[Mysteries On Marvel] Chapter 104/105/106 (Patreon)

The showdown between Iron Man and Iron Monger.

This battle seemed to mark the true beginning of the extraordinary in this world.

Eren wondered to himself: If I join this fight, would I earn some Fate Points?

Fate Points had proven to be incredibly fleeting.

Not long ago, Eren had sacrificed a mystical object from an abandoned textile factory, gaining a significant amount of Fate Points.

But they had been completely spent on manifesting a new talent.

Still, Eren didn't regret it.

Now, however, if he wanted to grow stronger quickly, he would need to gather more Fate Points.

Wait!

Eren suddenly remembered that Pepper was involved in the conflict between Iron Man and Iron Monger. If Tony hadn't arrived in time, Pepper might have died at the hands of Iron Monger.

Unlike the movies, this world wasn't scripted. Eren's presence had already started altering events, and there was no guarantee that Tony would arrive in time to save Pepper.

No. I have to warn her. I can't let her take such a risk.

With that thought, Eren shook off Doug's grip on his arm.

"Sorry, Doug, I just remembered something urgent. I'll catch up with you later."

Before Doug could respond, Eren darted through the crowd with astonishing speed, disappearing from view within moments.

Finding a quiet corner on campus, Eren pulled out his phone and dialed a number he had saved for a long time.

"Ring... ring..."

After a few rings, the call connected.

Stark Industries Headquarters – CEO's Office

Pepper was inside Stark's office, copying critical evidence onto a flash drive. This evidence implicated Obadiah Stane in Stark Industries' illegal arms dealings and the Ten Rings' attempted assassination of Tony Stark.

Her heart pounded as she processed the shocking information.

Suddenly, the door to the office opened, and Obadiah walked in with a bottle of wine in hand.

Pepper froze, her heart skipping a beat as fear gripped her.

But instead of confronting her, Obadiah smiled and moved to the liquor cabinet.
"Tony never runs out of good wine," he remarked casually.

At that moment, Pepper's phone, sitting on the desk, began to ring.

"A chance!"

Despite her panic, Pepper maintained her composure. She quickly picked up the phone, using the moment to slip the flash drive into her palm.

Without waiting for the caller to speak, she answered:
"Eren, what's up? I'm at work right now. Can I call you back later?"

Obadiah, sipping his wine nearby, overheard her and smiled understandingly.
"Eren? That's your nephew, right? Boys his age don't call unless it's important. No need to rush, Pepper. Stark Industries has always been family-friendly. Go ahead, take care of your personal matters. Work can wait."

Raising his glass, Obadiah added, "Just like I'm stealing a moment to enjoy this wine."

Pepper forced a smile and nodded, her heart racing.

As Obadiah turned away to fetch some ice from the fridge, Pepper swiftly closed the pop-up window confirming the file transfer's success.

"Excuse me, I'll handle this quickly," she said, holding up the phone.

"Of course," Obadiah replied, his smile never wavering.

Just then, Eren's voice came through the phone:
"Aunt Pepper, are you busy today? Something came up at school, and I need you to come over."

Hearing this, Obadiah chuckled.
"Go ahead, Pepper. Your boy needs you."

"Thank you," she said, feigning gratitude as she grabbed her bag and hurried out of the office.

Watching her leave, Obadiah smirked and took another sip of his wine. But as he savored the drink, a nagging thought struck him.

"Wait a minute. Tony's been suspended by the board. Why would his personal assistant be working in his office?"

"And wasn't she just using the computer earlier?"

Realization dawned, and Obadiah's expression darkened.

He set down his glass and rushed to the computer, his fingers flying over the keyboard as he checked the recent activity logs.

Moments later, his face twisted in fury.
"Dammit!"

Grabbing his coat, Obadiah stormed out, chasing after Pepper.

A few minutes earlier…

Inside the elevator, as the doors slid shut, Pepper finally exhaled. Her voice trembled as she spoke into the phone:
"Sorry, Eren. I'm dealing with something critical right now. I don't think I can come to Midtown High—"

Before she could finish, Eren interrupted:
"I know, Aunt Pepper. I don't actually need you at the school. I said that to give you an excuse to get away. I knew you were in danger."

(End of Chapter)

Pepper froze for a moment.
"You know?"

"Of course, Aunt Pepper. Have you forgotten my abilities?"

Before Pepper could respond, Eren continued, "Listen to me, Aunt Pepper. You're in grave danger. I've foreseen a shadow of death looming over you. You need to leave Stark Industries immediately."

Shadow of death?

As soon as Eren said those words, Pepper's mind flashed to the files she had just copied on the office computer—the records of Obadiah's illicit arms deals with terrorists and his attempt to assassinate Tony Stark.

If Obadiah discovered that she had stolen incriminating evidence against him, he might very well arrange for her to be silenced, just as he had tried to do with Tony.

The elevator chimed, announcing its arrival on the second floor.

Her fear mounting, Pepper instinctively quickened her pace, heading toward the staircase to the first floor.

On the ground floor, SHIELD Agent Coulson, who had been waiting in the lobby, called out as soon as he saw Pepper.
"Miss Potts, we had an appointment, remember?"

Hearing Coulson's voice through the phone, Eren immediately said, "Is that Coulson? Aunt Pepper, take him with you. He's an agent of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division. You'll be safer with him around."

"Of course!"

Even without Eren's suggestion, Pepper, feeling vulnerable, had already planned to take Coulson with her. Walking with a SHIELD agent would make Obadiah think twice before trying anything overt.

Turning to Coulson, Pepper said, "I haven't forgotten. Come with me—I have something I want to show you."

"Now? Shall we get started?"

"Yes, follow me!"

Coulson, slightly surprised, quickly rose from his seat and followed Pepper as she hastily made her way out of Stark Tower.

Hearing through the phone that Pepper had met up with Coulson, Eren spoke again.
"Aunt Pepper, your danger isn't over yet. Find a safe place and stay there until this crisis is resolved. Otherwise, your life will be at risk."

"Got it. Thank you, Eren. I have something important to deal with right now. I'll contact you later."

After thanking Eren, Pepper hung up and turned to Coulson.
"I have some evidence I want to hand over to you. I think you'll find it interesting."

"Evidence? Of what?"

"Proof that Obadiah Stane has been smuggling weapons and hiring terrorists to kill Tony."

Meanwhile, back on campus, Eren stared at the disconnected call, frowning slightly.

Although he had warned Pepper, he knew she wouldn't simply sit still and follow his advice. She was too strong-willed for that.

"I guess I'll have to take matters into my own hands," Eren muttered.

At that moment, he spotted Gwen walking toward him with a stack of books. A thought flashed through his mind.

Taking a few quick steps, Eren approached Gwen and greeted her with a smile.
"Hi, Gwen."

"Hi, Eren," Gwen replied, smiling back.

After all they had been through together, the bond between Gwen and Eren had grown significantly stronger. Although they hadn't known each other for long, Eren had unknowingly become an important part of Gwen's life.

Eren cut straight to the point.
"Hey, Gwen, you're a student assistant, right?"

"Of course! I'm the twelfth-grade assistant," she said proudly.

"Perfect!" Eren grinned.
"I need to take the day off for something urgent. Can you help me get it approved by the teachers?"

Hearing this, Gwen's expression grew concerned.
"Is something wrong? If you need help, I can—"

Before she could finish, Eren shook his head and interrupted.
"Don't worry, it's nothing serious. I just need to visit Aunt Pepper. The best way you can help is by getting the teachers to approve my leave."

Seeing that Eren didn't seem troubled, Gwen sighed in relief.
"Alright. I'll take care of it. Being an assistant has its perks, after all. I'll talk to the teachers for you."

"Thanks! I owe you one. Dinner's on me next time," Eren promised with a smile before turning to leave the school grounds.

Watching him go, Gwen smiled faintly, then turned to head toward the administration office to fulfill her promise.

After leaving the school, Eren didn't head straight for Pepper. Instead, he took a taxi back home to prepare.

A Diviner never fought without certainty, and that principle applied to Eren as well.

Returning to his Chinatown hideout, Eren concealed a few items on his person and began his divination ritual to gather more information.

Meanwhile, Pepper handed the evidence against Obadiah to Coulson.

Coulson escorted her to his car and pulled out a laptop to examine the files on the flash drive.

After browsing through several documents, his expression darkened. Turning to Pepper in the backseat, he said gravely,
"This is beyond my jurisdiction. I'll need to inform the Director immediately."

As Stark Industries' second-largest shareholder and longtime CEO, Obadiah had amassed significant power and influence over the years. Even with such damning evidence, bringing him down wouldn't be easy.

Recognizing the severity of the situation, Coulson decided to "call in the big guns."

The Director of SHIELD, Nick Fury, had the authority and experience to handle someone like Obadiah Stane.

(End of Chapter)

A few hours later.

After a flurry of activity on the computer, Eren redirected the 10 billion he had used to short Stark Industries' stock, along with the 50 billion he had earned from the stock market during this period, to buy Stark Industries stock at its lowest point.

Since Iron Man was about to emerge, continuing to short Stark Industries stock would undoubtedly become a losing proposition.

Eren wasn't about to let himself lose money, so he seized the opportunity to purchase Stark Industries stock while it was at rock bottom.

This way, when Tony announced his identity as Iron Man, Eren could make another fortune.

Once all was done, Eren leisurely hailed a cab and made his way to a spot near Tony Stark's seaside villa.

Tony Stark's villa was far from New York City.

By the time Eren arrived, the sky had already begun to darken.

After paying the fare and dismissing the driver, Eren found a concealed spot outside Tony's villa and quietly waited.

About ten minutes later, a luxury SUV drove up to the villa.

The villa's security system scanned the license plate and allowed the vehicle to pass.

Eren, watching from a distance, shook his head.

"How foolish," he murmured.
Even though Tony had already realized something was amiss and had Pepper sneak into Obadiah's computer to steal data, he hadn't revoked Obadiah's access authorization to the villa.

Allowing him free access was practically courting disaster.

After shaking his head, Eren took out some special "tools" and planted a few "surprises" along the villa's main access road.

Earlier, when Obadiah's car passed by, Eren had confirmed that it was a specially modified, bulletproof luxury vehicle.

Regular bullets wouldn't penetrate its defenses, so Eren made sure to prepare thoroughly.

Half an hour later.

With the miniature arc reactor successfully taken from Tony Stark, Obadiah drove away from the villa, brimming with excitement.

But his car had barely left the villa when a powerful explosion flipped the vehicle into the air, spinning 180 degrees before crashing into a pile of rocks on the roadside with a loud "bang."

Nearby, Eren sat on a large rock, watching the bulletproof SUV get tossed aside like a toy. He let out a casual remark.

"Wow! What a pity. Just one step away, Obadiah, and you could have returned to Stark Industries, placed that little arc reactor into your Iron Monger, and gotten your big toy!"

"But now? You've run out of chances."

Since he already knew Obadiah's plans, Eren wasn't about to let him succeed.

After all, if Obadiah really managed to create the Iron Monger and harmed Pepper, it would be unacceptable.

So, after divining Obadiah's arrival time at Tony's villa, Eren arrived early to prepare and set up everything.

Then, he struck at the perfect moment, taking both the man and his loot in one move.

Out of respect for fate, Eren had even waited until Obadiah had taken Tony's arc reactor before making his move.

Of course, Eren didn't deny that part of his plan was to maximize Tony Stark's gratitude and minimize potential complications.

As Eren approached the overturned armored vehicle, Obadiah unexpectedly crawled out, battered and bruised.

Clutching the box containing the arc reactor in one hand, he dragged himself from the wreckage.

Bang!

A bullet pierced Obadiah's arm, forcing him to release the box as he cried out in agony.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three more shots rang out, shattering Obadiah's other arm and both knees.

With Obadiah neutralized, Eren walked over, picked up the box, and stood before him.

"Who are you?" Obadiah growled through gritted teeth, his bloodshot eyes locked onto Eren.

"You don't need to know who I am. You just need to know that you're going to die."

"Really?" Obadiah sneered through his pain, sweat pouring down his face. "If you wanted to kill me, you could've done it earlier. Since you didn't, you must want something—money, weapons, whatever you want. Just treat my wounds first..."

Bang!

Before Obadiah could finish, a bullet pierced his forehead, killing him instantly.

"Sorry, but you guessed wrong," Eren said indifferently. "The only reason I didn't kill you earlier was to experience the satisfaction of taking your life up close and see how much Fate Points I'd gain in return."

"Hmm, looks like it was worth it."

Ding!

[Host has disrupted the timeline by eliminating Obadiah early, creating ripples in the River of Fate. The Scales of Fate have absorbed 1,000 Fate Points.]

Seeing the system notification confirming the acquisition of 1,000 Fate Points, Eren nodded in satisfaction.

As the first major villain in the extraordinary chapter of this world, Obadiah's head had been a lucrative prize.

Killing him had been far easier than taking down an entire factory or containing a forbidden object.

Yet the rewards were just as substantial.

This success also confirmed Eren's theory: by killing key figures in this world and altering their predetermined fates, he could gain Fate Points.

But could there be other ways to earn them?

With this thought in mind, Eren picked up the arc reactor box and walked toward Stark's seaside villa.

Another theory awaited testing there.

(End of Chapter)

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