Chapter 314: One Punch Man Travels to Marvel (Part 1)
[April 27, 2030 — You stand in the middle of a ruined city, utterly destitute, curiously observing your surroundings. The sky is a dull gray-black, the air thick with radioactive dust, and everywhere you look are broken walls and shattered buildings. On the few intact walls within sight are wanted posters — mostly for "monsters." One shows someone called the Hulk, another an Octopus Doctor, and a few others even look eerily similar to the Crab Monster and Octopus Claw Man from your previous parallel world. What a strange place.]
[You stand blankly on the street for a few minutes before noticing someone nearby being attacked. When you walk over, you find a young man in a ridiculous green bodysuit holding a flamethrower. He's just saved a child — full of righteous spirit. For a hero, that's enough.]
[The attackers are two lizard monsters, and one of them lunges at you. Instantly, you're reminded of that lizard monster from your world that went around looking for mates. Without hesitation, you throw an Ordinary Punch — and the creature is instantly launched into the sky like a meteor. The man in the green bodysuit you just saved stares at you with eyes practically popping out of his head.]
[April 28, 2030 — You learn that the person you saved is named Dave Lizewski, nickname: Kick-Ass. He's part of a hero group called the Defenders. You find it puzzling — this world clearly has monsters, yet its superheroes are so weak? Dave is full of awe toward you, and when he learns you have nowhere to stay, he immediately invites you to live with him, offering to cover most of the rent. His home is a makeshift wooden shack located in a medium-sized survivor community, with access to free TV and radio. There's a market and grocery area, and sometimes they even have discounts priced in "Star Coins." You're quite satisfied.]
[Before you can make sense of this world, you need to earn some money first. Through Dave, you learn there are two currencies here: regular money (U.S. dollars, divided into dollars, dimes, and cents), and something called Star Coins — introduced ten years ago by the Star Company and still in use. One Star Coin equals ten dollars and can be used to buy rare resources or discounted goods — your favorite kind of thing. But Star Coins can only be earned by completing bounties. As a rookie hero, Dave also works part-time at a convenience store. He's as broke as you, barely able to support himself.]
[This world has no Hero Association — only an organization called the Official Survivor Base. While it offers hero work, the entry requirements are high and you need a sponsor. The fastest way to make money is through bounty missions, but that also takes time — and requires an ID, which you currently don't have. Even though Dave practically begs you to "freeload" off him, you decide to be self-reliant and get a job helping sell fish at the market. Maybe due to radiation, even the fish here look like monsters — some even have legs. It really tests your self-control.]
[Life is tough right now, but at least there's a game console! You discover that Dave is absurdly good at games. While playing a fighting game called Street Fighter X, he uses an old man named JP to zone you out with projectiles until you die. He calls it "footsies." Footsies, my ass! You can only vent your anger on the fish — now you cut them faster, your heart colder, your knife even colder.]
[April 30 – May 7, 2030 — You've been in this world for a week now, losing in games every day, and you've grown to hate that character JP. After learning more about this world, you realize this is actually New York — a post-nuclear war New York. Several high-IQ monsters hacked into the U.S. nuclear launch system and fired 5,428 warheads at major cities. So many nukes caused global devastation; islands like Japan, the Maldives, and Fiji sank beneath the sea, and the world is now blanketed in radiation.]
[After the nuclear war, aside from a few survivor bases and an eastern Asian superpower maintaining a façade of freedom, two massive monster factions now rule most of the world — the Joker Gang and the Illuminati. The Joker Gang's leader is the "Hulk," the monster from the wanted posters. The Illuminati is led by a man nicknamed "Injustice Superman" — Steve Rogers. Oh, and in this world, "monsters" are called mutants. Many superheroes are mutants too. Interesting, right? From what you can tell, both the Hulk and Steve Rogers might actually be on your level — the thought alone gives you goosebumps.]
[The wanted posters are jointly issued by the New York Official Survivor Base and six other survivor organizations, led by someone named Reed Richards. Only registered heroes can accept these missions, and completing one allows you to officially become a hero — quite the impossible task. The Dave Lizewski you know is a One-Star Hero. His teammates include Daredevil Matt Murdock (Three-Star), Jessica Jones (Two-Star), and Luke Cage (Three-Star). The top-ranking heroes in the association are Spider-Man and Doctor Strange, both Five-Star. Fascinating. Since you don't have ID, Dave has to take the bounties for you.]
[Your first bounty targets a group of mutants called the Element Carnival. They've taken over the ruins of a place called "Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters." The main members are Fireman William Dawn, Rockman Jason, and Electro Jamie Foxx. Dave drives you there. There are a lot of enemies — all elemental mutants, about Demon-level in strength — a tough fight. But they made a mistake: one of them, William Dawn, looks just like JP. White cape fluttering, you unleash a barrage of Consecutive Normal Punches. William Dawn evaporates on the spot; Jamie Foxx gets a hole blasted through his chest; Jason the Rockman is tough — he takes one punch before collapsing, still mostly intact.]
[Too weak! You feel utterly bored. Dave, however, is ecstatic, grabbing your arm and shaking you wildly, begging to learn your secret. It's actually simple — just do 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10-kilometer run every day for three years, and no matter how hot or cold it gets, never use air conditioning.]
[May 9, 2030 — Dave Lizewski submits the bounty report on your behalf. Since there were no bodies left, the reward for William Dawn was voided. The combined bounty for Jamie Foxx and Jason the Rockman nets 8,200 Star Coins. Are you rich now? Not really — it's just like before. You only moved into a slightly bigger house, and you're still out there chasing every discount deal.]
[After submitting the bounty, Dave Lizewski's hero rank rises to Three-Star. He should now have the authority to help you register for the Hero Exam — but just like back in your world, this one requires a written test! You don't know enough about this world yet, so you're not confident enough to take it.]
[Your second bounty target is a mutant named Jack of Hearts from the Illuminati — a member of the Dark Avengers. He can shoot pink energy blasts from his hands or create powerful shockwaves around him. With strength exceeding 25 tons, tremendous attack power, accelerated regeneration, and metabolism twice that of normal humans, he's extremely fast and can even teleport using energy. You're not sure how strong that makes him — maybe around Boros's level? During the fight, he actually manages to hurt you a bit. But when he fires a seemingly massive "Heart Shockwave," you're forced to use a Serious Punch. The result? His attack is obliterated, he's instantly killed, and half the radioactive dust in Earth's upper atmosphere is blown away by the punch's wind pressure. Disappointing!]