Chapter Twenty-One: This Is Harassment

“Tony, what did you and Mr. Coulson talk about?” Pepper called out curiously as she saw Coulson leave and Tony head straight to the basement.

“Nothing much, just a chat about the current state of Blue Star and its future,” Tony Stark replied offhandedly, stepping into the elevator and heading down below.

What he had actually discussed with Coulson was something that even a genius like him had only been able to accept so quickly after having seen the Grim Reaper with his own eyes and preparing himself mentally. If an ordinary person like Pepper were to learn about and believe it, he couldn’t imagine how much effort it would take to convince her. And if she did believe him, she would surely say things like she didn’t want him going to war and so on.

Though Tony’s answer was perfunctory, it was nonetheless the truth—their conversation had, in essence, revolved around the future of Blue Star.

But Pepper was clearly dissatisfied with Tony’s evasive attitude, so she followed after him, intent on questioning him further. Tony, however, was well-practiced at dealing with Pepper, and soon the two were bantering back and forth.

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Elsewhere

The previous night, Tony Stark had taken the initiative to reach out to Harvey Amberlaca. Harvey knew then that Tony Stark had already dealt with Obadiah Stan, and the Iron Monger suit was clearly no longer a threat. Without Obadiah Stan to steal it, no one else could produce an Arc Reactor in a short amount of time. So for the time being, life would be peaceful.

Of course, peaceful only from Harvey’s perspective; for others, New York was never truly calm. Tony Stark would not be able to sit still for long. With his personality, as soon as he realized he could arrange a meeting through the dark web, he would definitely try to get in touch again. All Harvey had to do now was wait.

As for why Harvey hadn’t answered Tony’s call last night, there wasn’t any particular reason—he hadn’t been busy. He simply didn’t want to see Tony Stark showing off to him. Though Tony had changed a lot, gained some compassion, and was willing to help the weak, the arrogance and disregard for others’ feelings at his core had hardly changed.

Harvey, dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, was playing video games in front of the large, luxurious TV in his living room. He knew he was about to mark his twenty-second year in the Marvel world. In this world, Harvey had few friends he could talk to.

As an orphan of Asian descent with a poor background, he had suffered plenty of bullying and neglect. He didn’t particularly care for friendship—so long as people left him alone and out of his way, that was enough. After awakening his system and gaining great power, and now being a prominent bachelor in the eyes of many, he had even less desire to make friends. If making friends required him to go out of his way to please others, then he would rather not bother at all.

If asked what Harvey liked to do on his rare days off—apart from the five days a week he had to train—it would be seeking out good food or playing games at home. He used to enjoy competitive games—racing, MOBA, FPS, and the like. But with his physical and sensory abilities, he was always accused of cheating and repeatedly banned, so he gradually lost interest in those and turned to more relaxing games.

Pet-raising, farming—those were the types of games where it didn’t matter if he didn’t log in for days. This fit perfectly with his habit of only playing a few hours a week. He’d spend a little money on in-game purchases, occasionally chat with others online, and unwind.

After finishing his daily tasks in several games, which took over an hour, Harvey found himself at loose ends and decided to go out in search of something to eat. With five meals a day, he could earn over a hundred thousand evolution points daily. If he deliberately sought out foods made from more powerful animals, he could get even more points. As for alcohol, it didn’t provide many evolution points—it was just something he drank as a beverage. Usually, he didn’t go out of his way for it. After all, there were plenty of ways for him to get large amounts of evolution points, so he just did whatever he felt like.

If he really pushed himself, he could evolve a hundred times in a week. This time, Harvey took his Maserati out, musing as he drove about when Tony Stark would host another grand banquet or exhibition, so he could sneak in for the food.

And so the days slipped by.

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A month passed in the blink of an eye.

Tony Stark, piloting his Iron Man suit, made repeated trips to Afghanistan to track down the Ten Rings. After some effort, he wiped them out completely and freed Ghumira from her hellish ordeal. Rumors of Iron Man began to spread throughout the allied nations and America. The people of Ghumira regarded Iron Man as a hero, while many in America started to suspect that Stark Industries had developed this advanced technology.

After all, only Stark Industries in America was capable of creating such cutting-edge tech. Facing widespread public doubt, Tony Stark eventually held a press conference and, in front of countless viewers worldwide, declared, “I am Iron Man.”

With Iron Man’s identity confirmed, countless Americans went wild with excitement. Soon after came a summons from the National Council, demanding that Tony hand over the core technology for the good of the country. An ordinary person might have been intimidated, but Tony Stark was no ordinary man. Before his transformation, he had been a world-renowned genius and arms dealer, a proud taxpayer—someone not easily cowed by authority. So Tony Stark publicly refused and walked out.

This only made the American people admire Iron Man even more—his reputation now far surpassed that of the playboy he once was.

And so, a month after these events, Tony Stark, having turned down the National Council, returned to the manor for dinner. Afterward, he descended from upstairs into his lab and casually instructed, “Jarvis, contact Harvey Amberlaca.”

“Yes, sir,” Jarvis replied, long since accustomed to this request. Ever since Tony Stark had been refused the first time, he’d asked Jarvis every day to contact Harvey. Jarvis had assumed, as usual, that the call would be rejected instantly—but this time, it went through.

“Tony Stark, you’ve called every day for a month. Don’t you realize this is harassment?” came Harvey’s voice, tinged with disdain. “My phone and tablet serve many purposes besides being kept off just to avoid your calls.”

Tony, who had been about to start work, paused at these words and belatedly asked, “Jarvis, does this count as harassment?”

“In a certain sense, yes, sir,” Jarvis replied after a brief pause, debating whether to answer truthfully, but ultimately choosing a tactful response.