After Tony heard that Alaric was actually just asking for money, his eyes filled with rage.
You want money? You should've said that right away!
Why act like a demon and scare me to death?!
Damn it, does this guy enjoy pushing me to the brink of a heart attack?
"Boom! I just heard someone say the word 'love' in their heart. Were you thinking about Potts? Well, who is that person~"
Alaric's eyes smiled, obviously teasing him.
"You heard wrong! I wasn't thinking about that!" Tony quickly denied it, his face a mix of discomfort and frustration.
Damn it, what kind of ability is this? How can he hear what I'm thinking?!
Is this mind reading?
It can't be just some trick…
"That's not called mind reading~" Alaric replied casually.
"Then stop philosophizing and hurry up, save me!" Tony was on the verge of losing his patience. He felt as if he was running out of breath with each passing moment.
"Yeah, yeah… so how much will you give me?" Alaric asked calmly, raising his left hand. In front of Tony, a portal in the shape of an orange magical ring opened in the air.
Tony stared at the scene in shock.
Alaric pulled out from the portal the original Arc Reactor, the very one Tony made in the cave while he was kidnapped, which Pepper Potts had kept.
Tony was stunned.
"This… what is this? Is it some kind of Eastern… magic?"
Tony, as a man of science, had always considered such things mere legends or fairy tales.
But now, with a portal opening before his very eyes and his own invention coming through it, he had to admit that reality was far stranger than he had ever imagined.
At that moment, he was grateful that Pepper hadn't listened to him when he wanted to throw away the old reactor.
If they had, he would probably be dead now.
"This is magic," Alaric said. "You can't call it some cartoonish sorcery."
"Magic… really exists…" Tony muttered weakly, as stunned as a child seeing snow for the first time.
"Shouldn't you be more concerned about your life right now instead of philosophizing about magic?" Alaric looked at him with slight disbelief.
Do these scientists really need to satisfy their curiosity first even when they're on the brink of death?
"Yeah, yeah, of course! Please, help me install it, thank you!" Tony quickly snapped out of his daze.
First, he had to survive.
He would think about Potts and her safety after he was back on his feet.
"Alright."
Alaric replied briefly, but didn't move.
"You're quick… Oh, how much do you want? Five million! Is that enough?!" Tony quickly blurted out the number.
"Enough, enough! I'll install it right away!" Alaric was extremely pleased with the offer.
Five million dollars wasn't a small amount for him, and Tony had said it as if he were buying breakfast.
Alaric clenched his left hand firmly, shattering the protective glass that held the reactor and controlling it to slowly float toward Tony.
Tony was still lying on the floor, in the position he had been crawling in as he tried to reach the basement.
When he saw the reactor floating toward him, he tried to turn and prepare himself, but he didn't have enough strength.
"Allow me to help you."
Alaric raised his hand and gently waved it.
In the next moment, Tony felt his body lift into the air.
"Whoa! Magic! Real magic!" Tony's mouth fell open, and he couldn't hide the excitement in his voice.
Floating in the air, he watched as the reactor slowly moved toward his chest.
When they connected and the reactor shone with its familiar white light, Tony felt life returning to him.
Strength began to return, and he could breathe deeply again.
He slowly descended to the floor and started heading toward the basement to put on his Iron Man suit.
However, as soon as he tried to take a step, his legs gave out and he fell again.
Although the reactor was back, the effects of paralysis and exhaustion hadn't completely faded yet.
Tony felt his vision blurring and thought he might faint at any moment.
"Can I… again… help!" he thought in panic, hoping Alaric could hear him.
"Alright," Alaric responded calmly.
He raised his left hand, and from it appeared a condensed mass of pure magical energy that streamed toward Tony's body.
Warmth spread through every cell.
The energy coursed through his entire body, refreshing and strengthening him from within.
Tony felt his strength returning, and the blurriness disappeared.
In the very next moment, he could stand upright, ready for action.
"What incredible power!" he exclaimed in awe.
"I'm starting to believe in this… magic!"
Just a few minutes ago, he had looked like a dying man.
And now he stood on his feet, strong and full of energy.
If he hadn't experienced it himself, he would still believe that science was the only truth.
But now, before his very eyes, stood living proof that there was something else in the world.
Tony looked at Alaric with new respect and at the same time with curiosity.
"You'd better hurry up and save your beloved," Alaric reminded him.
"Oh, yes, yes, Potts!!"
Tony instinctively rushed toward the basement, then stopped for a moment, remembering Alaric's words.
"Fuck! She's not my beloved!" he shouted over his shoulder, trying to hide the redness on his face, and disappeared down the hallway.
Alaric just smiled and muttered quietly.
"Classic tsundere."