66 The Shining Silver Blade of the Stars

"Are you alright, Mr. Stark?" the girl asked calmly.

"Who... are you?" Tony Stark, still dazed, stared at the girl in front of him.

Something about her figure felt oddly familiar.

The girl slowly stood up and pointed her long sword at Ivan Vanko, who was ahead.

"I'm just a hero driven by my own interests. You can call me... 'Flashblade.'"

If she were to start working as a superhero, what kind of alias should she choose?

This question had occupied Kagura Hitomi's mind for a while.

In the end, drawing from her "close-combat enthusiast" persona and that dazzling special move of hers, she decided on the name 'Flashblade.'

A shining, silver blade that glowed like the stars in the sky. Hmm... It sounded pretty nice!

"Where did this little girl come from? Are you here to die for Tony Stark?" Ivan laughed.

"Well then, let me oblige."

Before he could finish his sentence, a metallic whip crackling with electricity was swung directly at her.

[Plasma Arc Metal Whip]

[Threat Level: High, Probability of Piercing Armor and Severing Body: 83.98%]

With a flash of electricity, the whip struck the ground.

The girl swiftly dodged, her body unharmed, while the ground was scorched with deep cracks.

Ivan wasn't about to let up.

With the assistance of his mechanical exoskeleton, he continued his relentless assault, his two whips moving like a deadly electric web, striking at the girl again and again.

The suit Kagura wore was made of carbon fiber, as the advanced vibranium material hadn't been fully developed.

This lightweight material offered decent protection, but it couldn't directly withstand the electric whips of "Whiplash."

[Core Energy Remaining: 63%]

[Short-Term Active Acceleration: Activated]

Boom—

With a sudden burst of speed, the girl escaped Ivan's reach, leaving behind a cloud of dust.

Ivan, startled, turned around, sensing something was off behind him.

With a swift motion, the girl leapt into the air, dodging the whip as it sliced through the air, inches away from her chest.

She flipped gracefully, her body moving as elegantly as a bird soaring through a rain of falling leaves.

In that moment, sparks and arcs of electricity filled the air.

As Ivan took a step back to prepare for another attack, the girl saw an opening and dashed forward into the whip's blind spot.

Her silver blade flashed.

Clink— Clink—

Ivan's whips, which could tear through many materials with ease, were cleaved in two by her blade.

With her precision, Kagura had cut through the electric whips, rendering them useless.

Ivan stood frozen, realizing too late that his weaknesses had been exposed.

Seizing the opportunity, the girl rushed in, pressed her hand onto Ivan's chest, directly over the Arc Reactor, and then kicked him with force.

Thud—

Ivan was sent flying, landing right in front of Tony Stark, as Kagura casually took the Arc Reactor from his chest and held it in her hand.

[High-Performance Arc Reactor]

[Power Nearing the Theoretical Maximum of Palladium's Capacity, Approximately 1.5 Times the Power of Mark IV]

'Hmm...'

Kagura stared at the reactor in her palm, deep in thought.

Ivan Vanko clearly didn't have the capability to create something like this.

In fact, the Arc Reactor Ivan had used in his earlier attack on Tony Stark was just a basic palladium one, and Tony had even mocked its insufficient power.

"Cortana, can you analyze the origin of this reactor's materials?"

As the sensors in her visor scanned the Arc Reactor, corresponding structural breakdowns and material traces automatically activated.

"Tracking failed. The materials and components are all custom-built. The origin cannot be located."

I see...

Kagura furrowed her brow, realizing that whoever had secretly supported Ivan Vanko had considerable resources.

She glanced over to the side.

At that moment, Ivan was being apprehended by the arriving police, and the spectators, now relieved that the villain had been defeated, erupted into cheers.

These cheers were for Kagura, the girl now known as "Flashblade."

However, despite her success in saving Tony Stark, Kagura was more concerned with the mysterious "Whiplash" and how it had deviated from the original version she knew.

Of course, Tony Stark, who had been watching from the sidelines, was also deeply intrigued by the situation.

Despite having just promised in a Senate hearing that Iron Man's technology was unique, the next day, a criminal like Ivan Vanko appeared, wielding the same technology.

Tony Stark's face was undoubtedly grim.

"You lost, Tony Stark! Hahaha! You lost!" Ivan, being dragged away, taunted Tony almost maniacally.

Indeed, regardless of Kagura's intervention, Iron Man's undefeated reputation had been shattered that day.

To defeat a god, one didn't need to conquer them—just make them bleed.

If Tony Stark had been the protector of world peace over the past year, then today marked the day he fell from grace.

Kagura had saved Tony Stark's life, but she couldn't preserve the Iron Man legacy.

[Saved Tony Stark during the racetrack attack/Complete]

 [Earned 10QP]

"Mr. Stark, are you alright?"

The girl walked over and extended her hand to Tony Stark.

Snapping out of his daze, Tony took her hand and stood up.

"Looks like the Mark V was a pretty terrible idea."

"I think your suit still served its purpose," Kagura replied, turning to leave.

"Goodbye, Mr. Stark."

"Uh... Miss Flashblade."

"Hmm?"

Kagura paused and looked back.

"I just wanted to say..." Tony Stark struggled for the right words, "Thank you for saving my life. Also, you have an amazing figure."

"You're welcome, Mr. Stark."

"Do you mind telling me your real identity?" Tony asked.

"Rather than my real identity, don't you have more important things to investigate right now, Mr. Stark?" Kagura responded.

"We'll meet again."

[Short-Term Active Acceleration: Activated]

Vroom—

A cloud of dust swept by as the silver-clad girl disappeared into the racetrack, leaving the audience once again in stunned awe.