'What would happen if they were forcibly separated?'
Reid directly asked about the cost. As long as the consequences weren't too severe, he would be willing to accept them.
The system hesitated for a moment, as if it were contemplating, and finally came to an answer.
[If separated forcibly, Alfred's card will be damaged, and the Outsider form you've unlocked will be canceled.]
'The Outsider form will be canceled?'
During previous actions, Alfred's roleplaying degree had been stuck at 49%, unable to reach the 50% needed to unlock the Outsider form. Reid had always thought there must be some specific trigger for the breakthrough, and in fact, he was right.
When Reid, in the guise of Alfred, killed the Wayne Enterprises executive, Earle, to maintain control of the company, the restriction was lifted. Alfred's roleplaying degree not only broke through to 50% but also soared to 70% in a short time.
Before arriving at the airport, Reid had checked the Outsider identity.
As someone born in the 2000s, the Outsider he knew best was the butler of Owlman from Earth-3.
However, Reid had also vaguely heard another story from the Silver Age.
At that time, Batman had just been labeled by the writers as the greatest detective in the world, gradually rising to the top of superhero status. The editors, aiming to reintroduce Alfred's character and make him more captivating, decided to create a storyline where Alfred dies.
After Alfred's death, he was resurrected by a special machine, but he began to hate Batman, becoming the Outsider and hunting down both Batman and Robin.
In the end, Batman defeated the Outsider and placed him back into the machine that had revived him, restoring Alfred to his original state. This also gave the editors a chance to redesign Alfred's character, establishing the familiar image of Alfred that Reid knew.
Before this, Alfred's image was similar to that of J.A.R.V.I.S., the butler of the Stark family in Marvel—a plump gentleman.
After Reid's previous experiment, the Outsider form he unlocked was based on the original Outsider from the Silver Age, not the Earth-3 version, which was the Owlman's butler who was killed by Black Manta.
The Silver Age Outsider possessed superhuman abilities. Based on Reid's experiment, this version had invulnerability, super strength, and the ability to create whirlwinds and storms.
Reid vaguely remembered that the Silver Age Outsider also had magical abilities and could control statues.
However, because many superhumans from that era had abilities related to wish fulfillment, the system had not granted him the power to use magic or control statues.
Overall, while the Outsider form wasn't useless, it couldn't be said to be particularly powerful. Being invulnerable was only relative, many human weapons could still harm the Outsider form of Alfred.
The strength of the Outsider is just at a basic superhuman level, around one or two tons. Compared to an ordinary person, it would definitely seem monstrous, but a random street-level hero from Marvel could probably be stronger than this Outsider.
After all, as a villain in Batman's story, the Outsider's abilities were more focused on intellect and outsmarting Batman rather than direct combat.
But even so, compared to Reid's previous two identities—the Butler Alfred and the Joker—at least the Outsider actually had superpowers!
Weak as it might be, it still had some abilities.
So when Reid learned that separating the fusion required the Outsider form as a sacrifice, he could only choose to give up.
'Forget it, let the Joker wait a bit. I estimate that by the time i really stabilize Wayne Enterprises, Alfred's role playing degree will be nearly completed. At that time, I can release the Joker.'
After coming to a decision, Reid didn't open his eyes but instead focused his mind and took a brief nap.
When he was woken up by Happy, they had already arrived at the New York airport. He then boarded the luxury car arranged by Stark Industries, heading toward the funeral venue.
...
"Welcome, Alfred, thank you for attending today."
Under the astonished gazes of everyone, both Howard and Tony expressed their enthusiasm towards Alfred.
Tony thanked Alfred for mending the gap between him and Howard, while Howard, on top of that, also expressed his gratitude for Alfred's past rescue of him.
If Alfred hadn't passed by, Howard probably would have already died on that desolate road.
The other guests, who were also invited, looked surprised. In just a few minutes, they quickly gathered some information about Alfred.
Afterwards, they sighed in relief.
After all, it's no big deal for Tony and Howard to express their gratitude for saving their lives. However, if Alfred had turned out to be some important figure they didn't recognize, then things would have gotten serious.
Tony and Howard didn't spend much time talking with Reid as they still had to oversee Maria's funeral.
However, to Reid, it was all just part of the process.
Once the proceedings were over, it was already night.
After Maria's death, Howard seemed to have aged rapidly in a very short amount of time. All the affairs of Stark Industries were now handed over to Tony, and Howard retired to rest with his personal doctor.
Even though Tony was exhausted from just taking over Stark Industries, he still found the energy after the funeral to approach Alfred, who was about to leave.
"Alfred, please wait a moment."
Tony jogged over. He wasn't yet the domineering figure he would be in ten years, and he certainly hadn't forgotten Alfred's great kindness to him.
"Mr. Stark, is there something I can help with?"
"I have some business in Gotham City. If you don't mind, perhaps we could travel together."
Reid smiled inwardly. Just as planned. Everything was falling into place.
Howard's quick exit meant that Tony, who had never fully taken over Stark Industries' operations, would inevitably face difficulties, even if Howard were still alive. He needed to quickly generate profits or rely on the company's executives to help him navigate these challenges.
For example, in the future, he would be targeted by Obadiah Stane, who would attempt to have him assassinated by the Ten Rings.
For now though, Tony still saw Obadiah as a kind uncle, as long as he sought Obadiah's help, Tony could easily take control of Stark Industries.
However, Tony's character meant he would never rely on others to control the company.
At this point, Tony had just taken over Stark Industries and didn't even fully understand the company's operations. Without Obadiah's help, he didn't have time to use his intelligence to create profits.
In this situation, Tony's best option was to identify a reliable partner for Stark Industries to generate profits.
Before this, Alfred's repeated appearances would have undoubtedly given Tony a thorough understanding of Alfred and the current state of Wayne Enterprises.
One company with strong capabilities but a chairman in urgent need of establishing authority, and another company that was solid but had just lost its leader.
Both businesses also operated in the weapons industry.
Could there be a better collaboration target than Wayne Enterprises?
Reid didn't come here just to attend Maria's funeral or to ask for Tony's assistance.
Instead, his goal was to use this visit to strengthen his ties with Stark Industries and subtly guide Tony into seeking a partnership with Wayne Enterprises.
And now, his plan had succeeded.
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