"You're okay!? This… this is impossible!!"
She stared in disbelief—Loren stood before him completely unaffected by the poisonous gas he had just released.
Viper's face twisted with shock.
"The reason you think it's impossible," Loren said coolly, "is simply because your understanding is limited. Woman, playing with fire always comes at a price—and now it's time for you to pay."
In one swift motion, Loren seized Viper by the throat and slammed her onto the sofa.
Viper snarled, "Asshole! How dare you—!"
But before she could finish, her body went rigid—paralyzed, not by fear, but by a sudden, overwhelming force. Her limbs refused to obey.
Half an hour later…
Viper's clothes were disheveled, her breathing ragged. She glared at Loren with venomous hatred, as if she wanted to tear him apart with her bare hands.
"It's no use staring at me like that," Loren said, unfazed. "What's done is done. Accept reality. You played with fire—and got burned. You brought this on yourself."
He tilted his head, studying her with genuine curiosity. "Though I must admit, I'm surprised. Given your toxic physiology, I assumed you'd long since… well, let's just say, no one would dare get close. Yet here you are—untouched, pristine. Did you isolate yourself on purpose?"
Viper gritted her teeth. "Bastard… I'll kill you one day!"
As one of Hydra's top operatives, she had always held power over men—manipulating, controlling, never submitting. No one had ever laid a hand on her like this. Her body, refined into a living weapon of poison, was her sanctuary—untouchable, sacred.
And now, Loren—immune to her toxins, unshaken by her threats—had shattered that illusion.
"I know you won't kill me," Loren said with a smirk. "Because if I die, who else could possibly withstand your poison? Who else could give you what you just experienced?"
"Shut your mouth!" Viper roared, lunging at him.
But Loren was faster. He caught her mid-leap and pinned her back onto the sofa.
"Eager for round two?" he teased, lifting her chin with a finger. His tone was light, but his eyes were sharp—calculating, not lecherous.
"Don't—!" Viper's voice cracked with panic as she struggled.
Suddenly—BOOM!
A deafening explosion tore through the wall of the VIP room. Chunks of concrete and shrapnel blasted inward like shrapnel.
If Loren had still been an ordinary man, the blast would've killed him instantly.
But thanks to the perfected Super-Soldier Serum now coursing through his veins, his reflexes were superhuman. The instant the explosion hit, he dropped low, shielding Viper beneath him as debris rained down around them.
First, this was his instinctive act of self-preservation; second, he didn't want Viper to seize the opportunity to escape.
This woman was one of the leaders of HYDRA. If they could fully subdue her, she could become a valuable pawn for him to infiltrate the organization—an advantage that would be extremely useful.
Viper hadn't expected that, in such a dangerous moment, the man before her would actually protect her.
A flicker of complexity crossed her eyes as she looked at Loren.
In fact, ever since Loren's violent intrusion moments earlier, her attitude toward him had undergone a strange shift.
Not only did she not truly hate him in her heart—she had even developed an inexplicable fondness for him.
But she knew it was wrong.
Precisely because of this inner conflict, she deliberately stoked her anger, forced herself to hate Loren, and even called for his death!
Yet the truth was otherwise. If she truly wanted him dead,
she wouldn't—just as Loren had said—be so reluctant to let go.
She didn't understand why she felt this strange emotion, but she couldn't control it, and it frustrated her deeply.
"If you're not dead, get off me right away, you disgusting, stinking man!"
"You're such a vicious woman! I just saved your life, and you didn't even say thank you!"
"Oh, that's ridiculous! I, the great Lady of HYDRA, need you to save me—?"
Whack!
"Ah! What are you doing?!"
Viper had been wearing an arrogant expression, as if she didn't take Loren seriously at all.
But he wasn't about to tolerate her insolence. He raised his hand and slapped her hard on the backside.
The force of the blow immediately left a bright red handprint.
"Say thank you!"
After the slap, Loren raised his hand again, ready to strike until she spoke.
"Asshole! How dare you!"
Whack!!
"Say thank you!"
"Fuck! You pervert! I'll kill you!"
Whack!
Whack!
Whack!
"Waaah! Stop hitting me! Stop hitting me!"
"You don't have to fight—just say thank you!"
"Th-thank… thank you!"
Tears welled in Viper's eyes as she glared at Loren through gritted teeth.
But in the end, she lowered her proud head and muttered the words, however reluctantly.
Loren didn't care whether she meant it or not—as long as his demand was met.
This was the first step in her "training."
Once this step was accomplished, the next would follow naturally.
"See? It's not so hard to speak nicely!"
"…" Viper remained silent.
Having successfully "trained" the Viper, Loren turned his attention to the large hole that had just been blasted open in the wall.
Through it, he saw the banquet hall—once filled with music, laughter, and celebration—now in utter chaos. People screamed and scrambled in panic; the scene resembled hell itself.
At that moment, a man clad in bulky iron armor was locked in combat with Iron Man in the hall below.
His suit was massive and crude, a stark contrast to Iron Man's sleek, refined armor.
It was this brute's artillery that had blown open the walls of their room.
"Iron Monger?"
Loren recognized the figure instantly.
That was Obadiah Stane—one of Stark Industries' top executives.
Is this the plot of Iron Man 1?
"Boss, are you all right?"
Just as Loren stood stunned, 2B descended from the sky and landed before him.
He shook his head calmly.
"I'm fine—but my good fortune's been ruined, and that makes me very unhappy! 2B, go kill that big guy!"
"Understood. I'll help you vent your anger right away!"
2B nodded, then leapt into the air and charged straight toward Iron Monger.