With a loud bang, the cave door swung open.
A heavily bearded man with unmistakable Middle Eastern features strode inside, followed by a group of armed men.
Tony immediately noticed the rifles they were carrying.
They were Stark Industries models.
Turning to Yinsen, he asked, “Those are my weapons.
How did they get them?” Yinsen nearly jumped out of his skin.
“Don’t talk!” He hissed urgently.
“Just do what I do and keep your hands up.” The bearded man walked in with a broad smile, arms spread wide as if he were welcoming honored guests into his home.
He spoke rapidly in Arabic, sounding more like a friendly host greeting travelers than the leader of a terrorist group.
Watching from behind, Rowan curled his lip.
Yeah, right.
Smiling tiger.
The man stopped in front of Tony and launched into another stream of Arabic before gesturing for Yinsen to translate.
Yinsen reluctantly complied.
“He says welcome, Tony Stark.” “America’s greatest mass murderer.” “He says it’s an honor to meet you.” “He wants you to build a missile for them.” “The latest Jericho missile you demonstrated.” The bearded man handed over a photograph.
Yinsen showed it to Tony.
Tony’s eyes narrowed.
The picture displayed the newest Jericho missile.
His Jericho missile.
A chill ran through him.
The weapon was still classified.
Photographs like this shouldn’t exist outside Stark Industries.
Someone had leaked information.
Someone inside the company.
An insider.
After several seconds of silence, Tony spoke.
“I refuse.” His voice was cold and firm.
The bearded man’s smile vanished instantly.
His face darkened.
He barked an order to his men and pointed toward Rowan.
Tony didn’t understand Arabic.
But Rowan did.
“Bring the kid over.” “Wash his face.” Rowan froze.
He knew perfectly well that “washing his face” wasn’t literal.
But wait a minute— Wasn’t Tony supposed to be the one getting tortured?
Why was he suddenly taking the protagonist’s punishment?
What kind of nonsense was this?!
Before he could react, several terrorists grabbed him and dragged him toward a large basin filled with water.
A pair of men seized his head and shoved it underwater.
Splash!
Glug!
Glug!
Again.
And again.
And again.
Rowan swallowed who knew how much water.
His lungs burned.
His consciousness began fading.
Just as everything started going blurry, he heard Tony shout: “Stop!” “I’ll do it!” Relief flooded Rowan’s heart.
Brother…
My dear brother…
If you were going to agree anyway, couldn’t you have done it a little earlier?
Did you really need to wait until I was almost drowned?
The bearded man immediately brightened.
With a wave of his hand, his men released Rowan.
The “face washing” ended.
“What materials do you have?” Tony asked coldly.
“I’ll need a lot.” After listening to Yinsen’s translation, the bearded man nodded and motioned for Tony and Yinsen to follow him outside.
Meanwhile, Rowan was tossed back into the cave like a dead fish.
Stepping outside, Tony squinted against the blinding sunlight.
For a brief moment, simply seeing the sky felt like freedom.
The cave was located at the base of a rocky hill.
Everywhere he looked, barren mountains stretched across the landscape.
The camp outside was packed with weapons.
Missiles.
Rifles.
Crates of ammunition.
Camouflage tents concealed rows upon rows of military hardware.
Dozens of armed terrorists moved through the camp.
Lookouts stood guard on every nearby hilltop.
Then Tony noticed something that made his stomach sink.
Everywhere he looked— The Stark Industries logo.
His logo.
His weapons.
His technology.
His legacy.
Tony knew for a fact that he had never authorized sales to this region.
So how had these people obtained them?
The answer was obvious.
Someone inside Stark Industries had been selling weapons behind his back.
Someone he trusted.
A traitor.
Tony’s expression darkened.
Then he forced himself to stop thinking about it.
There was little point worrying about corporate corruption when he wasn’t even sure he’d survive the week.
The bearded leader brought them to the center of the camp and proudly gestured toward the massive stockpile.
“Everything you need is here.” “Make your list.” “Build the missile.” “When it’s finished, I’ll let you go.” Tony looked at Yinsen.
“They won’t let us go.” Yinsen didn’t hesitate.
“No.” “They won’t.” When Tony and Yinsen returned to the cave, Rowan had mostly recovered.
The three sat around a small furnace.
After a moment, Rowan walked over to Tony.
“Mr.
Stark.” “Thank you for saving me.” Sure, Tony had taken his sweet time before stopping the torture.
But in the end, he’d still agreed to the terrorists’ demands in order to save Rowan’s life.
For that, Rowan was genuinely grateful.
Tony stared into the fire.
He said nothing.
Rowan shrugged.
Typical Tony.
Just as he turned to leave, Tony suddenly spoke.
“You don’t have to call me Mister Stark.” Rowan stopped.
Tony continued staring at the flames.
“Call me Tony.” Then, after a brief pause— “Tony-ge.” The cave fell silent.
Rowan blinked.
For a moment, he wondered if he’d heard wrong.
Tony Stark.
The billionaire genius.
The future Iron Man.
Wanted him to call him Tony-ge?
That sounded absurdly out of place.
Still, Rowan nodded.
“Alright, Tony-ge.” Why does this title feel so weird?
Tony didn’t respond.
He simply sat there staring into the fire.
The pain in his chest constantly hammered at his nerves.
For the first time in years, genuine despair had begun creeping into his heart.
Yinsen noticed immediately.
“Stark.” “There are definitely people searching for you.” “But they’ll never find you in these mountains.” Tony remained silent.
Yinsen continued.
“Are you really willing to let your life’s work fall into the hands of murderers?” “If you give up now, everything outside…” He pointed toward the camp.
“…that will become your legacy.” “Is that truly how the great Tony Stark wants his story to end?” “Shouldn’t you be thinking of a way out?” Listening nearby, Rowan couldn’t help thinking: Yep.
Definitely a fan.
A hardcore fan.
Tony interrupted him.
“What exactly am I supposed to do?” “No matter what we try, they’ll kill us.” “Even if they don’t, I won’t survive another week like this.” Yinsen immediately countered.
“Then doesn’t that week matter even more?” Rowan joined in.
“Exactly!” “Tony-ge, you’re Tony Stark!” “The smartest man in the world.” “If anyone can figure something out, it’s you.” “I’m still counting on you to get me out of here.” Tony sat quietly beside the fire.
For a long time, he said nothing.
Then slowly— His eyes began to change.
The despair faded.
Determination took its place.
Resolve.
Focus.
And beneath it all— A hint of ruthless steel.
Rowan saw it happen with his own eyes.
As expected of Iron Man.
This was a man who never gave up.
Looking at the situation, the storyline still seemed mostly intact.
Sure, Rowan’s presence had caused a few small changes.
But the overall direction hadn’t shifted.
That meant he could continue with his original plan.
Keep a low profile.
Stay out of the way.
Wait for Tony and Yinsen to finish building the first Iron Man armor.
Then everything would proceed as it should.
At least, hopefully.
Meanwhile, Rowan clenched his fists.
MOTHERFUCKER.
The moment my skills come back…
I’m dropping a Starfall directly on that bearded bastard’s head.
The thought alone made him feel a little better.