Stark, of course, knew this was a favor from Zod.
Otherwise, no amount of money could buy the services of Umbrella Corporation's special operatives.
"Anyway, I'll assist Rhodey with the investigation. You just keep Pepper safe for me."
"I'll make the arrangements."
The blonde beauty, Teresa, was assigned to protect Pepper.
In truth, this was complete overkill. Teresa alone could slaughter every superhero in S.H.I.E.L.D., so sending her to protect Pepper… the Extremis soldiers would probably be eliminated by Teresa before they even got close.
There was no helping it. Umbrella currently only had three special operatives, and Sephiroth was male—ruled out.
There was no way Stark would ever let Sephiroth protect Pepper.
For one thing, Sephiroth was too handsome. His popularity since his debut already rivaled that of international superstar Leonardo DiCaprio—perhaps even surpassing him. Only Zod Heath, having debuted earlier, had accumulated enough popularity to keep him in check.
For another, there was the matter of height. Even with inner lifts in his Iron Man suit, Stark still couldn't match Sephiroth's stature…
It made him feel very insecure.
Then there was Wanda… Wanda was still undergoing special operative training, and her chaos magic was prone to losing control. Sending her to protect Pepper would be asking for trouble.
The rebuilt streets of Los Angeles were as bustling and lively as ever. It was as if the people here had entirely forgotten the disaster from months ago. The infrastructure went without saying—naturally, being the hardest-hit disaster zone, it had been rebuilt with top-tier technology. But what mattered more than the reconstructed city was the shadow lingering over people's hearts, wasn't it?
Yet such emotions were invisible.
If one had to point out a change brought by the alien invasion, it was probably just that the number of chuunibyou patients had multiplied several times over.
"Come to think of it, Tony asked you to protect me, right? Sorry for the trouble."
She actually felt it wasn't entirely necessary. Virginia glanced at the woman beside her—someone who completely outclassed her in figure, height, and beauty, and who was the blonde bombshell Americans loved most. Her smile was slightly strained.
Well, Virginia did feel like complaining a bit. Even if this was for protection, wouldn't it be normal to at least wear some kind of disguise?
But Teresa simply carried her greatsword openly and followed Pepper around without a care… It was only because of Zod that superheroes were no longer seen as freaks, and people in outlandish attire weren't exactly rare. Otherwise, Teresa would absolutely have been detained by the LAPD.
What was she planning to do with a sword that big strapped to her back?
"It's no trouble. We were paid by that man, after all."
Teresa said with a smile.
A hundred million dollars a day for the hire—that was something only Stark, who treated money like nothing, could do. Though Zod didn't care about money either. Going by actual value, Teresa should have cost at least ten billion a day.
"Actually, when I was little, I thought about becoming a powerful warrior too. Sounds kind of chuunibyou, right? It's just… how do I put it…"
Virginia tilted her head slightly.
"When I was practicing boxing, my instructor hit me so hard it hurt, and I couldn't even get out of bed the next day… so I gave up."
"Taking hits is the first prerequisite for becoming strong."
Teresa replied after listening.
"No, no. Normally, not many people can get used to being hit." Virginia's face was full
/-\
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