Chapter 21: Madam HYDRA
When mentioning Spider-Man, people naturally think of Peter Parker first.
But not all Spider-Men across the Worlds are Peter Parker.
For instance, in the World he currently resided in, Eros was ninety-eight percent sure that Spider-Man was Gwen.
But since there was still a zero point two percent chance of an accident, he couldn't take the risk.
Holding Gwen, he bypassed a blind spot in the surveillance and leaped directly out of the window, soaring into the sky.
...
After notifying the teacher, Harry Osborn returned to his seat and found a graceful figure waiting for him.
"Where is Eros? Wasn't he just here a moment ago?" Felicia asked.
Hearing this, Harry's expression darkened. That bastard Eros had already set his sights on his family's company, choosing a pretty face over friendship.
"Uh…" Harry's brain raced, and he ultimately decided not to sell out his brother. "He had an emergency and left early."
"Is that so? How come I saw him holding a little girl just now, and I have no idea where he was rushing off to."
Hearing Felicia's sarcastic tone, cold sweat beaded on Harry's forehead.
That's not right. I'm not the one doing shady things; why should I be the scapegoat?
...
Manhattan's Upper East Side.
A pharmaceutical research institute secretly controlled by HYDRA.
"Eros, your little girlfriend's vital signs are stabilizing and she is already out of danger."
"Yeah, sorry to trouble you, Ophelia."
Ophelia Sarkissian alluringly licked her lips:
"Your little girlfriend probably won't wake up for a few hours. Do you want to do something fun together, little Eros?"
"I remember you loved playing with me when you were little."
Looking at Ophelia's graceful figure looming beneath her green uniform, Eros stirred slightly:
"Alright, Sister Ophelia."
Ophelia giggled. Although she seemed to be flirting with Eros, she maintained a safe distance all along.
Ophelia Sarkissian, nicknamed Viper, also known as Madam HYDRA, was one of the core senior members of the HYDRA organization.
She was mainly responsible for various biochemical experiments, including the recent super soldier serumtests.
Ever since he was a kid, Eros had a dream of building a beautiful new World, and coupled with his frequent physical examinations back then, he had plenty of contact with Ophelia.
"Sister Ophelia, didn't you promise to be my mistress when I grew up?"
"I'm eighteen now, and I've come to fulfill that promise. Could it be that you want to go back on your word, Sister?"
Eros spoke utter nonsense with a straight face.
Ophelia was the first one who agreed to Eros's request to be his mistress after he grew up.
Of course, it was hard to say how much of that was sincere and how much was just banter.
However, before Eros even grew up, Grandpa brutally broke them apart.
The reason was simple.
This woman was toxic.
Toxic in the physical sense.
Anyone who had physical contact with her basically wouldn't live to see tomorrow's Sun.
"Oh, Sister doesn't mind at all. I'm just afraid that little brother might have some kind of accident by then, and your Grandpa will come to settle accounts with me and cut off my research funding."
The corners of Ophelia's mouth curled up slightly. She leaned close to Eros's ear and took a deep breath.
"Speaking of which, Sister hasn't touched a man in a long time either, and little brother is so handsome. I really want to eat you up."
She opened her mouth, and a crimson snake tongue flicked out, slithering across Eros's cheek.
Afterwards, she narrowed her eyes and looked at Eros.
Eros, on the other hand, pressed the back of her head, closing the distance between them.
The Ophelia before him had hardly changed compared to a few years ago.
She still sported slightly wavy long green hair, her face was completely free of wrinkles, her skin was fair and lustrous, and paired with those blazing red lips, she was the spitting image of a noble young matron who had stepped out of European medieval history.
And those eyes shimmering with an eerie green glow added a touch of mystery and allure.
Hm?
While Eros was sizing up Ophelia, Ophelia was also sizing up Eros.
To be precise, Ophelia was waiting for Eros's poison to act up so she could help him detoxify.
But she waited and waited, and other than a flash of green light in Eros's eyes at the very beginning, there was no reaction whatsoever.
Well, not entirely no reaction.
Seeing Ophelia's infatuated expression, Eros smiled slightly and kissed her directly.
Hm?!
There are only wrongly given names, never wrongly given nicknames.
It's just that Ophelia the Viper was too toxic for ordinary people to get close to.
Therefore, upon discovering that Eros was immune to her passive toxicity, what followed happened quite naturally.
Gwen had a very long dream.
...
Waking up from sleep, Gwen felt refreshed, and the entire World seemed to have become much more transparent.
Sure enough, her small ear twitched slightly, and she heard a faint breathing sound nearby.
Breathing sound?
Gwen suddenly realized that the scene before her didn't seem to be her own bedroom.
She sat up abruptly, but used too much force and shot right up onto the ceiling with a swish.
What is going on?
Seeing herself effortlessly adhering to the wall, Gwenstarted a brainstorming storm.
She was a very smart girl and quickly figured it out: she had probably been bitten by a mutated spider in the Osborn laboratory, thereby undergoing a mutation herself and gaining some kind of spider-related superpower.
As for what specific powers she had, she would need detailed testing later to find out.
It took quite a bit of effort before Gwen mastered the ability of electrostatic adhesion and came down from the ceiling.
She carefully sized up her surroundings and found that she was in a lounge resembling a hospital ward, which contained two single beds.
One was her own previously, and the other… belonged to Eros.
So, did Eros bring her here? And he had stayed here accompanying her for who knows how long.
Gwen's eyes softened. She quietly observed Eros's sleeping face, and seeing that Eros still hadn't woken up, she couldn't help leaning in to gently tap it.
Feeling the warm and soft touch on his lips, Eros tried his best to control his breathing and keep it steady.
Eros had woken up as soon as Gwen darted onto the ceiling, but seeing that Gwen seemed to be familiarizing herself with her superpower, he deliberately feigned sleep to avoid embarrassing her.
He hadn't expected such a pleasant surprise.
Fortunately, however, he had the foresight.
Otherwise, Gwen would have been poisoned right now.
Eros's thoughts surged, and he habitually stuck out his tongue to lick his lips.
Chapter 22: How Did We Suddenly Meet the Parents?
"Mhm!"
Gwen subconsciously took two steps back, a blush spreading across her face.
She glanced at Eros and noticed that he still seemed half-asleep, which finally made her breathe a sigh of relief.
After quickly tidying up her things, Gwen left the lounge and ran into the researchers who were on duty outside 24 hours a day.
From the researchers, Gwen gained a clearer understanding of what had happened to her.
Just as she had guessed, she had been bitten by a mutated spider, causing her genes to mutate and granting her superpowers.
Aside from the electrostatic adhesion ability she used earlier to climb walls, she also possessed superhuman strength, speed, vision, hearing, stamina, and reflexes.
These were the traits that could be directly measured.
In addition, Gwen discovered she also had a sort of sixth sense that allowed her to anticipate danger.
However, this ability was inconsistent and very difficult to control.
"Will my genes continue to mutate?" Gwen asked the researcher in front of her.
The more a person knew, the more ignorant they felt.
As a straight-A student, Gwen was well aware of the uncontrollability of genetic mutations.
Her current mutation result was benign, granting her superpowers without any side effects, but that did not mean subsequent mutations would also be benign.
She definitely did not want her genes to collapse in the future, turning her into a monstrous creature stripped of her humanity or a puddle of flesh.
"We're sorry, but our conclusion is that there is a high probability it will continue to mutate."
Seeing Gwen's face turn pale from the news, the researcher hurriedly comforted her:
"At least your genes are very stable right now, and malignant mutations shouldn't happen anytime soon."
"Alright."
Even though the researcher said that, Gwen still couldn't bring herself to be happy. Forcing a smile, she walked toward her room in a daze.
Such news was far too cruel for an 18-year-old girl.
Suddenly, Gwen felt herself fall into a warm embrace.
She gave a symbolic, gentle struggle. Seeing that the Master of the embrace didn't let go, and fearing she might hurt Eros if she used too much force, she simply stopped struggling.
She took the opportunity to adjust herself and switch to a more comfortable posture.
"Gwen, no matter what, I will stay by your side."
"Mhm."
Gwen softly acknowledged him. Just like that, the two embraced each other for a long, long time.
Eros said nothing; at a time like this, there was no need to say much. He just stayed quietly by her side, waiting for her to speak first.
After a long while,
"Eros, I need to head back. Mom and Dad must be worried sick."
"I'll drive you back."
"Okay."
Temporarily requisitioning a car from the institute, Erosdrove Gwen toward her home.
"Later… please don't tell my mom and dad about this. Just say I caught a cold, okay, Eros?"
Gwen had always been a very sensible child, and she didn't want her parents to worry about her.
"Alright." Eros nodded.
With his clairvoyant vision, he knew that Spider-Man's power came from the Spider Totem rather than a conventional genetic mutation, so naturally he wasn't as worried as Gwen.
The only regret was that he couldn't directly tell Gwen the truth since he had no way to explain it.
He could only resort to a white lie.
"Gwen, don't be so pessimistic. Things aren't as bad as you think."
Eros deliberately took a deep breath and put on a solemn expression:
"I'll tell you a secret, but you must promise not to tell anyone else."
"Eros, if this secret is very important… um, maybe you shouldn't say it after all."
Seeing Eros's solemn face, Gwen hesitated for a moment before refusing.
Ugh, as expected of Gwen, still considering others even at a time like this.
Mentally complaining to himself, Eros continued speaking:
"Have you ever heard of the super soldier serum?"
"The super soldier serum?" Gwen nodded.
In the Marvel Universe, Captain America Steve Rogers had been publicized for decades, and the super soldier serumhad been marketed alongside him for just as long.
Anyone with internet access basically knew about it.
"The recreation of the super soldier serum formula achieved breakthrough progress a few years ago, and some top laboratories have even developed a simplified version of the super soldier serum."
"And the super soldier serum is essentially a type of genetic mutation; many top laboratories have also conducted extensive research into how to suppress genetic mutations."
"The Viper research institute I took you to earlier is one of them. You can go there regularly for check-ups, and if there are signs of malignant mutation, you can take medication to suppress it."
"Trust me, Gwen, everything will get better."
As soon as his voice trailed off, Gwen unbuckled her seatbelt and threw herself into Eros's arms.
"Eros, why are you so good to me?"
Gwen was wearing a white JK uniform today. The uniform was tightly fitted, outlining her alluring curves—her chest perky and her hips rounded—while her slender, long legs were wrapped in flesh-toned stockings.
With her hugging him like this, Eros instantly felt the warmth and softness of her body.
There are countless roads, but safety is number one.
Drive improperly, and your family will shed tears of grief.
After taking several deep breaths, Eros finally calmed his mind and continued driving toward Gwen's house.
Fortunately, as it was approaching midnight, there were far fewer vehicles on the road, so even though Eros was driving distracted, nothing went wrong.
"Gwen, no matter what happens, I will silently support you from behind."
Why did this sentence sound a bit familiar? It seemed like he had said it to someone else before. Oh well, never mind.
Casting aside the distracting thoughts in his mind, Erosfocused back on driving.
A short while later, the vehicle stopped outside Gwen's house.
Opening the front door, the sound of footsteps came from inside the room.
The next moment, a weary-looking middle-aged woman of about forty walked out from inside the house.
When she saw Gwen, the worried look on her face instantly dissipated by more than half.
Afterwards, her gaze fell upon Eros.
"You must be Eros. Thank you for taking care of Gwen. I'm Gwen's mother; you can just call me Aunt Helen…"
Halfway through her sentence, she noticed that the distance between her daughter and Eros seemed a bit too close.
"What is going on with you two?" Helen asked, her mouth wide open in astonishment.
Right at that moment, George, having heard that Gwenwas back, also hurried out from the study. Seeing this scene, his brain completely short-circuited.
Didn't the teacher say his daughter suddenly fell ill and was taken to the hospital?
Why does this look like she went out with someone…
Realizing something was amiss, Gwen hurriedly pulled away from Eros's arms.
"Let me introduce you two. This is Eros, my classmate."
Would ordinary classmates hug and cuddle like that?
Helen had countless complaints in her heart she didn't know where to start venting, but looking at Eros's handsome face and upright figure…
Oh well, her daughter wasn't losing out anyway.
George experienced an even greater shock to his heart, but he was much more rational.
Compared to Gwen's romantic issues, he was far more concerned about her health.
"I received a call from a school teacher today saying that Gwen wasn't feeling well and suddenly collapsed."
"Can you explain what exactly happened?"
Chapter 23: Paternity Testing Report
After slightly smoothing over what happened today, Erosdrove away from the Stacy family home amidst expressions of gratitude from George and Helen.
Leaving Gwen alone to endure her parents' concern, interrogation, and scheduled hospital checkups.
Although ordinary hospitals wouldn't find anything, it could at least give George and Helen peace of mind.
It was already late at night, and George originally wanted to let Eros stay over, but Eros refused.
He was burning with frustration right now.
Gwen had started the fire but refused to handle the firefighting duties; it was simply too much.
He decided to go find Spider-Man's good friend, the Black Cat, to put out the fire.
Because he had called ahead, when Eros arrived and knocked on the door, Felicia quickly opened it for him.
"Stinky little brother, Big Sis thought you weren't coming tonight."
As soon as he stepped through the door, Felicia threw herself into his arms and gave him a big hug, speaking against him with breath as sweet as orchids.
Although she had been woken up from her sleep, Feliciahad still dolled up and dressed herself.
On her upper body, she wore a loose white shirt, and on her legs were thin flesh-colored stockings, possessing a contrasting kind of temptation.
After the two of them engaged in some intimate whispering at the doorway, she took Eros by the hand to the bathroom, attentively undressing him.
For some reason, this little cat was exceptionally gentle, obedient, and considerate tonight.
Eros was deeply moved; he had always been someone who repaid kindness with immense effort. After washing up, he picked up Felicia and walked towards the bedroom, intending to heavily reward her and pour his all into teaching her.
The only regret was that when Eros proposed studying the traditional poetry culture of the Eastern Land across the Pacific, specifically the famous line "Plucking chrysanthemums beneath the eastern fence" from the famous poet Tao Yuanming's Drinking Wine (V), he was still ruthlessly rejected.
Despite overexerting himself the night before, Eros still woke up on time in the morning.
Yesterday, he had been too busy battling Viper Opheliaand taking care of Gwen, completely forgetting to pick up the test report for Norman Osborn's biological sample.
He would have to make another trip today.
"Aha~" Eros yawned as he staggered toward the bathroom.
Having consecutively battled the older sister Viper Opheliaand the younger sister Felicia yesterday—both of whom had acted like they went crazy and wanted it endlessly—his legs felt a bit weak now.
While squeezing toothpaste, Eros inadvertently caught sight of his exhausted self in the mirror with deep eye bags, and deeply reflected:
"For days on end, I have been damaged by wine and women, becoming so haggard. Starting from today, no more alcohol!"
After washing up, he walked towards the kitchen and saw Felicia wearing an apron and making breakfast. Compared to his haggard appearance, she was full of vigor and glowing with radiance.
Women were all goblins; they all knew how to drain male essence to replenish their own.
Looking at Eros's heavy dark circles, Felicia revealed a triumphant smile, stepped forward to hook her hands around his neck, and murmured softly into his ear:
"Do you want to try doing it in the kitchen? I heard that's even more exciting."
Eros's Supreme Bone trembled, and he said sincerely, "Big Sis, you're so flirtatious!"
Why are you wearing Pinru's clothes?
"Does little brother like it?" Felicia asked with a charming smile, her gaze hazy and her breath as sweet as orchids.
"Sigh."
He, Eros, had always been a gentleman, and a gentleman's word was as good as gold.
Since he had said he would silently support Felicia from behind no matter what, he would definitely fulfill that promise without a single regret, even through death.
...
"Hmph."
Watching Eros walk away while supporting himself against the wall, Felicia let out a soft hmph.
Such a stinky little brother.
When coming over to her place, he didn't even bother to get rid of the vixen's scent on his body. Did he take her for a sick cat that couldn't bite?
Let's see how she thoroughly drains him dry.
"Hiss~" Felicia sat up from the sofa, feeling a sharp pain, and couldn't help but draw in a sharp breath of cold air, making a slight contribution to global warming.
She picked up her phone to compose a text message, asking boss Norman Osborn for leave.
People at Oscorp all said that Norman Osborn was stern and unapproachable, but Felicia didn't think so.
She felt this boss was quite reasonable and very respectful toward her.
Look, her leave request was approved.
Norman Osborn: OK, take care and rest well.
...
After going downstairs, Eros saw the Bugatti Veyron he had driven to the Oscorp Building yesterday in the underground parking garage; it must have been driven back by Felicia.
Suffice to say, she was truly the daughter of the master thief The Cat.
The car keys were clearly with him, yet Felicia could still drive it whenever she pleased.
Taking out the keys to unlock it, Eros drove toward Viper Ophelia's place.
As for the temporary research institute vehicle requisitioned yesterday, someone would come to drive it back, so Eros didn't need to worry about it.
About half an hour later, Eros arrived at the research institute.
"Mr. Pierce Jr." Seeing Eros, a director at the research institute hurried over. "The report is here."
"Mhm."
Eros nodded and took the report.
"Go to finance to collect a year's salary as a confidentiality reward, but if I hear any gossip, you know the consequences."
"Mr. Pierce Jr., rest assured, I've already destroyed the raw data and guarantee the news won't leak."
Hearing about an extra reward equivalent to a year's salary, the director's face lit up with joy as he quickly made assurances.
Eros came to a lounge and opened the report.
...
[Paternity Testing Report]
Subject A Information: Eros Pierce, Male, Date of Birth: 1992.04.04...
Subject B Information: Norman Osborn, Male, Date of Birth: 1964...
Combined Paternity Index (CPI): 1.86 * 10^8.
Probability of Paternity (RCP): > 99.999999%.
Testing Conclusion: Supports the existence of a biological blood relationship between Eros Pierce and Norman Osborn.
Looking at the data on the document, Norman Osborn's expression was complex.
Eros's birth was actually an accident.
The uncontrollable nature of supernatural events and the covetous eyes of other armed forces meant every mission had to face numerous unknown factors.
It could be said that the profession of a S.H.I.E.L.D. field Agent was extremely dangerous, with exceptionally high work pressure.
And very often, going to bed was a very effective way to relieve stress and relax.
Clearly, he had taken safety measures those few times...
Norman Osborn shook his head.
The Pierce Family needed a child much more than the Osborn family did.
Therefore, upon learning she was pregnant, Eros's mother Juliet Pierce chose to give birth to this child born of desire.
And she gave him the same name as the ancient Greek god who ruled over love and desire.
Originally, Norman Osborn had no intention of fighting over him with the Pierce Family, except that...
After Eros turned eighteen, the Osborn family's hereditary disease—the retroviral hyperplasia virus—suddenly vanished from his body!
The hereditary disease that had plagued generations of the Osborn family lost its effect on him.
This discovery completely shook Norman Osborn's previous thoughts.
Fairly speaking, even though Harry lacked ambition and his performance in every aspect from childhood to adulthood was inferior to Eros's,
Norman Osborn still intended to pass down the family business to Harry; after all, this was the child he had raised with his own hands.
It's just that...
Chapter 24 I Will Make Them Return to Reality!
That year was 1992, the same year Eros was born, Norman Osborn's father, Amberson Osborn, passed away.
The moment he saw his father, who was less than fifty years old, collapse on the sickbed, Norman Osbornthought.
If he could inherit his father's estate, he would definitely found a pharmaceutical company to solve the genetic disease that had plagued the Osborn family for generations.
Now the opportunity to end the history of genetic diseases in the Osborn family was right before his eyes, and he had to consider whether this would be the only opportunity of his lifetime.
He believed that the past wealth and status of the Osbornfamily were inseparable from the great contributions of his father, Amberson.
To rebuild the glory of Osborn, it was his unshirkable duty as Norman!
Norman Osborn closed the documents and cast his gaze toward the super soldier serum project report beside him.
He had already made a decision.
If the super soldier serum could resolve the genetic disease of the Osborn family, he would pass down the family business to Harry as planned.
If not, he would see whether Eros was willing to let one of the children inherit the Osborn surname.
If he was willing, everyone would be happy; after drafting his will, he could safely hand over Oscorp to Eros.
If he was not willing, he would find a way to borrow one from Eros.
Norman Osborn shifted his gaze to his mobile phone contacts, where one of the notes read "daughter-in-law Felicia".
Norman Osborn, an old fox, was more than clear about what was going on between his own assistant and Eros.
He specially noticed that yesterday Eros drove Felicia to work, and then today Felicia even asked for leave.
This kid was really not bad, much more romantic than he had been in his youth.
Norman Osborn believed that if one could rise in status simply by conceiving Eros's child, inheriting Oscorp and leaping to become a top financial conglomerate, no one would refuse.
(Felicia: Really? I don't believe it.)
...
Research Institute.
Eros closed the report.
Confirmed, Norman Osborn, whom he had called uncle for over a decade, was his biological father.
Eros felt a bit of a toothache; he was not like Homelander imprisoned in a laboratory since childhood, undergoing all kinds of inhumane experiments.
And deliberately brainwashed to guide his development into a giant baby.
Eros had been cultivated as the heir of the Pierce Familysince childhood, receiving normal elite education, at most just a bit rigorous.
After all, whether on the surface or behind the scenes, Pierce was a family of Agents, doing head-severing business.
If one's skills were not up to par, people would die.
Overall, Eros's demand for paternal and maternal love was not as strong as Homelander's, especially after he awakened his past life memories at eighteen.
What a pain!
Eros was very irritated; right at this moment, Viper Opheliawalked in limping.
"Regarding the super soldier serum, I have a few questions to—"
"Hmm?"
Ophelia saw that Eros's expression was wrong and asked, "What's wrong, little brother, who made you angry?"
"A piece of news made me somewhat furious." Eroscasually put away the documents.
Viper Ophelia, wearing a white lab coat, smiled faintly, sat in his arms, wrapped her arms around his neck, and said with charming eyes, "Then do you want me, your elder sister, to help you put out the fire?"
She had plenty of moisture.
"Sister, pouring water when the fire is big will only make the fire bigger. Don't you even know this little bit of common sense?"
"I don't believe it, unless you let me try and see."
As a researcher, Viper Ophelia had a strong spirit of inquiry; she licked her red lips and lowered her body.
...
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the host for completing the mission: John desires his father's recognition, make your father praise you.]
[Obtained reward: original compound v and its formula.]
[Note: The reward has been distributed to the system space and can be extracted at any time.]
Hmm?
What is going on?
The mission is completed just like that?
Eros gave a start and let Ophelia have a hearty meal.
Taking advantage of the time Ophelia went to rinse her mouth, Eros opened the system space and took out a portion of original compound v.
After the first portion of original compound v was taken out by him, the icon of original compound v in the system space entered a countdown state.
Judging by the countdown speed, it would probably take a month to cool down before taking out the next portion.
This was completely different from the CD of wild dog milk; the CD of wild dog milk could basically refresh in a few seconds, and Eros could drink it casually.
"Good little brother, is the fire out now?"
Hearing Ophelia coming out, Eros put away the original compound v.
Regarding his background, Eros also figured it out.
My fate is up to me, not the heavens!
What surname to have, what to be called, he had the final say!
Eros opened his hands and hugged Ophelia, letting her sit on his lap.
"Two questions."
Bringing up business, Ophelia became a little more serious, stopping her hands that were groping all over Eros,
"First, the success rate."
"Although The Cat John Hardesty and his daughter FeliciaHardy both succeeded on the first try, they are exceptions and lack universality."
"The super soldier serum modification will produce huge pain, placing very high demands on the experimenter's willpower. Ordinary Agents find it hard to hold on unless... brainwashing is carried out."
"Even so, the success rate is very low. All ten Agents in the first batch of tests failed, and out of 100 Agents in the second batch, only 3 succeeded."
"Second, side effects."
Speaking of this, Ophelia paused for a moment.
"Just like the two users of the original super soldier serum, Steve Rogers and John Schmidt, after using the serum, their personalities both changed and became extreme."
"This version of the super soldier serum also has similar side effects, which will amplify a certain emotion of the Agents who use the serum, such as arrogance, envy, wrath, sloth, greed, gluttony..."
"Lust."
Speaking of the last one, Ophelia even deliberately bit Eros's chest.
"Of course, not as extreme as the original."
Eros patted Ophelia's head, not taking it to heart.
Before his Bio-field was upgraded, Ophelia couldn't even think of biting through his skin; unless she wore lipstick, she couldn't even leave a mark.
Seven Deadly Sins?
Probably more than that.
Eros had never understood before: The Cat possessed the knowledge to make the super soldier serum and could clearly make a living with his brain, so why did he become a master thief?
Now it seemed that perhaps after injecting the super soldier serum, the adventurous side of his personality was strengthened, making him love pursuing a stimulating life and unable to hold back his temper to do scientific research work.
Speaking of which, Felicia also seemed to like playing with some stimulating things.
For example, flirting with him in the company.
Wondering if it was affected by the serum.
Eros pondered, faintly having some guesses in his heart.
"Study it further and see if it can be improved to increase the success rate."
Although HYDRA had many Agents under its command, a 3% success rate was still too low to be popularized.
"As for the side effects... as long as it doesn't affect the brain, there's no problem."
Eros clenched his fists.
Fists are power!
"If they swell up, I will make them return to reality!"
Chapter 25: Bio-field Upgrade
Seeing the full confidence of Eros, Viper Ophelia let out a couple of coquettish laughs and said coyly,
"Little brother is so confident. If anyone under big sister's command refuses to obey discipline in the future, you must help big sister."
Eros patted her conscience and said, "Big sister, you know, I've always taken joy in injecting people."
"I don't believe it, unless you prove it to me."
...
"Big sister, do you believe it now?"
When the Sun was high in the sky, Eros lay on the rocking chair in the backyard, drinking wild dog milk taken out from the system space to replenish his nutrition.
"Such a good little brother~ Remember to come tomorrow as well, oh." Ophelia, with a sated look in her eyes, lay on top of Eros and acted coquettishly.
Sure enough, human desires are like rolling stones on a high mountain; once they start falling, they can never be stopped.
Even though Ophelia was already overcrowded inside, she still wasn't satisfied.
But since the big sisterly figure started acting coquettishly, what else could Eros do?
He could only give his all until his dying breath.
After being fully satisfied, Ophelia continued the topic that wasn't finished just now:
"Wanting to improve the super soldier serum formula requires large-scale human experiments to obtain data, but there are some minor problems right now."
"What is it?"
"Funding and experimental sites."
"The materials needed for the super soldier serum are quite expensive, and large-scale human experiments consume too much capital, so we need to continue injecting funds."
"Conducting large-scale human experiments domestically is not cost-effective."
Eros nodded.
Conducting human experiments in America was indeed not a good choice.
Higher costs were one aspect, and on the other hand, the super soldier serum needed to be kept confidential for the time being.
With large-scale human experiments, it was inevitable that news would leak out.
"Don't worry about the funding. In a few days, I will inject another 500 million U.S. dollars into the research institute."
"As for the experimental site..."
There were mainly two choices: Africa and India. Human lives were worthless in these two places.
Seeing Eros in deep thought, Ophelia considerately massaged his temples for him.
Big sister really knew how to pamper someone, unlike the little sister who only wanted to extract juice.
"Let's go to Africa."
Eros made a decision after pondering for a moment.
The two places could be said to have their own advantages and disadvantages. Africa had lower costs, while India had more complete supporting facilities.
But India had one problem, and that was generic drugs.
Conducting human experiments in India carried a higher risk of leaking the formula and serum reagents.
With a 3% success rate, Eros would choose to continue optimization.
But if it were the Brahmins of India, even with a 0.03% success rate, they would force the Dalits to conduct experiments and coerce the Dalits into working for them through various means.
"Africa, huh..."
Ophelia pondered for a while, and after a long moment, she sighed: "Alright."
Don't get me wrong; Ophelia was not a person with a high moral bottom line, she simply couldn't bear to part with Eros's young flesh.
Having decided to go to Africa for human experiments, Ophelia, as the person in charge and chief researcher, naturally had to follow along.
...
Several days later, looking at the taking-off private jet, Eroscouldn't help but touch his waist.
Over the past few days, he had been at it for days or even a dozen-plus times a day. Even with the Homelandertemplate loaded, he was somewhat unable to handle it.
Mainly because there was one big sister and one little sister—the two of them taking turns day and night, leaving Eros with almost no time to rest properly.
However, it wasn't without gains.
[Host: Eros]
[Template: Homelander]
[Abilities: Steel Body Lv3, Heat Vision Lv3, Super Strength Lv3, Super Speed (Flight) Lv3, Super Vision Lv3, Super Hearing Lv3, Super Brain Lv3, Bio-field Lv2.]
His Bio-field had upgraded, going from Lv1 to Lv2.
To be honest, this exceeded Eros's expectations. He researched it for several days before figuring out what was going on.
When he was battling fiercely with Ophelia, he was affected by the toxins inherent in Ophelia's body.
At this time, his two permanent buffs came into play.
The Undying and Indestructible buff rewarded from drinking wild dog milk prevented him from being injured by poisoning, but it didn't clear the toxins.
The Brave in Battle buff detected that Eros was affected by Ophelia's toxins, judged that he had entered a combat state, and continuously increased Eros's toxin resistance.
Then, somehow, the toxin resistance was factored into the Bio-field.
Regarding this, Eros could only say well done.
A Superman without a Bio-field is not a true Homelander.
Amidst his thoughts, Eros took out the original compound v.
Although right now, besides loading the Homelandertemplate, he also had two permanent top-tier buffs [Undying and Indestructible] and [Brave in Battle], completely having no need to rely on the original compound v to strengthen himself.
But he still had a doubt in his heart, which was whether the original compound v actually had any strengthening effect on Homelander.
Picking up the syringe, Eros stabbed it towards his arm and injected the original compound v.
It was great that the Bio-field had upgraded to Lv2; otherwise, the needle wouldn't even be able to pierce in, and he would have had to use Heat Vision to break his own defense.
The moment the drug entered his body, Eros's body suddenly tensed up.
Violent reactions occurred in every cell of his body, as if a force was gushing out from the depths of his body.
Bang!
The next second, Eros soared into the sky, his speed instantly breaking the speed of sound—five times the speed of sound, ten times, twenty times... but that was about it.
Eros's normal cruising speed was 1.5 Mach, but his limit burst could also briefly surge to 20 Mach.
Apart from stimulating him a bit, this original compound vhad no other effects.
After speeding around in high altitudes to vent for a moment, Eros returned to the ground.
Although the original compound v was useless to himself, judging by its average performance, it was still somewhat stronger than the super soldier serum.
Especially in terms of prolonging life.
Well, he could just use this to distinguish the positioning of the two enhancers.
The super soldier serum focused on universality, to be used by the HYDRA Agents.
Compound V1 focused on customization, to be used by core personnel, and could also be taken out for interest exchanges.
As long as he guaranteed the loyalty of the core personnel, he could control the entire HYDRA through them.
At the same time, customizing it based on specific personnel's genetic data could also effectively improve the success rate of Compound V1. After all, the success rate of Compound V1 was too low.
Amidst his thoughts, Eros made a decision.
However, Eros did not plan to choose Ophelia as the person in charge of the Compound V1 project.
Although their relationship was only a little bit short of being exceptionally close, this woman already had the super soldier serum project on her hands.
If he handed the Compound V1 project to her as well, there's no telling when she might start becoming arrogant.
No matter how inflated Ophelia became, even if she created a massive army using the super soldier serum and Compound V1, Eros could smash them all to pieces.
But there was no need; after all, she was his considerate big sister.
Then, who was the best candidate for the person in charge of the Compound V1 project?
Two choices surfaced in Eros's mind.
Chapter 26 He still has to thank us.
One is an older sister figure known from childhood, General Ross's daughter Betty General Ross.
The other is the future Leader, the yet-unfledged scientist Samuel Sterns.
The former, Betty General Ross, once participated in the Super Soldier project led by her father, General Ross, alongside Bruce Banner.
Although it ultimately failed, she also gained some project experience.
The latter, Samuel Sterns, was still unknown at this time.
Samuel Sterns used the alias Mr. Blue to contact Bruce Banner, utilizing the blood samples Banner mailed to him to produce a large amount of serum.
He also created a medicine capable of temporarily suppressing the Hulk.
Eros secretly wanted to choose Betty General Ross, after all, this older sister figure was really pretty.
He still remembered the fleeting glimpse of this older sister at a party when he was four years old, which ignited his lustful soul from then on.
But when it came to pursuing a career, Eros was serious!
Compared to Betty General Ross, Samuel Sterns had more outstanding abilities and was easier to control.
Hmm, it is decided then, with Samuel Sterns as the candidate; if he could complete the task and improve Compound V1, then there would be no need to look for Tony Stark.
But before that, Eros felt he needed to have a secretary.
He could not possibly do everything himself, or ask Alexander Pierce's assistant, could he?
"Ring ring~"
Just at this moment, the phone rang. Eros took out his phone to take a look; it was a call from the butler of Pierce Manor.
"Mr. Eros, there is a guest looking for you."
"Who?"
"Tony Stark."
...
More than ten minutes later, in the reception room of Pierce Manor.
Tony sat on the sofa holding a cup of light green liquid in one hand while shaking his leg, showing his inner impatience.
Beside Tony, his personal bodyguard Happy stood quietly, with a tense face trying to create a sense of oppression.
"You high schooler, you are not playing fair!" Seeing Eroswalk in, Tony sprang up from a starting position and grabbed Eros by the neck.
Eros gently pushed away Tony's arm: "Mr. Iron Can, how am I not playing fair? Also, you have not delivered the mecha you owe me, and I have not even urged you to ship it yet."
"You still have the face to mention this. A while ago, you went long and short on Stark Industries in the stock market, making tens of billions, right? That is enough to build how many mechas."
Tony patted Eros's shoulder with annoyance and complained:
"Because of you, I was even investigated by the SEC."
"Dammit, clearly I did not say anything to you, how did you guess that I was going to shut down the Stark weapons division?"
"That is why I said, I earned this with my own ability, which is a different matter from you owing me a mecha."
Eros smiled and did not directly answer the question.
He certainly would not affectionately say anything like "I understand you" to Tony Stark.
He, Eros, was a pure man!
"We will talk about the mecha later; I am still researching it now."
Tony drank the chlorophyll juice in the cup in one gulp, put down the cup, and said solemnly:
"I am asking you, when do you plan to stop shorting Stark Industries?"
Eros calmly took out a box of wild dog milk and took a light sip.
It seemed that Stark Industries' stock had fallen too hard, and Tony, under pressure from the board of directors, had no choice but to come find him.
Doing long and then short on Stark Industries successively was not hard to hide from ordinary people, but trying to hide it from Tony Stark was overthinking it.
"Mr. Stark, I have not paid much attention to stock market matters lately. May I boldly ask, how much has Stark Industries' stock fallen?"
"53 points."
"A bit less than I expected."
Seeing Tony's face gradually darken, Eros changed the subject.
"But since Mr. Stark is visiting in person, I will also give you some face and stop shorting Stark Industries."
He just wanted to take the opportunity to make a windfall, not completely offend Stark Industries.
Although Stark Industries was not equal to Tony Stark, after all.
"And,"
"I will also inject 20 billion to acquire Stark Industriesstock."
In fact, Eros had already begun acquisitions in secret.
It was just that these past few days he had been entangled by the two older sisters and could not get away, so he did not know how much had been specifically acquired.
Tony frowned. If this news spread, it would undoubtedly be good for Stark stock.
At the very least, it would not drop any further, and might even surge for a wave in the short term.
But right now, Stark Industries' stock had fallen to a trough, dropping below 100 billion.
Introducing a large pool of capital at this time would reduce his control over Stark Industries.
To be honest, Tony coming to find Eros today, aside from the pressure from the board of directors, had another important factor, which was Obadiah's backstabbing.
Tony had originally thought Obadiah would stand with him, but he did not expect that seeing the stock fall severely, Obadiah would unite with the board of directors to try to restrict him.
At this moment, the idea of buying back Stark Industries' stock had already arisen in Tony's heart; he did not want to be betrayed a second time.
Therefore, he was resistant to Eros acquiring Stark stock.
And Eros also saw Tony's resistance. He was not as shortsighted as Obadiah, failing to see who the most valuable asset of Stark Industries was.
"Mr. Stark, I do not know if you have ever heard the origin story of the Arc Reactor technology."
"A long time ago..."
Eros said a lot, but Tony only remembered one sentence.
The earliest Arc Reactor technology was jointly developed by his father, Howard Stark, and a Russian named Anton Vanko.
And Anton Vanko was still alive to this day, and had fallen into Eros's hands.
The subtext of the high schooler in front of him was very obvious.
He saw the transformation direction and development potential of Stark Industries, and wanted a piece of the pie.
If he agreed, then Anton Vanko would never come to light, and Stark Industries would monopolize the Arc Reactortechnology.
If he did not agree, he would push out Anton Vanko to compete against Stark Industries.
However, from the first-generation Arc Reactor to the one he was currently using, there had already been major breakthroughs.
Even if Anton Vanko was one of the founders, could he make an Arc Reactor capable of stable reaction to generate clean energy?
Tony Stark did not...
Looking at the concept drawing of the Arc Reactor taken out by Eros, after Tony took it and carefully flipped through it, his eyelids twitched.
Although there was no finished product yet, and there were some flaws, it was entirely feasible.
"How many shares do you want, and what can you contribute to Stark Industries?"
A quality company like Stark Industries could not be invested in just by having money; one also had to see what kind of help the capital behind it could provide for the group's development.
Having few shares was easy to talk about, but having many shares while contributing nothing would only result in being tacitly set up and kicked out by major shareholders.
"Twenty percent."
"High schooler, you really are greedy, that is too much."
Chapter 27: Fooling Tony
A 20% shareholding ratio already made him the second-largest shareholder outside of Tony.
It was even 3 percentage points higher than the current second-largest shareholder, Obadiah.
"I have heard such a saying: the greater the ability, the greater the power, and the greater the responsibility."
Eros took a sip of wild dog milk:
"I have the Arc Reactor technology in my hands, connections in politics, the Military, and business, and my capital is considered quite substantial. If I gather a few allies to break into the energy industry myself, even if it cannot match Stark Industries, I can still get a piece of the pie."
"Therefore, if the shares are lower than 20%, I might as well do it myself."
"The rise of new things often signifies the demise of old things, and old things will certainly not sit still and await doom."
"Mr. Stark, as you prepare to shift Stark Industries from Military industry to energy, aside from the pressure from within the group and The Pentagon, there is another major problem."
"Those original petroleum energy giants will not just sit back and watch a new energy source like the Arc Reactorreplace them."
Tony frowned; the words of Eros could be said to have hit right at his heart.
During this period, he had received no small amount of pressure from the board of directors represented by Obadiah and the Military.
Even his only good friend, Colonel Rhodes, had not given him a good expression during this time.
Not long ago, Tony visited Colonel Rhodes and invited him to research the Mark 2 together.
As a result, as soon as Colonel Rhodes heard that this project had nothing to do with the Military, he changed the subject before Tony could finish speaking, and also advised Tony to rest more.
This made Tony very hurt.
The reason Colonel Rhodes did this was simply because Tony decided to close the Stark weapons manufacturing department at the press conference.
And this was merely the resistance received from closing the weapons department.
Venturing into the energy industry in the future would add yet another layer of resistance from energy giants.
"Then, what responsibilities can your Pierce Familyshoulder by acquiring shares in Stark Industries?"
Hearing the question of Tony, Eros smiled.
Since Tony asked this, it meant that as long as the conditions were right, he would agree to let him invest in Stark.
"First is internally; our combined shares can completely control Stark Industries."
As Eros spoke, he noticed that the expression of Tonychanged slightly.
He remembered that Tony had also said this to him before.
The shares of Tony combined with the shares of Obadiahcould control Stark Industries, and the other shareholders could not stir up any waves.
As a result, within a few days, Tony was backstabbed by Obadiah.
"I have seen with my own eyes how a tiny Arc Reactormade an iron can of nearly 700 kilograms move, and I understand what this means."
After slightly appeasing Tony, Eros continued:
"Secondly, regarding The Pentagon, I can pull strings and find successors for the departments that Stark Industrieshas decided to close and lay off."
"Wait a minute."
Tony interrupted Eros: "I closed the weapons department and then sold it off. What difference does this make from me not closing the weapons department at all?"
"Mr. Stark, do you still not understand? The Stark weapons department can be closed, but projects that have already landed cannot be sealed away by you, otherwise The Pentagon will not let the matter rest."
Tony was silent for a long time. He made a gesture, and Happy handed over a glass of wine.
Previously, he truly had not considered this issue; he simply felt that his intelligence should not be used to manufacture those weapons that harm people.
But now it seemed that he had been hasty.
"I have a request." After drinking the wine in the glass in one gulp, Tony spoke:
"The weapons researched by Stark can only be deployed domestically and used to protect America. I do not wish to see them used to harvest the lives of innocents ever again."
The brows of Eros furrowed. Tony was really throwing a difficult problem at him.
Since World War II, the armed conflicts initiated by America exceeded 80% of the global total, and most of them took place overseas.
If the weapons researched by Stark Industries could only be used to defend the homeland, what difference would that make from having none?
"Mr. Stark, do you think The Pentagon might agree to this condition of yours?"
Tony shook his head; he had just spoken impulsively a moment ago.
Eros: "How about this: I can mobilize the intelligence network of S.H.I.E.L.D. to help supervise and ensure that the weapons researched by Stark Industries are not directly sold into the hands of Terrorists."
"As for whether America overseas Military Bases will resell them, S.H.I.E.L.D. cannot manage that."
Tony was stunned for a moment, saying in disbelief: "You mean soldiers will sell weapons to the enemy, and then the enemy will use the purchased weapons to kill them?"
Eros nodded: "That is right."
To this day, the independence of these America overseas Military Bases was quite strong, somewhat similar to the Jiedushi of the Tang Dynasty in the history of the East.
The corruption at America overseas Military Bases was almost an open rule: officers manipulated heavy armament transactions, and soldiers resold firearms and ammunition.
From top to bottom, a deeply rooted network of interests had already formed.
Therefore, the Stark weapons in the hands of Terroristsmight not necessarily all be sold by Obadiah; they could also be the handiwork of the local U.S. Military.
"Is that so?" Tony asked Happy by his side.
Happy shook his head: "Sorry Tony, I do not know."
Tony was silent for a long time once more: "...If that is the case, then I should close the Stark weapons department even more."
Eros nodded, no longer trying to persuade Tony: "Then let us not discuss this condition for now; let me state the final condition."
"The Pierce Family can help share the pressure from other energy giants, such as Roxxon Energy and the Rockefeller Group."
"If your Pierce Family invests in Stark Industries, this is what you ought to do. Is there anything else?" Tony shook his head, obviously unsatisfied with this condition.
Eros frowned. He looked at the chest of Tony, suddenly thinking of something:
"Mr. Stark, there is a saying that open spears are easy to dodge, but hidden arrows are hard to guard against."
Tony glanced at Happy, who was putting on a stern face and trying hard to prop up an aura, and finally said against his conscience: "I believe Happy can handle my security work well."
"Of course I believe that Mr. Happy and Mr. Stark, the two of you have the ability to protect yourselves, but we can do things even better."
"Have you ever heard of the super soldier serum, Mr. Stark?"
"Of course," Tony said unpleasantly: "Has this thing not been lost for a long time? What, has there been new progress recently?"
"That is right."
Eros clapped his hands and began making grand promises:
"The research institute under the Pierce Family has researched a serum completely different from Dr. Erskine."
"Not only does it possess human enhancement functions, but it also has an extremely powerful life-extension capability."
The 'super soldier serum' Eros spoke of was actually Compound V1.
In his original plan, Tony was originally the person meant to backstop the improvements for Compound V1.
If he could fool Tony into joining this project to provide a safety net now, he would even save on a favor.
Chapter 28: Someone Is Going to Be Unhappy
When Tony heard about the extremely strong life-extension ability, he stood up with a swish.
"Are you sure?"
Pure physical enhancement had limited allure for Tony.
Stark Industries itself had a large number of weapon production lines, and Tony was currently researching the Mark II, so his military strength was guaranteed.
But extending lifespan was completely different.
The richer people were, the more they feared death, and the more they wanted to live a few more years to enjoy life properly.
Tony the playboy was no exception.
"Of course."
Eros stretched his foot under the table and gently lifted it upward.
The next instant, the conference table made of golden Phoebe zhennan ebony solid wood, weighing several tons, immediately soared into the air, rolled several times, and then landed steadily back in its original place.
Tony's cheeks twitched fiercely a few times.
He stepped forward two steps and tried to lift the conference table. With all his might, the blue veins on his arms bulged, but the table didn't move at all.
"Fuck."
"Did you inject this so-called super soldier serum back in Afghanistan? No wonder you were able to sneak into the cave all by yourself."
Eros took a sip of wild dog milk and didn't answer.
Although his ability didn't come from the serum, A-Zu's did, so it was pretty much the same.
"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"
Tony swore repeatedly.
The worship of power was rooted deep in every man's heart.
If he had never seen or had the opportunity to possess such power, Tony could have brushed it off, but now the opportunity was right in front of him, and he had to consider...
Whether his armor could do the same thing, or even better!
After his mind went wild for a moment, Tony came back to his senses.
That wasn't right. Injecting the super soldier serum didn't conflict with his own armor at all, and it could also extend his lifespan.
"And what about that life extension, what kind of effect can it achieve?"
"A guaranteed minimum of three thousand years, I suppose. What the limit can achieve is still uncertain, maybe ten thousand years?" Eros shook his head.
In The Boys World, injectors of the Compound V1 basically maintained their physiological state at the time of injection, with no changes for nearly a hundred years.
From this perspective, the life extension of Compound V1could at least slow down the aging speed of people by dozens of times, or even more.
A guaranteed minimum of three thousand years?
Hearing this number, Tony's breathing grew a bit heavier.
Not only Tony, but Happy beside Tony was the same.
From the agricultural age to the steam age, and then to the electrical age, information age, and intelligent age, humanity had only five thousand years of clearly recorded history.
And now, he had the chance to live for three thousand years, and that was just the minimum?
No one could remain unmoved when facing this news!
Tony's throat rolled, and he asked, "Is there a finished product of this super soldier serum right now?"
"I call it the v1 compound." Seeing that Tony was tempted, Eros smiled,
"Unfortunately, Mr. Stark, there are currently no samples of v1. Even if there were, I wouldn't hand them over to you. Your scientific research ability is too strong, and I'm worried that you would reverse-engineer the formula after getting the samples."
Hearing that Eros wouldn't give it to him even if there were samples, Tony was unhappy.
But Eros affirmed his research capability, which made Tonyvery Happy.
However, Tony still put on a dissatisfied look: "Since that's the case, why are you telling me this?"
"Mr. Stark, it's like this."
Eros got up to pour Tony a glass of wine, and then began to bluff: "This technology is not very mature yet and cannot be made available to the general public. It can only be personally customized according to individual genetic information."
"Wait, you said this technology is immature, so what is the success rate?"
"About... one in a thousand?"
"Are you crazy! One in a thousand?"
Tony stood up with a swish once again. He had received more shocks today than in the past thirty or forty years combined.
"No, if the success rate is only one in a thousand, I don't believe you would inject it into yourself."
"Mr. Stark, look, you're getting impatient again." Erospressed Tony's shoulder to make him sit down,
Waiting for Tony to sit down, Eros showed his true intentions: "I plan to inject 1 billion US dollars to establish a pharmaceutical company and continue to improve v1."
"In this company, I can give you 20% of the shares and let you, Tony, participate in the research and development."
Hearing this, Tony lowered his head in deep thought.
A pharmaceutical company with only one project, the v1 compound, even if it successfully researched an improved version of v1, wouldn't have a very high valuation.
The characteristics of v1 doomed its audience to be limited, facing only major tycoons around the World.
But the potential influence of this company was immense.
No tycoon could refuse the temptation of near-immortality.
"Alright, Happy cooperation."
"Happy cooperation."
Tony reached out his hand, and Eros shook it. The two smiled at each other and reached a consensus.
Tony agreed to let Eros buy into Stark, taking about a 20% stake.
Eros also assigned a project to Tony, and the two formed a community of interests.
In fact, Tony still underestimated the potential of the v1 compound.
Or rather, he underestimated Eros's wild ambition.
Eros had two dreams: one was to build a brave new World, and the other was also to build a brave new World.
For the former, besides himself, there were currently two members, and the more the better in the future.
For the latter... Asgardians had an average lifespan of 5,000 years, so why couldn't Midgard?
Eros's heart was not only yellow, but its foundation also had a red part.
It's just that he didn't usually publicize it.
After all, in the identity of a villain, one could act more unscrupulously and wouldn't be subject to moral blackmail.
Having finalized the general direction with Tony, the specific details were left to both sides' teams.
Matters regarding the new pharmaceutical company were easy to talk about; apart from a v1 compound formula, it was practically an empty shell.
Even the v1 compound formula was kept secret before the chief researcher arrived.
Buying shares in Stark Industries was much more troublesome.
On the one hand, the people from the Pierce Foundationbegan to close their positions and cash out the profits from shorting Stark Industries this time.
On the other hand, they began to acquire retail shares on the stock market and contact small shareholders of Stark Industries, purchasing shares from small shareholders first.
Once this portion of shares was mostly acquired, they would see how much was lacking, and then initiate a targeted issuance of new shares to make up the difference.
The final step would dilute the shares of existing shareholders.
The Pierce Family's team needed to slowly negotiate with Stark's other major shareholders to determine a suitable valuation.
The capital behind these major shareholders included S.H.I.E.L.D., The Pentagon, the White House...
They knew that the actual value of Stark Industries far exceeded the current market value on the stock market, as long as Tony changed his mind.
It wouldn't be too easy for Eros to buy into Stark Industriesand become the second largest shareholder.
But fortunately, he could persuade them in the same way he persuaded Tony.
In this way, everyone would be Happy.
That's not right either; there was still someone who was unhappy.
...
"According to this station's report, Stark Industries has issued a targeted 30 million shares, subscribed to by the Pierce Foundation at $400 per share. The Pierce Foundation previously held a 12.13% controlling stake in Stark Industries, and after this subscription, the total shares will reach..."
"Bang!"
Chapter 29: wild dog milk, let me see your limits!"
"Fuck!"
"Fuck!"
"Fuck!"
Obadiah Stane fiercely smashed his phone against the television.
"Damn the Pierce Family, damn that high schooler!"
"And the damn Ten Rings Gang, a bunch of idiots. If they had just finished off Tony with a gunshot earlier, we wouldn't have all this mess today."
After cursing Eros, Obadiah began to curse the Ten Rings Gang again.
After violently smashing things for a while to vent his resentment, Obadiah called his assistant over and took the phone from the assistant's hands.
"Hello, Mr. Pierce, I am Obadiah, the vice president of Stark Industries, Obadiah Stane."
"I'd like to communicate with Vought International…"
"Vought International is handled by my grandson Eros. Mr. Stane should look for him if you have any business."
...
Ring-ring~
Ring-ring~
After finishing their workout, Eros pushed away Felicia, who was hugging him like an octopus.
Answering the phone, a voice came through.
"Hello, Young Mr. Pierce, I am Obadiah, the vice president of Stark Industries, Obadiah Stane."
Obadiah Stane?
"Hello, Mr. Stane, I am Eros from Vought International, Eros Pierce."
Vought International was a company created by Eros using the profits from manipulating Stark's stock twice, with two subsidiaries: Vought Investment and Vought Medical.
Vought Investment held about 20% of Stark's shares, while Vought Medical ceded a total of 40% of its shares to Tony Stark and Stark Industries.
This was somewhat different from the terms initially discussed with Tony, but it was harmless.
Currently, the main business of Vought International was only the v1 compound modification project of its subsidiary, Vought Medical.
"Young Mr. Pierce, I wonder if you have any free time recently. I'd like to meet with you to chat about the future of Stark Industries."
"Hold on, let me have my assistant check the schedule."
Eros's assistant hadn't assumed office yet; he said this just to buy some time and clear his thoughts.
With a turn of his thoughts, Eros guessed why Obadiahhad called him to make an appointment to meet.
He wanted to seize control of Stark Industries!
This scheduled meeting was very likely an attempt to win him over and wrest power from Tony.
Eros shook his head.
Obadiah's desire for power had reached a perversely distorted degree.
On one hand, he and Tony had known each other for decades, and their relationship was like that of father and son.
He was deeply trusted by Tony, and he handled company affairs on ordinary days. Though named vice president, he was practically no different from the president.
On the other hand, Tony Stark was Stark Industries' most important asset, its ballast stone.
Stark Industries without Tony Stark was even worse than F.I.R. without Faye.
Even though Tony was so important to Stark Industries, Obadiah, as Stark's second-largest shareholder and vice president, still didn't hesitate to hire assassins to murder Tony.
He just hadn't expected that after recognizing Tony, the Ten Rings Gang members wanted to coerce Tony into manufacturing weapons, which gave Tony a chance to escape.
After Tony was rescued, Obadiah contacted the board of directors again, wanting to use Tony's psychological trauma as an excuse to strip him of his position as president.
Obadiah was once close to success, but another accident occurred this time: Eros's Vought International stuck its foot in.
In the other party's view, counting the time with the Ten Rings Gang, he had already ruined two of his good deeds.
"Three days later in the afternoon, Mr. Stane, is this time okay?"
"OK!"
...
"Darling, who was that?"
When Eros hung up the phone, Felicia crawled out from under the blanket and instinctively leaned towards Eros's face.
Eros ruthlessly pushed Felicia away. Even a tiger wouldn't eat its own cubs.
"Obadiah, the vice president of Stark Industries. Later, you communicate with his assistant to confirm the specific meeting time."
Felicia gave Eros an eye-roll, casually threw a blanket over herself, and walked towards the bathroom.
"Right, don't forget to resign from Uncle Norman."
It wasn't suitable to use too many HYDRA people, and Eros needed his own people to help keep an eye on things so as not to distract too much of his own energy.
Aside from liking to haul his cars, watches, and various accessories back home, the young lady was quite reliable.
But her temperament was unstable, and she didn't like overly busy work; she could only be a secretary and couldn't handle things independently.
As for the person in charge of Vought Medical, Eros had other candidates in mind.
However, the young lady did her work as a secretary extremely well, and Eros was very satisfied.
Seeing that Felicia entered the bathroom and didn't come out for a long time, Eros knew that this wildcat had given in.
Some time ago, the Snake and Cat joined forces, and Erosstruggled bitterly, almost unable to defeat them.
Now that Viper had gone to Africa on a business trip, the Black Cat could only be beaten soundly by Eros.
After washing up in another bathroom, Eros came to the underground parking lot, drove the white Lamborghini, and left Felicia's house.
This white Lamborghini Reventon Roadster was newly bought by Eros, costing around 2 million USD.
The money earned from manipulating Stark's stock, after deducting the capital injection to create Vought International and acquire Stark Industries shares, still left nearly 5 billion USD.
This little bit of money was small change.
What's more, it could also be affiliated with Vought International for tax deductions.
On the way driving to Stacy's house, Eros turned on the radio to listen to recent New York news.
Well, mainly focusing on Spider-Man's news.
Eros estimated that it wouldn't be long before Gwengained superpowers and transformed into Spider-Man in the night, embarking on the path of a good friend of New York citizens.
"...Recently, a white tight-suit teenage girl frequently frequented Manhattan and Queens at night, rescuing multiple citizens."
"According to rescued citizens, the white-clothed girl calls herself Spider-Woman."
Eros drove the Lamborghini with one hand and opened his phone to search for Spider-Woman.
What popped up was a frontal photo of Spider-Womanswinging on a web, suspected to be a selfie.
In the photo, Spider-Woman's suit was a black, white, and pink-colored tight uniform, outlining Gwen's nearly perfect body curves.
Additionally, wearing a hood and a pink mask, it combined girlishness with deadly temptation.
Gwen herself was extremely pretty, and her figure was quite hot. Now, after being modified by the Spider Totem, her figure was even better, close to perfection and impeccable.
It made Eros very excited, making him want to think twice before acting.
However, the growth of Spider-Man seemed to require sacrificing people.
Peter Parker sacrificed Uncle Ben, and Gwen sacrificed Peter Parker.
No, in this World, Gwen's first love was him—he had become Peter Parker.
Thinking of this, the corners of Eros's eyes twitched.
He didn't know if the abilities of the Homelander template could withstand Spider-Man's fate curse.
However, if he backed down out of fear of being sacrificed, what kind of old lech would he still be!
Even without the abilities brought by the Homelandertemplate, Eros would never bow his head to fate.
After secretly cheering himself up, Eros casually took out a box of wild dog milk.
"wild dog milk, let me see your limits!"
Chapter 30 George: "I will not cooperate with Spider-Woman!"
"Ha——!"
When Eros arrived at the Stacy home, Gwen had just woken up.
She walked out of her room, leaned back, and yawned, revealing the alluring curves of her upper body.
"Morning, Eros."
"Morning, Gwen."
Eros withdrew his gaze imperceptibly while slightly adjusting his sitting posture.
He came to the Stacy home today to pick up Gwen for a physical examination.
Ever since awakening her superpowers, Gwen went to Ophelia's research institute once a week for checkups.
With Vought International opening these past few days and Eros having his own research institute, he simply had Gwen change to a different place.
This was the first time he was taking Gwen there himself.
"Eros, I'm going to wash up first. Wait for me a moment." With that, Gwen walked toward the bathroom with a listless expression.
Seeing this, Gwen's father, George, frowned. "What's going on? Didn't you know you have a physical today? Why were you still staying up late?"
"Sorry." Gwen gave a start, her mind instantly clearing, and lies rolled right off her tongue: "Dr. Connors' experiment had some issues yesterday, and I needed to look up information, so I was busy quite late."
Eros took out his phone and continued browsing reports about Spider-Woman.
Last night, Spider-Woman struck again, also cracking down on a gang of enhancer smugglers.
He didn't know whether this gang of criminals had any relation to Kingpin.
It seemed he had to find time to warn Kingpin and make him keep his subordinates in check, so they wouldn't accidentally hurt his little girlfriend.
"Eros, are you also paying attention to this criminal?" George, who was reading a newspaper nearby, asked.
The content on his newspaper had Spider-Woman's back view right on the front page headline.
And the subtitle was—The incompetent New York Police Department!
"Criminal?" Gwen came out of the bathroom holding a toothbrush and asked vaguely, "Dad, why do you say that?"
"Spider-Woman just wants to help the Police fight crime."
George's brows furrowed again. "Gwen, fighting crime is the responsibility of the Police, and Spider-Woman is carrying out vigilante justice! To some extent, she is also a criminal!"
"More importantly, the gang of criminals she caught last night were our informants. She ruined our plan."
"I... is that so?" Gwen's body swayed slightly. Doing a good deed with good intentions right out of the gate only to mess things up dealt a huge blow to her.
"You can't put it that way, Uncle George." Eros spoke up from the side:
"That the smuggled gangsters happened to be Policeinformants is a low-probability event. We cannot use a low-probability event to represent general occurrences."
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"So, do you think Spider-Woman is right, Eros?" Georgelooked at Eros with a serious expression.
Eros, however, was very relaxed and comfortable. He nodded and then shook his head.
"The World is not simply black and white, but an exquisite shade of gray."
"Uncle George, if I remember correctly, New York State should also have a 'citizen's arrest' system, right?"
"Putting aside Spider-Woman's extraordinary abilities, she is also an ordinary citizen. Her actions comply with the citizen's arrest system and should be defined as doing a righteous deed for a just cause."
Citizen's arrest, simply put, allows ordinary citizens to arrest criminals when they have justifiable reasons.
"Eros, the citizen's arrest system also stipulates that excessive force cannot be used," George retorted.
"Then, did Spider-Woman use excessive force?" Eros asked George in return while secretly winking at Gwen.
Gwen shook her head quietly in response.
George was silent for a moment, then continued: "Spider-Woman indeed did not use excessive force, but her actions will set a bad example for others."
"She might be doing temporary good deeds, but at the same time she is doing enduringly harmful bad deeds! She is undermining the current system and constitution of this country."
"It might not be obvious now, but once her influence grows, many people will definitely imitate her."
"By then, while Spider-Woman can restrain herself from using excessive force, can she restrain her imitators?"
"If too many people imitate her, it will bring extreme danger to New York citizens."
George's voice was resonant and powerful.
As the Director of the New York Police Department, George naturally stood on the side of order, disgusted by the damage superheroes caused to the system and their indirect seizure of the government's governance rights.
"Conducting proper public opinion guidance and maintaining order and stability are the responsibilities of the Police and the government, not Spider-Woman's."
"Stripping away the halo of a superpower user, the essence of what Spider-Woman does is helping the vulnerable who have been infringed upon. This is the power granted to her by the law and the citizens of New York."
Eros's words made Gwen's eyes light up. She hastily finished brushing her teeth and washing her face, then chimed in:
"That's right, Dad. Don't you usually teach me to be a good person, and step forward with the capability to help when others need it?"
George was a bit dazed by this series of consecutive questions from Eros and Gwen. He wanted to continue refuting, but was interrupted by Gwen's mother, Helen.
"Alright, alright, you guys, what are you arguing about early in the morning? Gwen, eat quickly, don't keep Eroswaiting too long."
"Fine." George shut his mouth, but after a while, he couldn't help asking Eros:
"Eros, then what do you think the New York Police Department should do? You know, those unscrupulous media outlets only pursue sales and won't easily cooperate with Police propaganda."
As he spoke, George handed the newspaper in his hand to Eros, pointing at the subtitle along the way.
The incompetent New York Police Department!
"Perhaps the New York Police Department can cooperate with Spider-Woman and incorporate her into the system," Eros said leisurely.
Beside them, Gwen, who was lowering her head to eat fish cutlets, lit up her eyes again.
That's right, why hadn't she thought of cooperating with the Police?
This idea is not bad.
However, the next second, George shattered Gwen's fantasy.
"Cooperation? But we don't even know who she is! And would she be willing to follow the Police's arrangements?" George grumbled:
"I won't cooperate with such an unstable element. What if she causes some trouble? Should the Police help take the blame?"
Eros very naturally took out a box of wild dog milk from the system space to taste.
He wondered if George would change his mind if he knew that Spider-Woman's true identity was his daughter, GwenStacy.
He was really looking forward to George's expression at that time.
"I'm done eating." Gwen put down her tableware glumly, gave a greeting, and walked downstairs.
"I'll see Gwen off." George said to Helen and followed as well.
Today was Gwen's first time going to the Vought International Building, so George also tagged along to learn the way.
Then, after coming downstairs and starting his vehicle, George watched as Gwen ignored his gaze and walked toward Eros's Lamborghini.
Cold!
Clearly it was June, yet George felt a chill.
His warm little padded jacket was letting the cold wind in.