Ch.126 Parker Family’s Sky Has Fallen

Near the Financial District, in an apartment building.

Charlie and the others arrived at the "new home" Gwen had mentioned.

Entering the room, everyone could see the bustling neon lights outside through the floor-to-ceiling windows at a glance.

"So this is the legendary large flat apartment?" Lizard Parker shed tears of inferiority.

Elderly Steve looked around at the furnishings and décor, and then thought about how, in his nearly two hundred years of life, he had never lived in such a luxurious home. Instantly, he felt intense dissatisfaction with his pension.

"I think we should investigate Gwen's father," he said seriously.

Felicia rolled her eyes, "If there's a chance, I'll take you to my castle, so you can see what true luxury is."

"Charlie said you're a thief. If I get the chance, I will definitely arrest you," Elderly Steve said.

Then he paused, "And by the way, blow up your castle."

Felicia's face stiffened. She didn't want to argue with an old man.

Charlie sat on the sofa and took a deep breath.

"This is the smell of money!!"

"It's the smell of formaldehyde," Carter reminded.

Charlie squinted, "The formaldehyde here smells so happy."

Carter: "…"

She turned on the TV and said, "There will definitely be a large number of reporters covering tonight's incident. The Sinister Six will certainly notice something is off.

If they choose to hide, it will be very difficult to find them in the short term."

On the other side, Elderly Steve was fiddling with the smart coffee machine.

"No need to worry about that. I think they'll make a move soon," he said.

Carter was puzzled upon hearing this.

"How can you be sure?"

Elderly Steve exchanged a glance with Charlie, then changed the subject.

"By the way, how do you make coffee without coffee beans?" he asked.

From the balcony, Felicia said, "They're in the cabinet under the coffee machine."

"How do you know?" Elderly Steve indeed found unmarked coffee beans in the cabinet.

"I have the same model at home."

"Great, I'll remember that. When the time comes, I'll be sure to blow up this coffee machine that looks very expensive," Elderly Steve said and continued to figure out how to grind the coffee beans.

Meanwhile, Lizard Parker went to the storage room and hid the weapons obtained from the Black Order in a corner.

"Hmm, that should be fine," he said, satisfied.

Then he came to the living room and saw that the TV was reporting on the Brooklyn Bridge incident.

He was about to join the conversation between Charlie and Carter when the phone in his pocket rang, making him feel guilty all of a sudden.

"Why don't you answer the phone?" Carter turned her head and asked.

Lizard Parker looked embarrassed, "That… I…"

"It's the landlord calling. He owes four months' rent," Charlie guessed.

Lizard Parker glared at Charlie, "Mind your own business!"

With that, he hung up, pretended nothing had happened, and joined Elderly Steve in studying the coffee machine.

Before long, Gwen's voice suddenly appeared.

"Hi, everyone, do you like this place?"

At the floor-to-ceiling window, Gwen was hanging upside down outside with her web, giving everyone a fright.

"Spider-Men never use the front door?" Carter asked Charlie.

Charlie shrugged, "I guess because she gave me the key, she can only come in through the window."

"She could have just knocked," Elderly Steve complained.

As Gwen flipped in, Felicia immediately spoke up.

"I want the bedroom on the far left."

Gwen: "…"

That was her bedroom, excellent taste.

"Let's not talk about that now. There's something very important."

She gathered everyone around the table and casually tossed her mask onto the sofa.

"The four aliens' corpses have disappeared," she said gravely.

"Disappeared?" Carter pondered, "They should have been eliminated."

"Eliminated?" Gwen was confused, so Lizard Parker explained the reason.

After listening to Lizard Parker's explanation, Gwen became even more curious about the Resurrection Match.

Carter, however, noticed a detail.

"Wait, if the Black Order was eliminated, why are their weapons still here?" she frowned.

At these words, Charlie and Elderly Steve exchanged glances again.

"This time, there is no time limit for the mission, and the outcome is not decided. They might not be considered losers, so they might not be eliminated," Charlie explained.

Carter was still suspicious but didn't ask more.

Since these long-time recurring "nail household" contestants in the Resurrection Match said so, as a newbie who only cleared once, she had no reason to doubt them. After all, she didn't have much experience.

On the side, Elderly Steve approached Gwen and whispered, "Tell me honestly, has your father committed any crime?"

Gwen: "????"

"What?"

"He means, why can you afford such a big place," Felicia rolled her eyes.

Gwen understood and couldn't help laughing.

"This has nothing to do with my father. I used artificial spider silk to apply for a related materials patent. I bought this property with the patent fees."

"Artificial spider silk?" Charlie was on the verge of tears, "I'm so jealous of this world, because there's no damned Tony Stark here."

He didn't want to continue the topic.

He got up and walked toward one of the rooms, "I'm going to sleep first."

"That's the room I was eyeing," Lizard Parker reminded him.

Charlie didn't even turn his head, "I'm in a very bad mood right now. If you say one more word, I'll beat you up." He raised his fist threateningly.

"You—"

Lizard Parker was unconvinced. Just as he opened his mouth, Elderly Steve covered it.

"Shh, you can't beat him."

Lizard Parker: "…"

That made a lot of sense.

But I'm not satisfied!

However, things got even worse later.

——

Early the next morning, after Charlie and the others had breakfast and were about to head out to look for clues about the Sinister Six—

"No!!"

Suddenly, Lizard Parker, with a head full of messy hair, opened the door and rushed into the living room, sliding on his knees toward the floor-to-ceiling window.

Staring at the bustling city streets, he shed tears of sorrow.

Ever since Charlie appeared, his life had become completely chaotic.

Before, he was just simply poor.

But now, he had lost his job!

Carter got up and walked over, handing Lizard Parker a cup of hot milk.

"You're not blaming us for not calling you for breakfast, right?"

"No, that's not it."

Lizard Parker clutched his head in despair, "The boss just called to tell me I'm fired."

Elderly Steve looked sympathetic, "That's terrible news. By the way, what was your job?"

"Pizza delivery."

Elderly Steve's old face twitched, "Uh, maybe you can find another one."

"You don't understand. He's also withholding half a month's salary," Lizard Parker clutched his chest, his heart bleeding.

Charlie's expression changed, "What? Withholding salary? It's over, the Parker family's sky is collapsing!!" He looked horrified.

Felicia and Gwen looked at each other, having a hard time understanding the mindset of these poor guys.

"Peter, what exactly is going on?" Gwen stepped forward to help Lizard Parker up and asked gently.

Lizard Parker was filled with grief, "I asked for leave in advance, but the boss just said I stole a customer's pizza. Then I got fired and lost my salary. I still owe four months' rent!"

Gwen frowned, "Could there be a mistake? You were clearly with us."

Lizard Parker shook his head, "I don't know."

"Anyway, we're going out. We can ask about the situation along the way," Elderly Steve said.

Charlie walked over and patted Lizard Parker on the shoulder.

"With us backing you up, you won't lose a single cent of the salary you're owed!" His gaze was firm.

Lizard Parker looked up at Charlie, his eyes filled with emotion.

"Mm, not a single cent lost."

Sunlight shone through the floor-to-ceiling window, bathing the two of them in a pale golden halo. It seemed to symbolize the purest friendship between men…

Behind them, everyone's expressions turned strange.

"What are they doing?" Felicia's mouth twitched.

Gwen contemplated, "They seem to have reconciled."

Elderly Steve shook his head, "No, this is just the empathy generated when the fears of losing their only wealth are infinitely magnified. It makes these poor devils temporarily set aside their personal grudges and unite against a common enemy."

Gwen: "????"

"Though I don't understand, I respect it," she said.

Carter face-palmed, "Once he gets his salary back, this friendship will be over."

"Yes," Elderly Steve looked at Carter, "So let's not join them. We'll go look for clues about the Sinister Six."

"Okay."

Carter and the others quietly left.

Charlie, however, rode on Lizard Parker's six-handed mini-motorcycle, and the two of them weaved through the streets to the pizza shop.

"You go in first to argue with them. If there's trouble, I'll come in immediately to help," Charlie encouraged.

Lizard Parker gave him a strange look, "Don't tell me you have no experience?"

Charlie looked up at the sky, "I admit I was a bit impulsive just now."

Then he turned to the other, "You don't dare to go in alone?"

"I—I dare! Just watch me."

Lizard Parker took a deep breath, squeezed out a fierce look, and strode into the pizzeria.

"Peter Parker, I already gave you half a month's pay back. I don't want to see you again. Get out!" the boss roared.

Under the boss's rage, Lizard Parker ran out of the pizzeria, tail between his legs.

"Someone's already collected my pay," he said, hunched over, lifeless, forming a stark contrast with the energetic elderly people on the roadside.

Hearing this, Charlie also realized something was off.

"Looks like another Peter Parker has shown up," he said, rubbing his chin.

"Another Peter Parker?" Lizard Parker was puzzled.

"Yes."

Charlie smiled reassuringly, "He's also a contestant. Although he likes to eat the brains of his own kind, has strength over a hundred tons, and possesses immortality, rest assured, he's a good person—a naïve young girl who loves Yabi Jiong Jiong Jiong."

"What? Could it be…" Lizard Parker's face turned ashen. He suddenly remembered the terrifying teammate he encountered in the second Resurrection Match.

But that guy wasn't a girl.

He was a true monster!

"Exactly, your former teammate," Charlie said confidently.

Lizard Parker looked terrified, "What should we do now?"

Charlie thought for a moment, "Let's go to your house. Maybe we can find him there."

"He shouldn't know where I live."

"No, if he can ruin your job, he can mess with your house too."

"What are we waiting for? Let's hurry back." Lizard Parker quickly started his little scooter.

Half an hour later, at the old apartment.

"Peter Parker, you broke my door last night. I tried calling you and you didn't answer. So now you owe me five months—"

Before the landlord finished speaking, Charlie took out his wallet and handed it to him.

"Count it, see if it's enough."

The landlord was stunned, "What did you say?"

"I'm covering Peter's rent!" Charlie said proudly.

At this moment, Lizard Parker saw the holy radiance emanating from Charlie's entire being once again.

He was touched once more.

From now on, Charlie was his god!

As the landlord began counting money, Lizard Parker approached Charlie.

"Where did you get the money?"

Charlie shot him a sidelong glance, "I couldn't sleep last night, so I went out and did some overtime."

"Overtime? You found a job that fast?"

"I always had a job."

With the landlord smiling contentedly, Lizard Parker entered his room to check. He didn't find any strangers.

Not a single cockroach or mouse was missing.

Seeing this, Charlie turned to the landlord.

"Did Peter come back last night?" he asked.

The landlord sized up Lizard Parker, puzzled.

"Of course, he came back with a woman. She even gave me her business card."

He handed the card to Charlie, "Last night Peter was a bit dazed, like he was drunk. That woman brought him back and asked me to help find Peter's friends."

Saying this, he couldn't help laughing while pointing at Lizard Parker.

"You punk, your tricks with girls are pretty good. That woman really fell for it."

Hearing this, Lizard Parker gnashed his teeth.

"So I succeeded?"

"Were you really drunk?"

"Yeah."

"Too bad. Only you know what happened after you went home with her."

"Went home with her?"

Lizard Parker's eyes widened, then he turned away, tears streaming down.

"Why, why can even a monster find a girlfriend, while I'm still a pathetic virgin. It hurts… it hurts so much!!"

Charlie, however, stared at the business card, lost in thought.

Betty, Daily Bugle.

She wouldn't have been eaten, right?

Thinking this, he said to Lizard Parker, "Lend me your phone."

Lizard Parker squatting in the corner shook his head, "It's out of service."

Charlie: "…"

"Use mine, no charge," the enthusiastic landlord offered his phone.

"Thanks."

Charlie dialed the number on the card.

"Hello, I'm Peter Parker's friend."

"Peter's friend, great! Finally, I've found you. Peter is here with me, he's not doing well. Come and pick him up quickly."

"Tell me the address."

——

An hour later, Charlie and Lizard Parker returned once more to the apartment building where Gwen lived.

"That woman named Betty lives here too?"

Lizard Parker gritted his teeth, "That monster is so lucky!"

He clutched his head and wailed, enduring countless blows in just one day.

"Stop crying. A man must be strong."

Charlie patted him on the shoulder and entered the elevator.

By coincidence, Betty's home was just below Gwen's floor.

Even before entering, Charlie smelled the scent of money again.

Is this world's Betty a rich second-generation heiress?

Then maybe the Betty in the main world is also…

Thinking this, he rang the doorbell.

"Ding-dong~"

"Coming."

As the door opened, the woman wearing a face mask froze at the sight of Lizard Parker.

"Peter Parker?"

The face mask fell to the floor, and Betty looked shocked.

"Are you twins?" She looked into the living room, where another Peter Parker was playing with a cat.

Hearing the voice, that Peter Parker turned around. Upon seeing Lizard Parker, he frowned slightly.

But when he saw Charlie, he smiled.

"I know you. You must be my friend."

He grinned foolishly as he approached Charlie.

Betty was confused, "You…?"

"We're triplets," Charlie explained.

"But your appearance—"

"Just a bit more handsome."