Chapter 98: The Contest Begins

"Ready..."
"Begin."
The two instantly activated their electromagnetic pulse devices, pushing their engines to the limit. In a flash, they shot out like missiles.
All the spectators saw was the start; not even the trailing flames were visible.
Although Michael's steed carried two riders, it was clear that he was much faster than Tony's armor.
"Jarvis, is there any way to slow him down?"
Since there was no way to accelerate himself, Tony could only try to hinder Michael.
As long as your mind doesn't falter, there are always more solutions than problems.
"We could launch missiles for interference, but sir, at this speed, our chances of hitting him are quite low."
Tony understood why: the armor's size was too small.
Even with advanced weaponry, all he carried were micro-missiles, and their ammunition capacity was limited. The missiles' speed and flight time were greatly compromised.
"Modify them—use all the explosives for propulsion. Fire one and see."
A launcher appeared on Tony's back, with a missile suspended above.
Quickly, the missile locked onto Michael, but Michael's detection system picked up the threat.
"Tony, you're resorting to tricks now?"
"No, nothing in the rules says I can't. How can you call it a trick?"
The missile launched smoothly, heading straight for Michael's steed.
"Go!"
Tony was excited; his speed hadn't reached its peak yet, so he thought the missile might hit.
With hope riding on the rocket, Tony couldn't help but laugh gleefully.
Michael smiled, "Tony, are you challenging my payload capacity?"
"Damn."
Tony realized his mistake; Michael's steed was much larger and obviously carried more ammunition.
Michael freed his right hand to tap the screen, bringing up a wealth of weapon data. He found the interference rounds and clicked 'launch.'
The amethyst hood at the front of his vehicle split in two, revealing several small missiles, which fired according to the preset program.
Once launched, the missile casing separated in midair, revealing numerous submunitions. These darted off in various directions, quickly intercepting Tony's micro-missile. The remaining interference rounds headed for Tony.
Tony's reconnaissance system quickly detected this.
"No, no, no."

Tony urgently decelerated to avoid crashing into the missiles and fired micro-armor-piercing shells to try to shoot them down.
Still, a few slipped through and exploded near Tony, and his display screen turned into static before plunging into darkness.
"Damn, it's interference rounds."
His operating system began to malfunction; with energy cut off, the electromagnetic pulse device quickly powered down, and Tony plummeted from the sky.
"Jarvis."
"Jarvis, restart."
Luckily, Tony was experienced with high-altitude falls and quickly rebooted the system.
But when he soared skyward again, Michael was already out of sight.
"Jarvis, use satellite positioning to locate Michael, then intercept him within the US with drones."
"Sir, that might not be wise. The military's tolerance for you is already quite low."
Tony was resigned; since the military had acquired a batch of Iron Man suits, their attitude toward him had soured.
"Then try to deploy the drones openly—intercept him outside the US border."
Michael accelerated again, engine at full throttle.
He figured Tony wouldn't give up and would try to intercept him again.
"Tony won't get hurt, will he?"
The sheer number of missiles had Steve worried.
Michael laughed, "No. Electromagnetic interference rounds explode at a safe distance. They only cause some degree of interference—it's like your phone suddenly losing signal."
In reality, whether Tony survived depended on his luck.
Tony's luck?
Everyone knows—what's Iron Man's greatest tech? Shock absorption. He can't be killed by a fall.
Besides, Tony was seasoned at rebooting his system.
Everyone knows Tony grows by learning from failures—he's the fastest-evolving hero in Marvel.
Michael's detector picked up red dots intercepting ahead.
They were in international waters, with no US aircraft carriers in sight, so it probably wasn't the military.
"Careful, Captain. Things might get wild soon."
Steve: "?"
"Hang on tight."
Michael maneuvered his steed into a mid-air Thomas spin, dodging several laser beams.
Then he retaliated, shooting down several drones in quick succession.

Steve was nearly thrown off by the rolling steed. He no longer cared about promises, clinging tightly to Michael's waist.
"This isn't just a game anymore, is it?"
"Relax, Captain. I know what I'm doing."
Steve thought: Right, you know what you're doing, you're so noble. Do you even realize my suit is just high-polymer fiber mixed with metal fibers? It can only stop bullets.
Damn S.H.I.E.L.D.—they have funds for aircraft carriers but not for a suit with decent defense. No wonder he felt so unsafe.
Michael pressed a button, and the vehicle's hood split again as a barrage of missiles launched.
Like before, these were submunition missiles.
The missiles split in midair, scattering their payload like fireworks, precisely striking and downing numerous drones.
Michael opened communication with Tony, mocking him: "Tony, dumping trash in the ocean is immoral."
Tony knew exactly what had happened. The quality of these drones was so poor they barely impeded Michael—just gave him a fireworks show.
"Don't get cocky. Remember the batch of suits you sold to the Navy?"
Michael paused, thinking.
"You didn't... notify the Navy, did you?"
That's just unsportsmanlike.
This was supposed to be a contest between two people, and Tony went and called the Navy.
Tony grinned, "Enjoy the taste of hoisting yourself by your own petard."
"..."
What a petty man—just because the suits he sold had gold and red paint? Still holding a grudge, how stingy.
Tony was thoroughly pleased—serves them right for framing him.
When the military suits debuted, the media pounced on Tony, while Michael, the real beneficiary, faced no questions.
The most infuriating thing was the military's response: a barrage of non-answers. When asked, they claimed ignorance—about the suits' origin, their maker.
This sent suspicion against Tony sky-high. Even his fans accused him of breaking promises, selling weapons, endangering the world.
Some even speculated the Iron Man suits would soon hit the black market, ending up in major nations and the Middle East.
Those days were miserable; Tony endured pressure he shouldn't have faced. Thankfully, Angel International finally stepped in to clarify, easing the media storm.
But this also made Angel International a household name.
What irked Tony further was that while he faced conspiracy theories and mockery, Michael received praise for technological leadership. Rumors spread that Angel International had surpassed Stark Enterprises.
He was exasperated for a long time, and now, seeing them at each other's throats, Tony was delighted.