By the time Su Yu and Peter Parker returned home, it was already 7 p.m.
The Sandman incident had delayed them by over an hour.
To avoid worrying Aunt May, Su Yu had even bought a new outfit, leaving Peter puzzled.
"Parker, Su Yu, you're back!"
At the door, Aunt May greeted them with a radiant smile.
She looked like a wife eagerly welcoming her husband home, taking Su Yu's things from him.
Peter was dumbfounded.
Wait, Aunt May, who's supposed to be your nephew here?!
Still brooding over Gwen's situation, Peter sulked despite Su Yu's reassurance that she was safe.
He headed straight to his room upstairs and locked himself in.
"What's wrong with Parker?" Aunt May asked curiously.
"Nothing, just a kid throwing a tantrum. Don't worry about him," Su Yu replied with a shrug.
Wrapping an arm around Aunt May, Su Yu leaned close and whispered softly:
"What's for dinner? I was thinking…"
He exhaled warmly by her ear, murmuring something that left Aunt May weak in the knees.
Blushing furiously, she leaned into Su Yu's arms, her heart racing like a young girl in love.
"Looks like you're hungry already. How about we... have dinner first?"
Ignoring her protests, Su Yu scooped her up and carried her to the room.
Half an hour later, after much blushing and resistance from Aunt May, Su Yu finally let her go.
Had Peter discovered this, she'd have died of embarrassment. But in the process, she had reluctantly agreed to several "unfair terms."
"You little scoundrel!"
In the kitchen, Aunt May covered her flushed cheeks, her legs still weak.
She felt like she was the one who couldn't handle it anymore.
Meanwhile, Su Yu, freshly showered, lay leisurely on his bed.
The side effects of the strength serum were starting to show.
While everything had seemed fine earlier, the moment he saw the elegant Aunt May at home, he felt his temper flare.
After "calming down," he found himself brimming with energy and newfound strength.
He hadn't expected the serum to have such effects.
Though the transformation was temporary, its use left subtle enhancements to his physique.
"Tom the Cat really is a genius!"
Su Yu decided he needed Tom to broaden his focus. Strengthening the body was just as important as transformation effects!
He texted Tom, sharing his discoveries and suggestions. Then, he pulled some cat food from the fridge and uploaded it to the system to send over.
"Waaaah! Store Manager, you're amazing!"
In another world, Tom burst into tears of gratitude, moved by Su Yu's generosity.
Looking at the mountain of food, Tom resolved to work even harder. He had to create even more potent serums!
Back in Su Yu's world, he had just finished chatting with Tom and was about to check on Aunt May when the system's notification sounded:
[Ding! Trade target found: Doraemon!]
[Ding! You have a new request. Would the Host like to start the trade now?]
"Doraemon? Oh, now this is interesting!"
Su Yu laughed in delight.
This was a heavyweight target!
If Tom the Cat was a conceptual genius, then Doraemon was the epitome of futuristic technology.
Doraemon wasn't just a mechanical lifeform; his array of gadgets could achieve incredible things.
Take the Bamboo Copter and Anywhere Door, for example.
If he could acquire all of Doraemon's gadgets, not even Thanos—well, okay, maybe not Thanos—would stand a chance.
"Start the trade now!" Su Yu instructed the system without hesitation.
With a faint buzzing sound, a virtual screen appeared before him.
It displayed an image of Doraemon in a bedroom. Nobita was nowhere in sight, but the setting felt familiar.
"Hello, Doraemon. How can I help you?" Su Yu greeted with a smile.
"Store Manager, please save me! I'm in big trouble!" Doraemon wailed pitifully.
After listening to his tale, Su Yu finally understood.
It turned out Nobita had failed yet another exam. Even with the help of his gadgets, Doraemon couldn't improve his grades.
The situation had pushed Doraemon to his limit.
"Uh…" Su Yu was at a loss.
Considering Nobita's perpetual lack of discipline, helping him improve academically sounded like a Herculean task.
It felt like a deliberate challenge to Doraemon's patience.
But Su Yu, eager to trade for Doraemon's gadgets, thought for a moment and offered a suggestion:
"I might have a solution. It could work for Nobita."
"What is it?" Doraemon asked eagerly.
"Shizuka!"
Su Yu's response was succinct as he elaborated:
"Nobita may be lazy—uh, I mean, a bit undisciplined—but if you give him a clear goal, he'll try harder."
Su Yu then laid out his plan.
The idea was simple: let Nobita see glimpses of his future. Show him that only by studying hard and achieving success could he win Shizuka's heart, marry her, and live happily.
Otherwise, Shizuka might end up riding off into the sunset with Gian.
Shizuka and Gian?!
Just imagining the scene sent shivers down Su Yu's spine.
Doraemon agreed with the first part of the plan but flatly refused the latter.
Letting Nobita see Shizuka with Gian would break the poor boy!
Still, the idea of motivating Nobita through love seemed promising.