Three minutes later.
"Those are the game rules. Got it?" the Grandmaster said.
Charlie smiled faintly. "Great. Let's start!"
"I've already played my card."
"So it's my turn."
Charlie gathered his cards, tucking them into a deck at his waist.
The Grandmaster frowned. "You're playing randomly?"
Charlie patted the deck, chuckling. "You don't get Spider-Man's humor."
He drew a card, seemingly at random.
Swish!
"For White Suit Tony, this card'll do."
He tapped the card's edge, sliding it into the game slot.
"Come on out, my Captain Thunder!!"
Buzz~
The game system read the card, light flashing.
In the city, digital glitches appeared on a rooftop opposite White Suit Tony. An elderly Steve, wielding Mjolnir in one hand and a shield in the other, landed.
The moment Elder Steve appeared, his gaze locked onto White Suit Tony.
"Such a white Tony—eat my hammer!"
With a roar, Elder Steve slammed Mjolnir against his shield, unleashing a torrent of thunder that morphed into serpents charging at White Suit Tony.
Zzt zzt~
Lightning surged, reflecting off nearby skyscraper glass. The destructive aura spread, and White Suit Tony's silver armor trembled, its symbiote-infused tech unable to deploy weapons in time.
Too slow, White Suit Tony was struck in the chest, white symbiote cells scattering in a blast. The impact sent him flying into the horizon.
KO!
"Congratulations on capturing this territory!"
Fireworks burst on the game interface. Charlie scored an easy first win.
Superheroes or villains battling to claim turf—that was the game's core rule.
Simple and brutal. Charlie loved it.
"First round's mine," he grinned.
The Grandmaster shrugged. "Congrats on my congrats, but this game isn't about whose card is stronger. It's—"
His fingertip glowed, sliding a card into the slot.
"It's about whose cards are strong and numerous!"
"Come forth, my Natasha!"
Digital glitches flickered. On another city street, black mist spread, and scarlet eyes emerged.
Tap tap tap~
High heels clicked. A swaying figure parted the mist, a dark succubus Natasha with blood-red eyes glaring at passersby. With a wave, eerie webs claimed the area.
"Ahh! Run!"
"What's happening here?"
"This is Spider-Man's game with aliens—unbelievable."
"Terrifying!"
Citizens fled, but evil Natasha cackled, her webs cocooning people, hanging them from skyscrapers as food reserves.
"Wow, Spider-Man vibes!" Charlie clapped, laughing. "A real Black Widow succubus. Love it, but her teeth are too sharp."
He drew another card.
"For her, this card's perfect."
"Go, my fangirl!"
Buzz~
Under the black mist, cold glints pierced the haze. A red figure flipped into the webbed city, followed by beep beep beep censor effects.
Yep, Lady Deadpool's super-dirty mouth.
Charlie approved of the style.
But not her strength.
Whoosh whoosh~
Hum~
In the mist, blades flashed. Endless web cocoons attacked. Succubus Natasha shed her human skin, a monstrous form pouncing.
"Oh my gosh~"
Lady Deadpool gaped at the giant spider-butt descending, covering her mouth.
"I'm so jealous."
Roar!
With a screech, Lady Deadpool was torn to shreds.
KO!
"This round's mine," the Grandmaster smirked.
Charlie wagged a finger. "Nope, just a KO. My fangirl's health bar isn't empty."
The bloody fragments in the misty city still writhed. Natasha, gorging on her meal, didn't notice her food could strike back.
The Grandmaster's lip curled. "Doesn't matter. She'll revive only to be Natasha's snack. No counterattack possible."
Charlie shrugged. "Whatever you say."
As they spoke, fire roared. White Suit Tony returned, weapons blazing, aiming to blast Elder Steve to bits.
Until the final moment, no one could secure their claimed turf.
Rumble rumble!
Amid the barrage, Elder Steve stood unharmed behind his shield, but the concrete beneath collapsed.
Boom~
As the skyscraper fell under Tony's bombardment, a thunderbolt shot from the rubble.
Zzt zzt~
Boom!!
A sky-shaking roar, and Captain Thunder shone.
"What!"
White Suit Tony's eyes widened.
He felt the old man's killing intent.
Three minutes later, Elder Steve landed, charred armor fragments writhing at his feet.
One hammer strike, and the last symbiote cells vanished.
Buzz~
As White Suit Tony died, the collapsed building rose, restored by mystic force.
Even the dead revived.
Charlie's eyes narrowed.
His suspicions were right—the Grandmaster's power went beyond appearances.
The game interface showed White Suit Tony's card grayed out, unusable until a victor emerged, when it would belong to the winner.
The Grandmaster remained unfazed.
"Your turn, Spider-Man," he said.
Charlie drew a card without hesitation.
"I choose the man cursed by knowledge, Tony Stark!"
Buzz~
Digital glitches hit Liberty Island. Armor fragments surged from the void, assembling into gold-red armor on a man landing freely.
The Grandmaster shook his head. "An Iron Man without nano-armor? You underestimate me."
He slid a card into the slot.
No need for a strong card against a basic Iron Man.
"Whiplash Ivan Vanko, take him down."
With a command, a wild figure burst from glitches, advanced nano-armor covering him as a blood-red energy whip lashed out like a serpent.
Crack crack crack~
The whip surged, but Tony calmly raised his hand for a repulsor blast.
The Grandmaster sneered. "Heh, Spider-Man, your pal's too naive—"
Before he finished, Tony's palm extended nano-metal.
Whoosh~
The metal formed an exaggerated cannon.
The sun dimmed, cosmic energy gathering at the barrel, erupting in blinding light.
Boom!!
"No!!"
A radiant beam pierced the sky, shattering clouds and vanishing into space.
Under the Statue of Liberty, a tech whip fell, sparking weakly.
"What?"
The Grandmaster's face changed, staring at Tony.
"Nano-metal, he's—"
Charlie snapped his fingers, smirking. "Guess."
On the game screen, Infinity Tony flashed an OK sign.
Lure the Grandmaster into using a weaker card by feigning weakness, then crush him.
That was Charlie's plan.
But it'd only work once.
The Grandmaster took a deep breath. "Spider-Man, well played. My turn."
He slid a card into the slot, glitches hitting the Empire State Building.
Zzt zzt~
Rumble!!
Dark energy spread unchecked, a hopeless shadow enveloping everyone nearby.
Black lightning crackled, and a familiar figure stepped from a void rift.
Dark Stephen!
Charlie frowned.
The Grandmaster smiled. "Honestly, there's more than one dark Stephen in the multiverse. He's not as strong as the one you know, but besides invincible Spider-Man, who can stop him?"
Charlie's eyes flickered, drawing a card.
"For him, only she'll do."
Buzz~
As the card entered the slot, a terrifying aura emerged from the black clouds above the Empire State Building. A dark sword light tore the sky, a blood-red symbiote dragon roaring. Gwen, wielding the Black Death Sword, slashed down.
Rumble!!
Thunder cracked, Dark Stephen's shocked face clear.
One minute later.
KO!
"Congratulations on capturing this territory!"
Dark Stephen's card grayed out, the interface chiming victory.
"Sir, your gaming skills seem… lacking," Charlie teased.
The Grandmaster ignored the jab.
"That was your trump card, right?" he asked.
Charlie shrugged. "Guess."
The Grandmaster shook his head. "No need to guess.
Spider-Man, we're done with small city skirmishes. My goal is Earth itself, and you, my friend, face more than you can imagine."
He slid the next card into the system.
"Friendly tip: revealing your trump card early is unwise.
Destroy the city, Spider-Man!!"
"Hm?"
Charlie's curious gaze followed the screen to the Sydney Opera House.
A boy appeared in the empty plaza.
Plain-looking, but his features faintly echoed Peter Parker.
A young Peter Parker?
Another Spider-Man.
As Charlie wondered how this kid would destroy the world, the boy bared a feral grin, grabbing a passerby and tearing into them.
"Ah! No!! Save me~~"
Crack crack~
Blood sprayed. The boy, like a demon, bit through the man's throat, guzzling blood, his eyes turning red.
Amid screams, his body mutated, thumb-sized black spiders splitting from him, thousands surging in all directions.
Crack crack crack~
"Ahh!!"
"Run!"
"Monsters, monsters!"
Fleeing citizens were chased by a black spider army, the visual impact chilling even Charlie.
Noticing Charlie's reaction, the Grandmaster explained, "He splits into countless spider monsters by eating. They split endlessly after consuming life, until no living thing remains, then self-destruct."
Charlie frowned.
"A Spider-Man born for destruction and slaughter?"
"No, for eating."
The Grandmaster laughed. "One of Spider-Man's strongest genes. Its terror brings despair.
In his world, he devoured the entire galaxy. It took effort to capture him."
"Terrifying indeed."
Charlie watched the Opera House overtaken by black spiders, spreading to nearby buildings.
No bones remained under the spider swarm.
Yes, they ate bones too.
Boom~
Fighter jets roared, bombs hitting the boy at the swarm's center.
Rumble!!
The energy tore him apart, but the spiders reformed into multiple boys.
As long as one spider lived, the boy wouldn't die!
Realizing this, Charlie took a deep breath, choosing his card.
"Come forth, the woman who won Spider-Man's heart!"
A card slid into the system.
Glitches hit the city's other end. A sultry woman donned a python-patterned robe, tracing her red lips.
"Little bad boy, for your effort last night, I'll help you this once."
Ophelia glanced at the sky, chuckling, releasing green mist.
Madame Viper, master of all toxins.
Only Charlie Parker could resist her poison.
The green mist spread, Ophelia analyzing the spider monsters' genes, secreting targeted neurotoxins.
As the spiders consumed half the city, Ophelia moved.
"Little guy, time's up."
On the ravaged street, her murmur spread thick green mist. The endless black spiders screeched, melting into vile goo.
The mist grew, feeding on the spiders, enveloping the city.
Buzz~
The boy's card grayed out.
Devoured humans revived in glitches.
The Grandmaster fell silent.
Finally, he looked at Charlie.
"What did you do last night?" he asked seriously.
Charlie paused.
What he did was obvious.
Finally, he met the Grandmaster's gaze.
"Promise me, don't tell anyone."
The Grandmaster's cheek twitched. "You did it and won't admit it?"
Charlie sighed. "Convincing a woman to help is tough."
The Grandmaster gritted his teeth. "You're the one feeling wronged?"
"Of course."
Charlie pouted. "Think I'm dumb?
I heard your schemes even on Paradise Island.
Card-trapped people won't willingly help me unless they're friends.
If I used former enemies in the game, I'd lose for sure."
He rubbed his forehead. "To boost my odds, I sacrificed myself for Madame Viper, who can destroy spider genes. Know how much that hurt?
No, you don't.
It hurt! So much!!"
Tears of anguish fell.
The pain was too much to share.
The Grandmaster watched Charlie's performance, too drained to retort.
"Fine, Spider-Man who wins through women, your luck's run out."
Adjusting his mood, the Grandmaster slid a card into the slot, unleashing a raging giant in another city.
Roar!!
In bustling Tokyo, a giant hand crushed glitches. A furious roar's sonic wave toppled buildings. White-haired Hulk pounded his chest, the sound exploding, bursting citizens in its shockwave.
"What?"
Charlie was shocked. "White-Haired Hulk? I concede."
Grandmaster: "…"
"Not gonna try?"
"No point. White-Haired Hulk's too strong."
"If you concede, even if you win overall, this city won't recover, and the dead won't revive."
"I don't have the power to save them."
Charlie drew a card.
"You won this round, so it's my turn."
Swish!
"Go, Kingpin!"
Glitches hit Hokkaido.
In the snowy wasteland, a baby looked around, recalling last night's Spider-Man terror, and wet himself.
"I—"
Baby Kingpin, pale from cold, clenched his fists, cursing the sky.
"Damn bug, I won't fight for you! Let me go, I need to pee!!"
Seeing Baby Kingpin's pathetic state, the Grandmaster sneered.
"Spider-Man, think a powerless baby disguise will make me underestimate you?
Haha, I won't fall for it again."
Confident, he revealed a terrifying card.
"Come forth, Surtur, Fire Giant!!"
Rumble!!!
Flames engulfed the snowy island, welcoming its worst demon.
Baby Kingpin gaped at the towering fire demon, forcing a cute smile.
Hoping the demon would go easy on a kid.