"I would have regretted the alternative more." Tony didn't have a good "yes" or "no" to give, he himself didn't know, but he knew himself well enough to say that much for certain. "Maybe less 'sparing' and more...probation. Sparing with a caveat. Delayed Murder Response."

Loki and Bucky were either demons that'd crawl back to bite him or blessings in disguise as far as his plans for escape and Thanos Thwartation went. Whatever the case ended up being, he knew he'd have to live with his decisions and stand by them if someone had something to say about it.