"Riing! Riing! Riing!"
Suddenly, the blaring of alarm sirens echoed throughout Stark Industries.
On the rooftop, where Loki and Dr. Erik Selvig were busy installing the portal device, both froze, their expressions darkening.
They thought they had been discovered.
Dressed in his usual regal attire, Loki strode to the edge of the rooftop and peered down.
After a moment of confusion, his expression relaxed. "Strange… it's not for us."
The building's entire security force seemed to be responding to someone else.
"It doesn't seem to be about us," Loki muttered, frowning. He turned to Selvig and ordered, "Continue."
Meanwhile, Fenric's infiltration had thrown Stark Tower into chaos.
Sirens wailed relentlessly as security guards scrambled into action, guns raised, chasing after him.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Fenric dashed up the stairwell with explosive speed, rapidly closing in on the rooftop.
Sure, taking the elevator would be easier… but only an idiot would pick that option.
If someone tampered with the elevator controls, he'd be a sitting duck.
At Fenric's current speed, sprinting up the stairs was far faster—and far safer.
"Where's the target?"
"Just passed the fifteenth floor!"
"He's on the seventeenth floor now! Stop him, quickly!!"
"Alert Mr. Stark immediately!"
The voices of security personnel crackled over their walkie-talkies, their tone filled with panic.
"He's here!"
"Open fire!"
Gunshots rang out.
But all that resulted was a massacre of security guards.
Fenric's expression remained cold, his steps unyielding as he stormed past the fallen men, leaving corpses behind him.
With his current strength, unless someone like Hulk or Thor appeared, no one could stop him.
In mere minutes, Fenric reached the thirtieth floor.
The stairwell behind him was littered with bodies.
Stark Tower, one of Manhattan's most iconic skyscrapers, had over fifty floors.
At Fenric's pace, another five minutes was all he needed to reach the top.
Nothing could halt this monster.
Far above, high in the sky, the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier drifted, severely damaged.
The Avengers, still a newly formed team, had just suffered a brutal defeat, courtesy of Loki's schemes.
Hulk had vanished, Thor's whereabouts were unknown, and casualties among the agents were devastating.
Agent Phil Coulson had even been "killed" at Loki's hands.
"Captain, we found this in Agent Coulson's jacket. He always wanted you to sign it…"
Nick Fury, the one-eyed director, dropped a handful of blood-stained trading cards on the table, his voice heavy.
"Unfortunately, he never got the chance."
Steve Rogers, the Captain, picked up one of the cards. It bore his image—an echo of who he was seventy years ago.
The room was quiet, the air heavy with grief.
Suddenly, Tony Stark's expression shifted. Without another word, he spun around and bolted out of the room.
"Stark?" Nick Fury called out, confused.
Tony didn't even glance back. "Someone's breaking into Stark Tower!"
The room erupted in shock.
Captain America stood abruptly. "Tony, wait for me!"
Stark Tower – Fifty-Fifth Floor
Fenric finally slowed down.
He had reached his destination.
"Clack!"
The tempered, explosion-proof glass doors slammed shut, locking him out.
Fenric smirked. Jarvis was making his move.
He clenched his fist, coating it with Armament Haki, and struck.
Boom!!
The "explosion-proof" glass shattered like fragile candy, scattering shards across the floor.
Fenric stepped through without hesitation.
"Warning! Sir, this is private property. You have no authorization to enter!"
Jarvis's calm voice echoed from every speaker.
Fenric ignored the AI, scanning the room.
His eyes lit up.
There it was—an entire wall lined with Iron Man suits.
He could even name some of them at a glance.
Mark IV.
Mark V (the portable suitcase model).
Mark VI (powered by the new arc reactor).
Mark VII (with advanced flight capability).
Fenric strode over without hesitation.
His targets were clear: the Mark VI and Mark VII suits.
The Mark VI, he planned to give to Aurora—she had been extremely helpful to him, and it was worth repaying that favor.
As for the Mark VII? That one was for him.
The rest? He didn't care.
Especially that flashy Mark V suitcase suit. Cool design, sure. But for Fenric, it was nothing more than scrap metal.
A suit that couldn't even fly was inferior to his own Armament Haki.
As for the iconic Mark 85 nanotech armor or the Hulkbuster? Tony hadn't invented those yet.
Crash! Crash!
Under Fenric's fists, the protective glass cases shattered one by one.
"Warning! Sir, your actions are a severe violation of law. The authorities have been notified."
Jarvis's voice remained calm and persistent, but without Tony's authorization, the AI couldn't directly engage him.
Fenric ignored it completely.
He retrieved both the Mark VI and Mark VII suits, then pulled out a peculiar item: a tampered USB drive.
Special Item: Tampered USB Drive.
This device contained a super virus capable of rewriting any system, even advanced AIs.
Fenric touched the drive to the Mark VII and pressed the activation switch.
The beauty of this tool was that it didn't even need a USB port—mere contact was enough.
Beep!
The Mark VII armor powered up, its lights flickering to life.
On the USB's tiny screen, a progress bar appeared:
"1%... 2%... 3%... 4%..."
The percentage ticked upward rapidly. In less than 100 seconds, the suit's system would be under Fenric's control.
Seeing this, Fenric grinned.
When the progress bar hit 100%, he immediately stored the Mark VII in his personal warehouse.
"Ding! You obtained a special item!"
Satisfied, he turned to the Mark VI and repeated the process.
Suddenly, a furious voice rang out from behind him.
"You bastard! Step away from my suits!"