"Forget it. Obadiah Stane's death will cause too many issues tomorrow, and Stark Industries will face turmoil. Pepper won't be able to handle it alone," Tony Stark rubbed his brow and said.
"It's surprising that you're thinking about how Pepper will be busy tomorrow," Qin Li said, slightly surprised.
"I don't care, but that doesn't mean I won't. Fine, tonight, thanks for helping out. You can just zip back now," Tony waved his hand dismissively.
Qin Li flipped Tony the bird, then used his teleportation potion, intending to go get his motorcycle, but it was gone. He quickly said, "Wait a minute! The motorcycle you gave me is gone!"
Tony immediately returned the middle finger and said, "I know you wanted the limited-edition one! I'll have Happy bring it to you tomorrow, alright?"
"It's really gone! What's going on?" Qin Li asked seriously.
Seeing Qin Li's insistence, Tony knew he wasn't lying, so he asked, "What happened? Isn't your device supposed to track it easily?"
Qin Li was puzzled. "Either the motorcycle's been dismantled, or someone worked fast."
Tony rolled his eyes. "Forget it, it's just a motorcycle. Tomorrow, I'll have Happy send you the limited-edition one."
Qin Li was speechless, having just gotten another free vehicle. But he was still curious and went to the spot where he had parked. All he found was a black tire mark leading down the road, with flames still rising in the distance.
Seeing this, Qin Li mumbled, "Ghost Rider..." Tony heard and asked, "Ghost Rider? Is that some kind of stunt rider?"
Qin Li grinned, "Yeah, a stunt rider. Let him keep the bike for now. I'll collect the interest later."
Tony, not surprised by Qin Li's strange behavior, turned to Pepper. "Pepper, you head back first."
Pepper nodded and got in the car to leave. Just then, Agent Coulson ran out from the lab and asked quietly, "Mr. Stark, Father Qin, could you tell me what exactly happened?"
Seeing Coulson's confusion, Tony walked over, patted his shoulder, and said, "We'll talk tomorrow. The workday's over." Then, he flew off.
Qin Li looked at Coulson and said, "Work's over. It's past midnight. What are you still doing here? Let's go. I'll give you a ride home."
So, Coulson inexplicably drove Qin Li home before heading back to the S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, somewhat confused about his report. He did, however, hand over the Iron Monger data to S.H.I.E.L.D.
The next day, the sun rose, and Rhodes appeared on TV, giving an official explanation of the previous night's events.
"Everyone has received the official statement from Stark Industries regarding last night's incident. According to unverified reports, a prototype robot malfunctioned, causing damage and explosions on the road in front of the Stark Industries lab. Fortunately, Tony Stark's private bodyguard used Stark's top-secret technology to resolve the issue." Rhodes stood at the podium, reading from the script.
Tony glanced at Rhodes on TV, then picked up the newspaper next to him. Seeing how the report described him, he raised an eyebrow and said to Pepper, "Iron Man? That's an interesting name. He's got a pretty neat ring, though not entirely accurate. It's actually made from titanium alloy and some mysterious materials."
After Pepper helped him peel off the Band-Aid on his nose, Tony continued, "But who knows how people will interpret it?"
Just then, Agent Coulson walked over, handed Tony a stack of blue papers, and said, "Alibi." Tony looked at it but didn't take it right away. Pepper set down what she was holding, took the papers, and handed them to Tony.
Reluctantly, Tony took them and looked them over. Seeing that Tony had received them, Coulson continued, "At that time, you were on a yacht. The port authority confirmed you were docked at Avalon Harbor all night. Plus, we have testimony from 50 guests."
Tony impatiently said, "Actually, it's more like it was just me and Pepper on the island that night."
Agent Coulson, ever professional, replied, "We can't falsify anything. Just read through it."
Tony responded indifferently, "Alright~" and kept reading the cards until he finished, then asked, "But there's no mention of Obadiah?"
Coulson replied, "We handled it. He went on vacation. You know how unsafe small planes are."
Tony understood from Coulson's words, but then asked another question, "But how do you explain the bodyguard who doesn't exist? He's me. I mean, how do we explain this weak link?"
Coulson smiled and said, "This isn't the first time I've done this. As long as you follow the official statement, everything's fine. You have 90 seconds." With that, Coulson left.
Pepper picked up Tony's suit jacket and helped him put it on while saying, "Your turn to go up."
"It seems lying isn't that hard, even though I don't believe I'm Iron Man," Tony said as he got dressed.
"You're obviously not Iron Man," Pepper smiled.
"I am," Tony smirked.
"You're not," Pepper insisted.
"Fine, if I was Iron Man, and had a girlfriend who knows all my secrets, she'd be worried I'm going to die one day. But she'd also be proud of me. And conflicted, because she'd love me even more for it!"
Looking at Pepper, who was still adjusting his clothes, Tony couldn't help but add, "You must always be remembering that night."
"What night?" Pepper asked, not daring to meet his eyes, pretending to adjust his clothes.
"You know which one," Tony grinned.
Pepper finally looked up at him and said, "You mean the night we danced together? Then we went up to the roof, and I had you go get some drinks, leaving me up there all night? I think I know."
Tony was embarrassed and didn't say anything more, walking out to the podium as Rhodes introduced him.
Standing before the crowd, Tony Stark went straight into it, "It's been a while since I've made an appearance. I'll just read the script." He pulled out the blue card Coulson had given him, causing a round of friendly laughter from the audience.
"Some people are speculating that I was involved in the incident on the freeway and in front of the research lab..." Tony hadn't finished when a female reporter interrupted.
"Excuse me, Mr. Stark, do you really expect us to believe that was a bodyguard in full armor showing up just in time?"
Tony replied, "I understand what you're saying. There's no problem questioning the official statement, but there's no reason to make wild assumptions. Don't suddenly label me as some kind of superhero."
The reporter smiled and said, "I didn't say you were a superhero."
"Didn't you? Well, that's a relief. Because if you did, that would be ridiculous. I'm not cut out to be a hero. I've got too many flaws, I've made too many mistakes. My image isn't great," Tony rambled, but Rhodes knew his friend was starting to get off track and leaned over to remind him, "Just read the script."
Tony glanced at the script in his hand, thinking about everything that had happened recently. He put it down, looked seriously at the crowd, and said, "I am Iron Man."