Hello, Principal!

Alvin rinsed off quickly and lay down on the bed. His conversation with Matt, Daredevil, earlier that day had given him a lot to think about. In his previous life, Alvin had grown up, married, and had a child in China. He was a man who believed in order. Whether it was the order of the law or the order of the underworld, he preferred either to chaos.

With his own strength, Alvin had protected three neighborhoods in Hell's Kitchen. That was the limit of what the other gangs could tolerate. The underworld had its own well-established rules, and Alvin couldn't just break them whenever he pleased. Otherwise, it would mean war. And the ones who suffered most in a war were ordinary poor people.

Once someone got used to carrying a gun, whenever trouble came, they'd always think about how to solve it with a gun.

Fortunately, Alvin had been an ordinary man in his previous life, with his own outlook on life and values. Though he'd gained great power in this life, when problems came up, power always came second to the rules.

That was why he preferred to help the police in Hell's Kitchen. He couldn't chain himself down the way Matt did, always trying to carry the safety of the entire neighborhood on his shoulders.

Of course, when he encountered someone or something beyond the rules, Alvin wasn't foolishly idealistic. If they needed a beating, he beat them; if they needed killing, he killed them. For example, the "Purple Man" S.H.I.E.L.D. had been looking for today had been fed to his Pet, the Corpse-Eater Vine. He'd also saved Jessica Jones, who now worked as a server at his restaurant.

Alvin hadn't read many American comics in his previous life. Of Marvel, he was mainly familiar with the Avengers. He knew Matt because Daredevil had been made into a movie, and his defining feature was hard to forget: a blind man who could really fight.

He'd never even heard of Jessica, an ordinary civilian superhero from the Defenders. That made it easy for him to hire her as a server.

In truth, if Alvin had known what lay ahead for Jessica, he might not have hired her. This mature man had a simple belief: superheroes brought super trouble.

But he didn't know any of that yet. He was only a little surprised by Jessica's incredible strength. He'd come from another world himself, after all. A young woman being a little stronger than usual wasn't anything to worry about.

After thinking for a while, Alvin stopped dwelling on things he couldn't control. He checked in with his Pets. Three Ghost Wolves would patrol three streets, while Thor and Dom would stay at the restaurant to guard the place.

The Crows were spread out across the corners of Hell's Kitchen. Today, they'd help Matt with his work. Alvin had an agreement with Kingpin, and his territory was limited to the three nearby blocks. But he wasn't taking anyone's turf. Kingpin would understand that he was just keeping the peace. Besides, Kingpin didn't know the Crows were Alvin's Summoned Creatures.

He couldn't send out the Ghost Wolves. All the gangs in Hell's Kitchen knew that the giant wolves were Alvin's Pets.

With everything taken care of, Alvin hugged his pillow and thought of his wife from his previous life. Good—her face was still clear in his mind. A few minutes later, he fell asleep. In his dreams, he saw his wife and child again. His wife's endless chatter felt dear to him, and his son's mischief seemed adorable.

He slept well and woke at five. After washing up, he pulled on a Tracksuit and headed out for a run.

A Chinese couple was pushing a Breakfast Cart toward him. Alvin waved. "Hey, good morning, Uncle Cheng, Aunt Cheng."

Seeing the short boy crouched behind the cart, wishing he could bury himself in the ground, Alvin grinned. "Jiawen, I heard you got a D on your history test last time. You're done for, kid. Mr. Wilson will make you pay for that, I'm sure."

Aunt Cheng's face darkened. She gave Jiawen a hard smack on the shoulder and pulled him out from behind the cart.

Jiawen kept his head lowered, then quickly glanced up at Alvin and greeted him in a soft voice. "Good morning, Principal!"

Alvin gave him a knowing look and patted him on the shoulder as he passed. "Save me ten Baozi and three cups of Soy Milk, Uncle Cheng. I'll pay when I get back." He pointed at Jiawen and said with a cold laugh, "You're done for, kid." Then he headed out for his run.

Early that morning, he ran a lap around his territory. A young married woman named Dahlia, who had been waiting for him along the way, flirted with him. The confidence boost left Alvin feeling refreshed as he returned to the restaurant.

Uncle Cheng and Aunt Cheng were already busy out front. They steamed batch after batch of Baozi, bagging them up for people heading to work early. Jiawen was in charge of packing the Soy Milk and taking money. When he saw Alvin return, he jumped and nearly spilled the Soy Milk in his hands on Old Kent, who had come to buy breakfast.

Old Kent wasn't angry. He gave Jiawen a mischievous grin. "Kid, you look like you're in for a rough day at school. Ha! I knew you boys would have a hard time once Alvin became principal!"

Alvin greeted Old Kent and said, "Find two workers from the Kindergarten. Give them five hundred bucks to fix the Floorboards and doors upstairs."

"Also, check on their progress. I've got five hundred thousand dollars coming in soon. Talk to the teacher and see what other equipment we need. Hurry up and buy some Toys. I don't want to see any more two- or three-year-olds running out into the street."

Uncle Cheng, who was busy at work, heard him and said, "Is it just some carpentry? I can do it for you. It'll be easy, and I won't charge you."

Alvin considered it. "Then I'll give you two hundred. If you need any materials, have Old Kent get someone to deliver them." He waved to stop Uncle Cheng from arguing, took the packed breakfast, and went back into the restaurant.

Jessica was already up. Alvin didn't know what she was doing, but when she saw him come in, her face flushed. Clutching a Cleaning Cloth, she scrubbed the table with all her might.

Alvin teased her with a grin. "Keep scrubbing and you'll take the Paint right off."

Jessica ignored him. She dropped the Cleaning Cloth, picked up a Small Comb, and hugged Thor around the neck, brushing his fur with all her strength. The enormous Thor was being squeezed so hard his tongue lolled out. He looked utterly resigned to his fate.

Alvin shuddered and decided not to tease the girl anymore. The things in his house were worth a lot of money!

He set down the breakfast and went upstairs to wake Nick. But as he reached the bar, he saw Nick through the little door, hopping down from the second floor on one leg. When Nick spotted Alvin, he made all kinds of faces, trying to communicate something.

Settling into his Wheelchair, Nick gave Jessica a sly grin and called out, "Jess, I think I need a cup of Coffee. There was an earthquake at home yesterday, and I was so scared I couldn't sleep."

Alvin watched Nick dig his own grave with a smile and didn't say a word.

At breakfast, Nick drank a glass of Milk with salt in it. Just as he was about to bite into the meat inside a Baozi, it got knocked away. His Wheelchair was accidentally tipped over twice.

Nick desperately appealed to Alvin for help, but Alvin ignored the little menace and watched him get bullied.

The battle-filled breakfast ended with Nick admitting defeat.

At seven sharp, a school bus with a big nose pulled up outside the restaurant, honking its horn. Nick wheeled himself out as if fleeing for his life, forgetting his Schoolbag.

Alvin shook his head, picked up Nick's Schoolbag, and went outside. He wanted to take a look at the school, too.

As he stepped out, he saw Jiawen helping Nick lift his Wheelchair onto the school bus. Nick grabbed the door handle and hopped aboard on one leg by himself.

Alvin greeted JJ, who had a Shotgun resting beneath the windshield, and tossed Nick his Schoolbag. Then he got into a Pickup Truck and called for Dom to ride shotgun. Thor would stay home and guard the place.