Ch.40 I Protected Thanos on Titan

"Captain America with the nice butt, you're dead!"

Charlie Parker sat up from the cosmic web, his face full of disbelief.

An ambush? Seriously, no sense of honor. He felt unlucky to have run into a Hydra version of Captain America.

At least this time, he had gradually pieced together the bigger picture, and the hidden players behind the scenes were surfacing.

Whether it was Norman's death or Tony's kidnapping, it was highly likely that Hydra was pulling the strings.

Charlie suspected that the key to it all lay in that mysterious black snakebone.

Perhaps S.H.I.E.L.D.'s request for Norman's body was related to it. They weren't just trying to study him.

But if Hydra Captain needed Norman's body, why didn't Bucky retrieve it after killing Norman?

He had more than enough time to take Norman's body.

Could it be that Norman also had one of those strange snakebones in his body?

What was the real purpose of the snakebone?

Hydra, the mysterious snakebone—there had to be a connection.

And Hydra's Captain, willing to personally intervene and risk exposure just to kill Spider-Man, left Charlie puzzled.

He shouldn't have been that important... at least not before.

But now, he was important!

Charlie recalled the last time he had been revived at S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.

Hydra Captain must have set his sights on him after realizing Charlie had a form of immortality.

Of course, Hydra Captain might also be after the snakebone, and killing Charlie could have been just a side mission.

If he lost the next revival match, his body would undoubtedly be taken by Hydra Captain for research.

Who knows where he might respawn next?

If he won the next match, he'd likely face another brutal fight right after reviving.

Thinking about the scene before his death, Charlie's eyes grew serious.

The first time he met Steve Rogers was during his battle with Norman at Oscorp Tower.

Back then, Steve wielded his shield but couldn't even damage Norman's armor.

In the ambush, even though Charlie was weakened, he wasn't entirely defenseless.

Yet, he was still killed in an instant.

Clearly, this guy had been hiding his strength.

Too bad Charlie hadn't noticed earlier—there were always slight differences in alternate universe versions of characters. He had overlooked Steve's abnormal behavior.

Especially after easily driving Steve away in the residential area, he had stopped taking him seriously.

Little did he know, Steve had been hiding his true power all along.

Without his "cheat" system, Charlie knew he wouldn't stand a chance against these cunning villains who were so good at pretending.

Thinking about the cheat system, Charlie looked up at the familiar interface that appeared in the void.

[Congratulations! You've received a Revival Match Invitation!]

[Would you like to participate in the Revival Match?]

[Yes] [No]

Seeing this familiar prompt, Charlie didn't immediately choose to start the match.

In this space, both his body and mind had recovered to their peak state, but he still felt exhausted.

Mentally drained.

After fighting for so long, he needed to take a break and enjoy himself.

Lying down on the large cosmic web, Charlie rested his hands behind his head, allowing himself to fully relax.

Staring up at the faintly twinkling stars in the universe, his thoughts drifted.

Would he encounter Lizard Parker again in this revival match?

He had tricked that guy twice now and kind of missed the feeling.

If he lost this next match, would he, like Lizard Parker, be able to show up again in the revival matches?

Losing multiple times despite having so many chances to restart... That would be pathetic.

But Lizard Parker didn't have a cheat system, yet he still appeared in multiple matches.

Could the revival match activation conditions really be tied to Charlie?

Or would the matches still occur in the multiverse, even without him?

Ugh, his brain hurt just thinking about it.

Gradually, Charlie closed his eyes and fell asleep right there on the cosmic web.

He didn't know how long he had slept when the cold, robotic notification sound jolted him awake.

[Ding! No response detected. Defaulting to participation in the Revival Match.]

[Ding! You have entered the Revival Match scenario.]

Before Charlie could react, the void suddenly swallowed his body.

In the next moment, a dazzling crystal fountain appeared before him.

"Splash~"

The azure waters shot dozens of meters into the air, the mist creating a shimmering, wave-like rainbow under the sunlight.

The mist was thick, and Charlie felt a refreshing coolness washing over him, even the air tasted sweet.

Looking up, through the waves of the rainbow, he saw giant planets of various colors hanging in the light-purple sky.

The planets seemed to be suspended close enough that he could make out the pink clouds covering them, with beams of light occasionally breaking through the clouds.

He could even faintly see mountains and glaciers on the planets.

The sight was dreamlike and surreal, sparking endless imagination.

These celestial bodies were drawn to each other, forming some sort of magical connection, as if they could crash into each other at any moment—both dangerous and mesmerizing.

As the mist around him cleared, Charlie noticed the information about the revival match appearing before him.

[Scenario: Titan]

[Mission: Participate in the Exile Journey and ensure that Thanos (Thanos) survives.]

[Mission Item: Legal Titan Citizen Identification.]

[Reward 1: Revival Slot x1]

[Reward 2: Titan Physique (Beginner)]

[Participants: Charlie Parker, Peter Parker, Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, Jane Foster, Peggy Carter, Bruce Banner, Clint Barton, Loki, Thor (more)]

[Countdown: Three minutes]

[Restart Chances: 9]

As the countdown began, Charlie studied the revival match details and frowned.

So, it was happening on Titan, Thanos' home planet, and the mission was to ensure Thanos' survival.

This revival match felt different from the previous ones.

With Thanos' power, it was the participants' survival that should be in question, not his.

Something wasn't adding up here.

The mission item was a legal Titan citizen identification, and "Exile Journey" sounded like some sort of trial or competition.

It seemed the first challenge wouldn't be protecting Thanos but completing the Exile Journey.

Looking over the list of participants, there were far too many familiar names to count. Clicking [more] revealed dozens more, both familiar and recurring names.

The upcoming scene was sure to be chaotic beyond imagination.

As for his restart chances...

Rescuing Tony from the Ten Rings, combined with the reward from defeating the enhanced soldiers, had added to his count.

He hadn't paid much attention to it at the time, as he hadn't expected Hydra Captain to stab him in the back.

9 restart chances—enough to get through this.

As the countdown ended, the mist cleared completely, revealing familiar faces all around Charlie.

"Tony!"

"Captain…"

"Natasha! I didn't expect to see you again!"

"Wait, why are you being so overly friendly? Something feels off."

"Brother!"

"Stop looking at me like that, it's gross."

"Jane, how did you die?"

As the fog lifted, everyone exchanged either surprised or confused glances as they recognized one another.

However, amidst this "reunion," a large green figure caught sight of Charlie Parker and immediately flew into a rage.

"Charlie Parker, you worthless idiot! You died again. I'm going to tear you apart!"

Charlie: "..."

It must be fate.

In every revival match, this lizard never failed to make an appearance.