- In Marvel: I Start by Marrying Scarlett Witch [Complete]
- MWM Chapter 123
The next evening, in the plaza outside the grand exhibition hall in Queens.
Luxury cars pulled up to the entrance of the hall one after another. Many of New York’s top businessmen, along with high-ranking military and government officials, were in attendance.
In addition, reporters from various major newspapers were also present, capturing the event with continuous flashes from their cameras.
The plaza was filled with a large crowd of ordinary citizens drawn by the promotional flyers. Though they couldn’t enter the exhibition hall, they could still follow the proceedings inside through the large projection screens set up outside.
Due to the large number of people, the plaza was bustling with activity. Vendors had gathered, selling items like balloons, ice cream, hamburgers, and drinks from various food trucks, adding to the lively atmosphere.
The citizens outside the plaza weren’t particularly interested in Hammer Industries’ new products. They were mostly there for the spectacle and to wait for the fireworks show after the event.
Among the crowd were Leo, Wanda, May, and young Peter.
“Dear, it looks like it’s about to start!” Wanda tugged at Leo’s arm, pointing at the large screen in front of the exhibition hall.
The screen, which had been showing an advertisement for the history of Hammer Industries, suddenly paused and switched to a live feed of the exhibition hall’s main stage.
In the view, Justin Hammer was confidently dancing his way to the center of the stage.
At this moment, the citizens outside were also drawn to the screen, turning their attention to it.
Hammer grabbed the microphone and began to speak confidently:
“Ladies and gentlemen, for a long time, our brave soldiers have risked their lives in combat. Then Iron Man appeared, and we thought we wouldn’t need to sacrifice lives anymore. But unfortunately, he selfishly refused to share his advanced technology with the world.”
At this point, the camera panned to Tony, who was sitting in the front row with Pepper, who was holding his portable Iron Man suit. Tony flashed a very friendly smile and flipping out Hammer.
Hammer’s expression faltered momentarily, but he quickly regained his composure and continued with a smile:
“No matter. Friends, Hammer Industries is no less capable than Stark Industries. Today, the newspapers are going to have a field day because they’re going to run out of ink!”
“Allow me to introduce to you the new face of the U.S. military—Hammer Iron Soldiers!”
With a dramatic turn, Hammer directed the spotlight to the right side of the stage, where eight fully metallic, three-meter-tall Iron Soldier robots rose from beneath the stage.
“These are the Army Iron Soldiers, and over here, we have the Navy Iron Soldiers!”
As the spotlight shifted to the left, another eight robots with slightly different designs emerged from below.
“And finally, we have the Air Force Iron Soldiers and the Marine Iron Soldiers!”
From the front of the stage, sixteen more robots ascended simultaneously from both sides.
This spectacle immediately drew gasps from most of the audience, even Tony, who had been watching with a smirk from the front row, furrowed his brow.
Tony knew that with Hammer Industries’ technical capabilities, there was no way they could have created these robots, which seemed to have pretty impressive performance.
“Hammer Industries reports for duty!”
Justin Hammer stood in front of everyone and gave a not-so-perfect salute, which was mimicked by all the robots behind him.
“No sign of Colonel Rhodes. It looks like Tony hasn’t given away the War Machine suit yet.”
Watching the screen outside, Leo quickly figured out why.
Originally, Tony had felt that he was close to death, so he had pretended to have a falling out with Rhodes and let him take the War Machine suit. But now, with Leo available to detoxify him, Tony didn’t have to worry about palladium poisoning anymore. And since the government and military had been pressuring him, he naturally wouldn’t hand over the War Machine suit just yet.
“Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!”
Just as the atmosphere in the hall reached its peak, all thirty-two robots suddenly activated their weapons and unleashed a barrage of bullets at the ceiling of the hall.
The ceiling was made of transparent glass, and it couldn’t withstand the onslaught. In an instant, it shattered into countless pieces, raining glass shards down on the people below.
The wealthy elites and high-ranking officials below screamed in terror, scrambling to escape the exhibition hall.
“Pepper, it’s dangerous here. Go find Happy and leave now,” Tony said, grabbing the portable Iron Man suit. As he spoke, he quickly began putting it on.
Pepper knew she couldn’t do much to help, so she nodded and followed the crowd out of the hall.
At that moment, the robots, seeing that Tony had donned his Iron Man suit, aimed all their weapons at him.
“Justin Hammer, I know you want to kill me, but do you have to be this stupid about it?”
Tony’s mocking voice echoed from within his suit.
Hammer, meanwhile, looked flustered and stammered:
“N-no, this isn’t me. I would never do something like this… It’s him… It must be Vanko. He built these robots. He’s the only one who could have taken control!”
Killing Tony in front of so many people? He was not insane.
If today’s demonstration of the Iron Soldiers was a success, Hammer Industries would rise, securing massive orders and finally surpassing Stark Industries. There was no reason for him to do something that would destroy all that.
“Looks like I need to get out of here!”
After getting the information he needed from Hammer, Tony immediately activated his suit, dodging the barrage from the thirty-two robots as he quickly ascended into the air.
If Ivan Vanko was in control, then the target was definitely Tony, seeking revenge for his father. If Tony left, the civilians here would be safer.
Of course, the main reason was that this portable suit had been designed for quick deployment and easy transportation, so its armor was less durable than his standard suit. Apart from the repulsor beams in the palms and chest, it had no other weapons. A head-on fight was out of the question; escaping was the only option for now.
“May, my friend will get you both home safely. Don’t worry.”
Everything happening inside the exhibition hall was being broadcast live to the citizens outside, who now had no interest in staying for the fireworks show. They began to flee in panic.
Leo, who had anticipated this, called over Xiao San, who had been waiting by the roadside, and instructed him to take May and Peter away.
“Wanda, today’s battle targets are much stronger than usual. Be careful not to get hurt.”
With May and Peter safely away, Leo pulled out his wand and cast a spell on his clothes, instantly transforming into a Dark Sorcerer.
“I’m pretty strong, you know!”
Wanda confidently spun around, transforming into the Scarlet Witch, complete with her signature red leather outfit and small cape.
…