Chapter 41: Plucking Chrysanthemums Beneath the Eastern Hedge
The dates in the files can be traced back as early as World War II, and they were sealed after the 1950s.
Among them, a large portion is in German.
Samuel Sterns understood.
This project was originally researched by German scientists during World War II. After Germany was defeated in World War II, it was acquired by America, and the project was recently restarted.
"I understand, I accept your company's invitation."
"Welcome to the team, Dr. Stern."
The two shook hands again.
"By the way, Dr. Stern, pay attention to the project's target requirements." Finally, Eros gave a subtle hint.
His requirements for improving the v1 compound have two directions.
Improving the success rate is the foundation.
One direction is a permanent serum, and the other is a temporary serum.
There are not a few companies that went bankrupt because their product quality was too good, and Erosnaturally wouldn't make this mistake.
Returning to the top-floor office.
Felicia, the secretary who had been following closely behind Eros with little presence, worried:
"Are you so at ease handing the project over to someone you just met, aren't you worried about the formula leaking?"
Vought International is fine; the core positions are basically held by people who previously worked at the Pierce Foundation or whose parents worked in other industries of the Pierce Family.
Vought Medical, on the other hand... has been penetrated into a sieve by various forces, and even an outsider like Felicia can see the problem.
"Don't worry, Felicia." Eros leisurely took a sip of wild dog milk:
"Samuel Sterns's laboratory has been isolated by me. The laboratory operates independently, and the security personnel inside are all S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel."
Well, it should be called Hydra-Shield.
Hydra-Shield has arranged all-around monitoring in the v1 compound laboratory.
On the physical level, don't even think a mosquito can cross the defense line; on the information level...
Learn about the digital life Zola; don't even think a single byte related to the experiment's core can be transmitted out.
Of course, the most important guarantee is Eros himself.
Possessing the ability to flip the table, whoever dares to reach out, Eros dares to chop off his hand.
"It's good that you know what you're doing; I'm just afraid you'll be infatuated by some woman and end up working for someone else's benefit in the end."
Felicia felt sour and secretly jabbed at Sharon Carter.
She smelled Eros's scent on Sharon Carter again this morning!
Eros scooped up the big kitty and placed it on his lap: "Darling, are you going to leave me?"
"When did I say I was going to leave you?"
"Only you can make me infatuated." Eros stroked the big kitty's fur.
"Stop it." Felicia struggled symbolically, raised her eyes, and looked at Eros with a feigned pleading look: "We're in the company, someone might come up at any time."
Obviously, she knew how to flirt and thoroughly enjoyed the thrill.
"Felicia, you wouldn't want to lose this job either, would you?" Eros was also happy to cooperate, tapping his toes on the ground: "Oh."
Even though Felicia was somewhat reluctant, she could only endure the humiliation and shame, stand up to face Eros, tie up her hair, and slowly squat down.
But she had one request.
Looking at the phone handed over in front of him, Erosdialed the number.
"Ophelia, how are things going on your end? Huff, if there are no problems, you can pack up and return to New York."
"Mm, I know, the laboratory personnel and equipment are already evacuating in an orderly manner."
Ophelia on the other end of the phone suppressed her anger, wondering if that wild cat was pulling this stunt again.
"Mm, don't forget to bring that somewhat special Black man along."
"Erik Killmonger? You think highly of him?"
"Hiss, yeah, it's him."
Eros patted the big kitty's head. Why was it hissing for no reason?
"This is a guy, a guy!"
"How would I know." Felicia rolled her eyes and stammered.
"This is his information, take a look."
Erik Killmonger, nicknamed Killmonger, is the cousin of T'Challa, the Black Panther.
Back then, Erik's father was sent by the king of Wakanda, who was his own brother T'Chaka, to be a spy in America.
When Erik's father was undercover, seeing many Black people impoverished, he stole some Vibranium from Wakanda to exchange for money, helping the poor Black people in America.
However, the matter was soon exposed, and T'Chakawanted to take Erik's father back to confess his crimes. In the dispute, T'Chaka accidentally killed Erik's father.
Erik thus became an orphan, enlisted in the army after growing up, and performed brilliantly in the military.
Eros doesn't care who was right or wrong between Erik's father and T'Challa; from different narrative perspectives, right and wrong are also different.
From a racial narrative, Erik's father was right; he helped his Black compatriots.
From a national narrative, Erik's father was wrong; he harmed national interests.
Eros has no interest in saving Black people; what he cares more about is what Killmonger can bring to him.
Royalty member, this identity can be heavily utilized.
Finding the right opportunity, Eros can completely let Killmonger act as his spokesperson and support him in sitting on the throne of Wakanda.
Wakanda's Vibranium and heart-shaped herb are both good things.
Currently on the market, one gram of Vibranium is worth ten thousand US dollars, and it's priceless, while underneath Wakanda, who knows how many tons of Vibranium are buried.
Seeing that the phone hadn't hung up for a long time, and the increasingly heavy breathing came from the other end, Ophelia rolled her eyes and thought of a ruthless move.
She said coquettishly: "Then when older sister comes back in a couple of days, remember to come see older sister, oh, and older sister will let you take the unusual path."
With that, Ophelia hung up the phone.
Hump, little wild cat, playing with her means hurting each other, letting you also taste the feeling of bitterness first and sweetness later.
Take the unusual path?
The other side plays so openly?
Felicia raised her head, meeting Eros's expectant gaze... Bring it on, who's afraid of whom!
Plucking chrysanthemums beneath the eastern fence, leisurely seeing the South Mountain.
The mountain qi is fine at dusk, flying birds return together.
There is true meaning in this; wanting to articulate it, words are already forgotten.
Eros taught the big kitty the ancient poems of the East twice, and the big kitty gained a lot, understanding that pastoral life has joy mixed with bitterness.
After a long time, the wind stopped and the rain ceased.
After Felicia tidied up, she found a landing application and an illegal landing alarm at the helicopter pad on the top floor of the Vought International Building.
The first came from Tony Stark.
The latter is the Vought International security system.
Actually, Tony didn't submit an application at all; Jarvishelped him submit it.
Now the security personnel brought Tony to the conference room and reported that Tony wanted to see Eros.
"Bring Teacher Tony over."
As soon as he came in, Tony started complaining:
"High schooler, this is too unprofessional. It actually took so long for the president's office to process a notification. You wasted more than an hour of my time; this is simply murder."
Eros unhurriedly took a sip of wild dog milk to replenish nutrients.
"First, Teacher Tony, you didn't make an appointment."
"Second, I am no longer a high schooler."
Eros has already graduated from Midtown High School, and tonight is the graduation prom.
Chapter 42: In a single word, cool!
"Oh, an eighteen-year-old prospective college student? That's impressive."
Tony gave a thumbs-up and struck a pose as if thinking hard:
"Let me think, what was I doing when I was eighteen? Oh, I seemed to have just graduated from MIT with a master's degree."
"That is to say, there is only one Teacher Tony in this World."
Eros shrugged, remaining unfazed by Tony's roast.
Seeing this, Tony felt awkward and walked around the office twice with open arms and wide strides.
"See that? This is my new armor, mark iii."
Well, Tony had flown over wearing the armor, which was why he landed on the helicopter landing pad and was brought to the conference room by Vought Internationalsecurity.
"It really does look cool!"
Eros perfunctorily offered a compliment.
Seeing that Eros lacked interest, Tony, who had come to show off, was puzzled.
The high schooler before him had been so excited when he first saw the iron can that was mark i, so why wasn't he reacting at all this time seeing the lighter and more refined mark iii?
Did he think this was just a costume prop?
"Armor, this is armor, an armor that can fly, withstand heavy firepower, and is equipped with a mini-arsenal."
"And then?"
Tony fell silent for a moment; Eros's reaction was completely beyond his expectations.
"I brought a set for you. This was agreed upon beforehand, just right as a graduation gift for you."
"Oh, where is it?"
"It's right there on the rooftop landing pad."
Before Tony even finished speaking, Eros's eyes lit up, and he sprang into action.
What boy could resist the temptation of armor? This was the ultimate dream of a man; he just didn't want to show his excitement in front of Tony's showing off.
Watching Eros dart out with a whoosh, Tony quickly followed.
Arriving at the rooftop, Eros discovered that Tony had not only brought the armor but also included the complete auxiliary device for donning it.
Tony raised an eyebrow and asked, "How is it, prospective college student?"
After offering a word of praise, Eros walked into the center of the auxiliary donning device and spread his arms.
The robotic arms began to operate, putting on each part for him one by one.
Beside him, Tony added, "This set is just for you to play with. Don't get any funny ideas about reverse-engineering the armor technology; I've installed a self-destruct device."
"Rest assured, Teacher Tony." Eros waved his hand dismissively.
Of course he coveted Tony's armor technology and Arc Reactor technology.
But that didn't mean he needed to steal or swindle them from Tony.
Don't forget, Anthony Vanko and his son Ivan Vanko were right in Eros's hands.
Conditioning on curing Anthony Vanko, Eros persuaded Ivan Vanko to work for him, researching Arc Reactortechnology and armor technology.
Although Ivan Vanko's scientific research capability wasn't as good as Tony's, this field was his strong suit; as long as he wasn't compared to Tony, he was second to none in the World.
Of course, Eros wouldn't be as foolish as Justin Hammer to hand over even the armor's control system for Ivan Vankoto design.
In Iron Man 2, after rescuing Ivan Vanko from prison, Justin Hammer had Ivan Vanko help him improve his armor.
As a capitalist, this move was understandable.
Yet he actually handed the control system permissions over to Ivan Vanko as well.
Thus, Ivan Vanko seized the opportunity to hack the Hammer Industries armor control system, controlling the armor during the Stark Industries exhibition to carry out a Carnage and attack Tony.
Such a mistake could not possibly happen to Eros.
Eros felt that, in essence, he was a person similar to Boss Cao, both very lustful and deeply paranoid.
Even when it came to his own women, as long as it was related to his career, he had to keep at least two backup plans.
Black Cat Felicia—her father, John Hardesty, was in the Hydra-Shield prison and had only been transferred to the Hydra-Shield town today, where family visits were permitted.
Viper Ophelia—most of the security personnel in her laboratory were Hydra-Shield Agents, with only a small portion being people from the Serpent Society.
Sharon Carter—she was in charge of Vought Medical's daily affairs, but the v1 compound laboratory operated independently, and Black Cat also approved her work.
Eros suddenly discovered a problem: he had been an adult for two months, yet he still had so few women.
How was this supposed to expand the Pierce Family?
As for those with more distant relations, he guarded against them even more.
Take Samuel Sterns, who was in charge of improving the v1 compound; if he had any problems, regardless of whether they were related to the experiments, Eros could find someone to help him solve them.
However, aside from the researchers, none of the people in the entire laboratory were his own men.
To return to the subject at hand, although Ivan Vanko was already working for Eros, embarking on research into the miniaturization technology of the Arc Reactor and armor.
But they hadn't successfully researched it yet, and now that there was an opportunity to try it out in advance, Eroscertainly wouldn't refuse.
Assisted by the robotic arms, after a series of gear-turning sounds, Eros donned the armor.
Judging by the model, it seemed to be modified from mark iii with some things removed.
"At your service, sir. I am the artificial intelligence Milk of the High Schooler."
What kind of naming sense did Tony have?
"Change the armor's name to... God of Desire, and change your name to Eternity."
Well, Eros's name meant desire, and this name was also the name of the ancient Greek god who ruled over love and desire.
As for why he wanted to rename the armor's artificial intelligence Eternity.
Eros guessed that the reason Tony named it Milk was because almost every time Tony saw Eros, Eros was drinking milk.
But Tony didn't know that what Eros drank wasn't ordinary milk, but wild dog milk.
When the last star in the Universe went out and the time loop restarted, for wild dog milk, it was merely a brief breath in life.
wild dog milk transcended above time and beyond the Universe, being more eternal than Eternity, one of the five major divine beings.
"Understood, sir, Eternity at your service."
After changing the names, with the assistance of the artificial intelligence Eternity, Eros activated the armor and soared straight up into the sky.
Tony's eyelids twitched at the sight, and he quickly controlled his armor to follow, instructing Jarvis in the background to monitor the movements of the [God of Desire].
Once Eros made any dangerous maneuver, he would immediately take over control permissions.
Well, regarding the matter of Tony leaving a backdoor in the armor's underlying control system.
The two of them had a tacit understanding; one didn't ask, and the other didn't mention it.
This was actually a very normal and natural thing.
This set of armor contained numerous top-tier technologies that Stark Industries had not yet announced; it wouldn't be normal if Tony didn't keep a trick up his sleeve.
In reality, major weapon-exporting countries all left backdoors in high-tech weapons to prevent anyone from using their own weapons to attack them.
After flying a few laps in the sky, Eros measured the limit speed of this set of armor to be 3.2 Mach.
The cruising speed was 2.2 Mach.
The limit speed couldn't compare, but the cruising speed was slightly faster than Eros's own cruising speed.
It was a pity that if Eros wanted to do something a bit more private, he wouldn't dare fly this armor there.
It would leak secrets.
Moments later, Eros controlled the armor to land on the landing pad of the Vought International Building.
Tony followed closely behind.
"Quite adept, aren't you? I thought you wouldn't be used to it on your first flight."
Chapter 43: Unlike you, I am a very busy guy.
Eros felt a stir in his heart.
He often took off himself and was very familiar with flying, so he wouldn't panic even when flying in a suit of armor for the first time.
But Tony didn't know that.
Perhaps he could give him a "surprise" in the future.
A playful smirk curved the corner of his mouth, and Eroscasually brushed the topic aside: "Maybe my physical fitness is just better, plus I've had relevant training before."
Tony didn't doubt it either. He nodded in understanding, channeled power into his palms facing downward, and was about to take off and leave.
Seeing this, Eros called out to Tony.
Now that Tony's armor was finished, as long as he made a formal appearance to showcase it, the shareholders would regain confidence in him.
By then, Obadiah's plot to replace Tony would fall through, and there was no telling if Obadiah might become desperate and do something reckless.
Eros certainly didn't want his investment to go down the drain, and it was time for the things he had prepared earlier to come in handy.
"Wait a moment, Teacher Tony, since you gave me a gift, let me give you one too."
"A gift? What gift?"
"It won't disappoint you. But are we just going over like this? Or should we take this thing off first."
"Wait, where are we going?"
"The S.H.I.E.L.D. New York Branch Base."
"Then we'd better take off the armor first."
As a third-generation machine, the mark iii was rather troublesome to put on and take off.
After some tossing and turning, Eros and Tony managed to take off the armor with the help of the robotic arms.
"Maybe I should improve it. Taking it off wastes too much time."
Tony muttered, following Eros to the underground garage, and after picking and choosing for a bit, selected a silver Audi R8.
The two drove one after another toward the S.H.I.E.L.D.New York Branch.
On the way, Eros called Grant Ward in advance, and when they arrived, Grant Ward was already waiting outside the Base gate.
Grant Ward led the way in front. Tony looked at Erosbeside him and asked, "Hey, what on earth is this gift? Why are you being so secretive about it?"
"A person."
"What person?"
"Perhaps someone unforgettable to you," Eros teased.
Tony should hate the bald leader of the Ten Rings Gang to the bone, right?
"What? High schooler, I'm warning you, don't mess around. I only like big wavy hair, not lolitas."
Seeing Tony jump a big step aside with an affected expression and exaggerated acting, dark lines surfaced on Eros's forehead.
Grant Ward also stumbled a bit under his feet. He quickened his pace and finally stopped in front of a cell.
"We're here."
"Mr. Tony, how about it? Is this person unforgettable to you?"
Pointing at the bald leader inside the room, Eros raised an eyebrow at Tony.
Tony's brows furrowed, and his expression turned solemn, as if recalling those sunless three months in the cave in Afghanistan.
Three months!
Three months!
Do you know how he spent those three months?
No beauties, no burgers, only that unceasing blacksmithing.
If it weren't for Ethan counseling him, Tony wouldn't even know if he could have survived those hellish three months.
Tony took a deep breath: "Why is he with you guys?"
Eros: "I suspected that your attack in Afghanistan wasn't a coincidence, so when I saved you, I grabbed him along the way."
Tony: "You mean my attack in Afghanistan was orchestrated by someone behind the scenes?"
Eros: "That's right."
Tony: "Who?"
Eros shook his head.
"You don't know? You've already caught the person, and you still can't squeeze out the mastermind? Don't tell me you S.H.I.E.L.D. agents enforce the law civilly and don't have torture interrogation sessions." Tony wore a look of disbelief.
Eros shrugged: "It's not that we don't know, it's that we can't say. He confessed. Although he doesn't know who the employer is, he has a contact method."
"Give it to me."
With a cue from Eros's eyes, Grant Ward handed a note to Tony, which contained the contact information between the bald leader and the employer.
"After getting the contact info, we probed the employer and roughly determined his identity..."
Eros patted Tony's shoulder: "Teacher Tony, prepare yourself mentally."
Tony's expression sank.
He understood Eros's subtext: this behind-the-scenes employer was someone close to him.
"Consider I owe you a favor. I will investigate this matter myself." After putting away the note, Tony left behind those words and turned to leave.
"I've dropped hints this obviously; don't crash and burn again, Teacher Tony."
Eros shook his head. The principle that an outsider cannot drive a wedge between close relations applies everywhere.
Only by letting Tony find out for himself that it was Obadiah would Tony truly believe it.
It's just that he originally wanted to discuss the weapons department of Stark Industries with Tony, but now it seemed it would be delayed for some time.
Now he also held nearly 20% of Stark shares. If Tonyinsisted on shutting down the weapons department, that would be a pure loss.
Packaging and selling the technology and factories could recoup a massive amount of funds.
If Vought International were to buy up several of those industry chains...
Coupled with Ivan Vanko's Arc Reactor and armor technology, they would have their own overt and legitimate weapons manufacturing department.
"I hope The Pentagon steps up and puts more pressure on Tony."
Muttering this to himself, Eros also left the S.H.I.E.L.D.Base.
After all this hustle and bustle with various matters coming one after another, he almost forgot about the Lizard High Schooler. Let's see where the Lizard High Schooler went.
...
Midtown High School, sewers.
The Lizard High Schooler was lurking right here.
Unlike Dr. Lizard, the Lizard High Schooler had just graduated from Midtown High School and knew that the current twelfth-grade students had already graduated and weren't at school.
Therefore, if he wanted to take revenge on Flash Thompson and fat Ned who had bullied him, he had to wait for a suitable opportunity.
That would be tonight's graduation prom.
Time quietly passed, the sky darkened, and the Midtown High School gymnasium remained brightly lit.
All because the twelfth-grade graduation prom was being held right here.
The people attending the prom were all Midtown High School twelfth-grade graduates, mostly in pairs.
But not absolutely.
A silver-white Bugatti Veyron drove in, with an empty passenger seat.
The vehicle came to a stop, and a handsome boy with dark brown slightly curly short hair and a custom-tailored suit got out of the car.
Harry Osborn.
Although it was the graduation prom, Harry's mood wasn't very good.
His beloved friend and family, Peter Parker, had disappeared yesterday and there had been no news of him since.
Walking into the gym listlessly, Harry rejected several girls' invitations one after another, then walked to a corner alone, and his eyes lit up.
"Eros, I finally found you. Why didn't you answer my calls during the day?"
Uh, Eros recalled what he was doing during the day.
In the morning, he fought with Sharon Carter, searched for and captured Dr. Lizard, and met with Samuel Sterns.
At noon, he pet cats.
In the afternoon, he drove the "God of Desire" out for a spin, then went to the S.H.I.E.L.D. New York Branch, and afterwards came to Midtown High School to find the Lizard High Schooler.
"Harry, unlike you, I am still single. I am a very busy guy."
Chapter 44: "I just rented a new place, do you want to check the safety conditions tonight?"
"F*ck."
"Who are you saying is single? I just don't want to find someone at school."
With that, Harry gave Eros a resentful look.
Harry believed that his childhood friend Eros bore a considerable share of the responsibility for him still being single.
Eros had well-defined facial contours and smooth, delicate skin. Framed by slightly curly, long black hair, his good looks surpassed even those of Hollywood stars.
Combined with a height of 1.88 meters, a slender physique, and a strong, muscular build, he looked like a walking ancient Greek statue.
Standing next to Eros, Harry instantly went from a handsome young scion of a wealthy family to a hotel receptionist.
Several girls Harry liked all liked Eros; or rather, there were hardly any girls in school who didn't like Eros.
He couldn't possibly steal his bro's girl, right?
"Let's put that aside for now. Parker is missing, and there hasn't been any news since yesterday. I'm worried he might have had an accident while taking photos for the newspaper office. Help me check where he is and how he's doing right now."
Peter Parker?
Lizard High Schooler?
Eros activated his X-ray vision and saw that the Lizard High Schooler had already climbed to the opening of the sewer manhole cover, his nostrils twitching as if he was trying to distinguish someone's scent.
"Rest assured, Parker is very safe right now."
"That's good." Harry breathed a sigh of relief, then immediately reacted, "You know where Parker is?"
"Mhm." Eros nodded.
"Something's wrong, very wrong. How would you know where Parker is? Could it be that Parker did something wrong and was captured by you?"
Eros cast a surprised look at Harry. Since when had Harrybecome so smart?
"F*ck." Noticing Eros's gaze, Harry knew he had guessed right, but felt not a shred of joy from it.
The Pierce Family represented a mysterious force that handled incidents even more serious than the daily affairs of the New York Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Falling into their hands, although slightly better than complete disappearance, was really just *slightly* better.
"What did Parker do?" Harry asked.
"Murder, or a terrorist attack?" Eros thought for a moment and said.
Although the Lizard High Schooler hadn't made a move yet, as long as Eros didn't stop him, he would most likely attack Flash Thompson and Fat Ned at the graduation prom.
Given the Lizard High Schooler's personality at the moment, he would most likely kill those two.
"Parker is a good person, a good student. He doesn't even know how to fight, how could he do such a thing?" Clearly, Harry did not believe Eros's statement.
"Parker won't, but the Lizard High Schooler will."
"Lizard High Schooler? You mean Parker? What does he have to do with the Lizard Man?"
"Harry, you have too many questions. Rest assured, Parker will be fine in the end; he's also my friend."
Harry wanted to keep asking, but Eros didn't want to answer anymore. He pushed Harry aside with a sweep of his hand.
This was Eros's graduation prom, and he wanted to dance a dance before the Lizard High Schooler launched his attack, so as not to leave any regrets.
And now, his dance partner had arrived.
Not far away, the red-haired Mary Jane Watson was walking over with a radiant smile.
She was wearing a red modified cheongsam with a form-fitting cut, outlining her slender waist and perky hips.
As she walked, her steps swayed gracefully, perfectly accentuating her voluptuous and fiery body curves.
The corners of Eros's mouth curved into a smile.
Mary Jane's dream was to become an actress.
She had undergone dance training and weight management since childhood, and her figure could be said to be just right—fat where it should be fat, and thin where it should be thin.
"Let's talk later."
Leaving Harry behind, Eros went to greet her.
He was very sure that Mary Jane was here to look for him, even though he hadn't invited Mary Jane to be his dance partner beforehand.
After all, if he invited someone, he could only have one dance partner.
If he didn't invite, he could have many.
Eros wouldn't give up an entire forest for a single tree.
It was just that some unexpected events had happened today.
First, Gwen was injured last night and didn't attend this event, and then the Lizard High Schooler planned to attack those who had bullied him during the event.
Sure enough.
Mary Jane stopped less than half a meter in front of Eros. She raised her head, pouting her red lips as she quietly gazed at Eros, her eyes shimmering with moisture.
"You haven't been to school in a long time."
Eros looked at Mary Jane; her eyes were speaking another sentence.
"I miss you."
"Ahem, sorry, I've been a bit busy lately."
Logically speaking, the age of consent in New York State was seventeen; he should have already been with Mary Jane long ago.
But due to certain force majeure factors, he had to wait until after turning eighteen, so it dragged on until high school graduation.
The main reason was that Eros had been having too much fun to care lately.
Mary Jane pouted her lips, clearly unsatisfied with this answer. She brushed back her hair and said seemingly casually:
"I plan to find a part-time job on Broadway during the summer vacation and rented a room in Manhattan. Do you want to go check it out tonight and help me see if it's safe?"
"Okay."
Right at that moment, the music started playing, and Erostook Mary Jane's hand and walked into the dance floor.
Mary Jane's cheongsam was extremely form-fitting. Although it had a low slit, as their dance steps moved, a section of her calf was faintly visible, guiding Eros's gaze upward, wanting to explore further.
"Do you like it?"
Mary Jane asked, and Eros nodded honestly.
Seeing this, Mary Jane pressed her lips together: "Then—"
"Ah—"
Screams suddenly rang out, interrupting Mary Jane's words.
Immediately following that, starting from a corner of the dance floor, the crowd fled frantically outward, and the atmosphere of the prom instantly vanished.
"What happened?" Mary Jane looked toward the starting point of the crowd's commotion, but her line of sight was blocked by everyone, and she couldn't see anything.
Eros glanced over and instantly understood what was going on.
The Lizard High Schooler had started his move. He had attacked Fat Ned in the dance floor and was now chasing in the direction of Flash Thompson.
It was just... how come this Flash Thompson was running in the same direction as him?
"Let's leave here first." Eros took Mary Jane's hand and protected her as they walked quickly in another direction.
But unfortunately, they were still a bit too slow.
Flash Thompson, this former varsity football team quarterback, ran too fast.
The Lizard High Schooler chased, and Flash Thompsonfled.
Flash Thompson quickly overtook Eros and Mary Jane...
Hm, Eros frowned. He remembered that Flash Thompsonhadn't been running in this direction earlier.
Eros recalled the moment Flash Thompson brushed past him, and his look.
Three parts anticipation, three parts schadenfreude, and four parts fear.
Good grief, he was trying to shift the disaster onto them.
Eros remembered that a few months ago, when Flash Thompson was bullying Peter Parker, he had almost punched Gwen who was trying to stop the fight, and it was he who had blocked it in time.
At that time, Flash Thompson punched him in the back, but his own wrist ended up fractured instead.
Perhaps it was right at that time that he discovered he had physical qualities surpassing ordinary people, which was why he hoped Eros could help him block the Lizard Man.
Chapter 45: Impossible to win, I don't understand
But is this possible?
Eros had noticed the Lizard High Schooler long ago and refused to make a move simply to indulge Peter Parker.
Settling grievances and taking revenge.
Since fat Ned and Flash Thompson bullied Peter Parker, it is completely reasonable for Peter Parker to seek revenge on them after turning into a Lizard Man.
With that, Eros scooped up Mary Jane around her waist and burst into speed.
Hearing the rapidly approaching footsteps behind him, Flash Thompson felt something was wrong.
Before he even had time to look back, he felt a gust of wind blow past his side.
It was Eros, in whom he had placed high hopes, expecting him to stop the Lizard Man, or at least buy some time.
Right at that moment, Eros turned his head and flashed a grin at Flash Thompson.
Little punk, trying to play tricks with me.
"No!"
"No!"
"No!"
"I can't outrun this guy!"
"I can't outrun him!"
"He's too fast!"
While Flash Thompson was full of regret, the Lizard High Schooler had already caught up, tackling him to the ground from behind, and then came the moment of revenge.
"Ah——!"
Hearing the miserable screams coming from behind, Mary Jane shuddered.
If Eros hadn't scooped her up and run away in time, would she have been the one torn to pieces by the Lizard Manright now?
Thinking of this, Mary Jane tightened her arms around Eros's neck, engaging her core to avoid hindering his running as much as possible.
Outside the gymnasium, Harry had already started the car, but he didn't flee immediately; he was waiting for Eros.
However, to Mary Jane's surprise, after shoving her into Harry's car, Eros didn't get in; instead, he turned around and walked back toward the gymnasium.
Seeing this, Mary Jane and Harry quickly called out to Eros.
Mary Jane: "Eros!"
Harry: "Eros, what are you doing? Get in the car!"
Eros paused for a fraction of a second, then replied without looking back: "I'm going to stop the Lizard Man!"
Mary Jane: "No!"
Harry: "Eros, you have no obligation to face a mutant you can't possibly win against. Do you understand?"
"Impossible to win, I don't understand."
Why does this dialogue sound a bit familiar? It feels like I've heard it somewhere before.
Shaking his head, Eros brushed these distracting thoughts aside.
Since the Lizard High Schooler had completed his revenge, it was time to take him back.
At this moment, the exit of the gymnasium was packed to the brim. A crowd of people was desperately squeezing outward, yet very few were actually able to get out.
Viewed this way, Harry being able to escape so quickly had a great deal to do with him being single.
Since he didn't have a dance partner, he hadn't entered the dance floor and had stayed on the edge near the entrance and exit.
After noticing the abnormal situation, he was able to run out immediately.
As for Eros, it was purely because he ran fast; the exit hadn't been blocked up yet by the time he ran there.
The entrance was blocked, but that couldn't stump Eros. In a few quick movements, he climbed up the exterior wall of the gymnasium, vaulted over, and came down on the other side.
Inside the gymnasium, the Lizard High Schooler did not stop his actions after completing his revenge.
On the contrary, the slaughter completely ignited the bestiality in his blood.
Seeing the crowded crowd at the exit, he leaped forward with a huge bound.
Coincidentally, several students on the periphery who couldn't squeeze in turned around and saw this scene, their faces turning instantly pale.
One of the girls wearing a pink dress and braided pigtails was scared stiff.
"No, don't come over!"
The Lizard High Schooler's huge beast paws glinted with a cold light. Ordinary people caught firmly by such claws would definitely be disemboweled.
Therefore, in order to maintain his persona as an ordinary person, Eros didn't take the Lizard High Schooler's claw strike head-on.
When the Lizard High Schooler made his big leap, Eroskicked him right in the stomach, sending him flying back.
Well, this wasn't something an ordinary person could do either.
"Are you alright?" Turning around, Eros smiled at the glasses-wearing girl.
The bespectacled girl nodded blankly. Seeing that the Lizard High Schooler wanted to sneak up on Eros, she quickly warned: "Careful."
Eros turned around, locking eyes with the pouncing Lizard High Schooler, who had bared his beast paws once more.
At that instant, the Lizard High Schooler finally saw clearly who the person in front of him was.
It was his unfathomable old classmate, Eros, who had easily beaten up him and Dr. Lizard all by himself this morning.
No wonder the kick felt so familiar just now.
The next second, the Lizard High Schooler was kicked flying away by Eros once again.
"Do people who've never learned combat all have this bad habit? Clearly unable to fly, yet they randomly make big leaps and stay airborne for a long time. Isn't that asking to be beaten?"
Eros strode toward the Lizard High Schooler.
Although the lizard serum had side effects and would give birth to an evil secondary personality, it wouldn't turn people into idiots or wipe their memories.
Therefore, knowing he couldn't win, the Lizard High Schooler turned his head and ran.
This time it was the Lizard High Schooler running and Eroschasing.
In a short while, the two of them successively disappeared from the view of the Midtown High School students.
"Zzzt——!"
A streak of crimson Heat Vision brushed past the fleeing Lizard High Schooler, followed by Eros's eerie voice drifting over.
"Parker, if you run again, this laser won't miss later."
The Lizard High Schooler shivered, but didn't stop; instead, he started zigzagging evasively.
"Why won't you listen?"
The Lizard High Schooler's footwork was very exquisite and changed rhythm rapidly, but...
If I turn on slow-motion aiming and the skill projectile speed is exceptionally fast, how would Your Excellency cope with this?
A streak of Heat Vision swept across, accurately hitting the Lizard High Schooler's right thigh and burning out a bowl-sized bloody hole.
The fast-running Lizard High Schooler instantly lost control, tumbled to the ground, rolled a few times, and stopped.
"Damn it!"
Looking at the manhole cover close at hand, the Lizard High Schooler closed his eyes unwillingly.
Just a few steps away!
Just a few steps away!
If he could crawl into the sewer, he could use the geographical advantage to escape alive.
There was Eros in New York whom he couldn't afford to provoke, so he would go elsewhere.
Even though Dr. Lizard was captured, this worked out just right.
He could research a new lizard serum himself, create his own lizard empire, and be his own king!
When that time came, he would lead a lizard army back to conquer New York!
Only now, it was all gone!
Just a few steps!
"What are you thinking about, Parker."
Eros kicked the self-absorbed Lizard High Schooler lying on the ground.
"Are you going to get up and come back with me yourself, or am I going to beat you half to death and drag you back? Choose."
"It hurts, I can't move."
The Lizard High Schooler pointed to the wound on his right thigh.
At this moment, under the lizard serum's powerful self-healing ability, the wound had stopped bleeding, and flesh was beginning to grow back.
But it couldn't fully heal right away; he had to wait at least a few more minutes.
"I told you not to run." Eros glanced at the wound and withdrew his gaze.
"Tell me, how did you turn into this neither-human-nor-lizard appearance?"
"What neither-human-nor-lizard? Don't you think this look is very handsome and full of a sense of power?" Lizard Parker retorted.
Judging by his look, he actually seemed to think so.
This aesthetic sense is hopeless.
Chapter 46: He is a dutiful...
Though feeling that the Lizard High Schooler was beyond saving, Eros still dragged him back to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Base, placing him in the room next to Dr. Lizard.
Just like that, the two fellow suffering Lizard Men faced the iron door, iron bars, and iron chains, singing songs of prison sorrow.
How could Peter Parker's food and lodging conditions be so much better than his, and how could he even call home to report he was safe?
This was blatant discrimination; he wanted to protest!
"Aunt Mei, yeah, I'm on a business trip in New Jersey right now, there... My voice, my throat has been a little uncomfortable from a cold lately, alright, I'm hanging up first."
Hanging up the phone with Aunt Mei, the Lizard High Schooler wanted to make another call to Harry, but was stopped by Eros.
"There's no need to call Harry; he already knows about this and is on his way here right now."
"Oh."
"Harry? Harry Osborn?!"
"Yes."
"Osborn..."
Hearing the Lizard High Schooler's confirmation, Dr. Lizardinstantly triggered, abruptly standing up and slamming heavily against the specially made transparent glass.
"I will never forget the humiliation Osborn brought me! All Osborns deserve to die, I'm going to kill them over and over again!"
"You said you want to kill Harry?!" The Lizard High Schooler also stood up, glaring angrily at Dr. Lizardthrough the transparent glass.
"Do you want to rebel against me, Parker!" Dr. Lizardglared back.
The Lizard High Schooler refused to back down: "I will never allow you to hurt Harry." And Aunt Mei.
"Recognize your position, Parker!" Dr. Lizard roared, "I am the king of the Lizard Empire!"
"Your Lizard Empire has already fallen; I am the new king!" the Lizard High Schooler roared back.
The two bared their claws and roared at the special glass for a while.
But this special glass was rumored to have been prepared by the black-braised egg for a certain strongman who was similarly green-skinned, irritable, yet basically kept a humanoid form.
While Dr. Lizard and the Lizard High Schooler's strength might have a significant advantage compared to ordinary people or even super soldiers, it fell far short compared to the Hulk.
Therefore...
Special Glass: After all, I carried it all by myself.
...
Southern Central Europe, Austria.
Somewhere at a HYDRA Base.
Whitehall connected the call: "Bakshi, I suppose you wouldn't disturb me casually. Did you find out the news I wanted?"
"Yes. I found out that some time ago, Alexander Piercemobilized a batch of elites and research supplies to West Africa, Nigeria, after which a shell company there carried out large-scale human experiments."
"If I'm not mistaken, that newly promoted HYDRA Madame should be right there!"
"Good!" Whitehall slammed a hand onto the desk, "Bakshi, you've rendered a great service this time. Once my research succeeds, I will definitely perform surgery for you myself!"
"This is what I should do, Boss."
Hanging up the phone, a fierce gleam flashed in Whitehall's eyes.
A poisonous snake?
No matter how venomous the snake, as long as the hunter is prepared, it could never turn the tables!
...
Before Harry arrived, Gwen drove to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Basefirst.
Eros met Gwen at the entrance of the Base: "You're still going out this late; didn't George and Helen have any objections?"
"I sneaked out on my own; Dad is busy with the Midtown High School attack matter and can't get away for a while."
"That's not necessarily true." Eros shook his finger.
To facilitate the aftermath, Eros had S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel take over the case.
The Midtown High School attack happened in New York. Theoretically, the New York Police Department had priority jurisdiction, but practice and theory usually had some discrepancies.
Before its secrets were exposed, S.H.I.E.L.D. was still quite powerful.
Coupled with the fact that this incident indeed involved supernatural powers.
Therefore... George could only make a wasted trip.
...
On the other side, just as Eros thought, George received a police report and hurriedly rushed to Midtown High School.
George had been puzzled earlier: why didn't that dark-haired kid invite his daughter to the prom?
After seeing the two gruesome corpses in the Midtown High School gymnasium, all he had left was relief.
Relief that Eros didn't invite his daughter to the prom.
After arranging for his subordinates to maintain order and protect the crime scene, George had someone bring over the profiles of the two deceased.
Based on his years of case-solving experience, this was definitely a vendetta.
Ned and Flash Thompson were the names of the two deceased, and their commonality was that they both liked to bully frail classmates.
A sharp glint flashed in George's eyes, feeling that he had grasped a clue and would investigate along this line...
"Director." At this moment, a New York Police Departmentofficer trotted over, "A call from headquarters."
George took the phone, and a moment later his expression changed: "Okay, I understand."
"Withdraw the team!"
...
After waiting a little longer, Harry also arrived at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Base, followed by a scientific research team.
Calling Gwen along was because this matter originated because of Gwen after all; if Gwen hadn't been injured by Dr. Lizard, Eros wouldn't have paid attention to Dr. Lizard.
Calling Harry along was because wanting to research the reverse lizard serum to turn Dr. Lizard and the Lizard High Schooler back required using Oscorp's research data on this project.
Although Dr. Lizard's project had been halted by Norman Osborn, the project data was still Oscorp's property.
To avoid technology leakage, the main personnel researching the reverse lizard serum were also Oscorpresearchers.
"Ward, you receive the people Harry brought, and I'll take them to see the two Lizard Men."
After instructing Grant Ward to interface with Oscorp's research personnel, Eros led Gwen and Harry toward the cells of Dr. Lizard and the Lizard High Schooler.
"Eros, you aren't lying to me, are you? The Lizard Man who attacked the prom tonight and killed Flash Thompson and Ned is actually Parker?"
On the way, Harry muttered incessantly.
"Parker is a dutiful nephew, a friendly classmate, a trustworthy friend, and he has a heart of gold."
"I can't imagine what Dr. Curt Connors did to him to make him become so cruel."
"The lizard serum was only a trigger; what drove Parker to seek revenge was the bullying from Ned and Flash Thompson," Eros said.
Actually, when he was studying in his past life, although he hadn't been bullied, he had also witnessed plenty of bullying phenomena, mainly concentrated in primary and middle school.
Of course, compared to what he saw on campuses in America in this lifetime, the severity was incomparable.
But no matter in which country, campus bullying was a very vicious behavior.
Once he united the World and built a brave new World, he would definitely criminalize campus bullying.
"Actually, Dr. Connors is also a good person."
Seeing Harry constantly talking down Dr. Connors, Gwenchimed in to defend him a bit:
"He is a dutiful son, a respectable father, a competent husband, and he also has a heart of gold."
Chapter 47: I Have a Cat at Home That Can Do Backflips!
"If Oscorp hadn't shut down his project, years of his hard work wouldn't have gone down the drain."
"Dr. Lizard wouldn't have taken the risk of injecting himself with the immature lizard serum either."
Hearing Gwen's words, Harry remained silent for a moment before speaking in a faint voice:
"Is that Osborn's fault? This project belongs to Osborn, and Osborn has the right to dispose of it."
Not far away, Dr. Lizard, who had just quieted down in the cell not long ago, triggered up again upon hearing Harry's words and roared:
"The DNA recombination technology was developed by me! This is my project! Osborn stole my hard work!"
Hearing Dr. Lizard's roar, Harry was startled at first. Then, seeing this monster that had turned Peter into a monster, fury burned within him, and boldness welled up from malice.
"For so many years, Oscorp has invested so much money in this project. Have you produced any results?"
"Even if there were no results, has Oscorp ever delayed your salary?"
Dr. Lizard was stunned by Harry's three consecutive questions, and then he stiffened his neck and retorted:
"Every experiment of this project was handled by me personally, and every difficulty was overcome by me personally."
"Besides money, venue, equipment, materials, and manpower, what else did Osborn contribute?"
Harry was so angry that he was rendered speechless. He had never seen such a shameless person.
Even Gwen, who was on good terms with Dr. Connors, lowered her head in shame.
The damned lizard serum had actually turned Dr. Connors into such an unreasonable person!
"Forget it, don't bicker with him for now. His brain is a bit messed up right now. Did you bring the suppressant serum?" Eros asked.
"I brought it." Harry nodded.
It would take a while to develop the reverse lizard serumthat could completely eliminate the effects of the lizard serum and restore Dr. Lizard and the Lizard High Schoolerto ordinary people.
However, making a suppressant that inhibits the lizard genes and prevents the crazy lizard genes from affecting sanity was much easier.
The Lizard High Schooler was quite cooperative, but Dr. Lizard still wanted to struggle a bit. As a result, after Eroslanded two solid punches, he saw his wife and children again and immediately became well-behaved.
With a shot of the suppressant, the eyes of Dr. Lizard and the Lizard High Schooler became much clearer.
"Oh god!"
"What have I done?"
The Lizard High Schooler hugged his head:
"I actually wanted to team up with Dr. Connors to turn all of New York into Lizard Men? I deserve to die!"
"You also killed Flash Thompson and Ned." Harry added.
"Flash Thompson and Ned..." The Lizard High Schooler's eyes flickered evasively, and finally he mumbled, "They got what they deserved."
As he spoke, the Lizard High Schooler looked at Eros with gratitude.
After calming down, he recalled some details he hadn't noticed at the time.
When he was hunting down Flash Thompson, he saw a familiar figure—Eros.
Eros had been there at the time too.
But Eros didn't stop him. Instead, to avoid being recognized by him, Eros pretended to run away and left Flash Thompson to him.
In other words, Eros supported his revenge!
Eros also imperceptibly returned a look to the Lizard High Schooler.
It's better to keep things like this to yourself. If you say it out loud, I won't admit it, oh.
Following the Lizard High Schooler, Dr. Lizard also began his repentance, smashing a fist against the special glass.
"I'm so frustrated!"
"I suddenly turned into an impulsive and irritable madman. Where is there any trace of a doctoral graduate and outstanding researcher in me?"
"Ahem." Eros gave a soft cough to attract the attention of the two.
"For safety's sake, neither of you can leave the S.H.I.E.L.D.Base during this period, and you must wear positioning wristbands 24 hours a day."
"If you want to leave the Base, you can cooperate with Oscorp's research team to develop the reverse lizard serum as soon as possible."
"At least you need to turn back into a human shape first. Of course, the positioning wristbands must continue to be worn."
Although it's not very useful either.
The lizard serum possessed powerful self-healing abilities. No matter how hard the positioning wristband was made, it was useless against the trick of cutting off one's wrist to survive.
"In addition, the suppressant serum has a time limit and can last for about two to three months. To be safe, it needs to be re-injected every month."
The night grew deeper, and the bright moon hung high.
After giving instructions, Eros, Gwen, and Harry left the S.H.I.E.L.D. Base.
Harry naturally went back alone.
As for Gwen.
"I drove here myself, so you don't need to drop me off."
"All right."
Watching Gwen get into the driver's seat a step ahead and lock the car doors, Eros could only nod and turn to walk towards his own car.
"Are you free tomorrow night?" Gwen called out to Eros, hesitating before speaking: "George invited you to have dinner at our house tomorrow night, saying he wants to thank you."
"I'm free. But if you really want to thank me, how about coming to my house for dinner? I have a cat at home that can do backflips!"
"I don't believe your nonsense!"
After parting ways with Gwen, Eros wasn't without somewhere to go.
He hadn't forgotten that Mary Jane had invited him to her house to check the security conditions.
A bright moon hung in the night sky of the Big Apple, continuously scattering brilliance all over the ground.
Eros drove his vehicle, crossed Broadway, and parked downstairs from Mary Jane's place.
Mary Jane hadn't specified the exact location of her rental apartment, but that wasn't a difficult task for Eros.
Super vision plus X-ray vision, check it out.
...
The southwest corner of Broadway.
Inside the apartment.
Mary Jane was sitting on a yoga mat in a daze.
After resolving to become an outstanding actress, day after day and year after year, rain or shine, she trained in the four basic skills of voice, body, form, and expression.
It was just that tonight was an exception; she really couldn't calm her mind down.
You couldn't blame her; replace her with any ordinary person who suffered a monster attack at the prom, and they wouldn't be able to calm down quickly either.
At this deep and quiet night, the more Mary Jane thought about it, the more scared she became.
If Eros hadn't been there at the time, she would have been left behind Flash Thompson, and then... Fortunately, Eroswas there; his embrace was so warm.
Thinking of this, Mary Jane couldn't help but hug herself tightly with both hands.
However, why didn't she stop Eros from going back at that time?
How could she let him face the monster alone?
Even though she had already received news that Eros was safe, Mary Jane still couldn't forgive herself.
"Knock, knock, knock!"
Suddenly, a series of knocks sounded at the door.
Who would come here to find her?
Could it be Eros?
But she hadn't given him the exact location yet.
Mary Jane got up, walked towards the door, crouched down, and leaned close to the peephole.
...
Arriving upstairs, Eros knocked directly on the door.
"Knock, knock, knock!"
After knocking, he stepped back a bit so Mary Jane could clearly see through the peephole that it was him.
A moment later, the door opened from the inside, and Mary Jane rushed into Eros's arms with a gust of fragrant wind: "Why did you come?"
Eros's eyes lit up.
Chapter 48: Born with the destiny of a workhorse, following the water and grass to dwell—wherever the grass is, that is where he sleeps.
Mary Jane had probably just finished working out, so she was wearing a yoga outfit, her delicate body's curves completely exposed, giving an absolute explosive visual impact.
The Fire that Gwen had sparked in Eros earlier at the clubhouse flared up again.
He gently wrapped his arms around Mary Jane's slender waist: "Because this is the guidance of fate."
"Besides, wasn't it you who asked me to come over and help check the safety conditions of the house?"
"Bad guy, then how do you plan to check?"
"Of course, I have to check both inside and out to eliminate any safety hazards."
Eros was a man of his word. After helping Mary Jane check inside and out, and finding two safety hazards in the house, he blocked them all up.
However, blocking is worse than dredging; no matter how one blocks it, as long as the danger still exists, there will always be a time when it bursts forth completely.
After the loopholes couldn't be blocked anymore, Erossuggested: "It's not safe here. I have a Villa nearby; why not move and live there?"
"Will you be living there?" Mary Jane asked in return.
"Uh, I recently opened a company and I'm quite busy, so I generally live at the company."
Eros was born with the fate of a workhorse. Although in this life he was born into a Celestial Dragon family, he still followed his true heart and migrated wherever the water and grass led.
Wherever the grass was, that was where he slept, having no fixed abode.
"Since you won't even be there, what would I move over there for?"
Mary Jane rejected Eros's proposal. She gently bit Eros's left chest, leaving a tooth mark on it.
"It's better like this, living alone by myself. When you miss me, you can come find me, and I don't have to worry about you not coming home."
"If you miss me, you can also tell me, and I will always support you from behind."
Eros sighed and touched the mark on his chest.
It wasn't that his conscience hurt; if not for his Bio-fieldbeing at level 2, Mary Jane wouldn't have been able to leave a mark even if she bit until her cheeks hurt.
After a bout of tenderness, Mary Jane said: "Don't do such dangerous things next time."
Dangerous? Did she mean the Lizard High Schooler?
"Mm." Eros softly acknowledged.
"Promise me." Mary Jane was still not satisfied.
"I promise."
Early the next morning, Eros prepared to try again to persuade Mary Jane to agree to move into the Villa.
Unfortunately, after working hard back and forth for over half an hour, he still failed.
In fact, the area near Broadway was already one of the safest areas in New York, but at night one still had to be a bit more careful.
The start time for Broadway evening shows was usually around seven or eight, a play lasted two to three hours, and after the performance ended there was still the curtain call session...
In short, if Mary Jane was scheduled for an evening show, she wouldn't be able to get off work until at least after ten.
After driving away from Broadway Avenue alone, Erosdialed a phone call and gave some instructions.
Mary Jane was an independent person; he wouldn't directly interfere with Mary Jane's work and life, but he would provide some necessary safety guarantees.
As well as ensuring she wouldn't be harassed at the theater, and career-wise: fairness! Fairness! Still fairness!
...
Aside from checking on Ivan Vanko's scientific research progress with the Black Cat missy, nothing happened today.
In the evening, Eros took a bath, washed off the catnip scent on his body, and drove towards Gwen's house.
Gwen's house.
Gwen's mother Helen was in the kitchen preparing dinner, while George was smoking on the balcony.
A day had already passed, but regarding the matter of the case in his hands being snatched, George still couldn't let it go.
Especially since he had clearly found a train of thought, just a step away from the answer.
After finishing his cigarette, George's mood eased slightly. Returning to the living room and seeing Gwen picking out various clothes and asking Helen for her opinion, his face dropped again.
His own family's little cabbage was about to be arched by a pig.
Gwen's movements paused slightly, looking somewhat guilty: "I don't know either, maybe he likes Mom's cooking more, or maybe he likes our family's atmosphere."
"Isn't it good for Eros to come around our house more often?" Helen chimed in from the side: "Who knows, maybe we'll be family in the future."
"Gwen, you look truly beautiful tonight!"
Driving to the downstairs of Gwen's house and looking at the graceful Gwen at the entrance, Eros praised from the bottom of his heart.
"Come with me."
Gwen smiled, stepped forward to pull Eros's hand and lead him into the house, then whispered:
"My dad is in a bad mood today, so you should humor him a bit later."
As Eros listened to Gwen speak, her warm breath blew against his earlobes, feeling a bit ticklish.
Suddenly, he felt a flutter in his heart.
Although he had intimate contact with Gwen many times, it seemed every single time came with a novel experience.
Arriving at the dining room and sitting down, Eros felt a bit strange.
Gwen's mother Helen was exceptionally enthusiastic, while George was somewhat cold, frequently pulling a long face when not speaking.
So, was it George who invited him, or Helen who invited him?
"George is just troubled over yesterday's school attack case, don't take it to heart." Helen also noticed the abnormality and quietly kicked George under the table.
Unfortunately, George didn't catch Helen's meaning.
"Sigh, first there was Spider-Woman, and then a Lizard Man popped up. I don't know what's wrong with New Yorknow, nor what kind of superpower criminals will pop up in the future."
"Dad, Spider-Woman is not a criminal." Gwen corrected from the side.
"That's right, Spider-Woman is a superhero." Eros picked up the conversation and casually teased Gwen.
"Superheroes... New York doesn't need superheroes." George shook his head,
"In this Lizard Man incident, Spider-Woman fought with the Lizard Man but was beaten away by the Lizard Man."
"Later, the Lizard Man attacked Midtown High School, but was subdued by a federal special agency."
"The federal government has the ability to maintain order and stability; masked vigilantes only cause trouble."
Hearing George evaluate Spider-Woman like that, Gwenwas displeased: "Spider-Woman was just careless. If it happens again, she will definitely defeat the Lizard Man."
Hearing his daughter defend Spider-Woman so much, George rubbed his brows with a headache.
Just what kind of magic did Spider-Woman possess to charm his obedient daughter into such a daze?
Could this be the difference in thinking between men and women?
Thinking of this, George looked at Eros. This prospective son-in-law had connections reaching the heavens, perhaps he had some different insights: "Eros, what do you think?"
"Spider-Woman, Lizard Man, this is only a starting point. In the future, there will be more and more super-powered individuals."
"Perhaps in just a few days, George, you'll be able to see a new wealth-powered individual born on TV."
Eros took a sip of milk, felt a bit unaccustomed to it, and put it back down.
"The federal government needs to accept super-powered individuals, and super-powered individuals also need to embrace the federal government. The two need to reach a new balance."
"More super-powered individuals?" George's brows furrowed even tighter, "Eros, do you know some kind of news?"
"Just the inevitability of technological development."
Chapter 49: Even a Born Workhorse Physique Cannot Go Without Being Fed Grass
In the Marvel Universe, magic and technology lead to the same destination; both are applications of certain cosmic energies or cosmic rules and concepts.
As technology develops, it becomes easier to touch upon cosmic energies, which in turn makes it easier to produce people with superpowers.
More importantly, after entering the information age, news spreads rapidly, and as long as a person with superpowers is exposed, it quickly spreads everywhere.
After dinner, Gwen took the initiative to propose, "Dad, Mom, I'll go see off Eros."
Looking at his prettily dressed daughter, George strongly wanted to make a sarcastic remark.
Going out to send someone off, did she need to dress up like this?
Originally, upon hearing that there would be even more people with superpowers in the future, George's mood was already not very pleasant, and now it was even worse.
Turns out it wasn't the little cabbage being rooted up by a pig, but the little cabbage rooting up the pig.
"Sigh—!"
George waved his hand with a life-is-meaningless look, "Remember to come home before ten o'clock tonight."
Just like that, Gwen saw Eros downstairs, Gwen saw Erosinto the car, and Gwen saw Eros to the movie theater.
"George didn't invite me at all; you tricked me into going, right?"
Eros came to his senses; if George had invited him, then after finishing the meal, he should have stayed to reminisce or something.
As a result, right after the meal was finished, Gwen pulled him away.
"Aren't you just so smart." Gwen stuffed a handful of popcorn into Eros's mouth.
"If you wanted to ask me out to play, you could have just said so directly; there's no need to be shy."
Eros touched his spider leg.
He had a born workhorse physique, and sometimes he would work even without being fed grass.
Just like that, the two of them began their date.
After watching the movie, they continued to stroll through the shopping mall and walk the streets, doing the things that couples should do.
Only when it came to the final step did Eros finally know why Gwen had time to date him today.
The injury on Gwen's back had not yet healed, so she couldn't engage in strenuous exercise!
"Combat? I've been watching tutorials recently."
"No, not combat, but real battle—a battle with the purpose of preserving oneself and killing the opponent."
"But..." Gwen could not understand, "Killing people at will violates the law."
"We should catch the bad guys, hand them over to the Police, and let the law judge their crimes, rather than resorting to lynching."
"Gwen, I'm not asking you to kill the innocent indiscriminately or resort to lynching. Let's analyze specific issues on a case-by-case basis; let's use ordinary people as an example."
"When an ordinary person faces an attack by armed thugs and their life is threatened, they naturally deserve the right to unlimited self-defense, even if they kill the opponent as a result."
"Similarly, when you face certain super villains and armed criminals who can threaten your life, you also possess this right."
"If you truly cannot make up your mind, then when you encounter this kind of situation, stay as far away as possible and don't go meddling."
Eros grabbed Gwen's shoulders and looked into her eyes: "Even if you don't think of yourself, you have to consider George and Helen. What would they do if something happened to you?"
"I..."
Gwen fell silent.
What Eros said resonated deeply with her.
She still remembered that when she was little, her mom would occasionally wake up in the middle of the night and hold her quietly.
At that time, Gwen didn't know why her mom did that.
After she grew up and understood things, she realized that on those nights, Dad had emergency missions, and Mom was worried about whether Dad could return safely.
"I understand."
"Good, then let me ask you another question." Erosnodded,
"If a criminal hijacks a child and tells you to give up resistance, what should you do?"
Gwen's eyes lit up; she knew this question, as she had practical experience:
"Feign giving up resistance, get close to the opponent, and then suddenly launch a sneak attack to rescue the child?"
Thump!
Eros knocked Gwen on the head.
"If you are facing an ordinary criminal whose weapons cannot threaten you, then of course you can do that."
"But what we are discussing now are super criminals, the kind that can threaten your life safety."
"When facing this kind of super criminal, you can refer to how ordinary Police officers handle ordinary criminals."
...
"Dad, if you encounter this kind of situation, what would you do?"
"Gwen, this kind of situation is very complex and involves the cooperation of multiple departments..."
"What if it's just you alone?"
"Then of course it's emptying the magazine; one's own safety is the most important thing, and you and Helen are still waiting for me to come home."
...
Eros couldn't remember when the last time was that he slept alone in a bed by himself; it must have been the previous time.
Although he had a born workhorse physique, he couldn't literally not be fed grass.
After correcting Gwen's battle philosophy, Eros sent Gwenhome.
As for specific combat skills, he planned to wait until Gwen's injury healed and have her study at the S.H.I.E.L.D.Field Academy.
He believed that once she got there and came into contact with certain Agent concepts, Gwen would change.
In addition, they could also get some Vibranium and have Ivan Vanko make a battle suit suitable for Gwen.
After Gwen awakened her Spider-Man abilities, although her stats were decent, her physical defense was still too low. With the protection of a Vibranium battle suit, her survivability would improve significantly.
As for where to get Vibranium, of course it was Wakanda.
Eros planned to wait for Ophelia to return and demand Killmonger from her hands.
Then he would discuss with Grandpa how to use Killmonger, the exiled prince of Wakanda, to seize Wakanda.
Speak of the devil.
While Eros was still thinking about when Ophelia would return to New York, Ophelia's phone call arrived.
"Little brother, did you miss big sister?" As soon as the call was connected, Ophelia's coaxing, tender voice rang out.
For some reason, Eros heard a hint of joy in Ophelia's voice.
However... it should be two or three in the morning over in West Africa, right? Why wasn't Ophelia sleeping this late?
"Of course I did. My flower-arranging skills were a bit rusty last time; when you get back, let's try it again."
"Hmph, stinky little brother."
Ophelia's seductive voice came over,
"The flight is at nine tomorrow, New York time. If you want to arrange flowers, come to the airport to pick me up."
"Alright, no problem."
Eros's eyes lit up. The flower-arranging last time had only proceeded halfway and wasn't finished before he left due to the news of Gwen's injury.
This time there shouldn't be any more accidents, right?
...
West Africa, Nigeria.
After hanging up the phone, Ophelia came to the training ground to continue directing Hydra-Shield Agents and the Serpent Society to move equipment onto the transport plane.
The call she just made to Eros was indeed because she missed Eros a bit and wanted Eros to pick her up at the airport.
As for why she was happy, it was because this time Erosanswered the call very quickly, and his tone was also completely normal.
This meant...
'Hmph hmph, little wildcat, I haven't even made a move yet, how did you already fall out of favor.'
However, Ophelia could not stay happy for too long.
Swoosh——!
Boom——!
A guided missile tore through the night sky, accurately striking the tallest building within the Base.
Looking at the explosive fire and the buildings turned into ruins, Ophelia's gaze turned cold.
Someone wanted her life!
"Enemy attack!"
"Prepare for battle!"
Chapter 50: Lu Xun once said, chaos is a ladder of progress.
Eros went to sleep full of anticipation, only to be awakened by a phone call from Alexander Pierce.
"The Base in Nigeria has been attacked. Where are you now? I'll send a fighter jet to pick you up."
Eros gave a start, most of his sleepiness disappearing: "No need, I'll fly over myself."
Eros's normal flight speed was not as fast as a quinjet, but his limit speed was the reverse.
Nigeria and New York were more than 8,000 kilometers apart. The quinjet's limit speed was Mach 5, taking about an hour and a half.
Eros's limit speed was Mach 20, taking only twenty-odd minutes.
...
Nigeria Hydra-Shield Base.
The battle was still ongoing.
The temporary buildings constructed on the outer perimeter for human experiments had been bombed into ruins.
However, the original defensive facilities in the inner circle, built according to military standards, were still basically intact.
After withstanding the first round of bombing, Opheliaquickly organized the Hydra-Shield Agents, relying on the military equipment in the inner circle for defense.
"At most two hours, reinforcements will arrive. Hold on."
Even though they were pinned down inside the Base by the attackers outside, the Hydra-Shield Agents still maintained high morale.
They knew the organization's secret weapon was on the way. As long as My Lord arrived, the difficulties would be readily resolved.
Drag it out, the advantage is mine!
The reinforcements they spoke of were naturally Eros, though the timing was slightly off.
The support time they calculated was based on the quinjet's speed of Mach 5, whereas Eros's speed was Mach 20.
Whitehall was remotely commanding mercenaries to besiege the Nigeria Base. He was in a great state of mind, and even had the leisure to complain to Bakshi:
"Hehe, that foolish woman actually chose to hold her ground."
In his view, Ophelia choosing to hold her ground was just waiting for death.
Yes, relying on military equipment, he couldn't do anything to Ophelia for a moment, but once the war started, with water and power cut off, how long could the Hydra-ShieldAgents inside the military Base hold out?
"Perhaps she is waiting for reinforcements," Bakshibantered.
"Reinforcements?" Whitehall smiled disdainfully.
So-called super soldiers could only show off their might in special operations.
In a frontal battlefield like this with thousands of people deployed, unless it was an organized army formation, nothing would affect the battle situation.
And this was in West Africa. The nearby armed forces consisted of only a few warlord factions, all of which were now controlled by him through various means.
No matter how powerful Alexander Pierce's influence was, wanting to mobilize organized troops to support Opheliawould take several days.
Unless he drove a S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier over, Whitehalldidn't know how he could possibly lose!
But was that possible?
Clack!
Whitehall opened a bottle of champagne, poured a full glass, and gestured to Bakshi:
"Let us celebrate in advance for cutting off Alexander's claws, and also for the soon-to-be-acquired super soldier serum formula."
Both sides of the attack and defense at the Nigeria Hydra-Shield Base were in a great state of mind, both feeling that the advantage was theirs and hoping to maintain the status quo, but one person was an exception.
Killmonger, Erik Killmonger.
Lu Xun once said, chaos is a ladder of progress.
Although Killmonger had never heard this saying, he understood the principle.
If he followed routine, wanting to stand out among all the experimental subjects and climb to the upper echelons of this mysterious organization...
Whether he could achieve it aside, just the time required made it unbearable for him.
His father's killer, the current Black Panther of Wakanda, T'Chaka, was already old, and in a few years would no longer be able to hold a weapon.
Killing such a person who couldn't even hold a weapon steadily, even if it was to avenge his father, would not be glorious.
Therefore, Killmonger set a five-year plan for himself. He had to complete his revenge within five years, and time was very pressing for him.
And now, the opportunity had come.
Someone was attacking the Base. If he could turn the tide when the Base was about to be breached and prop up the falling mansion, performing splendidly...
Then an exceptional promotion, stepping into the upper echelons of the organization in a few years...
Killmonger's thoughts were wonderful, but reality was cruel.
Both warring sides fought exceptionally steadily; there was simply no room for him to play a role.
So he took the initiative and found Ophelia:
"Officer, give me fifty men, and I will surely take advantage of the night to raid the enemy command post and capture the enemy leader alive."
Ophelia glanced at Killmonger and shook her head in refusal. The other party was a person valued by Eros, and could not be let out to execute such a risky mission.
Killmonger misunderstood, thinking Ophelia did not believe in his ability. Gritting his teeth, he said:
"Give me thirty men, and I will surely take advantage of the night to raid the enemy command post and capture the enemy leader alive."
"No." Ophelia flatly refused again.
"I only need ten people!" Killmonger gritted his teeth further, "And I will surely take advantage of the night to raid the enemy command post and capture the enemy leader alive."
"No!"
"One person!" Killmonger's teeth were wobbling, "Equip me fully, and I will act alone. I will surely raid the enemy command post and capture the enemy leader alive."
Why was this person so stubborn?
Ophelia frowned. She didn't know whether Erik Killmongercould manage to raid the enemy command post and capture the enemy leader alive.
But if Killmonger died in the mission, there was no telling how Eros would punish her.
More importantly, there was no need; the reinforcements would arrive very soon.
"Agent, obey orders!"
Ophelia impatiently waved her hand, and Killmonger only felt a rush of fragrance coming over him, intoxicating his soul.
Then, he collapsed.
Even an enhanced person who had been injected with the super soldier serum could not withstand Ophelia's poison.
"Take him down and keep him under watch."
...
Arriving in West Africa and seeing that the Nigeria Basewas still resisting and had not been breached, Eros set his mind at ease.
That being the case, it would be easy to handle: direct decapitation, just wiping out the opponent's command post.
Taking advantage of the night, Eros hovered mid-air, activating super vision and super hearing, and quickly found the command post of the armed force attacking the Hydra-Shield Base.
He didn't act immediately, observing for a while longer instead.
Ophelia had spent quite a lot of money doing experiments here, which could be considered driving the local economic development.
It was normal for local armed forces to want to loot, and Hydra-Shield wasn't short of that little money for bribes, but attacking the Hydra-Shield Base without a word was very abnormal.
After observing for a while, Eros discovered that someone else was indeed targeting the Hydra-Shield Base.
It was just a pity that he hadn't heard the other party's name and didn't know if an alias was used.
After observing for a while longer and finding no new information, Eros decided to make a move.
The enemy command post breached, the enemy leader captured alive, and the enemy troops ordered to retreat—things Killmonger had been longing for.
Eros settled it in three minutes.
Two and a half minutes of that was giving the other party time to find a translator.