Chapter 26: The Parker Luck and the Webs of Deceit part- 1
Cha Hae-In squinted, shielding her eyes from Luminous. "Mr. Luminous... you are too bright."
"It is the light of purity!" Luminous declared desperately. "It cleanses the darkness!"
Jin-Woo stepped forward. In the dim light, his shadows were calm. He didn't look like a monster. He looked like... peace. Silence. Rest.
He walked up to Cha Hae-In. Because the room was dark, Luminous's light was blinding himself, preventing him from seeing Jin-Woo approach.
Jin-Woo stopped in front of Cha. He smelled... like fresh air after a rainstorm (thanks to a small scent tweak from Ethan).
"Hunter Cha," Jin-Woo said softly. "Is the light bothering you?"
"Yes," she admitted, relaxing in his shadow. "It smells... burnt. Like ozone. But you... you smell nice today."
Jin-Woo looked at Luminous. "Your light is pollution. Turn it off, or I will put you in a permanent shadow."
Luminous tried to flare his power, but in the absolute darkness of Jin-Woo's domain, he looked like a frantic firefly trapped in a jar. He looked small.
Cha Hae-In turned her back on the glowing man. "I prefer the quiet," she whispered to Jin-Woo.
Jin-Woo smiled. "Then let us go somewhere quieter."
He extended his arm. She took it.
(Smooth,) Ethan complimented. (The Monarch of Shadows wins by simply being the chillest guy in the room. Literally.)
World 10: The World of Shadows (Solo Leveling Universe) - Epilogue
The darkness of the training hall was comforting, like a heavy blanket on a winter night. Cha Hae-In stood close to Sung Jin-Woo, her hand resting lightly on his arm. The "Luminous" Transmigrator, stripped of his blinding glare by Jin-Woo's dominance over the environment, looked pathetic—a flickering lightbulb in a room full of voids.
"Hunter Cha," Luminous stammered, trying to reignite his glow. "You are making a mistake! He is dangerous! He reeks of death!"
"He smells like rain," Cha Hae-In corrected, turning her back on him completely. She looked up at Jin-Woo. "Are you hungry? I know a place that serves quiet food. No bright lights."
Jin-Woo looked at Ethan (or rather, felt the presence in his mind).
(Go on, Shadow Monarch. The villain is neutralized. His 'Holy Light' cheat was dependent on his confidence. You just shattered it. He is basically a walking glow-stick now. Enjoy the date.)
"I am hungry," Jin-Woo said, a rare, genuine smile touching his lips. He ignored Luminous and walked out with Cha Hae-In.
[Mission Complete.][Reward: 1000 System Points.][Transfer Initiated...]
.............
World 11: The World of Webs (Marvel Universe - Comic/Movie Hybrid)
Ethan felt the shift immediately. The cold, quiet power of the Shadow Monarch was replaced by a frantic, high-energy buzzing. His new host's mind was a chaotic storm of anxiety, guilt, scientific equations, and bad puns.
He opened his sensors.
The smell of stale pizza and mildew hit him first. He was lying on a lumpy mattress in a cramped apartment that looked like a tornado had struck a thrift store. A police siren wailed in the distance.
[Initialization Complete.][Host: Peter Parker (Spider-Man).][Age: 25 (Post-University, Freelance Photographer/Scientist).][Relationship Status: "It is complicated" with Mary Jane Watson.][Financial Status: Bankrupt. Rent is late. Account balance: $12.45.][Current Status: Sleeping through his alarm.]
(Oh, boy,) Ethan sighed. (Peter Parker. The multiverse's punching bag. I went from a god-like Necromancer to a broke guy from Queens. Talk about a downgrade in lifestyle, if not heroism.)
[Villain Identity: Julian "The Golden Boy" Sterling (Transmigrator).][Villain Ability: "The Apex CEO System". Possesses infinite wealth, superhuman charisma, and knowledge of Peter's secret identity. Passive Effect: "The Parker Luck Amplifier" - Causes Peter's bad luck to increase by 200 percent when Julian is nearby.]
(That is just cruel. The Parker Luck is bad enough on its own. Amplifying it? That is kicking a puppy while it is down.)
[Current Situation: Mary Jane has a lead role in a Broadway play opening tonight. Peter promised to be there. Julian is also attending. He has hired the supervillain "Shocker" to attack the theater, planning to use his "CEO Tech" armor to save Mary Jane while Peter is forced to disappear to change into his costume, making Peter look like a coward who ran away.]
Ethan checked the internal clock.
(Peter! Wake up! You are going to be late!)
Peter Parker shot up in bed, sticking to the ceiling in his panic. "Gah! I am awake! I didn't eat the last dumpling, Aunt May!"
He blinked, looking around the empty, messy room. He was hanging upside down from the plaster. "Wait... Aunt May lives in Queens. I am in Manhattan. And who said that?"
(I am your Spidey-Sense's manager. Call me the System. Look at the clock, web-head. The play starts in thirty minutes. You are currently wearing boxer shorts and you smell like the inside of a Sandman clone.)
Peter looked at the clock. "7:30?! Oh no! MJ is going to kill me! This is her big night!"
He dropped from the ceiling, landing in a crouch. He scrambled for his suit—a cheap, slightly wrinkled tuxedo he had bought at a goodwill store.
(Wait, wait. Stop. You cannot wear that. It has a stain on the lapel that looks suspiciously like mustard. And is that a hole in the elbow?)
"It is all I have!" Peter cried, hopping on one leg as he tried to put on a sock. "My good suit got ruined when Electro decided to recharge his batteries on my chest last week!"
(This is unacceptable. You are competing against a billionaire Transmigrator. We need to upgrade your look. System Shop: Purchase Item "The Nanotech Tuxedo Overlay". Cost: 300 System Points. Effect: Projects a holographic image of a perfectly tailored, Italian silk tuxedo over your rags. Also self-cleaning.)
A shimmer of light enveloped Peter. Suddenly, his shabby suit looked like it was worth ten thousand dollars. The mustard stain vanished. The fit was impeccable.
Peter stared in the mirror. "Whoa. Did I just... hallucinate a fashion makeover?"
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