Morty watched his mom, who just moments ago had been yelling that Rick was already dead, rush up to him, throw her arms around him, and sob her heart out.
His dad looked wary.
His sister looked extremely curious.
Only Morty tried to make himself as invisible as possible.
He quietly pulled out his phone, ready to spend what little allowance he had on a ticket online and get the hell out of there.
Because even though Morty had only watched the first season of Rick and Morty, he knew this house was about to become unlivable.
Rick had actually come back at a time like this.
And judging from the look on his face, he was clearly here for Morty.
After all, every Rick needed a Morty.
The two of them were an inseparable package deal.
Sure enough, after his mom said she was taking the day off and the two of them spent a good while chatting in the living room, Rick set his sights on him.
“Morty, my grandson, look at you.
Scrawny as hell, just like your dad.
And that timid little look?
Yeah, that’s not gonna work.”
“Tonight, we’re going out for some fun.
Grandpa’s gonna show you the world.”
Morty: “…”
Rick had been in front of him for less than an hour, and he was already saying he wanted to “show him the world.”
Morty had always treated Rick and Morty as nothing more than an adventure story, but now a question popped into his head.
He knew the Citadel existed.
Naturally, he also knew that if a Rick wanted a Morty, it was basically no different from going grocery shopping.
He could just place an order in the Citadel and buy a Morty to use.
So why had this Grandpa, who had been missing for twenty years, suddenly come back now and immediately offered to take him out to “see the world”?
Morty definitely couldn’t ask that so bluntly.
Otherwise, Rick would skin him alive.
He had been gone for twenty years and had only just come back.
Morty had not leaked a damn thing yet, and then he would just straight-up say he knew about the Citadel?
No matter how hard he tried to act like some big-shot prophet, it would be completely useless.
Rick’s combat power was already maxed out.
Who knew how many gods he had killed?
His mindset was pure not-giving-a-shit.
Trying to bluff him by playing prophet…
Portal + Time Travel + Precision Dissection = You’re screwed.
So after Rick said he wanted to show him the world, Morty forced on an “innocent” expression and asked what kind of world they were going to see.
Rick did not answer right away.
He only gave Morty a smile that left way too much room for imagination, then went back to chatting with the precious daughter he had not seen in twenty years.
At that moment, Jerry secretly pulled Morty into a corner.
“Morty, stay away from that Grandpa of yours.
He abandoned Beth without a second thought and disappeared for twenty years.
Now he suddenly shows up again?
Something’s definitely wrong.”
Facing this dad, who in the anime had always been timid and constantly butting heads with Rick, Morty opened his mouth, but honestly had no idea what to say.
Because Rick was obviously here for him.
So how exactly was Jerry planning to go up against a genius-level cheat like Rick?
Wasn’t he just going to get beaten every single time?
So after nodding in agreement, Morty looked at his mom, who had already gone into the kitchen to busy herself, and his dad, who had already sidled over to talk with Rick.
Given Rick’s abilities, Morty figured he might have already discovered the secret of his transmigration.
Otherwise, why would he suddenly come back?
[So should I run or not…]
[If I tip him off…]
With his mind in complete chaos, Morty barely made it through lunch.
Afterward, he went to the garage with Rick.
At this point, the garage was not yet the secret base it would later be renovated into.
Standing in front of the family’s five-seat sedan, Rick suddenly dropped the nostalgic look he had worn inside the house.
His expression turned much colder.
That abnormal shift made Morty’s heart start pounding.
Because it meant what came next would be…
“Morty, you’re definitely wondering why Grandpa suddenly came back after twenty years, right?”
“Yeah…”
“Actually, I…” Rick suddenly paused, a somewhat nostalgic look crossing his face.
“I’ve been drifting through the endless universe for twenty years.
Now I want to come back to my family, but my heart hasn’t fully come back with me…”
“So, are you interested in going on adventures to other worlds?”
“There’s money to make, girls to pick up, and luxury cars to drive.”
Morty: “What the fuck…”
For the first time, Morty felt like Rick might not be omnipotent after all.
At the very least, his sales pitch still needed work.
A perfectly good recruitment pitch for endless adventures across the multiverse had been mangled into this by his busted-ass wording.
Still, deep down, Morty was not against it.
Because during the time he had been in the garage, he had already figured out one key point.
If Rick wanted a Morty, he could have found another Morty in the Citadel.
But he had specifically come for him, which clearly meant Rick needed him for something.
No matter what, Rick definitely would not be willing to let him slip away.
So hiding was not going to work.
But every time he went to another world on an adventure, he might be able to find something incredible to strengthen himself.
He was not doing it to kill Rick.
He could not kill him anyway…
It was for the day he got tired of adventuring, or the day he wanted to run.
At the very least, he would have a way to reach another world and live the rest of his life under a hidden name.
So this could work.
Seeing that Morty seemed tempted, Rick wasted no time.
He pulled out a pistol-sized portal gun and fired it straight ahead.
The glossy green liquid touched the air, and in less than 0.1 seconds, it formed an oval liquid wall as tall as a person.
This was the most absurd thing in Rick and Morty.
As long as there was enough energy, it could open as many portals as anyone wanted.
And it could lead to all kinds of bizarre worlds.
With a trace of anticipation, Morty excitedly approached the portal.
First, he tested it with one finger to feel what touching the portal was like.
When it felt like touching water, Morty closed his eyes and stepped inside.
The next second.
Morty opened his eyes and found himself standing in a massive upside-down city!!!
Where the sky should have been, there was an ocean.
[W-what is this place…
This never showed up in the animation at all…]
Just as Morty started feeling like he had gotten way too cocky, Rick walked out of the portal.
He reached into the inner pocket of his coat and took out a small flask he carried with him.
He took a sip of what was absolutely liquor over 50 degrees, then let out a burp.
His whole body seemed to relax.
Morty, who had completely forgotten that Rick drank, watched him walk toward a store.
Morty had only just followed him over.
Rick kicked the store’s glass door to pieces.
The Chair Persons inside…
“Holy shit?!
What the hell are those things?”
Inside the modern human-style store, a group of Chair Persons with facial features stared at Rick in terror.
And most of the merchandise in the store was actually…
Cell phones!
In their strange hands, which barely deserved to be called hands, they were holding people about the size of cell phones.
Chair Persons?
Cell phones for sale?
Phone People?
Morty felt like his entire worldview had just been punched in the face.
He reached up and rubbed his eyes.
Once he confirmed he really was not dreaming, Rick had already pulled out a gun and fired a shot into the ceiling.
“Robbery!
Hand over your money!!!”