Inside the factory—
Rogue carefully pulled the phone away from Noah's ear and ended the call, making sure not to disturb him while he trained.
Without stopping his movements, Noah asked, "How's your control coming along?"
"Much better," Rogue replied. "But being able to touch someone without absorbing anything at all… that might still take a few more days."
Noah nodded slightly.
"What about targeting just physical stamina? Can you isolate that?"
She hesitated, then answered honestly. "I'm getting close. I think I can manage it soon."
"Good," Noah said. "Once you've got that down, you can start helping with my training."
Rogue's face flushed faintly, but she didn't say anything.
Across the city—
Peter Parker hung upside down outside an apartment building in Brooklyn, lowering himself slowly on a strand of webbing.
"Okay, Peter," he muttered to himself. "Step one—find Dr. Connors. Step two—call Noah. Step three—fix everything."
Simple.
In theory.
He glanced through the window—
And froze.
Inside the apartment, police officers and military personnel were tearing the place apart, searching every inch.
"…What the hell?"
Had Connors already been exposed?
Peter dropped down quickly, peeled off his suit, and threw on a hoodie before walking up to the front door.
He knocked.
A moment later, it opened.
"Uh, hi," Peter said, trying to sound casual. "I'm one of Dr. Connors' students. I came by to see him—"
"Your professor's been arrested," a police officer cut in. "We're searching for additional evidence."
Peter blinked.
"…Arrested? By who?"
A nearby soldier grinned.
"Our guy took him down," he said proudly. "Noah Vale."
"Yeah, right," another officer scoffed. "Everyone knows Noah's tied to the commissioner's daughter."
"Bull. My commanding officer said he's lining him up with his own daughter—"
Peter stood there, stunned, as the two started arguing.
Wait… what?
He hadn't even gotten involved yet—
And Noah had already handled everything?
"Name?" one of them suddenly asked.
"Peter Parker," he replied automatically.
Both men froze.
Then slowly turned to look at him.
"…Say that again."
Peter hesitated.
"…Peter Parker."
They exchanged a glance.
Then, in perfect sync—
"Yeah, you're coming with us."
Peter blinked.
"…Why?"
"Your teacher's been asking about you," the officer said dryly.
Peter: "???"
Meanwhile—
Noah's days settled into a steady rhythm.
No interruptions.
No unexpected crises.
Even Peter had disappeared for a while, which made things even quieter.
Perfect conditions.
For training.
Day 1—
After going through thousands of lab mice, Rogue finally achieved full control over her ability—she could make contact without draining anything at all.
Day 3—
The upgraded training equipment, built by Fisk's team, was completed.
It was monstrous.
A high-frequency hydraulic system capable of delivering crushing force at extreme speeds—far beyond anything conventional machinery could handle.
Noah put it to use immediately.
Day 5—
After exhausting thousands more test subjects, Rogue gained precise control over her absorption.
She could now target stamina specifically.
That made her officially part of Noah's training routine.
Though—
Her first attempt didn't go smoothly.
Being that close to him threw her off balance, and her control slipped.
Day 7—
Fisk's promotional campaign launched.
Every screen in New York seemed to carry Noah's name.
TV, billboards, posters—
Even edited photos of him standing beside Fisk, as if they'd been longtime partners.
Noah ignored all of it.
Just like he said he would.
His routine stayed consistent.
Nights with Camila.
Days training—with Rogue assisting.
Once a week, time set aside for Gwen.
Everything else—
Relentless improvement.
And just like that—
Twenty-one days passed.
Inside the new facility—
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.
Noah's body was locked in place by reinforced alloy restraints atop a massive platform.
Enormous mechanical arms drove crushing force into his back again and again.
Each impact tore muscle fibers apart.
At the same time—
High-voltage electricity surged through him, flooding every cell in his body.
Heat built rapidly.
Cells burned.
Died.
Then—
Regenerated almost instantly.
Over and over again.
A continuous cycle of destruction and recovery.
Seven meters away, behind reinforced glass, Smith and Rogue monitored the data.
Even now, it still didn't feel real.
Rogue had only truly understood Smith's earlier words after joining the process herself.
She had watched it happen.
Watched Noah become this.
Step by step.
"Smith," Noah's voice echoed from inside the chamber, calm despite everything. "Switch the channel."
"Got it, boss!"
Smith grabbed the remote and flipped through the channels.
Moments later—
The nearest screen changed to a news broadcast.
Around Noah, ten different screens were set up.
Science.
World events.
Technology.
Current affairs.
He split his attention effortlessly, processing everything while continuing to train.
If his brain was running at this level—
He might as well use it.
Then—
Something on the news caught his eye.
For the first time in a while—
His focus sharpened.