Actually, as soon as Leon left Tony Stark, he regretted it.
Why?
Because he had no way of getting back—no plane!
When he left, he was so carefree, but now flying back alone against the freezing wind, he felt nothing but despair and misery...
Three whole days!
Three entire days!!
Over seventy hours!!
And his flying skill was already at level three!
Leon had never seen this mentioned in movies before! One quick swoosh, and the hero is gone. In movies, it's always so easy, right? But why does no one ever mention that you can't get past airport security like this?
By the end, Leon was too exhausted to even curse. Luckily, no one knew about his plight...
"Let this embarrassing incident be lost forever, buried in the sea of oblivion!"
Three days after rescuing Tony Stark, and three days after Tony had arrived home, Leon finally made it back to the Big Apple!
As soon as he flew into his apartment in his wasp form, he changed back to his human shape, stripped off his clothes, and collapsed into bed.
Those three days had really taken a toll on him.
…
While Leon was up in the sky, lost and trying to find his way, Tony Stark was already making waves by announcing the closure of Stark Industries' weapons development and production divisions, just like in the movie. Once the news broke, Stark Industries' stock plummeted, and the entire company was in chaos.
Tony had always been a troublemaker, but he was a troublemaker who made money.
That's why everyone tolerated him. They might have hated him, but nobody hated money.
But now things were different. A troublemaker who couldn't make money was just a troublemaker.
So, Obadiah, along with several other shareholders, started plotting to isolate Tony, or maybe even oust him entirely!
But at that moment, Tony Stark showed Obadiah a new source of potential profit.
…
"You actually managed to miniaturize it!"
Obadiah couldn't believe it as he stared at the small arc reactor in Tony's chest.
As Howard Stark's business partner, Obadiah was very familiar with the large reactor in the Stark Industries facility that powered the entire company.
If this thing could be miniaturized, Obadiah's mind raced with countless applications for the technology!
Each one could make them leaders in their field!
But there was a problem…
"I don't plan to make this technology public, and I'm not going to commercialize it."
That's right, Tony Stark rejected Obadiah.
Despite the old man's lengthy and heartfelt attempts to persuade him, Tony wouldn't budge. Tony knew very well that if this technology fell into the wrong hands, the destruction it could cause would be far worse than a missile—or even a truckload of missiles.
The plan was dead before it was even born. Obadiah, of course, wasn't happy, but on the surface, he still supported Tony.
After saying a bunch of nice, meaningless things and putting on a show of being a kind, supportive elder, Obadiah left Tony's mansion.
As he walked out the door, he looked back one last time.
Howard... don't blame me...
…
Around 1 AM, Leon finally woke up after fourteen hours of sleep, driven out of bed by a full bladder.
After using the bathroom, he tried to go back to sleep, but it was no use.
He was tired, thirsty, hungry! His body also had this weird, false sense of energy.
If a normal person couldn't sleep at this time of night, they'd feel irritated, and the next day they'd be a wreck.
But Leon wasn't a normal person...
He decided to get up and have breakfast.
A midnight snack?
Who cares? It's the first meal after waking up, so technically it's breakfast, but time-wise, it's a midnight snack! No big deal!
As a true night owl, Leon's work required him to avoid going out in broad daylight and getting into trouble. That wouldn't look good!
So Leon was more comfortable at night anyway, plus that's when the clients come out!
Naturally, after a hearty meal, Leon "put on his work clothes," transformed into his black cat form, and jumped out of the window.
Don't ask why he didn't use the door—cats don't walk through doors!
Especially when there's a perfectly good window!
Let's be honest, cats are insanely agile. You know the saying: "A cat's agility is seven times that of a human!"
Leon nimbly dodged the neighbor lady's clothesline and smoothly avoided the uncle downstairs and his rare plants. The black cat Leon landed gracefully on the ground, and then... spent a minute chasing a mouse.
"Damn! I knew this skill had a bit of a cat's instinct!"
As everyone knows, cats have a "hunting instinct."
Most animals don't attack or kill without a reason, especially when they're not hungry.
But cats are different. Whether it's a fish or a bird, even if they're not hungry, they'll still hunt it, kill it, and leave it there.
In this way, cats are very much like humans!
And the black cat Leon is both a cat and a human!!
Oh yes—double the fun!
So after cornering the poor mouse, Leon kindly made it a little shelter out of a cement block and a few stones.
The natural elements can be harsh, and thinking of this, Leon even placed a larger stone on top.
"There, that should do it!"
Feeling good about his act of kindness for the day, Leon happily continued to roam the streets, looking for people in need of... salvation.
…
Around 2 AM, after an hour of wandering, Leon sat down on the street, puzzled. One question filled his mind.
"Did I travel to another parallel universe again?"
It wasn't an unreasonable question.
In the past, Hell's Kitchen was chaos at night!
The streets were filled with the sounds of gunfire and cries for help—you couldn't sleep without it!
After all, this is Hell's Kitchen!
Leon hadn't been slow—he'd leisurely walked three or four blocks in an hour.
Shouldn't the streets be packed with trouble by now?
But no, there wasn't a single crime in sight!
"If it weren't for the English signs and these familiar streets, I'd think I'd traveled back in time!"
Could it be... because of me?
Leon thought for a moment and realized that it was entirely possible!
Kingpin had practically unified Hell's Kitchen's underworld, with only Owl offering any resistance, and even that was barely hanging on.
After Owl allied with Kingpin, Kingpin became the de facto ruler of the underworld.
And it just so happened that on the day they formed their alliance, Leon showed up for a "water meter check."
He handed out several free "iron pineapples" (grenades), and the cosplay-loving Owl died on the spot. Kingpin, after being toyed with by Leon, was sent to the real underground.
Who knows if Mephisto likes this guy.
Leon always worked meticulously!
Thanks to Kingpin's prior consolidation efforts, Leon had no trouble wiping them all out.
But even so, it shouldn't have turned Hell's Kitchen into this crime-free zone.
Leon wasn't your average person!
He loved the small stuff—petty crimes, minor disputes, little gangs.
That's why he went crazy practicing his skills, even using clones to beat up street thugs.
During that time, the thugs of Hell's Kitchen were terrified of cats. Some even felt pain just hearing a cat meow.
Nowadays, if you don't have a cat in Hell's Kitchen, you can't even chat with your neighbors!
Solid black cats might not be popular elsewhere, but in Hell's Kitchen, they're practically worshipped!
After all, it's common knowledge: the black cats of Hell's Kitchen don't catch mice—they fend off robbers!
Good job, black cat Leon!
(End of chapter)