"Isn't it the military?" Peter asked.
Nick finished pouring the water and turned around. As he set the water glass in front of Peter, his gaze fell on Schiller. Peter followed his gaze and slowly widened his eyes. He pointed at Schiller several times and said, "You mean... Doctor Schiller is the one who attempted to assassinate you??!!"
Schiller took a sip of his coffee, unruffled, saying, "Don't talk nonsense, I'm not the one who took action, I merely took care of some hopeless mercenary's business."
Peter frowned, but Schiller began to speak: "Now that Peter is here, we can start our next step."
"Are you sure about this? The opponent ahead is not so easy, and I suspect that Tony was already on alert."
"There's no need to doubt. He may have guessed part of our plan long ago, but it doesn't matter; he will cooperate with us."
Nick sat down on the sofa, picked up the water glass, and took a sip, asking: "So, our next target is Stark?"
However, Schiller shook his head and said: "No, let's take a look at Captain America first, he should have returned to New York by now."
Peter didn't quite understand what they were discussing, but he still raised a question: "Isn't the captain still in Washington? Last time I called him, he said he was waiting for Nick Fury's funeral."
Upon saying this, Peter realized that both Nick and Shiller's gazes were fixed on him. Shiller stared at him saying: "Now, the funeral he's preparing might not just be for Nick Fury."
Peter was suddenly taken aback. In an instant, memories rushed through his mind. He remembered his leap from a high-rise building, how he caught Nitro, the human bomb, right before the explosion.
A young man, not particularly strong, slender, fell at the fastest speed, landing right at the center of the explosion. In an instant, amidst rolling flames and smoke, he held onto the human bomb.
In the next second, a terrifying explosion started, hurling everyone within a few hundred meters outwards, with Peter flying especially high.
Thanks to the superior physical strength granted by his spider mutation, he was able to remain intact despite the violent shock. However, the instant Nitro released his power, the force of the energy pierced through his chest, leaving a massive hole.
When such a scene unfolded on the screen, Captain America Steve reacted just like everyone else in New York: he covered his mouth, eyes widened, chest heaving rapidly.
The New York Weirdos Program Group, recording an onsite scene of the New Warriors' team fighting criminals, happened to be on the roof of a building near the chemical plant. The film crew, being ordinary people, didn't follow quickly after the New Warriors members jumped down. This decision has saved their lives.
At first, they only captured distant scenes from the top of the building. Later on, as the New Warriors chased the criminals outdoors, the team didn't rush to follow them, instead trailing along leisurely. By the time Nitro exploded, they were out of the blast range.
However, their video camera recorded the entire process of the explosion. It wasn't on the New York Weirdos show but on a legal program instead.
The explosion in Southeast New York shocked the world. Since the 9/11 incident, all U.S. departments have been vigilant against such events. As soon as the video footage was released, everyone was flabbergasted.
What should have been the most discussed topic was the criminal who exploded uncontrollably, but even more shocking was Spider-Man's death.
Spider-Man has been a superhero in New York for so long that he is well-known by many people, the majority of whom speak highly of him.
This could be due to the fact that the Daily Bugle hasn't targeted Spider-Man yet, and also because Spider-Man Peter is not always in the public eye due to his experiments, an attribute that has actually won him the public's favor.
Most New Yorkers even rate him much higher than Iron Man, Tony Stark, whose private life has always been subject to criticism.
But looking at Spider-Man's physique, it's obvious that he is young. His few TV interviews also show that he is pretty trendy - from an average background, getting good grades, likes to play video games, listens to pop music, and even picks fights with friends.
Such an image attracts many young people, who view Spider-Man as the superhero representing their own demographic.
The three most famous superheroes in New York City are Spider-Man, Iron Man, and Captain America. Among them, Spider-Man has the most young fans, Iron Man attracts middle-aged and elite class fans, and Captain America has a lot of elderly fans from his generation. Each of them has their own audience.
Without a doubt, teenagers among these groups are the most likely to get emotional and be unable to control their feelings due to their familiarity with the online world. As a result, they voice their views on the internet more frequently.
Therefore, when news of Spider-Man's death circulated on the internet, it created a huge stir.
Online eulogies were everywhere, with many young celebrities and athletes voicing their opinions. They claimed that it was a failure of government functions that let criminals run wild, leading to the death of a young, energetic, and righteous superhero.
Out of all the superheroes in New York City, Spider-Man received the highest praises. Wherever one goes, death is always taken seriously. Even though Spider-Man was once criticized for some frivolous behavior, this criticism turned into nothing but praise after his death.
Many of his die-hard fans went to mourn at the site of the accident. There was a group who laid flowers at the entrance of the Raft Prison and at the New York City Government building. More people, however, took to the online battlefield discussing who should be held responsible for this event.
Most people felt that the primary responsibility was, of course, with the criminals. The prison and the government who allowed the criminals to escape should also share some of the blame. The main point of contention was whether or not the New Warriors Team should be held accountable.
Some felt that they had good intentions in wanting to take down criminals, but due to lack of experience and capability, they made a mistake. However, a majority felt that it was entirely the New Warriors Team's fault for stirring up trouble.
Most people believed that the New Warriors Team, in a bid to put on a show with the television station, were reckless in attempting to catch criminals without proper planning or capability. After the mess, they dragged Spider-Man into it.
Spider-Man sacrificed his life, while they walked away untouched. Moreover, after the incident, they continuously shrugged off their responsibilities online, and many of their fans were even attacking Spider-Man.
Within a few short days, the members of the New Warriors Team caused public outrage. Inside the New Warriors base, Speedball raised his voice and said:
"How is this my fault?! That was clearly Spider-Man's own death wish!! If he hadn't followed us around, we would've definitely taken down those criminals!!"
At this point, Speedball's phone vibrated. He glanced at the screen and instantly went red in the face. He shouted at the top of his lungs:
"These damned, misinformed bloggers!! They're saying we're show-off frauds! That we purposely killed Spider-Man! They're even saying I... I'm a foul-mouthed punk!! They dare describe me with such words... I'll kill them!!!"
"Who are you going to kill?" A somewhat indifferent voice emerged from the doorway.
Everyone in the base turned their heads, and under the dim light of the hallway, the first thing that came into view was a circular shield with alternating red and blue colors.