"Umm… What's this?" Harry pointed at the new creature Gwen had just created in Paint.
"Cloudy Copter!" Gwen said.
"What's its ability?"
"It creates strong winds in the hallway. If you go against the wind, you'll slow down, but if you go with it, you'll move super fast!"
"…Wow, pretty creative?" Harry put his hand on his chin.
"Don't worry, there are plenty more characters and new modes coming. We'll roll them out all at once and call it a big update—no DLC, of course," I said, pushing up my glasses, making them glint.
"What?! No DLC?!" Harry asked, shocked.
"Indie games don't need DLC, do they?" I replied.
"Oh, yeah, true."
We were in the computer lab. Gwen had invited us here to show off her wild imagination.
And yeah, I love her creativity! I mean, look at this—the characters are getting weirder and weirder!
"But a *big update*? Why not call it something else?"
"Like what?"
"Plus update, maybe?"
"Hmm… Nah."
"Huh?"
"That's reserved for a different version," I said with a capitalist grin, freaking Harry out.
"Dude, you've been corrupted by money!"
"So what? As long as the game's good, they won't complain about us!"
Harry was practically in tears seeing how much Peter had changed.
…Well, not entirely. Having a lot of money isn't bad either.
"Hey, Peter!" Gwen poked Peter in the back.
"Hm?"
"With all that money, what are you gonna do with it?"
Oh? I thought Harry would've asked that.
"Give it to my family, of course."
"Not use it for yourself?" Gwen asked curiously.
"Hmm… Well, I would, but just for necessities, like a PC if I can't go to Harry's place, for example."
"Gundam?"
"That's for later…"
[*I thought you'd prioritize that stuff?*]
"Shut up, outer god."
"Who are you talking to?"
"My other personality."
Suddenly, the bell rang, signaling it was time for class.
"Uh oh, let's go," Harry said.
"Yeah, see you later, Gwen."
"I'll be waiting!"
So Harry and I ran back to class.
But things didn't go so smoothly for me…
"Agh!"
I fell, looking at the person who'd bumped into me.
It was a girl my age, with long hair covering her eyes.
"Hey, you okay?" I stood up, helping her to her feet.
Then, seeing the books she'd dropped, I quickly gathered them and handed them back.
"Here!"
"Ah… Thank you."
"Dude! Hurry up! Stop flirting over there!" Harry shouted.
"I know!! Sorry for bumping into you!"
I ran after Harry, leaving her behind.
"…That's the first time someone's said that to me," she whispered, watching the boy before walking away.
***
Lizard
It's pretty cute.
But very powerful.
It may be small, but it has an astonishing ability to regenerate.
Its rough skin—it's the very thing that filmmakers, novelists, and blah blah use as inspiration to create dragons.
However, to me, dragons aren't as cool as lizards.
Lizards are more beautiful in my eyes.
"Dr. Curtis, why do you keep staring at that thing?" another doctor asked curiously.
"It's a hobby. Is there a problem with that?"
"Oh, no, no problem at all. Mr. Norman just asked for you to meet him."
Norman? The chairman of Oscorp, the company he's working for?
What does he want with him?
After a while, he arrived at Norman's office, knocked on the door, and entered.
Before him was a man sipping wine, playing Mozart's symphony in the background.
"Dr. Curtis Connors."
"What did you call me for?"
The man looked at him, set down his glass, and stared directly at him.
"Are you confident?"
"…What kind of question is that?"
"Are you confident in yourself?"
"Of course I am."
"Then what's your goal?"
Curtis paused to think for a moment.
"A society… a society where humans are powerful beings," he said, looking straight at Norman.
Norman closed his eyes, took another sip, and set the glass down.
"Our company just received funding from the government."
"?!"
What?!
"They've requested that our company develop a serum to enhance human strength. I don't know what they're planning, but the funding is massive—we can't refuse it."
"This is the preliminary formula. You can use it as a starting point to develop further," he said, handing Curtis a stack of papers.
"…Why me?"
"Out of all the employees, you're the most hardworking and talented. And after hearing your answer, I'm certain I didn't choose the wrong person."
"…" Curtis looked at the formula, then at Norman.
"I won't let you down."
He then left, leaving Norman sitting there.
'I wonder what the government's up to… Though it's not my business,' Norman thought.
***
"Hello! I'm the new teacher, pleased to assist you all!" a large, cheerful man greeted our class.
He looked very friendly—extremely friendly, even.
If it weren't for his name, I wouldn't have had any issues.
Otto Octavius.
…Great.
"If anyone has any questions, I'm not shy about answering, so feel free to ask, my students!" he said cheerfully.
"Me!" a girl raised her hand.
"Yes? What would you like to ask?"
"Those… mechanical arms of yours… How did you make them?"
Uh… Even if I didn't know his name, I'd have recognized him right away from those things on his back.
"These? They're assistive devices I created myself. I'm pretty proud of them, you know?" He smiled, moving the mechanical arms with ease.
And you're not affected by them? Or is it because Harry didn't fund him that he hasn't turned into a villain?
"Hey, you there, why are you staring at me like that? Got a question?" He looked at me and pointed.
"Huh? Oh, uh… Can I ask how you made them and how you control them? I'm pretty curious."
"Oh! Good question, but that's a secret… You're Peter, right?"
Huh? How did he know?
"You're the top student in this school, always excelling academically. I like smart students—much better than those idiots who bully others."
As soon as he said that, a few people in the class turned their heads away.
Oh, right. Before Flash died, those guys used to bully me alongside him, humiliating me in every way.
Things stopped after Flash's death, but instead of openly bullying me, they just ignored me or talked behind my back in their little groups.
Annoying, but not worth caring about.
…Especially since Harry punched them the moment they badmouthed me even once.
"I'm looking forward to seeing something special from you, Peter boi!"
Alright, why does everyone keep calling me Peter boi??