Nearly Dead Banner

"Argh—"

The bird-shaped demon cried out in pain and turned around viciously, wanting to see which fool had dared to make trouble in front of His Majesty.

However, when it saw that it was Hulk, its furious gaze instantly cleared. It silently turned back around. Too strong. It couldn't win.

"Hulk. Gift."

Hulk grinned and handed over the feathers in his hand.

"...Thank you, Uncle Hulk."

Damian silently accepted them as well, clutching the feathers tightly in his small hands. His expression was somewhat complicated.

Kino was also at a loss for words.

"He isn't your uncle. Hulk should be about your age. You should call him big brother."

Blonsky nodded in agreement.

"Hulk... big brother?"

Damian opened his mouth wide and stared at Hulk's enormous body in disbelief. He couldn't help wondering: What does he have to eat to grow that big?

Hulk happily patted his chest when he heard Damian's form of address, producing a series of booming thuds.

At that moment, Yū also came over, holding a fist-sized gemstone in her hands.

"This is Aunt Yū's gift."

Yū smiled as she spoke and held the gemstone out in front of Damian.

Damian looked at the aunt who was only a palm taller than him.

"Thank you, Aunt Yū."

Damian sweetly accepted the gemstone with both hands and carefully held it in his palms.

Yū nodded in satisfaction and reached out to gently pat Damian's head.

After giving Yū and the others some important instructions, Kino's figure blurred, and he returned to the Marvel universe.

Kino appeared in a manor. The moment he opened his eyes, he was met with a dense sea of green.

Vines of all shapes and sizes covered the walls. Colorful plants and gorgeous flowers intertwined with one another, and Kino could even see a fruit-laden tree growing from the ceiling.

If he hadn't seen the familiar dining table from before, he really would have thought he had come to the wrong place.

"Godfather, are we going to live in a forest from now on?" Damian asked curiously, hugging a pile of gifts.

His small body was almost completely hidden behind the gifts, with only his eyes showing. His voice came muffled from behind them.

"No."

"Pamela, I'm back."

Kino called out. This was obviously Pamela's handiwork.

As if they had heard Kino's voice, the plants around them seemed to sense something and began slowly disappearing.

The vines retreated like a receding tide, while the flowers withered and fell in an instant. In the blink of an eye, the scene that had resembled a forest gradually returned to the manor's original appearance.

Damian poked his head out from the pile of gifts and stared at the miraculous change in astonishment, his small face filled with disbelief.

Pamela appeared at the entrance wearing a green dress, resembling an elf of spring. Her face was radiant with joy and excitement, and she rushed over impatiently.

"Darling, I missed you so much."

Pamela hugged Kino tightly, as if she wanted to merge herself into his body.

"I missed you too, Pamela. Come to think of it, why did you turn the manor into that?"

"The plants told me danger was approaching, so I summoned some plants to protect the manor."

"Danger? I was careless this time. I'm sorry."

A cold glint flashed through Kino's eyes. He had already displayed his power, yet some people were still refusing to behave.

"It's all right, darling. This little one—"

Pamela noticed the small figure nearby, her eyes lighting up. She shoved Kino aside and hurried over to Damian.

"Is this the child Sister Venom promised me? He was born so quickly. His eyes look like mine, and his hair looks like darling's..."

Pamela spoke excitedly, her face blooming with a smile as radiant as a flower.

Pamela held Damian in her arms. Feeling the warmth of her embrace and seeing the undisguised affection in her eyes, he didn't push her away.

If Aunt Venom looked at him as if he were a toy, then this aunt's eyes were filled with nothing but adoration, as though he were the most precious treasure in the world.

Seeing Pamela like this, Kino felt somewhat reluctant to hurt her feelings. He hadn't known that her longing for a child was so intense.

Venom came directly out and said, "Pamela, this is Batman's child. We haven't even started making our child yet."

Pamela looked at Kino in confusion. "Darling, why did you bring Batman's child here?"

"Batman's world isn't safe, so he entrusted her to me. I'm her godfather now." Kino hurriedly explained.

Pamela's eyes dimmed slightly. The disappointment that flashed across her face was clear to see, but she still looked at Damian gently afterward.

"Child, what's your name?" Pamela's voice was filled with boundless warmth.

"Damian Wayne." Damian answered obediently. Pamela's gentleness affected him, and his expression relaxed considerably.

"My name is Pamela," Pamela said. "You can call me Mom Pamela too." Her voice was as soft as the breeze, and her eyes were filled with anticipation. That gaze seemed capable of melting any ice.

Damian looked at the anticipation in Pamela's eyes and hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "Mom Pamela."

"What a good child." Pamela's face blossomed with a brilliant smile like spring flowers. She bent down and pressed her red lips to Damian's cheek, leaving a gentle kiss.

Venom also came over at that moment and said impatiently, "Damian, call me Mom Venom."

"Mom Venom," Damian obediently called out.

Kino watched their warm and harmonious interaction and couldn't help smiling. Then he left the room.

Just then, Frank and Banner slowly appeared as well.

Frank strode forward with steady, powerful steps. His face still wore that stern, cold expression, but a barely perceptible softness flashed in his eyes.

"Welcome back, Young Master."

"Young Master, you're finally back. I'm exhausted. Frank is practically inhuman—he only sleeps three hours a day, and he drags me along with him."

Banner wore a bitter expression, with dark circles clearly visible beneath his eyes. Ever since Frank had dragged him away, he had been handling all kinds of matters, barely even having enough time to sleep.

He had wanted to ask Frank for a break, but seeing how much harder Frank worked than he did, he couldn't bring himself to say anything.

Every day, he hovered on the brink of dying from exhaustion. Without Hulk, he was just an ordinary person—not a super-soldier like Frank who could go five days and five nights without sleep. (According to the comics.)

Kino looked at Banner and couldn't help laughing. "Banner, thanks for all your hard work. Go get some proper rest first. I found us an assistant this time."

Banner and Frank both breathed a sigh of relief.

One was Banner, whose stamina was that of an ordinary person without Hulk.

The other had no trouble killing people, setting fires, or training soldiers, but asking him to run a company, conduct interviews, or deal with complicated data reports was simply too much. Otherwise, he wouldn't have forcibly dragged Dr. Banner into it.

"Young Master, who is it?"

Banner was already eager to meet the person.

Kino raised his hand and waved it lightly through the air. A portal instantly appeared before them.

"Ra's al Ghul, come out."

Light flickered inside the portal, and a figure gradually became clear.

Ra's al Ghul stepped out of the dazzling light with steady strides. His expression was solemn and respectful, and he looked firmly toward Kino.

"Young Master."