Around noon, students gathered outside Oscorp after finishing their tour of the facility.
Clusters of teenagers stood around chatting while they waited for the buses.
"Oscorp was so boring," one student complained. "All they did was talk about the company's history and their research projects. Spiders, lizards, lab rats… who actually cares about that stuff?"
Several others nodded in agreement.
"Seriously. It felt like a biology lecture."
"Hey, where's Mr. James?" someone asked. "He stepped out earlier but hasn't come back yet."
"No idea…"
Standing nearby, Peter Parker rubbed his temples.
His head still felt strangely foggy.
Without saying anything, he quietly slipped away from the group and started walking home alone.
Meanwhile, at NYPD Headquarters, Noah Vale sat calmly in an interrogation room.
He had changed into a clean set of clothes, though faint traces of dried blood still lingered under his fingernails.
An officer across the table flipped open a file.
"Name?"
"Noah Vale."
"Gender?"
"Male."
"Home address?"
Noah answered the questions one by one without hesitation.
When he decided to kill those robbers earlier, he had already prepared himself for the consequences.
If the system somehow failed him and the courts decided to lock him up for a year or two, he'd deal with it.
Though honestly, if New York punished someone for surviving a hostage situation, the city probably deserved a little… restructuring.
With the strength he currently possessed, escaping prison wouldn't exactly be difficult.
And if he disappeared for a few years to train?
Well.
By the time someone like Thanos showed up in the future, New York's population might already be down by half.
Outside the interrogation room, Commissioner George Hale reviewed Noah's background file.
It painted a bleak picture.
Noah's parents had been immigrants of Chinese descent. They had fallen deep into gambling debts and eventually lost everything.
A few years ago, both had been found dead in an alley.
Their bodies had been partially mutilated—several organs missing.
The case had never been solved.
Noah's own record, however, appeared almost painfully ordinary.
School.
No criminal history.
A recent purchase of an expensive gym membership.
Then a sudden increase in skipped classes.
According to the report, the only reason he had even been inside the bank during the robbery was because he had skipped school that day.
On paper, Noah Vale looked clean.
But something didn't add up.
An eighteen-year-old with no family support and no recorded employment somehow had large amounts of cash.
George frowned as he continued reading.
Inside the room, the officer asked the same question.
"According to our records, you don't currently have a job. So where did that money come from?"
Noah leaned back slightly in his chair.
"Well," he said casually, "I'm pretty handsome. People like giving money to handsome guys. Seems reasonable, right?"
The officer froze.
Then slowly looked up at him.
After a moment, the officer lowered his gaze again.
Technically… it wasn't something he could immediately disprove.
"And besides," Noah added calmly, "that has nothing to do with the robbery. I'm well within my rights not to answer."
The officer opened his mouth—
Then the door suddenly knocked.
Knock. Knock.
The interrogation had to pause.
The officer walked over and opened the door.
Standing outside was Commissioner George Hale.
Behind him stood a man wearing dark sunglasses, leaning on a white cane.
Both his arms and legs were wrapped in bandages.
The officer blinked.
"…Commissioner, who is this?"
George gestured toward the man.
"This is Noah Vale's lawyer."
Inside the room, Noah raised an eyebrow.
Even though the man wore sunglasses, Noah recognized him instantly.
Matt Murdock.
The same vigilante he had sent to the hospital a few days ago.
What the hell was he doing here?
Matt stepped forward confidently.
"My client is both a victim and someone who acted in self-defense," Matt said firmly. "You have no legal basis to detain him here."
Three hours later, Noah and Matt stepped out of the police station together.
Noah had been released.
However, since he was directly involved in the robbery case, his movement was temporarily restricted to New York City. If new information surfaced, the police could summon him again for questioning.
They walked down the sidewalk in silence for a moment.
Eventually Noah glanced sideways at Matt.
"So," he said. "Why volunteer to be my lawyer?"
He smirked slightly.
"Shouldn't you be trying to put me in prison instead?"
Matt turned his head toward him.
"Would prison actually hold you?"
He paused.
"Or would you just break out and take your anger out on the city?"
Matt's voice remained calm.
"I've looked into your background. Kids with your history don't usually get second chances."
He tapped the pavement lightly with his cane.
"The last thing New York needs is another criminal like Bullseye."
He continued walking.
"You're already halfway down that road. But it's not too late to turn around."
Noah chuckled.
"I always thought superheroes were the 'wipe out evil completely' type," he said. "Didn't expect you to be this understanding."
Matt shrugged.
"Consider it repayment," he replied. "You could have killed me that night, but you didn't."
He stopped walking.
"You're strong. Stronger than most people realize."
Matt faced him.
"Have you ever considered becoming a hero?"
"I could train you. The same way my mentor trained me."
He hoped that guiding Noah personally might steer the young man onto a better path.
Noah looked him up and down.
"You?" Noah said skeptically.
His gaze lingered on the bandages around Matt's limbs.
"Did you forget who put you in the hospital?"
Matt frowned.
"That was a sneak attack," he said firmly. "Your fighting style relies entirely on brute force."
"With proper technique, I could absolutely teach you."
He crossed his arms slightly.
"If we fought again, I wouldn't lose."
Noah snorted.
"Funny how your amazing techniques didn't warn you about that sneak attack."
Honestly, if he had time to study martial arts techniques, he'd rather just lift more weights.
Overwhelming strength solved most problems just fine.
Noah waved dismissively.
"Anyway, thanks for showing up today despite the injuries."
He turned toward the street corner.
"If I ever need legal help again, I'll call."
The tone sounded suspiciously like someone politely discarding a loyal admirer after getting what they wanted.
Matt stood there, looking mildly exasperated.
Without another word, Noah walked away.
His destination: the gym.
As he walked, he pulled out his phone.
Dozens of missed calls filled the screen.
Teachers.
The school principal.
Several classmates.
Scrolling through the list, Noah eventually found the number for Mr. James and called back.
The phone rang twice before it was answered.
"Noah?" Mr. James's voice sounded hesitant. "Are you… still at the police station?"
"No," Noah replied. "They just asked a few questions and let me go. I'm heading home now."
He paused.
"Things are a little complicated right now, so I was hoping to take about a month off school."
On the other end of the line, Mr. James's tone softened immediately.
"A month?"
He hesitated.
"I don't have the authority to approve that myself, but I'll talk to the principal."
"You should focus on resting."
"Thank you, sir."
Noah hung up.
Interestingly, Mr. James hadn't asked why Noah skipped school to go to the bank.
He also didn't ask about the killings.
For most teachers, their job was just that—a job.
The fewer questions they asked about something like this, the better.
Noah powered off his phone.
After sitting around all day, his body felt restless.
Almost itchy.
With a grin, he broke into a light jog toward the gym.