Midnight had already arrived, and the Whitebeard Pirates' colossal ship was still alive with revelry.
The pirates guzzled down beer from mugs larger than their faces, not seeming to mind the generous portions as they drained half of each mug in a single gulp.
As soon as the beer touched their lips, a faint golden glow emanated from their bodies, quickly dissipating into their systems.
Han Yu had infused the beer with Senzu Beans, restoring their injuries without compromising the flavor. For this gathering of thousands, Han Yu had only used two Senzu Beans, as a single bean alone would have left them too full to enjoy anything else.
On the quiet mast, Wanda stood alone, basking in the breeze.
Han Yu climbed up to join her, retrieving a coat from his system's storage and draping it over her shoulders.
"Why not join the fun down there? Pietro's having a blast."
Han Yu glanced down at the deck, where Quicksilver was entertaining the pirates with his superhuman speed, astonishing them with feats beyond their comprehension.
"I need some time alone. It's too noisy down there for me."
Wanda hugged the coat closer, finding solace in its warmth.
Han Yu asked, "Is everything alright?"
Wanda's eyes wandered, and she said, "A few days ago, I was living on the fringes with Pietro, uncertain of our next meal and our purpose in life. Now, I find myself in the position to decide others' fates. It's surreal."
Han Yu nodded and continued, "To be honest, I know you and your brother have some history with Tony Stark. I'm not a party to it, and I won't preach from a moral high ground. But I want to say that his actions weren't always deliberate, and he's fighting for peace and Earth now."
Wanda was surprised by Han Yu's mention of Iron Man, Tony Stark. After a moment of silence, she said, "Right now, I could probably kill him with ease, couldn't I?"
Han Yu replied, "If you want to, you can. But I don't want you to become that person."
Wanda sighed deeply, then said after some contemplation, "If Stark continues to supply weapons for war, I might have to take action. But seeing him sacrifice himself by flying into space with a nuke to save Earth... Though I can't forgive him, I hold no grudges. That's all."
"I'm glad you see it that way..."
Han Yu's words trailed off as Wanda suddenly leaned in, nestling into his embrace.
Han Yu froze, inhaling the faint fragrance of Wanda's hair, then gently held her without saying a word.
Wanda looked up at Han Yu with eyes full of tenderness, and in his stupefied gaze, she softly pressed her lips to his.
In the blink of an eye, the two of them returned to the general store and to Han Yu's room.
And then...
A night without sleep.
...
The next day, the sun streamed through the window, casting its light on the room. Long lashes fluttered, and Han Yu slowly opened his eyes. Yawning, he sat up and found Wanda lying beside him, her bare shoulders exposed, a ray of sunlight gracing her pale face, making her look exquisite.
"Last night... we..."
Han Yu's thoughts drifted back to the previous night's madness, and he couldn't help but smile. After tucking Wanda in, he got out of bed, dressed, and made plans to prepare lunch.
As he stepped out of the room and headed downstairs, he found Pietro sprawled on the floor of the hall in a "T" shape, with several wine jars scattered around him.
"Pietro, didn't you spend the night here?"
Han Yu tapped Pietro's cheek, but the latter didn't even open his eyes, rolling over to continue sleeping while muttering, "Drink... keep drinking! Anyone who doesn't is a coward..."
"How much did he drink...?"
Han Yu shook his head helplessly, using his Green Lantern energy to lift Pietro and carry him back to his room before descending to cook.
Judging by Pietro's condition, he wouldn't be waking up anytime soon, so Han Yu prepared only enough food for himself and Wanda.
Just as Han Yu finished making lunch and was about to carry it out, he felt something soft and warm press against his back, accompanied by a gentle voice whispering in his ear.
"You woke up early..."
The sound sent shivers down Han Yu's spine. Turning around, he saw Wanda wearing one of his white shirts, which was slightly oversized on her, making her appear even more petite. Her long hair casually draped over her shoulders added to her femininity.
"Let's have lunch. It's already noon."
Gazing into Wanda's tender eyes, which seemed to draw him in, Han Yu quickly averted his gaze and carried the lunch out.
Watching Han Yu's slightly flustered figure, Wanda's rosy lips curved into a pretty smile. She suddenly felt that Han Yu wasn't as mysterious as she thought.
At least in this aspect, he was very much like a young boy.
After lunch, Wanda volunteered to wash the dishes, saying, "Alright, let me handle this. You worked hard last night. Go rest."
Han Yu chuckled helplessly, wondering if she was intentionally flirting, unaware of her own charm.
As Han Yu was about to lounge on the sofa in the hall, he heard a gentle sound of wind chimes.
As mentioned earlier, the intensity of the wind chimes depended on the strength of the visitor. The stronger the visitor, the faster the chimes would ring.
But judging by the current pace of the chimes, the visitor couldn't be too powerful.
"Han, are you there?"
In the general store on the first floor, a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy stood in front of the counter, calling out Han Yu's name.
"Coming, coming. What's the rush?"
Han Yu descended the stairs and saw the boy, raising his eyebrows. "Parker, why are you here instead of school at this hour?"
The visitor was none other than Spider-Man, Peter Parker, though in this context, "everyone knows him" referred to Han Yu's previous life. In this world, the young Spider-Man was still just an ordinary high school student.
Han Yu had always had a fondness for Spider-Man in his previous life. After helping Peter Parker by chance after arriving in this world, the latter had become Han Yu's first friend in this new reality.
Upon seeing Han Yu descend the stairs, Peter Parker rushed behind the counter of the general store, making sure no one was outside before darting back to Han Yu, his eyes shining with excitement.
"It's not important, Han! I want to show you something amazing!"
Before Han Yu could utter a word, Peter Parker scanned the shop and made his way to a nearby box. With a swift movement, he grasped the box with both hands and effortlessly lifted it above his head.
Han Yu's eyes widened in surprise. Who didn't know how heavy that box was? He certainly did.
The box contained ores that Han Yu used for forging weapons, weighing a whopping four hundred kilograms!
For an ordinary person, lifting such a weight would be impossible, let alone for a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy like Peter Parker, who probably weighed no more than a hundred pounds.
The only explanation was that he had been bitten by a radioactive spider!
Han Yu asked, "What's going on here?"
Peter Parker set down the ore box and eagerly approached Han Yu. "Isn't it amazing? It's weird, though. A few days ago, my school took us on a tour of Oscorp Industries, you know, the one with Norman Osborn. He's..."
"I know, I know. Get to the point." Han Yu interrupted, knowing Peter's tendency to wander off-topic.
"Oh, right, sorry about that," Peter chuckled awkwardly before continuing. "While we were visiting a lab for animal experiments, a spider fell from the ceiling and bit me on the neck. The next day, I noticed my strength, speed, and reflexes had surpassed those of ordinary humans!"
Listening to Peter Parker's story, Han Yu was convinced. This was exactly how Spider-Man acquired his powers in the classic Spider-Man trilogy from his previous life.
"Who else do you plan to tell about this?" Han Yu asked seriously.
"Just you. I haven't even told my classmates or Aunt May."
Peter replied, trusting only the slightly older shop owner in this general store. Sharing it with his classmates would be risky; they were all young, and the news might spread across the entire school in no time. Peter didn't want to end up being captured for experiments.