Feeling the surging power coursing through his body, Alex could barely resist the urge to find a place and test just how strong he'd become.
But since he was still in the car, he forced himself to suppress that impulse.
"Over twenty tons of strength now… If I remember right, Spider-Man in the MCU maxes out around that too, doesn't he?"
Alex couldn't hide the excitement bubbling in his chest. Back when he watched those movies, he'd been amazed at how Spidey could hold back a ferry with his bare hands, or even stop a speeding train.
And now—
He could do the same.
As for his durability, he could only roughly estimate. At this point, a bullet might break the skin, but that's about it.
Give it one more system task, and even bullets probably wouldn't leave a scratch.
At that point, his body would be nothing short of a steel fortress.
> [System notification: Unlock progress has reached 5%. Heat Vision is now available. Would you like to unlock it?]
Just when Alex thought the enhancement phase was over, the system's familiar prompt rang in his ears.
"Heat Vision's ready?"
Alex froze for a moment, then sat bolt upright—too excited to care about appearances.
Ever since his reincarnation, he'd been yearning for this one ability. Heat Vision.
After all, what's a Homeland-style superhero without his signature laser eyes?
Not only was it cool as hell, but also insanely practical—far more useful than super hearing or X-ray vision.
If he'd awakened it earlier, taking down Azazel and Riptide would've been a breeze.
Just one look—done.
A sudden jolt snapped him out of his thoughts. The car had slowed to a stop at the side of the road.
They'd decided to regroup and figure out their next steps.
Thud! Thud!
Doors opened and shut in sequence as the seven mutants gathered on the sidewalk.
Everyone glanced around at the disheveled group, looking like they'd just survived a fever dream.
"Being hunted down by a psychopathic killer—what a fun day," Siryn muttered, shrugging with mock cheer.
"Yeah, and the best part? That psycho might come after us again," Darwin added, spreading his hands. "He wiped out every agent at that base—I seriously doubt they'll let it slide."
As those words sank in, the group's expressions turned grim.
"We need to find out what the hell is going on," Angel said firmly. "Charles and Erik were tracking a mutant, right? What if it's the same guy?"
Everyone nodded. It made sense.
Unfortunately, Charles hadn't shared many details.
"Alex, do you know anything else?" Angel asked, eyes landing on him.
The others turned toward him too. If anyone had inside info, it'd be him.
"I don't know much either," Alex replied honestly. "Just that his name is Shaw. The CIA and Charles have both been after him."
"And yeah—he's dangerous. I'm guessing you all already figured that part out."
He didn't say more than what Charles had told him directly. If it wasn't his place to reveal, he wouldn't.
"Looks like we'll have to wait for Charles and Erik to get back," Hank sighed from the side.
After a quick discussion, the group came to an agreement:
Find a place to lay low for now—both to rest and to wait for Charles and Erik.
The only problem was… where?
That's when they hit a wall.
They were all broke.
Superpowers aside, everyone here came from the bottom rung of society—taxi drivers, dancers, street punks. One of them was even fresh out of prison. Hank was one of the few with a real job.
Seven people? No way they could afford rent.
"Well!"
Raven suddenly smiled, her tone mysterious. "If it's just to lay low for a bit, I know a place."
"Oh yeah? Where?"
"Where I grew up."
—
Thirty minutes later.
"Raven, you've got to be kidding."
"This is the 'house' you mentioned? Lady, this is a damn castle!"
"You grew up here? No way!"
"Are you royalty or something?"
The seven stood at the gates of the Xavier estate, staring up at the extravagant mansion in shock.
A house?
Was this even in the same category as what normal people called a house?
"Professor X is loaded," Alex muttered under his breath, despite already knowing Charles' background.
Charles Xavier was, without a doubt, one of Marvel's elite trust fund kids.
The future Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters was originally just his family estate—later upgraded into a full-on academy.
Blackbird jet, Cerebro, the Danger Room… Every piece of tech in that school screamed bleeding-edge.
No way that stuff came cheap.
And the school wasn't just a school. It was practically a charity. Students didn't pay tuition. Food, shelter, supplies—all on the house.
Only someone with bottomless pockets could maintain that for years.
Charles was the real deal.
"You guys are misunderstanding," Raven said quickly, seeing how stunned everyone was. "This isn't my house. It's Charles's."
That somehow made it even more outrageous.
Everyone had assumed Charles was just a well-mannered, upper-class guy. But this? This was next-level rich.
After the chaos of the CIA facility and the long, exhausting trip, the group was completely drained—both physically and mentally.
And it was already past midnight.
So after a few more gasps of admiration (and envy), Raven led everyone inside and helped assign rooms.
One by one, they headed off to rest.
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