Ryden shook his head, took a shower, and forced his thoughts to settle.
Aunt Sarah. Dia. Aunt Laura.
Three women already.
All older than him.
And Aunt Sarah was even pregnant.
The pressure was real.
If he didn't work harder, there wouldn't even be enough money for baby formula in the future.
Cough. Cough.
Once again, he envied those rich guys with cheats and hacks.
After changing, he drove toward the new Stark Industries building.
The company had relocated its headquarters to Upper Manhattan.
Thanks to the Czech army's stunning reversal, the AK-47 series had drawn unprecedented attention.
As the patent holder, Stark Industries was now firmly in the spotlight. Even the military had dispatched personnel to protect the safety of the nation's top capitalist.
As long as you had money-and could keep making money-the military might even send elite troops to clean your toilets.
That was the power of money.
Manhattan was the smallest of New York's five boroughs, yet its status was unmatched.
Wall Street.
Global corporate headquarters.
Upper Manhattan was where money flowed every day-enough to support the daily bathroom needs of tens of millions of people.
In short, rich.
Very rich.
So rich it had no friends.
If you didn't have a company in Upper Manhattan, you'd be embarrassed to call yourself wealthy.
Traffic was more orderly now.
Cars were everywhere.
Ryden drove while scanning the surroundings.
Then he saw it.
The Wayne Building.
His mind, which had been immersed in the Marvel world for so long, jolted violently.
He nearly lost his grip on the steering wheel.
The Wayne Building.
Translated simply?
Money.
No-correction.
Batman.
Yes.
Batman.
The most famous figure in the DC universe.
A man who shared a terrifying passive skill with his "cheap son"-no, with Steve Rogers.
The legendary "fifty-fifty" ability against anyone.
Of course, that was a joke.
But it reflected Batman's strength all the same.
The Wayne Building was the headquarters of Wayne Enterprises.
A family empire passed down for decades in Gotham.
Its wealth was absurd-possibly even surpassing current Stark Industries.
Seeing that building, Ryden's heart sank slightly.
If he didn't speed up his own growth, he might not even know how he died one day.
Gotham was no joke.
As the saying went: Gotham's people are simple and honest, while Arkham is full of talent.
Which meant one thing.
No one there was easy to mess with.
Penguin.
Mr. Freeze.
Poison Ivy.
Bane.
Scarecrow.
Joker.
All lunatics.
All high-IQ lunatics.
As for dominating the world?
He'd first have to ask if those people agreed.
Earth itself was terrifying.
Even monsters like Thanos and Darkseid had failed here.
After a short drive, Ryden arrived at a brand-new skyscraper.
It looked newly completed.
Around fifty stories tall.
Given the era's technological limits, buildings over a hundred stories didn't exist yet.
A brand-new Stark Industries logo hung proudly on the exterior.
The entrance was crowded.
Company representatives.
Reporters.
Paparazzi hoping to capture explosive news.
Howard had already been bragging about his achievements nonstop.
Seeing it in person, Ryden had to admit-it was impressive.
The sense of scale hit immediately.
Building this from scratch was no small feat.
He followed the crowd into the lobby.
Inside were display cases showing off Howard's inventions.
Small gadgets.
Experimental toys.
None of them truly practical yet.
In short-useless.
Purely decorative.
Novelty pieces.
At the front desk stood three beautiful women in professional attire.
One of them looked familiar.
"Hey, Kathy. It's me," Ryden greeted casually.
She was the same receptionist who had received him the first time.
"Ah! Bo-"
"Shh." Ryden raised a finger and winked. "Take me to Howard."
He had no desire to be swarmed by overeager sales managers or paparazzi.
Ding.
The elevator stopped on the forty-seventh floor.
Kathy smiled as she led him out.
"The Chairman's office is just ahead. I can't go any further," she said politely. "Please go on, Mr. Ryden."
She hesitated, then added softly, "By the way... would you like to have dinner together tonight?"
There was a faint blush on her face.
Ryden paused for half a second.
Then he smiled and nodded.
A romantic invitation.
No reason to refuse.
Heh.
With no system and no cheat, he might die someday anyway.
Better enjoy life early.
Before he even reached the door, he heard Howard's familiar sleazy laughter from inside.
No need to guess.
He was definitely flirting with his secretary again.
Ryden knocked loudly.
"I'm coming in!"
"Hey-don't-!"
"Ah!"
He only pretended to push the door, but the chaos inside was immediate.
A moment later, a woman rushed out, her face flushed red.
Howard was still fumbling with his clothes, shouting angrily.
"Ryden! You bastard! You always show up like this! Are you trying to scare the great scientist Howard to death?!"
Ryden's face remained blank.
Howard sighed, defeated.
He grabbed a bottle of red wine from the cabinet and poured two glasses.
After fixing his collar, he cleared his throat.
"Alright. Let me guess," he said. "What brings you here this time, little genius?"
"Haha." Ryden took a seat and smirked. "Playing around in the office in broad daylight, huh? Chairman Stark really is unreliable."
"Get to the point!" Howard waved him off. "You always appear out of nowhere. No-I seriously need to hire more security. You'll kill me one day."
He leaned back.
"So tell me, little genius. What have you invented this time?"
Howard didn't seem offended at all.
Geniuses were always strange.
Bursting into offices unannounced was practically mild behavior.
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