Peter's Escape, Police Arrive

"Mm... this smell..." Merlin leaned over and peered down through the broken hole, and a foul stench immediately rushed up from the sewer straight into his nose, nearly making him choke.

"Looks like the guy slipped away through the sewer." After confirming the target had escaped, he relaxed, then looked up at Gwen hanging upside down from the ceiling.

"Are you going after him?"

Gwen glanced at the sewer and gave him a speechless look.

"If you're willing to go, I'll follow."

"Forget it, I'm not a superhero. I thought this kind of smell wouldn't be a big deal for you." Merlin spread his hands, then decided to tease her a little.

"By the way, you just called my name. Do you know me?"

Gwen's body stiffened instantly. She had blurted out his name just now out of worry.

Fortunately, with the mask on, he couldn't see her expression.

"That's what your friend calls you." She quickly came up with an excuse, speaking casually, and then, not wanting to drag this topic out—since the more she said, the more holes she'd reveal—she changed the subject.

"I admire your courage, but you're just an ordinary person. You only have one life. Don't take such risks in the future." She warned him in a serious tone.

"Leave this kind of thing to me."

"Can't help it. Who knows why he kept targeting me." Merlin sounded a bit helpless too.

Gwen fell silent at that. She wasn't entirely sure either. Could someone have sent him to assassinate Merlin?

She knew a bit about Merlin and his father's situation. In fact, after gaining her abilities, she had even gone looking for them, but by the time she arrived, those gangs had already been wiped out.

"By the way, help me find my friend. Her name is Gwen, she has short blonde hair. She ran off somewhere in the chaos."

"No problem!" Hearing that Merlin hadn't forgotten her, Gwen felt deeply gratified.

Gwen swung away on a web and disappeared into the restroom. Merlin got ready to head home too.

"Hannah!" As he turned the corner, he saw Hannah carefully creeping along the wall toward him.

"My god, are you okay?" Hannah seemed startled by the shout, but relaxed immediately when she saw Merlin come out safely.

"I'm fine, but that monster still got away. Let's wait here for Gwen." Merlin comforted her.

"Gwen... right, when did Gwen disappear? Is she okay?" Hannah, reminded by him, finally thought of Gwen.

"Don't worry, she'll be back soon." Merlin, carrying the rifle, led Hannah back to the hall, picked up the Atomic Gun he had discarded, and put the rifle back in its case to tidy up.

Incendiary Rounds, like Armor-Piercing, High-Explosive, Metal, and Hollow-Point rounds, are all types of Special Bullets.

They can only be loaded into MK2 firearms.

Hannah, who had followed him, was still puzzled, but soon, a blonde-haired Gwen found them with a delighted expression.

"Merlin! Hannah! I'm so glad you're both okay."

Hannah glanced at Merlin in confusion, wondering how he had been so sure Gwen was fine and would come back.

"How heartbreaking. At the critical moment, you abandoned us." Merlin, carrying the weapon case, pretended to be hurt.

"Ah... well..." Gwen, who had been all smiles, suddenly looked awkward. But she quickly came up with an excuse.

"No, it's like this—I ran with the crowd. I thought you two were following."

"When I realized you hadn't caught up, I rushed right back."

"I'm the one who's really heartbroken. I came back despite the danger because I was worried about you, and now I'm being doubted." Gwen turned the tables, putting on a hurt expression.

"Is that so?" Merlin gave her a strange look. This was the first time he'd seen her acting skills be this good.

Soon, police cars arrived swiftly at the school and cordoned off the entire venue.

Some bold teachers and students hadn't gone far, lingering curiously outside the venue. After the police arrived, they cautiously followed them inside.

"Gwen! Merlin!"

Hearing a familiar voice, Merlin and Gwen stopped their bickering and looked toward the door.

George, wearing a bulletproof vest and holding a pistol, looked at the two with relief.

To be honest, when he heard from the fleeing crowd that both Gwen and Merlin hadn't come out, he thought something had happened to them.

With every step he took closer, his heart clenched tighter. Fortunately, the two appeared before him safe and sound in the end.

"Dad!" Gwen ran over joyfully.

After confirming neither of them was injured, George finally relaxed and then asked about the situation at the scene.

Since Gwen hadn't been there at the time, the only eyewitness to the monster being driven off—aside from Spider-Man—was Merlin.

So Gwen and Hannah were allowed to leave first, while Merlin was taken away by George.

But before leaving, Merlin tossed the car keys back to the two girls.

"Same plan as before. Wait for me back home." He winked at them, then opened the door and sat down in George's passenger seat.

"Something this big happens and you're still in the mood for barbecue." Gwen caught the car keys and couldn't help but tease, then asked Hannah beside her.

"You going?"

"Of course, let's go. I've already told my family I'm safe."

"Alright, gotta say I've never ridden that guy's baby before. Can't believe he's being so generous this time." Gwen jingled the keys in her hand and headed excitedly toward the school gate.

Normally, Merlin's Ducati was off-limits to anyone else.

Manhattan Headquarters, interrogation room.

George looked at the Electromagnetic Pulse Emitter in his hand, then uncertainly at Merlin sitting across from him.

"This... you developed this?"

"Yeah, that's my exhibit for today. Main target audience is you guys." Merlin wasn't too tense, nodding casually in reply.

"And this rifle is yours too? Kangaroo's FAMAS?"

"Yes, I modified it a bit." Merlin didn't dwell on the name either. The gun after modification did resemble Kangaroo's FAMAS, but the prototype before the MK2 conversion was a QBZ95 rifle.

"You modified a gun yourself! Merlin, what have you been up to lately?" Hearing Merlin's confirmation, George frowned deeply, feeling a sense of unfamiliarity toward the kid he'd always treated like his own.

He used to be such a good kid, but ever since his friend passed away, everything seemed to have changed.

"Maybe you should focus on the Electromagnetic Pulse Emitter." Merlin didn't answer him, instead nodding toward the exhibit case on his right, then added with some helplessness.

"Besides, I'm the hero who drove off the monster this time. You've asked everything you need to ask. How much longer are you going to keep me here? Gwen and the others are waiting for me at home."