"The simplest choice is to buy shares."
Oliver was not a lone wolf. He came from a prominent family with a large corporation. Without any other leads, the easiest approach was to buy shares and become a major shareholder. Even if there was no previous connection, this identity could establish a basic relationship.
It was even easier to become friends than it was for ordinary people, especially since Oliver was determined to change Star City's chaotic situation and atone for his father's past mistakes.
In this context, Oliver needed allies within the corporation even more.
"So this is why you brought me here?"
Tony shrugged. "I can certainly help you with the funding, but asking me to spend every day at a company networking with people... let us just say I do not even know all the shareholders of Stark Industries."
He was notorious for not caring about company matters, even handing the entire corporation over to his girlfriend to avoid dealing with anything. Shareholders or public opinion meant nothing to him. As long as he was happy, that was enough.
And Ethan?
"You can ask me to research magic, but I know absolutely nothing about running a company."
Besides, Ethan still looked like a young teenager. Even if he understood these things, he was not suitable for the job in his current appearance.
"So that became your excuse again."
"Mhm."
He might as well use the excuse while he still could. Once the Flash was born, Ethan would not be able to rely on it anymore. People like Ada obviously could not be used as excuses either.
Over the next few days, with the formidable capabilities of Jarvis and Luna, Ethan and the others gathered ample liquid funds. After countless transfers, the money was clean and not dark money. Additionally, because Queen Consolidated was struggling due to the poor environment of Star City, many shareholders were looking to sell their shares.
Even the shareholders who were hesitating were willing to let go if the price was raised slightly. Ada quickly acquired a significant number of shares.
At this point, the preparations were almost complete. With the acquisition of official identities, the first thing Tony did was look for a house.
They were going to be staying here for a long time, so they could not live in a hotel forever.
As a super rich tycoon of the Marvel universe, Tony had extremely high standards when choosing a house. Not many places met his expectations, and considering the purpose of this trip, they would likely become Oliver's neighbors. Although with such large mansions, being neighbors did not mean much.
Compared to the others who had things to do, Ethan was relatively free. He spent his days wandering the streets, getting familiar with the surroundings, and preparing to accidentally meet someone in particular.
Ethan knew that Oliver did not trust anyone at first, not even his own family. To keep his secrets, he needed an unknown secret base.
He chose an abandoned factory owned by his family that had long been shut down. Ethan had spent several days wandering around and already knew the location. Ada had successfully acquired shares in Queen Consolidated, and as a shareholder, she could view the corporation's assets, which made confirming the factory even easier.
After confirming that Oliver had not yet turned the factory into a secret base, Ethan's mischievous streak resurfaced.
Since he had nothing else to do, he decided to stir up some trouble.
Did Oliver like hiding his identity? In his previous life, Ethan had found this especially annoying.
Since it annoyed him, he might as well change it. Early the next day, Ethan left the hotel and went to wait outside the Queen family mansion.
He was not waiting for Oliver, but for Oliver's sister, Thea. Once Thea headed to school, he secretly followed her.
"This behavior... seems a bit creepy."
Waving away the strange thought, Ethan watched Thea obediently enter the school, only to sneak out moments later.
Thea was not a good girl. At seventeen, she was in her most rebellious phase, and skipping class meant nothing to her.
As for crushing painkillers into powder to get high, that was not a big deal either.
Ethan did not want her to get too high, so when she hid in a corner of the school and began crushing pills, he walked out from behind a nearby large tree. It looked as if he had been there all along and she had simply not noticed.
"Oh, sorry, I did not know anyone was here."
"It is okay."
Ethan's current appearance was extremely deceiving. He looked like a boy around fourteen or fifteen, younger than Thea, maybe even a junior student. Since he was not wearing a uniform, Thea assumed he must be from another school.
Because he looked so young, Thea did not guard against him. When she noticed Ethan looking at the pills she was about to crush, she even asked casually, "Want some?"
"This stuff does nothing to me."
Ethan was telling the truth. With his physical constitution, the pills were no different from flour. But in Thea's eyes, it was just a kid bragging.
"Oh, okay then."
After she finished, Thea wrapped up the powder and put it away. Even though she was rebellious and liked doing things that angered her parents, it did not mean she was stupid.
Getting high in front of a stranger was not smart, especially a strange boy. She would not let her guard down just because he looked young.
The atmosphere became slightly awkward. Since class had already started, she could not return, and she could not think of anywhere else to go. She hoped the boy would leave on his own, but to her annoyance, he showed no intention of leaving.
Of course, Ethan would not leave. He had come specifically for Thea.
"Are you bored?"
"A little."
Good looks truly were a huge advantage. Even though he was a complete stranger, Thea did not reject talking to him.
If he had his original ordinary appearance, approaching Thea would have been much harder. If he were unattractive, she would probably have run off before he even spoke.
Now, with Ethan speaking to her, she was willing to chat. His appearance left a good first impression, and because he intentionally kept a certain distance, Thea even felt he was gentlemanly.
"It looks like you're not planning to go back to class. Want to see something interesting?"
"Something interesting?"
Thea was curious, but after thinking for a moment, she refused. "I will pass."
Ethan knew she was still wary. His plan to lure Thea out of school and have her watch Oliver build his secret base would not work.
Considering it again, if Thea were truly that gullible, she would have been kidnapped many times already. Star City was not a safe or civilized city. The only place with worse public security was Gotham.
"Actually, you can watch right here."
"Huh?"
Since he could not take her there, he would simply broadcast it with magic.
Ethan had already scouted several abandoned factories owned by Queen Consolidated. With clear spatial coordinates, he could use magic to project what was happening at the location.
As for exposing his magic, he had never minded showing his abilities. Demonstrating magic helped him build rapport with locals.
Thea, however, misunderstood. Seeing Ethan repeatedly bring up the subject, she thought he was strange. She repeated her refusal and discreetly reached into her small bag, where she kept pepper spray for self defense.
"Do not be nervous. This is actually about your brother."
"Ollie?"
The sudden mention of her brother, whom she once thought dead but had recently returned, froze Thea's movements. The smile she had maintained disappeared instantly.
Just as she was about to ask more questions, she saw an image appear between Ethan's slightly spread hands. The person in the image was Oliver, walking down a dilapidated street with a large bag on his back.
Besides being surprised by the appearance of Oliver, Thea was curious about how Ethan accomplished this.
"Is this some new product?"
Modern people were not unfamiliar with holographic images. Seeing the projection in Ethan's hands, her first thought was that it was holographic technology.
Holograms existed in this world, but were not widespread. Ordinary people had little chance to see them.
But when a genius or rich person produced something similar, it was not impossible.
"Sort of."
Ethan noticed that after her initial surprise, Thea's hand had already gripped the pepper spray. From her posture, she could take it out and attack at any moment.
"What is your purpose in showing me this? What are you planning to do to Ollie?"
Ethan walked to the large tree and sat down at its base. Thea kept her distance and stayed alert the entire time.
"We are not planning to do anything. We just want to show you something about your brother."
As Oliver in the image tossed his bag over an iron gate and effortlessly climbed the more than two meter fence, Thea finally focused all her attention on the projection in Ethan's hands.
(To be continued.)