The crash she imagined never came. It was as if a pair of strong arms were ready to catch Gwen's slender body. But just as she was about to fall into Corin's embrace, she was suddenly yanked back, her body bending at a sharp angle toward the ground.
That threw Corin into a brief panic, afraid her head would hit the floor.
Turns out, Peter's web had caught her around the waist at the very last moment before she hit the ground.
The force was so strong it knocked the wind right out of her.
That alone showed how anxious Peter was.
Chasing after Gwen in midair, Peter's vision had narrowed to the limit. All he could see was his falling lover.
He hadn't noticed at all that there was a cool looking figure waiting beneath her.
And Gwen's falling body happened to block Corin from Peter's view on the ground.
In that instant, Peter prayed to every god and saint he could think of, just hoping Gwen would be safe.
But the web that was usually lightning fast now seemed as slow as a sloth in his eyes.
"Faster! Faster! Faster!"
Under extreme tension, the way Peter stared at the web flying through the air felt like time had slowed down.
Everything else moved in slow motion, and the web felt so slow he wanted to curse out loud.
Finally, it stuck to Gwen's waist. Peter immediately grabbed a metal pipe, used it for leverage, and yanked the web upward with all his strength.
Twang!
The web snapped tight. Gwen, who was about to fall into Corin's arms, suddenly stopped mid drop.
But her head and feet still swung toward the ground from inertia.
Smack!
Gwen, who should have cracked the back of her head and died on the spot, instead felt a large hand support her head at the critical moment.
But both her heels slammed hard against the ground. They went numb with pain.
"Hiss!"
First the web hitting her stomach and knocking the wind out of her, then the sharp pain from her feet hitting the ground, made Gwen instantly pull a painful expression.
Her whole face scrunched up.
The tragic, fragile beauty of the scene from a moment ago now carried a touch of comedy.
Seeing Gwen in his arms, eyes squeezed shut from pain but clearly alive and expressive, Corin quietly let out a breath.
Then he looked at Peter, who was rushing down toward them, and didn't look very satisfied.
"Young man, still too young."
If everyone saved people like you do, even if they survive, they'd be left disabled.
"Gwen!"
Little Spider jumped down from the metal pipe. Only then did he finally notice Corin standing there in mighty armor.
His spirit lifted, and the weight in his chest instantly dropped.
"Sir! Right, Mr. Corin is here. Gwen will definitely be fine! Haha!"
Thump!
Before Peter could say another word, Corin flicked him hard on the forehead.
Peter shot straight up from the spot in pain.
"Ah! Hiss! What was that?"
Peter pulled off his mask and rubbed the swelling lump on his head, looking at Corin in confusion.
"This is how you save the person you love?"
Corin smiled faintly.
Peter felt that although there was a hint of teasing in Corin's gaze, there was also seriousness in his tone.
It made him instantly realize that without Corin there, his method just now probably wouldn't have saved Gwen.
It was true.
The web had caught Gwen too close to the ground. If Mr. Corin hadn't supported her head in time, she would have slammed hard into the floor.
If that had happened, Peter couldn't even imagine how he would face the result.
Thinking of that detail, Little Spider dropped his playful mood and looked at Corin seriously.
"I was wrong, sir…"
Corin felt it was necessary to point this out to the reckless young Spider and make him remember it well.
His tone grew stern.
"Do you remember what I told you?"
"Uh… if you can't win, run?"
Peter clearly didn't catch what Corin meant.
The night Norman Osborn died, Corin had said many things that broadened his horizons. But which exact sentence was he referring to now? How could Little Spider recall it so easily?
For years, as a top student, Peter was used to seeing admiration and approval in teachers' and professors' eyes.
How long had it been since he felt this kind of nervousness, knowing he had made a mistake but unable to pinpoint it?
The last time was probably in elementary school, when he got into a fight and his uncle scolded him harshly.
The air grew quieter and quieter, making Peter Parker more and more uneasy.
Thump!
Another flick.
"Ah! Hiss! Geez, that hurts…"
Peter crouched on the ground, frantically rubbing the same spot.
'Sir's aim is way too accurate. He hit the exact same place twice.'
As he thought that, he muttered to himself, "Pain is me, I am pain. It doesn't hurt, it doesn't hurt, I don't feel pain… ah! It hurts so bad…"
Then Corin's low voice reached his ears.
"No matter what, you must take care of your family first!"
Just that one sentence. Corin said nothing more.
It was rare for a young heart to get a chance like this to be tempered. In the original story, Gwen had really died here.
Corin planned to use this moment to leave a deeper impression on Little Spider. Growth without losing someone.
How great was that?
The words exploded in Peter's ears like a missile. He was filled with emotion and stayed crouched there in a daze.
That's right.
A superhero might save many families.
But who saves and protects the superhero's own family?
Every time, he hoped Gwen would stay somewhere safe so he wouldn't have to worry.
But more than once, at critical moments, it was Gwen's help that brought him a turning point and victory.
Since when had he started treating Gwen as a partner in battle?
She was just an ordinary girl. Aside from being kind, brave, and beautiful, she had no ability to protect herself.
And him? After genetic mutation, spider sense, enhanced strength, rapid healing.
He had so many abilities beyond normal people.
Yet he still kept putting his family in danger.
Especially this time. When he chased after Gwen in the air, his spider sense had already given him a faint warning.
'If Mr. Corin hadn't been here, today… I really would have lost Gwen.'
Not just Gwen. There were also people in the shadows watching his family, eyeing them like prey.
At that thought, a cold sweat instantly broke out across Peter's back. The fear came afterward.
Mr. Corin had indeed told him that wanting to be a superhero and save the world was fine.
But only under the condition that his family's safety was guaranteed.
And he had clearly ignored that.
A superhero's family shouldn't just be protected. They should be the priority.
Yet no organization or institution chose to do that. After all, from a legal standpoint, superheroes were still in a gray area.
Greater power means greater responsibility was just the surface.
Greater power means greater threat was probably what most people really thought.
Peter carefully turned Corin's viewpoint over in his mind. The more he thought, the more right it felt. His eyes grew brighter.
He knew what he should do.
First, he wouldn't run from the risks and challenges that came with his abilities.
But from now on, he would find a way to properly protect the family he cared about.
By this time, Gwen in Corin's arms had recovered a bit and looked around in confusion.
Her eyes moved and met Corin's. She immediately recognized her idol.
Her breathing sped up with excitement. Just as she was about to speak, she saw Corin give a slight shake of his head, then glance at Peter, who was crouched on the ground deep in thought.
She instantly understood they were discussing something important.
Obediently, she closed her mouth.
But the pain in her feet made her frown slightly.
Corin noticed at once. He casually tore away the web still stuck to her and gently set Gwen down on the ground.
He exhaled softly. A faint mist of cool air covered her feet, easing the swelling and pain.
"I understand, sir."
[T/N: I hope Gwen sticks to Spiderman.]
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