New York.
After getting off the plane, Lynn stretched his limbs and saw Sean waiting for him outside the airport.
Seeing Lynn, Sean immediately ran over and took the travel bag from Lynn’s hand: “Boss, was your trip to Eastern Europe enjoyable? Have you already charmed all the Eastern European beauties?”
Looking at Sean's lewd smile, Lynn got into the passenger seat and threw him a cigarette, saying, "Don't even mention it. I was originally planning a month-long vacation, but it ended in less than ten days."
"By the way, nothing happened at the bureau while I was away in New York, right?"
Taking the cigarette Lynn threw him, Sean lit it and said while starting the car, "Nothing major happened."
"It's just that the Cybercrime Investigation Department found some 'supernatural' videos, located at a hotel in Hudson Town."
"However, some people suspect that the mayor of Hudson Town deliberately created these as a small trick to attract tourists!"
"By the way, Boss, do you want to go home first or back to the bureau?"
Facing Sean's question, Lynn said, "Let's go back to the bureau first."
"Okay!"
Hearing Lynn say that, Sean drove directly towards the New York Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Inside the Bureau.
"Come in!"
Hearing the knock on the door, James Duke, who was signing documents, said without even raising his head.
After Lynn came in and closed the office door, Duke motioned for Lynn to sit down.
After signing all the documents, Duke closed his pen and looked up at Lynn with a smile, saying, "How have you been these past few days in Eastern Europe? Didn't you meet any charming beauties?"
Hearing Duke's teasing, Lynn smiled and said, "Director, you and Sean asked the same question after seeing me."
"Haha, what's there to it? If I were twenty years younger, I would never let such a good opportunity pass."
Throwing Lynn a cigar, Duke continued, "You handled the Sokovia matter very well this time, even though it cost Strucker a Base."
"But this successfully tricked Nick Fury's gaze onto HYDRA in Germany."
"When Pierce called me, he kept praising you. You know Nick Fury is very hard to trust anyone. Being able to trick him is enough to prove your ability!"
"Director, those in Germany..."
"Don't worry about them. A bunch of useless people, if they get caught, they get caught."
Before Lynn could finish, Duke waved his hand, then took out an invitation and handed it to Lynn: "This is an invitation to the New York Expo tomorrow night."
Taking the invitation from Duke's hand, Lynn saw Hammer Industries signed on it.
Then he smiled and asked Duke, "An invitation from Justin Hammer? Director, although his Hammer Industries is not bad, he shouldn't be qualified to send us invitations, right?"
"He certainly isn't qualified to send us invitations."
Facing Lynn's question, Duke said, "However, ever since Stark Industries closed its weapon manufacturing division, Hammer Industries has taken over the Military's orders."
"This time, it is said that Hammer Industries has produced a batch of mass-producible War Machines, directly competing with Tony Stark's Mark armor."
At this point, Duke chuckled and said, "Although these War Machines are sold to the Military, but..."
Duke's words were not explicit, but Lynn understood his meaning.
Once these War Machines could be mass-produced, HYDRA would naturally not let go of the opportunity.
"In that case, I'll go to the Expo tomorrow to see if Hammer Industries' War Machines are really as Justin Hammer claims!"
Seeing Lynn instantly understand his meaning, James Duke nodded in satisfaction.
After leaving Director Duke's office, Lynn did not return to his own office, but went directly to the Illuminati Base.
"You finally decided to come back."
Watching Lynn drive over, Laura put down her tablet and smiled, "Lorna has been constantly nagging me these past few days, asking why you haven't come back yet."
Hearing Laura expose her little secret, Polaris 'turned angry from embarrassment' and slapped her.
"Ah, you killed me with that slap!"
Feigning pain, Laura fell onto the sofa, sticking out her tongue, and secretly winked at Polaris.
"That's enough!"
Looking at her best friend's rogue behavior, Polaris, amused and annoyed, pulled her up from the sofa.
Watching the two playfully argue, Lynn smiled and handed over the gifts: "These are the gifts I brought back for you from Eastern Europe."
"Gifts?"
Seeing the gifts Lynn handed over, Laura immediately ran over and happily opened the gift box.
Upon seeing the very delicate bracelet, Laura immediately gave Lynn a sweet smile and said, "Thank you, Leader."
After speaking, she immediately put on the bracelet and then showed it off to Polaris: "Doesn't it look good!"
"Mm!"
Looking at the bracelet with pink Diamond on her best friend's wrist, Polaris eagerly opened her own gift.
Inside the exquisite gift box was a necklace adorned with green gemstones.
Taking out the necklace and looking at it, the green gemstone constantly shimmered in the sunlight, just like when she used her mutant ability.
"Thank you, Lynn!"
Polaris genuinely loved this necklace.
Seeing Polaris's joyful expression, Lynn raised his hand and ruffled her hair: "As long as you like them."
Not long after, when Peter Parker returned to the Illuminati Base, upon seeing the gift Lynn brought back for him, he immediately flipped a somersault on the spot in excitement.
"Thank you for the gift, Lynn. This is the first time I've received... no, I mean, although Aunt Mei, Uncle Ben, and Harry also gave me gifts, but..."
Looking at the extremely excited Peter at that moment, Lynn smiled and said, "I know what you want to say, you're welcome."
"By the way, Peter, how have you been lately?"
Hearing Lynn inquire about his recent situation, Peter Parker carefully put away the gift, then excitedly talked to Lynn about recent events.
Including Professor Connors' experiment.
It seems the time for Professor Connors to turn into the Lizard is approaching.
Perfect, I can use this incident to act as a life mentor for Peter Parker.
The reason I didn't do this before was because at Peter's age, he was at an age where he hated being lectured.
Forcibly acting as a life mentor, telling him what is right and what is wrong, would only backfire.
Only at the right time can he gain Peter Parker's approval and become his true guide on the superhero path!
Hmm, his favorability will also rapidly increase!
New York Expo site.
When Lynn stepped out of the car, a large crowd had already gathered outside the Expo site.
In addition to some invited socialites, many media outlets from across the U.S. and thousands of tourists came to visit this grand Expo.
Upon seeing Lynn, the surrounding people greeted him one after another.
Lynn naturally waved back to them enthusiastically.
As for the Hammer Industries reception staff, Lynn indicated that they didn't need to attend to him.
Not far away.
Hearing the sudden cheers from behind her, Pepper subconsciously turned her head to look.
Upon seeing Lynn appear, she whispered something to Natasha beside her.
Leaving Pepper's side, Natasha walked directly to Lynn.
"Hi, Lynn, long time no see!"
Looking at Natasha, who stood before him with a smile, Lynn chuckled, "You look very beautiful today, Natasha. I think Justin Hammer will want to kick you out after seeing you."
"Oh? Why?"
"Because you'll steal all the thunder from this Expo!"
Facing Lynn's compliment, Natasha's lips curved upward: "Is that so? I don't think Justin Hammer would do that, after all, I came with Ms. Pepper."
"By the way, do you know about Tony Stark's situation?"
"Tony? What happened to him?"
"Palladium poisoning. If we hadn't discovered it, he would have been dead!"
"Palladium poisoning?"
Hearing Natasha say that, Lynn paused his steps for a moment, then continued walking towards Pepper: "No wonder he gave me his private satellite and gave Rhodes a suit of armor."
"Aren't you worried?"
Seeing Lynn's calm demeanor, Natasha asked with a smile.
"Since you said so, it means S.H.I.E.L.D. already has a way to solve Tony's poisoning, right?"
"Mainly, Tony himself is smart. When Coulson went to New Mexico, he said Tony Stark had already found a solution."
"That's good."
Coming to Pepper's side, Lynn greeted her with a smile.
"Long time no see, Lynn. You've been quite the talk of the town recently."
Facing the smiling Pepper, Lynn chatted with her for a few moments.
Entering the Expo site, the scene was extremely lively at this moment.
After having someone switch seats, Lynn sat next to Pepper and said, "I heard Hammer Industries manufactured a batch of War Machines to rival Tony's Mark armor?"
Pepper didn't think much of Justin Hammer: "Before Stark Industries' weapon manufacturing department closed, the Military's weapon orders always prioritized Stark Industries."
"Justin Hammer always saw Tony as his biggest rival, even constantly imitating Tony's every move in public, but Tony never even gave him a second glance."
As the two were chatting, the lights in the Hall suddenly dimmed, and then a lively music sounded from the stage.
Along with the music, Justin Hammer danced somewhat clumsily, swaying his body and greeting the audience below.
On stage, after greeting everyone, Justin Hammer immediately got to the point: "Ladies and gentlemen, for a long time our country has sent brave soldiers into dangerous combat,"
"Until Iron Man appeared, we thought no one would lose their lives again, but he refused to make advanced technology public, which is very unfair."
"God, I knew he would try to smear Tony."
Listening to Justin Hammer's words, Pepper shook her head, but then saw Lynn quietly answer his phone.
"Lynn, I saw the invitation list, you're at the Expo, right?"
Controlling his armor to fly rapidly towards the Expo site, Tony Stark asked anxiously.
"That's right, sitting next to Pepper."
"Excellent!"
Hearing Lynn's reply, Tony Stark immediately said, "I'll be at the Expo site right away, Lynn. Please make sure to protect Pepper. This Expo is Ivan Vanko's plot."
As he spoke, Justin Hammer's introduction on stage continued, and one by one, War Machines appeared on the stage.
Not only that, but even War Machine Rhodes, wearing his Iron Man armor, appeared in the center of the stage.
"What? Lynn, did I just hear Justin Hammer introduce Rhodes?"
"That's right."
Hearing Tony's voice, Lynn said, "That's right, Rhodes is also on stage, doing a salute with those War Machines."
"Damn it!"
After a low curse, Tony Stark immediately said, "Lynn, take Pepper and leave first, I'll be there right away!"
After hanging up the phone, Pepper looked at Lynn and said, "Tony's call?"
Nodding, he repeated what Tony had said: "So, danger will happen here very soon. Natasha and I will take you away first."
“Ivan Vanko? Damn it, he's the guy who attacked Tony at the F1 race in Morocco! I can't believe he's teamed up with Justin Hammer!”
Hearing Lynn say that, Pepper immediately picked up her bag and prepared to leave.
Their actions of getting up were noticed by General Ross next to them: “Lynn, the expo has just begun, and our Military's War Machine, a collaboration with Hammer Industries, hasn't been fully showcased yet. Why are you in such a hurry to leave?”
Hearing General Ross seemingly proud of the War Machine, Lynn smiled and said, “I just received news that chaos is about to break out here soon, but unfortunately, only I from the New York Federal Bureau of Investigation am here.”
“However, I see that you Military personnel are quite numerous, so General Ross, I suggest your Military immediately send people to evacuate the public.”
“That way, by the time our FBI takes over the accident investigation, you might even avoid some trouble!”
After speaking, Lynn directly led Pepper away from here.
Watching Lynn lead Pepper away, General Ross immediately frowned.
His gaze returned to the stage, and seeing Justin Hammer enthusiastically introducing the War Machine, General Ross's frown deepened.
Although he didn't know where Lynn got this news, it was clear that he was warning him.
Even though the Military and the FBI have always been at odds.
But out of personal trust in Lynn, General Ross waved his hand.
Soon, a soldier disguised as a security guard ran over.
“Have everyone raise their alert level, to prevent anyone from mixing in the crowd and attacking the venue!”
General Ross thought that the chaos Lynn mentioned was someone planning a terrorist attack here, so he had people strengthen security.
He never thought that the root of the chaos was actually on the stage!
When Tony Stark, wearing his armor, landed on the stage, the scene immediately erupted in an uproar, and many audience members stood up and applauded.
“Tony, this is not the time for you to be willful. Get out of here quickly.”
Upon seeing Tony Stark's arrival, Rhodes immediately spoke to persuade him.
As a friend, Rhodes did not want to see Tony make any excessive moves in such an occasion.
Especially in front of the Military and the media, if he caused a scene, it would inevitably bring unnecessary trouble to him, and even to Stark Industries!
Tony did not heed Rhodes's persuasion, but instead looked down at the audience.
After seeing that Lynn, Pepper, and Natasha were no longer in the audience, Tony finally breathed a sigh of relief: “Rhodes, this expo is a conspiracy. Ivan Vanko has already taken control of these War Machines. We must find a way to save these civilians.”
“What? Ivan Vanko?”
Before Tony could finish speaking, all the War Machines on the stage aimed their weapons at Tony.
Not only that, even the weapon system of Rhodes's armor locked onto Tony Stark.
“Damn it, Tony, go! My armor system has been hacked! I can't control my armor now!”
Hearing Rhodes's anxious tone, Tony Stark pushed away Justin Hammer, who was walking forward, and then controlled his armor to fly: “Since his target is me, then it's best we fight outside. There are too many civilians here!”
As Tony's armor took flight, the War Machines on the stage immediately opened fire.
The dome glass above the expo shattered and fell under the gunfire, and the people present screamed and fled in panic.
“FUXX!”
Seeing this scene, General Ross below the stage immediately cursed in anger.
He finally understood now what Lynn meant by chaos!
“Damn it, why did it turn out like this?”
Ignoring the falling glass shards, General Ross grabbed Justin Hammer, who was fleeing down, and questioned him.
“I... I... Someone must have hacked into the War Machine's control system! I'm going to the backstage control room right now!”
Seeing Justin Hammer's panicked expression, General Ross grabbed him by the collar and directly took him backstage.
At this moment, General Ross remembered what Lynn said before leaving, so if any civilians were injured or even died, then Justin Hammer would be the culprit.
In any case, this blame absolutely could not be placed on the Military.
Backstage.
When General Ross brought Justin Hammer to the control room, the several staff members inside were all obediently squatting on the ground.
Lynn sat in front of the computer, wearing a communication headset, constantly talking with Joey.
Joey was currently fighting Ivan Vanko for control of the War Machine: “Boss, I'll have control of the War Machine in three minutes at most. This Ivan Vanko is indeed a genius, but in terms of computer technology, he's still a bit worse than me!”
Hearing Joey's confident words, Lynn said, “Good job, Tony, hold on for another three minutes over there!”
“I hear you.”
Controlling his armor to fly over the city, and looking at the War Machines relentlessly pursuing him from behind, Tony Stark said, “You really have a lot of geniuses under you, Lynn. After this is over, you have to introduce this genius to me.”
“Come on, Tony, you can't poach my subordinates.”
After speaking, Lynn turned his head to look at Justin Hammer, who had been captured by General Ross, and then stepped forward, grabbing him by the neck and questioning him: “Where is Ivan Vanko?”
With Lynn's hand on his neck, Justin Hammer struggled continuously, but when he saw Lynn's eyes gradually turn cold, Justin Hammer immediately said, “He's in my company. Believe me, I really didn't do this, Mr. Hall, I swear I didn't instigate this!”
Hearing Justin Hammer's explanation, Natasha, who was beside them, said, “I'll go catch that guy.”
With that, Natasha ran directly outside.
Watching Natasha leave, Lynn returned to the computer. At this moment, one screen was showing the progress of controlling the War Machine, while the other screens were displaying the situation outside.
On the screen, some War Machines were continuously firing, and the civilians were screaming and fleeing outwards.
Some civilians were pushed and rolled down the stairs, and before they could get up, they were trampled over by the people behind them, while more civilians ran around like headless chickens.
Seeing how chaotic the situation outside was, Pepper covered her mouth, her eyes filled with worry.
Especially seeing Tony Stark continuously flying in his armor, while the bullets from the War Machines behind him kept hitting the armor, she asked worriedly, “Lynn, Tony will be alright, won't he?”
Facing Pepper's question, Lynn looked at the screen, where Tony was constantly flying in circles and counterattacking, and said to Pepper, “Don't worry, Pepper, I think Tony can handle these War Machines.”
Just as he was speaking, Rhodes's voice came through the communication headset; he could now control his armor.
Seeing Tony and Rhodes team up to eliminate all the pursuing War Machines, Pepper finally breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, General Ross kicked Justin Hammer to the ground, then came over to Lynn and proactively offered him a cigarette, saying, “Lynn, this matter has nothing to do with the Military. It's all a conspiracy by this son of a bitch and Ivan Vanko.”
Facing General Ross's proactive overture, Lynn took the cigarette but did not light it: “General Ross, it's best you discuss this matter with our Director.”
“Can't you also make decisions?”
Hearing Lynn say that, General Ross felt a bit of a toothache. If he let James Duke, that Vampire, speak, who knows what kind of price the Military would have to pay.
“I'm just a small supervisor at the New York FBI.”
Hearing Lynn say that, General Ross shook his head helplessly. Looking at Justin Hammer, who was crawling up from the ground, and thinking of his confident promises back then.
General Ross gave him another kick.
“Boss, it's done!”
Seeing the programs of all War Machines on the computer turn from red to green, Joey immediately said, “Now all War Machines are under my control.”
“Boss, what should we do with these iron lumps?”
Hearing Joey's words, before Lynn could speak, he heard Rhodes say, “Lynn, these War Machines were ordered by our Military from Hammer Industries. You cannot take them back to the Federal Bureau of Investigation!”
Lynn pretended not to hear Rhodes's reply: “Joey, these War Machines should have self-destruct programs inside them.”
“If you can clear the self-destruct programs and confirm there's no danger, then send these War Machines to a ‘safe zone’.”
“No problem, Boss, I'm confident I can deal with the self-destruct programs of these iron lumps.”
Following Lynn's instructions, Joey immediately began cracking the self-destruct programs of these War Machines.
Just as the program was 50% cracked, a red signal representing Iron Man's armor quickly flew towards the expo.
Joey immediately said, “Mr. Stark, an iron lump is flying towards you. Compared to the other iron lumps, its energy index is particularly high.”
As soon as Joey finished speaking, Natasha's voice also came through the communication headset: “It must be that Ivan Vanko. When I arrived at Hammer Industries, he was no longer here.”
Looking at the guard hanging from the ceiling by a rope, Natasha immediately took out a USB drive and plugged it into the computer to copy data.
Hearing Joey and Natasha's words, Tony Stark and Rhodes immediately became alert.
Soon, Ivan Vanko, wearing a set of Iron Man armor, landed in front of the two from the sky.
As the armor's helmet opened, Ivan Vanko looked at Tony Stark and said, “It feels good to be back.”
Inside the control room.
At this moment, the NYPD arrived, and at Lynn's signal, they directly arrested Justin Hammer.
“Pepper, you go with these police officers first. I'll go to Tony's side to see if he needs any help.”
Hearing Lynn say that, Pepper immediately nodded.
After Lynn left, Pepper and the police officers went outside, but she was not in a hurry to get into the police car and leave.
“Thank you, but you guys go first. Happy will take me back.”
Hearing Pepper's words, the police officers nodded and then left.
“Pepper”
“I'm a bit worried about Tony.”
Looking at the shattered glass and War Machine fragments all over the ground, Pepper worriedly said, “I won't feel at ease until I see Tony return with my own eyes.”
Given Pepper's persistence, Happy could only nod and say, “Alright, but Mr. Lynn said these robots would self-destruct, so I suggest we find a safe place to wait first.”
On the battlefield.
Bullets struck Ivan Vanko's armor, but they did not cause any damage to his armor.
Instead, the weapon on Rhodes's armor's shoulder was directly shattered by a single strike from Ivan Vanko's electrified whip!
Seeing this, Tony controlled his armor to ram into Ivan Vanko, but was immediately kicked away by him.
Before Tony could stabilize his armor, which was flying backwards, Ivan Vanko's whip wrapped around Tony's armor.
The massive Current directly caused damage to the surface of Tony's armor.
Seeing Tony being controlled, countless bullets from Rhodes's armor's arm formed a rain of fire, attacking Ivan Vanko.
Although the bullets did not harm Ivan Vanko, Tony took the opportunity to escape the restraint.
Watching Tony Stark break free, Rhodes attacked while asking, “Tony, where's that laser weapon of yours? Do it again!”
“That's a one-time thing.”
Saying that, Tony raised his hand, and his palm repulsor directly attacked Ivan Vanko.
“Boom”
A violent explosion rang out, but Ivan Vanko was not harmed in the slightest.
Instead, he looked at the two with a mocking expression and said, "Tony Stark, is that all you've got? It seems the hatred your Stark family inflicted on mine all those years ago, I can now fully repay it on you today!"
Watching Ivan Vanko's smug expression, Rhodes stepped forward, and a miniature missile on his shoulder activated.
"It seems it's time for my 'ex-wife' to make an appearance."
"What is it?"
"My ex-wife!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the miniature missile rapidly attacked Ivan Vanko!
"Dong!"
A crisp sound rang out as the "ex-wife" hit Ivan Vanko's armor, then fizzled out and fell to the ground.
Tony Stark said speechlessly, "A weapon produced by Hammer Industries?"
"Uh..."
Shrugging at Tony, Rhodes frowned and asked, "What do we do now?"
"Ivan Vanko's armor is like a turtle shell; our attacks can't penetrate it at all!"
Watching Ivan Vanko's expression, which was full of amusement, Tony Stark took a deep breath and then said to Rhodes, "I have an idea now, but it's very dangerous, Rhodes, I need you and me—"
"Bang!"
Before Tony Stark could finish speaking, a bullet directly pierced Ivan Vanko's head from a hundred meters away.
The sudden scene left Tony Stark and Rhodes dumbfounded.
Ivan Vanko, who had just been so arrogant and impervious to any attack, was now instantly headshotted by a single bullet?
An opponent they had struggled so hard to defeat was so easily dealt with?
For some reason, Tony Stark felt that this battle had a rather anticlimactic feel to it.
He looked in the direction from which the bullet had come, only to see Lynn Hall waving at them.
【You have killed Ivan Vanko, whose favorability is -7, gaining 500 experience points!】
Hearing the system's prompt, Lynn put away his gun as if nothing had happened.
Lynn had heard Tony Stark say that Ivan Vanko harbored hatred towards him for saving him more than once, believing that he and Tony were in cahoots.
But unexpectedly, after snatching Ivan Vanko's kill, he only dropped 500 experience points as a legacy.
But that was right; Ivan Vanko was, after all, just an insignificant third-rate villain and had no special extraordinary abilities himself.
So it was normal for him to drop 500 legacy experience points!
Controlling their armors, Tony and Rhodes flew over, their faceplates open, expressions somewhat complex.
Lynn, however, spoke with a smile, "I watched your entire battle. Many times he had already opened his helmet, didn't you ever think of attacking his head?"
"Whether it was bullets or energy cannons, you kept hitting Ivan Vanko's armor. Tsk... I don't even know how to describe your battle!"
Hearing Lynn's complaint, Tony Stark and Rhodes exchanged glances.
For a moment, neither knew how to respond.
Indeed, there were many opportunities to directly attack his head, including when he descended from the air in front of them and specifically opened his helmet to reveal his face.
But both of them were focused on how to destroy his armor.
Hmm, it was just like how every time Captain America encountered an enemy, the enemy would always shoot bullets at his shield.
Seeing them remain silent, Lynn raised his hand and checked the time, saying, "Alright, hurry up and clean up and leave this place. The relevant departments for the aftermath are already here."
"Many people were killed and injured at the exposition this time, especially due to the stampede. I estimate tomorrow's news will be very lively!"
Hearing Lynn say that, Tony nodded, "Thanks, Lynn, you saved me again."
Three days later, at the press conference in the New York Federal Building.
"According to the post-incident on site investigation report, the death toll at the exposition three days ago was 17 people, and the injured reached as high as 126 people."
"According to our Federal Bureau of Investigation investigation, we found that the masterminds of this incident were Justin Hammer and Ivan Vanko from the Bear Country."
"Their primary targets were the high-ranking Military officials at the exposition, intending to use the opportunity of weapon demonstrations to wipe out the Military high command!"
Upon hearing Lynn's report on the case's findings, the media present immediately erupted in an uproar.
Some reporters even raised their hands directly, wanting to ask Lynn questions.
Looking at the reporters raising their hands below the stage, Lynn directly called on a media outlet that had a close working relationship with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
"Mr. Lynn, are you saying that the mastermind behind this is the Bear Country? Do you have any evidence?"
Facing the reporter's question, Lynn opened the PPT and displayed, "I believe everyone should still remember the incident of the plane carrying a nuclear bomb that landed at New York Airport back then, right?"
Hearing Lynn's question, many media outlets present nodded their heads.
The incident of a Bear Country soldier flying a nuclear-armed plane to defect to the United States was a "feast" for the news industry.
So, they naturally remembered this feast very clearly.
"According to our investigation, although Ivan Vanko is publicly wanted by the Bear Country, he has close ties with some officials from the Bear Country in private."
"Including many transactions in his overseas accounts, all are related to the Bear Country."
At this point, Lynn turned the page of the PPT, which was full of evidence of Ivan Vanko's collaboration with Justin Hammer.
"Ever since Stark Industries' weapon manufacturing department closed, Hammer Industries has actively sought Military orders, but the results have not been very good."
"And Ivan Vanko, who was secretly dispatched by the Bear Country, discovered this and proactively attacked Tony Stark in Morocco to demonstrate his capabilities to Justin Hammer."
"The facts were just as Ivan Vanko had planned; after Justin Hammer witnessed Vanko's abilities, he proactively rescued him from the Morocco prison."
"And the two collaborated to create those War Machines, preparing to showcase them to the World at the exposition."
Turning the PPT page again, it contained chat records between Ivan Vanko and "someone."
"According to the records we recovered from Ivan Vanko's computer, Ivan Vanko and officials from the Bear Country formulated a plan to kill high-ranking Military officials at the exposition."
"The purpose was to humiliate the U.S. Military in front of the entire World as retaliation for the United States harboring Bear Country soldiers."
"Fortunately, at the critical moment, Mr. Tony Stark appeared as Iron Man in time, saving the civilians and high-ranking Military officials at the scene."
"Otherwise, the Bear Country's conspiracy would have succeeded!"
Watching Lynn present the conclusive evidence, the reporters present once again erupted in an uproar.
"My goodness, I didn't expect it to be ostensibly targeting Tony Stark, but in reality, they wanted to kill all the high-ranking Military officials?"
"Thankfully, Mr. Lynn Hall tracked down the clues, and Tony Stark appeared in time, otherwise the United States would have been humiliated worldwide!"
"F***, these damn Bear Country people!"
Inside Tony Stark's Villa.
Looking at the news conference being broadcast live on the television, Tony Stark was dumbfounded, and even Pepper was utterly shocked.
"So... I am now the hero who saved the U.S. Military high command and prevented the United States from being humiliated worldwide?"
Hearing Lynn's explanation, Tony looked at Pepper beside him, his voice even changing.
"That's right, that's what Lynn said, and I estimate that after the press conference ends, the entire U.S. public will also believe that!"
"Oh my God..."
Leaning on the sofa, Tony Stark still looked incredulous: "How do I feel this is a bit absurd? Ivan Vanko wanted to get revenge on me, what does this have to do with the Bear Country?"
"Moreover—"
"I think what Lynn said is true!"
Before Tony could finish, Pepper interrupted directly, "And what Lynn said must be true, Tony. Ivan Vanko killed 17 innocent civilians at the exposition to get revenge on you."
"Compared to Ivan Vanko accepting orders from the Bear Country and attempting to plot the murder of high-ranking Military officials, which failed and directly resulted in the deaths of 17 innocent civilians, which of these two statements do you think is more acceptable?"
Hearing Pepper say that, Tony Stark was silent for a moment: "But..."
"Tony, do you think Lynn would lie about this?"
Holding Tony's hand, Pepper said softly, "If this kind of thing were a lie, it would definitely be investigated."
"And we both know Lynn; you should know what kind of person Lynn is!"
Facing Pepper's comfort, Tony Stark thought for a while: "Although this guy Lynn always picks the most expensive wine to drink every time he comes, and likes to snatch away the most beautiful women with the longest legs."
"But as an Federal Bureau of Investigation agent, his ability is very strong, and as a friend, he is very trustworthy!"
Hearing Tony's assessment of Lynn, Pepper also smiled, "That's right, and he has saved us more than once. I believe he wouldn't lie!"
"Phew."
Taking a long breath, Tony leaned back on the sofa and nodded.
"Alright, I'm going to work. Perhaps with you becoming a hero in the eyes of the U.S. public, Stark Industries' stock might rise again!"
Kissing Tony on the cheek, Pepper stood up and walked out.
After Pepper left, Tony Stark remained silent for a good while, then spoke: "Jarvis, help me with two things."
"First, help me compensate the families of the 17 deceased and cover all medical and nutritional expenses for all the injured."
"Second, help me check Ivan Vanko's overseas bank accounts and the accuracy of the evidence Lynn has released!"
Hearing Tony Stark say that, Jarvis replied, "Understood, sir. However, are you suspecting that Mr. Lynn is misleading the public?"
"Somewhat."
Nodding slightly, Tony Stark said with a serious expression, "Although I know that if this matter is false, then Lynn is doing this to help me, to prevent the public from blaming me entirely for the deaths."
"But Jarvis, if this responsibility truly is mine, then at least I cannot evade it!"
"Honestly, I'm really grateful to Lynn. As a friend, he has already done everything he can for me."
"But I don't want my friend to bear these burdens for me!"
Hearing Tony Stark say that, Jarvis replied, "Understood, sir. Searching for Ivan Vanko's overseas accounts and the evidence released by Mr. Lynn now."