Mavuika stood to the side, watching this scene with great interest.
As a deity who had lived for thousands of years, she had seen countless father-son relationships—some intimate, some distant and cold, some turned into enemies.
But seeing people like Howard and Tony, who clearly cared for each other yet always used arguments and confrontation to express it, was quite rare.
She could feel Howard's worry and expectations for his son, and she could also feel Tony's complex emotions toward his father.
It was a mixture of respect, rebellion, a longing for recognition, and a need to prove himself.
Seeing the two start clashing as soon as they met, Mavuika stepped forward, interrupting their conversation at just the right moment. Her movements were natural and fluid, like a gentle breeze blowing into air about to erupt in a thunderstorm.
"Alright, Howard," Mavuika's voice was calm and pleasant. "You haven't introduced me yet. Who is this?"
Her intervention was like a bucket of cold water, instantly dousing the impending fire of rage.
Howard took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, and finally let it go. He straightened his slightly disheveled collar and introduced him in as steady a tone as possible: "This is my son, Tony! Tony Stark!"
He paused and added a sentence in a complex tone: "As you can see, smart, gifted with Talents, but also... quite a headache."
Tony didn't care about his father's evaluation at all; instead, his eyes lit up because of Mavuika's inquiry.
He turned to Mavuika, that frivolous yet charming smile hanging on his face again, and extended his hand with movements as elegant as a specially trained noble.
"Hello, beautiful!" Tony said, his voice carrying the vigor and confidence unique to youth. "Pleasure to meet you. How should I address you?"
His gaze looked directly into Mavuika's eyes without any flinching.
Mavuika didn't mind and reached out to shake Tony's hand.
Her palm was warm, and her skin was so fine it didn't seem mortal, yet it didn't feel delicate or weak at all.
On the contrary, Tony could feel that those hands contained some indescribable sense of power, like holding a piece of warm yet indestructible jade.
"Mavuika," she simply stated her name, her amber eyes looking at the sharp-edged young man before her with interest.
"Mavuika, a fine name!" Tony praised, gently shaking Mavuika's hand.
He didn't do anything disrespectful in front of his father, although his words and actions were already disrespectful enough in Howard's eyes.
After shaking hands with Mavuika for two seconds, he let go, his movements proper and natural.
"I thought the Old man had suddenly seen the light and wanted to find some youthful thrills, so I followed him to take a look," Tony started chatting with Mavuika with an air of familiarity, completely ignoring his father's ashen face nearby.
"You know, it's hard to figure that out at his age. A seventy-something-year-Old man suddenly wanting to ride a motorcycle? That's like... like Einstein suddenly announcing he's going skydiving. It's unbelievable."
He walked to Mavuika's side and lowered his voice, yet just loud enough for Howard to hear: "But with me around, I'm very good at this sort of thing and can provide him with a lot of advice and help."
"Fashionable outfits, social skills, even dating advice... although I think the Old man might be past the age for dating."
As Tony spoke, he laughed first, his smile bright and infectious, but Howard couldn't laugh at all.
"But now it seems it's not what I thought..." Tony changed the subject, his gaze falling on that truck and then returning to Mavuika.
"Miss Mavuika, that vehicle was custom-made for you by the Old man, wasn't it?"
His tone was very certain, as if he had already confirmed this guess.
Mavuika smiled and said, "Oh? Why would you think that?"
She neither admitted nor denied it, simply throwing the ball back with a question.
Tony didn't answer directly but instead turned and walked toward the truck's cargo bed.
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