Allen threw Ivan around the room a couple of times like an old rag. Then he grabbed him, lifted him, and sat him in a chair.
People might think Allen was just playing with Ivan, but it wasn't like that, he was genuinely angry with him and didn't care about getting scolded for breaking a few laws. In that sense, perhaps he was abusing his power because he knew, at least for the moment, there was no way they could punish him.
Allen grabbed Ivan's head and pulled it back. Rebecca, understanding the situation, took the candle from his hand and, with a crazed laugh, shoved it down Ivan's throat.
The man tried to scream but couldn't. He felt the candle opening his throat in a very unpleasant way, while the hot wax burned him, but it wasn't for long before he felt the urge to vomit. Unfortunately, he couldn't and had to endure the discomfort of swallowing his own vomit.
Wednesday coughed. "Although torture may be one of my favorite pastimes, in this case, since it's an interrogation, you should ask him questions."
"Shit, you're right. It was so relieving to beat him up that I almost forgot," Allen grabbed Ivan by the hair. "What did I have for breakfast?!" After asking, Allen slapped Ivan. Rebecca's eyes lit up, and she eagerly asked for her own last name before kicking him in the balls.
"AAHHHHGG!"
Ivan fell to the ground, writhing in pain. His facade of being tough crumbled. These crazies weren't trying to extract information, they just wanted to hurt and humiliate him.
He looked for anything he could use, perhaps taking one of the women hostage. He trusted in his physical abilities. However, when he locked eyes with Esdeath, his heart sank. He was sure he would die if he tried anything.
"Rebecca, I don't even know your last name, How would he know?" Allen roughly ruffled Rebecca's hair.
"Huh? My last name is really simple," Rebecca pouted. "And what about you?! How would anyone know what you had for breakfast?!"
While Allen and Rebecca argued, Ivan recovered enough to move, and his attention turned to Wednesday. She seemed to be the least threatening of them all.
It's not that Ivan was afraid to die, he was ready for it. However, he wanted his revenge fulfilled before that. There was nothing else for him but the destruction of Stark.
Ivan prepared himself, eyeing his target. Maybe he couldn't even take a step with how monstrous Allen was. However, he had to try. At this moment, he was little more than a toy to them.
Is this legal? Of course not. But does anyone care? Perhaps many, but can they stop it? The answer is no.
===
– Wtf, he really did it!
– I can't believe it... well, whatever, the guy is a genocidal maniac!
– Damn, I'm a lawyer, and I see a lot of crimes... but no one pays me, so I don't care.
– Damn, I'm a cop, and I see a lot of crimes there, but honestly, some criminals left me wanting to do the same.
– Damn, I'm a judge, and there are many things wrong in this place, but it's outside my jurisdiction...
No one can hide it; sometimes one comes to think that the law is not on their side. There have been cases of true monsters who have committed crimes but when it comes to judging them, they simply get a few years in prison.
And on the flip side, there are many cases of innocent people who suffer injustices due to the system. After all, the law is not always just, the law is simply that, the law.
That's why, even if they don't want to admit it or can't, many in the Chat enjoy seeing the villain suffer, even if it's in such a ridiculous and humiliating way.
===
Ivan Vanko was not indifferent to Allen; he was not an idiot, he was not insensitive. He understood that if Allen wanted to torture him, he could, but that was something he wouldn't allow.
Ivan didn't get up; he lay down with his palms on the ground and his feet against the wall. It would be in one single movement; he would propel himself, reach Wednesday, and capture her. He didn't have weapons, but with his strength, he could break a girl's neck without a problem.
Escape wouldn't be easy, but any possibility was better than being here...
For a moment, his father's image crossed his mind, the man who was destroyed by Howard Stark, the man who fell into alcohol and consequently made his life miserable.
'REMEMBER YOUR REVENGE IVAN! REMEMBER YOUR HATE!'
Ivan propelled himself, surprising the spectators. For a moment, his target was Wednesday, who stood near the door to prevent anyone from entering.
She remained silent and impassive even when she saw Ivan Vanko lunging at her. No, she knew from the beginning that he would try this.
A second later, Ivan reached Wednesday, and a feeling crossed his mind: where did these women come from?
He was with Allen in the interrogation room, and the door never opened. These flashy and peculiar women simply appeared.
Ivan Vanko knew Allen; in fact, it would be strange if he didn't. However, his knowledge was limited to knowing he was a bratty kid with very arrogant powers, nothing special in this world.
The pitch-black eyes sent a chill down his spine, but it was too late to back out. Her neck was inches from his hands.
At that moment, a gleam crossed Wednesday's eyes, and something gripped Ivan's neck. His first thought was that Allen had reached him. It wasn't beyond his expectations, but when he turned, he saw Allen looking at him indifferently, Rebecca had a mocking smile, and Esdeath didn't even look at him.
Then what was holding him by the neck?!
"A wise decision to target the easiest objective," Wednesday said, looking at the man with cold eyes.
"What are you?!" Ivan managed to shout as his body trembled.
There was something behind Wednesday, something extending from her shadow. They were hands, multiple hands that spread across the walls of the entire interrogation room.
"It's shameful..." said Wednesday. "But I truly am the weakest of this small group."
"Hmph..." Rebecca pouted but didn't comment further.
Allen smiled. Wednesday seemed to be more skilled than him in manipulating shadows. This technique is quite dangerous and popular, like a silent killer lurking in the darkness. Have they heard the saying 'don't even trust your own shadow'? Well, in this case, it applies.
===
– Since when did Wednesday Addams become Gekko Moria?
– There are many characters with that ability, and you choose to compare her to Moria?!
– Those hands remind me of Pride from Fullmetal Alchemist.
– See?! Finally, someone cultured~
– Wait, how did she get that power?
===
Allen had made a pact with Wednesday in exchange for magical power and knowledge. However, like most magicians, they are vulnerable at close range, so Wednesday imitated Allen in his use of Clown Crown.
Still, only a few days had passed, and she had already reached this level. This must be thanks to Allen, perhaps talent, but even more so, affinity. Wednesday has a very good affinity with this type of power, and her perfect body only makes her more talented.
This is also the case with the other girls, who increase in power constantly. An example is Esdeath; she could defeat her previous version that fought against Artoria at this moment.
This gave Allen one more concern: he must tame the dolls when they appear without giving them time to increase their strength.
...
"Damn it!"
Ivan was hanging upside down, surrounded by shadows. Rebecca had a stick and was hitting him like a piñata, while Allen asked him random questions without interest in knowing the truth.
"All of this is Howard Stark's fault!!"
Allen exchanged glances with Wednesday and then with Esdeath. The plan had worked; extracting information from someone with nothing to lose is very difficult. While both Esdeath and Wednesday could torture him for real, this would be unpleasant, and Allen didn't want them to see him as insane. After all, this interrogation was being watched by the world.
Using intimidation and breaking the man's pride was all a tactic for him to get frustrated to the point of letting something slip.
At that moment, Tony entered, who had been watching this from the adjacent room. When he saw Tony, Ivan exploded.
"STARK!!"
Ivan was the son of Anton Vanko, a Russian physicist who had helped Howard Stark design the arc reactor. However, Anton did not share Howard's ideals. Anton didn't seek to make the world a better place; he just wanted money. In the end, he was deported to his country.
Anton Vanko fell into alcoholism and proceeded to mistreat his son for years. Over the years, Ivan was talented in the fields of physics and mechanical sciences, but his life remained miserable, and he began to get involved in crime.
At some point, he was caught selling Soviet plutonium to Pakistan and spent 15 years in prison. This would be the only recorded flaw in his existence.
In summary, Ivan was a victim of his father's misery, and he blamed Howard Stark. In turn, he inherited his father's hatred and was determined to end Tony Stark.
When Tony heard such a story of unfounded rancor, he was flooded with anger. "Huh?! Your father's misery is solely his fault, it has nothing to do with my Father or even with me!" Tony retorted.
"Say what you want, Stark. The reality is that my father had as much right as yours, but he ended up dying in a rundown room, while your father left you an empire!"
"Shut up, Stark Industries is more than just a prototype of a reactor!"
"Hahahaha, are you defending Howard? The same Howard Stark you despised so much, the one you never had a good relationship with?" Ivan looked at Tony with disdain. "Look at yourself in the mirror; you're just like him, arrogant, egocentric, narcissistic, a man who can't live without being the center of the world! Do you think a father who raised a son like you can be a good person?"
"Don't talk about my father!!!"
Tony's eyes reddened, and he lunged at Ivan, who smiled smugly. This was the best victory he could achieve; even if Tony Stark killed him, he would have achieved his revenge.
Tony's eyes expressed rage, too much rage. His father was a very delicate subject for him; they never got along because Howard expected him to be something he wasn't, or so he believed.
Tony was a genius like his father, but their personalities often clashed, and as a result, even the last time they saw each other didn't end well. That regret goes with Tony wherever he goes.
He let the anger overwhelm him; he wasn't even thinking about what he was going to do; he just lunged at Ivan. But out of nowhere, something hit his cheek, and he fell.
"Huh?"
Seeing what was happening, he looked at Allen's fist; he was standing in front of him with a calm expression. Tony didn't understand what he was doing.
"What are you doing?!" Tony got up and grabbed him by the collar. "Are you going to protect this piece of garbage?!"
"..." Allen did not answer, which infuriated Tony.
"Don't mess with me! a moment ago, you were torturing this idiot! By what right do you interfere?!"
"..." Allen remained silent, and Tony gritted his teeth and punched Allen.
"This idiot dares to talk about my family as if he knew us!" Tony kept hitting Allen in the face; however, it didn't seem to hurt him, but there were no signs that Allen was defending himself either.
"I won't allow this guy to tarnish my father's memory. He may not have been the father of the year, he may not have gotten along with me, but Howard Stark is not someone who deserves this kind of slander!!"
"..."
Tony, exhausted and shaken, punched one last time. This time, a small drop of blood fell from Allen's mouth, so Tony let him go, unable to understand how it was possible.
"Why?" Tony asked incredulously.
In response, Allen smiled slightly. "Are you satisfied, Iron Man?"
Tony stepped back until he hit the wall of the room; his gaze wandered around the room. He had lost his mask and was having a panic attack.
Tony looked at Allen one last time and couldn't say anything, so he left the place, no, he fled, pushing Happy aside and leaving Pepper behind, who didn't intervene earlier because of Wednesday.
Wednesday approached Allen with a handkerchief and wiped the blood away.
"Friendships between men... are problematic," she said.
Allen shook his head while smiling, then turned to Ivan, who had a look of rage.
"I'm really sorry, Ivan. That won't happen again..."
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"
Allen and the girls left the interrogation room after that.
===
181 Ironman 2: The Wrath of Tony Stark
The next day, Tony returned to the United States and was in a giant donut having breakfast, dressed in armor.
"It's hard to keep track of you, Stark."
Tony looked down to see Nick Fury calling him. At that moment, Tony knew it would be a long day.
===
A/N: The days of double chapters are almost over and I'm going to focus on getting back to posting patreon chapters, of course without stopping posting on Webnovel for a single day, it was hard to write two chapters a day... very hard even now I'm several chapters behind but that's okay. It is the least I can do to compensate for the inconvenience.
Unfortunately my previous patreon was removed, I made a new one and now my new patreon is: Patreon.com/_Aizen :3