"What?!"
"A bank robbery? For real?"
"Let's go check it out!"
Upon hearing the news, the cafeteria instantly erupted into a frenzy.
It was as if they had heard about a fight scheduled at the school gate; the students' curiosity was instantly ignited.
One after another, they didn't even care about finishing their meals, abandoning their trays and swarming toward the school entrance in a massive crowd.
Gwen's eyes also lit up instantly.
A bank robbery! This was big news!
Of course, it was also the perfect opportunity for her, as "Ghost-Spider," to make a name for herself!
She reflexively stood up, only having time to hurriedly say "I'm going to take a look too" to Peter before rushing out with the crowd.
Watching Gwen's departing figure, Peter couldn't help but shake his head.
Still too green!
With so many people, you're the only one pushing through the crowd in the opposite direction; anyone paying attention would see something's wrong with you at a glance!
After grumbling to himself like that, Peter slowly finished the last half of his sandwich before getting up and leaving elegantly.
He was definitely going to join in on the excitement.
The new suit tucked in his bag was due for its "debut," after all.
Walking unhurriedly into an empty utility room, Peter quickly changed into the black and red suit he had made overnight.
The form-fitting suit perfectly outlined his explosive, streamlined muscles; the black suit was accented with blood-red patterns and lines, filled with a sharp and dangerous unique beauty.
Fully dressed, Peter didn't hesitate and jumped out from the second-floor window.
The only slight drawback was that since he hadn't yet invented a device like the Web-shooters, he couldn't swing through the air like Gwen and had to scale walls and leap across buildings in the most primitive way.
"No way, next month I have to exchange for some speed-type item or movement technique no matter what. If there isn't one... then I'll find a way to hijack the Green Goblin Glider.
In any case, I can't keep traveling on foot. As a superhero, appearing like this is just too undignified!"
...While Peter was thinking this, the Midtown district outside the campus was already in total chaos.
Near the school, at the entrance of Manhattan Bank.
A man wearing a red and yellow quilted bodysuit with giant metal gauntlets on both hands was pummeling the bank's security force.
Peter, who had quietly climbed onto the wall of a nearby building, instinctively tilted his head the moment he saw the man.
A name surfaced in his mind: "Shocker," Herman Schultz.
This guy was also one of Spider-Man's arch-enemies, wielding weapons that could release an Impact to persistently rob banks over and over, only to be stopped by Spider-Man every time.
Vrrrrm~!
At the same moment Peter identified Shocker.
Shocker below raised his hands, aiming from a distance at the bank guards armed with live ammunition.
An invisible Impact was released.
In the next second, the guards were sent flying backward one by one, spitting blood, their guns falling who knows where.
"Everyone get the hell away from me! Cooperate with me honestly, and I guarantee you'll be fine."
Shocker swaggered through the crowd, threw the canvas bag on his back onto the counter, and commanded imperiously:
"Fill it up. Don't try any little tricks, or else you know what'll happen!"
The bank teller, living in the "Land of the Free," nodded obediently and quickly got to work without any hesitation.
While Shocker was leisurely leaning against the bank counter, admiring the metal gauntlets on his hands with a narcissistic look.
Whoosh~
A gust of wind came from behind, and in the next second, Gwen, swinging in on a web, struck a pose and landed as lightly as a ballet dancer.
Looking at Gwen behind him, Shocker was stunned for a moment, then shouted in an unfriendly tone:
"Hey, pal, can't you see I'm busy? Ever heard of first come, first served? Can't you just find another bank?"
Gwen:???
Am I... being mistaken for a fellow criminal by this guy?
Realizing this, Gwen's face under the mask turned bright red.
This is too much!
I, the great Ghost-Spider, a rising star in the superhero world, was actually mistaken for a peer by a bank robber?
If this can be endured, what can't?!
Well, also, maybe next time I should prepare an opening line so I don't get mistaken for a fellow criminal by the villain... After secretly noting down this "Superhero Rule," Gwen gave a cold snort and suddenly shot a web that stuck to Shocker's calf.
With a pull of her hand, the next second, the caught-off-guard Shocker was instantly tripped.
"Hey! Big guy! Your little farce is over!"
Gwen deliberately lowered her voice to make herself sound more intimidating, but it clearly didn't do much.
Falling down made Shocker furious; he quietly turned the dial on his thumb to adjust the Impact setting and then suddenly released a powerful Impact toward Gwen.
Gwen felt the warning from her Spider-Sense.
But due to her lack of combat experience, combined with the fact that the invisible Impact was indeed quite stealthy, Gwen failed to react in time.
As a result, she was blasted away by the Impact on the spot, her whole body crashing miserably into the bank wall, causing web-like cracks to appear on the thick wall.
This was only because she had undergone the physical modification of the Genetically modified spider; if a normal person had taken such a hit, they would likely spend the rest of their life in a wheelchair.
But Gwen... "Oh, my back..."
The little spider just grumbled like that, and in the next second, she scrambled up from the ground full of life:
"Wait until you're at the police station; you'd better honestly confess where you bought this thing!"
"Bought it?!" Hearing this, Shocker was instantly enraged, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on:
"I made this with my own hands! It's the culmination of my life's work!"
Greatly dissatisfied by the questioning, Shocker began to vent his rage frantically at Gwen.
Invisible Impacts struck toward Gwen over and over.
Although Gwen's Spider-Sense could predict danger, she was, after all, just a rookie hero.
Letting her deal with ordinary armed thugs was manageable, but letting her deal with someone like Shocker, who could step into the ranks of supervillains, right from the start made her feel a bit out of her depth.
After a lot of spinning, jumping, and frantic positioning using her web-swinging, she finally made a mistake due to a lack of coordination and insufficient trust in her Spider-Sense.
While in mid-air, she was hit by Shocker's Impact once again; her whole body first slammed heavily into a ceiling beam and then plummeted rapidly from the heights.
Hiss~
Just as Gwen thought she was definitely going to suffer a big loss this time, a black and red figure streaked in from the distance, catching the falling Gwen precisely in a bridal carry.
Who else could it be but Peter?
Looking at Gwen, who was held securely in his arms, Peter couldn't help but tease in a low voice:
"As a superhero, you really are... incredibly bad at this!"