Was it because of last time?
Senju Haruto studied Tony Stark carefully and could read something from his reaction.
This man recognized him.
That was unexpected.
From what Haruto knew, Stark was arrogant, reckless, and rarely sincere. A man like him wouldn't even remember the face of a model he'd spent the night with, let alone someone he'd met only once.
If Haruto guessed right, Stark must have investigated him thoroughly after that night—trying to figure out who had broken into his house.
And, of course, he would have found nothing.
After all, Haruto wasn't from this world. He was a traveler across dimensions. How could there be any records of him here?
Before crossing paths with Stark, the only place Haruto had revealed himself was at Kamar-Taj.
"You two… know each other?"
Yinsen's gaze darted between Haruto and Stark, his confusion deepening.
"What's going on here, Mr. Stark?" he asked.
"How should I know?!" Stark shot back without thinking. The shock of seeing Haruto had even made him forget the urgency of buying more time.
Haruto was just about to respond when a familiar voice rang out in his ear.
Congratulations, Host! You have arrived at the sign-in location!
Sign-in has officially begun!
Do not exit midway!
1%... 22%...
Watching the progress bar inch forward, Haruto simply stood still and did nothing.
Meanwhile, hurried footsteps echoed outside the cave. From the sound alone, Haruto, Stark, and Yinsen could all picture what was coming—countless Ten Rings soldiers storming in with guns raised, ready to spray bullets in every direction.
"Leave it to me!"
After a breath of hesitation, Yinsen summoned all his courage. He rushed to the entrance, grabbed the submachine gun dropped by one of the dead terrorists, and prepared to hold the enemy back.
He still couldn't make sense of how Haruto had appeared here, but that didn't matter now. He wasn't about to place all his hopes on a stranger. His trust was in Stark's armor.
And besides… there was nothing left in this world for him.
His wife, his child, his friends—gone. It was time to join them.
But before Yinsen could even charge out of the blasted doorway, his body suddenly lifted off the ground.
"What—?!"
Confusion and terror seized him as he floated helplessly upward. He flailed, desperate to break free of the invisible force gripping him.
Then—boom!
An overwhelming pull slammed him against the cave wall like a kite with its string cut. He crumpled to the floor, the submachine gun clattering from his hands as pain flared through his back.
Stark's eyes widened in disbelief, his brain working overtime to process what he had just seen.
It was insane. Impossible. And yet his instincts screamed the truth—
This had to be Haruto's doing.
Only this "magician" could make something like that happen.
"Just what the hell are you?!" Stark's voice was low, urgent, demanding an answer even as his peripheral vision caught the progress bar on the computer. Sixty percent.
"You can call me… Yu," Haruto replied casually, giving a false name.
The reason he had saved Yinsen was simple: he didn't dislike the man. Back when Haruto had first watched Iron Man, Yinsen's death had left him regretful. In fact, Stark's decision to shut down his weapons division and embrace the path of a hero was heavily influenced by Yinsen.
Saving him now had been nothing more than lifting a hand.
"That's it?" Stark spread his hands incredulously. He had expected more. Five seconds passed. No explanation followed. Haruto clearly had no intention of saying anything further.
"You say that like it explains why you just popped up here out of nowhere and tossed Dr. Yinsen across the room," Stark retorted, unable to resist.
Even under pressure, even facing someone like Haruto, Stark's words carried the same sharp edge as always. That was who Tony Stark was.
If he had begged, pleaded, or groveled, it wouldn't have been Iron Man anymore. No matter the situation, Stark's pride ran deep.
Even in Endgame, when he sought out Cap to save the world again, he hadn't spoken softly. He'd led with criticism, mocking Banner for not grasping the most "basic" points.
"I am the Guardian of the New York Sanctum. By your terms, I'm a sorcerer," Haruto said at last, a faint smile tugging at his lips as he crafted his cover identity.
Predictably, the explanation only deepened Stark's confusion.
"Sorry, did you just say… sorcerer? As in, actual magic sorcerer?"
As one of the world's greatest men of science, Stark struggled to accept such a notion. Even though his investigations had revealed Haruto to be far beyond ordinary, hearing the man himself claim to wield "magic" was still jarring.
Just as another wave of Ten Rings soldiers charged into the cave, Haruto's sign-in progress reached one hundred percent.
Congratulations, Host! Sign-in successful!
Reward acquired: The AllSpark!
"The AllSpark?" Haruto blinked in surprise.
As a traveler, he knew exactly what that was. Similar in size to the Tesseract, but with a metallic sheen, the AllSpark held the power to transform metal into living machines.
In plain terms—Transformers.
"A sign-in reward like this… now that's interesting." Haruto chuckled softly, his curiosity instantly piqued.
At that moment, waves of Ten Rings soldiers poured into the cave, weapons raised. Stark flinched, glancing at the computer screen. The upload still needed another twenty-eight percent.
They were out of time.
"Yu! I think it's time you pulled another trick!" Stark shouted, desperation slipping into his voice as he placed all his hopes on Haruto.
Yinsen covered his head with both hands. Even in panic, a calm thought crept in—hiding like this wouldn't save them.
The terrorists leveled their guns, fingers tightening on their triggers.
Only Haruto remained perfectly calm.
He lifted the AllSpark, testing its power for the first time—awakening the weapons in the soldiers' hands, transforming them into mechanical lifeforms.