American comics: From Hogwarts to God on Earth

Chapter 162 Spider-Man Has No Book (3k)

The fusion of magical creatures finally gave Rune enough capital to establish himself in the worlds of DC or Marvel. Now, he hopes to maintain the stability of the world, or at least relative stability, so that he can do what he likes instead of being dragged away to save the world every few days.

While Rune's current strength certainly makes him a top-tier villain in DC Comics, he's still far from being a supervillain like Darkseid himself, Brainiac, or the Beyonders. And catching up to their power is no easy feat; it won't happen overnight.

Therefore, Rune believes the Justice League and the Avengers are indispensable, not only because they protect him from supervillains, but also because he can make a fortune through this method. Of course, some heroes can't afford this, like the one in front of him—

"Um—everyone's here?" The superhero, dressed in classic red and blue with a spider emblem on his chest, seemed flustered, his hands fidgeting as if he didn't know what to do with them.

"It's not everyone, it's just me and Steve," Tony added, then quickly coughed to sound serious. At that moment, he was incredibly grateful that Rune hadn't dressed these [companion] puppets too provocatively, otherwise his image in the child's mind would have been completely ruined.

Steve looked at Spider-Man with a puzzled expression: "What are you doing here?"

But Rune knew exactly what this hero wanted, and he smiled at the man in the bodysuit: "I knew you would come, my friend."

In fact, in Rune's vision, Steve and Tony were the ones who shouldn't have appeared, and as for Spider-Man—he was definitely there to create Uncle Ben. As everyone knows, even with over 200 Spider-Men in the Marvel multiverse, you couldn't find one Uncle Ben.

"You knew he was coming all along?" Steve frowned and looked at Rune, who nodded.

However, he wasn't after Spider-Man's blood. Although Peter Parker was ostensibly transformed into Spider-Man after being bitten by a radioactive spider, the fundamental reason he became Spider-Man was actually the sacred spider totem. A deity named Master Weaver controlled Peter's destiny, while another god named Otherthing bestowed the power of all of Peter Parker's spider totems through the Web of Life and Destiny.

In other words, if someone actually believes in Spider-Man's power and goes to find the spider, only to be bitten, and this foolish and ignorant poor person is not chosen by the gods of the spider totem, then he will eventually die from spider venom or genetic mutation caused by nuclear radiation.

It's important to understand that the Weaver is one of the few characters in the Marvel Universe capable of directly influencing the structure of the multiverse, possessing abilities far exceeding those of ordinary cosmic-level heroes. He is not only the core administrator of the Spider-Totem system but can also manipulate reality through the Web of Fate, even erasing entire universes. Even with his multiple weaknesses, Rune would never risk undergoing bloodline fusion and entering the vision of this true god.

Spider-Man, of course, was unaware of Rune's thoughts. He said softly, "There is someone I do want to meet no matter what."

He removed his mask, revealing a face that looked to be in his mid-twenties. Compared to Steve's righteous indignation and Stark's unrestrained nature, Spider-Man's style was more sunny, like a kind older brother next door. But at this moment, his face revealed a deep sorrow.

Ben—the man who raised him after his parents died in a plane crash, yet he died because of him. This was something Peter could never forget, something he could never forgive himself for.

"Is there anything I need to do? Like, um, describe what my uncle looks like, or find you a picture or something—"

"No need." Rune interrupted Spider-Man, who was spinning non-stop: "Come here, don't try to dodge."

With his spider-sense present, it was difficult for Rune to touch Peter's head.

"Alright." Peter Parker nodded, then walked directly to Rune's side, muttering incessantly, "This place is much smaller than the New York Sanctum I've been to, and much more dangerous. I feel like I'm inside the mouth of a giant beast; I have goosebumps all over my body—"

If this were Spider-Man from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Rune could easily have Tony keep an eye on him, but in this universe, even Mazefak is white, so there's no way to expect any "father-son relationship" between Tony and Peter.

Rune tried to keep his expression calm. He reached into Peter's head and pulled out a silvery-white serpent of memory, then placed a hand into the clay that had just flown over. The clay quickly transformed into the form Peter remembered.

- Graying sideburns, gentle wrinkles, and that familiar plaid shirt—

Spider-Man's mouth finally stopped babbling and instead became unusually pursed. Just like when his classmates suddenly informed him that the homeroom teacher wanted to see him, Peter was so nervous that his heart almost stopped, and his lips were pursed tightly.

"Uncle Ben."

"Are you sure you want to really bring him to life?" Rune asked, shaking the Memory Serpent in his hand. "If this thing goes inside, then the Uncle Ben in your memory will really come to life, but he will never be the real person."

Tony chimed in, "Do you know what you're doing, Peter?"

"Think carefully before you make a decision, son," Steve whispered a reminder.

"You're here too, aren't you? You also have someone you want to see again, right?" Peter turned around abruptly, his eyes reddening as he questioned, "I...I just want to see him one more time! Just one more time!"

Then Peter Parker yelled at Rune, "Put it in! I want my Uncle Ben back to life!"

Rune, of course, didn't care. Ignoring Steve and Iron Man's attempts to stop him, he directly inserted the Memory Serpent into the puppet's body. The next moment, the white-haired old man opened his eyes. He looked around at the superheroes, then at Peter, and asked in confusion, "Peter? Where is this? I clearly remember being in the supermarket just now—"

In that instant, Peter was struck dumb. Rune was absolutely right. This puppet was a perfect replica of his Uncle Ben from his memories—even the habit of his right hand unconsciously touching his left sleeve when he spoke was exactly the same.

"Uncle Ben—" Peter's voice choked. Steve and Stark wisely chose not to interrupt. Rune sat back down on the sofa and remained silent. Rune had seen this scene countless times. The more surprised they were now, the more ruthless they would be when they chose to destroy the puppet in the future.

But in any case, this is a time that belongs solely to these two people.

The puppet suddenly frowned, an expression so familiar—the same expression Peter always wore when he did something wrong—this simple boy wasn't good at lying: "Wait, what did you do wrong this time? Like, someone called you a nerd again, and you couldn't help but punch them? If that's the case—I'd say you did the right thing!"

"No, no. I just—" Peter couldn't help but laugh, but tears blurred his vision: "I need your advice."

The puppet patted Spider-Man on the shoulder and said in a gentle yet firm tone, "So, what's keeping you up at night this time?"

Peter stared at his palm. "I made a choice—a choice that could hurt my family. But if I didn't, more people would get hurt."

He looked up. "If it were you, what would you do?"

Ben paused for a moment, his gaze drifting past Peter's shoulder as if looking at some distant place: "Do you remember that day in the garage when I taught you how to change a tire?"

Peter nodded. The memory was so vivid—his hands were black with engine oil, the cicadas chirping in the summer, and Uncle Ben's patient guidance.

"Sometimes—" Kuben continued, his fingers unconsciously twirling his wedding ring—a detail Peter had never noticed before: "The right choice is often the hardest one. Many people know what the right choice is, but they want to make things easier, thinking that even if the choice isn't quite right, it won't really affect my fate, right?"

"But isn't fate simply something driven by all the choices we make in our daily lives, and all the choices others make? There's no such thing as destiny; it's just cause and effect."

"It's like a tire. As it's used, its treads wear away until they reach a breaking point. Some people choose to replace the tire, some choose to re-tread them with a carving tool, and some are just too lazy to replace it."

Peter's eyes filled with tears, and he suddenly grabbed Uncle Ben's hand. Just as he remembered, it was warm, dry, and even the calluses on his palms were exactly the same as he remembered.

"I'm sorry, Uncle Ben—" he choked out, "If I hadn't—"

"Peter," the puppet interrupted him, its voice suddenly becoming unusually clear, "look at me!"

Peter looked at the puppet through teary eyes.

"You've done enough, child," Puppet Ben said softly, wiping away the tears from Peter's eyes with his fingers. "I've seen it all, everything you've done these past few days."

He gently patted Peter's head and said softly, "I've always been so proud of you, kid. I know it's hard to be a superhero, but you persevered, Peter. You didn't let me down, and you didn't let anyone down—"

Ben choked back tears and said, "You've only let yourself down, Peter—you've only let yourself down, child. Now, let's look at each other properly—"

Peter sensed something was amiss; he looked at his nominal uncle, his actual father, while Ben looked back at Peter.

Both of their eyes were filled with tears.

"One last look, child, one last look," Ben forced a smile. "We have to say goodbye. I can't selfishly tie my good neighbor, who is a common ally of New Yorkers, to my side. I can't—child, do it—"

Even though it was a puppet made by Rune, because it didn't use particularly good materials and wasn't infused with much magic, the puppet couldn't withstand the force measured in tons—it turned into hardened clay and collapsed to the ground with a thud.

Peter didn't know how he did it, but in the end, he just put on the mask, stared blankly at the debris on the ground, and then cried in suppressed sobs.