The Legendary Mechanic in Marvel Universe

Chapter 255 Return

TL: Kyous

Due to the time difference between Wakanda and New York, it was only two hours later when Leo flew to New York that the city was just entering the evening at 7:00 PM.

In late December, New York was in the midst of winter, with shorter days and longer nights. By 7:00 PM, the sky was already pitch black. As he flew over New York, he was greeted by the beautiful city lights, a bustling scene in the downtown area.

During his two-week stay in Wakanda, apart from the first day when Natasha prepared a heartfelt dinner for him, providing a warm meal, he had been surviving on bottled drinks, packaged cookies, and bread every day. Those foods were suitable for occasional meals, but not for daily.

So, with bland taste buds in his mouth, he arrived in New York City. His first order of business was to fly to Hell’s Kitchen, take off his Viper, and locate his favorite Chinese restaurant. He ordered a selection of spicy dishes and began to enjoy his meal.

As for Bucky with the same bland taste buds, he would have to endure a few more days of hardship.

After returning with a full haul from Wakanda and showing no sympathy for Bucky, Leo indulged himself by ordering a chilled bottle of beer to go with his food. He relished the experience of eating and drinking, feeling utterly content.

Just as he was happily engrossed in his feast, a gorgeous figure suddenly sat across from him. Her stunning made Leo subconsciously glance at a certain spot.

All of a sudden, he sensed some familiarity and his gaze immediately shifted upward. And as expected, his eyes laid upon Natasha’s somewhat icy face.

“What a coincidence!” With food stuffed in his mouth, he greeted Natasha.

Seeing Leo’s ravenous eating acts, Natasha’s eyes briefly flickered with a hint of sympathy as she gently asked, “When did you come back?”

“Just now. I’ve only ordered the food,” he replied.

As there was a set of cutleries on the table, Leo nudged them toward Natasha. “Just got off from work? You haven’t eaten yet, right? Come, let’s dig in.”

Natasha didn’t refuse and picked up the cutleries. She took a bite of the dish, chewing it slowly and swallowing before asking, “Where’s Teacher Bucky?”

“We found H.Y.D.R.A.s in Africa, so he went to investigate.” Leo lowered his voice slightly.

Natasha’s hands paused in midair as a surge of concern washed over her.

Noticing this, Leo waved his hand and stated, “Don’t worry about it. The current Bucky can even take on Sinthea.”

“Oh? Does that mean you guys had a great trip this time?” Natasha revealed an interested expression, leaning in as if eager to hear more.

Without any intention of keeping things from Natasha, Leo was ready to share his accomplishments except for the system’s assistance.

Nonetheless, the restaurant was bustling with people. So, Leo pondered for a bit and suggested “Now is not a great place to talk. Let’s talk about it when we get back.”

Then, he called out to a passing waitress, “Wrap it up, please.”

He had ordered a total of eight dishes and hadn’t fully satisfied his appetite yet, so wasting the food was out of the question.

Ten minutes later, Leo and Natasha stepped into their home. Erik was upstairs doing his homework while Ol’ Tom was nowhere to be found after finishing work. 

Placing the food and drinks on the table, he began to eat and chat with Natasha.

About half an hour later, Leo ate to his heart’s content and Natasha had learned the ins and outs of the Wakanda trip, leaving her astonished. In particular the Black Panther God, she showed a keen interest, asking Leo twice, “Is she beautiful?”

These repeated inquiries made Leo roll his eyes several times, faintly suspecting something.

After finishing their meal, Leo picked his teeth with a toothpick while watching Natasha adeptly clean up the dishes.

Since he had to return to the lab to work, he got up and bid farewell. But before leaving, he stated, “About the heart-shaped herb, once I’ve successfully grown it later, you can have the first one. I’ll let you know when the time comes. Also, I’ll find some time to design a suit for you. If you have any particular ideas or suggestions, let me know. Take a couple of days and think about it.”

As Natasha listened, her heart warmed and she silently nodded in response. 

Suddenly, something came to her mind as she hurriedly stopped Leo, “Oh right, Peter has been trying to reach out to you for a while but he couldn’t. So he asked me about it. It’s best if you go see him tomorrow.”

Leo smiled and nodded, having a rough idea of why Peter was trying to contact him. Coincidentally, Peter also worked at the Marvel Base during the day, so it wouldn’t hurt to make time to meet him tomorrow.

With that in mind, Leo took out his Viper from his Storage Belt and swiftly donned it in front of Natasha. Then, in an instant, he shrunk and flew out through the door’s crack.

Baffled, Natasha stood there as she witnessed Leo disappear. A few moments later, she returned to her room, preparing to freshen up and go to bed.

……

Marvel Base, Erwin Research Center.

Leo flew directly into the top-floor laboratory, where the long-unseen Steam hastily approached him with passion and buzzing in excitement, “Buzz! Master, long time no see. Welcome home.”

Taking off his armor, Leo smiled affectionately as he stroked Steam’s head, enjoying the familiar and comforting sensation.

Glazing at Steam, who was still buzzing around his feet, Leo thought it was time for a complete revamp, combining the advanced technology of Wakanda to give Steam a fresh new upgrade. Even the lab should undergo some remodeling he believed.

After all, he had brought many cutting-edge devices from Wakanda’s Vibranium Research Institute and he couldn’t let them gather dust inside his Storage Belt. Advanced pieces of technology such as holographic simulation could be applied to Steam and the interior of the lab.

Of course, he couldn’t forget about the remote communication function. That way, when he was soaring in the sky, Steam could accompany him, chatting and providing technical support to relieve boredom.

However, that could wait for now. What he needed to do most right now was to find a sufficiently large empty room and properly store the herbs he had excavated from Wakanda. Because if the herbs were left unattended for too long, they would wither and die.

Fortunately, the herbs didn’t require sunlight or outdoor conditioning, which saved a lot of trouble.

So he found a sufficiently large space on the fifth floor of Erwin Research Center. He laid a water-resistant layer and neatly arranged the herbs, complete with their roots and soil, resembling potted plants.

Next, he took out an ample amount of Vibranium and began to set up the “cultivation array” according to the gardening tips taught by Lilith. The term “ cultivation array” was just a translation preference of Lilith.

In practical terms, the key points of this array were to determine the spacing between the herbs in the soil and to insert a specific amount of Vibranium. Apart from that, regular and timed replacements were essential.

As he worked tirelessly through the night, he finally got the task done. An idea also occurred to him. He should hire a gardener to specifically tend the herbs. But in the Marvel Universe, who was the best at farming?

For the moment, he thought of the purple alien doing the farming. However, it was impossible to expect that man to willingly help him with farming.

“Perhaps it doesn’t have to be a living person. Can Steam handle it?” Leo pondered.

Since there weren’t suitable candidates at the moment, and even using Steam would require training, he set this matter aside for now.

Feeling tired, he decided to take a rest in his bedroom.

An hour and a half later, Leo was fully recharged. With the enhancement from the herb, his regenerative abilities improved once more, taking him another step closer to becoming a being that didn’t require sleep.