Ding
Will woke up with that peculiar sound ringing in his ears.
[Aura Farming System: Connected]
Opening his eyes, a blurry projection of words came into his view. Immediately, he jerked up, all signs of sleep vanishing.
'Is it… is it actually here?!'
Tremors of disbelief ran through his body.
19 years.
That's how long he had waited for this moment. To have a system. An external aid
He had long given up hope, having tried everything he could but to no avail. Unexpectedly, it arrived so pleasantly one day, like a good morning kiss from a goddess.
As for the reason for this desperation?
That may have something to do with his current identity: William Osborn, with an emphasis on Osborn. 22 years old, and heir to a billion-dollar fortune.
He was three years old when he regained the memories and the accompanying mental maturity of his previous life. And then he realized where he was.
The Marvel Universe.
Will was sure of it.
The characters like… Tony Stark, Captain America, the Mutants… they're actually real.
What he wasn't sure of, was which version of Marvel he was in.
After researching, Will has tentatively come to the conclusion that this world is like a cocktail of comics and movies, having characteristics of both, but mostly movies. And the timeline is not completely accurate.
It's the end of 2007 now, and the main events of marvel seem to be on the verge of starting. The same for X-men.
And Will cannot say he is ready.
Using Oscorp's resources, Will has tried his best to prepare himself, increasing his personal strength while also increasing his arsenal.
But as they say, not just any Norman, Will, or Harry can get superpowers without harmful side effects just because they want to. You need the protagonist's luck for that.
And today, he finally got something that could give him a real chance of survival. A system.
Rubbing his eyes, Will quickly checked the interface. It was blue
[Aura Farming System Bonded]
[Farm Aura across the multiverse and become the most badass existence in all existence.]
[Do you wish to start?]
"Aura Farming?"
William didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He was expecting something more… serious. Conventional.
But… as they say. Lemon lemonade.
"Start!"
No matter what kind of system it is, Will is willing to make it work.
[
Name: William Osborne
Age: 22
Tier: Novice Aura Farmer
Aura: 0
Normal Skills: Shooting Lv2, Fighting Lv2, US Special Forces Lv1, Cooking Lv 1, Computing Lv1…(expand)
Aura Skill Tree: Locked
Tasks: None
Tier Bonus: None
]
Will clicked on the small (i) next to aura, and another screen popped up.
Aura: The Energy derived from the impression you make on other individuals. It can be used for a variety of purposes.
"System? How do I get aura? And how do I get the tasks?" Will asked after browsing through the panel.
Unfortunately, he was met with no reply from the system.
"..."
William realized that his new system might be a bit unreliable.
After a few more minutes of exploring the system, he gave up. It seems that he will have to find a way to get it working.
Checking the time, he decided to get to work first. The system is just an external aid. He still has to continue the plans he has been working on for the last decade.
Skipping the Jacuzzi due to the system delay, he took a quick shower and stood in front of the full-length mirror naked.
Staring back was a young man with a strong, athletic build—broad shoulders, sharply defined muscles carved from years of relentless training.
His tousled brown hair framed a face marked by dark, thoughtful eyes and a sculpted jawline that hinted at quiet confidence.
A pair of dimples appeared when he smiled, softening the otherwise chiselled intensity of his features.
"Useless."
Will clicked his tongue. He knew that all these muscles and all the training could be completely useless in front of the actual threats that exist in this world. And Will is not willing to accept that.
"Iris, suit me up."
"As you wish, Master Osborne."
The walking closet behind him opened up and mechanical arms emerged from the floor, selecting his attire, blow-drying his hair and helping him put on a custom suit, crocodile leather black shoes, Patek Philippe watch.
Say what you will about Marvel, but the technological progress here is far faster compared to his previous normal world. Iris is an Artificial Intelligence Program that he has built after investing billions.
His watch chimed in quick successions. Will knew who was texting him. Only his younger brother Harry messages like this.
Will tapped his watch and the Patek Philippe turned into a digital watch.
Yo
Don't 4get
I've gt a PTC 2morow
B there at 10!!!
"Brock, take the team, I'm ready."
Brock was the head of his security team, all of whom were retired special forces. They were not only trained to handle normal threats but also for the extraordinary ones.
With his bodyguards following behind him Will drove to his workplace. It was a large technological park situated at the outskirts of New York, having multiple buildings belonging to different subsidiaries.
And all this belongs to Will. Not Norman, not Harry, but him. Since his mind was already mature at a young age, Will had completed his graduation at the age of 13, which is not too shabby in Marvel. Of course, he wasn't a real genius, but this at least got him permission from Norman to start his own company.
Since Orcorp already has a solid foundation in Biotech, he borrowed the resources from his cheap father and funded the research of Regeneration Cradle technology of Helen Cho, a Marvel character who appeared in Age of Ultron, who used Cradle Tech to heal Hawkeye and even make the body for Ultron.
Will found her when he was methodically searching for information about all the talents he could recruit. He was 9 at the time, and Helen was doing post-graduation in Biotech from MIT. He got her an internship at Oscorp, which quickly converted into a full-time job through her own strength.
A few years later, when he saw her application for funding her research in Oscorp data, he decisively used 50 million of the money that he had accumulated through various means till then and recruited her to his own new startup.
After that, he had to borrow several million more, and there was still no result. But Will was not in a hurry, still preparing other start-ups. Five years later, when Helen's research was a success, he became a billionaire.
He quickly registered patents for the Autonomous Nanocellular Regeneration Pod and Genetically Adaptive Bio-Fabrication Chamber.
Then, with Oscorp's resources, protecting the tech, promotion, and market occupation was pretty easy.
In the first place, a major part of the success was because he had directly taken talents, tech, and equipment from Oscorp, but even then, Norman didn't take advantage of him, letting him borrow everything to 'play around' without asking for anything in return.
This made Will, who didn't fully trust Norman, feel guilty. Say what you will about Norman Osborne, but he always truly wanted the best for Harry in most stories. He is the same with Will, always encouraging and supporting him to excel.
That's why Will decided that he won't let Norman or Harry turn into Green Goblin and do his best to protect them from the dangers of this world.
Parking right in front of the skyscraper with the words "Dionysus Tech", he got out of his modified Pagani convertible.
Instantly, various gazes fell upon him. For the most part, Will has kept a low profile. Since being famous like Tony Stark can get your house bombed (Iron Man 3), the fewer people knew about him being a Multi-Billionaire and owner of Cradle tech, the better.
Without paying any mind to the inquiring eyes of the employees, he lifted his briefcase and began making his way in. But…
[Aura +1]
[Aura +1]
His aura actually started to increase.
'What?' Will was startled. It finally responded?
Recalling the definition, Aura seems to be the energy derived from the impression he made on others. It seems that driving a sports car into the company, looking young and handsome, has given him 'Aura'.
'This… this changes things.'
Shelving this new discovery for later, he first went to meet with Helen. The Korean beauty was rapidly typing away on the supercomputer, rows of information flashing in front of her eyes.
Helen didn't notice his arrival.
The lab coat hung open over a fitted burgundy blouse that drew the eye to her waist, paired with a pencil skirt that skimmed just above the knee.
Her heels clicked softly against the floor as she shifted, the glow of the screens catching the sleek line of her legs and the quiet confidence in her posture.
Will didn't make a sound until he was right behind her, peering over her ear.
"How is it going?" He finally asked, making her jump.
Helen glared back at him, rolling her eyes. But her smile could not be hidden. "Oh, so you do remember your noona?"
(Noona: what boys call their older sister or older lover in korean language)
Will sighed. "I've been busy," he muttered, putting down his heavy briefcase.
This is not the only company Will has. There are also Facebook, YouTube and WhatsApp, started between 2003-2008, riding on the newly generated internet wave.
[Aura +15]
Helen sighed at that. "I miss the days when you were little and had nothing to do except playing in my lab. Anyways, the research on Osborne Serum is going well. We're very close to clearing the mental instability part. Dr. Albert and Louise are trying their best."
Dr. Albert and Louise Thompson were the newest addition to Will's company. In Marvel World, talent is everything. There are some geniuses that are just built differently and can come up with groundbreaking stuff.
Unfortunately, almost all of those geniuses are Marvel characters like Helen and it's difficult to recruit them.
Albert and Louise, while not on that level, are at least much better than ordinary geniuses, both being experts in neurotics and genetics respectively and thus a good pair for developing the enhancement serum. Also, Will has not seen them in any marvel comics or movies so that's good too.
"Alright. How are those two doing by the way? Have they found their son yet?"
It seems that the couple's son ran away a while back and they've been searching for him while also doing some side research to cure his terminal illness.
Geniuses cannot be constrained so Will let them borrow the facilities for their side research as long as they complete their deadlines. As for their son, Will also offered to find him but they refused saying he would be found when he wants to.
"Actually, they did find their son. And also, they also found out their son's illness can be cured using our new Reconstruction Cradle Tech., so they're doubly proactive with the research.
Will grinned. "Now that's some good news."
Will and Helen were good friends, having shared failures and successes together, so he talked with her for a while more. Helen has the highest authority here after him, having to manage all kinds of quirky geniuses.
After having lunch with her and processing a few documents, he got up.
"Get me into the pod," he said, taking off his coat.
This was the main reason why he came here. The companies don't really need him to do anything, having capable personnel in charge to manage them.
He is mostly responsible for knowing the overall situation, signing for funding, and giving ideas and directions with his advanced otherworldly knowledge.
The joyful smile on Helen's face started to fade. "You don't need to do this."
Will sighed. "You won't understand. But believe me, I really do."
"But the reconstruction pod is not fully optimised yet. It will still cause a lot of pain," she said, unable to hide the concern from her tone.
Cradle Reconstruction pod.
It's the next version of Cradle Regeneration technology. Basically, it can slowly reconstruct the body on a cellular level, optimizing all physical and even mental attributes.
It also makes the cells more adaptable, making the body more compatible for the Enhancement serums like Super Soldier serum and Goblin Serum, increasing the chance of success and further boosting the enhancement effects of the serum.
Meaning if Will took the same serum as Captain America after this, his chances of success would increase, and his physical stats would also be much higher.
With such benefits, how could Will pass on it just because of minor issues like pain?
You know, it's already 2008. It won't be long before this place will be crawling with dangerous entities. Will really has no choice but to accelerate the progress.
The good thing is that the process has no side effects. Well, accept the pain. Anaesthetics can make the process unstable, so you have to just raw-dog it. For now.
The process is gradual, taking several sessions with adequate intervals for adaptation and healing. Will has only gone through one session before this, and it was hell. Will took off his shirt, revealing his muscular torso.
[Aura +15]
[Aura +15]
Will looked at Helen curiously. Why is it that he got only a +1 aura from the several onlookers outside, but a +5 aura from Helen? Is it because she has more aura? Or is it because she is a named character?
Putting this behind him, he walked towards the pod while taking off his shoes.
"Still looking?" He asked after losing his pants. He didn't really mind, but he needed her to make the preparations right now.
[Aura +15]
[Aura +15]
[Aura +15]
Helen snapped out of quickly typing on the keyboard, getting the pod ready while feeling her face hot. The pod slowly opened, and a special liquid slowly filled it.
Taking off all of his clothes, Will stepped in and eased himself into the liquid, lying face up. Helen came and fixed his body, putting the oxygen mask over his face.
Helen looked at Will with a complicated expression. It seemed that she was trying to think of ways of dissuading him. But in the end, she just sighed. "Signal me whenever you want to stop. I'll be right here."
"Don't worry. You can look more, you know. Not many have the honor," he said, throwing a wink.
"Bastard! I was serious!" Helen's face flushed before she quickly slammed the pod shut, turning away.
Will really didn't want her to be so serious and worried. That was the point.
The light inside the pod dimmed as the liquid surrounded him. And then, the pain began.
.....
A.N.: Yo, this is my new book. I'm an old author here, writing with a new name. Extra chapter if you guess my name.
Still editing it so there might be typos.
Cheers, hope you enjoy the ride