A Rookie Spider-Man

Peter Parker had been very happy lately. Ever since he had been bitten by that spider, he had gained unparalleled superpowers. He was no longer the scrawny shut-in who couldn't even restrain a chicken; now he possessed Superhuman Strength and agile reflexes. For a high school student, it couldn't have been better.

But he did have his worries. The Doctor he had been chatting with on the Web had arranged a thorough physical examination for his whole family, and that examination had uncovered quite a few problems.

Peter himself was fine—healthier than ever. Even the hospital's machines had failed to detect anything unusual about him.

The problem was with his uncle and aunt, Ben Parker and Aunt May. They were getting old, so it was only natural that they had some minor ailments. That alone wasn't much, but the examination results showed a shadow on his uncle's lung. That was not good news.

Anyone with a little common sense knew what usually came next: either cancer or a tumor.

The Doctor recommended that Ben Parker undergo a comprehensive lung examination, but it wasn't cheap. Especially considering that he might later need an invasive biopsy, the Parkers simply could not afford the surgery.

Medical expenses could be reimbursed, but the cost of this kind of examination was not on the reimbursement list. No insurance company would cover it.

If the Doctor Peter knew from the Web were still working at that hospital, perhaps Peter could ask him for help. Even if it wasn't possible at that good hospital, they could go to a slightly worse one, where it would be cheaper.

The Parkers had always lived in poverty. Peter often went an entire year without a single new piece of clothing, but he knew his uncle and aunt had done everything they could to give him the best life possible. They simply earned too little, and Uncle Ben would never accept a cent of ill-gotten money. With his meager fixed salary and Peter's schooling to pay for, there was nothing left over.

Ben Parker, however, took it rather well. A shadow on the lung did not necessarily mean cancer or a tumor. It might just be some insignificant inflammation that would heal on its own. He comforted Peter, saying that perhaps the big hospital was simply trying to scare them, but Peter was still devastated.

He couldn't help feeling resentful. Thompson, who was always bullying him at school, probably spent hundreds or even thousands of dollars on a pair of sneakers, while Peter's family could not even scrape together a few hundred dollars for an examination.

But Peter thought things would be different now. He had all these superpowers—what else was he supposed to do with them if not make money?

Peter was, of course, very smart. His quick little mind came up with the fastest way to earn money: entering underground boxing matches.

Of course, gambling at a casino might have been even faster, but Peter knew his Spider-Sense worked only sometimes. If it failed him, he might not only fail to make money—he could lose it.

Underground boxing was different. His strength was enough to defeat any ordinary person. No matter how vicious or cruel they were, his absolute advantage in strength would ensure he won every fight.

Where in all of New York was the underground boxing industry most prosperous? Naturally, that hellhole known as Hell's Kitchen.

But Peter had been a good student who studied diligently all his life. He would never willingly approach a place that chaotic. Perhaps out of fear, perhaps out of caution, he wandered around the edges of Hell's Kitchen for several days without daring to go in.

Then one day, after school, Peter learned that Aunt May had thrown out her back. They had no money to buy medicine, so she could only lie in bed and rest. He couldn't hold it in anymore. All that pent-up frustration turned to anger, and he desperately wanted to beat someone up.

He put on his homemade masked outfit. It looked rather ridiculous, but after gaining Spider-Man's power, his body had become a little sturdier. He was no longer quite so skinny, so it looked passable on him.

He blundered around Hell's Kitchen like a headless fly. Still, no one could beat him, and he had his Spider-Sense to dodge bullets. In the end, he managed to find his way in.

On Bill Street, about two blocks from Mary Street in Hell's Kitchen, there was an underground boxing ring run by a gang. After Peter knocked out the strongest illegal boxer there with a single punch, the manager took notice of him and recommended him to the biggest underground boxing ring at the end of the street.

There, Peter gave himself a codename: Spider-Man.

Everything went smoothly. Peter won match after match. Hardly any fighter could withstand a flurry of his punches. The strength brought by the Spider Mutation was simply too great, and in just a few days, Peter had earned tens of thousands of dollars.

Meanwhile, Daredevil had spent several days recovering at Schiller's place. He had no superpowers, and his wounds healed no faster than those of an ordinary person. Fortunately, the assassin who had tried to kill him had clearly held back. The bullet had not damaged any vital organs, and after lying in bed for several days, Matt was much better.

That evening, Matt bid Schiller farewell. He still had his cause of justice to pursue. If he stopped because of Kingpin's assassination attempt, that would be exactly what Kingpin wanted. Not only would Matt not stop defending justice, he intended to strike Kingpin hard.

His target was Bill Street. The two nightclubs, one casino, one underground boxing ring, and one illegal car modification shop there all belonged to Kingpin. It could be said that Kingpin's gang controlled the entire street, bringing him millions of dollars in profit every year.

Matt's first target was the underground boxing ring.

After all, don't forget how his father had died. Those underground illegal boxing rings had no reason to exist. They only wanted to squeeze money from gambling addicts and cared nothing for human lives. Matt's father had refused to throw a match because he wanted to give his son a victorious performance. He caused the bookies to lose money, and the gang brutally murdered him for it.

That was what had given rise to Daredevil. Matt would never let any underground boxing ring go. In fact, Kingpin's illegal boxing and gambling business had already declined greatly under Matt's repeated attacks.

That was why Kingpin had sent assassins after him. As long as Matt lived, Kingpin would never be able to make money from illegal boxing.

Of course, Matt was an experienced hero. He did not charge recklessly into the boxing ring. His usual method for dismantling Underground Organizations was to observe them for a few days, then find a drunk stumbling out of the place and get all the intelligence he needed from them. Afterward, he would target a few managers, disrupt their betting operations several times, and the gamblers would look elsewhere.

After observing for several days, Matt heard the name "Spider-Man" from many people. He learned that Spider-Man had recently made quite a splash in the ring. Matt had seen Spider-Man once before, though they had only passed each other in a hurry. Still, he knew the kid's good days would not last long.

One day, the boss of the underground boxing ring approached Peter. He wanted Peter to throw a match. Anyone familiar with betting rules knew that after such a winning streak, Peter's odds would become extremely low. Everyone would bet on him to win, while hardly anyone would bet on his opponent.

If Peter lost at that point, the bookie would only need to pay out to the few people who had bet on his opponent, while taking all the money wagered on Peter. It would be a huge fortune.

That was how underground boxing rings operated. There was no fair competition here. The bookies manipulated the odds to fleece people who had become addicted to gambling.

The boss of the underground casino promised Peter a cut, but Peter was not very willing. First, he felt he had already earned enough. Tens of thousands of dollars were sufficient for Uncle Ben's complete examination, and even if Aunt May's back required major surgery, the money would cover it.

Besides, Peter was only a high school student. His mind was still immature, and the thrill of consecutive victories had become addictive. For a hot-blooded teenage boy, being told to deliberately lose to his opponent was practically impossible. Peter had finally gotten the chance to hold his head high. There was no way he would agree.

The boss of the underground boxing ring said nothing, and Peter naively assumed the man could do nothing to him. After all, he had such incredible strength. What ordinary person could possibly beat him?

Daredevil, Matt, saw all of it.

He had slipped in early by posing as a drunk, pretending to slump drunkenly in the audience. His exceptional hearing allowed him to catch every word of the conversation between the underground boxing ring's boss and Peter backstage.

And Matt was there for the match the next day as well.

When Peter entered the ring, countless cheers still rose from below. Peter raised both hands in acknowledgment, waiting for the next opponent he would defeat.

A muscular Black boxer stepped into the ring. Peter saw a sly smile on the man's face, but he did not understand what it meant.

At the beginning of the match, Peter thought everything was fine. He nearly sent the boxer flying with a single punch, but the man did not confront him head-on. Instead, he dodged and evaded, as though stalling for time.

Very soon, Peter realized something was wrong. His stomach began to cramp, his legs went weak, and his vision darkened.

Just as his consciousness began to blur, the Black boxer punched him in the cheek. Peter staggered back several steps, dizzy and disoriented.

The opposing boxer pressed his advantage. The instant Peter was struck, his Spider-Sense went off. He sensed heavy lead blocks inside the other boxer's gloves. If he took a hit like that, his brains might splatter out.

Peter bent over and barely dodged the blow. Boos erupted from the crowd. Spider-Man had never dodged in any of his previous matches.

Peter could not worry about that now. He felt awful, almost unable to breathe. The other boxer threw another punch, knocking Peter directly to the ground. This was no legitimate arena, and there was no proper referee. Even after Peter fell, the boxer's fists continued raining down, and no one stepped in to stop him.

Peter could only clutch his head tightly, but the lead-weighted gloves pounded against his body, making him feel as if his internal organs were about to shift out of place. In the end, he could no longer hold it back. He collapsed on the ground and vomited with a loud "Blegh!" The audience burst into curses.

Knowing that they were likely about to lose their money, the crowd's shouting became even more vicious.

Every filthy insult Peter had never heard in his life was hurled from their mouths and thrown at Spider-Man.

Before Peter passed out, he saw a figure leap from the audience. A cane cut through the air with a whoosh and slammed into the opposing boxer's neck. The savage beating finally stopped, but Peter could no longer hold on and lost consciousness.

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