As a series of explosions from airships echoed from downstairs, Tony Stark immediately snapped back to attention.
Just moments ago, when those dozen or so missiles had whooshed past right in front of him, he couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.
Fortunately, the missiles didn't blow up; instead, they released chunks of adhesive that immobilized the enemies.
That made Tony breathe a slight sigh of relief, but he was still really surprised.
"J.A.R.V.I.S… what just happened?!"
Hearing Tony Stark's hesitant question, J.A.R.V.I.S instantly understood what Tony was trying to ask.
Inside the helmet of the Iron Man suit, a virtual reticle immediately locked onto the "pencil case" in Luka's hand, with a stream of data appearing alongside it.
Inside Tony's helmet, a glowing screen locked onto the pencil box in Luca's hand, and a bunch of data started popping up all around it.
At the same time, Jarvis's voice system provided an answer.
"Sir, I couldn't find this weapon in our database. However, based on system analysis, it appears to be a mini handheld missile launcher. It features intelligent targeting capabilities, and the missiles are filled with a high-viscosity polymer compound, highly effective at immobilizing enemies."
"However, the missiles have relatively low flight speed, and your Mark VII has a 98.4% probability of intercepting all of them in long distance. Threat Level: Low."
As he stood up again, Tony felt that his earlier startled reaction had been a bit embarrassed, and he still seemed a little dazed.
"Then just now…"
Tony was thinking about the first time he crashed in front of that mom and her kid.
The so-called "micro missile launcher" had clearly been pointed right at his face, and that was definitely not from far away.
Moreover, the Mark VII's scanning system had some degree of penetration capability, and it should have been able to analyze the "pencil case" even before it appeared.
'Why hadn't Jarvis warned him about the danger earlier?'
But before he could even finish asking, J.A.R.V.I.S had already anticipated his question and responded directly:
"Sir, when you opened your helmet yourself earlier, you interrupted the system analysis."
"…"
Tony Stark flushed with embarrassment upon hearing that. It turns out that his own mistake had made him look foolish.
Still, Tony remained stubborn and unwilling to admit fault.
"No big deal! J.A.R.V.I.S, remind me later to add an external obstacle-clearing function to the suit's self-cleaning system!"
"Understood, sir!"
After receiving J.A.R.V.I.S's affirmative response, Tony Stark originally planned to simply warn the mother and son to stay safe and then make a quick exit.
After all, the fierce battle outside was still ongoing.
Even though he was a little embarrassed, saving people and ending the fight was way more important right now.
However, before he could even open his mouth to speak...
The boy in front of him, who had just put away that "pencil case," suddenly accelerated, his entire figure darting past Tony at an unbelievable speed, heading straight toward the hole in the wall.
The boy was sprinting at an incredible speed but still not beyond the visual tracking limits of the Iron Man suit.
He was really fast, but not so fast that Tony couldn't keep up and see him clearly.
He turned around and saw the boy stop all of a sudden near a ball lying by the hole. He slammed on the brakes and came to a sharp stop.
At the same time, the boy raised his right leg high behind him, his whole body stretching out like a soaring eagle, and his eyes were locked on something far away.
Tony followed his gaze, and in the distance, a giant Leviathan over a hundred meters long was slowly flying toward the building.
Moreover, a group of Chitauri were jumping off the ship, diving swiftly toward the ground.
"Wait… is he about to—?!"
"Beep beep beep! Warning! Warning! High energy detected!"
"Scan results: Unknown electric power source... synthetic muscle fibers made from memory alloy... magnetic shock-absorbing layer detected... carbon nanofiber tubes…"
A line of data flashed rapidly across the inside of the helmet while J.A.R.V.I.S warning alerts echoed in Tony Stark's ears.
But right now, Tony wasn't paying attention to any of that. He was completely focused on the boy with his leg raised high.
He saw a sudden burst of electric arcs explode from the boy's right foot, with faint, colorful light streams flashing across the surface of his shoe.
In the very next instant, Luca unleashed a kick, blasting the ball in front of him with immense force.
In Tony's slowed-down visual mode, the ball visibly twisted from the force of the kick.
The air around the ball compressed with a thunderous sonic boom.
A powerful shockwave surged forward, sweeping up debris and rubble from the surrounding buildings.
The surface of the ball lit up with a fiery orange glow from its friction with the air, leaving a fiery tail behind it like a comet.
"BOOM!"
"BOOM!"
"BOOM!"
A series of sonic boom clouds erupted along the ball's trajectory, one after another.
The buildings's windows were completely shattered by the force.
"BOOOOM—!"
The ball that had torn across the sky smashed into the Leviathan.
The ship let out a loud, painful roar.
The impact was so powerful that the spot where the ball landed exploded, blowing apart a massive chunk of Leviathan's metal armor.
The Leviathan staggered backwards in the air, completely out of control.
"...Unknown external material enhancement detected... unknown targeting system... unknown..."
J.A.R.V.I.S' analytical report was still ongoing.
However, Tony Stark just stood there, frozen in place, staring with wide eyes.
"Ho—ly—crap!"
"ROAAAR—!"
A furious roar shattered Tony's stunned silence.
Luka's ball shot, filled with ferocity, looked overwhelmingly powerful—and to be fair… it was very powerful.
But compared to the giant size of the Leviathan, it wasn't quite enough to stop it completely.
The massive Leviathan regained its balance—and let out a deafening roar, and began charging toward them again.
This time, the Leviathan was even faster than before, surging straight toward them.
Tony immediately shot forward like a blazing meteor after the Leviathan.
Luckily, Luka's earlier strike had already shattered part of the Leviathan's armor, saving Iron Man the trouble of breaching its defenses himself.
He fired a missile from his wrist, targeting the exposed muscle tissue of the Leviathan directly.
"BOOM—!"
Another huge explosion rocked the sky. A giant hole blew open in the Leviathan's body.
It let out one last painful cry, then crashed to the ground, shaking the city as it slammed through two more buildings and finally stopped moving.
"Whew~ I can't believe that actually worked!"
Hovering in mid-air, Tony was surprised.
'That alien ship had been a real pain earlier, but with the help of the "football kid," we took it down way easier than I expected.'
'But seriously… what kind of family gives a kid that kind of weapon?!'
Tony thought to himself.