Rooftop.
Tony sat on the ground, bored out of his mind.
Less than a hundred yards in front of him, a battle between man and machine was taking place.
To be precise, it was a human (questionable) toying with a mecha.
"This is precious early footage of humans taming wild mechas, Tony! Did you record it?"
Leon shouted, and Tony lazily responded.
He pulled down the rooftop surveillance camera, cleaned up the exposed wires, and closed one eye: "Yeah, yeah! It's all recorded! Watch your back."
Huh?
Leon, who was standing with his hands on his hips, turned around.
"I... will kill you! You piece of trash!"
Obadiah, piloting the Iron Monger, furiously smashed down with his real—iron fists!
Just one step away, just one step!
One small step, and he could kill Tony, take his money, and flee. With that fortune, he could live well anywhere.
But it was all ruined by—a cat?!!
"You meddlesome creature! Why are you stopping me?!"
Uh...
"Maybe it's because I'm a meddlesome creature?"
Leon dodged the Iron Monger's slow but forceful attack and replied with a leisurely tone, both mocking and reflective.
That line almost left the panting old man breathless.
Could there really be such an annoying person in this world?!
"F***! S*****! D****!"
Obadiah cursed furiously.
"Say something, come on! I remember you weren't like this before!"
In the back, Tony, who was lying on the ground without a care, chimed in.
After giving his mouth a rest, Tony also started throwing out insults.
Leon dodged another attack and still had time to reply to Tony: "If you're on the first floor and someone curses at you, you'll get angry. When you're on the tenth floor and that person is on the first, their insults get harder to hear, and you might even think they're praising you. When you're on the hundredth floor, you can't even see them anymore. All you see is the view."
Floating in the air with the evening breeze lifting his coat, Leon adjusted his hat: "Sometimes, when someone attacks you, it's because you're just too good. If you feel pained or annoyed because of it, it only shows your perspective is too narrow."
Raising his head slightly, Leon, like a master, proclaimed: "Expand your vision, broaden your mind, and you'll have a more exciting life!"
He raised one arm and shouted: "As for those who curse me, I'll give them a good smack. When I really make a move, I'll tear their heads off without hesitation!"
"Applause, please!"
At that moment, Leon was the master!
At first, Tony thought Leon's words made sense and reflected the magnanimity of a magical creature with great power!
But by the end…
Of course, expecting a cat to speak something sensible was a bit unrealistic!
"Mr. Cat, I have a different opinion!"
Tony said: "If you're on the first floor and curse at someone, they'll get mad. If they go to the tenth floor, I can build you a loudspeaker, and if you curse at them, they'll still get mad. If they go to the hundredth floor, I can give you a phone. If you curse at them, they'll still get mad."
"Even if they go to the moon, I can build a spaceship to send you there to curse them face to face! I guarantee it'll be clearer than cursing from the first floor!"
Leon bowed: "Technology changes life!"
Tony waved his finger: "No, technology can change life, but it won't change yours—only money can!"
Ah! Master! I get it!
Hearing all this, Obadiah felt these two were ignoring him and insulting him!
"Arghhh!"
The Iron Monger charged: Ruthless Iron Fist!
Leon countered: Quickdraw! Holy Lance Baptism!
Iron Monger: Power Strike! Phase Rush!
Leon: Lethal Tempo!
Iron Monger: Dragon's Charge!
Leon: Master's Might! Sharpshooter's Focus! Energy Barrage! Endgame Moment! Perfect Finale!
Iron Monger: Withering…
…
A shot hit Obadiah's forehead. The business tycoon and brilliant mecha pilot who had ruled for so long met his end.
Tony slowly walked over, looking at the elder, mentor, and deadly enemy lying in the Iron Monger. In the end, all the emotions in his chest turned into a single sigh.
"Sigh…"
Crouching down, he removed the battery Obadiah had taken from his chest, then gently closed Obadiah's still-open eyes.
Staring at the battery in his hand, Tony's thoughts wandered.
It seemed he had accidentally developed an epic product. To Tony, it was a battery and a power source, but Obadiah had seen through its true nature at a glance.
It was still a weapon.
Unconsciously gripping the battery tightly, Tony vowed that this thing would never fall into the wrong hands!
He removed the dim battery from his chest and replaced it with the one in his hand. Tony silently stared at the battery, lost in thought.
For a long time.
Tony snapped out of it. Leon was still beside him, his two guns with infinite ammo stowed away somewhere, his hands casually in his pockets, tapping his feet out of boredom.
"Mr. Cat."
"Hmm?"
"Aren't you going to change back?"
"Huh?"
"Mm?"
Leon: …
Tony: …
Silence. Silence filled the night air.
…
"Uh…" Leon broke the silence, unable to bear Tony's strange gaze.
"Actually, you can call me Leon."
"So…"
"Yes." Leon boldly confessed: "As you can see! I'm human. 100% human!"
Removing his hat and bowing, Leon's movements were smooth and flawless: "Please allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Leon Collins."
"A druid!"
…
…
Silence. Even the summer insects were silent for me.
"Liar."
Tony squinted: "I don't believe you anymore. A druid? That's probably fake too!"
Though Tony's words were a bit harsh, Leon couldn't quite explain. After all, he had indeed tricked Tony again out of habit.
A druid? He was no druid!
"You're just a liar."
I'm not…
"Maybe you're actually a koala or something."
I'm… not…
"Maybe that guy Robert Downey is actually you!"
I! Am! Not!
Dude, I swear I'm not!
Leon started explaining, his tongue flowing with charm, but Tony just refused to listen, shouting: "I'm not listening, you're lying, you're lying…"
Just as they were arguing, Pepper showed up.
At that moment, Leon turned back into the black cat.
Tony glanced down condescendingly, and Leon, in his cat form, gave him a defiant glare.
"Tony! Tony, are you okay? Tony… whoa! There really is a cat!"
"Yeah~"
Tony said: "There was a koala earlier too."
"A koala?"
"Mm, or maybe I got it wrong, could've been a panda."
Pepper looked at Tony, worried.
Uh oh, his head's not right anymore…
I just tipped myself with my alt account…
Hehe, I'm my own fan now…
Please vote for me!