"Hurry up, boys! You're going to be late!" shouted an ordinary-looking middle-aged man with graying hair.
"Got it, Uncle!" Peter Parker called back, rushing down the stairs while pulling on his jacket. He slid into a chair at the dining table.
Ben Parker adjusted Peter's collar. "Where's that Silas kid?"
"No clue. Probably still… sleeping…" Peter mumbled, choking on a piece of bread. He thumped his chest and gulped down some milk to clear his throat.
"Still sleeping? That little punk!" Ben Parker marched up the stairs, gripping the handrail. "Silas!"
Inside the Room
"Huh? Someone calling me?" Silas Parker sat up, rubbing his bleary eyes.
This was his sixteenth year in this world, reborn as Spider-Man Peter Parker's younger brother, living in Ben Parker's home.
As a transmigrator, Silas knew the plot well. Soon, Peter Parker would become the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. And Ben Parker would die in an accident, teaching Peter the ultimate lesson: With great power comes great responsibility.
But with Silas here, Ben Parker would not die!
Silas wasn't cold-blooded. Ben had raised him for over a decade, and now it was time to repay him.
His trump card? The Talisman System!
A year ago, the system activated, granting him a beginner's gift package and a main quest.
Main Quest: Steal the Arc Reactor to fully activate the system.
Without completing this, the system would remain locked. In the Marvel Universe, surviving without a cheat ability was near impossible—especially with Thanos's snap looming. Silas wasn't about to leave his life to chance.
The beginner's gift gave him control over the Shadow Kingdom and a black tattoo on his body. However, his powers were limited—he could summon only ten Shadow Ninjas and couldn't yet traverse dimensions, as if some restriction held him back.
Click.
The door swung open. Ben Parker stormed in and yanked off Silas's blanket. "Get up, or you'll be late, Silas!"
"Alright, alright! I'm up!" Silas scrambled into his clothes and rushed to wash up.
Downstairs, Silas saw Peter wolfing down breakfast. "Hey, Peter, you didn't wake me up?"
"I did, but you were clearly still dreaming," Peter replied, finishing his meal. Aunt May handed them their backpacks.
After some playful banter, Peter grabbed his bag and headed for the door.
"Hey, wait up!" Silas stuffed a piece of bread in his mouth, grabbed his backpack from Aunt May, and chased after Peter.
"Slow down! Want some more milk?" Aunt May called, but the boys were already out the door.
Aunt May shook her head with a sigh. Ben came downstairs.
"They gone?" he asked, noticing their absence.
"Yeah, but Silas didn't even drink his milk," Aunt May fretted.
Ben wrapped an arm around her shoulders and kissed her forehead. "It's fine. It's not his first time skipping it."
"I'm just worried he'll choke," Aunt May sighed.
"No worries." Ben sat down, picked up the newspaper, and grabbed the milk. "Guess this is mine now."
On the Way
"Hey, why the rush?" Silas tugged at Peter's arm.
Peter rolled his eyes. "Silas, if we don't hurry, we're definitely going to be late."
"Relax, I've got this. Years of experience say we'll make it on time," Silas said confidently.
At School
"Peter, you're late? That's a first," Teacher Jedek said, adjusting his glasses in disbelief.
"Yeah, I'm late," Peter admitted, flustered.
Jedek didn't press further. It was Peter's first offense, and he was a top student. "Don't let it happen again." He waved Peter to his seat.
"Man, even a goody-two-shoes like you can be late?" Ned Leeds, Peter's chubby, dark-skinned best friend, teased as if he'd discovered a new world.
"It's Silas's fault. I believed him when he said we wouldn't be late," Peter grumbled, stowing his backpack. He wouldn't have been late if not for Silas's bad advice.
"Silas? The notorious Tardy King? And you trusted him? Haha!" Ned burst out laughing.
"Does someone have an issue with my class?" Teacher Jedek's sharp gaze pinned Ned.
Ned quickly covered his mouth and shook his head.
In Another Classroom
"Well, Silas, only one minute late this time. Impressive," Teacher Klein said, glancing at his watch with a hint of approval.
Silas shrugged helplessly. He'd miscalculated, which meant Peter was late too. Oops.
"Come in," Klein said, used to Silas's chronic tardiness. This was his best record yet.
Silas took his seat. Behind him, Missy Batalan poked him with her pen.
He turned. "What's up?"
"Not bad, only a minute late this time," Missy teased with a grin.
Missy Batalan, a lively white girl with a stunning figure, was a popular crush among the boys.
"Ugh, still miscalculated by a step," Silas said, leaning back in his chair.
The school day passed quickly.
Missy propped her head on her hand and whispered in Silas's ear, "Tomorrow's the weekend. Wanna hang out?"
"Doing what?" Silas perked up. Unlike Peter, he wasn't a bookworm and loved a good time.
Missy twirled her flaxen hair. "Amusement park. My treat!"
"Sweet! What time?" Silas had no reason to refuse.
Missy's dad was in real estate—translation: loaded.
"Ten in the morning. Meet at the park. We'll stay till evening," Missy said after a moment's thought.
Silas flashed an OK sign. "I'll be there on time."
"Really? You, the Tardy King?" Missy teased, already bracing for him to be late.
"That's different!" Silas stood, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. "You'll see—right on time!"
He left the classroom.
"I'll be waiting!" Missy called after him.
School Hallway
"Hey, sorry, nerd!" Thompson and his friends roughhoused in the corridor, bumping into Peter. Thompson didn't look sorry at all as he walked off.
"Those guys suck, huh?" Ned nudged Peter.
Peter nodded helplessly. Thompson had been a thorn in his side for a while, but Peter wasn't exactly built to fight back.
"Peter, there you are!" Silas spotted Peter in the crowd and jogged over.
"Hey, Silas. No club activities today?" Ned asked.
"Nah, clubs are too much hassle," Silas replied. He preferred keeping things simple.
"Heard you got Peter late this morning," Silas said, slinging an arm around Peter's shoulders with a grin.
Peter swatted his hand away. "Yeah, because I listened to you. Never again."
"Okay, okay, my bad," Silas admitted sheepishly. He'd dragged Peter into staying up late the previous night, which led to their morning mishap.
"Peter, any plans for the weekend?" Ned asked.
"Same old—staying home," Peter said. Besides Ned, he didn't have many friends to hang out with.
"There's a tech expo tomorrow. Heard it's got some cool stuff. Wanna go?" Ned raised an eyebrow.
"Sounds decent," Peter replied, then turned to Silas. "You in?"
"Nah, I've got plans," Silas said. No way was he ditching a date with a cute girl to go geek out over machines with these two.
As they crossed the school lawn, a baseball flew toward Peter's head. Silas's reflexes kicked in—he shot out his right hand and caught it mid-air.
Author's Note: Due to the three Spider-Man movie versions, this story's Spider-Man timeline is custom but will gradually align with the Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline.