"Uncle Ben and Aunt May told me."
Gwen explained with a smile, "George is good friends with them. You come up in their conversations."
George Stacy, Gwen's father.
He was also the chief superintendent overseeing New York's various districts.
What Mark knew about George flashed through his mind, leaving him thoughtful.
Gwen, meanwhile, studied Mark with an unreadable look in her eyes and ventured, "Peter, getting out would help with Mark's condition. Let's take him for a walk around campus."
As she spoke, though, she never looked at Peter. Her eyes stayed fixed on Mark.
"What do you think?" she asked.
Mark considered it. "Sure. Empire State University, right? I'd like to have a look, too. But I want the front passenger seat."
"No problem."
Gwen agreed with a smile.
Peter Parker: "????"
They seemed to be asking for my permission.
But somehow, they weren't.
"Wait, Mark can't just go out whenever he wants." He tried to stop them.
Mark waved him off. "It's fine. Let me tell you a secret. Actually, I'm not sick at all."
Peter Parker: "..."
And he still claimed he wasn't sick!
But faced with Gwen's sincere invitation, Peter found it hard to say no.
So he reluctantly agreed, then squeezed into the cramped back seat.
As long as he kept an eye on Mark, everything should be fine.
Vroom!
The sports car roared, and Peter took the full brunt of the rushing wind.
In just twenty minutes, the sports car made a flashy entrance onto campus.
By the time he climbed out, Peter Parker had become a Super Saiyan, his hair standing straight up.
Mark got out at his leisure, then turned to Gwen with a serious expression.
"I have a question."
"Go ahead."
"How did you make enough money to buy a sports car?"
"I developed a biomaterial last year and patented it."
Gwen's answer left Mark a little disappointed.
That wasn't something he could learn to do.
"Hey, Peter, my friend. You seem to be in a good mood today."
Suddenly, a tall, burly Jeni greeted Peter with a basketball in his arms, then hurled it straight at Peter's face.
He refused to let Peter have a beautiful girl and a sports car at his side.
It made him deeply uncomfortable.
"No, don't!"
Gwen tried to stop him, but Mark moved faster.
In the blink of an eye, he stepped in front of Peter.
Bang!
With an explosive crack, the basketball burst in Mark's grip.
Jeni was visibly startled.
"You..."
"Here, have it back."
Mark casually tossed it back, and the deflated basketball slammed into Jeni's face with tremendous force.
"Oh, shit!"
Knocked to the ground by the deflated ball, Jeni clutched his nose in agony as blood streamed out.
"Damn you! My nose..."
As pain seared through him, he didn't dare look at Mark. Instead, he shot a vicious glare at the stunned Peter.
"Peter Parker, I'll remember this."
With the surrounding students watching, Jeni slunk away in humiliation.
He liked bullying Peter because Peter was an easy target.
He knew perfectly well that when he was the one getting bullied, the first thing to do was get away from the crowd.
Staying would only make him look worse.
He had plenty of experience in that department.
Only after Jeni left did the crowd disperse.
Peter, meanwhile, looked dazed.
The scene seemed to have taken him back to the past.
Mark had always protected him like this while they were growing up.
So...
He silently made up his mind.
Mark dusted off his hands, paying no attention to Peter's distracted state.
He looked at Peter. "Take me to find him later. I'll give him a few more good beatings, and next time he sees you, he'll run the other way."
Gwen: "!!!!"
Careful reasoning. Clear logic.
There really was nothing wrong with him!
"Oh, right, Peter."
She suddenly remembered something.
"Professor Connors has been looking for you these past few days. Are you going to his lab?" she asked Peter.
"Curt Connors..."
Peter's expression shifted slightly.
He wanted to refuse, but he felt he needed to have a proper talk with the man.
"Okay, I'll head over. Please look after Mark for me. Thanks."
With that, he walked toward the Laboratory Building.
Only Mark and Gwen remained.
Without really thinking about it, they started walking, neither saying anything.
Before long, they found themselves beside the lake in the park.
Plenty of female students were sunbathing on the grass.
Mark spotted the prettiest one at a glance.
Sunlight spilled over her, and she radiated youth and beauty.
Well, the prettiest student was actually Gwen.
Seemingly noticing Mark stealing glances at her, Gwen lowered her head and thought for a moment.
She broke the silence.
"Three years ago... thank you," she said softly.
"What?" Mark hadn't quite heard her.
Gwen gathered her courage and looked at Mark.
"For what happened three years ago. Thank you for saving me."
"Me?"
Mark scratched his head. "I don't remember."
Gwen was disappointed.
So he'd never paid any attention to me.
No, he was just sick.
That had to be it.
That thought made her feel a little better.
She turned toward the shimmering lake, letting the breeze stir her hair.
Gwen continued on her own. "That day, the Green Giant destroyed the entire street. You protected Peter, Harry, and me.
"You said we would always be friends.
"That's why I still remember how hard you tried to protect everyone.
"I also remember that rock hitting you in the head.
"You were brave. There's no way fear could have driven you mad. I've always known that."
As she spoke, she turned to look at Mark beside her.
"I've always known." Her eyes held both conviction and hope.
Mark seemed oblivious to what she was hoping for.
He stretched, enjoying the lovely sunshine.
"Ha! I really am a brave demon hunter. You saw right through me."
As soon as he finished speaking, a game notification suddenly appeared before his eyes.
[Bruce's stamina has recovered.]
Mark was a little surprised. Bruce had finished resting already?
Perhaps his stamina had recovered so quickly because he hadn't fought any demons last night.
In that case, it was time for a thrilling round of demon hunting!
"I've got something to do, and you should get to class. Bye."
Ignoring Gwen's conflicted gaze, he turned and found a secluded corner.
"Enter the game!"
Hum!
Space twisted, and Mark appeared inside his little wooden cabin once again.
Bruce still wasn't home this time.
A virtual arrow appeared on the ground. After checking his equipment, Mark set off in search of Bruce again.
[You have discovered a Wisdom Flower. Collect its seeds to plant them. Once mature, it will yield Wisdom Fruit, which increases your spirit attribute!]
Not long after leaving the cabin, Mark spotted a red flower floating beside the stream.
"Awesome! It's a farming game!"
Excited, he went over to the stream to collect the Wisdom Flower Seeds.
[Wisdom Flower Seed (unplanted)] [Time required to mature: 399 days] [Tip: Water with special items to shorten the maturation time.]
Mark couldn't help feeling puzzled.
Wouldn't it be better to transplant it directly?
Why did he have to collect the seeds and plant them?
Hmm, this had to be some special game mechanic!