MARVEL: CARD EXTRACTION SYSTEM

Chapter 28 – A messy mind, a messy place



[Spider Gwen Character capture in progress...]

"So when I use a capture card, even if the person agrees, the process is not instantaneous."

The constant blinking of the card began to slow, probably indicating that the process was almost complete. After a final blink, the capture was complete.

[Spider Gwen Character successfully captured.]

The card stopped blinking and began to fall slowly, floating to the ground. Instinctively, I reached out to pick it up. As I held it, I felt a slight vibration. My eyes immediately focused on the image decorating the surface of the card. It was a picture of Gwen. She was dressed in her Spider-Gwen uniform, but her face was visible. Her blonde hair was naturally down to just above her shoulders, and her expression seemed calm, serene.

I turned the card over and over in my hands, studying every detail. On the back of the card was some information about Gwen, like her age, her powers, and some of her history. It was as if the system had catalogued everything Gwen was capable of.

"So that's it," I said aloud. "System, I think it's time to leave this universe. Has the 24 hours passed?"

[Yes, the ZERO COST trip to Earth-616 is now available.]

"Very well, so take me home."

[Interdimensional travel will begin in 10 seconds...]

After the countdown ended, a hole appeared beneath my feet and I fell into a tunnel so crazy that I could smell smells and colors I'd never seen before. The space between realities seemed to be a mixture of all of them, and the experience made me slightly nauseous.

Then, as quickly as it had begun, it ended. When I opened my eyes, I was back in my dark, smelly room on Earth-616.

Just like when I left, the place was a mess, but a few things were different. My bed had dirty sheets and my shoes were out of place. The laundry basket was overturned, with clothes on the floor, and the dresser had all of its drawers open and rifled through.

"The guy who broke into my house wasn't satisfied with not finding me and tried to rob me... But I doubt I had any money anywhere in this apartment."

So I went into the living room of the apartment, where I found papers and notebooks scattered all over the floor, leftover food on plates that already had an unpleasant smell in the air. Empty soda and beer bottles were scattered about, some broken, others knocked over in a corner, as if they had been thrown in a moment of anger or desperation. I took a step forward and heard the crack of glass breaking under my weight.

"Damn... This place is like a dump. I can't let Gwen see it and present it as my place. I think I'll take advantage of the fact that time doesn't pass for her on Wednesday and clean this place up."

Indeed, the place was a mess, and it wasn't just a mess. It was a reflection of the state this body was in before I took it over.

But first I went to the door of my apartment. The door itself was intact, but the handle was completely out of place, indicating that the man had managed to get in that way. Fortunately, the door was closed, and since New York was a city where most people didn't interfere with other people's lives, no one seemed to have noticed either my disappearance or the break-in. It was a little sad, actually.

I rubbed my temples and decided to start working on this place.

Considering the bright light coming through the windows, I could easily tell that it was daytime, possibly around noon.

"I'm tired and hungry and need to get some sleep, but I can hold out a little longer. Gwen and I can get something to eat later and explore this town together. It'll be safer for me that way, too."

The first thing I did was go to the sink, where the dirty dishes were piled up like a restaurant sink. I turned on the faucet and was glad there was still running water. I patiently washed each plate, and after not doing it for so long, washing dishes was surprisingly relaxing. I felt a small dopamine rush with each plate I placed in the colander.

After a few minutes, all the dishes were washed and organized. The next step was to tackle the rest of the mess. I started by picking up the papers scattered on the floor, even picking up a notebook that was covered in a slice of dried pizza. It was amazing that this place wasn't infested with cockroaches and rats.

"I can't believe my 'self' lived like this. I'm going to need more garbage bags."

I went to a small utility room, found some black bags, and started filling them with all the dirt I could find. After that, I started leaving them outside my apartment in the hallway so I could take them to the street.

The living room was full of empty bottles, and I started picking them up one by one. The glass shards, however, were scattered haphazardly, and the dark wooden floor made them a little hard to find.

Just when I thought I had swept the floor to perfection, the sunlight hit a shard of glass and revealed it to me. I crouched down and picked it up, but that piece of glass was incredibly sharp and gave me a shallow cut on my hand. I'm not ashamed to say that my voice dropped a little.

I held up my finger and stood up. The shard of glass made a cut just over an inch deep. It was nothing, but my blood ran down my finger.

Normally, I would just put my finger in my mouth to ease the pain with my saliva and go back to what I was doing, but seeing my blood reminded me of the skill I had acquired.

"That skill... I decided that it wasn't worth using against the destroyer, and it wasn't because I would be incapacitated for a few minutes, but I'm back now and everything is calmer. I think I can give it a try."

[Does the user want to equip the "Blood Manipulation (from Jujutsu Kaisen)" Skill Card?]

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