Beautiful Girl

"Everyone knows what to say, right?"

Mark's berserk state had gone into cooldown. He glared at Yuri, who was still grinning apologetically, then looked at Yinsen, who was out of danger but unconscious, and Tony, who was carrying him. "You know what to tell them?"

"Yuri tossed two smoke bombs, then those idiots panicked and shot each other. After that, you two went in and finished them off one by one, rescuing us."

Tony lied with a straight face, then glanced at the harmless-looking Yinsen and added, "There was no suicide-bomber leader, and nobody was controlling Tony Stark..."

Seeing Yuri's unfriendly look, he gave an awkward smile. "There were only two brave, resourceful elite mercenaries about to collect ten million dollars."

Mark said, "Excellent."

More than a dozen helicopters descended slowly with a rumble, their rapidly spinning rotors whipping dust into the air. Yuri glanced at Tony's Black friend, who looked like Colonel Rhodes's entrance in the Avengers, and reminded him, "It's twenty-one million dollars, Mr. Stark. You forgot to add the commission."

"Whatever~"

Tony shifted Yinsen on his back and headed first toward Lieutenant Colonel Rhodes, the only soldier not standing guard with a gun. "Hey, Rhodey! Transfer the commission to these two elite mercenaries. Don't pay them a dollar less, but don't pay them a cent more!"

Rhodes glanced at Yuri and Mark, surrounded by soldiers. He already knew their records: one was a seasoned, full-time mercenary, while the other was a New York civilian who had come to the Middle East as a summer intern for the thrill of it.

That last kid was a bit outrageous, but neither of them seemed suspicious.

He helped lift Yinsen onto a stretcher, then supported Tony as they boarded the helicopter. "Sounds like you didn't exactly get along with them?"

"Damn Afghanistan!"

Tony cursed, not answering directly. "I'm never coming back here again!"

They were disarmed, searched, and questioned...

After going through all that aboard the helicopter, Yuri and Mark got off and went through the same process again at the base.

The tunnels and buildings had all burned to the ground anyway. What had happened inside was now up to the three arsonists to say.

After sampling the standard American soldiers' breakfast, Yuri watched Mark brush off his mercenary comrades one by one, each seething with envy and resentment. He tapped his plate. "You've made all that money. Are you going to keep doing this?"

Mark gulped down a big mouthful of ice-cold Coke. Alcohol was prohibited at the base. "Why not? Yinsen and I are in pretty much the same situation—no family, no ties. If I settled down in the city, with my temper, I'd be better off staying a mercenary!"

After finishing his Coke, Mark lit a cigarette with practiced ease. "What about you? Summer's almost over. Are you going back to start college?"

"What else would I do?"

Yuri finished his eighth plate. He looked human enough, but when it came to appetite, he was a perfect heir to the Mutants.

Fortunately, his energy conversion efficiency was extremely high—he hardly ever needed to shit—and he constantly absorbed Cosmic Energy. Whether he ate or not, and whether he ate a lot or a little, he never felt hungry.

He was only eating this much now to take advantage of capitalism.

He stacked his plates and walked with Mark toward the tray return. "Still, I'd recommend coming back with me. We're flying on Tony Stark's private jet, after all. Maybe there'll be a few pretty girls aboard to soothe his wounded heart."

Mark paused, then met Yuri's gaze and grinned knowingly. "You're right. That sounds like a great idea!"

An hour later.

With Tony's bodyguard Happy leading the way, the two carried their luggage aboard a brand-new private jet. Happy hadn't let himself go yet; his large frame was broad and burly, not fat.

"I could take three of him."

Noticing Yuri's gaze, Mark tried to change the subject and draw his attention elsewhere. After all, this was Tony Stark's private jet. In the tunnel, Mark could pin him down and beat him senseless, but in the real world, the Stark family was far beyond the reach of ordinary people.

"I could take nine of him."

Yuri grinned at Mark, dodged the other man's furious punch, and followed Happy toward the small lounge in the middle of the plane.

"Listen, Tony!"

Yinsen's voice sounded weak, but his resolve was firm. "It was an honor to become your friend, but I'll never work for Stark Industries."

"I know it wasn't your fault, but a missile bearing the word 'Stark' really did kill my family... Let's change the subject. Maybe talk about that unfinished Iron Man suit of yours?"

Tony saw Yuri and Mark approaching and rolled his eyes. The little mustache above his lip twitched playfully. "Oh, look—the two freeloaders have arrived."

Yinsen turned and nodded respectfully to Mr. Ambrosius. "Mr. Ambrosius."

Yuri nodded, grabbed the rather awkward Mark, and plopped down on the soft leather sofa. He stretched out comfortably, then picked up where Yinsen had left off. "I thought I heard something about... 'Iron Man'? Tony, mind letting me in on it too?"

Tony took a small sip from his glass, then turned his bandaged, bandage-covered face away, avoiding eye contact with the person he didn't want to talk to. "First, you misheard. Second, I mind very much."

"Really?"

"Really!"

"Okay."

Yuri opened his backpack and calmly pulled out several pages of blueprints covered in specifications and drawings of various parts. He dodged the wine Tony spat out, spread the blueprints open, and held them up. "So, are you willing to talk about this big guy now?"

"Ten million dollars!"

"Too little."

"Twenty million!"

"Too little."

"Fifty million! Not a cent more!"

Seeing Tony's furious expression, Yuri smiled and handed him the blueprints. "Deal!"

Tony snatched the blueprints, but accidentally pulled at his wound and grimaced in pain. He carefully checked every page to make sure nothing was missing, muttering "Mother fucker" the whole time...

Mark secretly gave a thumbs-up from below, while Yinsen raised his eyebrows at Yuri from across the room.

Heaven have mercy!

On this enormous private jet, Happy might have been the only one on Tony's side.

"So... Mr. Stark."

Mark spoke for the first time since entering the lounge. "Do you have any, um... you know... I mean..."

"Beautiful girl."

Seeing how awkward Mark was, helpful Yuri supplied the words for him.

Tony's eyes peered over the blueprints, full of contempt for perverts. "No!"

"Oh no~"

"Oh no~"

Mark looked out the window at the drifting white clouds and the sun barely visible through the mist. "If we went back now, would we still have time?"