“Oh, I know you! You’re Xia Luo Parker!”
The “Spider-Man” pulled off his mask, revealing a freckled face lit with excitement. “This is amazing! Your name is also Xia Luo. You’d fit right in with us! Would you like to join?”
“Does the name of your club have some kind of special meaning?” Xia Luo asked.
“Of course! It’s inspired by the story Charlotte’s Web. You’ve heard of it, right? In the story, Charlotte was a spider, and in our club, we’re all Spider-Men!”
Xia Luo spread his hands. “Unfortunately, I’m not Spider-Man.”
“No worries. Maybe not now, but you could be in a few days.”
“Uh… that’s… actually pretty convincing.” Xia Luo was at a loss for words.
Freckles leaned in closer, his grin turning sly. “We’re having a Spider-Man competition tonight. Lots of girls will be there to watch. The top three get a kiss from one of the senior girls!”
Cough, cough.
Xia Luo covered his mouth, looking away as if deep in thought. “Well, I’m actually a decent guy. Not really interested in a kiss from a senior, but as a Spider-Man fan, I absolutely have to participate. Do I need to sign up?”
“No need. The address and time are on the flyer,” Freckles said, pointing to the paper with a smile.
“Alright, I’ll be there.”
Holding the flyer, Xia Luo parked his bike by the side of the road. A gathering of mutants in one place was too good an opportunity for Hydra to pass up.
“Hey there, pretty freshman! Wanna join the Spider-Man club?”
Behind him, Freckles continued to recruit for “Xia Luo’s Web.”
“Spider-Man club?”
Gwen Stacy took the flyer, glancing it over.
“There’s a competition tonight?” she asked, sounding intrigued.
Besides Butt-Spider, she wanted to meet other Spider-People too.
“Sure, I’ll be there,” Gwen said, tucking the flyer into her pocket. Soon, she reached the science building and spotted a familiar face.
“Xia Luo Parker! Is ‘Xia Luo’s Web’ your club?” she called out, waving.
Seeing the blonde girl approach, Xia Luo gave her a quick once-over.
“Do we know each other?”
“I’m Gwen Stacy. Harry asked you out on my behalf once. And we met yesterday when Jenny got caught lying.”
“Right, I remember. You had long hair back then.”
“I cut it short.”
“Why?”
“Too inconvenient.”
“Oh.”
Xia Luo hadn’t expected such a coincidence. He waved the flyer in his hand.
“Just a coincidence. Are you going to watch the competition tonight?”
“Sounds interesting, but I probably won’t have time.”
“Alright, what floor are you headed to?”
“Sixth. I work part-time in Dr. Otto’s lab.”
“I’m going to the fifth floor—Professor Curt’s lab.”
“Working part-time too?”
“No, Professor Curt invited me to visit.”
“To see what?”
“I have no idea. He said it would be a surprise.”
After chatting for a while, Xia Luo waved goodbye to Gwen and headed to Professor Curt’s lab.
“Xia Luo, you’re here! Take a look at this!”
Professor Curt was in a great mood, pulling Xia Luo toward a glass case. Inside was a green spider.
“Check it out. I just caught this mutated spider. I’ve heard many students gained Spider-Man’s powers after getting bitten by one of these.”
Xia Luo frowned. “Professor Curt, are you planning to…?”
“Yes, I want to use the mutated spider’s genes to advance my research,” Curt said, smiling.
“Mutated spiders don’t have regenerative factors. You’d be wasting your time,” Xia Luo said bluntly.
Professor Curt explained, “But the way the mutated spider transforms humans into Spider-Men is what I want to understand. Don’t worry, I’ve got it under control.”
Seeing that Curt had made up his mind, Xia Luo’s sense of unease only grew. It sounded logical, but could it really work?
He didn’t know. He wasn’t an expert in this field.
Respecting Curt’s expertise, he left the lab after a short conversation.
He’d done what he could.
Respecting the fates of others.
But when it came to his own Spider-Man fate, Xia Luo refused to yield. He would see this through to the end.
“Go get ‘em!”
“Come on! Don’t hold back!”
“Knock him down!”
“Put your back into it—didn’t you have dinner?”
Amid the noisy crowd, Xia Luo swung in from the window, landing lightly.
He observed about a hundred people on the scene, twenty of whom were clearly mutants.
Anyone bitten by a mutated spider and turned into a mutant loved wearing the classic Spider-Man pajamas, making them easy to identify.
Over the next few minutes, another dozen mutants arrived.
Among them, Xia Luo spotted a familiar figure.
Wasn’t she supposed to be busy?
Thwip!
Shooting a web, Xia Luo swung down in front of the petite figure.
“Hey, it’s you!”
Gwen looked surprised to see him. “Are you here to win kisses from the senior girls too?”
“No. Those cyborgs seem to be targeting Spider-Men. I’m guessing they might show up tonight.”
Xia Luo said, turning his gaze to the street.
Vroom!
The roar of sports cars filled the air as scantily clad senior girls pulled up, bringing a fresh wave of excitement.
“Hey, bugs! Tonight, let’s party!”
“Woohoo!”
With the beat of the music, the guys got even more hyped.
“I bet the top three get more than just a kiss,” Xia Luo muttered, rubbing his chin.
Gwen rolled her eyes. “Did you really think this was just a simple competition?”
“It’s not?”
“Of course not. Look over there.”
Gwen pointed to the corner of the abandoned factory, where some students were openly pulling out bags of powder and indulging. Some mutants were tossing the powder onto their webs, finding new ways to thrill themselves.
The scene was unsettling.
Xia Luo looked back at Gwen. “Should we call the cops?”
“I don’t have my phone.”
“Wow, what a coincidence—I don’t either.”
Tap.
A light footstep caught their attention. Mary Jane, who had mastered web-swinging, landed beside them.
“I never thought I’d see Spider-Men doing this kind of stuff. It’s weird,” she said, shaking her head.
“No argument there.”
Xia Luo quickly changed the topic. “What brings you here?”
“I invited her,” Gwen said, raising her phone.
“We exchanged numbers. Want to join in too?”
Xia Luo: “…”
Seeing the gathering was almost complete, Freckles jumped up on a table and shouted.
“Tonight’s a web-swinging competition! The goal is the nearby amusement park. The first three to reach the carousel get a date with the beautiful Ms. Kaelyn! One night only, so don’t miss your chance!”
The mutants went wild at the announcement.
Xia Luo noticed a particularly eye-catching Spider-Woman among them, her outfit almost too revealing to describe.
“Are the rewards the same for the top three?” Xia Luo asked.
Mary Jane adjusted her mask. “Not only the same—it’s for just one person.”
“Wow. Intense,” Xia Luo said, clapping.
Gwen looked disappointed. “I was wrong. These guys don’t deserve Spider-Man’s powers at all.”
She turned to leave, but Xia Luo’s earlier words stopped her.
“You said they might be targeted?” She looked back at him.
Xia Luo nodded. “It’s possible, but I can’t be sure.”
“Alright, then we follow them,” Gwen decided.
Mary Jane blinked. “Wait, I didn’t agree to that!”
“Doesn’t matter. They’re starting. I’m going first.”
Xia Luo shot out of the window, following the crowd of mutants toward the amusement park.
On the way, he caught up with Freckles.
“Hey, if one of the top three is a girl, would Kaelyn still be down?”
“A girl?” Freckles’ grin turned lecherous. “She’d be even more excited.”
Xia Luo: “???”
Spicy!
—
T/N: Xia Luo can be translated into Charlotte 😀
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