Doro's Social Skills

Hearing Doro call him Grandpa, Tony was genuinely devastated.

What Tony did not know was that Sherlock himself did not care much about so-called guardianship rights. After all, Sherlock was already an adult. Even if such guardianship really existed, it would not be of much use.

As for the whole godfather issue, it was even less of a problem for Sherlock. Don't ask—China did not have a tradition of that stuff!

Doro calling him Grandpa had purely been to disgust Tony a little. After all, who would have thought that the playboy in front of him was, in a legal sense, his "father"?

What Sherlock did not know was that Tony himself did not care all that much about making Sherlock call him Dad either—at least, not for now. He had only said it so he would have more standing when trying to persuade Sherlock.

Not only that, Tony remained skeptical of Sherlock's so-called Alchemy. Back in the Middle East, Sherlock had behaved far too much like the sort of wizard from Tony's stereotypes.

As for Doro, Tony did not believe its existence could prove that Sherlock was some legendary alchemist. The only thing he could be certain of was that Doro was definitely a creature created by magic.

Of course, if Sherlock truly knew Alchemy or something similar, Tony would undoubtedly be more interested in it than anyone else in the world.

Whether or not Tony believed Sherlock's claims, he was at least somewhat glad that he had insisted on sending Sherlock back in the first place.

The group spent the entire trip in that strange atmosphere, each lost in their own thoughts.

It was not until the plane landed that Tony stepped out first and embraced Pepper. When Pepper saw Sherlock following behind Tony, she blurted out Sherlock's name before he could introduce himself. Only then did Sherlock truly begin to believe that Tony might really be his father in a legal sense.

"Sherlock? Why are you here? And why are you with Tony?"

Faced with Pepper's question, Tony briefly introduced the two sides to each other before muddling through the matter with a vague explanation.

"Yeah, I ran into Sherlock along the way. Since he's my 'good big son,' I gave him a ride."

As Tony said this, his eyes darted about and his hand kept rubbing his nose. He was clearly acting guilty. More importantly, anyone with normal intelligence would never believe such a reason, much less Pepper, a capable woman who had served as Tony's secretary.

Still, disbelief was one thing. Pepper had enough sense not to expose Tony's utterly clumsy lie, and simply called everyone over to get in the cars.

Fortunately, Tony was rich. There were quite a few vehicles in the convoy that had come to pick him up, or there would not have been enough seats for the three and a half unexpected additions.

What? You were asking about Doro?

Well, Sherlock had stuffed Doro into his backpack for an occasion like this. Doro was sleeping soundly inside. The little thing's mouth had not stopped from the moment it boarded the plane, so now that it was full, it naturally needed some extra sleep.

After Tony and Pepper got into the same car, Pepper nearly immediately asked Tony what exactly was going on. Left with no choice, Tony did not hide anything from her and explained everything clearly, point by point.

Reality, however, was often too absurd. Sherlock had been a shut-in for the entire five years since crossing over. Pepper simply could not believe that the pitiful child described in the information she had received as introverted, obedient, and reluctant even to leave the house was actually an alchemist!

Unlike in the movie, Tony did not immediately hold a press conference to shut down the Stark Weapons Division this time. Instead, after Pepper shoved him into a hospital for a full examination, he took everyone straight back to his seaside villa.

Only after Sherlock and the others entered did Sherlock take the newly awakened Doro out of his bag.

Doro was incredibly excited by the completely unfamiliar environment. Its two little legs moved furiously as it raced around the house.

Doro's distinctly unusual anime-like appearance did give Pepper a fright at first. But soon, Doro ran over to Sherlock holding an orange it had found in Tony's kitchen, looking up at him eagerly as it tried to offer him the fruit. Pepper's heart nearly melted on the spot.

Especially after Pepper got Sherlock's permission and picked Doro up, its jelly-like soft body and its expressive, adorably cute anime-style face made Pepper's maternal instincts overflow.

Watching her, Sherlock seriously suspected that she wanted to fight him for custody of Doro.

As it turned out, Sherlock's suspicion was entirely correct. The instant that thought arose, Pepper carefully held Doro and asked Sherlock whether she could take Doro out to play for a while.

Compared to Tony, Sherlock undoubtedly had a much better impression of Pepper, so he agreed without hesitation. This filled Tony's gaze toward Sherlock with resentment.

Ever since seeing Doro, Tony had been exceptionally interested in it. Yet Sherlock would not even give him a chance to hold Doro. The crucial part was that Doro was obedient too—if Sherlock did not allow it, Doro would not let Tony hold it.

Tony had even tried to forcibly hold Doro on the plane, only for Doro to evade him with nimble movements.

Now, the little creature he had wanted so badly was smiling innocently and obediently in Pepper's arms. Tony's jealousy was practically about to explode.

Fortunately, the situation did not last long. Sherlock stayed behind at Tony's mansion, while John Wick and his wife left with Pepper, who was holding Doro. After all, they had come here for a vacation.

As for Sherlock, on one hand, his identity was what it was. Neither Sherlock nor Tony wanted to admit it, but it was the truth.

On the other hand, Sherlock was still waiting for Tony to modify his vehicle. Tony, meanwhile, wanted to show Sherlock his laboratory and, while he was at it, get a look at Sherlock's Alchemy.

With all those factors combined, Sherlock remained at Tony's mansion.

Only after everyone else had left did Tony finally let out a deliberately casual sigh and say to Sherlock,

"Come on, kid. Let me show you around my lab!"

But although Sherlock lifted his foot and followed Tony, his mouth had no intention of letting him off.

"Tony, there's something I'm curious about. Why didn't you shut down Stark Industries' weapons division the moment you came back?"