After being subjected to several days of torment, Rimuru was now like a salted fish that had lost its dreams, sprawled on the sofa. Looking back on the past few days, they had been far more exhausting than fighting his way out of a cave guarded by terrorists.
"Mm, what you're wearing now really suits you. It's very pretty, and you look just like a little princess. A fashion show really ought to invite you."
Tony looked Rimuru over from the side, his tone loaded with implication.
Gee, thanks, Tony. You had a hand in picking those clothes too, didn't you? In that whole pile, you ordered more women's clothes for me than Pepper did. What's that supposed to mean?
"The clothes really suit you!"
I ¥#＊＃ you, you #¥.
"I've finished researching the recovery potion you gave me. I purified a self-healing molecule from it that can effectively speed up wound recovery, but it's somewhat less effective than what you gave me."
You've already figured it out? Are you seriously using cheats?
"It barely manages a tenth of the effect. It's a watered-down version of a watered-down version, but it's enough to bring to market as a first-generation product. Putting something like this out has also brought Stark Industries' stock price back up quite a bit."
Nice~ I'll be able to make the Forbes List someday too. I was originally thinking of waiting until the stock price hit rock bottom and buying the dip, but now that I think about it, there's no need. What good is money in a world like this? Strength is what really matters.
For instance, Tony had already started building the Iron Man Armor. Compared to the crude Mark I Prototype, the current Mark II was much more refined. Its leg armor probably wouldn't get broken now, for example, and its arm wouldn't get stuck in a wall either.
Combining the flight, shock absorption, communications, weapons, and power systems with an intelligent assistant involved an incredibly broad range of knowledge. Tony could put it together all by himself, but anyone else would probably need a dozen or so experts and several years to have a chance.
"Rimuru, did your world have anything like this too? You seem to know a lot about it."
Obviously. From your first suit of armor to the eighty-fifth, which one haven't I seen? Right now, I know the armor you make better than you do.
"Of course we did. The approach was just a little different from yours."
Rimuru decided to mess with Tony. After all, Tony had joined Pepper in making him wear women's clothes these past few days.
"You can use this lab. How about you make a suit of armor from your world too, and then we compete? Let me see the technology your world has."
"You said it, Tony. Don't go back on your word if you lose."
"Me, lose? We haven't even started, and you're already bragging."
Rimuru sprang up from the sofa like a salted fish flipping over, his eyes shining as if he had found a new toy. "Bring it on! You think I'm scared? But you have to cover all the materials, and I'll need JARVIS as an intelligent assistant too."
Tony raised an eyebrow. "That's a lot of demands. Fine, show me what you've got."
He casually tossed Rimuru a tablet. "I've given you access to the lab. Use whatever you want from the warehouse, and JARVIS will help you. But let's be clear: the competition has to be fair. Using those magic-like things of yours doesn't count."
"Deal!"
Rimuru hugged the tablet and grinned, already figuring out how to use Great Sage to analyze the data on Tony's armor, then combine it with the magic technology of the slime world to make something astonishing.
A few days later, at the testing ground on the top floor of Stark Tower.
"Rimuru, this is the armor you made? Are you sure you didn't get something wrong? Isn't this just a half-finished product?"
Tony stared at the armor in front of him, which only came up to his chest, and posed a soul-searching question.
With my height, I could only make it this size. If I made it like yours, I wouldn't even be able to wear it.
"But this is way too thin. What use is armor this thin? If it gets hit, it'll be scrap on the spot."
What do you mean, get hit? Why would I get hit? The armor isn't meant to be used as a shield. My Knight is lightweight armor. I can already fight on my own; the armor is just support. As long as he can't hit me, won't that be fine?
Tony wore the Mark II in its original colors, its palm repulsors glowing faintly. "All right, are you ready, little princess? There's still time to admit defeat."
You want me to admit defeat? You'd better think about what you'll do when you lose.
Two jets of flame erupted from the thrusters beneath Tony's feet, and the Mark Armor shot into the air. "I'll show you with facts that my Mark is the best, and your so-called Knight is a big toy at most."
I wouldn't be so sure. Wearing the Knight, Rimuru also took to the air and quickly caught up with Tony.
Their speed began to climb, and the naked eye could see only two streaks of fire crossing the sky. Since they were competing against each other, the two chased one another, and all that could be seen were the arcs formed by the two streaks of fire rising higher and higher.
"Hey, Tony, don't underestimate a toy's speed and agility!" Rimuru's voice came through the Knight Armor's external speakers, carrying a hint of a sly smile.
With a slight thought from her, the armor continued to accelerate.
The Knight's advantages of a small frame and light armor became apparent. It was superior to the Mark Armor in both speed and agility, and no matter how much Tony accelerated behind it, he couldn't catch up.
"What?" Streams of data flickered across the screen before Tony's eyes, and JARVIS sounded an alarm. "Sir, the predicted instantaneous maneuvering overload of the other party exceeds conventional aircraft models."
"Rimuru, are you cheating? In theory, your armor can't withstand that much acceleration. Normally, it should be about to break apart by now."
Tony, what are you talking about? I just put a little "magic" on my armor, that's all. It's power from my world, get it?
"JARVIS, maximum power! I refuse to believe this!" Tony's competitive spirit was fully ignited.
"Sir, continued operation beyond capacity may cause unknown damage to the first-generation Arc Reactor and the armor."
"Do it!"
Just then, Tony's helmet display suddenly went black, and JARVIS's voice sounded again.
"Sir, severe icing on the exterior may have caused a short circuit."
Tony's eyes widened. "What? What about Rimuru's Knight? Why is his fine, with no ice on it?"
"Sir, the Knight's outer shell is made of Sith Company's Gold-Titanium Alloy, the material used in the Seraph Satellite."
Did he already know about the Mark Armor's weakness?
Even when he had been following behind the Knight and eating its exhaust, he hadn't felt such a blow, because that was a difference in design philosophy. Now it was different. His was directly a version behind, and the ever-proud Tony couldn't accept it.
Rimuru was beside himself with excitement over there. Wasn't this exactly why he had kept leading the Mark Armor upward? He had beaten Iron Man!
"JARVIS, turn on recording mode. Record Tony's embarrassing moment so I can have a good laugh at him later."
JARVIS: "Recording function activated."
When they returned to the villa, Tony had intended to hurry up and improve the armor to redeem himself. Unexpectedly, the moment he landed, he smashed straight through the floor and crushed a luxury sports car.
Even worse, a robotic arm nearby sprayed him all over with dry powder, leaving him looking no less battered than when he had just escaped from the cave.
"Rimuru, I admit I lost to you this time, but that doesn't mean my philosophy is wrong. Your Knight's design philosophy is somewhat extreme and can't meet the demands of combat in all kinds of environments. And your pursuit of extreme speed has left its protection noticeably lacking. No matter how fast you are, you can't possibly dodge everything."
Listen to yourself. Were those things you designed meant for you to go brawling with them? If you can keep your distance and fight at range, why fight up close? Then what would be the difference between this high-tech armor and ancient armor?