Toby and Gwen's Past Acquaintance

And Toby would always protect the joyful atmosphere of this little family.

On the third floor, in the game room Toby had specially renovated, Toby played games with Peter while chatting.

In front of the two parents, Ben and May, Peter was still somewhat reserved.

But in front of Toby, a cousin who was not his biological brother yet was closer than one, Peter immediately opened up and began talking nonstop.

He was already beginning to show Spider-Man's chatterbox tendencies.

However, Peter did most of the talking, while Toby only chimed in now and then.

Peter's topics ranged from teaching himself photography, buying the new camera he had wanted with the allowance Toby gave him, and planning to take on some photography side jobs.

Then he talked about how he had fallen for Mary Jane, and how stunned he had been by her red hair when they first met!

Toby quietly listened to the teenage boy's pure budding affection for Mary Jane, but felt little reaction inside.

Honestly, Toby had little interest in Mary Jane. He even somewhat disliked the character because of preconceived impressions.

After all, in most Marvel film, television, and animated works, Mary Jane's characterization was not particularly likable.

Most of the time, she merely served as a burdensome decorative figure beside Spider-Man.

And she was the sort of decorative figure who changed her heart easily and was prone to putting a green crown on Spider-Man's head.

Only her portrayal in the games and comics was somewhat better.

Seeing that Toby was clearly uninterested in the topic of Mary Jane, Peter tactfully did not continue and instead brought up another subject.

"By the way, Toby, Gwen asked me yesterday after school to ask whether you were free this weekend."

"You know Gwen is interning at Osborn Enterprises now. She said Dr. Connors is holding an intern meet-and-greet Q&A tomorrow. As Dr. Connors's assistant, Gwen has two observer spots, and she wants to invite us to attend."

"Actually, I know she only wants to invite you. I'm just tagging along, but I really want to hear Dr. Connors answer questions up close. So, will you go with me?"

Seeing the anticipation in Peter's eyes, Toby naturally did not refuse and agreed.

Peter was so happy that he nearly jumped up.

As for how Toby, who had skipped grades all the way through and completed his studies two years early, had met Gwen, who was two years younger than him—that was a long story.

First of all, Toby meeting Gwen actually had nothing to do with Peter and Gwen being classmates.

Instead, it was connected to his other identity: Poison Spider, the killer of Hell's Kitchen.

That had happened two years ago.

At Kingpin's request, he had gone to routinely eliminate an enemy gang leader who had just been released from prison.

Coincidentally, that gang leader had originally been sent to prison by Gwen's father, Captain George Stacy.

And even more coincidentally, the night Toby went to eliminate him was also the night that gang leader planned to take revenge on Captain Stacy.

Of course, the leader could not directly go to the police station to retaliate against a captain of the New York Police Department. He did not have the power to be that arrogant.

So naturally, he set his sights on Captain Stacy's daughter, Gwen.

He kidnapped her on her way home from school.

And if you were going to kidnap someone, then if you wanted revenge, just kill the hostage.

But that idiot refused. He wanted Captain Stacy to suffer the utmost pain—to do this and that to his daughter Gwen first, then record it and send it to Captain Stacy.

Villains like that often died because they had too much pointless nonsense to do.

While that idiot was setting up the scene and positioning the camera, Gwen somehow held out until Toby arrived, and nothing had happened to her yet!

Honestly, Toby had not gone there intending to save anyone that day. He had not even expected to run into something like this, and had leisurely finished dinner at home before heading out.

Yet despite Toby dawdling like that, he still made it in time.

When he arrived, that moron was still fiddling with his camera.

All one could say was that Gwen truly deserved to be one of Marvel's chosen daughters. This shit actually worked out.

Since he was already there, although Toby had no intention of being a good person in this life and instead wanted to be a bad person who followed the money—

He was not about to stand there and watch a girl be humiliated in front of him.

Wasn't that just wasting his time?

Even if that idiot might have only taken a few minutes, it would still have been a waste of his precious time, okay?

So, before that idiot even realized someone had appeared behind him, Toby slapped downward from above, driving the idiot's head straight into his chest cavity before Gwen's wide blue eyes.

After completing the job, Toby untied the ropes around Gwen before leaving.

And the moment he bent down to do that, things went wrong.

Even now, Toby could not understand why Gwen—a girl who had neither mutated superpowers nor had just nearly been subjected to this and that—had not, in that moment of surviving a disaster, felt grateful that she had kept both her life and her innocence.

Instead, she had carefully observed the characteristics of her savior and memorized the distinctive woody incense scent from his home that had clung to him.

So when she smelled that same woody incense scent on her classmate Peter, but found that his build did not match, Gwen asked Peter about Toby and followed him to Toby's home to confirm it.

The moment they met, Gwen raised her hands and gestured around him, measuring his build, then covered her view of his head with her palm and kept nodding.

As soon as she got closer, Gwen became even more outrageous—she leaned in and sniffed him directly, wearing an expression that said, So it really was you.

After that, having already seen through Toby's identity, Gwen often came to visit under the pretext of being Peter's classmate or friend.

At first, Ben and May thought Gwen was Peter's girlfriend from school.

But they later discovered that the girl had not come to see their nephew—she had come to see their son!

And since the elderly couple had only had a child late in life, they naturally liked this girl who had taken the initiative to stick close to Toby. Every time she visited, they would secretly create opportunities for the two of them to be alone.

However, despite Gwen's blatant affection for him, Toby had never responded. He was as unresponsive as a block of wood that knew nothing about love.

It was not that Toby had no interest in Gwen, nor had he failed to notice her feelings for him.

It was just that the current webnovel environment did not allow it!

Who would dare touch a sixteen-year-old girl?!

Thus, even two years later, Toby and Gwen remained in a state beyond friendship but short of love.

Still, Gwen was the same age as Peter. Peter was already eighteen now, so Gwen should have come of age too...

Thinking of this, Toby shook his head and decided to let nature take its course.

If Gwen still had special feelings for him, he would accept them. If not, then so be it.

He was not some desperate loser who, upon arriving in Marvel, had to grovel and simp for Gwen and every other female character.

In this life, he did not lack women at all.

Even when he had worked for Kingpin, Kingpin had always been considerate. Money, goods, women—he had never failed to provide any of them.

When you come across advertisements such as "Are you a real person?", there is no need to pay attention to them. Just close them. Do not scan QR codes or send text messages!