Chapter 25: Playing Big

"I am rich!"

Such a bold statement shook everyone in the room, leaving them feeling internally wounded.

In old Thomson's view, this ultra-wealthy young man, who had skin so pale that it was obvious he rarely spent time in the sun, seemed even more powerful than his own son. The only explanation he could think of was some combination of "technology and ruthless expertise."

Either one or both.

On this land, being rich was already intimidating enough.

What was even scarier was that rich people were more competitive than ordinary folks!

And to top it off, this guy was backed by Stark Industries.

Who could just casually use the Stark name? The Stark family was part of the military-industrial complex—the most untouchable financial power in all of America!

No exaggeration, but when the military-industrial complex sneezed, Congress trembled.

Old Thomson was drenched in cold sweat on the spot.

He couldn't help but be grateful that Atreus wasn't planning to deal with his son; otherwise, Eugene wouldn't even know how he died.

Louis, observing from the side, had his own thoughts: recently, his security company had asked him for a periodic report on Atreus. If he reported truthfully, Atreus would definitely deal with him… Are you kidding me? Where else could you find a boss who's rich, powerful, and possibly even a superhuman? It wasn't someone a small-time bodyguard like him could afford to offend!

Louis secretly decided to find an opportunity to talk to Atreus.

But what happened next took everyone by surprise.

After getting taken down, "Flash" didn't get angry. Instead, he was excitedly shouting in amazement, "Atreus, that was awesome! How did you do that? Can you teach me?"

He scrambled over, grabbed Atreus's right hand with both of his, eyes full of admiration and excitement, with every note of his voice radiating pure worship.

"It's not hard. Start with a 10-kilometer run every day, 100 push-ups, 100…" Atreus casually gave him the training routine from One Punch Man.

"And what else, what else!?"

"That's just the basics. Then you strengthen based on your training needs. I do 1,000 sword swings."

"Sword? Like some kind of Kendo?"

Suddenly, the atmosphere shifted. It now felt like a fan meet-and-greet with a celebrity.

Atreus finally understood why Eugene always ended up as Spider-Man's fanboy in different parallel worlds—this guy had a built-in "fanboy" attribute. As long as you impressed him in one area, he'd follow you wholeheartedly.

This was true of Eugene in multiple worlds, and it was true in this one too.

Since Eugene had the potential to become Venom's agent, Atreus didn't mind taking him in as a little sidekick. He could always use someone to guard the door—or take a few bullets for him in a tough situation!

Even if Eugene ended up losing a leg in the future and Atreus couldn't restore his body, he could always go with "flesh is weak, but machines ascend!"

One was willing to be a sidekick, and the other was willing to take him in.

The atmosphere suddenly turned lighthearted.

Although high schoolers were under a drinking ban, Eugene, even when drinking juice, seemed tipsy, pestering Atreus for training tips for over half an hour. It wasn't until Atreus gave a glance, and Dinah caught on: "Boss, you've got Stark's party at ten."

"Then I won't disturb the gentleman further," said old Thomson, knowing when to pull back.

And so, the gathering ended on an unexpectedly happy note.

Meanwhile, on the other side, as expected, Peter became lost in memories of his parents. He immediately rushed home to search through his parents' belongings.

But at the Stacy household, a different conversation took place.

As Police Captain George Stacy was driving his daughter home, he couldn't hold back and said, "I heard that Atreus guy came to see you today."

Gwen became alert, "Dad, he came to see Parker, I was just there."

Gwen told him about Peter's parents being biologists.

George secretly breathed a sigh of relief, "So, he and you would make a good match."

"Dad—" Gwen dragged out the word, her tone playful with a hint of a scolding flavor.

And why not?

Gwen was interning at Oscorp, working in biotechnology, and Peter was on the same path. George used to feel that Peter's family status was a bit lacking, and though they had been childhood friends, he hadn't been entirely pleased with their relationship.

But now? It seemed fitting.

George chuckled, then turned serious: "That Atreus guy, try not to get involved with him."

"What's wrong?"

"I got a message from an old friend in Gotham, giving me some inside info."

Hearing her father speak so seriously, Gwen perked up her ears.

"Atreus's a mysterious rich kid in Gotham. No one knows where he came from, but he seems to have endless amounts of money. At all the nightclubs, he's the undisputed black card VIP. A few weeks ago, he set his sights on the star of the Black Mask Club, a singer called Black Canary."

At this point, Gwen immediately thought of Atreus's secretary, who was not only beautiful but had an exceptionally captivating voice.

"Rumor has it, Atreus took Black Mask, Gotham's mafia boss, head-on after falling for her. Guess what happened?"

"Atreus and Black Canary showed up in front of me, so Black Mask lost?" Gwen, always intrigued by dark rumors, couldn't resist chiming in.

George replied seriously, "He didn't just lose—his Black Mask Club was blown sky-high, and he lost his life! Recently, Gotham's been full of gang wars every night, with groups fighting over Black Mask's territory. My old friends are going crazy dealing with it."

Gwen caught the important part, "Is there any proof Atreus did it?"

"Proof? Of course not! Even if there was, a guy like him would have an army of top-notch lawyers to get him off. Officially, Black Mask died at the hands of Joker's gang. But don't forget—Atreus is the one who benefited most. No gang in Gotham dares mess with him now."

Gwen rolled her eyes, "Guilty until proven innocent, huh?"

Her dad was caught off guard, "Anyway, guys like him just play around with women, then cruelly toss them aside."

He was so wrapped up in his story that he didn't notice the green light, and cars behind him started honking like crazy. He quickly hit the gas, and the father-daughter chat ended there.

To George, the real concern had always been about protecting his daughter from being taken advantage of by a player. If anyone was going to date Gwen, better it be someone like Peter Parker, who he knew well, rather than some rich guy with a shady reputation.

George, being a traditional, upstanding man, had no patience for playboys like Atreus.

What he didn't realize was that his daughter's feelings were shifting.

If Gwen had been just an Ivy League star student, Peter might have been a good match for her. Childhood sweethearts, and both from similar backgrounds.

But this Gwen? This Gwen was Spider-Woman!

Later that night, once her parents were asleep, Gwen quietly slipped into her black-and-white Spider-Woman suit and swung through the nighttime skies of New York City.

As the wind roared past her ears and the centrifugal force thrilled her to her core, she let out the wild screams that the straight-A student she was during the day would never dare release.

"Woo-hoo!"

"This is awesome!"

"This is life!"

After being bitten by a mysterious spider, Gwen gained Spider-Man's powers. Not only did her agility increase dramatically, but her senses also became incredibly sharp.

Thinking back to the pathetic way Peter was bullied by Flash this morning… If it hadn't been for Atreus's bodyguard showing up, Gwen had already been planning to step in and stop Flash, protecting Peter herself.

A guy who isn't as smart as her, and can't even protect himself… Just thinking about how her dad hopes she'll marry Peter makes Gwen feel really annoyed.

This is the mental gap at play.

In another universe, Peter is Spider-Man and Gwen is just a regular person, so their relationship would naturally fall into place because of her admiration for the hero.

But in this world, things are reversed, and Gwen just doesn't feel anything for Peter.

Just then, Gwen spotted a robbery in progress.

She swung down on her webbing, swooping in like a storm.

In just one move, she had the gun-toting robber pinned to the wall.

Don't get the wrong idea — she pinned the poor guy to the wall with tons of webbing, sticking him there in a spread-eagle position, wiggling and whining like a trapped caterpillar.

Gwen was quite pleased with herself.

Suddenly, she heard a sharp shout from behind: "Freeze! Hands in the air!"

Gwen turned and saw a cop pointing his gun at her.

Annoyed, she yelled, "Hey! Can't you see this guy's the robber?"

"I only see you using some kind of terrifying, non-human weapon to hunt this man down. You… you must be some kind of Black Widow villainess!" The cop's hands trembled as he continued to shout, "Hands up! Or I'll shoot!"

"I'm Spider-Woman!" Gwen insisted, taking an instinctive step forward. She didn't expect the cop to actually start shooting.

"BANG BANG BANG…" The Glock emptied all ten bullets from its magazine on the spot.

The cop blinked in shock — none of the bullets hit. Just as the gunfire erupted, the strange woman in front of him folded her body in a bizarre way.

Three hundred meters away, Black Canary lowered her binoculars. "Atreus, did you see that?"

"I did." Atreus smiled oddly.

He saw it clearly — the moment the cop fired, Gwen bent backward, forcing the bullets to graze past her body, shaped like the letter Ω. To be exact, three bullets went straight through the space between her… sizable assets.

For a second, Atreus thought he was seeing things. But then he watched Gwen dodge the remaining bullets by letting them skim past her waist and hips, and he realized she was doing it on purpose.

She was using her ridiculous agility to chase thrills.

*Sigh!*

It's like those comic book nerds who wear thick glasses and pigtails, and only after you find an X-shaped contraption in their basement do you realize they've been playing a d4ngerous game in secret.

Ahem!

Don't get the wrong idea — it means she's probably just a huge X-Men fan. For anyone who misinterpreted that, go stand in the corner!

(End of chapter)