The Night Before Dawn

Pacific Ocean.

Over the calm sea.

Leon's Jet Glider was racing through the low altitude near the coast at its maximum speed of Mach 2.04.

"Doesn't seem all that stressful."

Leon, seated in the cockpit, even felt like he could sleep soundly. A load of merely ten-odd or twenty Gs was nothing; once it entered steady, straight flight, it was no different from driving normally.

For him, now fused with the Soldier Boy Template, it was effortless to endure.

"Young Master Leon, would you like me to inform Miss Pepper and Colonel Rhodes that you have returned safely?"

"Mm... don't tell them yet. We'll talk after I rescue Tony."

"Understood."

"JARVIS, roughly how long until we reach Afghanistan?"

"At our current speed, we are expected to reach the Afghan border in five hours, at 2:50 a.m. the following day."

"Alright, I'll take a nap. Wake me when we get there."

"Understood."

"Good night, Young Master Leon."

"Good night, JARVIS."

JARVIS lowered the brightness of the Jet Glider's display to its minimum. A little green arrow on it was slowly following the designated route toward a red section representing danger and the destination.

Leon slowly closed his eyes.

However.

He could not fall asleep for a while, and his thoughts began to wander.

In words ordinary people could understand, he was overthinking.

For example,

What kind of pose should he strike when he appeared before a disheveled Tony?

Or,

The reason he had not told Pepper about his movements in advance was that he feared she would worry too much. It might be better to let her continue believing that Leon might already be dead.

As for Rhodes,

Although Rhodes could be trusted, the rest of the military might not be. Obadiah could very well have planted spies among them.

Rather than relying on that bunch of rabble, Leon might as well handle it himself!

For another example...

"...Young Master Leon, Young Master Leon."

"Hmm?"

"We've arrived."

JARVIS's call rang beside Leon's ear. He slowly opened his eyes, and faint starlight dimly illuminated the barren land ahead.

In the silent, dark world, the Jet Glider Leon rode in was the only source of light.

"JARVIS, what were we here to do again?"

Leon was still somewhat groggy.

"Rescue Mr. Stark, Young Master Leon."

JARVIS answered thoughtfully.

"Right, we need to rescue Tony."

Leon's muddled consciousness slowly returned as he muttered to himself. Then his eyes suddenly flew wide open as he discovered a massive BUG!

"JARVIS, do we know where Tony is??"

"We do not, Young Master Leon."

"Uh..."

This was awkward.

Really awkward.

He had been in too much of a rush when he set out. Leon had subconsciously assumed that, with his foreknowledge advantage and Soldier Boy's overwhelming combat power, he could easily rescue Tony.

However.

The truth was—

Based solely on the snippets he had seen in movies in his previous life, Leon had no idea where Tony specifically was. He only remembered that Tony was in a cave held by the Ten Rings.

But that was fine.

Leon had plenty of strength and methods.

Since Tony had departed from Bagram Air Base, all he had to do was use the air base as the starting point and wipe out every terrorist around it. Sooner or later, he would find him.

Wasn't that how Minesweeper worked?

Step on every minefield, and there would be no mines left.

"I'm simply a genius!"

Leon considered himself a man of super intelligence as well.

Now, his super intelligence told him it was time to use super strength.

Just as Leon was marveling at the perfection of his plan, the system's voice sounded in his mind.

[Question: Would you like to perform today's check-in?]

*System, don't disappoint me!*

[Ding! Today's check-in has been completed. Congratulations, Host, you have obtained the "Infinite-Ammo Desert Eagle."]

[Infinite-Ammo Desert Eagle: Can fire an unlimited number of high-powered .50 AE pistol rounds.]

[Quality: Never wears out]

[Description: The first shot announces my arrival, the second announces your departure. But think carefully—is it truly only a pistol?]

"Hmm?"

"Why is there an extra quality category? And it never wears out."

Leon refused to believe it.

He pulled the so-called "Infinite-Ammo Desert Eagle" from the system space and fired hundreds of shots in succession—bang, bang, bang, bang, bang—before finally stopping.

And you know what?

Other than smoke rising from the muzzle,

The gun seemed to have no problems whatsoever.

But that was not all.

Leon then took out Soldier Boy's Tungsten Steel Alloy Shield, gripped the "Infinite-Ammo Desert Eagle," and fiercely smashed it against the shield.

BANG!!!!!

After the thunderous impact.

The pistol was completely unharmed.

The shield cracked apart on the spot.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Leon looked down at the Tungsten Steel shield fragments scattered all over the ground by his feet, then looked at the gleaming, brand-new Desert Eagle in his hand. His eyes were full of astonishment and delight.

"Holy shit!"

"This is some kind of conceptual weapon, isn't it!"

Leon exclaimed.

"It's just a shame about my shield. I definitely need Tony to compensate me with a piece of Vibranium."

"JARVIS, write that down in the little notebook. Don't forget to mention it when we go back."

"Understood, Young Master Leon."

After putting the shield fragments on the ground back into the system space, Leon planned to melt them down after returning. He could not afford to lose equipment that could be stored and retrieved so freely. He already had an idea in mind.

Ten Rings outpost.

"The guys from the neighboring Blast-Heaven Gang just called and said some lunatic single-handedly wiped out everyone at their base. They even said he was coming to cause trouble for our Ten Rings. Isn't that hilarious?"

"One person? Heh, that's not even a believable lie. They were probably high as hell. If they had really been wiped out, how could anyone still be calling us to tell us?"

"Good point!"

"Why are you talking so loudly?!"

"Go to sleep already. No one's supervising us anyway. Open your eyes, close your eyes, and another day passes. Why stay up late for a job that only puts food in your mouth?"

"Good point!"

"Shut up! Sleep, damn it!"

"Oh..."

Just as the two Ten Rings grunts on watch had closed their eyes, a ghostly demonic voice drifted into their ears. "Still sleeping? I'm here to collect you~~~"

"!!!" ×2

"Enemy—"

Splat! Splat!

Leon used one hand for each of them and directly crushed the two grunts' heads. Watermelon juice splattered everywhere as he muttered, "Didn't believe it? Heh~ Well, here I am."

From his elevated position.

Leon looked toward the cave artificially carved into the rock wall of the basin in the distance, and the corners of his mouth gradually rose. "Bingo. Hit the jackpot."

At this moment.

At the far end of the eastern horizon.

Great swathes of clouds began to glow pale white, and warm dawn light started to shine.

Elsewhere.

Inside the cave where Tony and Yinsen were imprisoned.

The two of them were far too excited to sleep.

They lay on their beds, quietly discussing their escape plan for the day.

Although the armor had already been built, figuring out how to put it on was a problem.

The Ten Rings had surveillance cameras set up inside the cave. The slightest movement from them would be discovered and stopped immediately.