"Minerva, contact Killian and tell him to hold the investnt presentation at Stark Industries headquarters."
[Understood, Master.]
I inford Pepper Potts of this as well.
-Jin, that man is an old colleague of mine who used to hit on .
"Oh dear... I made a mistake. Should I cancel it?"
-No, he's also requested a eting with us, so let's et him.
"Alright. Then, the schedule..."
Pepper still didn't like it. At any rate, after coordinating schedules with Pepper, I notified Killian. Killian readily accepted.
On the day of the eting, I brought my secretaries and bodyguards to Stark Industries headquarters. Pepper and Happy were waiting at the entrance, so I greeted them.
"Long ti no see, Ms. Potts. And Happy."
"Nice to see you, Jin."
"Long ti no see, Chairman."
They greeted with smiles, and we shook hands.
"You didn't have to co out this far to et . I'm sorry for the inconvenience."
"Not at all. You're our biggest investor. And it's not like we're strangers. I'll guide you. Please co in."
Happy handed out visitor badges to my secretaries and bodyguards. We attached the badges to our chests and entered the building with Pepper guiding us. As we entered, I asked Happy how he was doing.
"Happy, how's work lately?"
"It's manageable. But Chairman, I'm worried about Mr. Stark. He doesn't pay any attention to the company anymore and barely leaves his house."
Happy seed very worried about Tony too.
"Hmm... I see. I'll make so ti and go see Tony."
"Thank you, Chairman."
We moved to the office and t Killian, who had been waiting.
"It's an honor to et Chairman Jin, who is so difficult to see. I'm Aldrich Killian, CEO of A.I.M. Nice to et you."
"Nice to et you. I'm Jin."
We shook hands lightly. Then Killian greeted Pepper.
"Pepper, long ti no see."
Pepper seed sowhat surprised to see Killian, who used to limp and be disheveled, now appearing in a neat suit without a limp.
"Aldrich, you've changed a lot. Is your leg completely healed?"
"I received intensive physical therapy for five years."
"I see. That's good news. Anyway, it's nice to see you."
"You haven't changed at all. You're still beautiful."
Killian spoke as if he still had feelings for Pepper.
"Thank you for the complint, but I'm getting older too."
Pepper and Killian also shook hands lightly. We sat on the sofa and listened to Killian's explanation.
"The project currently underway at A.I.M. is called 'Extremis'."
Killian placed three beads on the office table and rolled them. Holographic images resembling a brain appeared from the beads.
"This is my brain. Interestingly, it resembles the universe, doesn't it? I need your help. Pepper, could you stand up and co here for a mont?"
Pepper stood up and approached Killian. Killian held out his arm and said to Pepper,
"Please pinch my arm."
Pepper hesitated, but Killian said it was okay.
"It's fine. Go ahead and pinch."
When Pepper lightly pinched Killian's arm, the part of the brain responsible for sensation on the hologram lit up.
"Wow! What's this?"
"The primary somatosensory cortex. The part of the brain that feels pain."
After confirming that it was his brain, Killian looked at and continued his explanation.
"This is exactly what I wanted to show you."
Killian manipulated the hologram, pointed to a part of the brain, and explained.
"'Extremis' utilizes our bioelectrical potential... This is an empty space in the brain. What this ans is that we can upgrade our DNA. This will accelerate human evolution and..."
Killian explained about 'Extremis'. In simple terms, Extremis activates dormant parts of the brain, leading to the evolution of DNA.
"'Extremis' enhances human capabilities. It's a technology that transcends biological limits."
While listening, I asked Killian,
"It's an amazing technology. I've also read Dr. Maya Hansen's paper. If that's possible, it would not only prevent aging but also enhance strength, stamina, and even regeneration, wouldn't it?"
Killian, pleased with my words, smiled and said,
"You hit the nail on the head. It is, literally, a technology that leads humanity to evolve."
"But it's a technology that's only theoretically possible and has many problems. First, activating dormant brain regions could cause unforeseen changes in humans. Also, even if DNA evolves as per Dr. Hansen's paper, without a control tower to manage it, wouldn't there be a risk of it running out of control? Could we possibly see your experintal data?"
Killian thought for a mont, then said,
"Hmm... That's a valid point, but I'm afraid that's confidential, so I can't show you."
"Then, could you tell how far the research has progressed?"
"I can confidently say it has progressed sufficiently."
"I see. Then I'll take the ti to see the research results for myself. After that, I'll decide whether to invest. I'm very interested, so I look forward to it."
"Understood. You will not be disappointed."
After Killian left, Pepper looked at with a worried expression and said,
"Are you really going to invest? I'm not sure if I understand correctly, but it seems like a project to create superhumans. If it goes wrong, it could be misused for military purposes. Please reconsider..."
"Your concern is valid, Ms. Potts. But rather than letting that kind of technology leak out and be misused, it would be better for us to control it and use it for good. In other words, it's like guiding a newly forged sword to be used for chopping vegetables instead of killing. Besides, I haven't fully decided to invest yet. I still have ti to watch and see. We'll check it out gradually."
"I see... It's almost lunchti. If you're not busy, why don't you eat sothing before you go?"
"Sure."
As I was heading to the dining room guided by Pepper, I saw Happy hurriedly ending a phone call. True to his loyalty to Tony, he was probably reporting. Anyway, we moved to the dining room. Pepper, Happy, my bodyguards, and secretaries all ate together. As expected of Stark Industries, the al was excellent.
"I'm planning to visit Tony around Christmas. If you have ti, would you like to co along? I think Tony would be very happy to see you."
"Sure. I have sothing to ask him anyway."
Pepper seed very worried about Tony, who was doing nothing and staying ho all day. In other words, she wanted to co along and check on Tony.
After setting a date, I returned ho. My house was also preparing for Christmas, buying a tree and various decorations. I also contacted Natasha, who was out in the field.
"How are things? Can you make it back for Christmas?"
-I'm not sure. The work isn't finished yet.
"Don't make out to be a bad boss. Toos has a family. You have to let him go ho for Christmas. Even if the work isn't done, take a day off and rest. Tell Captain Arica too."
-Okay. I'll try.
After ending the call, I went back to supervising training. Wanda was now practicing flying with telekinesis, as well as compressing energy to attack and defend. Pietro's ball retrieval rate had reached 90%, so that training seed pointless. He and Jessica were now learning martial arts from . Deadpool still hadn't gotten his driver's license.
Ti passed, and the day of my appointnt with Pepper arrived. I prepared and went to Tony's house with her. A giant rabbit doll was installed in Tony's yard. Seeing it, Pepper sighed.
"Is that a gift from Tony?"
"It seems so."
When I asked, Pepper answered.
"I hope I'm not intruding on your private ti."
"Of course not. Don't worry."
We entered Tony's house. An Iron Man suit greeted us. I knew Tony wasn't inside the suit, but Pepper seed to think he was, so I kept quiet.
"Wow~ Co in! Jin's here too."
"What's this? Are you wearing your suit inside the house now?"
"Everyone needs a hobby. By the way, did you see my Christmas present?"
"Yes, I saw it. It was hard to miss."
We sat on the sofa and continued talking.
"So, Jin, what's up?"
"Well, I want Banner for Christmas. And this might upset Ms. Potts..."
"What is it?"
Feeling sorry for bringing up business on such a day, I glanced at Pepper. When she nodded her permission, I showed Tony the blueprints for the Hulkbuster.
"Wow~! What's this? Amazing! Is this for Banner?"
"Yeah. He can't transform into the Hulk and is stuck at Stark Tower just doing research. I want to put him to use. And since this uses a lot of your Iron Man technology, I needed your permission."
"I see. Hmm... There's so tech here I don't have either. Let's make it a win-win. I'll use the technology from these blueprints too."
"Good. And this is a Christmas present."
I placed a pair of rings made of red diamonds on the table. Pepper and Tony looked very surprised. The combination of red diamonds and gold created a beautiful design reminiscent of Iron Man's colors. Truth be told, I had plenty of larger diamonds in my inventory. I could also make them myself, so they held little value to . Rather, if this could help alleviate Tony's trauma a little, I would be satisfied.
"This is... a red diamond. That must have cost a pretty penny."
"No, I had so diamonds I acquired by chance, so the stones didn't cost anything."
"I see. Then I'll have to hand over Banner without any complaints. Take him and work him hard."
Tony joked as if trading Banner.
"Will do."
"By the way, should I use this as an engagent ring? Or a wedding ring?"
Tony looked at Pepper and asked. Pepper smiled and answered,
"Well, I suppose that's up to the person who receives it. But since you've gotten a good gift, how about taking off the Iron Man suit? Before I go down to the basent and find the crowbar to pry you out of it."
Pepper stood up and started heading to the basent. She seed to have realized that Tony wasn't in the suit.
"Wait, wait. The basent is full of radiation..."
"Tony, give it up. I think she knows."
At that, Tony asked, surprised,
"You knew too?"
"Yeah. I'll stay up here. Talk things out and co back up."
"Damn. Can't you help ?"
" butting in would only make things worse."
Tony had no choice but to follow Pepper and the Iron Man suit down to the basent. I passed the ti watching TV. I assud that, like in the original story, Tony was in the basent talking to Pepper about the trauma he had suffered since The Avengers.
After a while, they ca back upstairs. Judging by the atmosphere, things seed to have gone well, so I decided to give them so privacy.
"It seems things went well. I'll be going so I don't intrude. See you next ti."
"Okay. Thanks for the ring. Whether we get engaged or married, you'll be the first on the guest list, so look forward to it."
"Yeah, I will."
I left Tony's house and went to Stark Tower to get Banner, picking up Christmas presents along the way, and then returned ho. Banner, who had been bored alone, readily agreed to help build the Hulkbuster when he saw the blueprints.
"To be honest, I was bored, so this is good. And if it's built according to the design, I might be able to contribute my strength without having to transform."
"Right?"
We ca ho, and I introduced Banner to the mbers who were busy decorating the house for Christmas. Banner greeted the mbers. The funny thing was the look he gave Jessica was quite suspicious.
'Surely... he's not interested in Jessica?'
After the introductions, I assigned Banner a room and showed him the lab. After the tour, Banner ca outside and helped with the decorating. He couldn't stop smiling while talking with Jessica, so it seed almost certain.
Starting the next day, Banner learned martial arts with the others in the morning, and in the afternoon, he began assembling the Hulkbuster using the parts I had sourced. However, since the na and purpose didn't quite match, I changed its na to 'Hulk Striker Mk.1' and began production.
It was a unit designed specifically for Banner, with greatly enhanced durability using Chitauri tal. We also produced many spare parts, designed so that damaged parts could be imdiately replaced. Banner and I talked about various things and beca more comfortable with each other.
Two days passed like that, and then Banner suddenly ran out of the lab and urgently said,
"Jin, quickly, turn on the TV!"
"What's going on?"
I asked Banner as I turned on the TV. The news showed a reporter asking, "When will you catch the Mandarin?" and Tony answering.
"My na is Tony Stark. I'm not afraid of you. You're nothing but a coward. I've decided to fight! You're as good as dead. I'll be coming for the corpse soon! This is personal revenge; it has nothing to do with politics! No Pentagon, just you and ! I'll give you my ho address, so if you're a man, co find . 10880 Malibu Point, zip code 90265. I'll leave the door open."
Banner and I looked at the TV in disbelief.
"This is insane... Why is he doing sothing so reckless? It'll put people in danger too."
"Tell about it. Jin, you go help Tony. I still haven't finished assembling the Hulk Striker."
"Then, I'll leave the house to you."
"Got it."
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