"I'm so sorry," Dr. Wily says, his tone almost dripping with an exaggerated regret. "I'm afraid I simply miscalculated the force required. I didn't expect it to crumple so easily."

Truthfully, Wily was furious at the armor being damaged, as he'd wanted to salvage and repurpose it — but at least there had been enough intact for Wily to scan and copy down some of the schematics. It wasn't a total loss.

Besides, graciously returning the armor to Lexcorp was an excellent excuse to get a good look inside the facility. For... future reference.

By Wily's side, a large robot sentry — modeled after Gutsman, but with a little less personality — is cradling the pieces in its arms. It had been the one to take down the armor's thief, at Wily's command, very publicly. Sure would be a shame if that kind of publicity affected Luthor's contract.

With a wave from Dr. Wily's hand, the armor is unceremoniously dumped on the table.

"Of course, once you're past the proof-of-concept stage, I'm sure you'll start using the sturdier materials."