...
With JARVIS's clear confirmation, Tony Stark, despite strongly suspecting he'd been played, had no choice but to accept the outcome of the race.
The results were undeniable.
And even for someone as rich as Tony Stark—
This loss hurt.
The seaside villa itself wasn't the real problem.
The issue was that inside the villa wasn't just JARVIS's auxiliary node—there was also a hidden Iron Man armor storage vault, along with a dedicated assembly and production line.
"Don't look at me like that," Ryan Cole said, walking over as Tony began disengaging his armor."You were the one who proposed the stakes."
"You knew this would happen, didn't you?" Tony demanded, his expression sour.
Realizing he'd somehow fallen into another trap without even noticing, Tony's mood was downright awful.
"I just had confidence in myself," Ryan replied lightly.
After all, he'd just made a massive profit—and his mood was excellent.
As for Tony's tone?
Ryan couldn't care less.
Honestly, if someone were giving you free money every day, who cares if they looked unhappy or sounded grumpy?
As long as they didn't cross the line, letting the sucker talk a little trash wasn't exactly dangerous.
It's not like it'd get anyone pregnant.
"Confidence? Don't bullshit me—you did this on purpose!"
Having been ruthlessly fleeced again, Tony didn't even bother removing the armor.He went straight to the bar and poured himself a drink to cool off.
Standing by the floor-to-ceiling windows, gazing out at the stunning ocean view, Ryan said without turning around:
"Alright, stop sulking. I only want the villa."
"Everything inside it—you can take it all if you want."
"What? I heard that right?" Tony asked, stunned.
"You heard me," Ryan said, stepping onto the terrace with a smile."To be precise, I just want the land."
"If you're attached to the building, you can dismantle the villa and haul it away. Just leave me the property."
In truth, whether it was the villa itself, JARVIS's data center, or even the armor vault and production line—
None of it meant much to Ryan anymore.
This whole stunt had mostly been habit—messing with Tony Stark just felt natural.
That said, the view really was incredible.
Buying the place and enjoying it properly was genuinely satisfying.
After confirming several times that Ryan wasn't joking or acting on impulse, Tony couldn't help feeling a little awkward.
Even if he didn't know the saying "judging a gentleman by a petty mind", the idea behind it wasn't lost on him.
Of course—
If Tony had known that during this short span of time, every inch of the villa—inside and out—had already been thoroughly scanned…
That even the brand-new Iron Man armor models stored in the vault had been silently copied—
He'd be lucky if he didn't flip out on the spot.
Ryan's unexpected "generosity" finally earned him a bit of Tony Stark's goodwill.
Which led to Ryan getting a firsthand taste of the playboy billionaire lifestyle.
Now, Ryan's own net worth was already massive.
But compared to Tony's way of living?
The gap was still enormous.
Even with a secretarial team made entirely of top-tier beauties at Umbrella Technologies, Ryan still carried a faint trace of broke-guy energy in other areas.
They kept partying until late at night.
In the end, Ryan politely declined Tony's invitation to stay and enjoy the villa further, boarding the Bugatti-Vollger Luxury Transport and returning alone to New York.
Back at the office, Ryan spotted a familiar figure still working and smiled apologetically.
"Oh wow… I'm really sorry, Maria. I honestly didn't expect you to still be here."
Still dressed in her black business suit, Maria Hill—no, CEO Maria Hill—replied calmly:
"You're my boss. If the boss speaks, I listen."
"Good answer," Ryan said with a snap of his fingers, heading toward the elevator."Come on. Since you're Umbrella's CEO now, there are things you need to see."
Having already received instructions for this special assignment, Maria followed without hesitation.
"Stellar, take us there," Ryan said as the elevator doors closed.
"Always at your service, my master."
With the sweet, almost childlike voice echoing, the elevator descended rapidly.
A dozen breaths later—
Ding.
The doors slid open.
Even though Maria had reviewed the intel beforehand, the underground laboratory still caught her off guard.
Compared to its early construction phase, the place was completely unrecognizable.
A silver-white environment.
Clearly segmented functional rooms.
Countless unfamiliar, high-end devices.
And most striking of all—
Rows of differently painted robots, each working methodically.
The entire facility radiated heavy sci-fi futurism.
"Come on, Maria. Lie down," Ryan said with a smile, gesturing toward the medical platform.
"Is this a test?" Maria asked calmly."Or an evaluation?"
"Neither," Ryan replied, wagging a finger as Stellar activated the platform."More accurately—this is benefits."
"Benefits?" Maria repeated, her expression unchanged.
"Yes," Ryan nodded."You know how Tony's chest injury healed?"
"…This?" she asked, pointing at the platform.
"Correct," Ryan said, clapping once."There'll be a reward later."
After a brief pause, Maria spoke again:
"Do I need to undress?"
"It works better if you do," Ryan said casually."But if you're uncomfortable, you don't have to."
Despite only now seeming to remember the issue, his expression showed zero embarrassment.
"I understand."
Maria began undressing.
Soon, the neat business outfit was set aside.
Ryan was slightly surprised.
He'd explicitly said it was optional—yet the senior S.H.I.E.L.D. agent chose complete transparency.
"Anything else I need to do?" Maria asked, lying on the platform.
"No," Ryan said after briefly scanning her physique."I'll handle the rest."
"Stellar, create a medical profile. Name: Maria Hill."
"Profile created, my master."
At the same time, the platform's rotating arms swept gently over her body.
"Begin," Ryan said, watching the data populate the display.
The arms moved slightly slower than last time.
Bathed in soft, hazy light, the treatment concluded quickly.
"Your physical condition is excellent," Ryan said, handing her clothes back."How do you feel?"
Maria sat up, testing her body carefully.
"…Good," she said after a moment."Very good."
Ryan had to admit—her figure was average, but paired with that cold, noble aura, it worked extremely well.
Back when he first arrived in this world, a situation like this might've caused some awkwardness.
Now?
With complete control over his body and impulses, even far more extreme scenarios wouldn't faze him.
"Alright," Ryan said."CEO benefits are done. Now comes the reward."
Almost the instant he finished speaking, a white-painted robot entered carrying a tray.
On it sat three injection vials—
Light purple.Deep blue.Pale blue.
"These are the rewards?" Maria asked, now fully dressed again.
"To be precise," Ryan said, picking up the light-purple vial,"only one of them is yours."
"All three contain gene optimization serum. Given your clearance level and this mission, you already know that."
"I do," Maria replied."But why the different colors?"
"Simple," Ryan said, gesturing to each vial."Three versions."
"Low-tier. Mid-tier."
"And the one in my hand—high-tier."
"What's the difference?" Maria asked.
"The low and mid tiers differ in effectiveness and… manageable side effects."
"As for the high-tier," Ryan said, placing the vial back on the tray—
"Besides being stronger, once you use it, you become a true insider."
He looked at her and smiled.
"So tell me, Maria."
"What's your choice?"