A trap!
Creating a holographic projection out of thin air—Ivan had never even heard of such technology. But he had no time to ponder this now. Although he didn't know why, that bastard Stark seemed to know someone was coming to kill him.
Without wasting a moment, Ivan Vanko immediately turned around and ran.
Although he had long disregarded his own life and death, that was based on the premise of successfully taking revenge on Stark. If he failed his revenge and got himself killed in the process, he wouldn't be able to rest in peace.
But as he turned, he discovered that an alloy gate had dropped down at the doorway he had originally split open, though he hadn't noticed when. This made Ivan curse inwardly.
Stark, that filthy rich tycoon, was ridiculously wealthy; he had actually installed such reinforcements in a room he was only staying in temporarily.
He wasn't sure if his light whips could split the alloy material of that gate, but it didn't matter. Ivan lashed out with his whip, striking directly at the wall beside him.
It was already ridiculous enough that Stark secretly installed an alloy gate in this room; surely he couldn't have torn down and rebuilt the walls in just a few days, right?
But contrary to his expectations, his light whip, which had never failed him before, struck the wall and only left a deep gash on the surface with a loud boom, failing to break through the structure.
Ivan was shocked.
The light whips in his hands were his masterpiece, powered by the Arc Reactor and capable of slicing through iron like mud. How could they fail to break through a mere hotel wall?
Then he heard a mechanically altered voice ring in his ear: "Sorry about that. I installed a gravity field inside the walls that automatically increases mass when struck. Trying to break out won't be that easy."
Ivan: "!"
He could clearly see that the room was empty, and he had no idea where the voice was coming from. He couldn't confirm if it was Stark, nor could he identify the person through the mechanical voice modulation.
It was simply like a ghost speaking.
However, he had scouted and investigated beforehand today, studied the building structure, and still had other backup escape routes in mind.
For example, the ventilation ducts.
He turned and whipped open the vent, temporarily turned off the reactor's power supply to the whips, and leaped up, attempting to squeeze into the duct.
But half a second later, Ivan let out a strange cry and hurriedly pulled himself out. Black smoke was rising from his forehead, and it looked like half of his already sparse hair had been burned off.
Inside was a crisscrossing network of lasers. That bastard Stark actually set up a laser net in the ventilation ducts!
Who installs alloy gates, reinforced gravity fields, and anti-intrusion laser nets in a guest room they are only staying in for a few days on a business trip? Does this idiot have paranoia?
Ivan couldn't help but start cursing: "You sick... Ughhh—"
He couldn't finish his curse; the second half turned into a scream accompanied by electronic sounds. A blue electric arc pierced through his entire muscular body, causing Ivan's sturdy frame to collapse completely, drained of strength.
Semi-transparent ripples appeared in the center of the room. A handsome suit of iron armor floated into view from thin air in the middle of the room. The red and gold titanium alloy shell clearly reflected the lights and the reflection of the room.
"That electric shock just now is enough to paralyze you for a while. It should calm you down," Tony said effortlessly from inside the armor. "Also, don't waste your energy trying to press your activator. I just destroyed the excitation device that powers your light whips from your reactor. Leaving aside the fact that you can't press that switch in your current paralyzed state, even if you did, it would be useless. Your weapon is ruined... just like you."
"Kill you... kill you..." Ivan groaned in pain.
When this never-before-seen armor appeared, Ivan fell into utter despair.
The opponent had not only set up an inescapable dragnet for him but also possessed such a fully covering exoskeleton mecha.
Although strictly speaking, the metal vest on Ivan's body was also an exoskeleton, the style of the one opposite him looked a dimension more advanced than his own.
To compare, although they both used Arc Reactors, Ivan's gear was like a primitive musket for hunting, while the opponent was wearing a tank. They weren't even in the same league.
But was this necessary for this damn bastard?!
Ivan was filled with grief and indignation.
He had spent so many years scavenging, practically hand-rubbing this set of scrap equipment together in a dump. And this was the result? What kind of royal treatment was this?
Gravity fields, laser nets, and now an armored bodyguard?
What sin did he commit to deserve this specification of courtesy?
And that holographic projection just now was completely convincing; Ivan really thought it was the real Stark. This unheard-of technology made him even more desperate, realizing the terrifying gap in resources and technology between him and Stark.
By the way, looking at it now, that bastard Stark renting the entire hotel and exposing his address... maybe it was all to bait him into taking the hook.
Isn't this caution a bit too ridiculous?
The more Ivan thought about it, the more he didn't understand.
Before this, he hadn't shown his face since birth, and his life had never intersected with Stark's. How did this bastard know he wanted to kill him?
But Tony didn't think being cautious was excessive at all; he even felt it wasn't quite enough. After all, the opponent was a mad scientist who wanted his head. If time had allowed, he would have prepared even more thoroughly.
"Ivan Vanko, right?"
Tony reached out and pulled the reactor from the opponent's chest, using the scanner built into the armor to begin scanning and recording data.
Ivan struggled to speak: "You... are... Stark dog?"
Tony finished scanning and recorded the data. Then, with a slight exertion of force from the armor's hand, Ivan's version of the reactor was instantly crushed into scrap metal in his grip.
At this moment, Ivan felt as if his real heart had stopped functioning along with that reactor.
It was the effect of the electric shock earlier. Ivan could feel that he was dying.
He gently closed his eyes.
Sorry, Dad. I tried, I really tried hard, but the opponent was just too strong.
And there is one thing you were wrong about, Dad. The Stark family, they aren't thieves.
They are demons. Demons of steel.
"..."
Tony scanned repeatedly to confirm that Ivan Vanko's heart had indeed stopped beating.
He was dead.
Of course, as per custom, he still had to destroy the corpse and eliminate traces. But before that, he had to inspect and record all the items the opponent was carrying.
Later, when he had time, he would also need to find Ivan's previous residence and check if there were any people Ivan had interacted with. Although Ivan Vanko was likely a widower with no family or descendants, he had to ensure nothing went wrong.
It wouldn't be good if, a few years later, some genius kid jumped out claiming to be Ivan's illegitimate son, or some good brother of Ivan came looking for revenge.
Even if there were none, he had to find Ivan's dwelling or laboratory to ensure that the design blueprints for the reactor Ivan held were destroyed before he could be at ease.
Thinking of this, Tony sighed lightly again.
In this peril-filled world, it seemed there was still a long way to go before he could sleep soundly.