"Harry, you really are something. You blow up your car experimenting with your abilities, and then you want me to pick you up. You ruined my beauty sleep."
The man driving the car complained as he spoke, reaching over repeatedly to poke Harry as if demanding compensation.
Harry looked at the man beside him, lowered his head helplessly, shook it, and smiled.
"Haha, you came on your own. I was going to call Felicia and ask her to pick me up. Who would've thought you'd get through first, and I didn't even expect you to be in New York?" Harry said with a smile.
"So it's still my fault?" The man driving pursed his lips, glanced at Harry, then suddenly pushed the gear lever forward. The car accelerated in a burst of speed.
"Take it as practice." Harry smiled and shook his head at Tony's petty temper. This little acceleration didn't bother him at all.
"Tch!" Tony Stark let out a disdainful sound but eventually eased off the gas, letting the car continue at a steady pace.
...
"Mr. Stark, it's so late that all the servants are asleep, so there's only boiling water available." Felicia came over with a tray, apologizing as she spoke.
"Thank you, Miss Hardy."
Sitting on the living room sofa, Tony Stark smiled and took the hot water from her.
"Harry, here—your warm milk."
Felicia's expression was gentle as she placed a cup of milk on the coffee table in front of Harry, then sat beside him.
Harry picked up the milk, swirled it, but didn't drink it immediately. Instead, he looked at Tony sitting across from him. When Tony finished taking a sip, Harry called out, "Tony."
"Hm?" Tony Stark set the cup down on the table with a light clink and looked up at him.
"I'm guessing you didn't come here because of our cooperation project?" Harry leaned back against the sofa, folding his arms.
"Of course not. Didn't I already say? There are some technical obstacles right now, so the plan's temporarily on hold."
Tony's voice dipped when he mentioned the energy project, but he quickly recovered. He pursed his lips and shrugged helplessly.
Harry's eyes moved across him. Under Harry's finely controlled magnetic field perception, Tony Stark's current physical condition was completely exposed.
The metal content in his body was extremely high—palladium had already spread into several vital organs. Harry knew exactly what that meant. Not only that, but this was likely the reason Tony suspended the new energy project. As for the other metal traces, those were probably from Tony's desperate attempts to keep himself alive.
"I already know that part," Harry said. "So what are you really here for? And your condition doesn't look very good."
"I came to ask you to join a race—did you forget what we talked about before? Wait—You know about my condition!?"
Tony's tone carried a smile, but then he suddenly turned toward Harry, eyes widening. He stood abruptly, walking toward Harry without even noticing that he had knocked over the boiling water on the table, spilling it down his arm.
"Harry, how do you know what's going on in my body? Do you actually know what's happening?" Tony ignored Felicia entirely, grabbed Harry's shoulders, and nearly shouted.
"Yes."
Harry nodded. His right hand gently held Felicia's arm as she tried to get up to stop Tony, preventing her from stepping in. He met Tony's eyes and said clearly, "I can sense exactly what's happening inside you. And I can save you."
"You can save me? Oh, forget it. I can handle this myself."
Tony let go of Harry's shoulders, stepped back a few paces, then sat down again. He set the overturned cup upright, and only then did the pain in his burned arm finally register, making him grimace as he rubbed it hard.
"What? You don't believe I can?" Harry asked calmly. He wasn't surprised. After all, this was Iron Man—Tony Stark. Even in the face of death, his arrogance wouldn't fade. But Harry still asked anyway.
"It's not that I don't believe you. I do. But I still have a chance to solve this on my own. If I can't, I'll definitely come to you. I treasure my life too much to wait until I'm dead before asking for help."
Tony lifted his chin as he spoke, ending with a joke. Maybe hearing that Harry could cure him gave him some hope; his forced smile barely hid the exhaustion and despair underneath.
"I'm a little tired. Heh. You two talk—I'm going to bed. I haven't slept properly in ages."
Tony stood, stretched, and walked around the sofa. As he passed by, he gave Harry and Felicia a warm smile before heading toward the guest room Felicia had prepared.
"He's going to sleep, so let's go too."
Watching Tony disappear around the corridor corner, Harry lifted his arm, resting it on Felicia's shoulder. Leaning in close, his breath warmed the side of her cheek.
"Okay—but you have to finish the milk first."
Felicia nodded, turning her face toward his, lifting her chin slightly at the untouched glass of milk.
"Of course."
Harry looked at Felicia's ascetic, serious expression, and his thoughts intensified. He picked up the milk casually and drank it all.
"Happy now?" Harry asked, sliding his arm down and around her waist, pulling her tightly against him.
"Mhm." Felicia nodded, clearly pleased with Harry's obedience in such small matters.
"Then we should rest too. The night is already deep." Harry leaned closer until the tips of their noses brushed.
"Yes… It's late. We should rest." Felicia smiled softly.
"Haha. Then let's go."
Harry tossed the cup aside. With the help of his invisible force field, it landed perfectly upside-down on the table. Then he swept Felicia into his arms and carried her upstairs toward their room.
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A/N: Advanced Chapters Have Been Uploaded On My Patreon
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