"Pika... chu..."
In the passenger seat, Pikachu looked at Alan with a face full of happiness, as if it was seeking praise. Alan smiled and reached out to pat Pikachu on the head.
"Good job. Let's go check out the new house first. I'll make some snacks for you when we get back."
"Pika... Pika..."
Thanks to those thugs, Alan had a clearer understanding of Pikachu's strength. This wasn't some comedic, two-dimensional anime world—under the power of a 100,000-volt electric shock, no ordinary person could withstand it. Those thugs had been instantly turned into charred corpses.
With Red Queen hacking into the surveillance cameras, all that the investigators would find tomorrow would be a few burnt bodies—no one would know who did it.
Soon, guided by Red Queen's navigation, Alan arrived at his new house. The new place, like before, was in a high-rise building to make it easier for Gwen to swing by on her webs. However, this time, Red Queen had purchased two floors and planned a brand new interior design.
Standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, Alan could better appreciate New York's night view.
"Pikachu, do you like it here?" Alan asked the Pikachu perched on his shoulder.
"Pika... Pika..." Pikachu excitedly pointed outside the window.
Just then, a projection of Red Queen slowly appeared behind them. "Master, are you satisfied with this house?"
With the new equipment, Red Queen could now project herself visually.
"Based on the current renovation progress, you'll be able to move in within a week."
"So soon?" Alan had expected to wait a while longer. He hadn't imagined it would be so fast. It really was true that money could make anything happen. No wonder Tony always managed to move back in so quickly after trashing his house.
"Not bad."
"Pikachu, let's head back and get some sleep. We'll move in after some time."
"Pika... chu..."
Back home, Alan carried a package upstairs. Upon opening it, he found a small bed inside. After Pikachu had hatched, Alan had Red Queen order the bed from a large supermarket and have it delivered.
While Alan assembled the bed, Pikachu eagerly watched, anticipating its new sleeping spot. Once the bed was assembled, Alan placed it in his room.
"Alright, you've had a full day of fun. Time to rest."
"Pika... chu..." Pikachu pouted.
Alan chuckled. "Okay, I'll make you some snacks tomorrow."
Satisfied with Alan's promise, Pikachu curled up on the bed and quickly fell asleep, having played hard all day. Alan, on the other hand, returned to his mental training.
...
"Mom, I'm heading out!"
Gwen called out, a piece of bread in her mouth, as she dashed out the door. After reaching a secluded spot, she changed into her Spider suit and swung towards Alan's house.
Unlike before, Gwen was carrying a backpack this time. On her way, she even managed to stop a pickpocket.
"Pika... Pika..."
At the dining table, Pikachu curiously sniffed the lollipop that had been propped up, occasionally catching a whiff of its sweetness.
Turning to look at Alan, who was busy in the kitchen, Pikachu squeaked, "Pika..."
"You can't eat that—that's Gwen's... hero gift. It has special meaning. I'll buy you another one next time."
Hearing that it couldn't eat the lollipop, Pikachu immediately lost interest and sat on the table, waiting for Alan to finish making breakfast.
"Pikachu, did Alan not make you anything to eat?"
Gwen, carrying her backpack, sat on the balcony railing. When Pikachu saw Gwen, it excitedly jumped off the table and ran towards her, finally leaping into her arms.
"Careful, Pikachu!"
Although Gwen caught Pikachu, the momentum caused her to fall backward, prompting her to shoot out some webs in alarm, which stopped both of them in midair. She then flipped them back onto the balcony, holding Pikachu securely.
"Pikachu, that was dangerous, you know?" Gwen lightly tapped Pikachu on the head, then got up and walked over to Alan, her face flushing slightly.
Alan, who was facing away and busy with breakfast, didn't notice and simply said, "You're here, take a seat. Breakfast is almost ready."
"Okay, I'll show Pikachu what I brought first."
"Brought something?"
Curious, Alan turned to see Gwen and Pikachu sitting on the couch.
"Pikachu, do you know what's inside this?" Gwen asked as she playfully shook the backpack she had brought.
"Pika?" Pikachu tilted its head, unable to guess what was inside.
Riiip...
Seeing Pikachu's clueless expression, Gwen quickly unzipped the backpack and poured out an assortment of small snacks.
Pikachu's eyes sparkled the moment it saw the snacks. "Pika... Chu..."
"These are all my treasured snacks, but you can't eat too many."
"Hmm..." Gwen thought for a moment, then held up one finger. "You can only have one a day."
Hearing that it could only have one, Pikachu's little face immediately fell, looking as pitiful as could be.
Seeing this, Gwen quickly reassured it, "Okay, okay, two... you can have two a day."
Pikachu's spirits lifted instantly. "Pika..."
"Alright, come over and eat first," Alan called. "You can have the snacks after you finish your meal."
Alan felt like an old father now—taking care of an adorable pet while also dealing with a mischievous daughter.
At the dining table, Alan made noodles for himself and Gwen, while for Pikachu, he prepared dry noodle dumplings so it could easily grab and eat them.
"By the way, Alan," Gwen said as she ate, "did you see the news this morning?"
Without looking up from his noodles, Alan replied, "No, you know I don't really follow the news."
Gwen quickly added, "My dad busted a human trafficking ring last night." Her words were filled with pride.
Alan smiled. "Uncle George has always been impressive."
"Of course, he's my dad!" Gwen beamed, then her expression darkened. "But according to the news, it seems like the mob might target him."
Her tone grew somber.
"So, you want to go protect your dad." Alan observed.
Gwen nodded enthusiastically. She had rushed out this morning after seeing the report on TV, worried about the danger her father might be in from the mob. She came straight to Alan to ask for advice.
"No problem. If a superhero can't even protect the people around them, what good is protecting the world?"
"Right!" Gwen nodded firmly, getting ready to leave for the NYPD.
"Hold on," Alan said. "Even superheroes shouldn't waste food. Finish your meal first."
Gwen playfully stuck out her tongue and sat back down to continue eating.
"Don't be in such a rush. I have a gift for you later," Alan added.
...
In the basement of the Kingpin's company building, in a dark, grim room, the head bodyguard was stripped down to his underwear and hung up, with an ice block placed beneath his feet. His body was covered in wounds—there wasn't a single unscathed spot left.
"It wasn't me... I'm not the traitor... It wasn't me..." he mumbled, barely coherent from the torture he'd endured.
Two other men were in the room—one holding a whip, the other a bottle of blue liquid. They frowned as they looked at the bodyguard.
"What do we do now? We've used everything, and he still hasn't talked," said the man with the whip.
The other man glanced at the blue liquid in his hand. "We even gave him truth serum. If he were the traitor, he should have confessed everything by now."
"Maybe he really isn't the traitor..."
The man with the whip shook his head. "It doesn't matter if he is or isn't. We just have to do what the boss ordered."
"Let's keep going!"
Just as the man was about to whip the bodyguard again, a strong figure slowly walked in from the doorway. The two men immediately straightened up. "Boss Kingpin."
"Did you find out who's behind this?" Kingpin asked, his tone cold.
The two men exchanged glances before the one with the whip spoke up first. "Boss Kingpin, he's been holding out. We haven't been able to get anything from him."
Hearing this, Kingpin's already simmering rage flared, and the grip on his cane tightened, making it creak.
The man with the whip quickly added, "Boss Kingpin, we suspect..."
Kingpin's eyes narrowed. "Suspect what? Speak up!"
"Yes, Boss," the man stammered. "We suspect he's had professional interrogation training. Our methods might be useless on him. It's possible someone specifically planted him close to you."
Kingpin's eyes narrowed further as if something clicked in his mind.
The old Kingpin might have stopped to consider the truth of the situation, but not now. Lately, he hadn't been sleeping well, and the endless barrage of issues had left him paranoid.
Now, he suspected everyone of being a traitor. Otherwise, he wouldn't have ordered the brutal torture of his head bodyguard without asking a single question first.
Professional interrogation training...
He knows all my dirty dealings...
He's able to precisely disrupt every one of my operations...
All the clues seemed to point to the same person.
Someone Kingpin had never suspected before. But now, who else could it be? Who else could have done this?
Kingpin stepped forward, grabbing the bodyguard's chin. "Tell me, did Nick Fury send you?"
"Admit it, and you won't have to die!"
The bodyguard, his mind already shattered by the torture, had never even heard of Nick Fury. In the past, whenever he saw Kingpin, he would greet him with a smile. Now, in his delirium, seeing Kingpin's face again, he smiled instinctively.
That smile...
Kingpin felt more insulted than ever before, as if the smile was saying, "So what if you know? Your time is up!"
It was the spark that ignited Kingpin's powder keg of rage.
It was Nick Fury! That fucking bastard!
Everything made sense now...
Crack...
With a slight twist of his hand, Kingpin snapped the bodyguard's spine.
"Nick Fury... you truly are a bastard!"
...
At Alan's Home
The doorbell rang. Alan, having just finished eating, walked to the door and opened it. An elderly man with white hair stood there, squinting at the name on the delivery slip. "Alan..."
Alan paused for a moment. This old man looked so much like the one who delivered a package at the end of Captain America 3. Wasn't that guy just a cameo?
Seeing the door open, the old man quickly asked, "Are you Alan Ford?"
"Yes, that's me," Alan replied.
"Okay, here's your package. Please sign for it."
Alan took the box from the man's hands, signed for it with a quick "Thanks."
"You're welcome. Have a wonderful day," the old man said, blowing a kiss as he got into the elevator.
Alan smiled faintly and brought the box inside. Gwen and Pikachu immediately gathered around.
"Alan, what is it?" Gwen asked eagerly.
"Pika... Pika..." Pikachu chimed in.
"I told you, didn't I? It's your gift."
Gwen's eyes lit up, and she started rubbing her hands together in anticipation.
Alan opened the package, revealing a suitcase-like box inside. He handed it to Gwen. "Here, you can open it."
Gwen pointed to herself in surprise.
Alan nodded.
With excitement, Gwen pressed the buttons on either side of the suitcase. The lid popped open, revealing a new Spider suit with sharper red and pink stripes. The sides of the suitcase displayed various holograms showing the suit's features.
Gwen was thrilled, glancing at Alan and then back at the new suit. Her joy was unmistakable.
"Oh... Alan, I absolutely love you! This is amazing!"
Gwen leaped up in excitement and hugged Alan, bursting with happiness.
Meanwhile, Pikachu jumped onto the table, curiously eyeing the Spider suit. It reached out a tiny paw to touch the fabric. "Pika..."
As it felt the material, Pikachu found it very comfortable.
Hugging the excited Gwen, Alan chuckled. "Alright, I know you're happy. Go ahead and try it on. The old suit can stay here for now."
"Okay, okay," Gwen nodded eagerly, picking up the box and heading to her room.
Pikachu tried to follow, but Alan gently held it back. "I haven't even seen it yet. What are you going for?" He playfully tapped Pikachu on the head.
Inside the Room
Gwen put on the new Spider suit... but it seemed too big. On her, it looked like a child wearing adult clothes. Just as Gwen was feeling disappointed, her phone buzzed with a message from Red Queen:
"Miss Gwen, the new Spider suit features a resistive rebound design. You can adjust it to fit perfectly by pressing the spider emblem on your sleeve."
"Really?" Gwen pressed the button.
Instantly, the suit tightened, fitting snugly against her body.
"Cool..." Gwen admired herself in the mirror, now fully wrapped in the new Spider suit.
"Miss Gwen, please put on the hood, and I'll explain all the new suit's features to you..."
...