"It's not enough to be against something. You have to be for something better."
~ Tony Stark, Captain America: Civil War
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New York, the Church of the Virgin Mary.
Today marked the third day since Jude and Ivy arrived in New York, coinciding with the funeral of Ivy's estranged father, Roger Potts. Initially, Ivy had no intention of attending the funeral, but owing to Pepper's assistance the day before, she decided to put in an appearance. Despite her reluctance, she acknowledged the effort made and decided to honor Roger's memory, if not for him, at least for Pepper.
At around nine o'clock in the morning, the two drove to the church. Contrary to the traditional black mourning attire, they chose to wear bright red festive clothes, a statement that reflected their feelings toward Roger's legacy. It was a symbol that their presence did not necessarily signify respect.
Pepper frowned upon seeing their unconventional attire but refrained from commenting. She understood that their appearance was more for the sake of others, disregarding Roger's last wish.
"Ivy, after yesterday's attack on the Hilton Hotel, I am worried. Are you injured?" Pepper inquired.
Ivy shook her head. "No, although it was dangerous, Spider-Man suddenly appeared and saved me. He defeated the monster."
Even if US officials labeled the incident as a bomb attack by a certain Middle Eastern terrorist organization, Ivy knew the truth. The powerful individuals had their own channels to discern the real events.
"That's good. When I read the news, I was still very worried, fearing you might be hurt. I also heard that Harvey Jones, the newly appointed president of the Daily Bugle, was killed, unfortunately."
"Yes, Harvey was very supportive. When I first arrived at the newspaper, he helped me a lot. His loss is regrettable."
"Hey! Isn't it better for the president to die? So you can take over his position as a matter of course." Suddenly, a nasty voice came from the side – Tony Stark's unmistakable tone.
"Tony," Pepper glared at him.
Tony Stark shrugged, "Okay, okay, I know what to do; it's just a habit; you know, the habit that has been maintained for thirty years is not that easy to change."
"It's true. For Tony Stark, picking up girls is like a habit integrated into the blood."
"But a young man who is so keen on picking up girls not only went to the hospital to look after an old man who was about to die but also wanted to use the money to participate in his funeral."
"Even I am willing to consent to participate. It seems that Miss Potts is very important to you, right? Tony Stark."
Jude was poked at a sensitive point in his heart. Tony's heart jumped, and he couldn't help but curse inwardly: "Damn it, is it so obvious? It feels so personal."
"What did I say? If you want to cover up, I can teach you a good way. You should come to this funeral with two young models wearing bikinis, and make sure no one will think like that again."
Tony laughed exaggeratedly, "Hahaha, good idea. When you die unexpectedly, I will hold a grand Victoria's Secret party opposite your funeral. I hope you will enjoy it then."
"After all, a little boy from the bottom of Gotham who has never had a girlfriend since he left school must have never tried the taste of a supermodel."
Jude squinted his eyes. "You know my school experience; it seems you have investigated me."
Tony wanted to say something but was pulled far away by the ill-fated Pepper.
"Tony, this is my father's funeral, and Mr. Herbert is Ivy's best friend. I don't know why you don't like him, but please bear with me. At least today, okay?"
Tony curled his lips and said, "Of course, I know exactly what day it is today; don't worry."
Pepper left to greet the others. Tony Stark looked at Jude. The two eyes met in the air. Jude smiled at him on purpose. Tony immediately felt his scalp numb and turned his head uncomfortably.
After Happy's analysis the day before yesterday, he also realized the problem: maybe someone was taking revenge on him.
But who is taking revenge on him? This is too difficult to find. Tony himself doesn't know how many enemies he has. He still has a very good number of stinky mouths. The person who offends is gone, and half of his enemies are relying on their mouths.
"It may be a scientist who wants to invest but was left alone overnight. It may be because he admires me, such as Hanmer Industries."
Although there are many offending people, there are not many of these people who are capable of invading Jarvis.
In the end, Tony could only resort to a stupid way: let Jarvis list his trajectory over the past month, and then carefully recall and carefully select.
This became a challenge because Tony had just finished upgrading Jarvis a month ago. If it's the previous enemy, it's impossible to break through Jarvis's firewall. After the upgrade, it will be even more impossible, so the suspect can only be within this month, and he should likely be his first contact.
After the investigation, a total of six people came into sight, and Jude Herbert was one of them.
Tony immediately launched an investigation into him. When the energy of the Stark Group was mobilized in this capitalist country where money could move. Except for the boring daily routines such as eating and sh*t, almost everything is fine. They were all placed on his desk.
After reading his life report, Tony naturally discovered the strangeness. If Jude Herbert was trash a month ago, then he would have changed a month later. He first helped Oswald the Penguin to change his genes, then broke into the Arkham Asylum, and then fought side by side with Batman, defeating the conspiracy of the Assassin Alliance and foot clan.
A series of incidents showed that he suddenly turned from a low-level social scum into a super-elite with both civil and military skills. In addition, when they first met, he broke the procedure of implanting the pepper in the car in just a few seconds, and the other party also clearly let go of harsh words to himself. All of these made Tony Stark doubt him more and more.
Of course, the most crucial point is that the person in the video of the Internet cafe, after a comprehensive analysis and comparison by Jarvis, is at least 90% similar to Jude Herbert in body shape. With so many coincidences, Tony had no reason to dismiss the suspicion.
So Tony came to the funeral today with another purpose – to test Jude Herbert. However, he didn't expect to be exposed before he even started. Seeing the sly smile on Jude's face, the images of Jude Herbert and the intruder began to overlap infinitely.
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