21. Osborn Biotech Tower (Please continue reading!)

The next day.

Hawk woke up early, dressed, and slung his shoulder bag over his back. Carrying the documents Mrs. Snow had given him, he headed out to catch the subway. He had originally intended to take the bus. As everyone knows, New York City’s subway system is a complicated beast. Unfortunately, Hawk discovered that there was no direct bus from his new apartment to the Oscorp Industries building; taking the bus would require three transfers. Calculating the time, it was better to just take the subway. At the very least, with the subway, if you lack a moral compass, you can ride for free. In short, one can simply hop the turnstile, and even if you do pay, the fare is cheaper than the bus. So, Hawk decided to take the subway.

However, he regretted it the moment he stepped onto the train.

Stink! It was absolutely foul. The colorful array of smells rushing in from all directions forced Hawk to shut down his sense of smell with lightning speed. If it were just the stench, it might have been bearable, but the cabin was also full of odd characters. There was a hippie hugging a guitar, wailing like a banshee while fantasizing about becoming a great musician one day. Not far away, a Black woman who looked like a tank from every conceivable angle had a golden python wrapped around her neck. God knows how she managed to bring that thing inside.

But that wasn't the point. As is well known, if one were to list the places in New York City with the most pickpockets, the subway car would certainly be on the list. Sure enough, a young man in a hoodie with a dark complexion had his eyes on Hawk. His intuition told him that Hawk was a subway "rookie." A subway rookie is a passenger who doesn't ride the subway often and is ignorant of the dangers of the carriage and the unpredictability of human nature. Such passengers might not be wealthy, but they are definitely the easiest prey, labeled by the thieving community as "fresh meat."

Before long, the young man pretended to adjust his earphones, swaying his head and humming to himself as he moved behind Hawk.

The next second, the moment his right hand dropped from his earphone, a folding knife appeared in his grip, aimed at the shoulder bag on Hawk’s back. Just then, Hawk, who was facing away, suddenly stumbled as if he had lost his balance, lurching backward a few steps. The thief, who hadn't anticipated this, had his knife out but hadn't positioned it correctly; under the force of the collision, the blade flipped, and with a sickening *squelch*, it pierced straight through the thief's own wrist.

"Ah!" The thief let out a shrill scream, his eyes widening as he gasped, staring at the blade embedded in his wrist. Blood dripped from the wound onto the floor of the carriage, *plop, plop*. The people around, startled by the scream, glanced at the thief’s wrist and his complexion, then quickly looked away.

The train arrived at the station. The passengers stood up in unison and left the carriage. No one gasped, no one cared, and certainly no one stepped forward to ask if the thief needed medical assistance. Hawk followed the crowd off the train as well. From start to finish, he didn't even turn his head to look at the thief. Once outside, feeling the one or two spiteful glares drilling into his back, the corners of his mouth tilted upward slightly.

He had been merciful enough. If this hadn't been a subway, but rather some desolate wilderness or a dark alley without security cameras, he would have ground the thief into dust. Couldn't the guy see that his entire outfit was cheap thrift-store gear that didn't total fifty dollars? He was this poor, and the guy still dared to pick his pocket? Where was the justice? Where was the law?

"Gwen?"

Walking out of the subway station, Hawk, who was still feeling indignant about the near-miss with the pickpocket and finding his mind unsettled, saw Gwen standing not far away, right in front of the Oscorp Industries building, seemingly waiting for someone. Gwen, who was looking around, caught sight of Hawk across the road. Her eyes lit up, and she raised her right hand, waving briskly to get his attention.

Waiting for me?

Hawk was slightly stunned, then took advantage of a gap in the traffic to quickly cross the street. The Battle of New York had been half a month ago; now, two weeks later, one could barely see any trace of the alien invasion in Manhattan. Such is the charm of money. The Battle of New York ended in the morning, and the repair work for damaged buildings in Manhattan—especially on Wall Street—began by noon. At the time, the exterior walls of the Oscorp building had suffered heavy damage, but looking at it now, who could tell that it had once been pierced by the Chitauri?

Hawk looked up at the Oscorp building, which towered into the clouds just like the Stark Tower five blocks away, then shifted his gaze to Gwen.

"Are you waiting for me?"

"Of course." Unlike her school attire, Gwen was wearing a high ponytail and a standard white lab coat for researchers. She smiled and said, "If I don't wait for you, how will I uncover your secrets?"

Hawk shook his head, momentarily speechless. "I don't have any secrets."

"No, you do, and I will find them out." Gwen said with a serious expression, then her stern little face softened back into a smile. "Alright, I'm just teasing you. Mrs. Snow called me this morning; she forgot you didn't have a phone, and since you don't have an Oscorp access card, she was worried you wouldn't even be able to get through the front door. So she specifically asked me to bring you in to find that..." Gwen paused, looking at Hawk. "Right, what was the name of the person you're looking for again?"

"Max Dillon!" Hawk named the future supervillain Electro, currently a super-invisible engineer.

Gwen’s expression cleared. "Right, him. Let's go, I'll take you to the Bio-Electricity Engineering Department."

"Okay." Hawk did not refuse.

Gwen put her hands in her pockets, tossed her ponytail, and turned gracefully, leading Hawk to the turnstiles. After entering, she spoke a few words to the security guard nearby. The guard glanced at Hawk in the direction Gwen pointed, nodded, and manually opened the gate. After Hawk walked through, Gwen thanked the guard.

A short while later, Gwen expertly led Hawk to the Bio-Electricity Engineering Department on the first floor of the annex building.