Matt's eyes snapped open.
Strange ceiling. Strange fan. A room that wasn't his.
He slowly pushed himself up, blinking at the unfamiliar walls.
This… is not my room.
Before he could gather himself, the door swung open.
"Matt! What are you doing in bed? You're going to be late for college!"
Matt froze.
Standing in the doorway—wearing that trademark crisp suit, holding a mug of coffee—was Agent Phil Coulson.
Coulson.
One of the most recognizable faces in the Marvel Universe.
A man he had only ever seen on screens and comic pages.
Matt stared at him, stunned.
His brain tried to compute the impossible scene.
Did I die? Did I take over the body of someone close to this superstar guy?
What the hell is happening?
He opened his mouth to speak—but suddenly, his entire vision glitched.
A wave of memories crashed into him—
His previous life
and
the life of this world's "Matt"—
both merging, overlapping, colliding violently.
It felt like two hard drives overwriting each other in real time.
Matt clutched his head as a sharp migraine tore through his skull.
"Matt?" Coulson rushed to his side, shaking his shoulder.
"Hey, are you okay?"
Matt groaned. "Did I… drink last night?"
Coulson's expression shifted from annoyance to concern.
"You look pale. Should I call for an ambulance? You might be sick."
"No—no, it's okay," Matt said quickly, lying back down, trying to steady his breathing.
"Let me just rest for a minute."
Coulson hesitated, then nodded.
"Okay take an day off, I will inform the College" he said leaving as he added" Your breakfast is on the table" he said and left.
As soon as Coulson left, Matt's heartbeat thundered in his ears.
His mind finally caught up with reality.
He had died.
He had reincarnated.
And he was in the Marvel Universe, living in the home of Agent Phil Coulson.
Matt took a deep breath.
"Okay… okay, don't panic," he whispered to himself.
"So… I died and then reincarnated as Phil Coulson's nephew?" he muttered in disbelief.
Ding!
"Huh? What was that?"
Before he could look around, another ding echoed inside his skull.
A blue holographic screen suddenly materialized in front of him, floating in the air like a holo-display from a sci-fi movie.
Matt's eyes widened in shock.
The glowing text began to stabilize:
[Congratulations, Host. Your recovered life memories are now fully synchronized.]
[The System is now online.]
[Welcome to the Kingmaker System.]
[With me… you will rise to the top of the entire Marvel Universe.]
Matt swallowed hard.
"…Oh.
Okay.
Now I am really not panicking" He grinned like an fool.
"Tell me your functions, System," Matt asked, staring at the blue-and-gold screen.
Weird color combination… but he wasn't complaining. Not even a bit.
The System responded immediately:
[Host, my primary function is Bonding.]
[You can form a Bond with anyone who has at least 70% affection toward you.]
[After forming a Bond, you may select any three traits from that person. These traits will be copied and applied to you—each receiving a random enhancement between 10x and 10,000x.]
[However, there is a limit. You may form only one Bond per year.]
[So choose wisely, Host.]
Matt blinked at the explanation.
It was powerful—extremely powerful—but also nothing like the overpowered, all-cheat Systems he had imagined.
It felt… strategic. Slow. Relationship-based.
Before he could finish the thought, another message popped up.
[Should I just uninstall myself from you?]
Matt nearly choked.
"What—no! I was just thinking! I wasn't doubting you," he said quickly, laughing nervously.
"It's really powerful. Your functions are… amazing."
[Hmm. Good.]
Matt exhaled.
This System had attitude.
Matt wiped sweat off his forehead.
"Okay then… show me the list of people who have at least 70% affection toward me," he said.
The System made a soft chime.
[Displaying Affection List…]
A new blue window opened in front of him, scrolling down like contacts on a phone.
— Friends from college
— A couple of classmates who liked him in this life
— Some neighbors
— A teacher with high respect
And at the bottom:
— Phil Coulson: 82%
Matt raised an eyebrow.
"Wow… Uncle Coulson really cares for this body," he said.
But he wasn't excited.
These people were normal.
Regular humans.
Zero superpowers.
No insane skills.
Nothing he could copy that would give him a massive boost.
Matt sighed.
"I mean… affection is nice but…"
He rubbed his face.
"…Bonding with a normal person won't give me superpowers. I need something big."
The System responded calmly:
[Host seems dissatisfied.]
[Reminder: Future potential targets may include enhanced individuals, heroes, villains, and cosmic entities.]
[…If you can raise their affection above 70%.]
Matt blinked.
"Oh. OH."
His eyes shined.
"So if I can make someone like Natasha… or Spider-Man… or even Thor like me… I can copy their powers?"
[Affirmative.]
Matt sat straight up in bed, full of energy now.
"Okay, okay—this is NOT bad. This is actually insane."
But then the System added a cold reminder:
[Warning: Many superpowered individuals have strict trust barriers.]
[Achieving 70% affection may be extremely difficult.]
[Host must build relationships carefully.]
Matt groaned.
"Great… so now I need a social life AND charisma training."
He fell back onto the pillow.
Still… the idea of bonding with real superheroes made his heart race.
This life was going to be interesting.
Lying on his bed, Matt stared at the ceiling, thinking.
From the memories, it's clear… Coulson hasn't talked to me about S.H.I.E.L.D. yet. But he did say many times that if I graduate, he'll help me apply to his company—which is S.H.I.E.L.D.
He mumbled to himself, "That alone is huge…"
A small grin crept onto his face.
"If I can bond with Quake someday… hehe… I already wonder what an amplified version of vibration manipulation would be like."He chuckled softly at the thought.10× shockwaves?100× earthquakes?10,000× vibration control?
He could probably break mountains by sneezing.
"Pity I don't know where she is right now…" Matt sighed."From the memories of this body… it's currently early 2010. So she's still living as Skye somewhere, probably with the Rising Tide."
He rubbed his chin.
"That means I have two years before the alien invasion… two years to prepare… and two years to find someone powerful to bond with. I better not waste it."
He sat up slightly.
"System," Matt asked, "some people in this world have unawakened powers—like Inhumans. If I bond with someone like them… will I get their power already awakened? Or just the potential? What exactly gets copied?"