Arthur was momentarily speechless, while Tony looked at him with a smug grin. "You know, when I was drunk back then, I almost figured out her thing."
"Alright, you're amazing," Arthur rolled his eyes. "Then you give the guarantee she needs."
"Fine, I guarantee it," Tony said immediately, turning to Maya. "If you cooperate, I'll help you."
"Alright then, about Mandarin..." Maya pondered for a moment before continuing, "He's just a front. Simply put, Extremis isn't stable. Although we work with the military, accidents are inevitable in this. The external manifestation of that instability is... well, explosions."
"Explosions occurring at three thousand degrees Celsius," Natasha interjected, glancing at her. "Would the military accept such an unstable product?"
"Actually, some people bought it, but others didn't," Maya replied. "As long as we keep those who don't accept it in the dark, it's fine. For that, we needed someone to step forward and take responsibility for the unstable experimental outcomes."
"So Mandarin appeared for this reason?" Arthur mused, feeling like he was putting on quite an act, pretending to know nothing when he actually knew everything. It made him realize how much life resembled a drama.
"That's right," Maya confirmed with a nod.
"Alright then," Arthur continued, "The man in the video earlier, if I remember correctly, his name should be..."
"Aldrich Killian," Natasha cut in before Arthur could finish. "What role does he play in this?"
"He's the top executive of the company," Maya explained. "And I'm the head of research."
So the issue became clear, especially for Tony, who glanced at Maya. "So the two of you teamed up?"
"Is there more to this story?" Natasha asked, looking at Tony.
Tony thought for a moment and said, "It's a long story, stemming from my wild days as a playboy."
"Whether it's wild or not isn't important," Arthur interjected. "What's most important now is..."
"Whether it's wild or not is very important!" Natasha shot back, glaring at Arthur, her teeth clenched. "Very important!!!"
Arthur paused, realizing he had no choice but to concede. "Alright, it's important..."
"Hmm," Natasha gave Tony a wary look, as if wishing she could keep him away from Arthur.
"Where was I?" Arthur's train of thought was derailed by Natasha's interruption.
"What's most important now... is what?" Tony asked, trying to steer the conversation back on track.
"Isn't it obvious?" Arthur replied. "We need to catch Aldrich Killian and take down that actor."
"Got it," Natasha nodded.
Tony thought for a moment and said, "Wait, isn't this my business? Why does it feel like, as things have developed, it has nothing to do with me anymore?"
Arthur then walked over to the Baldy, gently patting his face. "If you're awake, don't just lie there. After all, even if you sneak attacked us, you can't do anything and may end upgetting hurt or worse."
The Baldy immediately opened his eyes and threw a punch at Arthur's face.
But in the next second, his fist was caught. The Baldy sneered, feeling the temperature of his palm rapidly increasing. Arthur sighed, "People like you must be great at boiling water."
"This is impossible!"
Seeing that his fist had reached its maximum temperature, yet Arthur remained calm, the Baldy's expression finally crumbled. "You're not human..."
"You're the one who's not human; your whole family isn't human," Arthur shot back, his face darkening.
Natasha walked over, examining the Baldy's fist and feeling the scorching heat it emitted. She furrowed her brow. "Such an ability is indeed troublesome."
"This is very bad but also interesting at the same time," Tony agreed, stepping closer. "Even my armor would probably struggle to withstand it."
Then, as if a thought struck him, he cheerfully added, "Doesn't this prove that this old man's bone and skin is becoming less and less human? He shows no reaction to such temperatures."
Arthur wished he could kick Tony for his chaotic commentary.
Casually twisting off one of the Baldy's arms, he said, "Let me ask you something. You can answer if you want; if not, forget it. It doesn't matter much anyway. So, where is that Mandarin?"
"Do you think I'd tell you?" The Baldy laughed coldly, seemingly unfazed by his broken arm.
"Extremis Gene Suppresser numbed his pain nerves," Maya explained, noticing Arthur's puzzled expression.
Arthur realized, "I thought you were the Baldy; turns out you're the Black Hero... Wait, no, maybe I'm more like the Black Hero."
"Who's that? A new superhero?" Tony asked, genuinely curious.
"That's not the point," Arthur said, pulling the Baldy up. "Since this guy won't talk, let's just chop him up. It's not easy to kill someone with Extremis, but if we chop him into pieces and throw him into the sea, he probably won't come back."
"You'll be polluting the sea," Tony shook his head disapprovingly.
"Then what do you suggest?" Arthur asked.
…
Meanwhile, Natasha had returned to the computer. "That Mandarin should be in Miami, Florida."
"Great!" Arthur gave Natasha a thumbs up and turned to the Baldy. "See, now you're of no use at all."
The Baldy's expression changed several times before he finally closed his eyes.
"Can't handle it anymore? You really have a fragile little heart," Arthur said, then pulled him up and slammed him on the ground several times.
After confirming he was knocked out, he stuffed him into the Disassemble space. "Regular cells aren't suitable for guys like him. Later, get me a high-temperature resistant one, or concoct an antidote to remove his Extremis, then transfer him to SHIELD for custody."
"No problem," Natasha nodded.
Tony said, "I probably know where Aldrich is. You go deal with Mandarin?"
"Although Aldrich is tougher than Mandarin," Arthur glanced at Tony, "considering your history with Aldrich, I won't fight you for this one."
"Great!" Tony nodded enthusiastically.
"Hey..."
Arthur's voice called out, and Tony turned around to hear him say, "I believe in you, so you can believe in yourself too."
(End of Chapter)
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