The next day, Harry woke up in a relaxed mood, washed up, got dressed, and gently closed the bedroom door so he wouldn't disturb Felicia before heading downstairs.
"Yo! Harry, you're finally down. Why are you alone? Felicia couldn't get up? Hehe."
As soon as Harry descended the stairs, he spotted Old Al, the butler, standing aside after setting breakfast, and Tony Stark already at the table, ready to eat.
"You don't stop talking even while eating." Harry smiled, walked over, grabbed a slice of bread, and sat across from Tony.
"I guessed right, haha!" Tony laughed triumphantly at Harry's expression.
"Eat your breakfast," Harry said helplessly.
...
After finishing the meal and watching Felicia come downstairs, Harry casually asked Al to bring a tray up for her. Felicia's unexpected shyness had amused him enough that he almost laughed aloud, but he kept it to himself and followed Tony to the living room sofa.
"So? Let's go together. You promised, Harry—don't back out now."
Tony leaned forward as he invited him, and seeing Harry hesitate, he immediately reminded him of the promise about the race, clearly afraid Harry would try to escape it.
"Fine. I suddenly realized that besides being arrogant, you're also first-class at emotional blackmail." Harry shook his head and agreed.
The hesitation hadn't been because of Tony—just moments earlier, Harry had received a call that rattled him with excitement, making him want to leave immediately.
It was Phil Coulson, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent he hadn't spoken with in a while, calling about a discovery.
S.H.I.E.L.D. constantly monitored anomalous events across the world. Just a day earlier, they'd detected a sudden surge of powerful energy in Mexico, followed by signs of a spatial rupture—something breaking through. According to Coulson, it looked like an intrusion from beyond. From this sudden phenomenon, S.H.I.E.L.D. concluded a large-scale disaster might be brewing, and naturally, they thought of Harry.
Coulson didn't order Harry—he requested his help. Harry's strength was a major reason, but so was his status as a major corporate figure. Though Harry disliked being used, he understood their respect as well. And he had his own interest: Thor's hammer and the Destroyer armor. He didn't believe for a second that Odin wouldn't have hidden safeguards in both, and he wanted to see them for himself. So he vaguely agreed to take a look.
...
Monaco—a tiny European city-state, the second smallest country in the world after the Vatican.
And this was where Harry and Tony had just landed.
As crowds swarmed around them, Harry stared out at the scene with thinly veiled distaste, though his large sunglasses hid his eyes.
"How is it? Got atmosphere, right?"
Tony stood beside him in a suit and leather shoes, somehow radiating a roguish charm instead of class.
Harry curled his lip and answered flatly, "No."
"Ah! Haha…" Tony forced a laugh, then abruptly nodded seriously. "Well… I think so too."
"Cut the nonsense. How do we get to the track?" Harry patted Tony on the shoulder.
"It's all arranged. Look." Tony pointed ahead.
Harry glanced over and saw a black car approaching.
"Mr. Osborn, hello. Nice to see you again. And sorry, Tony is bothering you—he always creates trouble for others."
Pepper Potts stepped out of the car with a polite smile.
Harry looked at her, then at Tony, feeling amused by Tony's fortune.
"It's fine. Everyone has their moments of causing trouble," Harry said pleasantly.
"Hey! Harry, why am I suddenly 'the brat'?" Tony protested loudly, but neither of them cared to acknowledge it.
"Thank you, Mr. Osborn," Pepper said, then turned to Tony—ready with more complaints—before walking over to him.
Harry's eyes slid past Happy, who had climbed out from the driver's seat, to the woman emerging from the opposite side of the car. A voluptuous beauty with long red hair draped casually over her shoulders, her exquisite, alluring features framed by a tight black suit-skirt that emphasized every curve. She wasn't tall, but she was stunning.
Recognizing her face instantly, Harry couldn't help but smile as he walked forward.
"Has Miss Romanoff changed jobs? Should I feel honored to see you here?"
Harry removed his sunglasses and hooked them onto his half-unbuttoned collar, his voice light and amused.
"I don't know how Mr. Osborn feels, but for me, it's an honor to see you here."
Black Widow tilted her head slightly and smiled.
"Well, I suppose I agree. It's quite an honor to meet Ms. Romanoff here," Harry replied with an even broader smile.
"Hey! Harry, you two know each other?" Tony walked over, looking between them in confusion.
"Yes, we met once before," Natasha spoke before Harry could answer. She looked unexpectedly nervous, and a faint blush colored her cheeks—something Harry didn't understand.
"Oh~" Tony dragged out the sound, glancing between them with a grin, wiggling his eyebrows as if he understood everything.
Tony's expression made Harry want to sigh. Obviously, Tony had already been fooled by Natasha—a woman who could deceive anyone with just a few expressions and words. Harry looked away from Tony and toward Black Widow… only to find Natasha blushing even more intensely under his gaze.
"Hurry up. The race is going to start." Harry urged helplessly.
And of course, Tony interpreted Harry's tone as him deliberately changing the subject.
"I never hid anything from you—you were the one fooled," Harry thought to himself.
Natasha's double performance wouldn't fool him; he wasn't about to trust the world's most effective human lie detector.
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A/N: Advanced Chapters Have Been Uploaded On My Patreon
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