Of course, at this time, Luca had no way of knowing what was happening outside the World rift.
He still had other things to do at the moment.
Since school was suspended, and secretly controlling the Spotted Man within S.H.I.E.L.D. was not an easy task, Luca simply decided to use this free time to travel to Sokovia and handle the matters there.
However, before that, Luca had a small matter to resolve first.
On the outskirts of New York, inside a huge enclosed testing ground.
Luca looked around at the various high-end equipment with a frustrated expression, complaining speechlessly.
"Didn't your Stark Industries already close its weapons division? You still have such a large weapon testing ground left. Are you planning to go back to your old business?"
Tony, who was adjusting his mech, heard this and casually pursed his lips, striking a pose of a true magnate.
"What's the big deal? It's just a weapon testing ground. Maintenance doesn't cost much, and it can occasionally be used to test my mech. See, isn't it being used now?"
As he spoke, Tony directly climbed two steps into the oddly shaped, brand-new mech in front of him.
Limbs, helmet, and chest plate closed one after another.
The reason for saying 'climbed' was because this latest mech built by Tony was over 5 meters tall, nearly twice the size of Tony's largest Hulkbuster mech in the original movie.
The overall color scheme was still Tony's usual flashy gold and red, and while its design was somewhat similar to the Hulkbuster, it had more angles, making it appear less bulky than the Hulkbuster armor.
That's right, this was the Veronica series mech, Tony's latest creation after the second Battle of New York.
Also known as the 'Anti-[Boxer] Mech.'
Watching the [boxer] and the Cursed Warrior clash, while he could only watch from the sidelines, was clearly unacceptable to the proud Tony.
And it was based on the concept of 'bigger is better' that this Veronica mech, which subverted Tony's previous ideas, came into being.
Currently, Tony had specifically called Luca to help him test the combat capabilities of his brand-new mech.
As the armor was fully donned, the electronic eyes in the helmet lit up.
Tony's slightly distorted electronic voice came from within.
"Hey, Luca kid, what are you waiting for? Get into your mech and come taste Uncle Tony's iron fist~"
Seeing Tony's extremely arrogant demeanor, Luca shook his head speechlessly.
He pushed off the ground slightly, leaping several meters high, and jumped into the open cockpit of the [Boxer] Mech.
Watching Luca's graceful 'boarding' posture, and then thinking about how he had huffed and puffed while climbing into his own mech, Tony couldn't help but secretly curl his lips.
'Next time, I need to upgrade the donning action. Hmm, Rocket boots seem like a good idea~'
As for Luca, with the cockpit canopy closed, his voice came from within.
"You said we'd test it after I completely upgraded the Boxer. My weapon system isn't even installed yet. What's the rush?"
Despite his words, the [Boxer] Mech had actually undergone a complete transformation.
Its previous appearance, cobbled together from broken junk, was entirely gone.
Instead, it was covered in a complete set of exquisite armor.
The design still maintained the [Boxer] Mech's heavy 'frog-like' appearance, but both its joints and outer shell exuded a strong sense of industrial sci-fi.
To retain the original [boxer]'s ball transformation and rolling function, multiple curved external armor plates were still added to various parts of the mech, but when not transforming, these external armor plates integrated more harmoniously with the entire body, with some even retracting and hiding inside the mech.
Although a large amount of Gundam mech technology was used overall, the result seemed more like a specialized 'Zaku.'
Of course, for the most important mech color scheme, Luca chose the classic Gundam blue and white, with a small amount of red accents.
After all, it was the protagonist's mech, so Luca thought this color scheme might give his mech a bit more luck.
(Image) Not designed yet.
However, after hearing Luca's complaint, Tony didn't feel at all abrupt; instead, he retorted with a hint of disdain.
"Who told you to run off to Sokovia? Who knows how long it'll be until you come back, and maybe when school starts again, upgrading the mech will be indefinitely postponed."
"Stop talking nonsense, come on! At most, I won't use my weapons~"
After saying that, Tony didn't care if Luca was ready or not, and directly controlled his Veronica, taking large strides and charging towards the [boxer].
A mechanical monster over five meters tall might be quite shocking in normal circumstances.
Even every step it took would cause the ground to tremble slightly.
But compared to the enormous creature over ten meters tall in front of him, there was a strange feeling of a child running up to an adult to act spoiled.
It wasn't that Tony's technology couldn't take 'bigger is better' to the extreme, but while he recognized the advantages of the [boxer], he also noted the disadvantages of such large mechs.
They were inconvenient to transport, lacked flexibility in movement, and could easily cause unnecessary destruction in urban combat.
So, even though he could build it even larger, Tony remained very restrained.
Even this so-called 'Anti-[Boxer] Mech' was not his regular armament for later; it would only be deployed at critical moments when needed.
Seeing Tony launch an attack without martial ethics, Luca naturally wouldn't be polite either.
He also controlled the [Boxer] Mech to charge forward.
At the same time, the ion thrusters on the mech itself, at the back, feet, arms, and other joint areas, instantly opened.
Under the powerful thrust, the mech's charging speed immediately increased by a notch.
Before Tony could react, the [Boxer] Mech suddenly lifted its right leg, and the six flame thrusters in its calf burst forth simultaneously, the entire leg seeming to turn into an afterimage, instantly striking the Veronica's body.
"Boom—"
A loud sound.
All the surrounding sand and dirt exploded outwards.
Tony, who had been charging aggressively moments ago, was directly sent flying by this sudden kick, rolling back dozens of meters before barely stabilizing himself.
"How could it be so fast?!"
Tony, who had just managed to regain his balance, ignored the dizziness from the impact and immediately exclaimed in surprise.
At this moment, Jarvis inside the mech timely provided analysis data.
"Sir, according to the scan analysis, Mr. Orange's newly modified mech is entirely constructed from E-carbon alloy, reducing its weight by 64% compared to before, and the newly added multiple thrusters have increased its speed by 32%. Overall, the speed increase exceeds 200%. Maneuverability and flexibility are currently unknown. I recommend using evasive tactics to avoid direct confrontation."
"But… I'm also using E-carbon alloy!"