Boom!
As soon as he entered the atmosphere, a sonic boom erupted around Leon. His speed exceeded the second cosmic speed.
After entering the atmosphere, his figure split the sky in two. The immense air pressure generated by his speed tore through the clouds. Invisible shockwaves shredded the clouds, which began to surround Leon like an air shield, trailing behind him in the sky.
It was as though a world serpent had fallen from the sky to the human world, devouring everything in its path.
As he neared the ground, Leon began to slow down, decelerating at a rate of more than five kilometers per second. He had to slow down—landing at full speed would cause massive destruction to the surrounding surface, even with the bio-force field protecting him.
The spacecraft was 30,000 kilometers from the ground, and the distance from North America to Afghanistan was tens of thousands of kilometers. It took him less than twenty minutes.
Leon hovered over Afghanistan, and the airwaves from his descent cleared the sky of all clouds. The time was around 10 p.m.
Without stopping, Leon twisted his body mid-air and continued flying eastward. This time, his speed slowed to more than 200 meters per second, slower than the speed of sound.
He flew like an invisible ghost above the cave where Tony was imprisoned.
"Tony, it's time to get up," Leon whispered as he saw Tony frowning in his sleep.
Then, Leon dropped straight down like a meteor.
Boom!
The mountain, covered with rocks, was as fragile as paper in front of Leon. He broke through the ten-meter-thick rock and soil and into the cave.
Leon fell from the top of the cave, crouching in front of Tony's bed, striking a pose like Tony in his battle suit from the movies.
As Leon descended, rocks fell with him, making loud impact sounds that echoed through the cave.
Boom! Bang, bang, bang!
The vibrations, booming noises, and continuous crashing would make anyone think the world was ending.
"Ahhh!" Tony was no exception.
Being a light sleeper, he was immediately startled by the crashing sound as Leon penetrated the cave. Then, the continuous noises frightened him into screaming.
"Are they attacking us!?" His face filled with panic as he thought the terrorists were attacking ahead of schedule.
A terrorist organization had kidnapped him and forced him to build a batch of Jericho missiles. Tomorrow was the final delivery date, and he had planned to put on the Mark armor and escape with his assistant Ethan. It would be a tough battle.
Just minutes ago, he had prayed, hoping that everything would go smoothly tomorrow and that Pepper and Leon would be fine.
But now, these terrorists were attacking early?
"Damn it! Even Leon wasn't this anxious when he peed his pants!" Tony cursed, looking around in panic. "Ethan! Ethan, are you okay? Those guys are coming... Wait... Wait, why did the cave collapse? Oh, Leon, go check on Ethan… Wait, Leon?"
Tony stared at Leon, who was squatting beside his bed. His eyes widened in shock.
The boy was only wearing a pair of trousers. Despite the falling rubble, not a single grain of sand touched him.
"Leon, you! Why are you here?" Tony nearly rubbed his eyes, questioning if he was hallucinating before his death.
His eyes were filled with confusion.
His heartbeat quickened, and his hands trembled. He was certain this couldn't be real.
Leon's spaceship was supposed to return in two years, so how could he be here now?
But even if this was an illusion, Leon's posture was so cool—it was something only Tony could imagine.
Just then, the "illusion" of Leon stood up and smiled at him.
"Because I heard you calling for me late at night, saying you couldn't sleep without seeing me, so I came."
"To be honest, I'm surprised that my 39-year-old brother needs sleep-inducing services," Leon joked. "I could sing lullabies or hum country folk songs for you. But let's make a deal: I'll hold you and rock you to sleep, though I can't shake you—Pepper handles that."
Tony was stunned and reflexively retorted.
"Hey, kid, I'm the one who rocks you to sleep, not Pepper! She hasn't done it as much as I have."
This was how they always interacted—Tony, the tsundere, and Leon, who loved teasing him.
Tony, who almost 40, still proudly displayed the holiday gifts Leon gave him, treating them as treasures. It was endearing.
Just as he finished his retort, Tony's eyes widened, and he stood up, trembling with excitement.
"You! Leon! You really came? How... how is this possible? You should be three hundred kilometers away in space…"
Tony reached out and pinched Leon's arm. The solid muscles felt like marble.
This wasn't an illusion! Leon was truly here, coming to save him!
Tony was shocked, but his whole body relaxed as he sat back on the bed, sighing with relief.
No one knew Leon's strength better than Tony.
Half a year ago, Leon had a force of 500 tons and a defense so strong that even sniper rifles could only leave scratches. With Leon here, the terrorists outside were no longer a problem.
Leon raised an eyebrow. "To be precise, I'm in a satellite orbit more than 40,000 kilometers away from here."
"I heard you crying out for me in your sleep, and I rushed right over."
He winked. "After all, no one can make my brother suffer injustice—except Pepper."
Tony frowned. "Oh, you're wrong. No one, not even Pepper, can let me suffer injustice! And I'm not even wronged!"
"So, you're living the high life in this cave?" Leon looked at Tony. "Taking a business trip to a terrorist base and calling it a vacation?"
Tony's bright eyes still gleamed, but the deep exhaustion within them was unmistakable.
...
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