As the group conversed, Tony Stark approached, holding a soccer ball, and teased Luca with a smile.
"I've already checked it, and there's nothing wrong with it, so I brought it back for you."
"But are you going to carry a soccer ball everywhere you go now, kid?"
With that, Tony tossed the soccer ball to Luca and, without a word, pulled up a stool and sat down in front of the others.
This made Gwen Stacy and Harry feel a little uncomfortable.
Although Luca also carried the title of "wealthy high school student," he was still a familiar classmate, so there wasn't much special about interacting with him.
But Tony Stark was a genuine billionaire and superhero; even though their families were not ordinary, it was inevitable to feel a bit awkward and cautious when actually facing him.
Luca, however, didn't pay attention to their subtle thoughts. After taking the soccer ball, his eyes darted around, and lies flowed freely from his mouth.
"It's not like I carry it everywhere. Didn't Nick Fury mention Pym Particles and some compression technology before? I was thinking of making a portable item."
"But right now, this is all the progress I've made."
As he spoke, Luca pressed the soccer ball belt at his waist again, and another inflatable soccer ball popped out.
Seeing this, Tony raised his hand to catch the soccer ball in the air. His eyes first lit up, then immediately changed to a look of disdain.
"You're just inflating it? That's too far from space compression, isn't it?"
Hearing Tony's words, Luca rolled his eyes directly and took back the soccer ball.
"What do you know? Look at this belt, and then look at the thickness of this soccer ball. Can it be stuffed in after being deflated? You call yourself a genius!"
"Moreover, this is just a failed preliminary result. I'll definitely be able to achieve enlargement and reduction like Pym Particles later."
"How about it? Do you want me to send you a belt to study later?"
Tony waved his hands repeatedly upon hearing this.
"Forget it, just keep it for yourself. I can make something like this in minutes."
However, after saying that, Tony turned to look at a small red and white sphere Luca was holding and asked with a hint of curiosity.
"What's this? Are you planning to become a Pokémon trainer now, kid?"
Indeed, the red and white sphere Luca was holding at that moment was the very classic Pokémon Poké Ball.
Hearing Tony's words, Luca narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing Tony Stark from head to toe.
This gaze, as if looking at prey, made Tony feel completely uncomfortable and he shivered.
"What kind of look is that, kid?"
Seeing Tony's reaction, Luca finally withdrew his gaze and explained with a smile.
"It's just an ordinary peripheral toy. I think it's quite interesting, so I'm going to put it at home as a decoration."
With that, Luca gently pressed the switch on the Poké Ball, and with a "click," the upper part of the Poké Ball's lid popped open.
Sure enough, inside was just an ordinary Pikachu doll, and when this Poké Ball opened, it even played the classic Pokémon theme song.
Seeing that it was indeed just a toy, Tony immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
That must have been an illusion just now, right? This mischievous kid!
However, what Tony didn't know was that this Poké Ball was not as simple as an ordinary toy in Luca's eyes.
At this moment, above this Poké Ball, which faintly emitted a White light in Luca's eyes, a light blue Golden Finger panel was clearly floating.
[Pal Ball]
[Palworld 1/5]
[Manufacturer: Pal Trainer]
[Core Component: Poké Ball Toy]
[Synthesis Materials: 1 Wood, 1 Stone, 1 Crystal containing spatial energy.]
[Item Description: A unique "Poké Ball" from the Palworld. It can be used to capture Pals after they are injured. The more severe the injury, the higher the success rate of capturing with the Pal Ball. Captured Pals will obey the wielder of the Pal Ball and can be recalled or released from the Pal Ball at any time.]
[Friendly Reminder: In the World of Pals, humans can also be captured by Pal Balls~]
This item was precisely what Luca had discovered earlier among the jumbled mess "spit out" by the Spotted Man.
According to the previously vanished small blackboard and the two students in school uniforms, the items the Spotted Man spit out should have been randomly absorbed into his body.
However, it was unknown whether this Poké Ball itself was the 'core component,' or if it was deemed the core item for synthesizing [Pal Ball] by the Golden Finger because it was contaminated with the Spotted Man's aura.
Of course, Luca didn't care about the origin of this item; as long as it was useful, that was enough.
As for the look he gave Tony just now…
It was naturally because of the 'Friendly Reminder' at the end of the Pal Ball panel: humans can also be captured. To beat Tony half to death and then capture him with a Pal Ball would probably be the most cost-effective choice, right?
Other superheroes, supervillains, and so on…
Either Luca simply couldn't beat them, or if he could, their utility wasn't significant. Instead, someone like Tony, who relied on his brain, was extremely weak in his true form, easily bullied, possessed extensive assets, had scientific research capabilities, and could wear armor in combat.
"He's simply the god of cost-effectiveness, an Innate Pal Saint Body!"
Of course, this was just a joke.
Luca and Tony currently had a good relationship, so he naturally wouldn't think of turning a friend into a slave.
With the Marvel Universe being so chaotic, there would always be more suitable choices for 'worker Pals.'
Shaking off the distracting thoughts, Luca didn't dwell on this matter and instead brought the topic back to the Spotted Man.
"That guy can perform spatial teleportation. Can you keep him locked up after taking him back? Don't let him run out again."
To prevent him from waking up, Luca had just given the Spotted Man a few more electromagnetic tranquilizer shots.
If he hadn't been worried about appearing too violent, he might have directly switched to 'disintegration bullets.'
At this point, he naturally hoped that the other party wouldn't escape from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s hands and cause him trouble later. "What do you mean 'you guys'? I'm not with S.H.I.E.L.D. or them. However, from what Hill said, they will likely keep injecting him with tranquilizers until they determine a suitable containment method."
"For such unruly interdimensional invaders, they already have established procedures for handling them."
Luca merely nodded upon hearing this and, after some thought, added.
"By the way, when I was fighting that guy earlier, he seemed to say something about the spatial fluctuations nearby being unusually active? I don't know if he was referring to New York or the vicinity of the school."
"If it's New York, then so be it, since that incident didn't happen long ago. But if he specifically meant the school here, I guess S.H.I.E.L.D. should be reminded to pay attention later."