7:30 PM
Lorien helped the two won out slowly.
Gwen held the Power Stone, but her Symbiote armor could swallow it and treat it as part of her equipnt. Wanda, on the other hand, had temporarily turned the Mind Stone into a necklace and hung it around her neck. This way, both Infinity Stones were effectively in an equipped state, ready for use at any ti.
Once the two had changed into their pajamas, Lorien helped them to the recliners in the Little Universe. Of course, it wasn’t one chair per person. Lorien lay in the middle, with Wanda and Gwen half-leaning against him on either side, their heads resting on his shoulders.
Do you understand the feeling of having two soft, warm, and fragrant bodies lying in your arms? Why would anyone push that away?
Breathing in the faint fragrance from their hair, Lorien took a deep, blissful breath and exhaled in satisfaction. At the sa ti, his fingers traced along their waists and hips, feeling their smooth, delicate skin.
"Pervert."
Wanda’s face flushed red as she rested her head against Lorien’s chest, her eyes drifting to the moon hanging in the sky of the Little Universe.
"Bad guy."
Gwen reacted differently. She gave Lorien a playful bite.
"Ow~!"
"Hiss..."
Lorien drew in a sharp breath that didn’t hurt at all, then nudged Gwen’s head with his chin.
"If you don’t behave, I’ll punish you on the spot."
The mont she heard "punished on the spot," Gwen instantly panicked, covering the spot where she had just bitten him.
Wanda smiled at the sight, then decided to stir things up.
"Gwen, weren’t you always so proud? Keep going..."
Before she could finish, Lorien—hearing exactly what she was up to—reached out and grabbed her.
Wanda imdiately surrendered.
"I’m sorry, Lorien!"
Hearing her apology, Lorien released her. Wanda finally relaxed and let out a long breath.
"Still daring to stir things up? Who taught you that?"
"I won’t dare anymore... I just learned it from a TV show..."
Gwen giggled at Wanda’s flustered expression.
"See? That’s what happens when you ss around, hehe~"
Although she said that, Gwen admitted Wanda wasn’t wrong. She was afraid too.
In the eyes of ordinary people, there are no ruined fields, only oxen that collapse from overwork. But in Lorien’s case, there are no oxen that collapse, only fields that are endlessly plowed. And this ox... was a beast among beasts.
Tell , wouldn’t you be afraid?
...
After their playful bickering, the three of them held each other close, enjoying the evening breeze of the Little Universe and gazing at its moon.
The Little Universe belonged to Lorien, yet it still existed within this universe. Since he had anchored it on Earth, its projection and the Earth-Moon orbit simulated the surrounding cosmic environnt.
If Lorien were to place the Little Universe beside the sun, one side would be in eternal daylight, while the other would remain in perpetual darkness—because the Little Universe did not rotate.
With that thought, Lorien turned his gaze to the garden and orchard before him. Thanks to Wanda and Gwen’s efforts, the garden had expanded to several hundred square ters, now blooming with flowers. For so reason, perhaps due to the soil and environnt, the flowers here hardly withered at all, as if they never faded.
anwhile, the fruit trees Gwen had planted had sprouted tender buds and new branches, aning nearly all of them had taken root successfully. Judging by the growth rate of the Little Universe, it would only take a few cycles—maybe just one or two months—before the trees matured and bore fruit. Then, they could enjoy fresh, juicy harvests.
Ah~~~ how comfortable.
Watching the flowers bloom and fall in the courtyard, gazing at the clouds gather and scatter across the horizon, Lorien hugged the two won close and closed his eyes for a short rest.
But just then, Gwen spoke.
"Lorien, you’re off work tomorrow, right?"
Lorien nodded with his eyes still closed.
"Yeah, why?"
"Then I’ll go ho tonight and tell Mom and George. Tomorrow at noon, you can co over for lunch."
Lorien thought about it.
"Alright, tomorrow at noon then."
"Hehe, you’re the best~"
Overjoyed, Gwen snuggled closer into his arms. Wanda, half-leaning against him as well, happened to et her gaze.
But there was no rivalry in their eyes—only shared happiness, warmth, and contentnt.
...
But then.
The mischievous Gwen suddenly rembered sothing. She looked up to check if Lorien still had his eyes closed.
After confirming he did, she glanced at Wanda and signaled with her eyes to look down.
Wanda lowered her gaze—and saw Gwen’s little hands moving sneakily, like a thief at work.
Hiss~~~
Lorien felt his heart jolt. How could he not react? His head instantly spun!
But just as he tried to sit up, Gwen pressed him back down.
"This ti you can’t move. You have to act like a patient who’s paralyzed everywhere... except here."
"...."
Fine! If I can’t move, then I won’t move!
Lorien leaned back comfortably into the chair, eyes still closed. But even without looking, he could still use his psychic power as his eyes.
Ha, sa thing!
Through his ntal perception, he saw Gwen maintaining the sniper rifle.
Weapon maintenance was a ticulous and tedious task that required patience. The first step was applying gun oil—the most important and ti-consuming part.
Gwen couldn’t manage it alone. A sniper rifle was so long, with countless parts that needed attention. So she looked at Wanda, signaling her to help.
Wanda hesitated for a mont. She glanced at Lorien, who was still resting with his eyes closed. Then, curiosity getting the better of her, she stepped forward to join in.
The two divided the work, each handling part of the rifle.
As everyone knows, maintenance is a technical job. Keeping a sword in shape ans wiping, grinding, and even polishing. For motorcycles or cars, it’s changing the oil, washing, buffing, and so on.
Haven’t you heard the saying, "Sharpening a blade at the last minute makes it neither sharp nor bright"? Careful upkeep always pays off.
...
No one knew how much ti had passed.
Gurgle~~~
Once the weapon maintenance was finished, Gwen acted as if nothing unusual had happened. She bounced a few steps away, waving her hand.
"I’ll head back first, Lorien. I’ll co pick you up tomorrow at noon to take you to my place. See you."
Lorien let out a long breath.
"See you."
Huuu~~~
After Gwen left, Lorien was just about to get up—
"Wait."
He was suddenly stopped by Wanda.
"Hm?"
Lorien turned to look at her.
"What’s wrong?"
Wanda glanced at Gwen’s lively retreating figure, then at the cheerful expression on Lorien’s face. She pursed her lips, then began tying up her hair as she spoke.
"Clean yourself up with a snap first."
Lorien froze for a second. But seeing her tie her hair—who wouldn’t understand what she ant?
He imdiately snapped his fingers.
Snap~
In an instant, the area beca the cleanest place in the universe.
And right after that, the substitute stepped in.
Lorien reached out, gently touched her head, and gave her a bit of encouragent.
Then he turned into a—
"Hiss..."
Today was one of the happiest days ever.
Well, one of them.
...
anwhile, on the other side.
After changing her clothes, Gwen went downstairs and skipped along the road like any ordinary girl heading ho. She wore black fitted pants, a jacket that was white on the outside and pink inside, and a pair of teal Sony Bluetooth headphones over her head, listening to music. She walked happily, humming as she went.
To save ti, she cut through a few backstreets where almost no one ever walked. The streetlights there were old, and the city couldn’t be bothered to replace them. After all, swapping out hundreds of lights would cost millions—who could bear that? Over ti, these streets had beco deserted.
Gwen passed through several of them without incident. She was still humming with her headphones on, bouncing lightly with each step. But the next mont, a prickle of unease made her glance toward an alley ahead.
Bang! Bang bang!
Sure enough. First ca the muffled shots of a silenced pistol.
Clack clack clack~
Then ca the sound of footsteps—one person running in front, several chasing behind.
"Die, Walters! The boss knew you’d co to that bitch’s house! We’ve been waiting here just to catch you on the way out!"
"Don’t run, big-shot lawyer! I’ll send you to hell to practice law there! Hahahaha!"
The shouts, curses, and gunfire drew closer, the group charging right toward Gwen.
She smiled, slipped off her headphones, and pulled down her hood.
"Overti, huh~"
"Seriously, I just ate, and now I have to exercise."
Just then, voices rang out again from the alley.
"You scum! I’ll make sure every last one of you rots in prison!"
"What? Prison? Isn’t that just a retirent ho?"
"Hahaha, counselor, we only go to private prisons! Life in there’s better than outside!"
In the next instant, the black-and-white Symbiote suit spread across Gwen’s body. She strode forward toward the commotion.
The mont she stepped out, she collided with Jennifer Walters, who had nearly collapsed from exhaustion while fleeing. Jen was already on the verge of passing out.
She didn’t even look up, but upon realizing she had bumped into a woman, she gasped out urgently,
"Run! They’re gangsters! Go to the police station and call the cops!"
But the next second—
Screeching footsteps skidded to a halt behind her. One man couldn’t stop in ti and crashed to the ground with a heavy thud.
Then ca the panicked voices.
"Sp... Spider-Woman, what do we do?"
"Shoot! Fire at Spider-Woman!"
Clearly, this gang wasn’t the type to back down. They trusted the guns in their hands.
Gwen, determined to protect Jen, made the first move.
With a flick of her hand, several pink-and-white darts shot out.
Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!
Each one struck the gunn in their arms.
"Ahhhh!!!"
The alley erupted with screams.
Gwen had been enjoying her music earlier, and now these cries grated on her nerves. Irritated, she considered using the gem Lorien had given her.
Thinking this, she stepped into the center of the fallen gang mbers. The Power Stone floated into her palm. She clenched her fist.
Boom!
A pulse of violet energy burst outward, dropping every gangster instantly into unconsciousness.
It was over in a flash. Her thrown darts returned to her body, reabsorbed by the Symbiote suit.
Jen, still catching her breath, had seen everything.
Realizing it was Spider-Woman, she said gratefully,
"Thank you, Spider-Woman. Otherwise, I’d be finished."
Gwen just waved it off casually. She grabbed a fallen gangster’s phone, dialed 911, and handed it to Jen.
"Huh?"
Still dazed, Jen accepted the phone—already connected to ergency services.
By the ti she looked up, Gwen had leapt away to the rooftops.
"Hello, this is 911 ergency—"
"Ah, I’m on XX Street in New York. There’s a gang here, with guns, and—"
"Understood. Officers are on their way to your location. Please wait sowhere safe."
"Wait—I’m fine. But all the gang mbers are unconscious. I don’t know if they’re dead or not."
"...Alright. Officers will be there shortly."
"Okay, I’ll wait nearby."
...
anwhile, Gwen had already put her headphones back on, strolling down the street as if nothing had happened. With the music playing in her ears, she pulled out her phone and sent a ssage to Lorien.
[Gwen: Just took down another gang. These guys never end, like flies.]
Inside the northern skyscraper, Lorien glanced at the ssage on his phone. Then he looked toward Wanda, who was still practicing diligently below. He guided her rhythm with his hands, pushing her to challenge the limits of "Deep."
So he could only reply using his mind.
[Lorien: Hmm... not bad. But that’s the way it is. Even if this gang is gone, new ones will always take their place. We can suppress them, but never wipe them out completely.]
[Gwen: Alright, I get it. I was just sighing over how dark this world still is. If only there was a little less of it.]
[Lorien: Darkness won’t disappear. Even if it lessened in this universe, it would still exist in others. It’s the inevitable byproduct of human society.]
[Gwen: Other universes?! Are they like ours? Would there be another ?]
[Lorien: Not exactly. At the very least, you, , and Wanda are unique. There are also the Twin Dancers and Fridge Nora. You’ll et them one day—believe .]
[Gwen: Alright, I get it. But sothing feels off with you. Don’t tell you’re bullying Wanda?]
Cough cough.
Reading that ssage, Lorien’s hand unconsciously tightened.
Wuuu~!
Wanda’s throat imdiately tensed, and she quickly slapped at his hand. Lorien let go right away. Wanda glared at him through watery eyes.
"Cough, cough... sorry."
He apologized first. After Wanda resud practice, he replied.
[Lorien: Yeah, I was just bullying Wanda, almost made her cry.]
[Gwen: Crying? That weak? Heh, I can control every muscle in my body. She can’t compete with .]
Lorien couldn’t help but feel a headache coming on.
[Lorien: You can’t put it that way. You’re strong, Gwen, but Wanda’s working hard to catch up.]
[Gwen: Hmph. She’ll never catch up to no matter how much she studies. Wanda only looks tough—deep down she’s fragile. Anyway, I’m ho. I’ll tell you more tomorrow. Bye.]
[Lorien: Sigh... bye.]
Gwen read his final "bye," then shut off her phone and stepped into her family’s small townhouse.
"Mom, I’m back~. Where’s George? I have sothing to tell you both."
...
(50 Chapters Ahead)
/PinkSnake
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