> [Ding~ System reminder: Host, please stop having unrealistic fantasies. You should know your own limits. Do you really think you have enough mana to sustain a meteor that size?]
The system's voice cut sharply through Lucas's daydream, slapping him awake like a bucket of cold water.
"Come on, A-System! Can't you ever be generous for once? Just give me infinite mana already—let me go full cheat mode!"
Lucas started whining like a spoiled kid, almost choking on last night's midnight snack from how dramatic he sounded.
> [Ding~ All rewards are randomly distributed. The host cannot specify or choose them.]
Lucas froze. "So… that means infinite mana does exist as a reward?"
The system went completely silent for a few seconds before answering again.
> [Ding~ The system refuses to answer that question—and rolls its eyes at the host.]
Lucas's face twitched. "Oh, I see how it is! You're rebelling now, huh? You don't respect your boss anymore? Believe it or not, I'll—"
He trailed off. There was really nothing he could do to that damn system. He couldn't hit it, couldn't yell it into submission, and whenever he got too mouthy, it'd threaten to uninstall itself. So, as usual, Lucas could only surrender.
"You win. You're awesome. You're holy. You're the supreme being."
He lifted his middle finger toward the empty air in front of him—which, from the outside, looked suspiciously like he was flipping off Tony on stage.
Tony immediately noticed the gesture. And that gave him an excellent idea.
"Ladies and gentlemen," Tony said into the microphone, "how about we take a short pause? Don't you all want to know who that mysterious guy in the viral video was—the one riding the giant bird with a sword?"
The moment those words left his mouth, every single reporter froze.
Standing in the corner, Coulson's expression darkened instantly. Tony's confession that he was Iron Man had already gone far beyond what S.H.I.E.L.D. had anticipated. But if he exposed Lucas too, that would cause absolute chaos.
The problem was, Lucas wasn't protected like Tony. His personal information wasn't classified or shielded. If his identity got out, anyone could track down his home, his friends, even his family.
"Motherf—! Tony Stark, you troublesome bastard! You just can't stop making my life difficult, can you?!"
Across town, Nick Fury slammed his fist on the desk as he watched the livestream unfold.
"Agent Hill! Effective immediately—lock down every single file connected to Lucas. I want it all under Level 10 clearance! No one gets access except me!"
Fury wasn't being paranoid this time. Lucas's personal circle was far from ordinary. His adoptive sister, Gwen, was Ghost-Spider—one of New York's two Spider-Women. The assistant at the Devil May Cry Agency was a newly awakened Inhuman. His best friend? Another Spider-Man. And his father? The chief of the NYPD.
With that many identities tangled together, exposing Lucas's data could unravel a whole web of people and secrets. The safest move was to bury everything—permanently.
As Hill executed the order, Lucas's name began disappearing from every government database. His records, his address, his family connections—all erased. Within minutes, it was as if Lucas had never existed.
Meanwhile, back at the press conference, Tony raised his hand dramatically, guiding the reporters' attention in one direction.
And there stood Lucas—still frozen mid-gesture, with his middle finger raised in the air—completely unaware that every single camera had turned toward him.
Click! Click! Click! Click!
The sound of camera shutters filled the room. The flashes were blinding, forcing Lucas to squint.
"What the hell—?!"
When he finally realized what was happening, it was already too late. Tony had sold him out.
"Retreat! Fall back! Evacuate!"
Lucas muttered the old adventurer's code phrase for "run like hell," and then—whoosh!—he vanished. A blast of wind magic carried him away faster than the naked eye could follow, straight out of Stark Tower.
"Tony, you bastard! I swear I'll get you back for this!"
His furious roar echoed down the Manhattan streets, though his figure was already long gone.
Tony smirked and folded his arms. "Heh. Kid, you still think you can outplay Tony Stark? Cute."
Despite Lucas's quick escape, dozens of journalists had already captured his face in perfect HD. Within an hour, his photo flooded every screen in New York.
"Wait—that's the guy who was riding the bird?! He's so young!"
"No way, he's like our age! Do you think he's single?"
"Hmph! Probably just a showoff. No way someone that young could do what that video showed."
And just like that, the internet exploded into debate. Lucas's face went viral overnight.
At S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, Fury once again found himself cleaning up Tony's mess. He ordered every mention of Lucas wiped from the web, suppressing trending topics and removing videos. Within hours, the story disappeared completely.
Of course, it was too late to erase people's memories—but at least the data trail was gone.
When Lucas finally stumbled home, panting and fuming, the internet was already spotless—no news, no images, nothing left. It was obvious S.H.I.E.L.D. had intervened.
"Tony Stark, you son of a—! One day, I will get my revenge!"
Lucas collapsed onto the sofa, his face red with rage. Skye and Gwen, on the other hand, were laughing so hard they could barely breathe.
It wasn't every day they got to see Lucas humiliated like this.
Gwen quietly pulled out her phone and started recording him, capturing every second of his furious rant for future teasing material.
As for the aftermath of the press conference, Lucas couldn't care less anymore. The mission was done, the reward secured—time to go full couch potato mode again. He lounged in his office chair like a puddle of melted slime, not a single care left in the world.
A month later, Skye's arms had fully healed. She'd planned to go back for a check-up, but her regeneration ability had been so remarkable that the doctors were astonished. Once the braces were off, she practically cheered in relief.
After being forced to live one-armed for a month, she finally felt human again.
Life returned to normal. Gwen went back to school in Boston, Tony buried himself in his lab tinkering with his armor, and Lucas and Skye slipped right back into their blissful slacker routine. Everything felt peaceful again.
Ever since Tony publicly declared himself Iron Man, Stark Industries' stock had soared to unprecedented heights. Investors scrambled to buy in like madmen.
Meanwhile, those who'd sold their shares earlier were collectively losing their minds—some of them literally screaming at the heavens, asking themselves why they'd been stupid enough to let go.
And somewhere, Lucas was lounging on his sofa with a smug grin, quietly counting the profits rolling in.
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