Chapter 195: Father and Son

"So you went to see Odin?"

"Don't mention it, I didn't even get to see him." Strange leaned against the desk in the Arkham Asylum office and said, "I don't understand why Teacher was in such a rush."

"Neither of us had an appointment; we just drew a circle and went straight to Xiangong. As it turned out, Odin had gone out, and we'd have to wait a while for him to return."

"You went on an interstellar trip just for a few hours?" Stark said, sitting on the sofa nearby.

"Just say it if you're jealous," Strange retorted without hesitation.

But he still said with some helplessness, "I told you we shouldn't have told my teacher about this plan so early; she's a bit too excited right now."

"From the time we returned to Kamar-Taj until I left, she had over a dozen mages calling the cosmic demons they'd traded with in the past. And when they didn't pick up, she kept calling. The first one to respond was Mephisto..."

"You saw him? That so-called Lord of Hell?"

"No, but I heard his voice. However, they were using an ancient language, and I couldn't understand it."

"What did that voice sound like?" Stark asked curiously. "You actually heard a devil's voice."

"What's the big deal? When I went to Xiangong, I even saw the World Tree," Strange said, not without pride. "And there were pegasi flying in the sky, as well as little sprites in the springs."

bidige.

"Then did you see those gods from the myths?"

Strange shook his head and said, "We went too suddenly. Xiangong hadn't arranged for anyone to host us, and many people had left with Odin. The only one at home was a god named Loki, the prince of Xiangong. He received us, but I have a very average impression of him."

"Why?"

"It's hard to say. Ever since I started learning magic, my intuition has become sensitive. I always feel like he's not a good person."

"Then your intuition is correct," Shiler said to Strange. "That big fool we picked up the other day said his younger brother is the god of lies and deceit."

"By the way, I've confirmed this time that the alien who fell to Earth is indeed Odin's son, because I heard that Odin went out just to deal with the trouble he caused."

"Where is that Thor now?" Stark asked Shiler.

"Currently at the Anquan Bureau undergoing a physical examination. He should be released very soon."

"Nick is really willing to let him out? According to what you said, he caused a huge mess at his own home before, forcing his father to step in personally to settle it. How much trouble will he cause on Earth?"

"Steve tested him before. Aside from his strength being slightly greater than an ordinary person's and his body being incredibly healthy, he doesn't have any special abilities."

After finishing, Shiler looked down at his watch and said, "By now, Nick should have already asked what he wanted to know. The next step will definitely be for the Anquan Bureau to find him a house and a job, then have a few agents watch him 24 hours a day to observe the alien's behavior..."

"I still think this approach is a bit dangerous. Even if he doesn't have strength beyond that of an ordinary person, his worldview is completely different from that of humans. It's equivalent to a mental patient who is constantly having an episode..."

"Whether he is a mental patient or not is not for you to decide," Shiler said with a smile.

"You didn't take Nick's dirty money again to write him a diagnosis, did you???" Stark stared at Shiler with wide eyes.

"You'd even earn that kind of money??"

"You'd better take care of yourself first," Shiler looked down at his watch again and said, "Ms. Pepper has finished her work recently, and you're going to be in trouble, Mr. Stark, who understands women's hearts best."

Upon hearing Shiler wanting to discuss this topic with him, Stark almost fled in a panic. After he left, Strange glanced outside the door, then walked over to close it and said, "You're just going to let him continue like this?"

He pointed to his own chest, signaling that he was referring to the energy problem in Stark's chest.

"It seems that learning magic has indeed changed you quite a bit. You actually care about Stark."

"I just think he is the guarantee of our R&D capabilities. After all, we still have many problems that haven't been solved, such as energy conversion and storage. If he dies, subsequent matters will definitely become very troublesome."

"Haven't you noticed?"

"What?"

"We know that the reactor in his chest is a ticking time bomb that could take his life within a year, but none of us are in a hurry."

"So why?" Strange tilted his head and stared at Shiler.

"When you went to the laboratory last time, did you see the model on his workbench?"

Strange frowned and thought for a moment, then said, "I think I saw it. Is it the one placed next to the bookshelf?"

"That's right, that's a model of the Ark Reactor."

"You mean he had already made a replacement? Then why doesn't he change it?"

"Because that is technology from his father."

"Fine..." Strange shook his head, clearly finding it incomprehensible. "Gambling with his own life just to be stubborn; he's even more childish than I thought."

"It's not entirely just to be stubborn. He believes this technology still has room for improvement. He wants to make a perfect finished product and then be done with it once and for all. More importantly, this can prove that he is better than his father."

"Let's stop talking about him. Let's talk about you. I heard from the nurse that you didn't go home for Christmas and Easter last year?" Shiler asked Strange.

"That has nothing to do with you," Strange's tone lowered. He said, "I am not your patient; I don't need your counseling."

"Every one of my patients says that."

"That's no longer important to me now. Not only do I have money and status, but I have also touched upon a realm that ordinary people cannot reach. I even went on an interstellar trip a few hours ago to the legendary divine kingdom..."

"Do you know? When you said this just now, your demeanor was exactly the same as Stark's when he mentions Howard. Every time that name enters his ears, he will say how brilliant the current Stark Industries is..."

"Then what do you advise him to do? Forgive Howard?"

Shiler sighed and said, "Generally speaking, when a psychologist advises you to let go of something or forgive someone, it's not because they think what that person did was right, but because if you continue to dwell on this matter, the only thing that will be damaged in the end is your own emotions and spirit. You should know that better than I do."

"Fine, perhaps I shouldn't have said that, but I'd really like to hear about your background and then compare your father with Stark's father to see which one is worse," Shiler continued.

Strange snorted coldly and said, "In this world, good people are all different, but rotten people are all about the same."

But after a while, he still said, "That drunkard would only get dead drunk. He knew clearly that Donna could only move with the help of a wheelchair, yet he still refused to spend money to buy her a better one, which led to her falling into the river when she was passing by the riverside."

Unlike Stark, when Strange spoke of this experience, his tone was very cold, and no fluctuations could be heard.

"I studied medicine originally to cure my sister's legs, but on the very day I received my scholarship, I called him, and his first sentence was, 'Your sister is dead.'"

"The second sentence was asking me to give the scholarship to him."

"Then it seems your father is indeed worse."

"Only because he is poorer."

"I heard you also have a younger brother."

"Yeah, a younger brother..." Strange's tone was somewhat contemptuous. "That drunkard didn't like Donna, nor did he like me, but he was uniquely obedient to his youngest son, Victor."

"That's why I don't want to go back, because that's not my home. They are father and son with deep affection; it has nothing to do with me."

After finishing, Strange lowered his head to write again. When Strange mentioned his background, he didn't react as intensely as Stark; his tone was very flat, as if he were talking about someone else's affairs.

"In that case, Stark is still considered lucky. After all, he is an only child, and he had the old butler and his uncle to accompany him during his childhood."

Shiler rested his chin on his hand and sighed, "That big fool who fell from the sky is the same, only I don't know if Odin is truly biased or if it's something else."

"I am different from him. My grades have always been very good, and I've won all the scholarships."

"He also fought in battles across the land and made many military achievements, and the result is that neither of you can go home now."

"He was thrown out; I wasn't."

Strange's tone still hadn't changed. He said, "The praise I've received from my father in my entire life doesn't add up to as much as what I've received from my teacher in these past few days."

"Stark also once said that his father always felt he didn't understand anything, which is why he is now desperately trying to prove that he understands everything."

"This is meaningless," Strange concluded at last.

"This is meaningless!" Pepper said loudly. "When can you let go of your damn arrogance and stop risking your life?"

"Who are you trying to prove it to? Your father? But can you use your brain and think? No father would want to see his son risk his life just to be stubborn with him!"

In the laboratory of Stark Tower, Pepper walked up to Stark, looked into his eyes, and said, "If I had known that while I was busy cleaning up your mess, you were busy seeking your own death, then I absolutely wouldn't care about you! Stark!"

"I am not seeking my own death. Listen to me, the thing I made isn't perfect, and I hope to be able to have a more perfect finished product..."

"When is this? You're still dwelling on those meaningless standards of yours? You're about to die!"

"Do you know, Tony? I really can't imagine what reason could make a person dwell on the past and memories when they know their lifespan is less than a year."

After finishing, she covered her forehead and sighed, "I don't even know whether to call you brave or arrogant."

"I could clearly do better; I just need a little time. A year is enough. Believe me, Pepper."

Stark walked up, hugged Pepper, and said, "Even if there really is only one year of life left, at least I have you with me."

"You're always like this, only saying nice things, never going to solve the problem I'm most worried about," Pepper sighed with some exhaustion and said, "You're like this with all women."

"Don't be like this. Believe me, I will solve this problem."

Looking at Stark's eyes, which were always a bit moist, Pepper still didn't say any more words of reproach.

After Pepper left, Stark sat back down on the edge of the workbench, holding the model in his hand.

Stark looked at the model in his hand. When he looked at it like this, he would think of the toy he liked most, the little car that he and his father had assembled with their own hands.

Howard had finished the chassis and the engine, while Stark had installed the shell, the tires, and the seats, and then used a pen to write their shared surname on the car door.

This was a bit of a good time he had found only after searching through his memories for a long time.

Everyone thought that Stark just didn't want to use Howard's technology, but only Stark himself knew that he just wanted to make this technology a bit more perfect, and that wasn't because he wanted to prove he was better than Howard.

He just wanted to make this a work completed by the joint efforts of father and son, just like that little car. That toy became a memorial of the first half of his life, and the Ark Reactor would be the hope of the second half of his life.

In this way, he could pretend that his father had never been absent from his life.

---Author's Note---

It's here! ===== CHAPTER 196 =====