I'm working on Marvel's Spider-Man in American comics.

Chapter 52 After-School Routine

Peter and Cindy didn't linger at Avengers Tower. Upon hearing that the Avengers were about to return, they decided to leave as soon as possible. After testing the new web-shooters, Spider-Man began his afternoon patrol in his new gear.

“It’s not very convenient to always borrow the Avengers’ equipment,” Peter said, standing on the edge of a Manhattan skyscraper, looking down at the brand-new web-shooter on his wrist. “It would be best to have our own lab… and it has to be high-end enough.”

It's hard to go from luxury to frugality. Peter chuckled self-deprecatingly. This web shooter was much lighter than the old version, only the size of a watch, fitting snugly on the inside of his wrist, its surface gleaming with a cold metallic sheen. In addition to basic webs, it also featured three special web modes: electric, powerful, and elastic. Combined with the new web suit, it represented his first comprehensive upgrade since his debut.

Manhattan was unusually quiet today—no robberies, no explosions, and even petty theft was rare. Of course, there was no sign of the Mystery Kick either, but this only made Peter more nervous.

Mysterio is already operating in the shadows, helping Chameleon mimic his fighting style to create illusions of Spider-Man's battles. Peter is convinced that this visually manipulative enemy will become his next major threat. Given that thermal imaging essentially detects infrared light, Mysterio has likely made targeted modifications to avoid being exposed, and may even have mastered more advanced illusion technology.

"To be on the safe side, I need to imagine the Mysterious Guest as a complete entity—not just a visual disturbance, but possibly even affecting hearing and touch, causing different people to see completely different illusions."

Thinking about this, he suddenly had an idea. If he could develop a sonar device that could be used in battle with the eyepiece closed, relying solely on sonar imaging, it might be possible to break through Mysterio's illusions. The only drawback was the limited speed of sound, which might cause a delay in imaging, but with his spider-sense, this wouldn't be a difficult problem.

I don't know if Cindy can help me out. She's a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, so it'll probably be quite troublesome.

As he pondered, Peter had already finished his routine patrol for the evening. He landed lightly on the ground, adjusted his breathing, found a secluded corner to change his clothes, and made himself look like an ordinary high school student returning home late. Uncle Ben and Aunt May hadn't returned yet; it seemed they would be staying out for another two days, allowing Peter to go home freely.

Then he saw Gwen sitting on the steps of his own house.

"Hey, Gwen, not at rehearsal?" he greeted casually, while starting to tidy his slightly messy hair.

"It's already 6:30, Peter. Rehearsal ended a long time ago."

As Gwen spoke, she stood up to make way for him, brushing the dust off her pants as she did so: "What have you been eating these past few days while Aunt May hasn't been home?"

“Make something yourself.” Peter knew what Gwen was going to say: “Don’t expect me to cook anything fancy.”

"Anyway, I'm not a picky eater."

Gwen shrugged and followed him into the house, her gaze fixed on his backpack. "You keep your gear in here? Your uniform or something?"

Peter threw his backpack onto the sofa.

"That was true before, but I had a new uniform made at Avengers Tower, which makes things much easier."

"You joined the Avengers?"

“No.” Peter shook his head. Although Tony and Captain America seemed to be interested, they hadn’t formally invited him yet, considering his age. “They just asked me to help look after the building when the Avengers are on missions.”

"So...you can really drink coffee while lying upside down on the ceiling?" Gwen returned to the topic they hadn't finished discussing at noon, then suddenly stood up as if remembering something. "Wait, I'll get you a glass of water." Peter heard the sound of the tap being turned on in the kitchen, and a moment later, Gwen returned with a glass of tap water. He couldn't help but sigh, "Tap water?"

Gwen smiled a little sheepishly: "I couldn't find your kettle, sorry."

Peter reluctantly took the water glass, took off his shoes, and suddenly leaped—his feet firmly adhered to the ceiling, and he stood upside down without spilling a drop of water. To Gwen's astonishment, he slowly finished the water, then gracefully rolled over and landed steadily.

Gwen clapped her hands excitedly: "That's cool, really."

"Yeah, it's like someone telling you they have a cat at home that can do backflips." She said while putting on her shoes, "I just hope I don't get an upset stomach."

"If Spider-Man gets an upset stomach from a glass of tap water, then all the New York mobsters should send thank-you notes to the waterworks."

Taking the water glass from Peter, Gwen leaned closer and asked the next question with delight: "Seriously, Peter? You really don't plan to take me for a walk around Manhattan? Even just in Queens would be fine?"

"Gwen..."

“Oh, sorry, I forgot you need to hide your identity.” Gwen quickly and “cleverly” found a solution: “How about I design a uniform for myself? That way no one will associate me with you.”

Peter sighed; that was why he didn't want to tell Gwen his true identity.

"I'm going to make dinner now. Is there anything you'd like to eat?"

"Anything is fine, smart kid. I hope you don't set off the smoke alarm."

Peter took out the cooked white rice he had prepared that morning from the refrigerator, rolled his eyes at Gwen in the living room, and started cooking—he wasn't really good at cooking, so he simply made fried rice with egg and starch sausage.

Then, during the meal, I was asked a whole bunch of questions.

After finally getting rid of his annoying neighbors, Peter breathed a sigh of relief. He first washed up, then charged his phone and began broadcasting New York's crime news while simultaneously pulling out a stack of papers and starting to design blueprints for his sonar device. Although he could simply buy those simple handheld or portable sonar devices, firstly, he didn't have the money, and secondly, his self-designed equipment would be easier to modify and connect to his own eyepiece.

He wasn't sure when he felt tired and went to bed. In his hazy sleep, he felt something appear before him, as if something terrible was happening. Spider-Man was fighting a group of people he didn't know, and then he was defeated and fell down.

A burly man in a white suit raised his fist, looking at Peter Parker lying on the ground, barely alive.

A spider swept across his dream. It was a black spider about half the size of a palm. It landed in front of Parker, stirring the web of fate and conveying a message from the multiverse. On its back were conspicuous numbers.

42.

(End of this chapter)