It was Sunday again.
After lunch, Ethan and Hannah were thinking about where to go when Tony suddenly called.
“Bear Cub, Ethan is dead…”
Tony’s voice was low and filled with anger.
“I’m about to head out for my first real battle.
Are you coming?”
“Yeah.”
“You go ahead.
I’ll be there shortly.”
Ethan hadn’t expected Ethan to die even after he had saved him.
“Perhaps death was the fate Ethan had chosen for himself.”
Ethan knew that his hometown was extremely dangerous, yet he had still chosen to return to the place where he had been born and raised.
Ethan could only respect that decision.
After telling Hannah what had happened, Ethan changed into his battle suit and set off.
His battle suit was no longer the same one he had worn before.
Four days after Ethan had asked Tony to make it, Tony had called him over to collect the new suit.
The design was still the same adorable bear costume.
However, the material was different.
It was breathable, durable, and much more resistant to damage.
There were also several hidden pockets built into the suit.
They contained dozens of titanium alloy balls.
Two titanium alloy cones were also attached to his shoulders.
By the time Ethan arrived, Tony had already begun fighting.
Ethan simply stood on the roof of a nearby building and watched Iron Man’s rampage below.
This was Ethan’s hometown.
It was also the place where Ethan had been killed.
The same group of terrorists who had captured Tony had attacked this place.
Ethan knew that Tony was genuinely furious.
Tony was actually a pretty decent person.
As long as someone was a friend Tony truly acknowledged, they could even argue with him or yell at him without Tony getting angry.
Sometimes, when Rhodey or Pepper lost their temper with him, Tony would even patiently try to calm them down.
Of course, most of the time, Tony deserved it.
Things like standing people up or acting recklessly were practically his specialties.
This was Ethan’s first time seeing the true power of Iron Man’s armor.
Even though he already knew how powerful it was, he still couldn’t help being shocked.
As expected of something that could turn an ordinary human into a superhero in an instant.
No wonder Tony had been so confident during Iron Man 2 that his armor could protect against nuclear threats.
He had even become arrogant enough to claim that he could maintain world peace by himself.
Ethan continued watching silently from the rooftop.
Once Tony had nearly finished wiping out the terrorists, Ethan prepared to leave.
However, just as he was about to go, he saw a tank blast Tony out of the sky.
Ethan stopped.
He didn’t leave immediately.
He knew the fight wasn’t over yet.
Tony was furious.
This was supposed to have been his perfect first battle.
And he had already detected that his precious Bear Cub was watching from a nearby rooftop.
Yet he had actually been knocked out of the sky in front of him.
Tony quickly got back on his feet.
The tank fired another round at him.
Tony twisted his body and easily dodged it.
Then he raised his right hand.
A high-precision armor-piercing projectile shot from his palm.
Tony didn’t even look back.
He simply turned around and walked away.
After taking a few steps, his sensors detected several Jericho missiles nearby.
Tony immediately flew into the air and began firing energy blasts at them.
After destroying most of the missiles, he made a stylish turn and flew away.
Then he connected to Ethan’s communicator.
“Bear Cub, you saw that, right?”
“So?
How was it?”
Tony’s voice was filled with confidence after his first battle.
“Very powerful.”
“From today onward, you’re my ally.”
“What about Ethan?”
Tony fell silent for a moment after hearing Ethan’s name.
“Ethan was cremated by the people from his hometown.”
“Maybe that’s for the best.”
“That was the choice he made for himself.”
Tony paused before continuing.
“I have some things to deal with now.”
“I heard that while my company’s stock was crashing, you started buying up shares.”
“How much do you have now?”
“Seven percent.”
“Some of your smaller shareholders couldn’t hold on anymore.”
Ethan had been waiting for this opportunity.
“Good eye.”
“Someone is trying to take me down.”
“And I’ve already figured out who it is.”
“I hope that person doesn’t make another move against me.”
“Otherwise, they shouldn’t blame me for ignoring all the years we’ve known each other.”
“When I take their shares, I’ll give you ten percent.”
Tony intended to give Ethan another ten percent of Stark Industries.
That would bring Ethan’s total ownership to seventeen percent.
He would officially become one of the company’s major shareholders.
It would also make Ethan and Tony’s alliance even stronger.
Ten percent was an astronomical amount of stock.
However, because of certain circumstances, Tony couldn’t hold too much of the company himself.
He currently owned forty-three percent.
After acquiring the other person’s shares, his stake would rise to sixty-eight percent.
The other shareholders, American financial groups, and even the government would never allow Tony to personally control such a massive industrial empire with that much ownership.
“Alright.”
“I’m getting engaged in about a month.”
“I’ll send Pepper an invitation.”
Ethan didn’t refuse.
He knew exactly what Tony was thinking.
“Sure.”
“I’ll definitely come.”
“Do you want me to throw you a bachelor party?”
Tony laughed.
“No need.”
“Take care of yourself first.”
“Be careful.
Pepper might get jealous watching you.”
Ethan hung up before Tony could respond.
He then activated his ability and began heading home.
This time, Ethan was going to test the new ability he had almost finished developing.
He had already tested it several times on small animals.
Every test had been successful.
But he had never tried it on himself before.
Ethan relaxed his body.
Then he raised his right hand and slapped himself hard.
At the exact instant his body was sent flying, he seized control of that moment.
His ability activated again.
A mass of repelled air formed around him, creating a giant bear-paw-shaped shell.
Ethan immediately noticed the difference.
There was none of the tearing sensation caused by friction with the air that he had experienced before.
His speed was also roughly three times faster.
Before long, Ethan reached the lawn of his own villa.
He landed gently.
However, a giant three-meter-wide paw print had been left in the grass.
Ethan knew his technique had succeeded.
All he needed now was more practice.
Once he could activate it purely through instinct, the technique would be complete.
Based on his previous experience, that shouldn’t take long.
A month would be more than enough.
Half a month later, Ethan was wearing his battle suit and preparing to practice repelling people when Tony called again.
“Ethan…”
“Come…”
“Come to my basement immediately!”
Tony’s voice was extremely weak.
“Save me…”
“I… I’m dying…”