Rowan felt like the sky above his life had turned gray.
“System…” His voice was filled with despair.
“I beg you.” “Please leave.” “Go find a better host.” He pointed toward Tony, who was busy working in the distance.
“See that handsome guy over there?” “Go bind yourself to him.” “He’s the protagonist.” “You’ll have a much better future with him than with me.” The system immediately objected.
Ding!
Host, I am absolutely loyal and devoted.
I would never betray you.
“I don’t need your loyalty.” Rowan looked pained.
“My legal wife is the Druid Panel.” “You showed up later.” “You’re the mistress.” “Please, just leave.” Ding!
Host, I refuse.
Even if I die, I will remain with you forever.
Rowan’s soul practically left his body.
He collapsed onto the floor like a dead fish.
Tired.
Done.
Destroy everything.
In the distance, Tony and Yinsen watched Rowan jump around, argue with empty air, and then suddenly collapse as though he’d lost all purpose in life.
Tony stopped working.
“What happened to him?” Yinsen looked equally confused.
“No idea.” “Maybe puberty?” “Kids that age are strange.” Tony thought for a moment.
“…Could it be stress?” “Honestly, probably.” “He’s just a kid.” “Our situation must be affecting him.” Tony’s expression grew serious.
“We need to speed things up.” Without realizing it, he began working faster.
Yinsen became even more confused.
What was wrong with everyone lately?
One minute it was Rowan.
Now it was Tony.
Were they all losing their minds?
Meanwhile, Rowan lay flat on the ground staring at the cave ceiling with dead eyes.
The system continued trying to comfort him.
Ding!
Host, try looking on the bright side.
I upgraded your support abilities.
And those attack skills aren’t actually useless.
You simply haven’t discovered their true value yet.
“I don’t want explanations.” Rowan interrupted immediately.
“I’ve figured it out.” “You’re an undercover agent.” “You were sent here specifically to ruin my life.” “Look at everything that’s happened since you arrived!” “The falling.” “The explosions.” “The kidnapping.” “The drowning.” “The terrorists.” “The missing meteors!” The more he thought about it, the angrier he became.
He could barely speak coherently.
The system sighed.
Ding!
Host, your bad luck isn’t my fault.
You’re a transmigrator.
Naturally, the world’s consciousness rejects outsiders.
As a result, you’ll be unusually unlucky.
You’ll constantly encounter accidents.
Villains will unconsciously gravitate toward you.
Trouble will find you no matter where you go.
Rowan sat upright.
“…Wait.” “What?” The system continued.
Ding!
Furthermore, the original Druid Panel isn’t as powerful as you think.
Different worlds have different laws.
Many Druid abilities would be heavily weakened or completely restricted.
For example, resurrection abilities normally wouldn’t function at all.
After my optimization, however, they can work.
Dangerous?
Yes.
But usable.
That’s a significant improvement.
Hearing that, Rowan felt slightly better.
Only slightly.
Then another horrifying realization struck him.
“Wait.” “You’re saying the world itself hates me?” “Meaning no matter where I hide, enemies will eventually show up?” “Then why did you remove my attack spells?!” The system answered calmly.
Ding!
Not having attack spells doesn’t mean you can’t fight.
You can still punch people.
“…” Rowan stared blankly.
Then exploded.
“PUNCH PEOPLE?!” “This is Marvel!” “There are gods!” “There are aliens!” “There are super soldiers!” “There are mutants!” “There are cosmic entities!” “And your solution is for me to punch them?!” The system coughed awkwardly.
Ding!
Well…
There is another solution.
Rowan immediately sat up.
“Talk.” Ding!
Stay close to the Chosen Ones.
“The what?” Ding!
The protagonists.
People with strong destiny.
The individuals you call main characters.
Their protagonist aura naturally attracts villains.
If you’re near them, enemies will usually target them first.
You can also ride along and gain experience.
Eventually your existence will become integrated into this world.
At that point, the world’s rejection of you will disappear.
Rowan fell silent.
“…” “…That actually makes sense.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
“So my original plan of escaping and hiding in Silvara is dead.” Ding!
Correct.
“Looks like I’ll have to cling to Tony’s thigh instead.” Fortunately, it was a very thick thigh.
And a very rich one.
The only question was whether Tony would let him stay.
After calming down, Rowan returned to studying his skills.
Suddenly, something caught his attention.
“Hey, System.” “What does ‘Silvara Exclusive Skin Edition’ mean?” He pointed at the descriptions for Bear Form and Cat Form.
The system sounded mysterious.
Ding!
Host will understand after testing them.
“Tch.” “Still trying to act mysterious.” Now wasn’t the time to test transformations.
He’d wait until they escaped.
Then another thought occurred to him.
“Actually…” “Shouldn’t Bear Form and Cat Form count as combat abilities?” “Why didn’t you optimize those away too?” The system answered immediately.
Ding!
Bear Form and Cat Form are classified as special abilities.
The forms themselves are not attack skills.
Only some of the original abilities attached to those forms were considered offensive.
Therefore, the system only optimized the offensive abilities.
You may still use the forms normally.
And you may still physically attack enemies.
Rowan looked unimpressed.
“What’s the point?” “A bear is still a bear.” “I’m pretty sure Captain America could beat one up.” The system paused.
Then replied: Ding!
You could also be adorable.
“…Get lost.” Ding!
Understood~ Rowan continued browsing through his abilities.
Then he stopped at one particular skill.
Nourish.
“This one actually looks amazing.” In the original game, it had just been another healing spell.
Now it could strengthen someone’s physique and even provide a life-saving effect.
Definitely worth testing.
Immediately, Rowan jumped to his feet.
This was his first enhanced skill.
He needed proper ceremony.
Casting it while lying down would be disrespectful.
Taking a deep breath, he activated the skill.
Nothing happened.
“Huh?” Rowan blinked.
“I didn’t feel anything.” “Maybe I need a transformation sequence?” He immediately struck a pose.
“Balala Energy!
Shalala!
Magical Girl Transformation!” Nothing.
“Ancient Dark God!
Transform!” Nothing.
“By the power of Grayskull!” Nothing.
“Moon Prism Power, Make Up!” Nothing.
“Burn, my Cosmo!” Nothing.
“Appear, Crimson Divine Eagle!” Nothing.
After a brief pause, Rowan tried one more.
“Rise again, my warrior!” Then he stopped.
“…Actually, that one probably isn’t appropriate.” Across the cave, Tony and Yinsen stared at him.
Completely baffled.
Tony slowly turned toward Yinsen.
“What is he doing now?” “No idea.” Yinsen shrugged.
“Kids are energetic.” “That’s normal.” A few seconds later he added: “…Although I think this one may have been locked up too long.” Meanwhile, Rowan collapsed to the floor, panting heavily.
“This doesn’t make sense.” “Using skills used to be easy.” “System!” “System!” The reply came immediately.
Ding!
Host, have you considered the possibility that your Mana Strength is too low?
“…What?” Ding!
Nourish is a high-level ability.
Your current Mana Strength cannot support it.
Rowan froze.
Then slowly turned toward the invisible system.
“…You couldn’t have mentioned that earlier?” Ding!
You didn’t ask.
“…” Rowan wanted to punch something.
Preferably the system.
Then another terrifying thought occurred to him.
“What exactly did you see just now?” The system instantly replied.
Ding!
This system saw absolutely nothing.
“Hmph.” “Good.” The system had chosen survival.
A wise decision.
“So what can I actually use right now?” The system answered.
Ding!
Excluding Tranquility, Nourish, Lifebloom, Rebirth, and the transformation abilities—which currently require higher Mana Strength—most other abilities can be activated.
However, you should remember one thing.
“What?” Ding!
Low Mana Strength dramatically reduces effectiveness.
“Wait.” “So Mana Strength affects power too?” Ding!
Correct.
The higher your Mana Strength becomes, the stronger every ability will grow.
That was important information.
Very important information.
Rowan immediately asked: “Then how do I increase it?” The system replied: Ding!
Simply put, I provide passive experience every day.
Additionally, defeating enemies or assisting allies in defeating enemies will also grant experience.
More experience equals faster Mana Strength growth.
Rowan nodded.
At last, something made sense.
“Got it.” A grin slowly spread across his face.
If experience was the answer…
Then perhaps Marvel wasn’t such a terrible place after all.