Eric's Intelligence

Eric listened to Jarvis's introduction with a sense of superiority, after all, his true background had not been revealed. Little did he know that while Jarvis's background had not been revealed, Tony had already seen everything from the movie, exposing not only his past but also his very underwear.

"I think Mr. Stark should have a good understanding of my capabilities, regarding our collaboration."

Happy frowned as he listened to Eric's words. "Aren't we all just employees? You're talking like you're business partners," he corrected.

"It's hiring. Mr. Stark intends to hire you to do some things."

Eric was still a bit arrogant, after all, he really took his royal status seriously, and over the years he had learned a little about Wakanda through various means, so he felt that he should be superior to others. At most, he was just a prince traveling incognito or living among the common people. However, he was smart enough not to argue with Happy directly.

"Cooperation, employment, it's all the same. What do you want us to do?"

Tony didn't care about these trivial matters. He already had a certain idea about Eric's identity and decided to try making contact with him first.

"It's very simple. Do you know a small town called Gomira in the Middle East?"

After thinking for a moment, Eric began to answer: "Gemira is located in the western Middle East. It was originally within the protection zone of the government forces, but after the government forces leader was attacked and killed at the beginning of this year, the government forces fell into internal strife. The tribal chief in charge of the region joined the power struggle, but was quickly defeated. Most of his strength was consumed in the civil war, resulting in the region having no armed forces of its own. It has become a buffer zone for conflicts between tribes, or rather, a place where anyone can do something."

Tony was somewhat dissatisfied after listening to Eric's words. Jarvis could find all this information. What Tony was more interested in was the situation of the various forces that were now involved here, or more precisely, the Ten Rings Gang.

"Anything else?" Tony continued to ask.

Eric realized that his words hadn't satisfied Tony. After thinking for a moment and considering his own work, he roughly guessed Tony's purpose: Tony wanted to launch an armed operation in the region. So he changed his approach and replied:

"Currently, three tribes occasionally raid that area, but they are not trying to occupy it. Their main purpose is to vent the conflicts between the tribes. I have connections with a high-ranking member of a large local tribe, so it would be very convenient for us if there were any actions taken there."

Tony nodded in satisfaction, took out the photo Christine had given him earlier, pointed to the Ten Rings Gang's insignia on the photo, and asked, "How much do you know about this insignia? What are they doing in Gemilla?"

Upon hearing Tony's question, Eric recalled the video of Tony's previous kidnapping and immediately guessed Tony's main point.

"This is the symbol of the Ten Rings Gang. Strictly speaking, the Ten Rings Gang is not one of the forces in the Middle East. It is more like an organization that is active in Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Gemira should only be a part of them. I have been in contact with them before."

Tony became interested in Eric's words; clearly, Eric knew some information that Jarvis couldn't find online.

"Well, what else do you know about the Ten Rings Gang?" Tony pressed.

"The Ten Rings Gang as a whole is not a terrorist organization, but a tightly knit alliance composed of various parts. However, the Middle Eastern branch mainly recruits locals, so their operations have become more localized. In East Asia, the Ten Rings Gang is more involved in underground transactions, assisting in smuggling, selling contraband, or engaging in the hitman trade."

"If it's an alliance, what are their goals, or rather, who is their leader?"

Eric shook his head and replied, "The CIA also tried to find them, but without success. They even sent infiltrators to try and contact the higher-ups, but the news they received was rather strange. It seemed that their higher-ups had fallen into a kind of religious fanaticism, and infiltrators who reached a certain level were quickly eliminated."

From Eric's words, Tony had already formed a concept of the Ten Rings Gang in his mind and combined it with the image in the movies. However, since he hadn't watched many movies, he could only guess.

The villain played by Tony Leung, whose name I've forgotten, did a lot of things after obtaining the power of the Ten Rings. But now his goal is no longer worldly power; instead, he's more interested in the source of the power or something else. The Ten Rings Gang is just a tool to achieve his goal, and he doesn't care much about it. He doesn't even care what the Middle East branch of the Ten Rings Gang is doing. Since that's the case, he can take action himself and collect some interest first.

"Hmm, it seems you're very familiar with that place. I think you should be able to handle this task well."

Tony finally got to the point, and Eric sat up straight. Actually, he wasn't interested in Tony's mission or how much commission Tony would pay; what he was really interested in was Tony himself.

He established a relationship with Tony through missions, then deepened their bond, and gradually revealed information about Wakanda, hoping to return to Wakanda with the help of Tony or the US military. Of course, the US military might not be able to defeat Wakanda (Eric didn't know the exact level of Wakanda's technology, only what his father had told him).

Even if I can't win, it doesn't matter. As long as there is external pressure, I will have a chance to seize power. Even if the United States is not good, it can still kill a few heirs to the throne. If I kill one or two high-ranking American officials or kill Tony as a pledge of allegiance, I will have a great chance to seize the throne and take back the throne that should have been his father's.

Tony looked at Eric and suddenly felt that Eric seemed to have ill intentions towards him. Although he couldn't tell from Eric's expression, and even looked very respectful, he knew that Eric's thoughts might be detrimental to him, as if he had opened Eric's mind and read Eric's consciousness.

Tony quickly recalled the descriptions of various abilities in the "Telekinesis Manual" and guessed that this was an application of telekinesis—mind reading. He had developed this ability to a small extent, but due to the limitations of the T-virus, it was difficult to truly read the other person's thoughts. At most, he could sense that the other person might have ill intentions towards him.

More training is useful. As your proficiency increases, various previously unlocked abilities will begin to appear. But more importantly, you need to find ways to acquire new abilities.

As for Eric's ill intentions, Tony didn't care. After all, he was now a superhuman himself, and he had nothing to fear from Eric, who hadn't shown any extraordinary fighting power. Besides, if Eric had other ideas, he would have to work hard for him first, and he was the best person to keep his own oxen in check.

"I expect your team to eliminate all terrorists near Gemila and maintain order in Gemila and the surrounding area."

Upon hearing the first part of Tony's request, Eric almost immediately agreed. After all, it was just clearing out a group of soldiers with low military skills, which was not difficult. However, the second part of the request gave Eric a headache. It wasn't that it was too difficult, but rather that he didn't want to spend too much time on this job.

"Clearing out terrorists isn't a problem, but maintaining order takes too long. Our team also has to accept orders from our superiors, so we can't stay in one place for too long." Eric planned to bargain, not wanting to be held back by a mission.