Kusinada Household. Morning.
A spacious, cozy room filled with the scent of oils and polish. Light tones, European style, a double bed—its walls hidden behind blueprints. A few particularly large ones even hung from the ceiling. Heavy curtains blocked every ray of sunlight, shielding the room's occupant from the merciless sun. Unfortunately, the sun wasn't the only thing vying for their sleep.
The door opened silently, and a woman entered. Beautiful and young, with a figure that could make models envious, she wore a light sundress adorned with sunflowers. Her expression was mischievously sweet as she tiptoed into the room, stopping beside the bed. She ordered the smart optics to take photos every three seconds, then pressed an inconspicuous switch near the headboard. Motors hummed softly in the walls, drawing the curtains apart. The first rays of sunlight filled the room, and the two children in the bed wrinkled their noses adorably. Tony, who had been sleeping on his back, was the first to wake, staring blankly at the ceiling, while Lucy buried her nose deeper into his armpit, eliciting another wave of affection from the woman.
Alicia Kusinada loved children, and she loved cute things. Her little girl was the cutest in the universe, in her mother's eyes. Even Lucy's nocturnal "secret migrations" from her own room to Tony's side were endearing to her.
"Lucius," Alicia said, immediately earning a reproachful look from the boy.
"Do you realize that naming your own grandchildren when your daughter is still a child herself is unhinged?" Tony finally replied.
"Are you saying you won't marry my daughter? After everything you two have been through?!" Alicia exclaimed in mock shock.
"Yeah, yeah, changing diapers is such an intimate process," Tony scoffed, slowly waking up.
"Exactly," Alicia nodded solemnly. "So be a man and take responsibility—marry my daughter."
"Madhouse," Tony sighed wearily.
It wasn't that he minded laughing and having fun, but not when he was the butt of the joke—especially on this topic. The Tony Stark who had regained his memories was a staunch bachelor, convinced that marriage was an outdated relic, dubious at best in modern society. In the past, when marriage was primarily a political tool, uniting two families into an alliance, legal confirmation was necessary to prevent either party from backing out without serious consequences. But by the mid-20th century, that function had faded. Marriages of convenience gave way to love matches, where two people built genuine relationships rather than cold calculations. And as everyone knew, in any relationship, a third party was always a nuisance—even if that third party was the state. Especially if it was the state. So Alicia's jokes didn't amuse him, even when they were fresh. Worse, he was starting to suspect they weren't jokes at all. And in that, he wasn't entirely wrong.
Alicia, for her part, wasn't opposed to the idea. She had already mentally married Tony to her daughter for three reasons. First, Tony was a genius—plain and simple, a Genius with a capital G. That meant he wouldn't fail; he'd always land on his feet, even in unforeseen hardships. Second, Tony was wealthy. Not obscenely so, but comfortably: aside from his parents' six-figure inheritance, a medical equipment program he'd written the previous year had taken off, earning him royalties from every corporation even tangentially linked to medicine. True, Tony only deserved half the credit—the rest went to his parents and the Polish government, which aggressively marketed his patent, promoting the program wherever possible. Convenient, profitable, and entirely acceptable, especially when watching the numbers grow. Alicia didn't know the exact figure in Tony's accounts, but she was certain it was substantial. And third, the most important reason: Tony was a good boy. Kind, genuinely fond of her girl (even if platonically), and attentive. In short, if she married them off, she'd rest easy—which was why she nagged them relentlessly, 24/7.
"Munya~" A muffled sound came from the armpit space. "Good morning," Lucy greeted everyone, rubbing her eyes adorably.
"You snuck into my room again," Tony grumbled. And he had reason to be annoyed—he liked sleeping naked, and Lucy made that impossible! Maybe if he had the mindset of a ten-year-old, he wouldn't care, especially given the mixed Polish-Japanese norms where nudity was more than tolerated. But he had the mind of a forty-year-old man! Sleeping naked with a little girl in the same bed… well, it raised questionable associations. Dubious, shameful, and not exactly pleasant ones.
"Yep," Lucy agreed easily, showing no remorse on her sleepy face. She loved sleeping with Tony—he was soft and warm, and she just loved hugging him.
"Fine, I'm hitting the shower," Tony sighed in resignation, dragging himself toward the bathroom.
The Kusinada house was smaller than the Stark mansion and less fortified, but their kitchen, heating, and smart systems were top-notch. And while "less fortified" was true, it was only in comparison to the Stark fortress. They still had sturdy walls, reinforced steel shutters, and three heavy turrets. More than enough for hypothetical thieves—if serious players came knocking, not even Stark's security could stop them. Ultimately, the real defenders there were Robert and Claire, while Ryu and Alicia were… well, present. Ryu, at least, could be expected to put up a fierce fight—a veteran of the last corporate war, even if not heavily augmented. Alicia, however, was a civilian specialist. Compared to a pair of modded operatives, she and the kids were practically defenseless.
Stepping into the shower, Tony immediately turned on the freezing water to jolt himself awake. He stood there for a couple of minutes before switching to a normal temperature. As he washed, troubling thoughts crept back into his mind.
A lot of time had passed since his parents' deaths, and much had changed—not necessarily for the better, but there were silver linings. For one, he was freer in his actions. Alicia was a loving mother, but irresponsible, which wasn't surprising—all parental duties were handled by the staff. It would be unfair to blame a young, sheltered girl for delegating the unpleasant aspects of parenting to hired help when she had the means. Still, it grated on Tony, especially when Alicia unknowingly upset Lucy. Before he knew it, Tony had become Lucy's nanny, spending more time with her than her mother—and far more than her perpetually absent father. And then there was Lucy herself. The little girl had burrowed deep into Tony's heart, genuinely helping him climb out of depression.
When he regained his memories, when he truly became himself again, depression wasn't the only thing he faced—he also suffered an identity crisis. He simply didn't know who he was! As the saying went, existence shaped consciousness, but the phrase's author clearly hadn't considered a child's body housing an adult mind. Fresh emotions and experiences said one thing, while memory and experience said another, all seasoned with depression that only worsened with the return of his past. It wasn't just the realization of the friends and loved ones left behind—it was losing his parents all over again. In his past life, Tony had barely survived his parents' deaths, spiraling into months of binge drinking and earning himself alcoholism, which he fought until his own death. Now, reliving it all, the associative triggers resurrected emotions from his past life, compounding his current grief. He had been dangerously close to the edge. Fortunately, a tiny, positive, empathetic bundle of cuteness had first distracted him, then helped him cope with the loss, finally turning the page to a new beginning in his life.
The good events ended there, and the bad began.
First among them was Ryu Kusinada. While he played the role of a loving father and husband, he was, in fact, a sociopath—something Tony had pegged instantly. The awakened experience of a megacorp CEO gave him a sharp eye for people. Ryu was Tony's primary source of tension because he never knew what the man might do next. And they didn't like each other. In principle, Tony could have coexisted in his house relatively easily—Ryu spent far more time at work than at home. But Ryu's constant attempts to indoctrinate Tony and Lucy about the glory of the Japanese megacorp, the historical significance of Saburo, and loyalty to the Arasaka family grated on him. Ryu's skill in reading people told him his speeches had no effect on Tony, which only frustrated him further, increasing the pressure and sometimes lashing out at the boy. But Ryu was Tony's personal problem. The rapidly decaying Poland, however, was everyone's problem.
Due to events from the previous year, the government had lost significant authority and control, reducing it from the dominant power in the local swamp—untouchable by other players—to a mere referee. Previously restrained and occasionally purged gangs had grown bolder, increasingly infiltrating the city, wreaking havoc. Beatings, robberies, and extortion were far from the worst of it. Naturally, Tony's proactive nature compelled him to venture into the city more often to "clean up the scum." Even before his rebirth, Iron Man couldn't be called soft—not many billionaires built themselves a flying armored suit and flew east to shoot terrorists. Here, in this new life and world, Tony's already flexible moral principles regarding the value of human life had solidified into outright indifference toward such an ephemeral thing. Claire and Robert's upbringing had shaken his originally Christian-instilled "thou shalt not kill" principles, and after their deaths, those principles had crumbled entirely. Tony didn't know if this was good or bad, but given the global situation, probably good. He had a feeling he'd need to spill a lot of blood just to hold his ground, let alone fix things.
And yes, the current state of the world was Tony Stark's biggest problem in this reborn life. His mood after regaining his memories and assessing the situation could best be described as wanting to grab a flamethrower and burn every global elite to hell. Stark had never harbored illusions about modern politicians. He'd been steeped in their world since childhood, seeing enough to feel a mix of contempt and disgust for most of them. In his subjective opinion, real politicians had died out in the second half of the 20th century, replaced by "common folk" with no obligations or foundation, whose sole purpose was to cling to power as long as possible, grab what they could, and retire to a "well-deserved" pension. Tony didn't believe in democracy, and neither did the US elites—but being smart, they put talking heads in the spotlight to avoid the wrath of the masses. Hell, what democracy could there be when he could name a dozen presidents related to each other?! Some might say the US was, at its core, an aristocratic republic where clans called the shots—and they'd be right… to a point. The point where those clans lost much of their influence, allowing successful entrepreneurs into power, who then derailed a system that had worked for centuries. If what was happening in 2077 in his world was only emerging and had little chance of success due to strong individuals who could stand alone against the state, here those processes had reached their logical conclusion. The "successful businessmen" who seized power, unable to see beyond short-term gains, had destroyed all social institutions, leaving only a facade. The problem wasn't just that corporations had replaced governments almost everywhere—it was that those corporations were a bucket of crabs. Arasaka, for instance, had once tried to legally subjugate Japan, replacing government structures with its own, but the other Japanese corps had united against it. It seemed like a logical evolution: when one structure became more powerful, it replaced or absorbed the weaker, unnecessary ones. But competition prevented Arasaka from succeeding. As a result, a handful of minor corps tore Japan apart with their interests and infighting, stagnating while the situation grew increasingly critical. The stalemate was so severe that Stark saw no bloodless solutions. Worse, his thoughts kept drifting toward the Russians and their communism. Words like "nationalization" and "expropriation" sounded especially sweet. He hadn't decided how to act yet, but he knew action was necessary. Simply because he didn't want to live on a radioactive wasteland in a hundred years! The only alternative he considered was a cowardly escape to another planet. Mars, for example, looked promising for colonization. After all, he wasn't the one who created this mess—why should he clean it up?! No, if he had his corporation, with all its resources, connections, and equipment, he wouldn't hesitate. But lacking even a tenth of his former capabilities, he wasn't sure he could handle it.
"I'll leave these problems for future me," Tony decided, stepping out of the shower and heading downstairs for breakfast. The cook, a stern woman in her fifties, had just set out bowls of porridge—good, hearty porridge with nuts, raisins, and meat. Perfect for stocking up on calories for the day and soothing the gut.
As always, breakfast passed in silence, with everyone staring at their plates. Perhaps this moment best illustrated the true state of the Kusinada family, especially compared to the warm meals at the Starks'. Here, there was only emptiness. As if the man and woman at the table weren't husband and wife, but two strangers who couldn't care less about each other.
"Maybe that's exactly what they are," Tony thought, not even sure if Ryu and Alicia shared a bed. He knew Lucy had been grown in an incubator, and given the separate rooms…
"Thank you for the meal," Tony said, the standard phrase as he rose from the table.
"Mhm," Alicia at least acknowledged him. Lucy said nothing, quickly finishing her portion before Tony heard the patter of small feet behind him.
"Again with me?" he asked, though the answer was obvious.
"Yep," Lucy nodded seriously, recently obsessed with engineering. Her enhanced brain and memory allowed her to grasp everything instantly, already making her a confident hobbyist.
"Alright, then let's go," Tony said, ruffling her snow-white hair, making her resemble a displeased kitten. He smiled slightly.
Teaching this little firecracker was a genuine pleasure for Stark. Before regaining his memories, he hadn't particularly enjoyed it, but now he sincerely relished it. Little Kusinada truly understood what he was saying, displaying an intellect comparable to his own. That was incredibly valuable to Stark—across both lives, he could count on one hand the people who were his equals, and most of them wanted him dead. Here, he had not just an attentive listener, but a conversation partner who sometimes asked genuinely interesting and complex questions, forcing Tony to engage his own brain.
"Welcome back, Master Tony," Omnissia greeted him as he crossed the threshold of his home. Since both houses were neighbors—a mere ten-minute leisurely walk—Tony spent a lot of time here. Over the past year, he had seriously redesigned the interior, essentially turning the house into one giant workshop. The living room was now a storage space, the kitchen a chemical lab, two of the three bathrooms housed servers, the guest room was a lounge, and Robert's office was dedicated to blueprints. The only rooms Tony left untouched were his own and his parents'.
"Hello, Omnissia," he smiled at the robot, which had grown significantly taller—210 centimeters compared to its previous 180. The design hadn't changed much, but the internals had been completely overhauled by Stark, incorporating all his knowledge. Unfortunately, no repulsors, nanites, or arc reactors—there were no technological chains for the first, the second were too expensive, and no one would sell him the materials for the third. And he didn't want to risk putting such a powerful, scalable clean energy source into local hands. So he made do with what was available on the market, which his geographic location facilitated.
As one might guess, Tony worked at home. Currently, he was setting up his personal workshop, trying to bring it to some semblance of order by modifying ordered machines, equipment, and other necessities—money was no object. He was also gradually teaching Lucy, who showed remarkable talent in programming and drone construction. Today, however, he had different plans.
"Is everything ready?" he asked Omnissia, heading toward the brain activity corrector.
"All preparations are complete," she confirmed.
"Good," Tony nodded to himself. "Well, Lucy, shall we upgrade that brain of yours?" he smiled.
"Will it hurt?" she asked, a little nervous.
"Just a tiny bit," Tony reassured her, pinching his fingers to show how tiny. Seeing the doubt on her young face, he decided to sweeten the deal. "And afterward, I'll make your favorite ice cream. Deal?"
"Deal!" The cunning little thing instantly forgot all her fears, climbing into the chair and making Stark narrow his eyes suspiciously. "Well? What are we waiting for? Start it already—the sooner we finish, the sooner I get my ice cream!" she insisted, only deepening his suspicions.
"Yeah, yeah," Tony sighed in resignation, activating the device.
Why put Lucy—and himself—through this procedure again? The answer was simple: he was attached to this kid and wanted the best for her. He couldn't see her as his fiancée, simply due to his preferences—he liked his partners curvy, preferably with long, beautiful legs (and the rest followed). He just wanted to help Lucy, to contribute to her future. And what better contribution than optimizing her body, with bonuses like longevity and accelerated regeneration? Given Lucy's future career as a netrunner, such enhancements might one day save her life—which, in Tony's view, justified any expense. Here, it was just a slightly higher electricity bill.
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100 power stones= 1 Bonus Chapte
advanced chapters available on{P@treon/Anna_N1}