He did not want to be tied down to an office, did not want to deal with boring meetings and paperwork every day, and did not want to become a serious, rigid, and boring businessman.
But last night changed everything.
If he had all the resources of Stark Industries, he could do more.
He could build his own security team to protect his parents' safety.
He could mobilize the company's R&D power to develop technology to counter threats.
He could use the global influence of Stark Industries to investigate the traces of HYDRA.
Most importantly, he could let his father lay down his heavy burden.
Howard was already over seventy years old. After experiencing something like what happened last night, he needed rest and needed to spend his later years in peace, rather than continuing to walk on the edge of danger.
Tony turned and left the study, walking down the stairs.
In the living room, Howard was already up, sitting on the sofa with a cup of coffee in his hand, but his eyes were empty; clearly, his mind was not there.
Maria was in the kitchen preparing breakfast, her movements somewhat slow; although the injury on her left arm had been stabilized by Mavuika, it still hurt.
"Dad." Tony walked into the living room, his voice much more serious than usual.
Howard looked up, somewhat surprised; Tony rarely spoke to him in this tone.
"What's wrong?" Howard asked, trying to make his voice sound lighter: "Are you that free now? The young master of Stark Industries doing nothing all day?"
If it were normal times, Tony would immediately retort, using those sharp but humorous words to counter, but today he did not.
Tony walked over to the sofa opposite Howard and sat down, leaning forward, his hands clasped on his knees.
His expression was one of seriousness that Howard had never seen before.
"Old man." Tony said, his voice steady: "I've decided."
Howard looked at him, waiting for what was to come.
"Hand Stark Industries over to me."
This sentence echoed in the quiet living room, like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, the ripples it stirred up were far greater than they appeared.
Howard froze, his hand holding the coffee cup stopping in mid-air, his eyes widening slightly, and the expression on his face mixed with surprise, suspicion, and a trace of imperceptible hope.
He knew his son too well; Tony had amazing Talents, extraordinary spatial imagination, and an instinctive understanding of mechanical and electronic principles.
Howard had always believed that if Tony was willing, he could take Stark Industries to unprecedented heights.
But Tony had always resisted; he would rather tinker with those "toys" in his own workshop than participate in the actual management of the company.
He only attended board meetings because it was an obligation; he was always careless when signing documents, and he didn't care at all about the company's future plans.
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