Zemo Refuses to Be Guilt-Tripped

Bruce Banner instinctively adjusted his glasses. His fingers trembled slightly as he murmured, "That figure is close to the entire annual military budget of some small or midsize countries, isn't it?"

"What exactly is the Warp Group's risk-pricing model based on?"

Even Black Widow, trained to handle any situation and accustomed to extraordinary sights, nearly lost control of her expression.

Her pupils contracted slightly, and her breath caught for an instant.

As one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s top agents, she had seen countless classified budgets and flows of illicit funds. But hearing the figure "one hundred and fifty billion dollars" still left her dizzy.

This wasn't merely expensive. It was so far beyond any normal commercial logic that it felt almost like a provocation.

Even if they pooled all their wealth—including stocks, real estate, patents, and other illiquid assets—they might reach the tens of billions, perhaps even a hundred billion. But one hundred and fifty billion dollars was a chasm away.

Even the $7.8 billion that Zemo had called a waived fraction of the price was more wealth than most of them could hope to see in ten lifetimes.

"Do you people fundamentally misunderstand what money is?" Tony Stark said, his composure cracking. "Or do you think it grows on trees? Do you know what one hundred and fifty billion means?"

"It means that even Stark Industries couldn't produce that much cash by the end of today without selling core assets, mortgaging most of its patents, cashing in revenue from worldwide orders early, and praying Wall Street doesn't collapse at the same time." Tony Stark wasn't speaking in anger. He was stating a fact.

Tony Stark could raise $150 billion, but even a corporate giant like Stark Industries, worth over a trillion dollars, couldn't readily draw on that much liquid capital in