300 gems = bonus chapter
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John waited by the roadside for a bus, not particularly keen on walking back to his house.
A luxurious convertible sports car glided to a stop in front of him. The man inside, sporting sunglasses, turned his head and let out a playful whistle, like a stereotypical playboy trying to pick up a young woman. "Hey there, beautiful, care to hop in and have a chat?"
"I would not mind tearing your car apart, Stark," John retorted, a smile playing on his lips as he casually drew his wand.
"Whoa, easy there! This is my new ride, okay? Just get in; let's talk." Tony Stark raised his hands in mock surrender, clearly still harboring some lingering unease about that little stick.
After a quick scan of his surroundings, John decided to get into the car.
Settling into the passenger seat, John remarked, "Can you not ever get a car with four seats?"
"You are not exactly a damsel in distress, and I promise I will not bite," Tony countered, equally exasperated. "What is your deal anyway? Some kind of phobia about sitting up front?"
"I just do not like sitting next to other people."
John buckled his seat belt. "Just drive, Speed Racer."
Tony made a zipping motion across his lips and floored the accelerator, the car speeding away from the curb.
The surrounding scenery blurred past, but it was clear they were not heading towards John's house.
"So, did Ivan Vanko build those new Iron Soldiers for you?" Tony asked, navigating the car through traffic. "You do realize he has a criminal record, right?"
"Indeed," John replied casually. "But do not worry, he is not that foolish. It would be rather dull to use the same trick twice."
"That is not necessarily the case," Tony said, his tone noncommittal. "You are aware of the palladium poisoning issue. There is no way to circumvent that, which means any subsequent Iron Soldiers are basically heading for a dead end."
As someone who had personally experienced palladium poisoning, Tony was intimately familiar with the reactor's flaws. That particular element severely limited the reactor's output capacity. So, when he heard that the military and Hammer Industries were proceeding with new orders, he had a strong suspicion about who was involved. He was not afraid, though. If he simply maintained his current course, Ivan would inevitably fail again the next time they crossed paths.
"You are quite arrogant, Stark." John observed the sprawling villa that came into view and remarked calmly, "Have you forgotten that I saved your life?"
Tony, remembering the purple flakes, pressed down on the accelerator.
The garage door slid open, and he drove straight in, bringing the car to a smooth, drifting halt.
"You gave that stuff to Ivan?" Tony stared at John. "Are you not afraid he will create something even more terrifying?"
"Pressure breeds motivation, Iron Man." John opened his car door and stepped out. "Are you not also conducting your own research?"
He began walking towards the villa.
"Welcome, John Wick."
The villa door opened, and Jarvis's voice resonated through the entrance.
John seemed genuinely impressed. "This butler is quite likable."
"Thank you for the compliment," Jarvis responded, his tone indistinguishable from a human's.
Tony followed him in, a look of displeasure on his face. "I told you, you should at least feign some surprise."
"Really?" John flicked his wand, and a beverage bottle soared through the air, landing neatly in his hand. He raised an eyebrow. "Do you think I need to be impressed?"
Indeed, when compared to actual magic, the marvel of an intelligent butler perhaps lost some of its shock value.
Tony took the drink from John's hand. "Are you not even curious why I brought you here?"
"It is hardly a matter of life and death." John raised his hand, and the bottle returned to his grasp. He opened it and took a sip. "If you planned to kill me here, I could only laugh at your incompetence from beyond the grave."
"I will not, and I do not want to, kill you," Tony said, clearly unhappy. "I am here to settle a score."
"I do not recall owing you any money."
John addressed the air. "Jarvis, turn on the television."
The TV screen lit up, displaying an entertainment program.
"No, Jarvis, do not turn on the television." Tony returned and sat down to the side. "Your employees attempted to assassinate me. Is that not a debt to be settled?"
"If you put it that way, what about your attempt to assassinate me?" John sneered. "I fail to see how you could possibly compensate me for that."
"And you caused damage to my eyes. Plus, before I even called the police, a naked man broke into my house." Tony's expression darkened; these were unpleasant memories he preferred not to revisit.
Tony took a deep breath, trying to tolerate John's irksome personality. "I need you to do me a few favors. Use your magic."
"That is hardly the tone one uses when asking for help." John raised an eyebrow, lounging carelessly on the sofa. "You should demonstrate some sincerity."
"Alright, how much?" Tony opted for the simplest solution: spending money. That usually worked, did it not?
"You cannot be serious, can you?" John said, feigning surprise. "Are you trying to offer money to someone who just secured a multibillion-dollar military contract and owns two major arms industries?"
He looked genuinely astonished, as if he had just witnessed someone streaking.
That expression wounded Tony deeply. Confound it, the day Tony Stark was outdone in terms of financial resources had actually arrived.
A vein throbbed on Tony's forehead. When wealth reached the tens of billions, the practical difference between that and hundreds of billions became less significant. Most things purchasable with hundreds of billions could also be acquired with tens of billions.
So, he gritted his teeth and asked, "Then what is it that you want?"
"Let me consider…" John looked at Tony thoughtfully. "Aside from your armor, there appears to be nothing else of yours that piques my interest."
"Impossible!" Tony refused without hesitation. He would never hand over the armor; its potential impact was far too great.
"I know what you desire," John said, unhurried. He idly rubbed the ring on his finger and stated very calmly, "You want more of those magic crystals."
"I can accommodate your request, but you must pay an equivalent price."
"Magic crystals?" Tony was indeed very keen to study those purple flakes. That substance could even replace palladium in powering a reactor, which highlighted its immense value.
"Excluding the armor," Tony said after a moment of silence, "what else do you find appealing?"
For the first time, he felt utterly helpless, realizing there were problems that even a billionaire could not solve.
John paused in thought, then rose and began to circle Tony, as if appraising his worth.
When Tony could no longer endure the scrutinizing gaze, John stopped.
"I am quite interested in Jarvis. How about you provide me with an artificial intelligence of comparable capability?"
Tony considered this for a moment. "Alright, I can give you one."
As long as it was not Jarvis himself, anything else was negotiable.
Tony's area of expertise was, in fact, somewhat different from Ivan's. While Ivan was painstakingly typing out code line by line, Tony had already developed Jarvis-level artificial intelligence. In the realm of the internet, Tony was peerless.
Seeing Tony's agreement, John simply produced a card.
"What is this?" Tony asked.
"Do you not want the magic crystals?" John smiled, a distinct businesslike aura about him. "Go to this place to acquire them."
Tony took the card. "So, you are telling me this material is not exclusively yours?"
"I do own it exclusively," John stated matter-of-factly, "but there is no stipulation that I must be the one to produce it."
"They can arrange for delivery to your doorstep."
Pointing to the number on the card, John smiled and added, "Payment in US dollars is accepted."
Ultimately, he still had to spend money. What happened to that earlier attitude of disdaining financial offers?
Tony felt his fist clench, but he knew he could not defeat his opponent. It was truly exhausting to don the armor only to have to remove it again.
"By the way, may I borrow one of your cars?"
Seeing that their business was concluded, John walked towards the door, his gaze sweeping over the collection of luxury cars.
Tony smiled. "No."
A person who gets into one car and then has another car blown up actually has the audacity to ask such a thing?
In the end, John did not take a car from Tony.
He was full of complaints about this. "I do not understand the point of having me come all this way."
He Apparated home from Stark's villa.
**********
John did not forget to continue upgrading his gloves. He had fused one piece of Uru metal previously, and this time he intended to fuse a second.
A silvery substance covered his palm, gripping the Uru metal to absorb it. The Uru metal gradually melted, and the silver layer transformed into fine threads, intertwining with the specialized gloves. This was an incredibly delicate process; each thread was so minute it would require a microscope to be seen clearly. They combined and interwove with each other, forming a newly enhanced glove.
As the sky transitioned from dark to dawn, the fusion of the gloves was complete.
John raised his right hand, and the gem on the back of his hand shimmered with light. He clenched his fist, and a wave of energy caused the coffee machine before him to disintegrate and then reassemble itself. He directed another pulse of energy towards the wall and the ground. Instantly, horizontal and vertical fissures spread out, forming a grid-like pattern. Yet, in just a moment, the surrounding area healed, returning to its original state. It was completely impossible to discern that the house had been momentarily torn apart.
John stroked his chin, gazing at three tiny listening devices floating in the air, and fell into thought.
"Does SHIELD still enjoy eavesdropping?"
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