After handling the matters at hand, Sean drove toward Washington D.C. Besides his secretary Yuriko, he also brought along the unruly Ivan Vanko. Ever since the Russian brute had seen the Sentry last time, his fierce arrogance had somewhat subsided, and he no longer carried himself with the same pride as before.
Gifted geniuses were often the same kind of creature. They possessed undeniable pride and confidence in their own fields, a sense of superiority born from looking down on ordinary people through wisdom and knowledge. Whether it was the refined and amicable Reed or the narcissistic and arrogant Stark, they were all alike.
As someone who regarded Tony Stark as his lifelong rival and family nemesis, Ivan was naturally no exception. In the original timeline, Justin Hammer had exhausted every means to win over the Russian brute, yet failed to either sway or buy him off. Instead, Ivan had played him for a fool and landed him in prison.
The common flaw of geniuses was that they scorned or ignored ignorant fools. Someone as stupid as Hammer would never have been worth Ivan's notice.
Sean, however, was different. He was not an authoritarian figure who refused to listen to advice—although Ivan had sensed a concealed desire for control in him, it was kept well in check and never blatantly displayed. Combined with his powerful background and unfathomable strength, it made the Russian brute feel at ease staying with Umbrella, abandoning his former schemes.
As the vehicle moved slowly, Sean happened to glimpse scattered groups gathered outside Umbrella's gates. They held up signs and shouted slogans, but hardly anyone paid them any attention. The dutiful security personnel kept them outside.
After Senator Kelly, the vanguard of the anti-Mutant movement, disappeared from public view, the heated public debate surrounding Mutants gradually