"Huh, why is this guy here?"
Justin Hammer, who had been delighted, immediately chuckled, "This is interesting."
Levi also followed his gaze.
He saw a man two meters tall, extremely burly, who, even in a suit, still looked like a muscular brute, bulging in all the right places.
Even Eve tightened her grip on his arm.
Kingpin.
He looked very stout, like an ancient general with 'muscle wrapped in fat'.
It was precisely because he didn't train for dead strength that he could hit Batman with a single punch and leave him unable to recover.
Kingpin arrived in front of Norman Osborn, who was more than a head shorter than him.
But even so, Norman Osborn still wore a 'big shot' smile, his aura completely unfazed.
Everyone looked over, knowing that this was the showdown for this year's election.
The other candidates were far too inferior compared to these two.
Mainly, their 'financial power' was too far apart.
One controlled both the underworld and the legitimate World, and the other commanded the Osborn Group; neither was short on money.
Who else could compete?
Unless Tony Stark high-profilely announced his candidacy, no one could win.
But how could Tony Stark possibly care for the position of New York City mayor?
Making him the U.S. President would be more fitting!
"Welcome."
Norman Osborn, being the Boss, showed his magnanimity.
Kingpin was not arrogant either, and they began to converse.
Their voices were low, and with the music playing, it was hard to hear them clearly.
Levi, however, heard them distinctly.
Kingpin was congratulating Norman Osborn, seemingly showing weakness?
This made Norman Osborn feel a little smug.
Afterward, Kingpin left directly.
He seemed to have just come to say hello.
Levi was about to remind Norman when he saw Norman Osborn immediately call for Silver Sable, telling her people to be careful and vigilant.
Against a viper like Kingpin, no one could be careless.
What was terrifying about Kingpin was not his martial prowess or wealth, but that he possessed these while also having a brain.
Norman Osborn didn't dwell on it but began the banquet.
For New York socialites, attending such a banquet wasn't about having fun.
It was about meeting people.
Of course, after expanding one's network, taking a glamorous socialite home and spending the night lavishly would be even better.
And the socialites also displayed their charm, hoping to hook up with a rich man and rise to prominence overnight.
In this World, everyone was striving to make their lives better.
It was just that their directions of effort were different...
Their looks were the source of the socialites' confidence.
Many people came to greet Levi, wanting to get to know him.
Men and women, both.
In all of New York, he was as famous as Tony Stark, equally sought after.
Eve, meanwhile, stayed by Levi's side.
Thus, some complained that she didn't act like a female companion but more like a bodyguard.
Soon, everyone gathered, and the lights suddenly converged on the stage.
Norman Osborn, in a suit, stood on the stage and began to thank everyone for coming.
As a successful businessman, what he understood best was 'painting a picture'.
Making the people present feel that if they chose to support him, they would receive generous returns.
This was the operating model of America: give and take.
You help me campaign, I give you support.
Indeed, this piqued the interest of many.
After all, from every perspective, Norman Osborn had a greater chance of winning against Kingpin.
"Ladies and gentlemen, for this banquet, I have specially brought the 'Queen' of the jewelry World!"
Norman Osborn said with a smile, "I wonder which beautiful lady will receive the desired jewelry?"
A display stand appeared on the stage, covered with a black cloth.
As Norman Osborn opened it, a diamond-studded necklace appeared inside.
Levi was not interested in this, but the women were.
Fortunately, he didn't bring a woman.
Oh no, Eve wasn't interested either, because she had enough jewelry.
Levi had given her a pile, enough to wear a different one every day.
This also made Eve spend more time on her appearance.
Norman Osborn planned to use this jewelry to push the atmosphere of the banquet to its peak.
Then, with some publicity, he would become even more famous in New York.
"Bang!"
Just as Norman was feeling excited, the hotel lights suddenly went out.
"What's going on?"
The entire banquet plunged into darkness, and Eve immediately protected Levi.
"Boss, let's go to the side first."
She was not affected by the darkness and led Levi to a corner.
Because the banquet was already somewhat chaotic at this point.
It proved that in the face of the terror of darkness, even these elites did not perform much better than ordinary people.
Many so-called 'elites' were just packaged products.
Norman Osborn did not panic; instead, he shouted loudly, "Don't panic, it's most likely a power outage!"
Fortunately, it was only a few seconds; Levi hadn't even reached the corner when the lights came back on.
"Buzz!"
Is it not said that for human civilization, the most important things are Fire and Light?
With the light, these 'human-like' elites immediately returned to normal, as if it wasn't them who had been shouting just now.
But soon, another gasp was heard.
"Where's the necklace?"
Norman Osborn, standing on the stage, was stunned, then turned his head to look.
He saw that the glass of the display stand had been cut into a perfect circle, and the necklace inside had simply vanished!
But it wasn't entirely gone; someone spotted the thief.
Eve looked directly up at the sky, and another person was Silver Sable.
"There's a thief!"
Silver Sable immediately shouted, telling people to protect Norman Osborn, while she herself quickly ran to the side.
Everyone also looked up, but only saw a black silhouette.
"Catwoman?"
Levi asked curiously, and Justin Hammer at his side twitched his lips: "It's Black Cat."
He looked at Levi, wondering if Levi read too many DC comics?
He didn't know the famous 'Black Cat' of New York?
Of course, in terms of appearance and other aspects, DC Comics' Catwoman indeed resembled Black Cat, but...
DC was comics, but Black Cat was a real-life Boss thief!
So, the case was solved!
In this World, Catwoman copied Black Cat!
"Is this Kingpin's doing?"
Levi came before Norman, who was protected by layers of Silver Sable International Security personnel.
"I don't know."
Norman Osborn shook his head.
Undoubtedly, Black Cat's actions not only made it impossible for the banquet to continue.
It also affected Norman Osborn's reputation.
So, Norman Osborn looked at Levi and said, "Li, help me, get the item back!"
"Okay."
Levi didn't say much; now the two were collaborators, in the same boat.
Only if Norman Osborn became the Mayor of New York could Future Industries receive policy support.
So, Levi took Eve and left through the back door, immediately calling Red Queen.
-------------------------------
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