Although Richard Castle didn't have children in his previous life, by the time he crossed over in this life, Alexis had already grown up. However, the anxiety that still lingered in his memory from when Alexis was born in this world remained vivid. It was so intense that even the memory of John, the cold-blooded assassin who had cultivated a calmness that could face the collapse of a mountain without flinching, couldn't help but complain about it. This alone showed just how evil the person who devised this idea must be—making every loving father feel as if they were in heaven and hell at the same time.
Now, things had changed. John, who in the original version of his previous life had a rather grim ending, had his fate completely altered. Not only did he avoid being "excommunicated" by the Continental Hotel and chased by the whole world, but he also gained the favor of Gianna thanks to Richard's meddling. Now, this man—who had once seemed like a cursed lone wolf—had become the proud father of a nine-pound baby girl. Judging by the way John couldn't stop smiling, even though he'd almost developed an anxiety disorder while assisting with the birth yesterday, he was clearly in a great mood today.
Castle was curious to see how this once stone-faced man would transform into a doting father now that he had a little girl. Would he become a total pushover for his daughter, just like the father of his daughter's friend, Mills? Imagining John—a man whose very name could make enemies tremble—getting headaches over his rebellious teenage daughter years from now made Castle laugh uncontrollably.
He was really looking forward to seeing the expression on the face of the boy who would dare steal John's daughter, especially once he realized his father-in-law was the infamous assassin king!
Meanwhile, Gianna, who was in the next room breastfeeding her daughter, was also smiling with joy. Beckett and Alexis, watching in awe, marveled at the fact that the newborn girl was already bigger than most babies her age. They were equally astonished that Gianna had chosen to give birth naturally.
It wasn't until Gianna sheepishly explained that her reason for opting for natural birth was to avoid leaving a scar on her stomach that might ruin her bikini figure in the future that they understood. She hadn't expected her and John's first child to weigh a whopping ten pounds (nine pounds, to be precise), which had scared John—despite his normally solid nerves—so much that at one point, he almost grabbed the scalpel from the delivery doctor. Beckett and Alexis then realized that even the ever-calm John could reach a level of anxiety like that.
"Oh my God, this little one is so beautiful..." Beckett looked enviously at the baby girl, who was drinking milk in Gianna's arms with her eyes closed. Although newborns generally haven't fully grown into their looks, this little girl's parents had top-tier genes. John might be a big idiot in some ways, but he was the type that some women couldn't resist. Gianna, on the other hand, had the refined looks of someone from an aristocratic lineage, with a face carved as if by a master sculptor, exuding the classic beauty of her Italian heritage—her green eyes and sharp features. It was clear this baby girl had inherited her parents' best traits and would grow up to be a stunning beauty.
Watching the little girl drink her milk so adorably, even someone as career-focused as Beckett couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to have a child of her own.
Gianna, still glowing with maternal joy, didn't hold back when speaking to the New York Police Department's youngest precinct captain. "Why don't you and Rick hurry up and have one too? Alexis, would you like a little sister?"
Alexis, who was happily playing with the baby's tiny hands, didn't shy away from the topic. "Well, that depends on when my dad and Beckett can have one. Personally, I'd prefer a little brother since I already have a sister. It would be nice if they gave me a brother!"
Beckett, who had grown very close to Alexis over the past month, especially during Castle's busy schedule programming artificial intelligence and Martha's frequent absences, smiled warmly at this. Alexis had also long accepted that her biological mother, Meredith, was too unreliable, so she was very clear about the fact that Beckett and her father would eventually get married.
However, Beckett knew that as long as she remained the precinct captain, having children would have to wait. Her sense of duty and ambition wouldn't allow her to leave her work at the police station behind. Perhaps after she married Castle and followed through with his plan to run for local office, she would have time for children.
But why did she feel a bit envious of Gianna, who was currently breastfeeding her baby? Beckett fell into a deep thought...
Castle felt that whenever he wasn't stirring up trouble or trouble didn't find him, time flew by. In the blink of an eye, John and Gianna's baby was already a month old, and it had been a year since Castle crossed over to this world. Yet, he didn't have time to reflect on his achievements or losses from the past year.
Because, in the past month, with the help of his assistant "Little Fatty," he had successfully written all the basic code for the artificial intelligence "JARVIS" that the system had promised him!
The reason everything went so smoothly was that Castle had previously received a system reward granting him Tony Stark's full mechanical engineering skills. Although the system had completely blocked all information about Tony's Iron Man suits and cold fusion reactor core, it had unlocked all of Tony's memories related to artificial intelligence development. This allowed Castle, with Little Fatty's help, to single-handedly complete all the necessary code for the AI.
And now, as Gianna and John's baby grew into a plump, adorable little girl, Castle's mansion was finally equipped with the supercomputer. The facility built to house the supercomputer was also completed, thanks to Castle's generous investment. Today was the day Castle and Little Fatty would officially transfer the code they had painstakingly written over the past two months into the supercomputer for the first trial run. Since very few people believed Castle would succeed, the only ones present in the room housing the supercomputer were Castle and an extremely excited Little Fatty.
"Uncle Rick, I'm ready..." Little Fatty's hands were shaking, and his voice trembled. Only he knew just how brilliant his Uncle Rick was in the field of artificial intelligence. Before they even began this project, Little Fatty had a hunch that following Uncle Rick might one day make him famous. But he never imagined that the artificial intelligence that had stumped the world for so long would actually be developed right before his eyes, under Uncle Rick's leadership.
This was practically a miracle!
Had Little Fatty not become so desensitized over the past year under Castle's guidance, he was certain he would have gone mad by now!
Just the thought that he and Uncle Rick had spent more than two months coding, with the bulk of the work done by Castle himself, made it hard to believe. In a few moments, they would witness the birth of the world's first true artificial intelligence. How would the world's tech giants, who had spent countless resources trying to crack the AI puzzle with no success, ever be able to claim they were advanced in AI research after this? Uncle Rick, by himself, had single-handedly outclassed the entire world's AI development teams!
Little Fatty was actually a bit mistaken. He didn't realize that his idolized Uncle Rick was really just a "cheat user." If Castle hadn't been rewarded by the system with Tony Stark's mechanical engineering skills and later with the full code for the AI "JARVIS," there's no way he could have developed AI in less than three months. It was only because Castle was essentially a "transporter" that he could achieve it in such a short time. Little Fatty didn't know the details and had exaggerated Castle's genius in his mind.
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Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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