Marvel's Strongest Mage

The door opened with a quiet "click," and Daniel immediately sat up from the sofa, rubbing his eyes. Through the faint light spilling in from the hallway, he saw who it was and asked, surprised, "You turned the lights on? Betty, it's almost dawn!"

"What else could I do?" Betty Ross flicked on the light, adjusting it to a soft glow before sighing tiredly. "You have no idea—Justina didn't just have to deal with the company, her entire family's assets were investigated by the FBI. She's knee-deep in legal trouble, and she doesn't know the first thing about handling it. If I weren't there, she would've been eaten alive by those lawyers and agents."

Daniel frowned, concern flickering across his face. "Won't you get yourself and your father into trouble doing this?"

"It's fine. I'm just there to observe, help coordinate with legal counsel, and keep her from getting tricked into anything stupid. The lawyers are handling the heavy lifting," Betty said as she set her bag down, moving into the kitchen to pour herself a glass of water. "But still, if I weren't there… she would've panicked completely."

Daniel had already spoken to Betty on the phone earlier. When he came back to the villa and saw she wasn't home, he'd been seriously alarmed. If anything had happened to her, there would be no way he could face General Ross.

Fortunately, her call had come in before he lost his mind. She had been at the Hammer Industries headquarters, which, like Stark's penthouse above Stark Tower, doubled as Justin Hammer's personal residence atop his company's main building.

Of course, men like Hammer had multiple estates, scattered across Long Island and elsewhere.

Despite her calm tone, Daniel knew that staying there hadn't been easy. Betty had mentioned lawyers were handling things, but how could Justina—a girl thrown into the fire overnight—tell which lawyers could be trusted and which might exploit her?

Legal ethics were a blurry line. There was enough ambiguity in those codes that unethical lawyers could twist things for huge gain. Hammer Industries was drowning, its assets frozen, with the FBI and now even S.H.I.E.L.D. involved. But that was just today's disaster.

Come morning, when the stock market opened, the real storm would hit. Daniel had already begun his quiet assault yesterday. The moment Hammer stock hit rock bottom, he'd be there to buy up bonds for pennies, positioning himself as one of the company's largest bondholders—first in line when the dust settled.

That was Sunil Bakshi's domain now—Daniel handled strategy; Sunil and his elite team executed the financial warfare.

"Justin Hammer's done. He'll be in prison for twenty to thirty years at minimum. You need to talk Justina into letting go. Being stubborn now will only hurt her," Daniel said, shaking his head. "By the time the market opens, her father's empire will be ashes."

"I'll try," Betty said softly. "Poor Justina… going from billionaire heiress to broke overnight. That kind of fall can crush a person."

Daniel's eyes narrowed slightly. "Don't feel too sorry. Justin tucked a trust fund or two aside for her. She won't starve—unless she does something reckless like assuming all her father's debt. If you weren't around, she'd probably already have signed away everything to some vulture lawyer."

And Daniel didn't believe for a second that Justin Hammer hadn't squirreled away assets offshore. Hammer might lose the company, go to prison, but he wouldn't go broke—not really. And Justina? She'd be fine. Better than most.

As Betty began removing her earrings, Daniel stood, stretching as he said, "You're back, finally. Get some sleep. I'll check in on you tomorrow.

"You're not staying?" Betty asked instinctively. Daniel had already reached the door but paused.

He turned and gave her a sly, amused look. "If I stay, you won't get up tomorrow. I'm doing this for your health."

"Get out!" Betty blushed, flinging her water glass at the door—but he'd already slipped out.

Outside, Daniel's face turned cold, all warmth gone in an instant. That was the way it was with him and Betty. Their relationship had embers, but they both knew it couldn't become a romantic one.

When he pulled up to his home, the sky was a deep indigo. As he parked, he spotted a thin figure standing at his front door.

Daniel's brows furrowed. "What are you doing here? Where's your security?"

Justina stood there, her body tense, her eyes red-rimmed with exhaustion. "Most of them resigned. I told the rest to watch over the company. I came alone."

Daniel exhaled slowly. "When did you get here?" He stepped forward, unlocked the door, and let her in.

"After Ms. Betty got home," Justina said, intentionally calling her "Ms. Betty" with a strange look in her eyes. Daniel pretended not to notice.

He went to the kitchen, heated water, prepared a strong cup of coffee, and placed it in front of her. Then, sitting across from her, he spoke calmly, "You shouldn't be here. You should be trying to see your father. He's the only one who knows how to handle this."

"The lawyers already tried. The police won't allow it. They won't even let me talk to him." Her voice was raw, lips tight.

Daniel's eyes narrowed. "That's not standard. If the cops block lawyers, they either have overwhelming evidence—or it's gone beyond normal charges. Are they treating him like a terrorist?"

Justina didn't answer directly, but her silence spoke volumes. Daniel leaned back and studied her—this worn, desperate daughter of a disgraced billionaire.

"You know your situation. But you still came to me. Why?" His voice was emotionless.

Justina didn't respond right away. Then, quietly, "I know. The only legal way forward is bankruptcy. That's what the lawyers advised. But outside the law, some people won't let this end. People in the shadows."

She didn't name them. She didn't have to.

Daniel said nothing. She wanted help. That much was clear. But why should he lift a finger?

Justina slammed her palms down on the coffee table. "It's not fair! Why should they be allowed to tear it all apart? Hammer Industries paid billions in taxes. We employed thousands! If it collapses, people will lose jobs—families will go bankrupt—people will die!"

Daniel's expression didn't change. She was angry, righteous, frustrated, and smart. He saw the steel behind her fury. Justin Hammer may have been absent as a father, but he'd raised no fool.

Then she pulled out her phone.

"Mr. Daniel… look at this."

Daniel arched an eyebrow, took the phone, and pressed play.

The video was grainy, filmed in the shadows, shaky. But it was him. At Stark's industrial base. One hand plunged into the chest of a steel soldier. He pulled something free. A second later, the thing exploded midair.

Low resolution, poor lighting, a trembling hand—it wasn't much. But with the right tech, someone like Jarvis could pull gold from this.

He returned the phone, calm and almost amused. "You're clever. I don't know where you got this, but even if you made it public, it'd disappear within hours. You want me to make a call to the White House? Or the DoD? You'd be in a cell next to your father before the hour's out."

His smile didn't reach his eyes.

Justina blinked. She hadn't expected that. The cold dismissal. The ruthless tone. She thought she could guilt him, pressure him, and appeal to some hidden sense of justice.

But Daniel wasn't one of those soft-hearted "superheroes." He didn't wear a cape.

He played a different game.

And if she wanted to survive it, she'd need to learn the rules.

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