Chapter 306: Vulture vs. Spider-Man
"Uh... I... yeah, it's a hobby." Peter stammered, caught red-handed. Being discovered by the subject of his photo made him feel flustered and guilty.
"Humph~ why are you so nervous?" Gwen looked at the shy boy in front of her and couldn't help but want to laugh.
"It's nothing. Weren't you going for a swim?" Peter asked, desperate to change the subject.
Gwen gave Peter a thoughtful look, then leaned against the railing and smiled. "Can I trouble you to take a photo of me?"
"A photo?! Oh, of course!" Peter's face lit up. He raised the camera, adjusted the focal length, and began taking pictures of Gwen—this time, with her full permission.
"Your brother seems a bit introverted?" Felicia Hardy asked Silas as she watched Peter.
"No, you just haven't seen his other side yet," Silas replied, glancing at Peter with a knowing smile.
"Really?" Felicia leaned against the armrest of Silas's lounge chair.
Peter with the suit on and Peter with the suit off were almost two different people. One was quiet and awkward; the other was a quip-machine. To put it simply, Peter was the "closet extrovert" type—when people didn't know his identity, he was incredibly bold.
Harry's birthday party was genuinely impressive. Coming from a wealthy family, money was no object. There was an endless supply of gourmet food and professional chefs prepared dishes on demand—all free of charge.
Time flew by as the group enjoyed themselves. Soon, it was around six in the evening. After playing all day and finishing dinner, the students sat exhausted on the lawn, chatting about the events of the past few days.
"Where's our Spider-Man? Is it possible someone lied to us?" Harry said loudly, intentionally walking over to Ned with a glass of red wine in his hand.
"Don't worry, he'll be here. He just finished dinner and is probably out catching criminals to help his digestion," Ned insisted stubbornly, though his voice wavered with growing anxiety.
Ned had held a small hope that Peter would see how much trouble he was in and help him out, but Peter hadn't given him so much as a glance.
The News
Click!
"Alright, what do you think?" Peter asked, handing the camera to Gwen.
Gwen brushed a lock of blonde hair away from her eyes and began scrolling through the photos. "This one is good... I don't like this one as much..."
Peter didn't hear a word she said. He was too busy staring at Gwen's face from inches away. Between the scent of her perfume and her proximity, his heart rate was skyrocketing.
Suddenly, a television nearby blared: "We interrupt this program for an emergency news bulletin. The Empire State Bank in Manhattan has been seized by armed militants. Civilians are urged to stay away from the area. Police have already..."
Most people at the party didn't pay much attention; they weren't in any danger. Besides, bank robberies were "small news" they had grown accustomed to.
"Manhattan..." Peter's eyes narrowed. The armed group on the screen—wasn't that the "Bird-man's" gang?
This was bad. Their weapons were advanced; the police wouldn't stand a chance. Peter looked at Gwen anxiously, let out a silent sigh, and slipped away from her side.
"Okay, I've picked them, Peter! These photos are—" Gwen turned around, only to find the space beside her empty. "Peter?" She looked around in confusion. In just a split second, he had vanished.
In a secluded corner of the villa, Peter checked his surroundings before slipping into the Shadow Kingdom to change into his Spider-Man suit.
Empire State Bank
"Haha! We're rich!" Herman Schultz shouted as he frantically stuffed cash into a duffel bag. The rest of the crew looked equally ecstatic.
Standing behind them was a figure in a strange, bulky mechanical suit equipped with massive wings.
"Stay sharp. That annoying pest is bound to show up," Adrian Toomes warned, showing no joy. With a commotion this big, the "Spider" was a certainty.
"Hey! Are you guys having a party? Count me in!" the familiar voice echoed through the lobby.
"Dammit!" Toomes looked up irritably to see the red-and-blue figure perched on a pillar.
"Spider-Man!" Toomes growled, igniting his thrusters to fly toward the hero while shouting to his men, "Go! Get the money out!"
"On it!" the robbers grabbed their bags and began to retreat.
Peter tried to fire a web to stop them, but Toomes slammed into him, pinning him by the chest. "We don't have to do this, kid. Let's just walk away so everyone stays happy."
"Sorry, but you've crossed the line," Peter retorted. He kicked off the wall with both feet, striking Toomes in the stomach and breaking free of his grip.
CRASH!
Furious, Toomes punched toward Peter but missed, his mechanical fist leaving a deep crater in the ceiling.
"Destroying private property? You're going to have to pay for that," Peter quipped.
"You are incredibly irritating!" Toomes snarled, reaching for a weapon at his waist.
The weapon began to glow with an eerie purple light before firing a blistering thermal laser. Peter leaped to avoid the blast and fired a web that snagged Toomes's legs.
"Phew~ so, how much are you planning to pay in damages?" Peter asked, landing on his feet.
"Shut up!" Toomes began flying erratically around the lobby, trying to snap the webbing. Peter held on tight, climbing up the web line until he grabbed onto the Vulture's legs. Toomes sensed the hero's intent and performed a violent mid-air roll.
THUD!
"Oof!" Peter was slammed into a structural pillar, a sharp pain lancing through his back.
Toomes drew a specialized blade, sliced through the webbing, and continued to rain laser fire down on Spider-Man. Peter scrambled, leaping between the pillars and the floor.
"I am sick of you!" Toomes roared. To him, Spider-Man was like a buzzing fly that wouldn't stop.
"Why don't you just come down here for a second!" Peter leaped directly in front of Toomes and landed a heavy punch on his chest plate.
The impact sent Toomes spiraling to the floor. Before he could recover, Peter webbed up his mechanical wings, pinning them to the ground.
"A bird without wings can't fly," Peter said, standing over Toomes. He finally had him.
"Is that so?" Toomes suddenly pressed a button on his gauntlet.
Peter braced for another laser, but instead, a massive concussive shockwave erupted.
BOOM!
Peter was blasted backward, flying ten meters through the air before smashing into a pillar. The sheer force of the impact left him embedded in the cracked stone. A thick cloud of dust and debris billowed out from the point of impact.
Toomes quickly tore the webbing off his wings and soared out of the bank.
"Cough, cough!" Peter climbed out of the crater, rubbing his aching lower back. He waved away the dust. Seeing Toomes fleeing into the sky, he fired a web and gave chase. He couldn't let the Vulture get away.
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