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[Frog] Chapter 168: I'm Not Interested in Money
🕑 Added 2024-11-20 18:07:57 +0000 UTC"Emperor?"
Hearing Anna's question, Gwen was also stunned as she looked at Alan. In her memory, every time Emperor appeared, Alan was always at home. Moreover, it was always Gwen who told Alan about Emperor. To Gwen, the only connection between Alan and Emperor was herself.
Why was Anna asking this?
Alan also feigned a look of surprise, gazing at Anna with confusion. "Cousin Anna, who is this 'Emperor' you’re talking about? A new superhero?"
At the moment, Emperor had not yet been fully exposed to the public. Only some higher authorities were aware of his existence. Thus, Alan pretended not to know Emperor at all.
Anna was also taken aback by this reaction. She originally thought Alan would simply deny any connection to Emperor. She hadn’t expected him to go this far and outright claim ignorance!
Next to him, Gwen, seeing Alan's reaction, suddenly realized something. Gwen didn’t know Emperor personally—only Spider-Woman did.
"Yeah, Cousin Anna, who is this Emperor? Is he a superhero like Spider-Woman?"
Since Anna's attention was entirely on Alan, she didn't notice Gwen’s subtle expressions. However, Anna found herself at a loss for words. If Alan had only denied having any connection to Emperor, she could have pressed on, searching for flaws in his words to probe further into their relationship.
But Alan’s complete denial left her without an angle.
Now, the situation flipped: Alan and Gwen were asking her questions instead.
Anna could only press on awkwardly. "Last night, I was attacked at the apartment. You both know about that, right?"
Alan and Gwen nodded in unison.
"Uncle George called me this morning," Alan said. "He mentioned that it was an attack by the mutant Magneto, and my place needed to be under investigation for a few days as the crime scene."
"When I brought breakfast to My Dad this morning, he told me about it too," Gwen added.
Alan's watertight response was supported smoothly by Gwen, who chimed in, "Exactly."
Seeing the two of them act in perfect harmony, Anna continued, "Later, Emperor came to my rescue. I just thought it was strange how he appeared so quickly near your place, Alan. That's why I wondered if there was some connection."
Anna didn't mention her true reason for suspecting Alan—the fact that Magneto's attack had targeted him specifically. Despite being saved twice by this mysterious superhero, Anna realized she knew almost nothing about him. Early that morning, she had already begun leveraging her network to investigate Emperor and Magneto.
By the afternoon, after compiling all the information, Anna found one suspicious detail: before his death, Magneto had planned and executed all his actions targeting Alan. However, just as he began, he was killed by Emperor. Years of investigative experience and a keen sixth sense told Anna there had to be some kind of special connection between Alan and Emperor. But without further evidence, she decided to ask outright.
Unfortunately, she didn’t get anything.
In Gwen's view, Anna being attacked by Magneto could be either revenge from a past case or a precaution against Anna’s formidable investigative skills.
"Maybe Emperor just happened to be nearby," Alan said, though he secretly admired Anna’s sharp investigative instincts. Just from minor details, she had inferred a potential link between him and Emperor. As expected of a world-class detective.
"Cousin Anna, I think you were just too tired last night. Why don’t you rest up?" Gwen said with a caring smile, though deep inside she was feeling a bit nervous. She was terrified that Anna might discover something related to her connection with Spider-Woman. That would be a huge problem.
Interpreting Gwen’s comment as her offering a way out of an awkward situation, Anna agreed, "You’re probably right. The recent cases and Magneto’s attack have been making my head spin. I should rest and prepare for my trip to Germany to unwind."
With that, Anna stood up from the couch and walked back to her room. "By the way, Alan, do you know what my favorite feature of your new house is?"
"What is it?"
"The bath in the room. I absolutely love soaking in the tub."
Gwen laughed, "Me too, Cousin Anna. It feels amazing to soak in there."
"Oh? Really?" Anna said with a teasing tone, "Have the two of you ever soaked in there together?"
The question, full of innuendo, was directed at Gwen.
In an instant, Gwen's fair skin turned an intense shade of red as she shyly exclaimed, "Of course... of course not..."
"What are you talking about, Cousin Anna?"
Seeing Gwen's embarrassed expression, Anna covered her mouth and laughed as she walked back into her room.
Watching Gwen's flustered reaction made Alan chuckle as he stepped closer to her.
"Gwen,"
Alan's voice whispered in her ear, snapping Gwen out of her daze. "Ah... what?"
"Is something wrong, Alan?"
"I think Cousin Anna is right."
Gwen blinked in surprise. "What do you mean, Anna is right?"
"Taking a bath together!"
"Alan, you're so annoying."
"I'm not talking to you anymore. It's getting late."
"If I don't go home soon, Mom will start worrying again."
With her face flushed from Alan's teasing, Gwen quickly ran into the small room.
Once inside, she pressed her watch and changed into her spider suit, then swung away on her web.
Alan watched her retreating figure and then glanced in the direction of Anna's room.
"That really wasn't a bad idea."
"Next time, I'll join Gwen."
As Gwen swung away, her mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, occasionally drifting to the memory of Alan's perfectly sculpted body from his training.
"No, no, I can't let Alan take advantage of me!"
Then Gwen reconsidered, "But if Alan can make an even stronger suit next time..."
"Maybe... it wouldn’t be so bad..."
"Yes! That’s it!"
"I’ll think of it as a reward for Alan."
"This suit is already powerful, so it shouldn’t be too soon for an upgrade."
With these thoughts, Gwen swung on her web back home.
Suddenly, Gwen felt something, stopping atop a building and gazing into the distance.
"Red Queen, is there anything over in that direction?"
The Red Queen, using the suit's visor, scanned the area quickly and replied, "There’s nothing, Miss Gwen."
"Perhaps your spider-sense is being overly sensitive and reacting to minor energy fluctuations."
"What kind of energy fluctuation?"
The Red Queen responded, "It could be a short circuit or a brief chemical reaction."
"Anything is possible."
"But such minor energy fluctuations shouldn’t pose any issue."
Gwen thought for a moment and, after staying in place for a while to make sure nothing happened, swung away again.
The direction Gwen had been looking was precisely where Oscorp Industries stood.
Inside Norman's lab,
Norman, now transformed into the Green Goblin, knelt respectfully on one knee.
The only one who could command such reverence was Mephisto.
Shrouded in smoke, Mephisto stood before Norman, holding the ethereal image of a blue stone in his hand.
"Do you understand, Green Goblin?"
Mephisto asked.
The Green Goblin bowed his head and respectfully replied, "Yes, master."
"Use the power of spatial travel to lure the Emperor away from Earth."
"Defeat him in outer space."
"But master..."
Mephisto's expression darkened at the Goblin's hesitation. "Hmm? Is there a problem?"
"Master, with the Emperor's abilities,"
"Even in outer space, I may not be his match."
"If it comes to that, I would need your assistance..."
Mephisto scoffed, "Of course, I know that. If you were a match for him, I wouldn't have to go to such lengths."
"It's precisely because you're so useless that I have to intervene personally."
"Forgive me, master."
Seeing the Goblin's earnest apology, Mephisto let it go with a sigh. "Besides, I may not need to step in."
"Whether he can even survive in space is still a question."
Mephisto smirked darkly. In this universe, only certain powerful beings could endure the void of space.
Apart from some extraordinarily strong species, only the gods could.
Mephisto was confident that the Emperor was neither of those.
So whether the Emperor perished at his hands or succumbed to the harshness of space,
it remained an open question.
To Mephisto, the only certainty was that the Emperor would ultimately fall,
becoming fuel for his power.
The Green Goblin glanced at the blue image in Mephisto's hand with malice, murmuring, "Emperor!"
"All the humiliation I suffered that day—I will return it to you!"
Sensing the Goblin's hatred, Mephisto sent the image of the stone drifting outward.
Slowly, he pressed the mark onto the Green Goblin's chest.
"Remember, if you encounter the Emperor, just lure him in."
"Do not reveal this power in front of others, or you might be destroyed before meeting the Emperor."
"If that person finds you, even I won't be able to save you!"
Listening to Mephisto's warning, the Green Goblin solemnly responded, "Understood, Master."
"I will not disappoint you and will lead the Emperor to the outer space."
Mephisto nodded, transforming into a cloud of blood-red smoke as he disappeared from the scene.
Only after Mephisto left did the Green Goblin dare to stand up, smugly touching the blue mark on his chest.
"Emperor, I can't wait to meet you."
The thought of being repeatedly cut down dozens of times by the Emperor filled the Green Goblin's heart with fear.
But now, with the new power Mephisto had granted him, that fear was temporarily suppressed.
He even felt eager to see the Emperor again.
…The next morning…
At Alan’s house.
Anna was enjoying her breakfast in a good mood.
It had been a rare night where she slept soundly until dawn, waking up to a delicious breakfast.
At that moment, Anna understood why Gwen frequently came over.
Living at Alan’s place was simply an indulgence.
If not for the numerous tasks she had to handle, she would have wanted to stay longer.
Alan’s cooking skills alone were enough to make it worthwhile.
"Alan, let's discuss something," Anna said, as Alan, who was also having breakfast, wondered what new idea she had in mind. He responded, "Cousin Anna, just say it directly."
"Here's the thing: from now on, when I return to New York, I'll just stay here at your place."
"Of course, I won’t stay for free."
"I’ll pay rent annually."
"How about it?"
Anna looked at Alan expectantly, hoping for his agreement.
Alan smiled, "So how much are you planning to pay me, Cousin Anna?"
Anna thought for a moment, then held up one finger and said, "Ten thousand dollars a year."
"Deal!"
Alan extended his hand, shaking hers.
For a brief moment, Anna felt as though she’d been taken advantage of, but thinking about the luxurious room, the delicious meals, and the warmth still lingering in Alan’s palm…
Anna subtly pulled her hand back and said cheerfully, "So it’s settled. From now on, when I come back to New York, you’ll drive to the airport to pick me up."
"And that room is mine."
Alan replied, "In our agreement just now, I don’t recall a clause about picking someone up, right?"
"Ten thousand dollars! Come on, man!"
"It’s not a lot for you, but it’s quite a bit for me."
"Even luxury hotels offer pickup services."
Alan nodded, conceding her point. "Alright, if I’m free, I’ll pick you up."
"If I’m not, I'll have Red Queen pick you up."
"Red Queen? She can drive?"
Anna glanced at the corner of the table, and the holographic projection of Red Queen appeared, explaining, "I can directly control my master’s car system."
"Achieving a driverless experience."
Red Queen’s intelligence level once again shattered Anna’s expectations.
"Alan, are you really not planning to make Red Queen’s source code public?"
"With an AI this advanced, I can assure you that there is nothing else like Red Queen in the world."
"If you did, you could make money just sitting at home."
Alan considered this. Even without making Red Queen’s source code public, money would still flow into his pockets continuously.
Why go through the trouble?
But to convince Anna, Alan recalled a particularly showy line from a past-life billionaire.
Wiping his mouth after finishing his noodles, Alan smiled and said, "Your proposal is quite tempting, very convincing."
Anna, naturally, nodded with a touch of pride.
As an expert in psychology, she was confident in her ability to understand human nature.
After all, who doesn’t love money?
"But as for me, to be honest…"
"I’m not interested in money…"
…
