『Carl』: It was me. They went too far at the time.
『Tony Stark』: Huh? What's going on?
『Tony Stark』 (slowly): Nothing serious…
But there's a crowd outside Stark Industries right now — they're saying they're here for you.
Carl raised an eyebrow at that.
Looks like those students decided to come knocking on his door after all?
He didn't expect they'd actually dare.
Was the last punishment not enough?
『Carl』: How many people came?
『Tony Stark』: Uh… about a hundred or so?
『Carl』: Got it. I'll head there now.
『Tony Stark』: Alright.
After hanging up, Carl turned to Zhang Manyue.
『Carl』: Something just came up. I might be a few minutes late for dinner. Go ahead and find a restaurant first — I'll be back in ten minutes.
『Zhang Manyue』: Ten minutes? Then I'll just wait for you.
『Carl』: Alright, I'll get going then.
『Zhang Manyue』: Mm-hm. Oppa, be careful.
『Carl』: I'm not in a rush.
『Zhang Manyue』: Okay.
Carl nodded, then activated his super vision, scanning for Tony's location.
The next instant, Carl's figure vanished.
He reappeared inside a lavish, stylish office — large, sleek, filled with cutting-edge décor.
Only two people were inside:
Tony Stark, seated behind his desk, and Pepper Potts standing beside him.
Both were staring anxiously at the computer screen.
『Pepper Potts』 (worried): There are so many people outside.
I don't think our security can hold them back much longer. Should we call the police?
『Tony Stark』: No need. The latest_epɪ_sodes are on_the 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹•𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑒•𝙣𝙚𝙩
Superman will be here any second — what's the worst they can do?
『Pepper Potts』: But there are so many of them, and the reporters too.
Even if Superman is powerful, he won't lay hands on ordinary people, right?
『Tony Stark』 (shrugging): Even so, they can't really do anything.
At that moment, a calm voice echoed through the office.
『Carl』: Tony. Pepper. Good afternoon.
The two looked up to see Carl standing a few steps away.
『Tony Stark』: Superman! You finally made it, man.
『Pepper Potts』: Would you like a coffee, Mr. Superman?
『Carl』: If possible, I'd prefer an iced one.
『Pepper Potts』: Of course.
Pepper turned to make the coffee while Carl approached Tony's desk.
『Carl』: So… those students came looking for trouble?
『Tony Stark』: Of course they did.
And not just them — they brought their parents and relatives too.
『Tony Stark』: There are even several reporters outside, surrounding the whole front of Stark Tower.
Carl looked at the monitor in front of Tony.
The screen was split into over a dozen camera feeds — each showing the scene outside the tower.
A sea of people flooded the front entrance of Stark Industries — several hundred, at least.
Among them were many young students, more than a hundred by rough count, along with even more adults — mostly middle-aged.
Some held up protest signs:
"Superman, apologize!"
"Why did you hit my son?!"
Reporters crowded the front lines, arguing with the security guards.
Altogether, there were three to five hundred people — the crowd completely blocked the entrance, leaving no room for employees to enter or exit.
If not for the guards holding the line, the mob might've already stormed the building.
There were twice as many protestors as guards — and yet, Stark Industries' security was no joke.
The company had over two hundred trained guards, many of them former military.
Even though the mob had the numbers, they couldn't break through.
If the guards were allowed to use force, the troublemakers would've been cleared out in twenty minutes — ten, if weapons were authorized.
But that was impossible; the crowd claimed to be "victims," and reporters were watching.
So the guards could only hold the line, restraining themselves.
Carl watched the feed and gave a faint, knowing smile.
『Carl』: Quite the crowd.
『Tony Stark』: Yeah… a lot of them brought their families.
But there weren't that many students you actually fought with, right?
Out of all these people, I only hit about half of the students I see here.
Most of those faces? Completely unfamiliar.
『Tony Stark』 (frowning): Huh? What do you mean?
『Carl』: Someone's taking advantage of the situation.
The students I disciplined — I remember every one of their faces.
But look at this: most of these so-called "students" I've never seen before.
In fact, there are far more of them than were even present that day.
『Tony Stark』: Wait, seriously? Your memory's that good?
『Carl』 (lightly): I never forget a face.
Carl's mind, enhanced by his superhuman brain, never let go of a detail.
He remembered every one of the students from that morning — yet many faces in the footage were strangers.
Some of them might not even belong to Midtown High at all.
Someone was stirring trouble behind the scenes.
『Tony Stark』 (grim): So that's how it is…
Someone's exploiting this — maybe one of Stark Industries' competitors.
After all, with this crowd blocking the building, employees couldn't work or even leave for home.
If this went on, operations would grind to a halt.
『Tony Stark』: Let me think who might be behind it…
This can't go on. The building's practically under siege.
『Carl』: Don't worry. I'll just… move them somewhere else.
『Tony Stark』: Move them—? Where exactly?
But before Tony could finish, Carl's figure flickered — and vanished.
『Tony Stark』 (blinking): …Move them where?
The office was silent again.
WORLDWIDE SUPERMAN STRENGTH
🔹 Dimension Walker – 15 chapters ahead