Chapter 8: Discovering Identity
{Shiro's POV}
After running, jumping around multiple buildings, and even gliding, I finally reached my destination where I would stay for a while to uncover my identity in this world. As I looked at the inn building, it wasn't fancy, but it wasn't bad either. I made my way to the entrance, where I met the guard and the receptionist of the inn.
"Hello, welcome to the Starry Night Inn. How may I assist you, sir?" the receptionist welcomed me as soon as I entered. She seemed to be a hospitable person.
"I'd like to stay for tonight only. How much would it be?" I inquired.
"Have you made a reservation, sir?" the receptionist asked.
"Uh, no," I replied.
"For a standard room, it will be $50 for a night's stay. Is that okay?" the receptionist offered, and I quickly chimed in, "Yes, just a standard room."
"That would be $50, sir. Please fill out this form first, and after that, I'll give you the room number and its key," the receptionist kindly said, and I thanked her.
After paying and filling out the form, I finally arrived at my room. "It's pretty spacious for a $50 standard room," I muttered as I immediately went to the bed.
Finally, I would have a comfortable sleep tonight after all these unexpected things that happened to me. I decided to rest tonight and search for clues about my origin at an internet café tomorrow.
The sunrise had begun, and the cries of roosters could be heard outside. I stood in front of the mirror, contemplating my future plans. This Marvel world is truly dangerous, filled with dangerous organizations, aliens, mad scientists, sorcerers, and omega-level beings capable of destroying Earth or even the universe. There are artifacts and weapons that, with a single snap, can wipe out half the population of the universe. My strength alone is not enough to survive in this treacherous world. Peace is the only thing I want, but to attain that, I must grow stronger.
However, I'll take it step by step and not rush everything. I also don't intend to become a superhero. I don't believe either in the concept of absolute good and evil or black and white. I'll only believe in my own convictions. In this world, the weak die, and the strong lives longer. I know my existence here is an anomaly since I wasn't originally a part of this world, and I'm certain that I'll get involved in many situations. That's why I will get stronger, so I can live longer.
For now, my priority is to uncover my identity in this world before embarking on a journey and creating my own story. It's time to go; my first destination will be an internet café. If I'm lucky enough to encounter someone who knows me well, it would save me a lot of time.
"Provide me with a map showing the location of the nearest internet café, Ciel," I asked my AI.
[Affirmative, Master,] Ciel replied.
Within seconds, Ciel provided the map. "Thanks, Ciel," I said as I made my way to the exit of the inn.
"Thank you for staying, sir. We hope to see you again," the receptionist said.
"Yeah, thank you for your hospitality," I said, causing the receptionist to blush.
Well, after the successful experiment on me, not only did I gain improved muscles and incredible abilities, but my appearance also became more handsome and appealing. Today, I'm wearing a white and red jumpsuit with black outlines, it was made possible by the Blacklight virus ability. I also changed my hair color from white to light blue to match my eye color.
I headed to an empty alley and jumped and ran towards the nearby rooftop from where I would start running, jumping, and even gliding my way to the internet café. You might think that doing this would attract a lot of attention, but I'm confident that my speed will prevent me from being caught.
Upon arriving at the internet café, I noticed that it was filled with teenagers playing computer games. I approached the front desk and asked for a reservation to use the internet for searching.
"Do you still have any available desktops?" I asked.
"Ah, yes, there's one over there in the right corner," the attendant replied, pointing towards an empty desk. "Would you like to create an account or just have an open time?" she asked.
"Okay, I'll take that seat. Just an open time, as I'll only use it for searching," I said, smiling at her. This made her blush as she made eye contact with me and shyly looked away.
"O-okay, sir, just take your seat there and wait for the computer to boot up," she said, stuttering slightly.
"Uh, okay," I replied, making my way to my desk and waiting for the PC to start. Once it booted up, I immediately let my black and red goo infiltrate the PC through the mouse to avoid attracting attention, allowing Ciel to gather all the necessary data. After a few minutes, a holographic display appeared in front of me, showing the identity of the previous Shiro before I transmigrated into his body.
He had a fairly skinny appearance and a slightly handsome face. As expected, we are quite similar from my previous world. The information presented to me was as follows:
[Name: Shiro Smith
Age: 15
Gender: Male
Birthdate: November 14, 2001
Place of Birth: Queens, New York
Current Residence: 123 Main Street, Forest Hills, Queens, NY 11375, United States
Family Background: Shiro is an only child and currently lives alone after tragically losing his parents in a car accident when he was just 10 years old. This incident had a profound impact on his life, leaving him with a sense of independence and maturity.
Education: Shiro attends Midtown High School, where he is a fairly average student. He puts in the effort to maintain decent grades but often finds himself more interested in exploring his own passions and hobbies outside of school.]
"Ugh, we're really quite similar, I would say," I commented, looking at the Family and Education Background. Also, regarding my age, I'm 15 years old. I didn't expect that I'm still in my teenage years here. As for the birthplace and current residence, I have a feeling that Peter Parker and I were neighbors. Moreover, it seems I'm also attending the same school as Peter Parker.
{Third POV}
As Shiro's focus remained on the screen, a person entered the internet café. This person was Ned Leeds, Peter Parker's best friend. He walked towards an empty desk near Shiro. As he was about to sit, he immediately noticed Shiro, his classmate who had been absent for 5 days. "Shiro?! Is that you?" Ned exclaimed, looking at Shiro. This startled Shiro, as his sole focus was on Shiro's data, and he hadn't noticed anyone near him. "Dude, you've been missing for 5 days. Where have you been? Peter and I were so worried about you," Ned said, expressing his relief.
{Shiro's POV}
Someone suddenly called out my name beside me. I was surprised as I didn't expect to meet someone who already knew me. As I looked at him, his face became visible, and data suddenly appeared in my view.
[Name: Ned Leeds
Age: 15
Gender: Male
Birthdate: July 12, 2001
Place of Birth: Brooklyn, New York
Current Residence: Queens, New York
Family Background: Ned Leeds comes from a close-knit family residing in Brooklyn. He has supportive parents who encourage his academic pursuits and personal interests.
Education: Ned is a student at Midtown High School, where he excels academically. He has a keen interest in science and technology, often immersing himself in various projects. Aside from his intellectual abilities, Ned is also a down-to-earth and friendly individual, making him well-liked among his peers.]
"Ugh, hello Ned?" I said, feeling confused.
"Do you know how long you've been missing?"
"Ah, yeah, I just wanted to take a vacation and be alone for a while," I replied, lying to Ned so as not to raise any suspicions.
"Your appearance has changed a lot too," Ned added.
"Um, yeah, a lot of things happened," I replied.
"You know you could've just reached out to us if you had any problems. Another thing, the prom is coming up. Have you received any invitations?" Ned asked, mentioning the prom.
"Thanks, and no, I haven't received any invitations. When is the prom again?" I inquired.
"It's exactly next week. Liz has already invited Peter to the homecoming dance," Ned replied.
"I see. Then starting tomorrow, I'll go back to school," I reassured Ned, patting his shoulder.
"Okay, then let's leave here and go to Peter's house," Ned suggested, pulling me towards the exit of the internet café.
"I've been involved since the very beginning, ugh," I thought, a sigh escaping my lips.