Marvel: Restart! Spiderman!

"Oh, I know you! You're Charlie Parker!"

The "Spider-Man" took off his mask, revealing a freckled face as he excitedly spoke to Charlie: "Awesome, your name is Charlie too. You'd be a perfect fit for our group. Want to join?"

"Does your club's name have any special meaning?" Charlie asked.

"Of course! It's based on the story Charlotte's Web. You've read it, right? The Charlotte in the story is a spider, and our club is all about being Spider-Men."

Charlie shrugged. "Too bad I'm not Spider-Man."

"That's okay! You might not be now, but maybe you will be in a couple of days."

"Uh, that... actually makes sense." Charlie couldn't argue with that logic.

The freckled guy leaned in closer, his smile turning sly.

"We're having a Spider-Man contest tonight. Lots of girls are coming to watch, and the top three winners get a kiss from the upperclasswomen!" He wiggled his eyebrows at Charlie.

"Well, ahem."

Charlie cleared his throat, then maintained a straight face: "You know, I'm a serious person. I'm not interested in kisses from upperclasswomen, but as a Spider-Man fan, I have to participate in a contest like this. Do I need to sign up?"

"No need. The address and time are on this flyer," the freckled guy said, pointing to the flyer with a grin.

"Alright, I'll be there."

With the flyer in hand, Charlie parked his motorcycle by the roadside, thinking that with so many mutants gathering, HYDRA would probably seize the opportunity.

"Hey, pretty girl, want to join the Spider-Man club?"

Behind him, the freckled guy continued to promote "Charlie's Web."

"Spider-Man club?"

Gwen glanced at the flyer and took it from him.

"There's a contest tonight?" She looked at the flyer, feeling tempted.

She wanted to meet other Spider-Men, especially anyone who wasn't like Butt-Web.

"Alright, I'll be there."

Gwen pocketed the flyer and soon reached the lab building, where she spotted a familiar face.

"Charlie Parker, is 'Charlie's Web' your club?" she asked as she approached.

Noticing the blonde girl greeting him, Charlie took a moment to look her over.

"Do we know each other?"

"I'm Gwen Stacy. Harry set us up once, and we also met yesterday when Jenny was lying."

"I remember now. You had long hair then."

"I cut it short."

"Why?"

"It's inconvenient."

"Oh."

Charlie hadn't expected the coincidence, and he raised the flyer in his hand.

"Just a coincidence. Are you going to watch the contest tonight?"

"It sounds interesting, but I probably don't have time."

"Okay, which floor are you headed to?"

"The sixth floor. I work in Dr. Otto's lab."

"I'm going to the fifth floor, Professor Kurt's lab."

"You have a job too?"

"No, Professor Kurt invited me to visit."

"What's he showing you?"

"I don't know. He said it would be a surprise."

After chatting a bit more, Charlie waved goodbye to Gwen and headed into Professor Kurt's lab.

"Charlie, you're here! Come, take a look at this!"

Professor Kurt was in a good mood today. He led Charlie to a glass case, pointing at a green spider inside.

"Look, I just caught this mutated spider. I heard a lot of students got Spider-Man's powers after being bitten by one of these."

Charlie frowned. "Professor Kurt, are you planning to...?"

"Yes, I want to use the mutated spider's genes to improve my experiments," Kurt said with a smile.

"Mutated spiders don't have regenerative properties. This will be a waste of time," Charlie said directly.

Professor Kurt explained, "But I want to understand how these spiders transform humans into Spider-Men. Don't worry, I've got it under control."

Seeing that Professor Kurt was set on his plan, Charlie's sense of unease grew stronger.

It sounded reasonable, but could it really succeed?

He wasn't sure, and he didn't have a better idea.

This was Professor Kurt's area of expertise, and he was out of his depth here.

He didn't press further and left the lab after chatting for a while.

He had done all he could.

Respect others' choices.

But when it came to a Spider-Man's fate, Charlie wasn't willing to give in, so he would just have to see it through!

"Oh yeah, take him down!"

That night, a bonfire roared inside an abandoned factory in the suburbs. A group of "Spider-Men" enthusiastically cheered for two mutants arm-wrestling each other.

"Go, go, go!"

"Pin him!"

"Come on, didn't you eat dinner or what?"

Amid the noisy environment, Charlie swung in, landing by a window.

He estimated there were about a hundred people present, with around twenty mutants.

Anyone who'd been bitten by a mutated spider and became a mutant loved to wear Spider-Man pajamas, making them easy to identify.

Before long, another dozen mutants arrived.

Among them, he spotted a familiar face.

So she did have time after all?

Whip~

Charlie swung over on his web, landing in front of the petite mutant.

"Hey, is that you?"

Gwen looked curiously at Charlie. "Did you come here for a kiss from one of the upperclasswomen too?"

"No, but it seems like those enhanced soldiers are targeting Spider-Men, so I figured they might show up tonight."

Charlie turned to look at the entrance.

Vroom~

Sleek sports cars roared in, carrying upperclasswomen dressed in questionable outfits who brought surprises for the crowd.

"Hey, bugs, party all you want tonight!"

"Oh yeah!"

With loud music and dancing, the guys became even more hyped.

"I'm pretty sure the top three prizes aren't just kisses," Charlie mused, rubbing his chin.

Gwen rolled her eyes. "Did you really think this is just a simple contest?"

"It's not?"

"Of course not. Look over there."

Gwen pointed to a corner of the factory, where some students were openly pulling out powdery substances, going wild. The mutants, meanwhile, were shaking it over their webs, experimenting with new ways to get a thrill.

The scene was uncomfortable.

Charlie looked at Gwen. "Should we call the cops?"

"I didn't bring my phone."

"What a coincidence, me neither."

Thud-

A soft footstep sounded as Mary Jane, now proficient with web-slinging, swung down beside them.

"It's the first time I've seen Spider-Men doing this kind of thing. It's really strange," she said, shaking her head.

"Hard to say."

Charlie wanted to change the topic, so he turned to Mary Jane. "Why are you here?"

"I asked her to come," Gwen said, raising her phone.

"We exchanged numbers. Want to join us?"

Charlie: "..."

Seeing the crowd was nearly all there, the freckled guy stood on a table and shouted.

"Tonight is a web-swinging race! The finish line is the nearby amusement park. The top three to reach the carousel get a date with the lovely Ms. Carine. Just one night, so make the most of it!"

Hearing this, the mutants were riled up.

Charlie glanced at the overly seductive female Spider-Man in the crowd, deep in thought.

"Are the rewards the same for all top three?"

Mary Jane adjusted her mask. "Not only the same, but it's the same person."

"Wow, exciting." Charlie clapped his hands.

Gwen looked disappointed. "I guess I was wrong. These guys don't deserve to have Spider-Man's powers."

She turned to leave but then remembered what Charlie had said earlier.

"You think they might be targeted?" She turned back to Charlie.

Charlie nodded. "It's possible, but not certain."

"Alright, we'll follow them," Gwen decided.

Mary Jane hesitated. "I haven't agreed yet!"

"Doesn't matter. They've already started, so I'm going first."

Charlie said this and leaped out the window, following the excited mutants toward the amusement park.

On the way, he caught up with the freckled guy.

"Hey, if one of the top three winners is a girl, would Carine agree to that?"

"A girl?"

The freckled guy's smile grew mischievous. "She'd be even more excited."

Charlie: "???"

This... just keeps getting more interesting.