"What?"
The mysterious man's words left Peter dazed for a moment. Everything he had been taught growing up said that the Iron Lord was the man who had saved billions of survivors from the apocalypse. The former superhero named Tony Stark had turned the tide in humanity's darkest hour and saved countless lives.
Even in the relatively peaceful era of Battleworld, the lord had continued waging wars to secure living space for the entire Steel Domain. Everyone in the domain was deeply grateful for everything he had done.
Peter's silence dragged on too long, testing Lizard's patience. The excessive slaughter he had committed had already left him severely mentally ill.
He raised his claws high and looked down at the little red spider before him.
"Give me your answer, now. Will you join us, or choose a road with no return that ends in certain death?"
"Sorry. I don't know."
Peter clutched his head, his mind plunged into agonizing confusion.
He did not want to become an enemy of the entire Steel Domain. That would mean more than losing his peaceful life forever; it could also put Aunt May, who had raised him, in terrible danger.
But Peter could not convince himself to join someone who might well have murdered his father, even if that man was the Iron Lord, who could command everything within the domain.
Lizard knew nothing of Peter's inner turmoil, and what little patience he possessed had run out. While Peter stood frozen, clutching his head, Lizard had already raised his claws high. One light strike would crush the insect before him.
The mysterious man clearly had not expected Peter to be so fragile, either. At this critical moment, Peter had actually given up resisting and simply watched Lizard's claws come crashing down.
"He hasn't been