Peter's final judgment became the last straw that broke the camel's back.
"Not qualified... I'm not qualified..."
Otto Parker muttered to himself, as if he had suddenly realized something. A flash of relief then crossed his eyes.
"You're right."
"I don't deserve to have Peter Parker's life, I don't deserve to have his body, and I don't deserve to carry the title of Spider-Man.
I should return all of this to that annoying guy!"
As he spoke, he stood up and stumbled toward the exit.
He was going to Peter Parker's lab to delete all of his memories from this body.
Everything should be returned to him.
However, he had only taken a couple of steps when a hand pressed down on his shoulder, forcibly stopping his movement.
Otto Parker looked up in bewilderment, meeting Peter's calm gaze.
"What... what else do you want?!"
Otto Parker almost roared, his voice filled with breakdown and confusion.
The Peter Parker before him had humiliated him and denied him; now, was he going to strip away even his right to choose death?!
"What's the rush?"
Peter snorted coldly and let go of his hand.
"I only said you aren't qualified to be Spider-Man."
"I never said you weren't qualified to be a good person, did I?"
Hearing this, Otto Parker froze.
Everyone in the office froze as well.
What did this mean?
Looking at the bewildered Otto Parker, Peter spoke with a calm expression:
"One thing at a time."
"It's true you're a hypocritical coward, but during this year you've occupied his body, you truly did have the intention of being a good person, didn't you?"
"Though your methods were still somewhat extreme, I think his memories have had a certain influence on you."
"So, tell me, Otto Octavius..."
"If one day, after you return this body to that guy, you had the chance to be reborn as yourself..."
"Would you choose to be a good person?"
Otto Parker—or rather, Otto—stood dazed on the spot.
He looked up at Peter.
In those eyes, there was no mockery or ridicule, only a calmness like a deep pool.
After a long while, he nodded with difficulty and solemnity.
"Very well."
"Since you have the heart to repent, I am willing to give you a chance."
"I will allow you to continue using this body for a short time to keep fighting in the Spider Alliance and to complete a clone of your original self!"
"You're a cunning fellow; you must have left a backup of your own memories in another Universe!"
"Once your new body is complete, I will allow you to use your memory backup and the new body to be resurrected."
"I can even use my methods to help you completely eliminate the mental influence caused by that experimental accident years ago."
"I will give you a chance to be a good person with dignity, with no excuses left."
A... chance to start over?
This thought was like a seed, quietly sprouting in Otto's desolate heart.
Finally, Otto gave his answer with a serious face:
"If I can start over, I promise I will be a good person!"
"Very well."
He snapped his fingers.
"Then it's a deal!"
Having said that, Peter looked toward the door and spoke:
"Hey, you lot eavesdropping outside, you can come in and talk now!"
As soon as Peter finished speaking, several sneaky figures appeared outside the lab.
It was Spider-Woman, Hawkeye, the Fantastic Four, and the others.
"I don't know how much you overheard, but from today on, you will be responsible for assisting and supervising him in completing the body cloning work."
...
After finalizing the decision to let Otto reform and using the horse talisman to help restore the battlefield broken from the previous fight with Thor, Peter and Gwen's multiverse adventure came to a temporary conclusion.
If possible, Peter naturally wanted to settle everything in one go and deal with those Inheritors.
But the problem was that the Spider Alliance had not yet mastered the technology to track their whereabouts.
So, even if Peter intended to teach those monsters a lesson, he couldn't strike immediately.
He could only passively wait for Otto Parker to complete the equipment upgrades, or... wait for them to jump out and seek their own deaths...
"If there's any breakthrough progress, or if any of you encounter those monsters, remember to contact me immediately."
In front of the open portal at the Spider Alliance headquarters, Peter waved goodbye to the group of Spider-fans.
"Don't worry, Boss, we'll definitely notify you if there's any news!"
The Little Spiders responded in unison, their voices loud and full of energy.
Watching Peter and Gwen disappear into the portal hand in hand, they felt the future was bright.
Following a boss like this, taking down those weird predator monsters would be a piece of cake!
...
Amidst shifting light and shadow, Peter and Gwen returned to the underground space where they were before the crossing.
Coming back to the surface and looking at the New York street scene—which clearly hadn't changed but felt strangely familiar—both felt as if a lifetime had passed.
"Whew..."
Gwen let out a long breath, then turned her head to look at Peter, her beautiful eyes filled with an inseparable tenderness and infatuation.
Noticing Gwen's expression, Peter's heart skipped a beat, and he asked tentatively:
"Things are settled. According to what you said before... go home?"
This cautious, tentative manner was a complete contrast to the commanding posture he had at the Spider Alliance headquarters.
Thinking that she was the only one who could see this huge contrast, Gwen couldn't help but giggle, while an endless sweetness surged in her heart.
In his heart, was she always number one...
It seemed he wasn't just sweet-talking her after all!
At this thought, Gwen, who had already made up her mind, stood on her tiptoes and proactively gave Peter a light peck on the lips before blushing and saying:
"Let's go. Grandma and Dad must be waiting anxiously."
Peter smiled, took her hand, and walked toward Gwen's house nearby.
After a warm dinner, George was called away by a phone call to handle official business.
Grandma Pauline domineeringly stated she wanted to watch TV in the living room and told them not to disturb an old woman's peace.
Thus, the two young people were "forced" to move to the bedroom.
Bang~
The moment the door closed, the ambiguous atmosphere quickly heated up.
Gwen felt somewhat at a loss for a moment.
Although she was the proactive one during their first experience not long ago, she had been influenced by the Symbiote then and was lightheaded, not as clear-headed as she was now.
Peter read her embarrassment, and his hands, as if equipped with GPS, automatically navigated to where they should go.
Mmm~
Gwen let out a low cry of surprise. Though her face was red enough to drip blood, she didn't make any move to stop him. Instead, she began to clumsily and shyly respond to Peter.
Looking at Gwen's shy yet welcoming appearance, Peter suddenly discovered another benefit of the crisis being resolved.
Because of Felicia's existence, the usually passive Gwen seemed to... be getting competitive!
An unknown amount of time passed before the twelve o'clock bell quietly rang.
Peter, who was sharing intimate words with Gwen afterward, was taken aback as a cold electronic voice rang out on time in his mind.
[Ding!]
[The System Mall has been refreshed. Welcome, Host, to browse and shop!]