Marvel’s Shadowed Knight

"It's been taken care of, but I won't be able to make it to the research facility in time."

As Crossbones stepped out, he was already speaking with his superior.

His original mission had been to head to a private tech park in the Hudson Valley—Oscorp's research site.

What Kingpin had been working on there was enough to pique even Hydra's interest.

After all, some of the researchers inside were their own people.

But then, the facility had been infiltrated by two individuals who looked like Spider-Man.

And they had taken off with the chief scientist's computer.

This turn of events was far beyond what they had expected.

Hydra had been well aware of what Kingpin's machine could do—it had the potential to wipe out Brooklyn entirely.

But that didn't concern them.

All they wanted was Kingpin's collider.

A device capable of pulling individuals from other universes into their own—something Hydra found incredibly tempting.

With just a bit of modification, they could use it to bring other things through as well.

Everything would fall into place.

But in order to maintain their cordial relationship with Kingpin, the moment their informants reported trouble at his residence, they had immediately dispatched a team to investigate.

That mission had ended in disaster—losing men and precious time that could have been used to assist at Oscorp and capture the two Spider-Men.

All because of that masked freak who showed up at the worst possible time.

Crossbones' eyes burned with hatred for that bat-like menace.

"I think it could be someone imitating Batman," a voice from the side caught his attention.

"What do you mean?"

Noticing their captain approaching, two soldiers immediately straightened up, though they weren't sure what he was asking about.

"I'm asking—what's this about Batman?"

Crossbones had little patience to begin with. The fact that he was speaking so calmly now was a rarity.

"We found that same bat symbol on nearly all of our downed operatives. The design is a bit distorted, but it still looks familiar."

"Batman—the flagship character of DC Comics—has a symbol just like it."

"So, I think it's possible that some obsessed Batman fan is behind this."

The soldier finished speaking and cautiously glanced at his captain, afraid he might have said something wrong.

"What are his weaknesses?" Crossbones asked directly.

"He's just a man—no superpowers. The only thing he's got is a brilliant mind and inhuman reflexes."

"One bullet, and he's dead."

The soldier wasn't a fan of Batman.

To him, Batman was too dark—too grim—not really his style.

But that was all Crossbones needed to hear.

A mortal. A man who could die.

Far easier to deal with than those masked freaks.

Granted, based on what happened at the scene, this guy wasn't ordinary.

But at least, he wasn't a superpowered monster.

In a café some distance away, Bruce sat once again.

But this time, he wasn't holding a newspaper.

Instead, he was sipping a glass of milk.

Though, in his mind, Thomas was grumbling—saying the milk was barely drinkable at best.

Bruce ignored the complaints completely.

As he calmly drank, his gaze locked onto a Chevrolet Suburban pulling away from Kingpin's territory.

In every world, agents have an undeniable preference for full-size SUVs—a staple of their operations.

These vehicles have become a signature choice for agents.

In America, civilians, unable to determine whether the occupants of these SUVs are ordinary people or government operatives, often instinctively give them the right of way.

Only after the last Suburban had left did Bruce finally rise from his seat, placing a hundred-dollar bill under his empty glass of milk.

As he stepped outside, Bruce Wayne looked every bit like an idle, wealthy playboy.

Whenever he passed an attractive woman, he'd throw a flirtatious wink—one guaranteed to set hearts racing.

These small gestures often thrilled the recipient, yet before they could even think of approaching him, Bruce would have already vanished.

While Bruce exuded effortless charm and leisure, three exhausted Spider-People were slumped in their seats on a bus headed back to the city after escaping from Oscorp.

Neither Peter Parker nor Miles Morales had expected to be rescued by another Spider-Man—except this one wasn't a man at all.

They had never seen a female Spider-Man before.

Especially one named Gwen Stacy.

Holding a now clearly damaged decryption key in her hands, Gwen's expression remained neutral as she turned to Miles and asked, "Did he break it?"

"Yeah… and he feels really bad about it," Miles replied.

Perhaps it was his teenage pride—his reluctance to look incompetent in front of a girl he admired—but instead of admitting the truth, he shifted the blame onto Peter Parker, who was lying in the back.

Fortunately, middle-aged Peter Parker wasn't the type to meddle in a teenager's awkward crush.

Hearing Miles' response, he simply smirked knowingly.

Even Miles himself seemed to realize that his excuse was a bit weak.

Lowering his voice, he leaned toward Gwen and murmured, "So… let's just pretend that never happened, okay?"

But Gwen, with years of experience fighting crime, saw right through his little ploy.

Still, she chose not to expose him.

There were far more pressing matters at hand.

Gwen let out a soft chuckle. Even though her smile was bright, there was an undeniable loneliness behind it.

"I know where we can get a new one. And this time, I won't let him break it."

Her gaze was calm and composed, but Miles couldn't bring himself to share her relaxed demeanor.

"I'm really sorry about your friend."

Miles wanted to steer the conversation away from the decryption key while also acknowledging Gwen's earlier words about her loss.

"Thank you, Miles."

Gwen's smile softened, but deep inside, the pain lingered.

In her world, the death of Peter Parker was a wound that would never heal.

Suddenly—

Peter Parker, who had been lounging in the back, sprang up as if struck by lightning.

"I figured it out! I finally know how to answer that bat!"

His face lit up with pure excitement as he turned toward his two younger companions.

"Bat?" Gwen blinked in confusion, clearly lost.

She glanced at Miles—only to see that he was just as bewildered.

Miles knew who the bat was, but he had no idea what Peter meant by 'answering' him.

Peter Parker's grin widened.

"He's the guy who can get all of us out of here."

(End of Chapter)

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