Ch.112 Octopus Arms, Stolen Twice

Seeing Dr. Otto so shocked, Gwen seemed to understand something as well.

She quickly stepped forward, coming up beside Dr. Otto to take a look at the draft paper. The complex and obscure calculations made her head spin.

It felt like she was reading Dr. Otto's personal notes.

"Did you really calculate this?" Gwen looked at Charlie in disbelief.

Charlie shrugged. "Alright, I admit I cheated—I copied it."

"I knew it."

Gwen gave him a disdainful look, only to see Dr. Otto put away the draft, looking at Charlie with admiration.

"Your name is Charlie Parker, right? A very talented young man. Why not come and learn to grow a sun with me?" He said humorously.

Gwen froze for a moment. "Professor, didn't you hear what he just said? He admitted to cheating."

Dr. Otto glanced at Gwen. "Miss Gwen, you don't understand men's humor.

He's only got you beside him—do you think he'd copy your answer?"

Gwen: "..."

"It's also possible he looked it up online. I saw him on his phone just now."

"If you could find this answer online, what was the point of me working hard all these years—just a joke?" Dr. Otto replied disdainfully.

Upon hearing this, Gwen finally understood.

"Charlie Parker, you lied to me." Her eyes were full of grievance.

Charlie shook his head. "Sorry, I don't have the habit of lying."

"But deceiving a young girl is fun."

Dr. Otto patted Charlie on the shoulder. "I get you—I did the same when I was young."

Charlie: "..."

Not serious at all.

Gwen: "..."

Is this really what makes men happy?

"Gwen, go feed the lizard in the lab. That's something Curt asked me to take care of, and if it dies, he'll pester me endlessly."

Dr. Otto assigned Gwen a task, then invited Charlie to his house as a guest.

It worked out for Charlie too—he was curious to see how far Dr. Otto's artificial sun experiment had come.

Seeing the two of them leave, Gwen looked on with envy.

Dr. Otto had never invited her to his house before.

Feeling dejected, she took out her phone.

"Hey, Mary Jane, I have some news for you. Your hero is a genius."

9 PM, a villa by the coast.

"Oh, you're back."

As Otto led Charlie in, a mature woman full of charm approached.

"Ruth, sorry, I came home a bit late today."

Otto put down his coat, stepping forward to kiss Ruth on the cheek—a gesture of love that hadn't changed in ten years.

"Is this one of your students?" Ruth asked, looking at Charlie curiously.

Otto rarely brought students home.

Charlie smiled and waved, but before he could introduce himself, Otto spoke up first.

"I got lucky today. I found a genius—a guy who talks to girls during class."

Ruth, holding Otto's right arm, laughed. "I used to get chatted up by boys during class too."

Otto raised an eyebrow. "Really? If I remember right, that guy was me."

"Your memory's so good."

"Of course."

Otto patted Ruth's hand, then looked at Charlie.

"This is Charlie Parker. From now on, he'll be working with me on the artificial sun experiment."

"Professor, I haven't agreed yet!" Charlie said, his smile a bit forced.

The thought of Spider-Man working with Dr. Otto to "grow a sun" was such an odd image that Charlie couldn't picture it.

Seeing Charlie hesitate, Dr. Otto didn't mind.

He was confident he could convince him.

"Ruth, bring out the wine I've been saving. Today, we need to celebrate."

"Alright, dinner will be ready soon. You two chat in the meantime."

As Ruth went to get the wine, Otto said to Charlie, "Before dinner, let me show you my lab."

"Sure."

Soon, they arrived at the attic. Various experimental devices operated in an orderly manner.

Dr. Otto's lab was much bigger than Professor Curt's.

Compared to Curt Connors, who always struggled with funding, Dr. Otto was obviously better at finding sponsors.

"This is my personal lab. The school's equipment is too outdated—they'd just slow me down," Otto explained.

Charlie curiously glanced around at the equipment, his eyes eventually falling on a large machine by the window.

This machine resembled four mechanical arms, but the outer design looked more like octopus tentacles.

"You noticed."

Seeing Charlie drawn to the tentacle machine, Dr. Otto proudly stepped in front of it. "This is my big boy—what I'll use to complete the final phase of the artificial sun experiment. It will handle the final thermal nuclear fusion.

Once the experiment succeeds, I will become the world's most famous scientist, and the entire world will change because of my artificial sun."

Otto's face looked slightly agitated. "At this year's Nobel Prize ceremony, I will be the brightest scientist, because I will benefit all of humanity.

With nearly unlimited energy, humanity's quality of life will undergo a fundamental change, and there will be no more wars. I can save countless people. This era will remember only my name."

Charlie nodded. "If the experiment is successful, it will certainly cause a global sensation."

The next second, the excitement on Otto's face faded, and he sighed.

"Unfortunately, I'm one step away—just a little bit more, and I'd have the perfect calculation for the tritium element."

"So Charlie Parker, I need your help."

Otto extended a sincere invitation: "Join me and complete this great experiment."

But Charlie changed the subject: "I'll think about it. By the way, Professor, is it just you in the lab?"

Not getting the answer he hoped for, Dr. Otto seemed a bit disappointed.

"There are also two assistants. I know what you're getting at."

He led Charlie to the corner of the lab.

"The artificial sun experiment needs absolute stability, so my assistants need to have great synergy with me.

But achieving one hundred percent perfect teamwork is impossible, so I made machines to assist me. They can connect to my nervous system via a chip, allowing me to do the work of multiple people alone.

Especially during the final fusion stage, they help me complete the experiment perfectly."

Saying that, Otto lifted a white cloth, revealing four dark-golden mechanical octopus tentacles on the metal rack. A spine-like mechanism connected them, likely the platform with the control board.

At the end of the spine, a thumb-sized chip flashed with a red glow.

"What do you think? Pretty neat, huh?" Otto asked proudly.

Charlie smiled. "Yes, very neat. Just be careful it doesn't get stolen."

This thing would work perfectly with his nanometal suit.

"Don't worry, the security system here is top-notch," Dr. Otto said, unworried.

Charlie said nothing.

Even if Dr. Otto couldn't obtain unlimited energy from the artificial sun, just having these octopus arms was enough to win the Nobel Prize and make him a renowned scientist.

But Dr. Otto wouldn't be satisfied.

It's because of scientists' dissatisfaction that the world advances.

Well, maybe it destroys itself too.

Charlie made up his mind—to take the device in a few days.

Without those octopus arms, it would likely delay Dr. Otto's experiment.

It would be best to destroy the fusion machine along with it.

Unlike Curt Connors' obsession, Dr. Otto, as long as he wasn't influenced by the octopus arms, would stay rational even if the experiment failed. He wouldn't become a villain.

"Otto, dinner's ready," Ruth called, pulling Charlie out of his thoughts.

"Thank you, Professor, for showing me all of this," Charlie smiled.

Otto shook his head. "You're welcome. I just hope you'll think it over carefully. This is your chance to become a top-tier scientist."

"I'll think about it."

"Alright, let's go eat. Ruth's cooking is great."

The two came to the dining table, where Ruth poured them each a glass of red wine.

"You two didn't seem to hit it off," Ruth noticed Otto's expression wasn't quite right.

Otto shook his head. "It's nothing—he didn't accuse me of blowing up New York, which is already quite nice." He joked.

Charlie's eyelid twitched. Did this guy know what he was saying?

"Of course, I believe in the Professor's abilities."

"Then you should make up your mind soon."

"Of course."

As they ate, Ruth took a sip of her wine and suddenly asked Charlie.

"I heard you're pursuing a girl."

Charlie: "..."

He pouted. "That's a misunderstanding."

Ruth smiled. "Sorry, I didn't mean to pry. I just asked a student about you earlier, and they mentioned it."

"Who was he pursuing?" Otto seemed curious.

"Gwen Stacy, one of your students."

"Oh, it's her. They were whispering in class—I should've known."

Otto had the look of someone who'd been there. "If you want to pursue a girl, recite poetry to her."

Charlie: "????"

"I think taking her shopping shows my love more."

"This kid has a good sense of humor."

Ruth looked gently at Otto. "Back when you studied physics and I studied English literature—remember what you did then?"

Otto seemed embarrassed. "Yes, I tried explaining relativity to you, while you wanted to discuss Eliot's poetry with me.

'Between the time and the past time, both might be the present?' I can't quite remember."

"In the time of the future," Ruth corrected patiently.

"Yes, the time of the future." Otto looked at Ruth with great tenderness.

Charlie, on the other hand, was deep in thought.

The time of the future...

A prophecy?

"Beep beep beep~"

Suddenly, a strange noise came from the attic, and the villa's alarm went off.

"What's going on?"

Otto quickly looked at the monitor, and his face changed drastically.

"Damn it! They stole my equipment!"

"Oh my God—it's Spider-Men! Three Spider-Men!" Ruth gasped in disbelief.

On the screen, three red-and-blue figures were seen carrying something strange, leaping from the attic and quickly disappearing from the monitor's view.

Otto cursed loudly. "It's those imposters that have been showing up recently—they've been targeting me all along. No wonder I've been feeling followed lately."

He rushed up to the attic, finding the lab in chaos, and the octopus arms were already stolen.

Compared to other large pieces of equipment, the arms were the easiest thing to carry away.

"That damned Spider-Man! Ruth, call the police! We have to catch them!"

Otto scratched his head in frustration, and Charlie looked speechless.

This was a top-tier security system?

As for the stolen octopus arms...

He was going to steal them anyway—he just hadn't gotten to it yet.

But now he'd been set up to take the blame.

No way. If he was going to take the fall, he needed to get that device back.

"Professor, I'll go after them."

Without waiting for Otto and Ruth's protests, Charlie turned and dashed out of the villa, disappearing into the night.

"This young man is too impulsive," Ruth said worriedly.

Seeing her concern, Dr. Otto was moved.

"Looks like he's made up his mind—otherwise, he wouldn't be so eager to help me get the equipment back." He even seemed happy.

"Stop smiling—what if he runs into danger?" Ruth glared at Otto.

Otto finally realized. "Right, those three are Spider-Men. Charlie could be in danger. Get George on the phone. We have to ensure Charlie's safety."

"I already called—they'll be here soon."

"I hope Charlie will be okay..."

In a dark alleyway.

"Hahaha! This is great—we stole his equipment. That fat pig must be furious now."

"Yeah, we wrecked his lab—this is our punishment for him."

"Hmph! What's so great about his artificial sun experiment? He dared look down on us."

"Even if we're his students, we're also Spider-Men—we're superheroes. He has no right to belittle us."

"Yeah. Let's figure out how to use this octopus-looking thing."

"Haha, it looks interesting..."

In a dark corner, the three removed their masks, revealing three young faces.

They were fiddling with the octopus arms, not having a clue how to use them.

Just as they were about to throw the arms away like garbage, a friendly voice came from above.

"Hey, kids, you must be tired working late. Need a coffee?"

"What?"

"We've been spotted."

The sudden voice startled them, and they instinctively looked up.

On a spiderweb spanning the alley, a Spider-Man in a metallic suit gracefully held a cup of coffee, watching their every move.

"It's Spider-Man!"

"The metallic suit—it's him!"

"Spider-Man, we're your fans! Can we get a photo?"

The three were excited, but Charlie shook his head.

"If you return that thing, I can agree to it."

"No way."

The three refused without hesitation.

"That fat pig is too arrogant. We want to teach him a lesson."

"Yeah, he insulted us."

"He called us idiots—it's unforgivable."

"We're punishing a villain."

They were indignant, feeling their actions were justified.

Charlie just listened silently.

"Finished talking?"

"What?"

Charlie looked down at them. "The Professor was right. You are idiots."

"What?!"

The three widened their eyes, not understanding why Spider-Man was insulting them too.

But that didn't stop them from retaliating.

"Damn Spider-Man! You're siding with that fat pig. That makes you our enemy."

"We're not your fans anymore."

"You've lost our trust."

"Oh, a bunch of idiotic fans—who cares?"

As Charlie spoke, police sirens wailed from the alley entrance, and the three panicked.

"How did they find us so fast? We ran as fast as we could."

"It's impossible! Spider-Man must have ratted us out."

"It has to be him. Damn Spider-Man."

Seeing they still didn't realize how they were exposed, Charlie shook his head.

"Truly a bunch of idiots. Here's a friendly tip—don't celebrate before you've gotten far enough away."

With that, he fired his web, grabbing the octopus arms.

Before Charlie could catch them, a shadowy figure moved in the dark alley. A raging lizard creature intercepted the arms mid-air, then pounced and disappeared into the sewer, leaving Charlie's view.

Charlie: "????"

Stolen twice?

Do they think I'm that easy to mess with?

He didn't hesitate and followed the creature into the sewers.

______

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