After the world had turned for a while, Lorien Su finally woke up.
[Congratulations, host, for obtaining the achievement: Spider Knight!]
"Does it do anything?"
[Spider Knight: Slightly increases check-in rewards!]
Hiss~ That was actually pretty good.
He opened his eyes and lay there for a moment, stretching lazily on the big bed, feeling refreshed, content, and utterly relaxed. Then his hand brushed against some fabric.
Sitting up, he picked it up for a look—one piece of black fabric, two pieces of white.
It did look a lot like the material from Gwen’s Spider suit.
He tossed it aside and let the Phoenix Force erase it into nothingness.
The mattress looked like a map after a world war—one patch damp, another still wet...
A faint note of irritation left his lips.
"Looks like I’ll either need an absorbent mattress in the future... or just remember to handle it with magic."
For now, he chose the latter.
The Phoenix Force could restructure or alter matter anywhere in the universe. With that one snap, the entire top floor of the northern building was restored to pristine condition—water stains gone, clothes picked up, marks on the sofa erased, trash on the floor vanished.
Lorien nodded in satisfaction, even as he sternly scolded himself inwardly.
Last night had been... far too wild.
He had planned to take it easy, given that Gwen still looked so young. But who could have guessed—
With her genetically altered and enhanced physique, Gwen was tough.
Not only could she take his advances, she could push back, matching him blow for blow.
And that only spurred Lorien to go all out, unleashing the full physical might of a Superman-tier body.
Naturally, he left Gwen utterly spent—defeated and exhausted—her Spider suit reduced to shreds. In a single night, it went from brand new to full-on battle damage.
Ahem... Official source is novel{f}ire.net
Which, of course, was why Lorien ended up bathing her afterward.
Her legs could barely hold her.
At 9 a.m., Lorien arrived at the office right on time—ready to resume his daily "productive idleness."
Too lazy to even order takeout, he simply ate the fried rice or other snacks he’d received from his earlier check-ins.
Next, he switched on the projector to catch up on the news.
[The Avengers have returned to their base, but their actions are still being questioned. Is it really safe for society to allow them to leave the country at will and use their superpowers?]
[Last night’s battle on the roof of Oscorp Tower has ended! The mutant Lizard’s genes collapsed, leaving behind nothing but a pool of liquefied tissue!]
[Spider-Woman has once again averted disaster! Citizens say that solo superheroes are far better than superhero teams!]
[A massive mech warrior has appeared in New York! Its combat power is off the charts—perhaps even surpassing Iron Man! But who made it? Tony Stark?]
[Stunning battle photos of the Scarlet Witch have been released! Citizens are calling for the Scarlet Witch to leave the Avengers and team up with Spider-Woman!]
[Tony Stark has just stated that the mech warrior from last night was not his creation. He prefers to call it a Transformer and hopes its creator will contact him!]
Overnight, the news was crammed with hot topics—The Avengers, the Lizard, Iron Man, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Gwen, Transformers... It felt like the whole world had been shaken up.
Stephen’s injury, which had only been reported a few hours ago, was already buried under the flood of new headlines.
Not a bad thing, really. At this point, Stephen would probably prefer fewer people knowing about his condition, giving him the peace and quiet needed for proper recovery.
In the afternoon, Lorien spotted Tony’s assistant on TV again—or rather, his now-likely-CEO, Pepper Potts. Using a Stark Industries subsidiary, she had fully acquired a beverage company.
The report highlighted that the subsidiary had purchased a site with an existing production line. Following the acquisition, the company’s name was immediately changed—to something milk tea–related.
And Tony himself promised it would be delicious.
"Good guy," Lorien muttered, shaking his head with a smile.
That was Tony in a nutshell—looking flashy and confident without the overbearing airs of a big shot.
After all, this was the same man who once told a news crew that the burgers sold near his home were "amazing" and urged everyone to try them. So now, boasting that his milk tea would be incredible? Totally in character.
And those burgers were amazing—people lined up every day for them.
If the milk tea was even better... with Tony’s stamp of approval, it would probably sell like crazy. The subsidiary might even ride it all the way to a public listing.
The door shut behind him as Lorien thought, Clock out.
[Check-out successful!]
[Obtained: Twelve Zodiac Charms (Valentine’s Day Bracelet Gift) ×2]
(This was originally planned as a Valentine’s Day plot point, but it ended up sitting in the drafts. By the time it was written, Valentine’s Day had long passed—damn.)
"Valentine’s Day bracelet gift?" Lorien chuckled when he read the note.
[Twelve Zodiac Talismans (Valentine’s Day Bracelet Gift): Can be bound to a bracelet that cannot be removed. Whoever the host gives it to will receive the exact same effects!]
[email protected]/PinkSnake