Let them take action themselves.

Although it wasn’t that the Avengers would obey Jos’s every order, the string of information he had provided and his impressive performance since joining gave him considerable influence within the group.

So, when he presented his viewpoint, everyone began to consider it seriously.

“I think it’s fine. We Avengers are already short-handed as it is. It’s about time those people playing superhero games holed up in the city faced a real war,” Stark was the first to voice his support. Having received advanced technology from Jos, he naturally leaned toward him, and with nothing amiss in the plan, he simply took the lead in backing Jos.

“No objections.”

“Agreed.”

“That makes sense.”

With the Avengers’ landlord having spoken, the others only paused to consider briefly before nodding their assent. After all, even if they tried to handle every region themselves, they would inevitably fail from lack of manpower. It was better to concentrate their forces on eliminating the strongest enemy groups. The rest, they could only trust to those other extraordinary individuals hidden within New York City.

After glancing around, Steve took a deep breath, then called out in a solemn voice, “In that case—Avengers, assemble!”

The Avengers had always been a looser organization than most. Now, with only six members and Nick Fury and Jos both absent, they exchanged brief nods before rushing off to their designated battlefields.

Once everyone had left, Tony Stark shut down the myriad projections and clapped his hands for Jarvis, his AI butler, to help him suit up in the Iron Man armor.

“It’s still a prototype, but this is the perfect chance to test this new weapon,” he remarked. As machinery rumbled, the red-and-gold Iron Man suit enveloped Stark completely. On the suit’s left hand, however, gleamed an obviously larger golden gauntlet.

“Oh, Jarvis, send that item to Jos’s house—the one he asked me to make when he brought over the files last time.”

As the final words fell, the golden mask sealed Stark’s face.

...

Bang!

A half-human-sized, circular disc smashed a Hydra soldier’s skull before elegantly rebounding to its master’s side.

“There are way too many of these guys… and why are they all so strong…” Steve, panting, wiped sweat from his brow and raised his shield for another charge.

Behind him were regular Hydra soldiers and modified humans, but under the universal equality of Steve’s presence, they were all equally difficult to fight.

That shield was, after all, a shamelessly powerful weapon.

Still, surrounded by so many enemies, Steve’s strength was not enough to turn the tide; being dragged into a drawn-out battle like this was the worst situation for him.

Just as Steve finished off another soldier, a cold, snake-like figure silently crept behind him while he caught his breath, a dagger flashing toward Steve’s head.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Two arrows flew in quick succession—one pinned the assailant’s arm, the other pierced straight through his skull.

“Hey, Cap, watch your back,” Hawkeye’s voice and figure emerged from behind the would-be assassin. He let fly two more arrows, taking down two enemies ahead, and stationed himself by Steve’s side as lookout.

The marksman Hawkeye—his skills now exceptional.

“Ah, thanks… I’m fine… give me a second…” The super soldier serum’s power showed not only in Steve’s strength but also in his resilience; after a few breaths, he was back in fighting form.

“Damn, there really are a lot of them,” Hawkeye complained, and seeing Steve was alright, dashed out again.

“Well, looks like Tony’s front is holding up pretty well,” Steve replied offhandedly, and plunged back into the fray.

The ferocity of the current battle left no room for rest, but fortunately the Avengers were not ordinary humans. Even after hours, they could endure.

...

“Energy output efficiency up by 23%, yet loss is 12% lower than before. What an incredible level of technology,” Stark marveled as he fired a laser half his own size, instantly tearing through several modified enemies. Yet his gaze remained fixed on the data streaming across his system panel.

In the short time he’d had, he had only roughly imitated the forging method and some of the structures in the materials Jos had sent, fashioning a replacement for his left gauntlet. Even so, the power of the Iron Man suit had increased by more than twofold!

Because of this, in an Avengers team currently lacking in supernatural powers, Iron Man’s combat effectiveness was at the very top. He was the most at ease on this battlefield.

Yet as a superhero, he didn’t let this power corrupt him. Instead, he took the initiative in leading the counterattack, drawing nearly half the modified soldiers and firepower to himself.

And, just as Jos had predicted, as New York City was engulfed in war, the extraordinary individuals hidden within its depths began to emerge.

The silver-bladed figure of Blade darted among the Hydra ranks; weapons meant for vampires proved just as effective against humans, and in a single exchange, a group of Hydra soldiers fell.

The rest of Blade’s Howling Commandos turned the battlefield into a dance of demons, each member more bizarre than the modified soldiers they faced.

Similar scenes played out all over the city. Spider-Man, still unsure of good and evil according to Nick Fury, donned his suit and swung through the city’s chaos.

In a deserted alley, Laura retracted her claws and walked away without glancing back at the three grotesque modified warriors she’d just dispatched.

More and more joined the fight, both renowned and unknown, all stepping forward to resist with their own strength.

War is never the business of one person, nor of a mere handful.

Back in his own home, Jos watched the battle outside his window for a moment, then muttered to himself with a faint, cold smile, “Idiots, the lot of them.”