Chapter 33: Fight the Landlord! Kill Indiscriminately! Super Spider Sense!
[Agent Moore, after investigating for so long, you've only reached these obvious conclusions? I'm starting to doubt your abilities.]
[Hill, don't talk to me in that tone!]
Barbara snapped back through the communicator.
[Oh my God! Do you have any idea what it feels like to be chased relentlessly by lightning?]
[No! You don't!]
[I swear, I'm going to die of frustration!]
Hill remained calm. [So, according to you, Skye has awakened some kind of special power—the ability to control lightning?]
Barbara exhaled sharply. [It seems highly likely.]
[Let's put that aside for now. A Lizard Man has been spotted at Midtown High School again.]
[You're one of the closest agents. If it's convenient, go check it out and gather information.]
Barbara groaned. [Inconvenient! I just got into my disguise and arrived at the club entrance!]
[Well then, good luck with your investigation,] Hill replied, clearly unfazed, before ending the call.
SHIELD wouldn't waste too many resources on minor incidents like the Lizard Man appearing in New York City.
"Well, I should be able to find something useful by sneaking into the club," Barbara muttered to herself.
She pulled out a small compact mirror, checking her appearance.
After confirming she looked like an ordinary student, she gave herself a quick pep talk. "Alright, Barbara, you've got this!"
---
"Hello? Is anyone here?"
A soft female voice called from outside the club.
Hearing this, the chubby boy Ned's eyes lit up. He excitedly rushed to the door, cracked it open, and peeked outside.
A girl was standing there with a friendly smile.
She wore trendy sportswear, her long golden hair tied into two ponytails, with a white baseball cap tilted slightly to the side. She looked fresh, youthful, and effortlessly stylish.
"Oh! Hello, beautiful lady!"
Ned quickly swung the door wide open, greeting her enthusiastically. "Of course, we're open! Are you looking to join the club?"
Barbara wasn't in a rush to state her purpose. Instead, she casually asked, "Is Jessica Ye in the club?"
"You a fan of the 'Knight Girl'?" Ned scratched his head. "That's really unfortunate… She and Gwen just left."
"Is that so…?"
Barbara pondered for a moment before asking, "What about Ethan Lee and Corey Sutter—Skye? Are they here?"
"They sure are."
Ned pointed eagerly inside, afraid the new girl might leave. "Look over there!"
Barbara followed his gaze and saw—
Ethan Lee slapping two poker cards onto the table. "Pair of twos!"
Skye frowned at the great hand she still held. "Seriously…?"
This didn't make sense. With her hacker-level analytical skills, how was she losing every single game?
Meanwhile, Ethan was grinning.
Super Spider Sense was proving incredibly useful. Winning at cards was a breeze. Maybe he should take a trip to Las Vegas sometime…
"Airplane!"
"Straight flush!"
"Royal flush!"
With Ethan's relentless onslaught, the poor "farmers" Skye and Mary Jane were completely overwhelmed by the ruthless "landlord." Another loss.
"Ugh!"
Skye glared at the leftover cards in her hand, feeling her pride take a hit.
She turned to Mary Jane. "Jane, we can't let Ethan be the landlord next round! If he is, we'll never win!"
Well… if you can't beat them, join them. If she was on Ethan's team, at least she could sit back and relax.
Ethan shuffled the deck effortlessly and then pointed at his cheek. "Alright, time to pay up."
Mary Jane smirked.
She leaned in and planted a light kiss on Ethan's face.
The two weren't romantically involved, but in the U.S., a friendly peck wasn't a big deal—it just added a bit of fun to the game.
No one thought much of it.
But when it was Skye's turn, she hesitated, then leaned in to kiss Ethan's other cheek—only for him to point at his lips instead. "Kiss here, Skye."
"Huh? Why?" Skye blinked.
Ethan winked. "Because you're special."
"Heh, Gwen and Jessica just left, and you're already this bold~"
Despite her teasing, Skye was clearly pleased. She leaned in and gave Ethan a quick kiss on the lips.
Ned, who had been watching this entire exchange, was practically gnawing on an imaginary lemon out of jealousy.
He wanted to play a game like this, too!
Too bad…
No one wanted to play it with him.
Peter?
Ha! He couldn't even imagine that scenario.
…Speaking of which, where was Peter, anyway? He'd been missing all day—same as Harry.
According to the news, a Lizard Man had appeared at the school.
Ned suddenly felt a pang of worry for his best friend.
Just then, Barbara stepped forward with a friendly smile. "Hey, mind if I join this game?"
This was a perfect opportunity to get closer to them.
It was just a poker game, after all.
With her extensive knowledge of espionage and deception, she had already figured out how to play just from watching for a few minutes.
She was confident she could beat Ethan Lee.
Ethan looked at her and raised an eyebrow.
Oh?
Well, well, well…
If it wasn't Barbara.
She looked a lot younger than he remembered.
"If it's a beautiful lady asking, of course, you're welcome~"
Ethan didn't mind at all.
After all, four players made the game even more interesting.
---
Scene Shift: Twenty Minutes Earlier
Midtown High School
In the thick green foliage, a shadow moved—its emerald scales blending seamlessly with the surrounding bushes.
A pair of pale yellow, slit-like pupils gleamed coldly in the darkness.
"Thompson…"
The voice slithered out like a hiss.
"Let's see where you're hiding…"