The lively expo had already ended. After dinner, everyone arrived at Justin Hammer's exhibition hall.
"Where's Tony? Didn't he come?"
Oaks spotted Pepper and Happy, but Pepper's strained smile made it clear that Tony had stirred up trouble again.
"The boss said he 'wasn't interested in a garbage-sorting exhibition.' Um... that's what he said."
Happy answered. The former boxer waved his fist and nodded fiercely in wholehearted agreement.
"I think the boss is right!"
"...All right. I guess Tony knows who today's featured guest is?"
Oaks shrugged and looked at Pepper. She nodded helplessly.
"Rhodey told him it was an order, but Tony was obviously still... sulking. He neither wanted to equip Rhodey with weapons himself nor wanted to see Justin Hammer's weapons mounted on his armor."
Pepper could not help laughing as she said that.
"So he contradicted himself and started throwing a tantrum."
"Don't worry, he'll come. Let's take our time watching. We're already here, after all."
Oaks gestured for his people to sit down and gave Melinda a look. She nodded slightly, then stepped forward to chat with Pepper. Before long, the two women were laughing and talking together—
In fact, Pepper and Melinda had met at the Benevolence Society before. And right now, Pepper's impression of S.H.I.E.L.D., which had helped Tony overcome his palladium poisoning crisis, was at its highest.
She even felt a little regretful. If only Natasha, such a capable secretary, really were a secretary.
Blaze had taken people outside to stand by. Zhang and Sharon stayed with Dr. Yinsen and Dr. Banner, leaving only Consultant Matt at Oaks's side, eager to witness the grand spectacle of the expo.
"How have you been feeling lately?"
Oaks looked at Matt, who seemed somewhat uneasy. Perhaps the rapidly growing crowd around them was placing an enormous