The tension finally left the air in the room, and Eddie had just barely recovered from the near-death exhaustion.
He felt no wariness or sense of unfamiliarity at all. Looking at the small figure floating before him, he was left with nothing but astonishment and confusion.
As a veteran investigative journalist who worked on the front lines and had extensive contacts and sources, Eddie had long been familiar with Rimuru and even knew all about him.
The mysterious, ridiculously powerful little guy had an intimidatingly prominent public identity.
He was Tony Stark's publicly acknowledged adopted son and one of Stark Industries' most powerful shareholders, with an enormous stake in the company. He rarely appeared in public, but wielded tremendous influence.
He was also one of the initiators behind the Extremis Medical Potion, which had taken the world by storm some time ago. Rumor even had it that he had some kind of mysterious official backing.
What left an even deeper impression on superheroes across the internet and the major powers was his exclusive organic armor. Stunning, ridiculously powerful, and incredibly cool, it had appeared on the battlefield several times and crushed all manner of formidable enemies.
Who could have imagined that this legendary big shot would personally drop in on his rundown rental apartment today?
Eddie rubbed his aching temples and spoke, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
"No way. Mr. Rimuru?"
"A big shot like you, a powerful Stark Industries shareholder and Tony's adopted son, left your mansion and base behind just to come looking for me in this shabby, messy rental?"
The more he thought about it, the more absurd it seemed, and he couldn't help asking the question at the heart of his confusion:
"Everyone out there guesses you're secretly holding down the superhero front and