[114] : The Idea of Forming a Team

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Zod's chest was pierced by Superman's heat vision. 

Despite the Kryptonian's strong physique and the additional protection of his Kryptonian armor, under the full force of Superman's heat vision, Zod's chest was burned through, leaving a large gaping hole.

"Ahhh!!!"

Zod screamed in agony, struggling violently due to the pain of having his chest pierced, but Roger held him down firmly.

It didn't take long for Superman to stop his heat vision, and Zod's heart had already been penetrated by it. 

Even with the life force enhanced by being a Kryptonian, he couldn't survive long with a damaged heart. Zod's life began to slip away as the searing pain from his chest burned on.

Roger let go of Zod, who was gradually losing his strength, and took a few steps back, instinctively feeling his own chest. 

Superman hadn't held back at all when using his heat vision to kill Zod. If Kryptonian skin wasn't so tough, the heat vision could've gone right through Zod's body and struck Roger.

Luckily… luckily, Zod's body was sturdy enough. The heat vision only penetrated the front of his body and didn't exit through the other side.

Otherwise, Roger wasn't sure he could withstand Superman's heat vision.

Jean, who had been using her telekinesis from the shadows to restrain Zod, stood with Roger and watched Superman speak to the now dying Zod. Zod lay on the ground, facing up. 

He hadn't anticipated this to be his final outcome. Turning his gaze to Superman, who was kneeling beside him, he spoke:

"You… destroyed Krypton and killed your kinsman… Kal-El, you are… Krypton's greatest sinner…"

With these last words, Zod's life came to an end.

Superman remained kneeling by Zod's corpse, unable to recover from the shock for a long time.

Superman was likely carrying a heavy burden in his heart, one that would take him a long time to process.

Roger didn't disturb Superman. Once he confirmed Zod's death, he took Jean and left the battlefield.

They weren't from this world. The disaster had already drawn some attention to them, and if they stayed any longer, it might cause trouble.

Thus, Roger and Jean didn't linger. Taking advantage of the fact that the others weren't yet focusing on them, the two quickly left Metropolis.

The events in Metropolis made Earth's people aware of the existence of extraterrestrials. At the same time, with Superman still on Earth possessing immense power, humanity began discussions on how to coexist with him.

As Roger expected, his and Jean's appearance also sparked a frenzy of discussions among the public.

From the perspective of the citizens, the newly appeared "aliens" had abilities similar to Superman's, but the conversation between the Kryptonians made it clear that these aliens were not Kryptonians. 

The two, who had appeared together, a man and a red-haired girl, were likely aliens from somewhere else.

What worried Earth's people even more was that, unlike Superman, who was consistently in the public eye, the two "alien heroes" who had saved countless lives in Metropolis didn't reappear afterward.

They became the stuff of legend in Metropolis, like some superheroes of old.

…

One month after the Metropolis incident, in a room near Metropolis Square, Roger sat on a sofa, staring absentmindedly at the statues in the square.

Unlike in the original story, where there was only a statue of Superman, there were now statues of Roger and Jean flanking Superman's in the square.

Flowers of gratitude had been placed at the base of all three statues, with the most flowers lying beneath Jean's statue. 

This was because, during that battle, only Jean tirelessly saved the innocent. Compared to Roger and Superman, who fought the Kryptonians, Jean's popularity was notably higher.

"They're calling me 'Wonder Girl'…"

Jean, who had just returned, threw the latest newspaper at Roger and remarked, half-crying, half-laughing.

"Wonder Girl?"

Roger picked up the newspaper, glanced over the articles related to him and Jean, and sighed helplessly. 

"There's going to be an actual Wonder Girl in this world's future… Whatever, it's just a codename. Wait… Why am I called 'Black Superman'?! Is it just because I wear black?"

After seeing Jean's title, Roger noticed that the people of this world were now calling him "Black Superman."

The reason was simple: Roger's abilities were similar to Superman's, and he wore black armor, so the nickname stuck.

But in all fairness, the title "Superman" did suit Clark Kent better, and at this point, Roger didn't really care about titles.

"Forget it… it doesn't matter…"

After a moment of surprise, Roger casually tossed the newspaper aside and sighed as he looked out toward the square.

Jean retrieved an ice cream from the refrigerator and, seeing Roger sigh, couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong? You've been in this state for days now."

Since the end of that battle, Roger had entered a prolonged period of contemplation. 

In the past, after traveling to another world, once things settled, Roger would go on extensive journeys, sometimes even exploring other planets, leaving his mark on the world's landscapes.

But this time, after the battle, Roger had stayed quietly in one room, rarely leaving. When bored, he would play video games or stare blankly at the square, sighing occasionally.

Seeing Roger like this for so long, Jean couldn't help but ask what was wrong with him.

Could it be that this failure had hit Roger so hard?

Even though they had ultimately emerged victorious…

After a long while, accompanied by yet another sigh, Jean heard Roger say, "I've been thinking… about whether I should form a team."

"Huh? A team?"

"After all, if I had more help this time when I came to this world, this disaster wouldn't have caused so many deaths."

Roger had been seriously considering this for days.

He'd realized that each time he traveled, he would land in the middle or at the beginning of a significant event in that world.

Or more accurately, a critical starting point in the narrative.

In the Marvel world, it had been the beginning of the plot. In the X-Men world, it had been the awakening of Apocalypse. In Superman's world, it was after the arrival of the Kryptonians.

In other words, it seemed impossible for Roger to arrive early in a world and make preparations.

Whenever he crossed into a new world, he would face major events, sometimes even apocalyptic ones.

Under such circumstances, relying solely on Roger was insufficient.

Even with Jean's help, if they faced a scenario like in Metropolis, where they couldn't save people in time, Roger would be forced to watch as people perished before him.

Although saving people wasn't Roger's primary goal in traveling through worlds… he couldn't just turn a blind eye.

For example, if he could have brought Quicksilver to Metropolis, even if they couldn't save everyone, at least those near the World Engine when it activated would've been safe.

So, Roger thought, "If I'm already bringing one person through my travel points, taking two isn't much different. Why not form an interdimensional travel team and bring along a few more people to keep me company?"

They could chat, play games, or whatever else during downtime.

"That sounds like a great idea! Why did you take so long to decide?" Jean asked, fully endorsing Roger's plan and not understanding what had held him back.

Roger sighed again. "Because… I'm lazy."

"Huh?" Jean was stunned. She couldn't tell if Roger was serious or just joking.

Roger wasn't joking at all. He genuinely didn't want to bring more people along. Even Jean was an exception, if not for her being well-behaved and having previously struck a deal with him regarding the travel conditions, he wouldn't have taken her either.

If Roger was this lazy, the idea of bringing other people along seemed even less appealing.

But without increasing the number of team members, a situation like what happened in Metropolis could easily happen again in the future…

It was this internal conflict that had kept Roger cooped up in the room for almost a month, unable to make a decision.

Seeing Roger sigh in resignation, Jean realized he was serious. He genuinely didn't want to expand the team because of his lazy nature.

Jean shrugged, without offering any further advice. After all, Roger was the only one who could travel between worlds, so the decision to bring others along was solely his to make.

No matter what Roger decided, Jean would support him.

As Roger continued debating whether to form a team, Jean grabbed a second ice cream from the fridge and was about to turn on a sci-fi movie.

But then, there was an unexpected knock on the door. Jean paused mid-action and turned to Roger.

The house they were staying in belonged to an innocent victim who had perished in the disaster.

This person had no parents, no girlfriend, and no children.

After his death, the property should have gone back to the bank, but when the bank was about to reclaim it, Jean used her abilities to claim it as their temporary residence in Metropolis.

Thanks to Jean's powers, no one had come looking for them all this time. Otherwise, Jean would have been recognized and surrounded whenever she went out for supplies.

So… logically, no one should be knocking at their door…

Jean looked at Roger, wanting him to confirm who it was outside.

Roger got the hint and glanced towards the door. After a brief pause, he said to Jean, "Open it. It's not the government people, nor is it a reporter… Well, maybe a reporter."

"?"

Even though Jean didn't fully understand what Roger meant, she still went to open the door.

And… standing there was a seemingly harmless-looking Superman, wearing glasses and smiling.

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