"Fanatical scientist, you mean."
Howard Stark clearly didn't take the earlier explosion seriously at all. He simply patted Rorschach on the shoulder and gestured for him to keep walking.
"Mr. Stark," Rorschach said as he followed beside him, "are you as crazy as he is?"
"Not at all," Stark replied immediately.
He lifted his chin with unmistakable confidence.
"I'm an exception. I'm one of those rare geniuses the world only gets once in a generation. I don't need to be that crazy."
The arrogance in his tone was unmistakable.
In that moment, Rorschach couldn't help noticing something.
Howard Stark really wasn't that different from Tony Stark.
The two of them shared the same unmistakable confidence.
Father and son, almost identical in personality.
The two continued chatting casually as they entered the lobby of the office building.
A young man with an elegant and composed demeanor stepped forward to greet them.
"Mr. Stark, you're back."
The voice sounded strangely familiar.
Before Rorschach even recognized the man's face, he had already recognized the voice.
"Jarvis," Stark said immediately, "please take Mr. Rorschach to Room 218."
He then turned toward Rorschach with a polite smile.
"Rorschach, please wait for me there for a moment. I'll be right back."
With that, Howard Stark headed off in another direction, presumably to clean himself up after the earlier firefight.
"Mr. Rorschach," the young man said politely, "I'm Mr. Stark's butler, Jarvis. Please follow me."
"Thank you," Rorschach replied.
"You're welcome."
Jarvis led him through several hallways before arriving at a room that resembled a small conference room. After politely opening the door for him, Jarvis stepped aside and allowed Rorschach to enter.
Once Rorschach sat down, Jarvis quietly left the room.
The door closed behind him.
Rorschach leaned back slightly in the chair and began thinking.
The brief encounter with Arnim Zola earlier had triggered another thought in his mind.
The laboratory Zola had come running out of…
That location looked suspiciously familiar.
If Rorschach remembered correctly, that was the very place where Tony Stark stole the Tesseract during the events of Avengers: Endgame.
Which meant something very interesting.
The Cosmic Cube—the Tesseract—was currently sitting somewhere less than a few hundred meters away from him.
Was he tempted?
Of course.
Anyone who understood what the Cosmic Cube represented would feel something when standing so close to it.
Rorschach certainly did.
As someone who knew the future, he fully understood just how powerful the Tesseract truly was. The energy contained within it had the potential to reshape the entire world.
Of course, Rorschach wasn't the kind of person who dreamed of ruling the world.
He had no desire to conquer Earth.
But recently, a very bold idea had begun forming in his mind.
A plan that was both ambitious and incredibly dangerous.
And the Cosmic Cube might become a crucial component of that plan.
Unfortunately, he was still far too weak.
At the moment, he was only a mutant whose abilities had just begun developing. Compared with the forces that controlled the Cosmic Cube, he was nowhere near powerful enough.
For now, that plan would have to remain on hold.
While these thoughts drifted through his mind, the door opened again.
Howard Stark returned.
This time, his clothes were clean and his appearance had returned to its usual polished state.
Peggy Carter entered the room with him.
That surprised Rorschach slightly.
After all, Peggy Carter was one of SHIELD's founders. For a simple routine questioning, was it really necessary for both founders to show up?
Were the leaders of SHIELD really that free?
"Rorschach," Stark said as he sat down across the table, "you've already met Agent Carter, so I won't bother with introductions."
His tone remained friendly and relaxed.
"This is just a routine inquiry," he continued. "There's no reason to be nervous."
"Mr. Stark," Rorschach replied calmly, "go ahead."
"First question," Stark said. "Why did you appear in that tavern tonight?"
"My friend visits that place often," Rorschach answered honestly. "She brought me there."
"Before arriving," Stark continued, "did you know I was in that tavern?"
"No."
The questioning continued.
Howard Stark had been telling the truth earlier.
There were no tricks in the interrogation.
The questions were simple and straightforward, and Rorschach answered them calmly. Since there was nothing suspicious about his actions, the process went smoothly.
Before long, the questioning was finished.
But just as the conversation seemed ready to end—
Peggy Carter finally spoke.
Her expression was serious.
"Rorschach," she said, "there's something I'd like to ask."
Her eyes locked onto him.
"How were you able to kill a werewolf with a single punch?"
She leaned forward slightly.
"According to our records, it requires at least five tons of force to deliver a blow powerful enough to kill a werewolf instantly."
She paused briefly before continuing.
"No ordinary human can generate that kind of strength."
Her voice sharpened slightly.
"Unless… you've undergone some kind of enhancement similar to Rogers."
Her gaze became intense.
"Where were you enhanced?"
"Tell me."
Rorschach couldn't help feeling speechless.
"Agent Carter," he said calmly, "I think you've misunderstood something."
"I'm not enhanced."
"I've never undergone any kind of experimental transformation."
"No transformation?" Carter repeated with a cold smile.
"You're telling me that kind of strength is natural?"
"That you were simply born with it?"
Her tone clearly showed she didn't believe him.
"Only a fool would accept that explanation."
"Yes," Rorschach replied calmly. "That's exactly what I'm saying."
He shrugged lightly.
Peggy Carter's expression hardened.
"Rorschach, you should understand something," she said sternly. "We are not the police or the CIA."
"You won't fool us that easily."
Rorschach's patience was starting to wear thin.
He glanced toward Howard Stark.
"So, Mr. Stark," he said evenly, "am I a prisoner now?"
"Of course not," Stark replied quickly.
"Rorschach, please don't misunderstand. Agent Carter simply takes these matters very seriously."
In truth, Stark understood Carter's suspicions.
Before disappearing, Captain America had secretly left behind several vials of his super soldier serum as a contingency. One of those vials had been entrusted to Howard Stark.
Eventually, Stark had given it to Peggy Carter.
She had poured the serum into water and destroyed it.
But not every trace had been accounted for.
Some samples had leaked out.
Because of that, Carter naturally suspected that Rorschach might be the result of some organization replicating Rogers' serum.
Her hostility wasn't entirely unreasonable.
"Since I'm not a prisoner," Rorschach said calmly as he stood up, "I still have things to do. Am I free to leave?"
"You haven't explained everything yet," Carter said sharply as she stood as well.
Rorschach ignored her completely.
His eyes remained on Howard Stark.
"Peggy," Stark said quietly, "could I speak with you for a moment?"
He gently guided her aside and spoke in a low voice.
From beginning to end, Rorschach hadn't done anything illegal.
In fact, he had saved Stark's life.
Even if Rorschach had really used Rogers' serum, there was technically nothing they could accuse him of.
Peggy Carter was a rational person.
After a brief conversation with Stark, she regained her composure.
She gave Rorschach one final glance before turning around and leaving the room.
Rorschach knew perfectly well that she wouldn't give up easily.
Carter would definitely investigate him in secret.
But he didn't care.
Soon enough, mutants would reveal themselves to the world anyway.
Being investigated wasn't something he feared.
"Alright, Rorschach," Stark said as he stepped forward and shook his hand. "Thank you for your cooperation."
"I'll have Jarvis drive you back."
He smiled warmly.
"And when you have time, come by my house for dinner. I'd like to thank you properly."
"No problem," Rorschach replied easily.
Being invited to Howard Stark's home sounded like an excellent opportunity.
"One more thing," Stark added more seriously.
"Werewolves rarely operate alone. They usually belong to larger groups."
"You killed three of them tonight."
"But I doubt this was just the work of three individuals."
He looked at Rorschach carefully.
"If any trouble comes your way, you have my number."
"I will," Rorschach said.
He gave a casual wave before leaving.
.....
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