With the phone to his ear, Tony began to speak, “Alpha Dave.”
There was a moment of silence on the other end before a voice spoke, “Tony , I need your help!”
“What is it?”
“So, how about I send someone to pick you up, and you come over to DX?” Dave asked directly.
Tony paused for a moment and was genuinely taken aback by that. However, he was a person with a strong ability to adapt. Soon, he spoke up, “I have no problem going, but you're well aware of my status. If you're not worried about that, then I have no issues.”
He thought after saying that, Dave would hesitate a bit. But, as soon as his words fell, Dave spoke up, “Anyway, you're the future heir of DX. It doesn't matter!”
Tony was in shock. “How come I know nothing about this?”
“Didn't I notify you in advance?” Dave retorted, “I feel like I've mentioned this many times.”
“But I didn't agree to this!”
“Does it even matter whether you agree to this or not?” Dave retorted.
“I...”
“Alright, enough chatter,” Dave said. “The car is on its way and should arrive in about twenty minutes. Just do as they instruct when the time comes!”
Tony initially wanted to say something else, but he understood the gravity of the situation and responded, “Alright, I understand.”
After hanging up the phone, Tony stood up and stretched a bit. Then, he took out a piece of clothing from the cabinet and changed into it.
I'm going to DX. I can't afford to embarrass myself, right?
Looking at the person standing in the mirror, he was dressed in black from head to toe. A black shirt, black pants, black coat, and even the pair of short boots were black. Even so, on Tony , under the contrast of his fair and tender face, he still looked incredibly distinguished.
That could not be helped. Tony seemed to have been born for the color black. Every time he wore black clothes, there was an unusual sense of mystery about him, as well as a maturity beyond his years.
Looking at his reflection in the mirror, Tony 's eyes flashed with a hint of satisfaction. Then, he turned around and took out a black bag from the cabinet, into which he packed his laptop.
Seeing that the time was about right, he finally picked up his bag and walked out directly.
As he was heading down, the car just happened to pull into the yard. After it came to a halt, someone got out of the vehicle.
Upon seeing it was Luke, Tony slightly narrowed his eyes.
“It's you?”
Luke immediately flashed a smile. “Do you still remember me?”
“Of course, you were Alpha Dave's lifesaver last time. No, I should say you were my daddy's lifesaver!” Tony said.
Upon hearing that, Luke realized he was talking about the incident at the boss's house. He immediately waved his hand with a smile. “Oh, it was just a coincidence.”
“Whether it was a coincidence or luck, no matter what, thank you for saving them back then,” Tony said to him.
Despite Tony 's cool and aloof appearance, he was very polite.
Luke himself had no resistance toward children. After witnessing Tony 's performance at the base last time, he could not help but admire him greatly.
Indeed, children from excellent families were always so outstanding!
“Dave and Boss are the most important people to me. It's only right that I should do so,” Luke said.
Tony chuckled.
Suddenly, Luke remembered something and immediately opened the car door. “Let's go. Dave sent me to pick you up.”
Tony nodded, then walked toward the car and got in directly.
There was another driver in the car. After Tony got in, the driver nodded at him as a greeting.
The car door closed, and Luke walked around to get in. As soon as the car started, Luke pulled out a blindfold and turned to look at Tony . “I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you to wear this.”
Tony looked at the blindfold in his hand. In an instant, he understood, yet he remained silent.
“This is the rule. Even when it's the boss, it has to be this way...” explained Luke.
Tony glanced at him. His eyes and brows looked cool and serene. Then, he leaned forward and took it from Luke's hands. “Understood,” he said and promptly put it on.
Luke looked on. “You can take a little nap. By the time you wake up, we will have arrived.”
After putting on his blindfold, Tony lazily leaned back into the genuine leather chair.
He did not speak, but he gave off an air of displeasure.
Luke looked on and remained silent.
At that moment, Tony spoke up, “If my daddy needs to wear the blindfold when he goes there, does it make sense? Doesn't he already know where it is?”
“The headquarters moved a few years ago. It's no longer in the previous location,” said Luke.
Upon hearing that, Tony nodded in agreement.
Afraid that Tony would take it to heart, Luke continued to explain, “However, this rule was set by the boss himself. It has been this way for many years.”
Tony laughed. “No need to explain so much to me. I understand. It's indeed as it should be.”
Hearing him say that, Luke finally breathed a sigh of relief. “It's best if you can understand.”
“I'm going to take a nap. Wake me up when it's time,” said Tony .
“Good!”
And so, beneath the blindfold, Tony closed his eyes. He was not sure if it was because he had not slept well the night before. However, at that moment, when he said he wanted to take a nap, he fell asleep right away.
He slept so soundly that he was completely oblivious to everything around him.
When he woke up again, it was because someone had disturbed his sleep.
“Dave, are you sure? Can he handle it?”
“Yeah, Dave. How old is he anyway?”
“What are you talking about? Dave is just joking with us.”
“Exactly. Dave, this is Boss J's kid, right?”
“Can you tell?”
“He's the spitting image of Boss J.”
Listening to the jumbled conversations around him, Tony 's brows furrowed slightly before he reluctantly opened his eyes.
The light was blinding. As Tony opened his eyes, he instinctively raised his hand to shield them.
At that moment, someone with quick thinking immediately redirected the light elsewhere.
After adjusting for a moment, Tony finally opened his eyes, and what met his gaze were four faces.
Watching them gather around to look at him, Tony sat up straight.
However, he got up too abruptly and almost fell due to his carelessness. Fortunately, someone reached out and caught him in time.
Tony 's gaze fell upon the scene before him. The sight of himself sitting at the table left him momentarily stunned.
“How... How did I end up here?” he asked.
“There's no bed here, so I had to put you down here,” a familiar voice echoed from behind.
Tony turned around, and there stood Dave not far away. He was watching him with his arms crossed over his chest.
Tony frowned. “No, what I mean is, wasn't I in the car?”
“You were asleep, and Luke didn't have the heart to wake you up, so he just carried you over here,” Dave said.
Tony was dumbstruck.
An image of Luke cradling him like a baby even formed in his mind.
He was supposed to arrive looking handsome. How did I end up like this...
Looking at Dave, then at the crowd around him, there was a glimmer of light in everyone's eyes. It was as if he was still a one or two-year-old child!
Tony 's illusion vanished.
Is this the gap between imagination and reality?
It's too much of a difference!
“Kiddo, are you really Boss J's son?”
“I've never heard that Boss J has such a grown-up son, and he's quite handsome, too!”
“Didn't someone say before that Boss J was against marriage? How come he has a child now?”
“Kiddo, how old are you?”
“Kiddo, do you look more like your dad or your mom?”
“Kiddo, do you want a lollipop?” At that moment, a man extended a lollipop toward him, effectively putting an end to the barrage of questions. However, the look in the man's eyes was unmistakably that of someone teasing a child.
With an indifferent look in his eyes, Tony glanced up, his gaze casually sweeping over the man. Seeing that he kept handing it over, Tony finally reached out to take it. He unwrapped it neatly and directly popped the lollipop into his mouth.
“Thank you,” Tony said softly.
Although Tony 's gaze and movements seemed somewhat mature, he still appeared childlike in their eyes.
Seeing that, the others became even more enthusiastic.
“Kiddo, come with me! I'll treat you to some ice cream.”
“I'm treating you to some drinks.”
“Call me handsome, Kiddo.”
“Call me handsome, too!”
The other few people were gathered around Tony , teasing him with a flurry of words.
Tony looked at them, his smile more of a smirk than genuine amusement. Then, his gaze shifted directly to a figure not far behind them.
While nonchalantly sucking on a lollipop, Tony asked coolly, “Alpha Dave, did you bring me here just to waste time?”
As soon as he spoke, everyone's gaze turned toward Dave.
Dave knew that what Tony couldn't stand the most was being treated like a child by others. However, the fact that he wasn't angry was already beyond his expectations.
Dave feigned a cough, then turned his gaze to someone beside him. “Cosmos, get the people from the dark web to leave first.”
Cosmos heard that and frowned. “Now?”
“That's right. Now.”
“Why, though?”
Dave looked at him, not saying a word, just a glance, and Cosmos immediately fell silent. “All right. I understand.”
And so, he turned around and did as he was told.
At that moment, Dave looked at the others. “All right. You all can leave now.”
Everyone was still clueless at that point. One of them asked, “Dave, could we take the kid out to play for a while?”
They were a bunch of adults, so when a child finally showed up, it was a breath of fresh air. Everyone was absolutely fascinated.
The gaze of Dave swept over them directly. “Do you really think I invited him over as a joke?”
Everyone was taken aback when they heard that Dave had actually invited the child over. Even though he's Boss J's son, did Dave have to invite him over? After all, he's just a child.
“Dave, what's going on?” someone asked.
“You'll find out soon enough,” Dave said. He then promptly gestured for the others to leave.
No one dared to ask any more questions, and they headed straight for the exit. As they walked, they couldn't help but look back at the child sitting on the table. He sat there with an air of nonchalance, one arm resting on his leg, a lollipop in his mouth, his entire demeanor exuding indescribable maturity.
Everyone was curious, but none of them could tell what was going on.
As everyone left, the door was closed, leaving only two people in the room.
Tony looked at Dave. “Alpha Dave, your welcome ceremony is certainly unique.”
“So, do you like it?” Dave asked.
“Is this supposed to intimidate me?” Tony raised an eyebrow.
Dave turned around and walked toward the chair, saying, “You're overthinking it. It was Luke who he carried you in here when he saw you sleeping.” As he spoke, he glanced at Tony . “It's also because you look too soft and cute, which is why you attract so much attention.”
Tony was rendered speechless. Soft and cute? Is he expecting me to take that as a compliment? That's utter humiliation!
Tony jumped straight off the table and walked up to Dave. “Alpha Dave, I have every reason to suspect that you did this on purpose.”
Dave didn't refute. “You can think whatever you want.”
Tony glared at him. “Alpha Dave, no matter how you put it, you need something from me. Shouldn't you be friendlier?”
“Am I not friendly enough?” Dave questioned. “I even invited you over here.”
Speaking of which, Tony looked at him. “By the way, I never agreed to take over DX Group's affairs.”
“I know.” Dave nodded.
“So why are you still talking about me being the heir or something?”
“Whether I give or not, that's my choice. Whether you want it or not, that's your choice.”
“You—”
“If you don't want it, you can ignore it!” Dave said, glaring at Tony .
Even though their acquaintance was not particularly long, Dave could tell that Tony was a responsible person. Once a mission is entrusted to Tony , he will undoubtedly shoulder that responsibility. So, if there isn't a suitable candidate after several years, Tony will be the only choice.
Tony looked at him, his brows furrowed. “Alpha Dave, you can't force others to accept things, can you?”
Dave also looked at him and retorted, “Who would refuse something given for free?”
“I...” For the first time, Tony was at a loss for words, not knowing what to say when facing someone.
Meanwhile, Dave was sizing him up with his eyebrows slightly raised.
After pondering seriously for a moment, Tony asked, “Aren't you afraid that I will merge DX Group into Darknetz?”
Upon hearing that, Dave scoffed even more dismissively. “It's in your hands now. If that's really the case, then so be it.”
“Alpha Dave, don't you have any limits?”
Dave looked at him and responded, “Well, what can we do? We're just short of talent, aren't we?”
“Why is there a shortage of talent? Are you short of people at DX Group?”
“Shortage of talent doesn't mean shortage of people, no?” Dave retorted.
“Alpha Dave, you're being too modest!”
“You're being too modest. I believe you can definitely distinguish between professional and personal affairs and manage DX Group very well!” Dave said.
Tony didn't know what to say in response.
Dave's demeanor suggested that he wouldn't tolerate any further refusals.
Just as Tony was about to retort, there came a knock at the door, and someone pushed it open and walked in.
“Dave, everyone has left,” Cosmos said.
Upon hearing that, Dave nodded. “Okay.”
As he spoke, he turned to look at Tony . His expression changed instantly when he started talking about serious matters. He looked at Tony and uttered, “This matter relates to some of my decisions, and also to our next actions. Tony , do you understand what I mean?”
Tony nodded. “I understand.”
The corners of Dave's lips lifted. “I knew it. You're a smart kid.”
Tony went silent for a moment. Did I expose my intelligence?
“It seems like I have to play dumb sometimes,” Tony said helplessly.
Dave heard those words and looked at him. “Don't worry. If you can't do it, there's still your younger brother.”
“Why can't you just leave us alone?”
Dave arched a brow and replied, “My hands are tied. If I had kids like you and your brother, I would then consider leaving you guys alone!”
Upon hearing this, Tony immediately backed off. “Fine. Forget about what I said just now!”