Ten Years Later

After saying goodbye to Mocha and his wife and bringing little Annie home, Ryan, having a brief moment of free time, spent his days reading management books and quietly waiting for news.

The first news to come back was regarding that vial of blood; after testing, it was just ordinary human blood, with no difference whatsoever from the blood of people in the Marvel Universe.

Having received this news, Ryan crossed over once more to the world where Suzuki Satoru lived and retrieved two doses of vaccine from him.

The extra dose was for Annie. After all, he could anticipate that he would frequently cross worlds in the future, and although based on his guesses about his half-broken system, it wouldn't carry bacteria or similar microorganisms when he traveled, it was better to be safe and cautious.

He would rather have some trouble now than regrets later.

Once all this was done, another half-month passed before news of a suitable publishing house appeared.

During this period, Mocha tried to persuade him many times, perhaps seeing that his mind was made up, and finally reluctantly found and recommended a publishing house priced at one million dollars whose revenue barely broke even.

After inspecting it in person, Ryan made his final decision. To him, revenue didn't matter all that much; as long as there were no major issues with the personnel and the distribution channels were broad enough, everything else was a breeze.

The original name of the acquired publishing house no longer mattered. Ryan changed it to The Haulers at the first opportunity to hint at the source of his current and future works.

Things were progressing smoothly in the Marvel Universe, and progress in Suzuki Satoru's world was just as smooth.

The identity purchased with nearly half of Suzuki Satoru's wealth kept Ryan from being an unregistered person. In the game, he also managed to sneak into Suzuki Satoru's party as Suzuki Satoru's friend, a human race, and a level-one newbie.

He was very glad that Suzuki Satoru's party had just been formed and did not yet have the various rules for recruiting members later on. Otherwise, just based on the human race, it would have been impossible to pass Ainz Ooal Gown's membership application, and Ryan absolutely did not want to give up his human identity.

Time slipped away quietly amidst such uneventful development, and in the blink of an eye, ten years had passed.

"Tony Stark, head of the world-famous weapons manufacturer Stark Industries, has been missing for a month. The military has conducted multiple searches in the area where Stark went missing, and it can be anticipated that..."

The broadcast of a female anchor echoed inside the high-end, elegant office. Ryan, whose appearance had matured considerably compared to ten years ago, pressed the power button on the remote control in his hand and leaned back in his chair.

Ten years was enough time for far too many things to happen, and aside from making his temperament more mature, the changes in Ryan also involved shifts in his status and position.

Over the past decade, Haulers Group had developed rapidly. Aided by events like 9/11 and the economic crisis—which were crises to others but opportunities to him—it grew in less than ten years from a one-million-dollar publishing house into a behemoth with a market value close to one hundred billion dollars, possessing rule-making authority across multiple industries!

It was fair to say that in the realm of culture and entertainment, looking worldwide, apart from the major Hollywood film studios joining forces to go toe-to-toe with it, the rest were absolute trash, not a single one capable of putting up a fight!

As the owner of fifty-one percent of Haulers Group's shares, Ryan naturally became the target of new public attention, often lumped together in the news with that playboy Tony Stark.

Yes, Ryan had also fallen, seduced by the allure of money and power.

When thousands of beautiful women bent over and told you that they were willing to spend a wonderful night with you for just a tiny, negligible sacrifice—or even no sacrifice at all—you would fall too!

Here's to the pure me of the past!

Ryan took a bottle of red wine from the wine cabinet, poured a full glass, raised it in a distant toast, and refocused his attention on the previous news report.

Tony, Iron Man? The beginning of the Marvel Universe!

Taking a slight sip of the red wine in his glass, Ryan stood at the top of the thirty-third-floor skyscraper that belonged to him.

Looking at the night view below, a rare touch of emotional reflection appeared on his face. The appearance of Iron Man meant that the world had entered a countdown to going out of control, and world development was about to enter a brand-new era. He, too, was about to usher in the biggest change in his life in another world.

However, he still hadn't quite decided whether to bring Annie along.

He wasn't afraid of anything else. Although he had a lot of confidence in that half-broken system and believed that even if he truly traveled across worlds via YGGDRASIL, it would still stubbornly latch onto him, everything had a contingency. He was also afraid that this half-broken system might get lost along the way, and if he couldn't find his way back then, wouldn't he suffer the pain of parting from loved ones a second time?

Forget it, having the secret exposed is better than regretting it later!

Gritting his teeth hard, Ryan, having made up his mind, pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed Annie's number.

Beep... beep...

The call went unanswered. When he dialed a few more times and got the same result, Ryan's eyes turned red.

He knew Annie's personality inside out. Unless her phone was lost or she encountered some force majeure, she would never fail to answer his call. When he contacted the bodyguards secretly protecting Annie and found them similarly unreachable, his entire body sank into an eerie calmness.

Did someone think he had been peaceful for too long and forgot all his methods?

Daring to make a move against his family, and at a time like this, this was... courting death!

A glass tumbler violently smashed against the wall, shattering into pieces. Hearing the commotion inside the office, the beautiful secretary waiting outside quickly walked in.

"Ashe, immediately notify the security department and have them determine Annie's last known location to search for her. At the same time, notify the New York Police Department and ask them to help investigate, and tell them that afterwards I will donate two hundred patrol cars as a token of appreciation!"

"Yes, Boss!"

Ashe acknowledged the order, turned around, and walked straight out of the office. It was her first time seeing the Boss fly into such a rage, and she couldn't help but offer a silent prayer for the enemies who had made this move.

Inside the office.

Having vented his emotions, Ryan regained his composure. Anger could never solve problems, and things might not be as bad as he imagined. After all, there were twelve skilled operatives secretly protecting Annie; to take them down in an instant would require a powerful superpowered being.

With no news coming through yet, they had likely used some kind of signal-blocking device.

Moreover, even if something really happened to Annie this time, the worst-case scenario was that he would steal the Time Stone from the Sorcerer Supreme to reverse time, or slaughter his way into Hell to bring Annie's soul back!

With so many abilities across the heavens and myriad worlds, if he couldn't even save a person he wanted to save, what meaning would all his plotting over the past ten years have?

With bloodshot eyes, Ryan picked up his phone and called Ashe, instructing, "Ashe, I'm heading out for a bit and will be back by tomorrow at the latest. If anyone contacts me during this time, help me stall them first!"

"Yes, Boss!"

Ashe answered crisply.