c1: Checking in for Twenty-Five Years, Silver Superman
Dear Karl.
I am quite interested in your Bar in Queens; perhaps one million dollars is a good price.
Three days from now, I will bring people to the Bar to discuss this with you.
I trust you won't refuse me; after all, you wouldn't want any accidents to happen, right?
...
New York City, Queens Street.
It was already deep into the night, but under the glare of the vibrant neon lights, this city was even more dazzling than during the day. Even in the so-called "city that never sleeps," the undercurrents of crime and heroism never truly rested especially in a place constantly watched over by figures like Spider-Man.
In a luxurious apartment.
Karl was sitting on the sofa, his right hand clenched tight, crumpling the letter in his grasp.
"To think I'd run into such a piece of work, threatening me..."
Throwing the letter away, he picked up an exquisite goblet.
Taking a sip of fine wine and looking at the dazzling, ever-changing neon skyline outside the window, Karl sighed softly, "What a lovely view."
Twenty-four years ago, Karl came to this world.
As he grew older, he learned that the city he was in was named New York City, more specifically, a version of it that overlapped with countless extraordinary events.
Originally, Karl thought he had just come to a city on the other side of the ocean.
Until... he saw the Captain America Memorial dedicated to Steve Rogers.
That is, Captain America.
With even a little knowledge of Marvel, one would understand what kind of place this was.
This was an extremely dangerous world.
Aliens like the Chitauri that once invaded during the Battle of New York, super soldiers, enhanced humans, and beings who could shatter cities with ease...
This place possessed many powerful individuals, and even gods from ancient legends existed here, such as Thor, the Asgardian God of Thunder.
Of course, this world was also very interesting; after all, it was a universe where heroes and villains constantly clashed, much like the parallel existence of worlds like Metropolis and Gotham City in another dimension.
Along with Karl came a check-in system.
This could be considered standard equipment.
However, his check-in system was different from those in the novels of his previous life.
Karl's check-in system not only allowed him to check in at various locations every day.
He could even accumulate check-ins.
Schedule a check-in time in advance, say for one year or two years.
Then, when the scheduled time arrived, the check-in would be completed.
The longer the check-in time, the more powerful the rewards would be.
After two consecutive days where the check-in items were just milk powder, Karl made a decision he slightly regretted.
To check in New York City for twenty-five years!
As of now, Karl had already checked in in New York City for twenty-four years.
The result was that he was still an ordinary person.
Well, an ordinary person with black hair and black eyes, handsome, wealthy, and living in a world where "ordinary" could end at any moment.
Since coming to this world, Karl had been adopted by a single, wealthy businessman over half a century old.
Karl Smith.
This was the name the old man gave him.
Although it was a bit strange for an Easterner to have such a name, Karl accepted it.
But considering the debt of gratitude for being raised, Karl had continued to use this name.
A few years ago, that kind old gentleman passed away.
The billions of dollars in family assets had long since been transferred to Karl's name through legal channels by the old gentleman.
Among them were some properties and two Bars.
There was also the old gentleman's own company and shares in several other companies.
It is worth mentioning that after knowing this was the Marvel world, Karl spent several years organizing his assets.
He first sold his own company, then sold most of his shares in other companies.
Such an operation earned him a large sum of cash.
Afterward, Karl invested in some companies.
Like Stark Industries, owned by Tony Stark.
Hammer Industries, run by Justin Hammer.
Pym Technologies, tied to Hank Pym.
And Oscorp, controlled by Norman Osborn.
Even beyond Marvel, Karl had quietly explored rumors of interdimensional overlaps—stories of a flying alien protector like Superman, though no concrete proof had surfaced yet.
After all, he only knew these companies because he vaguely remembered them from watching Marvel in his previous life.
Because of this operation, Karl's assets had multiplied more than tenfold in a few years.
Now he had assets worth tens of billions of dollars.
The letter he threw into the trash can had appeared in his Bar out of nowhere.
The signatory was Wilson Fisk.
This name might confuse ordinary people.
But he had a nickname: Kingpin.
Karl knew this character well.
He was a supervillain, one of the most powerful crime lords in New York, a man who could rival entire criminal syndicates and even manipulate law enforcement from the shadows.
Perhaps some people haven't heard of him.
But his opponents were quite famous.
The most well-known among them was the "friendly neighborhood" Spider-Man.
There was also Daredevil, the blind vigilante of Hell's Kitchen.
Punisher, who waged a one-man war on crime.
And even groups like the X-Men and the Fantastic Four had crossed paths with him in certain timelines.
Because he controlled vast underground businesses—from smuggling to political corruption, it could be said that he stood in opposition to countless heroes.
Recently, for some reason, he had taken a fancy to Karl's Bar and wanted to make it his own.
To be honest, Karl was just an ordinary person now.
Although he had practiced fighting skills since he was a child, he knew very well that compared to someone like Kingpin—who could physically overpower even enhanced fighters—he was nothing.
But the fact that the other party was forcing a sale on a Bar he didn't want to sell…
That was more than just annoying.
It was a declaration.
And in a world like this whether it was Marvel or even the shadow of DC, such declarations often came with consequences far beyond money.
Originally, Karl had sold his own company and most of his other company shares, but he hadn't sold the two Bars in his possession.
The purpose was naturally simple, he didn't want to sell them, and they also served as places he could casually visit for a drink, especially in a city like New York where even ordinary nightlife could overlap with the territories of people like Wilson Fisk.
And now you come to me with a forced purchase?
Actually, Karl wasn't very afraid; he had already found Peter Parker, that is, Spider-Man, at Midtown High School.
It's just that the other party was still an ordinary person and hadn't yet been bitten by the radioactive spider from a laboratory like those often associated with Oscorp or similar genetic research facilities.
Karl had been quietly keeping track of Peter Parker's movements, preparing to take the mutated spider first—just like the one that, in many timelines, granted Spider-Man his powers of wall-crawling, spider-sense, and superhuman agility.
Although Spider-Man was a hero he was very fond of, in this situation, he could only say sorry.
Originally, Karl wasn't in a hurry about the mutated spider.
He just treated it as a backup plan after all, compared to threats like Green Goblin or even street-level overlords like Kingpin, Spider-Man's origin was still a small-scale opportunity.
But now, a villain like Kingpin had suddenly appeared.
The mutated spider couldn't be counted on anymore.
Even if he obtained Spider-Man's abilities, it would only place him at the level of a street-tier hero—far below cosmic-level threats like Thor or beings who had once defended Earth during events like the Battle of New York.
It seemed he would have to rely on his system.
Karl looked up at the clock.
11:55.
Five minutes left until his check-in time.
At that time, the reward for his twenty-five-year check-in would finally be available.
He was looking forward to this reward very much.
If the system that he had checked in with for twenty-five years couldn't give him anything good, then Karl might as well just sell the Bar business.
At worst, he could spend money to hire a supervillain or assassin—someone like Bullseye or even underground mercenaries connected to organizations like HYDRA to eliminate Kingpin, or wait until he had the ability to take revenge later.
Karl picked up his wine glass and waited quietly.
[Ding! Host has checked in for twenty-five years. Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Silver Superman Template.]
"Silver Superman?"
Hearing the mechanical voice in his mind, Karl's whole body trembled slightly.
Silver Superman!
The reward for checking in for twenty-five years truly didn't disappoint him.
As a transmigrator, Karl naturally knew what kind of existence this was.
Silver Superman referred to the version of Superman from the Silver Age of DC Comics—a period known for its exaggerated, near-limitless power scaling.
Superman during this era was far more powerful than the modern, more restrained interpretations.
His abilities included feats such as sneezing away entire star systems, moving multiple planets through sheer strength, surviving within the core of stars, and even traveling through time by sheer speed abilities that defied conventional physics and bordered on narrative omnipotence.
He could absorb and manipulate various forms of energy, resist or even negate substances like Kryptonite under certain conditions, and perform absurd feats like rebuilding celestial bodies or reversing disasters.
Of course, Silver Age Superman also possessed all the classic abilities seen in films and comics—super strength, heat vision, freeze breath, super speed, invulnerability, and flight—magnified to an unimaginable degree.
Compared to many beings in Marvel, even those at the level of Thor or the Hulk, this level of power already approached cosmic-tier existence.
Superman from the Silver Age might not always be portrayed as the single most powerful version across all continuities, but he was undoubtedly one of the most unbounded.
Because he represented something unique limitless growth.
Perhaps in the middle of a battle, he could suddenly gain a completely new ability, adapting to any situation as if reality itself bent to his narrative.
With this check-in reward, Karl no longer needed to snatch the mutated spider from Spider-Man.
There was no need.
The spider should be left for Peter Parker after all, that origin was what shaped one of Marvel's most iconic heroes.
With such an ability now in his possession, what was Karl worried about regarding Kingpin?
A mere crime lord, no matter how powerful in the underworld, was insignificant in the face of such overwhelming strength.
He would simply wait for the other party to come.
And when that happened…
It wouldn't be a negotiation.
It would be the moment Kingpin realized that in a world already filled with gods, aliens, and legends, a new existence had just appeared.
...