Gwen Stacy froze mid-bite, though the other two at the table—besides Herman—failed to notice her sudden change.
After all, no parent would ever imagine that their sweet, obedient daughter might be hiding a secret of such magnitude from them.
Herman glanced at Gwen, a faint amusement flickering in his eyes.
Her reaction was honestly a bit too "jumpy." Still too young. No sense of composure at all.
"As a New Yorker, who doesn't know Spider-Man? He's our friendly neighborhood hero," Herman replied naturally to Officer George. Even without looking over, he could sense Gwen's nervous tension beside him.
In the timeline altered by the All-Seeing Eye, Gwen had never told anyone that she was Spider-Woman.
That, of course, included both her fiancé Herman and her parents.
Like many other superheroes, her decision made perfect sense—she clearly didn't want her family to worry.
Herman didn't mind, though. If Gwen wanted to keep it secret, he could pretend not to know. In fact, the situation was rather amusing to him. He even felt a little regret that his own fame was too great to ever hide his identity as a superhuman.
Otherwise, something like Mr. & Mrs. Smith might have been interesting—a story about two agents who hide their true identities, fall in love, and then accidentally end up assigned to eliminate each other.
"I know that guy who likes swinging between rooftops. I heard Spider-Man even helps old ladies cross the street," Gwen's mother said wistfully.
As she spoke, she noticed that most of the dishes on the table had been eaten. Picking up the large pot from the center, she smiled. "I'll go get you all some more curry chicken."
Dinner that night had been quite a feast.
Though the ingredients weren't particularly expensive, each dish was delicious. Even the Mapo Tofu—despite its rough presentation—was full of rich flavor. It was clear that Gwen's mother had put her heart into it. Herman thought it tasted more authentic than most Chinese restaurants in the U.S., with the signature numbing spice perfectly captured.
"Your chicken is wonderful, Mrs. Stacy," Herman complimented sincerely.
"Hahaha, I'm glad you like it," Gwen's mother replied cheerfully, beaming as she carried the pot back to the kitchen.
"What were we talking about just now? Right, Spider-Man."
Herman glanced at Gwen, who seemed to have relaxed a little. With a touch of mischief, he deliberately brought the topic back up, immediately making her tense again.
"Yes, Spider-Man. Herman, are you and Spider-Man… acquaintances?" Officer George asked, still oblivious to his daughter's discomfort with the name.
After speaking, he seemed to realize his tone might have sounded a bit interrogative, so he quickly added, "Just a bit of curiosity. I was wondering if superheroes like you have some sort of private social circle."
As Officer George spoke, Gwen sat stiffly beside Herman, her fork idly poking at her plate as she prayed for the conversation to end.
"Uh… superhero social circles? Maybe they exist, but I'm not aware of them," Herman replied smoothly. "Speaking of superheroes, though, I do know Tony Stark. We've crossed paths a few times. He's definitely someone who loves showing off."
He phrased it carefully—neither confirming nor denying any connection to Spider-Man—so technically, he wasn't lying.
And when Officer George referred to him as a "superhero," Herman didn't correct him. After all, he wanted to leave a good impression on Gwen's parents.
"No cop in New York likes that arrogant rich man, Stark," Officer George muttered with a frown.
Understandably so.
Before his change of heart, Tony Stark had been New York's most infamous playboy—a reckless troublemaker who constantly gave the police headaches.
"I don't like that playboy either. He's basically a walking teddy bear. I heard he even caught AIDS~," Gwen suddenly interjected, seizing the opportunity to steer the conversation away from Spider-Man with an outrageous rumor.
"Where did you hear that?"
Officer George immediately took the bait.
"Uh… I saw it on Twitter," Gwen replied nervously. Of course, she hadn't seen any such thing—she just wanted to shift the topic as fast as possible.
"Twitter's full of nonsense. Don't believe what you read there," Officer George said, his tone carrying an odd hint of disappointment.
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Gwen nodded obediently.
With her goal achieved, she happily resumed eating.
Herman, ever considerate, didn't tease her further.
However...
"Yeah, Herman, have you seen the white Spider-Man? Lately there's been more than one Spider-Man active in New York. I'm starting to suspect Spider-Man might actually be some kind of military experiment."
If Officer George weren't Gwen Stacy's father, she would've been silently cursing him out by now.
The moment he opened his mouth, he managed to steer the conversation straight back to Spider-Man.
And not just that—he'd brought up the white-suited Spider-Man. Gwen's heart nearly stopped.
White Spider-Man?
Wasn't that clearly referring to her—Ghost-Spider?
"I've heard of it," Herman said calmly.
He could hear Gwen's heartbeat spike—after a brief pause, it shot up to nearly two hundred beats per minute.
Suppressing a smirk, he responded earnestly, "My colleagues and I believe that one's probably a woman."
Since it was Gwen's father who'd raised the topic, Herman couldn't exactly be blamed for stoking the flames. He was just telling the truth—how could anyone accuse him of ill intent?
"Hmm, that matches our department's assessment. The white Spider-Man is likely a Spider-Woman," Officer George said with a sigh. "Who knows how many more might appear in the future? Having so many people acting above the law isn't exactly a good thing."
"Of course, Herman, I don't mean you," George added quickly, worried Herman might take it the wrong way. "I know you deal with much bigger matters…"
"Has this Spider-Woman been active a lot lately?" Herman asked casually, pretending not to notice how tense his fiancée had become.
"Much more than the previous Spider-Man. Probably because she's new—there's still a sense of novelty about her," George replied, his expression turning weary. "We used to only have one Spider-Man to track. Now there are two. The new Spider-Woman even has counter-surveillance capabilities—we can't pin down her activity range or track her movements at all."
Counter-surveillance skills, huh?
That's entirely thanks to you, Herman thought, barely holding back his laughter.
"Why are you investigating Spider-Man anyway?" Gwen finally couldn't keep quiet. She looked at her father in confusion. "Both Spider-Men are doing good deeds—helping the weak and fighting criminals. It's not like anyone's been hurt by them, right?"
She was clearly trying to defend herself.
"You're a Spider-Man fan too?" George asked in surprise. He'd never once heard his daughter mention Spider-Man at home before.
"Huh?"
Gwen's face turned slightly red. "Of course not! I just… heard my friends say good things about Spider-Man—especially the white one. She only showed up recently, but a lot of young people already see her as an idol."
In a different place, with different company, Gwen might've said that proudly.
Her popularity really was catching up to the other Spider-Man.
It wasn't just because of her striking appearance—her work ethic played a huge part. She spent far more hours patrolling the city than Peter Parker ever did. Herman, of course, was one of the few who knew that.
Even though Aunt May's job and salary were great, Peter still clung to his old habits, juggling three or four part-time jobs at once.
As a workaholic, he simply had less time for superhero duties than Gwen.
"Young lady, what young people like isn't always what's right," George said in a serious tone, slipping into his fatherly lecture mode. "Vigilantes aren't real police. If people can break the law just because they're doing good, how can the justice system keep its authority?"
It was a valid question—and one that explained why, in the original timeline, Tony Stark pushed so hard for the Avengers to come under government oversight.
Tony wasn't exactly a rule-follower, but as he matured, he began to recognize the flaws other heroes ignored—like the importance of maintaining public trust in the law.
The very thing Officer George was talking about now.
"But…"
Gwen hesitated. Raised in a family of police officers, she understood her father's point perfectly well. She wanted to defend Spider-Man, to argue back—but for a moment, she couldn't find the words.
Could she honestly say Spider-Man had never done anything wrong? Gwen could only guarantee she hadn't.
She understood the logic. Even if both Spider-Men only did good things, if vigilantes kept multiplying, chaos would follow. No one could guarantee that every so-called hero acted without selfish motives.
In truth, if too many people started taking justice into their own hands, it was inevitable that some would exploit it for their own gain.
That was simply human nature—the dark side that could never be erased.
"If superheroes can disregard the law under the banner of justice, then the word 'superhero' will eventually become a shield for criminals to hide behind."
Herman agreed with Officer George's statement.
"You think so too? Then The Boys was really meant to be about the credibility of the justice system, wasn't it?"
Officer George's face lit up with satisfaction.
"..."
How was Herman supposed to respond to that? All he could do was smile and nod politely. Honestly, he couldn't understand why filming The Boys in the Marvel Universe had somehow turned it into a philosophical debate on par with Hamlet.
A thousand people, a thousand interpretations of The Boys. Was this what it meant to live in a universe full of "creative geniuses"?
Terrifying.
"If you ever found Spider-Man—the white one—would you arrest her?" Gwen asked softly, her tone uncertain.
Still, she didn't feel she had done anything wrong.
"Looks like you really like the white Spider-Man, huh? Makes sense. A female superhero must be quite inspiring for young girls."
Officer George chuckled, thinking he'd perfectly read his daughter's mind.
He didn't suspect a thing and continued casually, "Actually, whether it's the white Spider-Man or the first one, we're not letting either of them off. I've already drafted a detailed plan for the team at the station."
When he mentioned his plan, a look of pride crossed his face.
He'd earned his current position through wit and strategy, creating one clever plan after another that helped him crack major cases and earn commendations.
"Munch munch"
Herman quietly popped a piece of chicken into his mouth. Judging from George's tone, he couldn't help but wonder what kind of priceless expression the man would make if he found out the so-called white Spider-Man was sitting right there at the table.
"A plan? Dad, what kind of plan? I mean, come on—it's Spider-Man. How could your old methods work on someone who can swing across skyscrapers?" Gwen asked with feigned curiosity.
In truth, she was fishing for information—playing the role of an inquisitive daughter so she could prepare for whatever "plan" her father was cooking up.
"For people like that, ordinary tactics won't do… but that's not going to stop me," George replied confidently, completely unaware of her true intentions.
He'd always been open about his work with his family and saw no reason to hold back now. He began explaining in detail, oblivious that his daughter was hanging on every word—not as a concerned listener, but as someone analyzing and counter-planning every move.
"Munch munch (Good stuff)~"
Herman didn't interrupt. Instead, he turned his attention toward the TV in the dining room. Because of George's profession, he needed to stay updated on breaking news, so the TV was always on during meals.
Gwen's mother didn't like watching the news—too afraid of hearing about something bad happening to her husband—but for George, it was simply part of the job.
"We've also been analyzing the combat patterns of both Spider-Men," George continued proudly. "We've already figured out how to subdue them."
"What kind of method?" Gwen asked quickly.
"You actually want to hear about this?"
"Of course! It's Spider-Man we're talking about. I'm curious how you plan to deal with them—especially the white Spider-Woman."
...
The father and daughter's exchange seemed perfectly wholesome on the surface.
A loving father, an attentive daughter.
George explained his theories with enthusiasm, while Gwen nodded intently, soaking up every word. Her counter-surveillance knowledge grew by the minute.
After all, this was insider information straight from the police commissioner himself.
Her "experience points" were skyrocketing.
Gwen was a quick learner—sharp and adaptive. In just this short conversation, she was already gaining insights that would later leave the NYPD baffled, wondering how the white Spider-Man always seemed one step ahead of them.
"This is wild," Herman thought to himself, glancing at George, who was gesturing animatedly as if telling a bedtime story.
He could almost picture the future: Gwen's identity exposed, George facing an internal investigation, and eventually being dragged to court on charges of "aiding and abetting."
All Herman could do was sigh inwardly.
Gwen Stacy's move was truly next-level.
"Even Kaito Kid would call her a professional," he thought with amusement, pretending to watch the TV.
Not even the Phantom Thief himself would dare pull something like this. And if Kid's identity were ever exposed, the worst he'd lose was a potential father-in-law.
But Gwen Stacy? She was sabotaging her own dad.
Now that was next-level betrayal—like a cozy little cotton jacket full of holes, letting a Category 8 tornado blow right through.
...
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