Chapter 85

''Hi," Damian greeted Tony before looking at Pepper.

"You look very beautiful, Pepper," said Damian, smiling kindly at her.

"Yes, she's always beautiful," said Tony, moving slowly between Damian and Pepper.

"You look handsome too," Damian said with a smile as he put his hand on Tony's shoulder.

Pepper stifled a laugh by covering her mouth.

"Where's the stowaway?" Damian asked jokingly.

"Haven't you seen him? Look over there," said Tony, subtly pointing in a direction where Obadiah was talking animatedly with someone who didn't seem very impressed with his speech.

"I hardly recognize him lately," said Tony, shaking his head slightly.

"I'm sure he can't take it anymore," Damian thought with a slight smile. Having Tony killed must have been a very difficult decision for Obadiah; after all, it is Tony who creates all the inventions. Without Tony, they would be just another run-of-the-mill weapons company.

"Who are those?" Tony asked, looking in one direction.

Damian followed his gaze to find his three daughters along with three children chatting.

"They are the children of some of the people here, though I don't know exactly whose," Damian said, though it wasn't entirely true. The three children were vampires.

Damian was actually kind of curious about how this kids' conversation was developing.

His daughters are quite intelligent for their age, but they are still as naive as a 1-year-old baby, they don't even know that they are vampires.

''What a king you are, you don't even know who your subjects are," Tony said mockingly.

"I'm sure if you met your workers on the street, you wouldn't be able to recognize them either, even if they were the most important ones," Pepper said with a slight smile.

Tony said no more because he knew it was true.

"How long do you plan to stay?" Damian asked, changing the topic.

"Three days. I'll take the opportunity to go somewhere on vacation. Here, all the ethnicities of the world are present. It's like Christmas," said Tony with a smile, while also agreeing to ignore Pepper's words.

"You guys..." Pepper said, shaking her head before going to get something to eat and see who she could chat with, hopefully, a normal person.

....

Several minutes ago...

When the three sisters sneaked out to look for food, they encountered three children.

The three sisters looked at the children with curiosity. After all, it was the first time they had seen people close to their own age.

"Hi, what's your name?" said Alice with a nice smile as she waved.

The three children looked at each other before introducing themselves.

The oldest is named Brian and he is three years old.

The one in the middle is a girl, her name is Aminah, and she is two years old.

The youngest child is named Sharon and she is about one year old.

All three are also vampires, children of the vampires created by Ophelia.

The children quickly opened up and talked about all sorts of childish things until they decided to go outside to play.

"Let's play hide and seek," said Ivy, smiling.

"Good," they all agreed.

"Who's counting?" Emma asked.

Everyone looked at each other, not knowing how to decide who would count.

"Let's have a race. Whoever loses counts first," said Alice excitedly.

Everyone nodded as they looked at Alice.

"How about we go around the garden, and the last one to arrive loses?" Alice asked.

"Sure," Emma said with a nod.

"Let's do it," Ivy said with a smile.

Unlike them, the other three children were somewhat uncomfortable.

"Isn't it too far?" Brian asked hesitantly.

The three sisters looked at him in confusion. It was a relatively short distance that they would cover in a brief time.

"Hm, forget it. Let's do it," said Brian, not wanting to be left behind.

Aminah also nodded, unconvinced.

Sharon's eyes filled with tears as she thought about all the running she would have to do.

"So when this rock falls, we'll run, right?" Alice asked, picking up a stone from the ground.

Seeing her nod, Alice threw the stone in the air. When it fell to the ground, Alice, Emma, and Ivy ran off quickly.

Unlike them, the other three children ran much slower. Although they were vampires, their difference from a normal person was not significant. They were already quite impressive for their age.

At such a young age, the three children could easily match someone 10 years older than them.

Ana, who had escaped from the banquet to secretly watch her babies, couldn't help but be speechless at the game they were playing.

Ana assumed that Damian meant this by adapting to the world. Even in front of other vampires, the difference was immense. How would it be with normal humans?

"What are the little devils up to?" Ophelia asked, arriving with a drink in her hand.

''I'm not sure, but they're having a race, it looks like they want to do a lap around the gardens,'' Ana said.

"Isn't that like 3 miles?" Ophelia asked, speechless.

Ophelia created a hologram on her wrist that showed the cameras of the entire garden. As she expected, she saw her three little ones running very fast.

"They're really fast for one-year-olds," said Ophelia, sighing. She probably couldn't run any faster even in her prime when she was human.

"Yes, but it's still within the norm. They are Damian's daughters," said Ana with a slight smile.

"What about the other children?" asked Ana.

"They're quite far back, especially Sharon," said Ophelia, checking the cameras.

"Do you know their names?" Ana asked, somewhat surprised.

"Of course, they are the children of my dear subordinates. I even helped name their children," said Ophelia proudly.

Almost 8 minutes after the race started, Alice came running with a big smile on her face. She gave a little jump before turning around and looking at her sisters, who were a bit behind.

"I won," Alice said with a smile.

Emma and Ivy just pouted before ignoring her.

"I'll go get them," said Ophelia with a wry smile. Sharon had already given up after running 1 kilometer, and Aminah had been left at 3 kilometers. Only Brian was close to arriving, but he was running unsteadily.

Ophelia exited at a speed impossible for the human eye to see before reappearing a few seconds later with Sharon and Aminah in her arms.

"Hm? How did you get here before?" Alice asked in surprise as she looked at Sharon and Aminah, who were behind her.

"Mommy brought them," said Emma.

At that moment, Brian arrived. He had dust on his clothes and was sweating, clearly having a tough time.

"Brian, you lost. It's your turn to count," Alice said with a smile.

Brian didn't even listen to Alice and just collapsed on the ground as soon as he arrived. Brian looked at the sky, speechless. He was clearly older, so why were these girls so fast?

Only his pride as the eldest of the group allowed him to reach the finish line.

"What's up? Do you want to take a nap?" Alice asked, coming over and looking at him in confusion.

"Alice, honey, just leave it," said Ophelia, shaking her head with a wry smile. Alice's innocence could be cruel.

"What if I play too? I'll count, and you hide," said Ophelia, smiling.

"Sure," Alice said, smiling.

Everyone except Brian also nodded.

"Then I'll start counting. Remember to hide," said Ophelia, approaching a tree and starting to count with her eyes covered.

The five children immediately started running while looking for a place to hide.

They were clearly no strangers to the game.

The garden was quite large and had all kinds of bushes and little grass mazes, so it wasn't hard to find a place to hide.

Ophelia finished counting and began to look around with a smile, although her smile froze a little when she saw Brian still lying on the floor.

Ignoring him, she began to search.

Ophelia didn't plan to cheat, aside from her advantage of being faster, so it wasn't impossible that some would be spared.

Ana smiled with amusement as she recorded Ophelia moving slowly through the garden, searching for the girls.

Ophelia first encountered Sharon, who peeked her head out a bit before quickly retreating, eliminating herself.

Ophelia quickly found Aminah before starting to look for the more difficult ones.

In Ophelia's opinion, Alice would be easier to find. The problem lay with Emma and Ivy. Those two little girls were quite cunning.

As Ophelia had expected, after a few minutes, she found Alice, and they both started running towards the tree.

Alice ran in panic and held out her hand to stop Ophelia, who had beaten her to it and was about to touch the tree. Suddenly, Alice's hand lit up and fired a small cosmic ray, surprising Ophelia and causing her to dodge. The beam hit the tree, causing a small explosion and shaking it.

Ophelia nearly fell to the ground in surprise as she watched Alice shoot a bolt of lightning from her hands. Although the damage was minimal and would probably only incapacitate a normal person, it was still incredible for a one-year-old girl.

Alice took advantage of Ophelia's momentary daze to run to the tree and save herself. After saving herself, Alice looked at her hand with a bit of confusion as she sat down, feeling a strange sensation.

Carol, who was at the banquet but occasionally looked outside, felt the energy in the garden and couldn't help but be surprised. She ran out and arrived in front of Alice.

"Honey, what's wrong?" Carol asked, seeing her daughter sitting up and looking tired.

"I don't know, Mommy. I feel weird. I don't want to move," said Alice, confused.

"You're tired," Carol laughed as she saw her daughter's confused expression.

"What happened?" Carol asked Ana, who came to her side, with curiosity.

"It looks like she inherited your abilities. She triggered them in a moment of emotion," said Ana, showing her the video.

"Look at my little girl. She will be strong like her mother," said Carol proudly.

"She's also silly like her mother. She doesn't even know what it's like to be tired," said Ana with an amused smile.

In the chaos of Alice's shooting, Ivy and Emma stealthily saved themselves. Ophelia just pouted at losing to children. Ivy and Emma also witnessed Alice's beam, so they excitedly went over to ask her.

"How did you do that?" asked Ivy excitedly, taking Alice's hand.

"I don't know. I just felt something warm, and it came out," said Alice, tilting her head in confusion.

"Mommy, when can we do that?" Emma asked.

"When you're a little older. Alice's was a fluke," Ana said, comforting Emma. Maybe she could never do exactly that since she's not Carol's daughter.

"Okay, kids, that's enough game. Let's go inside and get something to eat. Let's also cut the cake," said Ophelia, smiling to divert the topic.

All the children came in with smiles on their faces, looking for something to eat. Playing and running around had made them hungry, especially Brian, who was very tired.

Next, they sang the birthday song before distributing the cake to everyone.

In the afternoon, the guests began to leave, and the children said their goodbyes.

"Let's play again another day," said Alice, bidding farewell with a smile.

"See ya," Ivy said, smiling.

"Goodbye," said Emma, waving goodbye.

The children also bid their farewells before leaving with their mothers.

Only the family remained, along with Jen, Tony, Pepper, and Obadiah.

Obadiah had spent the whole afternoon trying to establish connections with some of the most important people in Madripoor. However, he realized he had made a mistake. The people here were like hooligans and didn't play by the rules of politeness. He was outright rejected on all occasions, with no possibility for negotiation. These people couldn't be bribed, or rather, he had nothing to bribe them with.

"Tony, I'll wait in the jet," Obadiah said, his typical friendly smile somewhat forced.

"I take my leave. Thank you very much for having me," said Obadiah politely to Damian and his family before leaving.

"Sure, just ask someone to take you. You can also explore the city if you feel like it," Damian said, nodding politely.

"Sure, I'll go check out the city," said Obadiah, feeling slightly more encouraged at the chance to accomplish something. He didn't believe that normal citizens would be as demanding as the people he had encountered.

"I think I'm starting to see through you already. You're polite to someone you don't like or have no interest in approaching," Tony said, smiling slightly.

"You're kind of right," Damian said with a smile.

"Let's go inside and sit down for a chat," said Damian.

The whole group moved to the room where they usually gathered and sat down.

"Little girls, you still haven't said hello to me," said Tony, looking at Damian's three daughters, who glanced at him before laughing.

"Where's my gift?" Alice asked, holding out her hand.

"Yeah, yeah, where's our present? I heard from Mommy that you have a lot of money, so we're expecting something nice," said Ivy, putting her hands on her hips in an adorable way.

Emma also looked at him as she slowly extended her hand.

Carol pursed her lips at how cheeky they were with the playboy; they were only like that with people they liked.

Tony chuckled as he looked at the three little minxes.

''They're in the gift area; you'll have to check later. Plus, their father is richer than I am,'' said Tony, laughing and holding out his hands helplessly to indicate that he had nothing.

The three girls looked at him with something akin to disdain, imitating the expressions of adults, before ignoring him and going to play with Sassy.

''How can they not be tired after playing all day?'' Tony asked, shaking his head with a smile.

"They are very energetic, like their father. I can last all day doing things," said Damian seriously before bursting out laughing with Tony.

Pepper rolled her eyes and muttered 'men' to herself.

''By the way, show me that thing you've been working on,'' said Tony.

''Sure, you're going to love it. Follow me,'' said Damian, getting up and leading Tony to the lab beneath the palace.

The women who were left alone in the room began to talk about things they couldn't discuss in front of Damian and Tony.

''So, tell me, how are things going with Tony?'' Carol asked, laughing.

''Nothing's happening with Tony,'' Pepper said, denying it with a faint smile.

"Come on, tell us. There are six women here who can help you," said Carol.

''I don't think it's a secret to you that I like Tony, but it's impossible between the two of us. He's too irresponsible and... a lot of things. So, I just try to take care of him as best I can,'' Pepper said with a slight smile.

''If we were to enter into a relationship and he betrayed me, I couldn't bear it. I'd quit and walk out of his life. Things are fine the way they are,'' said Pepper, denying with a smile.

''I think you two will definitely end up together,'' Jen said with a slight smile.

''Ohh, look at that kind of smile Damian does when he wants to be mysterious and talk about something from the future,'' said Ophelia, laughing.

Jen gave Ophelia an annoyed look before ignoring her.

''Who knows if Damian copied it or Jen copied it from Damian,'' Carol said with a laugh.

''You girls,'' Pepper said with a laugh. It was only the second time she had come to Madripoor and met Damian's family, but it always had a relaxed and loving atmosphere, despite the banter between them.

....

Damian, on the other hand, took Tony to the lab beneath the palace.

''What a thing you've got down here,'' said Tony, astonished.

''Not bad,'' Damian said, nodding with a smile before leading Tony to a room.

Damian turned on the screen and showed Tony what he had been working on.

In front of them was displayed a green armor with black accents and an orange visor.

''What is that?'' Tony asked, confused.

''It's an advanced exoskeleton designed to enhance soldiers' abilities,'' Damian said with a smile.

''Although you might as well call it armor,'' Damian added with a soft chuckle.

Tony looked thoughtfully at the armor as many theories ran through his head.

''According to the data you've shown, it's almost impossible. Not only is creating the exoskeleton difficult, but the energy required is also too much, and the technology in our world hasn't advanced that far,'' said Tony, shaking his head.

''Their creation is nearly finished,'' Damian said with a smile.

''Show me,'' said Tony, excitedly.

''No,'' Damian said with a big smile.

''Fuck you, you showed me this just to tease me,'' said Tony, looking anxious at the thought of not being able to see something so magnificent.

''Create your own,'' said Damian, patting Tony's shoulder with a laugh as he started to leave the room.

''Shit,'' Tony cursed before following Damian back into the living room.

''Don't make that face. I promise that when everything is ready, I will show you,'' said Damian, laughing when he saw Tony's expression.

''Are you sure it's possible?'' Tony asked, a little more serious as he continued to make calculations in his head.

''Yes,'' nodded Damian.

''I see,'' said Tony thoughtfully. He wouldn't have thought of doing something like this, but now that he knows it's possible, he should definitely try to do it.

Damian took Tony back to the living room where everyone noticed his irritation. But after a while, Tony returned to normal, and everyone had a good time talking.

It was already dark when Tony and Pepper said goodbye.

Even the little vampire girls' batteries were depleted as they lay sleepily on Sassy.

It was already late, so everyone went to their rooms to rest. Jen even decided to spend the night and come back the next day.

After playing all day, the little ones were quite dirty, so they gave them a quick bath before putting them to bed.

''It's the first time Alice has fallen asleep so fast,'' said Carol, shaking her head and smiling.

''After all they did today, it would be weird if they weren't tired,'' Ophelia said with a laugh.

''Oh right, Damian, did you see our daughter shoot lightning from her hands?'' said Carol animatedly as she hugged Damian.

''I didn't see it, but I felt it,'' said Damian, smiling as he kissed Carol.

''Watch the video,'' said Carol, showing Damian how Alice reached out her little hand and unleashed a bolt of lightning.

''Although the damage is a bit pitiful,'' Damian said with a slight chuckle.

''It'll get better when she grows up,'' Carol said with a laugh.

"Nat, did you do anything interesting today?" Damian asked, smiling.

''I talked to a SHIELD agent who was at the party. Coulson is his name. He's kind of like Fury's right-hand man,'' Natasha said.

''Hm,'' Damian made a sound of recognition. Now that he remembered, Carol mentioned something like that.

''Well, let's go take a bath and go to sleep,'' said Damian, smiling as he walked to the bathroom.

Ophelia was the first to give her approval before following Damian, under the speechless gaze of the other women.

After the bath, everyone went to sleep.

Living with the girls, every day was different and fun. Before they knew it, half a year had passed, and it was time for it all to begin.

----

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