NOVEL NEXT Chapter 222: Late, But Here
A few days later.
John Wick received a call from an unfamiliar number.
"Mr. John Wick, how's that Dragon Ball working out for you?"
Hearing the voice, John immediately thought of a Russian man named Ivan Vanko. Of all the Dragon Ball holders he had dealt with, Ivan was the only one who hadn't contacted him after the Dragon Ball contest ended. When they made their deal back then, John had even left him a business card.
"Mr. Ivan Vanko, what's the purpose of your call?"
"I thought you'd be calling me the moment you got the info," Ivan said with a faint laugh.
He knew his limits when it came to the Dragon Balls. With all seven already claimed for over a year, there was no way for him to gather them himself.
Though he had managed to build a whip-based combat suit, it was still crude, without even a proper weapon system.
"I want to meet your boss, Smith Dole."
John asked bluntly,
"You want to see our boss — for what exactly?"
Ivan didn't threaten to expose Dragon Ball secrets if he wasn't granted a meeting. Instead, he said,
"I want investment — and a fair shot at challenging Iron Man."
John was surprised. The last time he'd seen Ivan, the man was nearly indistinguishable from a vagrant. Now he was talking about challenging Tony Stark.
"Can you be more specific? Even if I want to report this to the boss, I have to tell him what you've got to make it worth his time."
Ivan replied without hesitation,
"The technology for a miniature arc reactor. That tech doesn't belong solely to the Stark family. My father, Anton Vanko, co-developed it. I've managed to miniaturize it as well."
Hearing that, John's tone shifted, taking him seriously now.
"I'll report to the boss immediately. If you really have that tech, you won't be short of investors."
"But I'm curious — if you've already mastered arc reactor miniaturization, shouldn't it be easy for you to find backers?"
"I trust you," Ivan said calmly. "At least back then, you didn't try to rob me — you paid for the Dragon Ball. At the time, I really needed the money."
And with that, he hung up.
…
In Smith Dole's office, John reported the entire conversation.
Smith nodded.
"So he finally contacted you. I'd been wondering why this holder was so quiet."
"If he wants to meet, then let's meet. Have the Moscow Brotherhood members escort him to New York."
"As for whether I'll invest — I'll decide after we talk."
John nodded.
"Yes, Boss. I'll contact the Brotherhood's local leader right away."
Smith then asked,
"What's his current situation?"
John thought for a moment before replying,
"Right after the Dragon Ball info was given out, I had our Moscow people look into him. His father's in a hospital receiving treatment and is stable for now, but he's old and went through a lot after being deported. Still, barring any accidents, he could live a few more years."
"He's used the money from selling the Dragon Ball to improve both his and his father's living conditions."
Hearing that Anton Vanko was still alive, Smith nodded.
"Alright. Handle it. Let me know when he arrives."
After John left, Smith sat back in thought.
In the old League of Assassins days, someone like Ivan would have been eliminated outright to prevent him from causing trouble and disrupting the Expo.
But the League no longer worked off kill lists — now they only executed those with undeniable guilt.
As for Ivan's request for investment, Smith wasn't sure of his angle. In the original timeline, Justin Hammer had funded him and ended up getting burned.
Still, two things were different now: Ivan hadn't lost his father — so he wasn't in a state of bitter revenge — and Smith was no Hammer. He had overwhelming force on his side, and with Bulma around, they could keep Ivan in check.
Arranging a fair fight with Tony Stark would be the simplest part.
Smith decided it was worth meeting Ivan. Changing a villain's fate would fit the League's new mission perfectly.
…
Not long after John left, Fox came in with documents and began his report.
"With Stark Industries' stock price soaring, your shares have also shot up, Boss. You could easily pledge them and free up hundreds of billions of dollars."
"Also, following your suggestion, several insurance companies have launched 'Superhero Property Damage Insurance.' Citizens have begun buying it, though most customers are in New York; remote states have fewer sales."
"On top of that, we just received a $300 million transfer from Stark Industries marked as 'treatment fees.'"
"Our latest product launches are also on fire. Customers who bought the first-gen combat power detectors are upgrading, and military, corporate, and special agencies are placing large orders. We've already sold over 3,000 units."
"As for the hovercars, we've sold over 5,000. The peak has likely passed, but sales will rise again with deliveries."
"For the military, we've already made contact and established a Capsule Industries subsidiary specifically for custom defense orders. It's now on the official defense equipment procurement list as a military contractor."
Smith was pleased. These insurance companies would be in trouble once the next big New York battle hit — likely facing bankruptcy or restructuring.
And the hovercar sales? Incredible. In just days, at over $10 million each, they'd moved 5,000 units — $50 billion in revenue, just like that.
"Have Bulma get the hovercar mass production going. We can't hand-build all 5,000."
"Bulma's already setting up the production line," Fox said. "She's integrated the DāiDāi AI, so efficiency's way up. We barely need any human labor."
Smith nodded. With AI, they could practically run an Ultron-style automated army. Still, he added,
"Give some positions to the families of League members. Not all of them are fighters."
Fox noted it down immediately.
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/euridome]
[Thank You For Your Support!]