Chapter 263: A More Severe War

Words : 2256 Updated : Oct 9th, 2025

So what were they supposed to do? Cut it off urgently? Leo wasn't worried about this at all. The only two ways they could abruptly stop the hearing were: One was to suddenly announce a halt. However, while the hearing's host appeared to have authority, the questioning process had long been prepared in advance. The host was supposed to mediate the conflict between the two parties, but now, it seemed like the conflict was no longer just between them! Both parties were utterly bewildered! Moreover, due to the unexpected situation, members of different factions would start to have doubts and suspect each other. It would take time for them to reach a consensus again! The rhythm had been completely disrupted! The second method was to blow up the building—but if that happened, things would truly spiral out of control! As for cutting the power supply... Finding someone in such a short time to bypass Gwen's security and shut off the electricity was practically impossible for now. Even if they managed to do it, it would still seem abrupt and inexplicable, filled with mystery and strangeness, making the general public highly suspicious of all current politicians. Frank continued speaking, his voice the only one in the room. To put it simply, during the time he had vanished from the military, he had been in Afghanistan, serving in a squad called the Hellhounds. This squad didn't exist in any official records, claiming that all their missions targeted high-value individuals. However, many of these missions were highly controversial. According to Frank's explanation, they engaged in torture and assassinations against their targets. Yet, on the battlefield, these actions were merely considered humanitarian crises at worst—at least their targets were still combatants. But what he revealed next went beyond that—Frank admitted to having killed a local Afghan narcotics officer and torturing him to death. As these details were exposed one by one, the room fell into absolute silence until a fat, big-eared politician spoke up: "We noticed that you mentioned this squad wasn't in any official combat records. Are you aware that this is illegal? And such claims imply you have no evidence to support your statements. The information you've presented is too unbelievable—we need more proof." "Of course I have it, Senator Stern," Frank nodded. "Of course, I do. We have combat logs, I have surviving comrades, and—" "No, you don't understand me! This hearing is about gang shootouts—this discussion ends here!" "But this is the truth—there were no gangs! The CIA framed me as a traitor just to cover up the humanitarian crisis they caused in Afghanistan!" "Enough!" Senator Stern slammed the table, his face red with rage. "Order! Order!" "Captain, what you're saying right now could send you to a military tribunal." "If I'm not part of the military, how can I be tried in a military court?" "You... you... Fuck!" Leo watched everything unfold—he had already cut off all internal and external communications. Hydra couldn't send them any orders. The observers exchanged glances. Without their prepared scripts, the politicians in the room were like lost children, afraid to make the wrong move and thus trapped in endless arguments. Without an information advantage, none of them displayed intelligence beyond that of ordinary people—they were all just waiting. Waiting for more information to be handed to them. The real power players weren't here. Finally, after a long round of arguing, the presiding senator—none other than the fat, big-eared Senator Stern—slammed his gavel, irritated, and demanded silence! He was forcing the session into the next agenda item! "Quiet! Due to a lack of sufficient supporting evidence, we require further investigation. The hearing will now proceed to the next topic: augmented humans! Our next subject is Leo Lee! Please step forward for questioning! Quiet! I said we are moving to the next topic! Put your feet down!" Leo shrugged and put his feet down. "No recess first? I suggest you take a recess. I'm not even the main issue here." Senator Stern was momentarily stunned, his face darkening. "No! The focus of this hearing is you! It's the augmented humans that appeared in New York and the related technologies!" Yes, the focus was supposed to be on Leo! It had always been him! If both sides had already completed their behind-the-scenes negotiations, there wouldn't have been a need for such a grand hearing at all! This hearing was requested by Leo and seen by the opposition as a way to pressure the ruling party. But if they had already reached a consensus and knew the final outcome... then what was the point of this hearing? If there was no point—then they would create one. In the week leading up to the hearing, several of Leo's companies had already established their presence across the country. Though, per his instructions, only a small portion of shares would be made available for public trading— Even just this small portion was enough for opposition politicians who had insider knowledge to make a massive profit! Who wouldn't want to earn more? If the hearing proceeded as planned, it would naturally transition to this point—but the opposition had chosen not to give Leo a heads-up! Now, they were forcibly shifting the focus onto him, making it seem abrupt and nonsensical. "Well, that's funny," Leo leaned forward, folding his hands. "There's a massive international humanitarian crisis unfolding, and yet you've decided to deal with me—a responsible entrepreneur—first." "Don't change the subject—on that day, we saw the presence of the so-called 'Death Warrior,' 'Spider Woman,' and the high-tech weapons used by Governor Newsom—" "I need to correct you. In that list, only the Death Warrior qualifies as a weapon, and even then, it's defective." "But Spider Woman and Governor Newsom was defeated by the Death Warrior, completely unable to match that terrifying machine." Meanwhile, Governor Newsom, relying on his medical prosthetics, was utterly powerless against the Death Warrior. That is, until this deeply flawed and inhumane cybernetic weapon malfunctioned, proving just how unreliable it truly was. The recorded footage was crystal clear. And, of course, it's worth mentioning—while Governor Newsom's prosthetic limbs lacked high combat capabilities, they functioned normally until the very last moment. Senator Stern seized on this like a flaw: "You mentioned that the Death Warrior malfunctioned. But according to its creator, Harlan Reich, it was actually subjected to a cyberattack." "And this cyberattack likely originated from Bloom Corporation. We have an expert here to corroborate this claim." "Now, let's welcome Mr. Tony Stark." Tony, who had been sitting to the side, finally got his chance to speak—but at this moment, he simply shook his head. Was this a joke? He wasn't stupid. Sure, he didn't mind helping his club members deal with Leo, that dovish coward. But that didn't mean he was about to speak up now! This wasn't something that could be debated—not right now. Stern was dumbfounded. "Since the expert has nothing to say, I'll answer for you: No." Leo was quick to respond, shaking his head. "The malfunction happened because the Death Warrior never operated the way its so-called inventor intended." Leo then turned to Harlan Reich: "This so-called CEO isn't the real inventor of the cybernetics technology used in the Death Warrior—he's a usurper." "Wait a moment—" "No need to wait. I have evidence. Witness: Michael Collins—otherwise known as the Death Warrior." A live signal connected to the screen, and the audience erupted in shock. Because the so-called witness was none other than the Death Warrior himself! Through the screen, they could see that the Death Warrior had shed his malfunctioning combat prosthetics, leaving only a small portion of his original limbs intact. Seeing his old acquaintance lying on a hospital bed, staring intently into the camera, Harlan's face turned deathly pale. Because the Death Warrior wasn't actually his invention. The real inventor had long since been turned into the first cybernetic experiment by Harlan Reich! Yet Harlan had specifically designed the system so that if the machine stopped or lost control, Michael Collins would die on the spot. Leo looked directly at Harlan: "Michael originally wanted to create medical prosthetics, but Harlan Reich, this despicable man, forced him into experiments and stole his research." "And that is the truth: This so-called powerful military technology was stolen by a thief—one who doesn't even understand how to use it." Stern was speechless. The plan had been to shift the blame onto Leo, tying this anonymous superhuman to the technology in use—implying that Leo had the ability to create super soldiers. Governor Newsom's prosthetics could also be framed as military-grade combat technology. Couple that with electronic warfare weapons, and they could claim that Leo's technologies had massive military potential, justifying nationalization or similar measures. Then, the opposition party's interest groups could invest and acquire shares, completing the deal. The ruling party would absolve itself of any assassination-related suspicions, blaming foreign forces while covering up the CIA's involvement. The opposition party would secure political concessions from various states and, under congressional pressure, reluctantly step in to "resolve" Leo's issues—by increasing shareholders. As for Leo, well, he'd suffer losses, but they weren't going to cut him out entirely—he'd still get paid. And the opposition would effectively bind Leo's enterprise to their camp. But unfortunately for them, things had spiraled out of control from the very beginning— Leo uncrossed his hands. "Anything else you want to say? I believe the full picture is quite clear now." "I do." Tony chose this moment to step into the inquiry. Even Stern wasn't sure whether he should intervene. Leo raised an eyebrow. Tony turned to face everyone, his tone completely serious: "We're all smart people here—let's not play these meaningless word games." "Cybernetic enhancement technology can be used for military purposes. And the global network disruption a few days ago was absolutely a powerful cyberwarfare weapon." He placed his phone on the table, projecting a map onto the screen. The map was densely covered in red dots. "How powerful? Over ten thousand network nodes across the world were physically burned out. Several banks suffered catastrophic failures. Direct economic losses exceeded tens of billions, and indirect losses could surpass a hundred billion." "Maybe this has nothing to do with you, but if our country had such a weapon—do you know what the future would look like?" Tony stood up, raised his arms, and declared to the entire room: "Peace! Peace would exist everywhere that this terrifying weapon casts its shadow—worldwide!" Then he pointed at Leo: "But you—you're a smart man, yet a coward. You should be on our side, helping us deal with those damned terrorists instead of hiding in your little hole, dividing our country!" "Yes—that's right. If someone possesses such advanced technology, yet chooses to waste their time managing some homeowners' association in Hell's Kitchen, then they're nothing but a coward!" "Of course, I'm not talking about you—you're just an 18-year-old kid. What a shame. You should be at home with your mother, enjoying the peace that warriors bled and died for!" Once again, the focus shifted back to Leo. Tony had been smart—he didn't try to refute Leo logically, because he knew that was impossible. Instead, he attacked emotionally. Who likes a coward? Leo frowned slightly—he could tell exactly what Tony was thinking: War? Great! This had nothing to do with so-called justice or truth—this was purely a difference in ideology. Slavery is now seen as backward, but the first person to establish slavery probably thought they were a good person. And history can't say they were wrong. But to their contemporaries, they were trash—what kind of fool wins a battle without plundering? People like Tony didn't care about "justice." Because to them, the outcome of their conflicts determined what justice would be. Tony grew more excited, stepping forward and practically glaring at Leo as he spoke, enunciating every word: "You've never seen them. They are ignorant, brutal, backward, feudal—and now they're attacking our civilization." "You want to turn our nation into a eunuch, pretending peace exists while ignoring reality? No! This is the truth of peace: Peace means your club is bigger than everyone else's!" The world map on the screen turned a uniform color—absolute harmony. The atmosphere shifted again. When rationality collapses, emotions take over. Leo had worked tirelessly to shape the reality of the situation in his favor. But sometimes, grand rhetoric and impassioned speeches can sway people regardless of the facts. Leo stood up, scanning the faces around him. He knew—at this point, he couldn't retreat. If he backed down or failed to counter, all his gains would be severely diminished. So, after a brief thought, he spoke directly: "That is a lie—tell me, which of the countries we fought had a smaller club than ours?" Leo pulled up his own projection—he wanted them to see the opposite perspective. Before Tony could interrupt, Leo continued: "You know what? You're right—I do have a weapon." Tony fell silent. The projection displayed Hell's Kitchen—what it once was. And what it had become. By the time Leo finished, the room erupted into applause. It was time to adjourn. [TN:lol tony ate shit]

Chapter 263: A More Severe War

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