After Peter and Cortana had cleaned themselves up in one of the rooms of the Cave, with Peter having to help her because of the condition of her hips, they changed into semi-formal clothes. That was more Peter's style, since he had always liked wearing shirts and proper shoes.
He had bought Cortana clothes a few days earlier because her body had been almost ready. He had taken her measurements and purchased everything she would need for the big day, which was today.
Once they went upstairs, Peter introduced Cortana in her human form because, according to her, she did not want anyone else to see her in blue. Only he had that privilege.
It did not take long for her to integrate into the family environment. Two things happened when Peter explained how she had obtained such a realistic body. First, Yuri questioned whether he was some kind of god for being able to create a body almost from nothing. Second, Susan fainted when she heard the explanation of how he had created Cortana's body.
Peter also had to explain to Susan that humanity was not ready for the technology he possessed, though perhaps it would be in the future. That explanation seemed to calm Susan down.
The strangest thing, however, was the small rivalry that immediately appeared between Cortana and May, but Peter decided to ignore that for now.
At lunchtime, they ate like royalty thanks to May's culinary skills and Cortana's ability to learn quickly. Since this was Cortana's first time eating, she devoured more food than anyone else, not only because she wanted to try everything, but also because she was experiencing the exhaustion that followed a certain kind of activity.
Once everyone was satisfied, they headed toward the tree where the presents were waiting. Since they were not exactly a normal family, they did not have to follow traditional Christmas rules or wait until a particular time to open them.
"Okay, Caesar, you'll be the first to get your gift," Peter said, handing Caesar a wrapped present.
Once Caesar opened it, he looked confused by what he was holding.
"Father, is this a walking stick?" Caesar asked.
Seeing the incredible lack of respect, Peter raised his hand and created a small ball of webbing between his fingers before flicking it at Caesar's forehead with a little force.
"Ow!"
"That is not just a stick," Peter said, repeating the word mockingly. "It is a Tambō, or short staff, in proper Japanese."
Yuri nodded in confirmation.
"That is your weapon. You will train with it until it becomes an extension of your body. Understood?"
"Understood."
"I recommend using it in the training room. That Tambō can also transform into a single or double-bladed spear, nunchucks, and several other configurations. It is dangerous in inept hands."
"Understood. I will try twice as hard."
Nodding, Peter gave Caesar another gift, though this one was considerably smaller. Caesar tore away the wrapping paper and found a video game for his console.
"A video game?"
"It is not just a video game. It is a game I created, and it will be released in a couple of weeks. You are the first person outside the development team to try it. You might like it. It has action, adventure, and a bit of story, though from my point of view, I made some improvements."
Caesar examined the cover.
"It must involve Greek mythology because of its strange name. God of War."
"Could be. Go ahead and try it, but do not put it on the hardest difficulty. You will not get past the first level if you do."
Caesar gave him a mocking look before leaving the living room with the game.
"That kid will end up without vocal cords after he starts playing," Peter muttered while watching him walk away.
"Do you really believe that?" Susan asked.
"Yes."
'Especially because Caesar inherited my addiction to video games. If he is anything like I was when playing difficult games, he will scream himself hoarse trying to calm his anger.'
Looking for another gift, Peter picked one up and handed it to Selina, whose tail immediately began wagging with enthusiasm.
"Here."
"Thank you, Daddy."
Upon hearing that, Peter felt a small, almost imperceptible shiver. Cortana was the only one who noticed because of her enhanced vision. When Peter looked at her, he saw her smiling and raising her eyebrows suggestively, making it obvious that she knew exactly why.
Once Selina opened the gift, she took out a mottled-colored whip, a pair of black gloves, and a strange hilt, which she examined curiously.
"It may seem simple, but it is not." Peter attracted Selina's attention. "Turn the dial on the whip."
Once Selina did, the whip separated into several linked sections and small spikes emerged from them.
"Impressive, is it not?"
"Wow, that is amazing! What else does it do?" she asked, making several of the girls lean closer with interest. Itsy, however, only looked at the whip indifferently.
"Press the jewel in the center of the dial."
As she did, small electrical arcs began dancing across the whip, impressing Selina and the girls. Even Itsy gave it a brief sidelong glance.
"But that is not the best part. Give me the hilt."
Selina threw it to him.
"This is the most dangerous part, but you will only use it after you have properly trained with a whip. Understood?"
"Okay."
"Good. This is what it does."
Taking an apple, Peter threw it into the air and pressed a button on the hilt, causing a blade to extend. Once it was fully deployed, he held the button down and the blade began glowing purple. With a single swing, he cut the apple cleanly in half.
When he released the button, the blade stopped glowing. Pressing it again caused the weapon to retract until only the hilt remained.
"Be careful with this. You could cut a person in half and cauterize the wound in the process. To avoid cutting your fingers, always wear the gloves when handling it."
Peter handed the weapon back to Selina, who now held it as carefully as if it were made of glass.
He sat down again, took another box from beside him, and looked toward her.
"Now, come here."
"Why?" she asked while returning the whip to its box.
"Just come here."
Selina approached and stood in front of him.
"Crouch down."
Just as she was about to speak, Peter interrupted her.
"Crouch down."
Once she did, he crossed his arms.
"Close your eyes."
"Why do I have to close my eyes?"
"Do it."
She obeyed. Peter took a small amount of cream from his pocket and spread it over her nose, temporarily weakening her sense of smell.
"Do not talk," he said, interrupting her before she could complain. "And no tricks."
He saw one of her eyes begin to open slightly.
"I said no tricks."
Opening the box, Peter revealed dozens of chocolates of different shapes. The smell immediately attracted everyone's attention, and he could see the others staring at the box with predatory eyes. Cortana was even drooling slightly from the corner of her lips, an image Peter intended to preserve very clearly in his memory.
"Open your mouth."
"Ahhh."
Peter placed a chocolate inside.
Unlike ordinary chocolates, these were designed to produce the flavor the person most desired. The compounds confused and stimulated the taste receptors, causing the mind to interpret the chocolate as the flavor the person craved most.
It was something similar to edible hypnosis. Other chocolates in the box had completely random flavors, somewhat resembling the magical sweets from Harry Potter.
Those sweets would also be released commercially soon. Peter had been forced to sign an absurd number of papers and speak with more people than he cared to remember, but in the end, he had succeeded. The project had progressed alongside the upcoming God of War launch, which he expected to significantly increase the company's popularity.
It had been a stroke of luck to discover that the game had never been created in this world.
"Chew," Peter said.
Selina opened her eyes and started chewing.
"Chew properly. Savor it."
Selina made a strange expression, but the more she tasted the chocolate, the wider her smile became.
"Mmm. It tastes better than the sweets they gave me."
"Kitty likes chocolate," Peter said before handing her the entire box. "I recommend not eating them all at once. I will not give you another box."
Selina's eyes widened, and a faint trace of fear appeared in them. Without saying another word, she grabbed her gifts and left with her cheeks puffed out like a squirrel's, traces of chocolate around her mouth, and the box clutched tightly against her chest like a newly discovered treasure.
Once she left, Peter took several more chocolates from his pocket and handed one to each of the others. After tasting them, they all reacted differently to whatever flavor their minds had chosen.
When Peter looked at Cortana, she leaned closer and whispered that hers tasted remarkably similar to something she had experienced with him earlier.
Peter rolled his eyes.
Taking another chocolate, he unwrapped it and ate it, savoring the rich bitterness.
"Itsy, that is your present."
He pointed toward a large box near the tree. In the happiest mood imaginable, Itsy skipped over to it, tore away the wrapping, and found a completely black case.
Once she opened it, she froze.
Inside were two matching swords and two pistols.
Not only Itsy, but several of the girls immediately recognized the weapons.
"Peter, those are them," Yuri said.
"Yes. The pistols I used when saving Trish, and the katana I used while fighting the Goblin," Peter replied.
Itsy touched them as though they were the most fragile objects in the world.
"I reforged the original weapon into twin katanas. Now they belong to you."
"But they are yours. You will use them."
"Do not worry. I have Leviathan now, and I already designed the new pistols I want. Those belong to you. I also improved them with the materials available in the Cave. Train seriously. If you master swords and firearms together, you will become extremely dangerous."
Itsy carefully put the weapons down before approaching Peter and giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek.
"Thanks, Dad."
"You are welcome, kid."
Peter then took out another gift he had hidden beside the sofa and handed it to her. Once she opened it, she found a shirt modeled after his suit.
"That is not just any shirt. It was made from material connected to one of my older suits. I repaired what I could and converted part of it into something you could wear."
Itsy looked at the shirt with obvious amazement and carefully folded it before placing it in the box with her weapons.
A scream suddenly came from upstairs.
"YOU DAMN SNAKE! I CURSE YOU AND YOUR KIND!"
Everyone went silent.
Peter immediately recognized the voice.
"I knew that fool would not listen to me. I am certain he selected the hardest difficulty."