The night was cold and gusty as it swept across a remote mansion.The door of the master bedroom creaked open, and a figure sauntered inside without a hint of caution.
The intruder was dressed in a ridiculously thick, loudly patterned quilted jacket, paired with neon-pink beach shorts, and completed with a pair of nauseating yellow Crocs.Calling the outfit "ugly" wouldn't be accurate—its ugliness had its own unique flavor.
Most striking of all was the oversized yellow dog-head mask sitting on his shoulders, its cheap, plasticky grin filled with inexplicable mockery.
The Dog-Headed Man went directly to the office desk, powered on the computer, pulled a USB stick from his pocket, and inserted it. A progress bar immediately appeared.
As he waited, his phone began buzzing.
"Yo?"
"Daniel, this is Nick Fury. What's your situation?"
"I've infiltrated the target manor. Currently retrieving the mission intel."
"You weren't spotted, right?"
Just as Daniel was about to answer, the bathroom door swung open.A bearded man in a bathrobe stepped out, freezing in terror the moment he saw Daniel.
"W-Who are you?! How did you get in here?!Guards! Guards! Guar—"
Bang!
A sharp gunshot cut him off.
The Dog-Headed Man calmly slid the pistol back into its holster."Relax, no one's going to find out," he said into the phone.
"…"
Nick Fury stayed silent for a few seconds before replying, voice heavy, "Return to HQ once the mission is over."
"Roger that!"
As Daniel hung up, the progress bar hit 100%. He yanked out the USB drive neatly.
A cold electronic voice echoed in his head:
[Daily Mission: "Steal Critical Intel" Completed!][Reward: EXP +500, S.H.I.E.L.D. Reputation +10, C4 Explosive ×1]
"Tsk. Same useless reward as always."
Daniel pouted, glancing at the fresh corpse on the floor."Still… this game is insane. The NPC death animations feel so real. I swear the devs must have killed someone for reference."
In truth, he was fully immersed in a game—a full-holographic VR title called "The Marvel World."
By 2065, full-immersion virtual gaming had become completely mainstream, allowing players to experience a world almost indistinguishable from reality.
Daniel, a veteran gamer with over a million followers, had cleared countless games and held a decent reputation among global gaming circles.
Two months ago, a Marvel-affiliated company approached him to beta-test their new game, advertised as featuring "unprecedented freedom" and offering a ten-million-dollar bonus for a one-sitting completion.
Daniel didn't know much about the Marvel franchise.In his era, the original characters had been replaced generation after generation.
The most popular hero was the seventh-generation Iron Man, nicknamed Iron Black Heart—a Black single mother with gender dysphoria, extreme obesity, alcoholism, multiple transitions, three divorces, and five children.
She was in a relationship with the eighth-generation Captain America, a gay, vegetarian, animal-rights activist, feminist symbol, practicing Catholic, and one-eighth Native American. They constantly shouted, "Fa-mi-ly!"
Daniel had zero interest in these politically turbo-charged heroes.
Still, he signed the contract instantly and climbed into the top-tier VR pod the company provided.
How could he refuse?The payment alone was crazy.
Upon starting the game, he had a choice of identities:
Hydra Spy
S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent
Stark Industries Employee
Hell's Kitchen Resident
Midtown High Student
He randomly picked one and jumped right in.
After two months, Daniel had to admit:
the freedom was ridiculous.
No tutorials.No guidance.No clear storyline.He had to figure everything out on his own.
And strangest of all—he still hadn't found a main mission.
If the system hadn't repeatedly insisted the main quest existed, he'd have thought this was just a spy simulator.
"Now that I think about it, this game doesn't seem to have a logout option…" he muttered.
The system chimed in:
[We apologize. A minor issue occurred at startup, causing a system BUG. We are actively fixing it.]
"Will I be fine?"
[Please rest assured. The gaming pod monitors your vitals 24/7 and will force-eject you if anything abnormal happens.]
[Additional Note: Time dilation ratio is 362:1. The VR pod and nutrient solution can maintain stable physical function for over ten years.]
[If you insist on quitting, you may do so anytime, but you will permanently lose eligibility for the one-go completion reward.]
[Would you like to exit the game?]
"No way! I'm not quitting!"
Ten million dollars? He wasn't leaving without it.
At that moment, hurried footsteps echoed outside—the guards had heard the gunshot.
Daniel ignored them, opened the map, and locked onto S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters.
Click—Teleport!
By the time guards burst into the room, all they found was a corpse and a beeping C4.
"Holy shit—!"
BOOM!!!
At the Triskelion, inside the Director's office—
Nick Fury sat behind his huge desk, reviewing a thick stack of financial reports.
"…fund allocation…?"
A sudden voice spoke beside him.
He snapped his head up to see a massive yellow dog-head leaning over his documents.
Daniel: (乛乛)
"Motherf—!"
Fury jumped, cursing out of reflex.He quickly composed himself, face darkening.
"Daniel! How many times have I told you? Dress normally in headquarters! At least look like a human!"
Daniel huffed, "Hey, this outfit is stylish, and the stats aren't bad either."
Fury's eyelid twitched violently.
Did this man discard his aesthetic sense at birth?
Before he could explode with anger, Daniel pointed to a section of the document.
"By the way, Director, this part looks strange. Why are there giant expenses with no source? Someone skimming funds?"
"Cough! Cough!"
Nick suddenly coughed hard, slammed the folder shut, shoved it in a drawer, and said seriously:"This is classified. I'm handling it personally. A Level 5 Agent like you doesn't need to worry about it."
"Oh. Got it."
Trying to keep his composure, Fury changed the subject."I have an important assignment for you."
He pulled out another file and pushed it forward.
A picture of a flashy, mustached man adorned the cover.
Tony Stark, Chairman of Stark Industries.
"Three months ago, Tony Stark was ambushed by unknown militants in the Middle East. His status—alive or dead—is unclear."
"I'm sending you to Afghanistan. Find Tony Stark, and if he's alive, bring him back."
As Fury finished, the system chimed:
[NPC Nick Fury has issued a new mission][Main Quest: The Birth of Iron Man][Objective: Locate Tony Stark in the Middle East and return him safely]
Main Quest!
Daniel's eyes lit up.
It was finally here—the main storyline he'd been searching for!
"Iron Man? Sounds like a hero title. Must be someone important…" he guessed.
He hadn't seen a single superhero since starting the game—not even a rumor of one.
Fury, though… he definitely had superhero energy.
What would his superhero name be?One-Eyed Man?Or… Motherf**ker Man?
"Daniel! Are you listening?!"
Daniel snapped back. "Sorry, what were you saying?"
"I said—"
"Never mind, skip cutscene!"
Nick Fury: 😡