepper quietly stepped back and said, "Do you plan to hug me like that?"
"Oh, of course not." Just as Tony prepared to dismantle the armor, the doorbell rang.
"Huh? Who is that?" Pepper turned to look. An unfamiliar woman stood at the door.
"Hmm..." Tony wasn't quite sure either.
Regardless, Tony waved his hand, and Jarvis opened the door.
"Hey~ Tony." The woman was quite friendly upon entering, not reserved at all.
Pepper looked at Tony suspiciously. Could this woman be one of Tony's lovers?
"Uh... I'm sorry, who are you?" Tony tried hard to recall the woman in front of him, but he simply couldn't remember.
"Maya. We met a few years ago at a tech exhibit. You really don't remember," Maya felt a little awkward, not expecting Stark to fail to recognize her.
"Well, the truth is, I don't even remember what I had for breakfast." Tony felt a flicker of recognition. It had been a night about biological gene exchange.
"It was Mr. Waffles, countless of them," Jarvis replied.
"I knew that," Tony quickly said.
Maya smiled and looked at Pepper nearby.
Pepper asked, "Who is she, Tony?"
"A plant biologist I used to know." Tony's armor instantly opened, he stepped out of it, and hugged Pepper. Then, he pulled Maya aside and said, "Don't tell me I have a twelve-year-old son waiting for me."
"He's thirteen now," Maya said.
Tony rolled his eyes exasperatedly. "Stop kidding."
"Actually, I saw the papers. Frankly, I don't think you'll survive the week," Maya said.
Tony scoffed, "Impossible."
"So, were you his lover or...?" Pepper launched her preemptive strike.
"Not exactly a lover, just a one-night stand," Maya said frankly, not concealing what happened between her and Tony in the past.
"Uh, yes!" Tony said awkwardly.
"That's good. Congratulations on not falling into the pit of fire," Pepper said to Maya.
"Hey~" Tony objected, "What do you mean, 'falling into the pit of fire'?"
"It's true," Pepper replied.
While Pepper and Tony were arguing, Maya looked around the room and suddenly spotted a giant dog plush toy in the corner.
"This thing looks nice," Maya curled her lips.
"Of course, it was a gift from me," Tony said proudly.
Pepper shook her head helplessly, pointed to the luggage on the floor, and said, "Alright, Tony, we should go."
"Go? Are you moving out? That's a good decision," Maya chuckled.
"We are, but we're not taking this thing," Pepper said, pointing at the giant plush toy.
"Wait, it's safe here, we don't need to move, and also!" Tony's tone became serious. "That's my gift to you!"
"That's not a gift!" Pepper retorted firmly.
Just then, Maya casually looked at the scene on the TV screen—it was an exterior view of the house.
"Wait! You guys look at this!" Maya quickly shouted.
Tony looked over impatiently, then his eyes widened. He suddenly felt a sense of dread!
Outside the house, a group of armed helicopters surrounded the area and fired missiles at the house. Tony quickly turned to the window and saw a missile heading right for them.
Boom! Bang!
The powerful shockwave sent all three people flying. In a moment of crisis, Tony piloted the Mark 42 toward Pepper. The Mark 42 quickly attached itself to Pepper, completing the assembly around her.
"Get them out of here!" Tony forced himself to roll behind a piece of debris, shouting despite the discomfort in his chest.
The Mark 42, controlling Pepper, hoisted Maya and flew away from the area.
A moment later, more missiles struck. The stone debris couldn't protect Tony at all.
Boom! The entire mansion began to tilt outward, and countless fragments of the house fell into the sea. Just as Tony was about to fall, he managed to grab a steel rebar at the edge, saving himself from sinking into the sea with the debris.
"Ugh!" Tony groaned in pain, clinging tightly to the rebar. He wanted to pull himself up with his hands, but injured as he was, he lacked the strength to climb.
"Jarvis, how are they?" Tony asked breathlessly.
"They have reached a safe location," Jarvis replied.
Tony was about to speak when the helicopters outside flew closer and fired another missile at him.
"Jarvis!" Tony decisively let go of the rebar, plummeting toward the sea.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Pepper, who was still holding Maya, watched as the armor on her body fully detached and flew towards Tony in mid-air.
"Tony!" Pepper tried to reach Tony, but a huge block of debris from above suddenly smashed in front of her, blocking her way.
Tony watched, eyes wide, as a massive rock followed him down from the sky.
Splash!
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