Linton was completely bewildered. He hadn't even figured out his own situation, and now Spider-Man suddenly appeared—what was going on?
The guy in front of him was definitely Spider-Man, wearing the iconic red and blue suit. Judging by the way he made his entrance, it was likely the real deal. But… according to Linton's knowledge, Spider-Man was supposed to be a character from movies or comics. How had he become a living person? What in the world was happening?
"Are you scared? That's right, I'm your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man," Spider-Man quipped, seeing that Linton wasn't reacting. "I admire your skills, but if you're using them for crime, the master who taught you might be a bit upset."
"Uh… can I just say this is all a misunderstanding?" Linton said, though he doubted it would do any good.
"I don't think there's any misunderstanding when you're attacking a police officer on the street. Maybe you can explain it to the judge?" Spider-Man replied. He had seen Linton knock down the officer but hadn't been able to intervene in time. Nonetheless, he was intent on apprehending him.
While talking, Spider-Man jumped down from the wall and landed right in front of Linton. "If possible, I'd rather not use violence. Could you please put down the weapon?"
Linton was still holding the gun he had taken earlier. Looking around at the situation, he realized he was in deep trouble. He had, in fact, knocked down the officer, and there wasn't much to explain. He couldn't exactly tell the judge that he couldn't control himself.
So, what now? There was no way he could take on Spider-Man. Should he try to run? Instinctively, Linton glanced behind him.
Seeing this, Spider-Man guessed what Linton was thinking and acted quickly. With a flick of his wrist, he shot a web towards Linton's hand, aiming to disarm him. However, just as this happened, a familiar voice echoed in Linton's mind.
"Hostile target detected. Activating auto-combat mode."
In that instant, Linton's body moved on its own. He ducked low, dodging Spider-Man's web attack without even turning his head.
"What? No, no, no! Don't activate auto-combat mode! I can't beat him!" Linton shouted internally. After two previous encounters, he had somewhat figured out how this thing worked, but this time the enemy was Spider-Man. There was no way he could win.
But his body didn't listen. His legs pushed off the ground, and he launched a karate chop at Spider-Man's throat, aiming for a vital spot. However, with a "crack," Spider-Man didn't even flinch, while Linton felt like his hand had almost broken. A sharp pain shot straight to his head.
"Damn it! I told you I can't win! I can't even break through his defense!" Linton cursed out loud, not caring if anyone heard.
Spider-Man, of course, didn't care what Linton was muttering. This criminal had resisted arrest and even attacked him, so Spider-Man wasn't going to hold back. Facing this "dangerous" criminal, he raised a fist and punched Linton straight in the chest.
With a loud "bang," Linton flew backward, crashing into a concrete wall before sliding to the ground. The punch left Linton gasping for air, blood spurting from his mouth.
"I don't want to hurt you any more than I have to. Please surrender," Spider-Man said, glancing at Linton's condition.
"I *want* to surrender!" Linton thought to himself, barely able to speak through the pain in his chest. "This hurts too much, I can't take it anymore!"
"Disabling pain receptors," the mechanical voice suddenly chimed in again. In the next moment, all the pain in Linton's chest and hand vanished, even though he was still coughing up blood. He no longer felt a thing.
"What the…" Linton was stunned again, overwhelmed by how strange everything was. But before he could process it, his body stood up on its own, did a 90-degree turn, and sprinted down the alley at an astonishing speed. His running form was flawless, almost like a scientific demonstration, though it didn't quite seem human.
"About time you figured out how to run," Linton remarked, watching his body in action.
"No, this is not a retreat. We are creating distance," the voice replied unexpectedly.
"Huh? You can talk? Hey, you understand me? Why didn't you answer when I called you earlier?" Linton asked, baffled. Talking to himself while running wasn't exactly normal.
"Your words were unrelated to combat."
"What? Who are you? And why can you control my body?" Linton pressed.
No answer. Thinking back, it seemed the voice only responded when the topic was related to combat. Maybe he needed to focus on that? "Running won't help. Spider-Man's agility is maxed out. He'll just use his webs to glide and catch up."
Sure enough, Spider-Man paused for only a second when he saw Linton turn and run. But after regaining his composure, he calmly shot out a web and swung after him, clearly not intending to let Linton get away.
Noticing this, Linton's body suddenly turned and ran into a nearby building. The structure was unfinished, with only a shell on the outside and nothing inside. Linton sprinted up to the second floor and stopped by the entrance, gun raised, seemingly waiting to ambush Spider-Man.
"This still won't work," Linton muttered.
"Please provide additional combat information," the voice responded this time.
Linton had a million questions for it, but given the urgent situation, he pushed them aside. He didn't know what this thing was, but since it was giving him a fighting chance, he wasn't going to argue. "Spider-Man isn't bulletproof, but he has something called Spidey Sense. It's like a sixth sense that lets him detect danger and react before it happens. So, ambushing him won't work."
"Understood. Adjusting combat plan." The voice acknowledged, and Linton's body resumed running upstairs.
"This still won't work!" Linton protested.
"Do you know the enemy's weaknesses?" the voice asked.
"Weaknesses?" Linton was stumped. Spider-Man's powers were incredible—super strength, agility, and his Spidey Sense made him nearly unbeatable. Thinking hard, the only "weakness" he could come up with was… "He's too nice, does that count? He's a softie. If he sees someone in danger, he'll risk his life to save them, no matter what."
"Understood. Combat plan is set."
"Already? What's the plan?" Linton asked in confusion.
But there was no reply this time. His body had already reached the top floor, about nine stories up—around 30 meters high. Since the building was incomplete, there were no railings on the roof, and Linton ran straight to the edge.
Just then, Spider-Man swung onto the rooftop. He had followed Linton all the way through the building, easily outpacing him with his webs.
"You run fast, but it's over—" Spider-Man started, but before he could finish, Linton jumped off the roof.
Spider-Man froze in shock, but instinctively, he jumped after him. He wasn't going to let Linton fall to his death. Though Linton was a criminal, Spider-Man had no intention of killing him. Seeing Linton "forced" to jump, Spider-Man leaped to save him. However, as soon as he jumped, his Spidey Sense flared.
Turning his head, Spider-Man saw that Linton had not jumped to his death. A small platform extended from the side of the building, and Linton had landed safely on it. It was a trick! But Spider-Man wasn't worried. He turned to shoot a web back to the building when Linton suddenly lunged at him from the platform.
Spider-Man hadn't expected this. Falling from 30 meters wouldn't bother him, but for Linton, it would be lethal. In that brief moment of hesitation, Linton grabbed hold of him and pressed something against Spider-Man's armpit.
"Bang!" The gun fired, the bullet tearing through Spider-Man's armpit and exiting through his shoulder. The immense pain forced a scream out of the superhero. At the same time, both of them began plummeting toward the ground. From this height, even Spider-Man was in danger of serious injury.
But Linton's body didn't care about the fall. It aimed the gun at Spider-Man's head for another shot. At the last moment, Spider-Man kicked, knocking the gun out of Linton's hand.
Even without the gun, Linton's body acted without hesitation, wrapping tightly around Spider-Man's neck and trapping his left arm. Spider-Man's right arm was injured, leaving only his left arm to use his web-shooters. But Linton's body made sure to block that, preventing Spider-Man from saving them both.
Victory or defeat hung in the balance. With a heavy "thud," both of them crashed into the ground. But in the next second, a bright white light flashed around Linton, and when it faded, he found himself sitting on a grassy field. In front of him, the sun was still setting, and cold sweat covered his body.
(End of Chapter)