Chapter 1067: Morning Chat at New York Radio Station (Part 1) (Patreon)

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Stark held the oversized sandwich that Schiller had just made, taking a big bite. He frowned deeply, emitting a "gulp, gulp" sound until Schiller handed him a cup of water. Stark raised the cup to his mouth and gulped it down for a while before managing to swallow the piece of bread that had choked him.

Taking a breath, Stark said, "I can't believe it, almost choked to death by a sandwich!"

Thor opened his mouth, taking two big bites of his sandwich. After finishing, he used a napkin to wipe the salad dressing off his beard, then picked up the bowl, like a basin, and poured the remaining half-bowl of salad into his mouth.

Eddie sat on the sofa, eating scrambled eggs at the coffee table. Behind him, Venom reached over the back of the sofa with seven or eight tentacles waving in unison, continuously stuffing chocolate balls into its mouth.

"He's like a factory worker on an assembly line, isn't he?" Stark laughed, nudging Schiller's shoulder and looking at Venom.

Schiller, who was stacking open sandwiches, glanced at him and said, "Why do you seem to have more free time today? In the past, you wouldn't have stayed here for an extra second..."

Before Stark could reply, Schiller took a bite of crispy toast and continued, "Let me guess, you've probably argued with your father at least 30 times in the last two days..."

Stark immediately glared, about to retort, but Schiller looked at him and said, "And the majority hasn't even happened yet."

Stark put on a wry smile, took a fierce bite of the sandwich, and then said, "If it weren't for Maria and Obadiah siding with him, would I not be able to argue with him?"

"Furthermore, I am a scientist, and he is a businessman. He only cares about how much money a certain project can make. Even if it loses a dollar, he would start talking about the Industrial Revolution..."

Seemingly lost in some painful memory, Stark put down his sandwich, looking unable to swallow, and said, "Now, I understand Steve even more. People of that era always have a sense of urgency about every little thing, every part, every screw, they have to be frugal."

Shaking his head, Stark took a sip of beer and said, "The reason why Project Marc142 is progressing so slowly is because I can't let Howard know that I've invested three quarters of Stark Industries' profits just to find the best ratio for the Molten Steel Vibranium alloy..."

"To him, the process from 95 to 99 is unnecessary. It's better to produce several times more 95-grade products at the same cost."

"Perhaps he also thought about pursuing perfection," Schiller took a bite of greens and said, "It's just that in that era, he had too much to consider. If the two of you switched places, he would be the one living large now."

Stark nodded slowly, choosing not to discuss this topic further. Schiller then glanced at the incomplete combat suit parts on him and said, "Since each part of the combat suit has an automatic retrieval function, why has only the face mask come back?"

"Um... the automatic retrieval function is not very perfect," Stark said somewhat awkwardly. "The parts usually fly back along the shortest path without obstacles, but some obstacles are unrecognizable and they might collide. I'll have to fly around New York later and pick these things up to prevent them from falling into the wrong hands and causing danger..."

"Then you should let Peter Parker go," Eddie scooped up some scrambled eggs and pulled Venom back, preventing it from retreating, and said, "In recent days, he spends at least 8 hours patrolling New York every day. No one understands the terrain of New York better than him."

"I hope he doesn't make a web like last time," Schiller shook his head, "unless he can eat the shuttle like a fly."

They all laughed, discussing the awkwardness of the younger generation. Stark wiped his mouth with a napkin and said, "Peter is about to graduate. I want to attend his graduation ceremony, but I don't know what capacity I should go in..."

"He definitely doesn't want to expose your relationship with him," Eddie shook his head, looking at Stark. "You better not mention that you know him, otherwise, Peter will be looked down upon by others."

Stark frowned, about to refute, but Eddie said, "I'm not talking about your professional level, but your personal reputation."

"Listen, Tony, as a former top-tier journalist, I can responsibly tell you, if you attend Peter Parker's graduation ceremony without discretion, the next day, all the gossip news in New York will be plastered with headlines like, 'Genius researcher Parker and his sugardaddy Stark's untold story'..."

Stark choked for a moment, coughed twice forcefully, and wiped the spittle off his mouth with some disdain. Amid Schiller's laughter, he reached out to explain, "First of all, I am firmly heterosexual. Secondly, all of Peter's current achievements are his own doing, unrelated to me."

"Peter has signed profit-sharing contracts with Stark Industries for the inventions he made using Stark Laboratory's resources. The profits he brings in for me far outweigh the support I provide for him."

"Just the invention patent for the shuttle project alone, if converted into cash, would be enough to keep him and his family comfortable for life. But Peter doesn't seek any return, so I want to show my support for him."

"I advise you not to do that," Schiller shook his head. "Unless you want to have a public confrontation with old Osborne at New York University."

Stark rubbed his forehead with his hand and said, "How could I forget about him? That darned old fox almost tricked Peter into becoming a human test subject. I haven't settled the score with him yet!"

Just as he said that, there was a loud "bang," and the glass on the balcony shattered. Spider-Man burst in, paying no attention to the people eating in the living room. He quickly closed the curtains on the balcony, then stood in place, taking a breath.

He slowly turned around and said, "Venom, are you there? Sorry, I broke your glass, I'll compensate for it, but right now, let me hide..."

As he turned, he widened his eyes as he looked at the four people sitting inside. Then, looking embarrassed, he said, "Good morning, sirs. I just accidentally, accidentally intruded. I'll leave now..."

After speaking, he tried to sneak past, but both Schiller and Stark cleared their throats. Spider-Man sighed in resignation and said, "Okay, I shouldn't have rudely barged in and broken Mr. Eddie's glass, but I'll make it up!"

"What are you hiding from?" Schiller asked, somewhat puzzled.

Spider-Man hesitated for a moment, showing an unusually conflicted demeanor. He even directly took an unopened can of beer from the desktop, opened his mask, and poured it into his mouth.

Stark widened his eyes, staring at Spider-Man's chin as if he didn't recognize him. Spider-Man coughed from the beer and then took off his mask, tossing it aside, and sat next to Eddie, saying, "George... I mean, Gwen's father, he's onto me."

Peter sighed, "Gwen almost let it slip once, which made George suspicious. We both know that George can't find out that I'm Spider-Man, or he would never agree to his daughter being with me!"

"To shake off suspicion, I have to maintain two identities and create alibis for each other."

"For example, when I go to Gwen's house for dinner, I use the toilet break to change into a uniform, then go around the newspaper office nearby, and quickly return, or when Sheriff George sees Spider-Man, I go on a date with Gwen, conveniently running into their neighbors..."

Toth chuckled and then covered his mouth, looking resentful towards Peter. He cleared his throat and said, "Are you really planning to hide this from your father-in-law for a lifetime?"

Peter sighed deeply again but then turned to Schiller and asked, "Doctor, is my breakfast ready? I just rushed over from the nearby police station and haven't had time to eat."

Schiller stood up, walked to the kitchen island, and said, "There's no more scrambled eggs and cold cuts. I'll make you a sandwich. Let me see..."

Schiller rearranged the ingredients on the table and said, "We're out of chicken breast, only chicken thighs left. Do you want them skinless? There's also a portion of broccoli, a portion of cabbage, and a portion of peas..."

"Put them all in, thanks, and add more bread, I'm really hungry," Peter said, holding his stomach. "These days, I haven't had time to eat. I've been relying on the nutrition liquid from Stark Industries. This job is really tough."

As the sandwich was brought over, Peter sighed, "Originally, Gwen and I wanted to tell George the truth the first time I went to eat at the Stacy's house."

"But the first time I went to their house, George immediately recognized me. He asked me if I was the outstanding young scientist mentioned in the newspapers, if I had received a full scholarship and outstanding graduate awards, and even got internships at several major corporations, published more than 10 major papers..."

Thor looked at him curiously, "So, are you?"

"Of course, and those reports weren't even comprehensive... never mind, it's not important. Anyway, George's first impression of me was too good," Peter said, covering his face with his hand. "The tone was set too high, so I couldn't bring myself to say I was Spider-Man, especially after he scolded Spider-Man for damaging the environment in New York in front of Gwen and me..."

"When did you damage the New York environment? Oh, it's that thing with the web last time, that couldn't be helped, it could indeed be considered one of Spider-Man's black marks."

"Worse than that," Peter even laughed a little, his tone carrying a hint of absurdity, "That was something the first Spider-Man did, but now I'm the third generation Spider-Man, and the third generation's reputation is even worse!"

The group laughed, and Thor patted Peter's shoulder, saying, "If you tell him you've been resurrected, he definitely won't agree to you being with his daughter..."

"Let's not talk about that," Peter sniffed, took a big bite of the sandwich, chewing slowly. But soon, Thor's expression stiffened again, as if he remembered something, and he looked at Stark, asking, "Tony, how did you explain Helen to your parents?"

"Um..." Stark hesitated, saying, "You have to understand, it's hard to hide it from Howard and Maria. Helen doesn't look much like me, but she looks too much like Loki..."

But then he immediately added, "But it's advantageous that she doesn't look like me, otherwise, with those gossip tabloids and paparazzi, Helen's reputation would be ruined..."

Thor narrowed his eyes, saying, "You're not going to tell them that Helen is your illegitimate daughter, are you? Tony Stark, I warn you, Loki is a prince of Asgard, uh... sometimes a princess, that's not important, but you must not give Helen a disreputable status, or it will bring shame to Asgard!"

"I know, I know..." Stark reassured, "But you have to give me some time. People from their era find it hard to accept the so-called 'fluid gender'..."

"Why can't you just tell the truth?" Schiller said with a smile, while Stark glared at him, saying, "How can I tell the truth?? Say that Helen is your doing? You're not even like Loki, you don't evenhave a fluid gender!"

Schiller smiled and remained silent, dealing with the salad on his plate. Thor grunted irritably and said, "If you have any courage, you should bravely take responsibility. Loki is an excellent God and is well-liked in Asgard..."

Just as he said that, the last remaining glass door on the balcony was knocked. Thor turned his head and saw Loki standing outside, smiling at him.

[Read at www.patreon.com/shanefreak, and thanks for the invaluable support!]

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Next Chapter>>Chapter 1068: Morning Chat at the New York Radio Station (Part 2)