17: Winning

"My point is, you can fly by yourself, right?"

"If your suit isn't fast enough and you end up flying past me on your own, how do we count that?"

Tony finally remembered that Lyon's speed by himself was several times faster than the Iron Man suit.

"Am I the kind of person who cheats?"

"You wouldn't cheat, but didn't you knock me out two days ago?"

"Alright, I'll step out of the suit. Jarvis, you take control of the armor."

"Wait, Jarvis will control it? Are you saying your suit can be fully operated remotely?" Tony hadn't yet reached that level in his own research.

"Uh-huh, what do you think? Pretty impressive, right?"

"It is... ahem, I mean, not a bad idea. Though, I did think of it myself earlier, just didn't have enough time."

"...Well, you're really something, Tony."

"Ahem, alright then, Jarvis, are you ready? We're about to start the race." Tony, feeling a bit sheepish, quickly changed the subject.

"Yes, Mr. Stark. I'll begin the countdown in three seconds. Are you ready?"

"I've been ready for a long time."

Jarvis gave the command: "Ready, three, two, one, go!"

Chuuu... Fwoosh! Fwoosh!

Both suits of armor simultaneously ignited their thrusters, taking off at full power and shooting straight up, leaving long trails of flames cutting through the sky.

Lyon watched as the two suits disappeared into the clouds and couldn't help but mutter.

"Honestly, if you ask me, both suits are pretty slow."

"In fact, for someone like me, aside from nostalgia, the suit doesn't really have any other use."

After that, he twisted his collar slightly, and a biological force field expanded. He shot into the sky like a meteor.

...

"Woohoo!!"

Tony continued accelerating in the sky, experiencing a level of freedom in flight like never before.

"For millions of years, the sky has loomed above humanity."

"The desire to soar into the sky, to conquer it, is written into our very genes."

"No wonder so many people throughout history tried to fly—this feeling is just too incredible!!"

Tony was beyond excited, filled with grandeur, feeling as if he were the unbeatable king of machines.

"Jarvis, Lyon's suit must be far behind me by now, right?" He felt confident the answer would be a resounding yes.

However, Jarvis was always blunt: "Sorry, Mr. Stark, I regret to inform you that my AI-controlled suit has already left you three blocks behind."

"What?" Tony was stunned. "That's impossible!"

"Apologies, but the fact is that you and Master Lyon's suits are now seven kilometers apart."

Tony tilted his head up to look above him, but the dense layers of clouds in the high sky made it impossible to see anything.

"This must be a mistake. Jarvis, accelerate—full speed!"

Mark II unleashed more thrust, breaking through the clouds, racing upward.

However, after several minutes, Tony still couldn't see Lyon's suit—not even a trace of exhaust.

"Damn it, how is it that fast?"

"Master Lyon is using a more coordinated movement system, reducing the suit's weight, which has improved both acceleration and top speed," Jarvis reported.

"...Okay, I'm starting to admit that kid's a genius, but I can't lose this race. Jarvis, engage the power beyond normal limits."

"Sir, I must remind you that continuing upward may cause the suit to freeze due to the low temperatures."

"Do as I say—keep flying!"

A few minutes later, Tony faintly spotted the tail flame of Lyon's suit.

"Yes, that's it! Catch up, and then leave it far behind!"

"Sir, the exterior of the suit has already started to frost over. Continuing to fly may cause damage to the components."

"Ignore it! Keep accelerating!"

Tony was now full of adrenaline, his competitive spirit fully ignited. In a shonen manga, this would be the moment where he pushes past his limits, overtakes Lyon's suit, and makes a dramatic comeback.

Unfortunately, the laws of physics in the Marvel universe do not bend for such reasons.

—In Marvel, only the most tragic characters can defy physics and stage miraculous comebacks.

As the altitude continued to rise, layers of frost began to cover the outer shell of Mark II, rapidly spreading and thickening.

The suit's acceleration started to decline.

Before Jarvis could issue a warning, in the next instant, Mark II suddenly shut down!

All electrical circuits inside the suit froze, and the power cut off instantly!

"Wait, what's happening... Uh, ah, aahhh!!"

Tony's straight posture lost balance, and he plummeted rapidly like a flailing frog, spinning out of control.

"Jarvis, Jarvis! Deploy the wings!"

Tony realized the suit was frozen and unresponsive. He tried calling out to Jarvis, but the electrical circuits had already shorted out, and the intelligent system had stopped functioning.

The suit's descent grew faster and faster, as gravity mercilessly asserted its dominance.

"This is bad, this is bad. Lyon! Lyon, help me!" Tony frantically shouted.

The next second—

"No problem, Tony."

Lyon appeared instantly in front of Mark II, catching it mid-fall, and the plummeting stopped abruptly.

That damned sense of security—it was infuriatingly reassuring.

Tony, still shaken, said, "I-I… my god, that was close. Thanks, Lyon, though I'm sure you were just down there watching me make a fool of myself."

"Don't say that. Actually, I was curious to see if you could stay calm under pressure and turn the situation around."

"You better have been thinking that..." Tony took deep breaths, trying to calm his racing heart.

"Whew!"

On the other side, Jarvis piloted Lyon's suit down to join them.

"Sir, I'm so glad you're okay. That was truly a close call," Jarvis expressed concern with his mechanical voice.

Lyon continued to carry Tony. "Alright, now the competition is over. Let's go back."

Tony didn't object.

As they were flying back, he suddenly asked, "The gold you mentioned—was it meant to solve the issue of freezing at high altitudes?"

"Exactly. Incorporating gold into the material allows the suit to keep functioning in extreme conditions."

Tony fell into complete silence.

…

Once they arrived at the underground garage, Tony removed his suit with the help of robotic arms.

"Lyon, you... you won." He sat down, feeling a bit dejected.

"That's right, I won. Hehe."

Lyon smiled cheerfully.

He sat down next to Tony. "But, in a way, you also won, Tony."

Seeing Tony's puzzled look, Lyon explained, "It was you who taught me how to build the Iron Man suit, and that's how I was able to create mine."

"It's like, if you taught other professors of mechanical engineering this knowledge, do you think they wouldn't be able to learn it?"

"Of course, they could learn it. In fact, because everyone thinks differently, they could even create suits with more functions than yours."

"The most difficult thing in this world has never been learning and expanding on something—it's creation, starting from nothing!"

"Tony, you're the one who brought this into existence."

"If it weren't for you, maybe even fifty years from now, no one would have been able to create a miniature arc reactor or build an Iron Man suit."

"I beat you this time, but it's only because I improved upon some things you didn't have time to perfect."

"Do you really think, Tony, that you can't do these things?"

Tony immediately shook his head. "Of course not…"

"It's just... alright, give me some time, and I can do it too."

"You see," Lyon patted Tony's shoulder, "Tony, you're just short on a little time. I only saved that time by using my super brain."

Tony's earlier dejection began to fade away, and his expression became more complex. "Lyon, you really… you're not the same anymore."

"You're just now realizing that? I've basically become a little Superman; how could I still be the same?"

"No, what I mean is, you've grown up."

"Sorry, I can't tell if you're insulting me or complimenting me."

"I was definitely complimenting you!"

"Well then, Tony, I have to say, since you came back from Afghanistan, you've also grown up. After all, you used to never—"

"Stop! Stop! Why are you suddenly insulting me in a roundabout way?"

"See, what did I just say?"

"...You win, you win again. Ugh, this damn competitive streak of yours during your teenage years! You really should hurry up and go to Columbia University instead of hanging around the house annoying me."

"Tsk* Tsk* Look at you, Tony, getting worked up again."

"Get out! Get far, far away from me!"

"Alrighty, I'll smoothly roll away right now." Lyon picked up his suit and dashed off in a flash.

"This kid..." Tony shook his head helplessly, thought for a moment, then suddenly smiled, "Truly impressive."

______

Tony: I've set up a p@t-reon page for this dumb author.

Lyon: Yeah, go check that out!

P@treon.com/LiveLifeLove

@->a

Chapter 25 is already there and it will be 15 chapters ahead of WN by tomorrow! ♥