Ray was currently cleaning the warehouse. Yes—cleaning. Alex had made it very clear: "Nothing in this life is free. Either you find a way to get us money to fix this place, or you clean it however you can." And right after saying that, he left, mumbling something about figuring out a way to make money.
Not understanding much, Ray simply accepted it. Sure, he was forty years old—but his military training had been dozens of times worse than this. And honestly… he agreed with the giant. Nothing in life is free. So he accepted the job of cleaning the place.
There was just one problem. Vox.
It wouldn't stop messing up everything Ray cleaned or organized. That was already starting to irritate him—until he discovered that Vox could spit a powerful acid, which immediately made Ray terrified and mind his own business.
But the more Ray thought about this strange worm called Vox, the more he realized something. It wasn't an animal. It didn't look like an experiment either. It was… bizarre. And yet, he couldn't explain why.
It felt natural… but at the same time, it was clearly unnatural in every possible sense.
Ray still couldn't understand it, but ever since yesterday—since that strange feeling took hold of him—he had felt… off.
When Alex released his energy yesterday, it was so massive that it couldn't simply dissipate into the air. So it stayed, and eventually, it began to condense into curses. At the same time, some people started naturally absorbing the cursed energy lingering in the air.
It wasn't intentional. It was more like an adverse reaction—like being drowned in cursed energy. Some people developed the ability to gather that energy within themselves.
The problem was… no one had a teacher to show them how to use it like Alex did. And they certainly didn't have Alex's talent to figure it out instantly.
Ray, for example, was only absorbing it slowly and naturally. He had no idea what was happening to him.
Realizing that Vox wouldn't stop messing things up, Ray decided to take initiative. He carefully approached the creature, and when he got close enough, he gathered his courage and spoke.
"Vox… can you please stop messing everything I—"
Before he could finish, Vox suddenly moved. In an instant, it wrapped itself around Ray—just like it did with Alex.
But this time… it fit.
Vox was large, yes, but with Alex, it had always been awkward. It needed to wrap around the torso, and with Alex's massive build, that was nearly impossible. The only reason it worked before was because Alex's extra arms gave it something to anchor onto.
But Ray was different.
At around 1.86 meters tall, Vox could wrap around him perfectly. That alone terrified Ray. For a moment, he thought Vox had gotten angry and was about to kill him.
But soon… he realized that wasn't the case.
It was just… coiling around him.
When it finished, Vox adjusted itself and rested on Ray's shoulder as if it had always belonged there.
Feeling the creature around him, Ray was about to tell it to get off—but then he noticed something strange.
"…That's weird. My knee doesn't hurt anymore."
Ray froze. The injury in his knee—something he had suffered in battle—was completely gone. No pain. No discomfort.
Confusion spread across his face.
'The doctors said it was incurable… what the hell?'
Then—
A voice.
"gurgle… Parasitation… complete."
Ray's body tensed instantly. The strange voice had come from his shoulder.
Slowly, he turned his head.
Vox.
"V-Vox… w-was that you?"
No response.
Ray swallowed hard. For a moment, he thought he was going insane. He was sure he had heard something—but that was impossible. It was just a weird worm… the pet of that giant who let him stay here.
Right?
Taking a breath, Ray tried to calm himself down. Then he started thinking—and quickly realized… this might actually be Vox's doing.
For some reason, Vox had regenerated his body—somehow. Ray had no idea how or why. So he decided one thing: he would ask the giant when he came back.
"Okay, Vox… get off my shoulder, please… Vox?"
No reaction.
Vox didn't move. Not even a little.
A sense of panic started creeping in. Ray tried to pull it off using force—
Nothing.
"Damn it… what do I do?"
_______________________
Out on the street, Alex was enjoying what he considered his last moments living as part of society.
Normally, he would hate this—too many people crammed together, the constant noise of car horns. But more than anyone, Alex understood the weight of loss.
Were there other ways to get money?
Yes. Of course.
He could rob criminals instead.
But then what?
They would go after his family, thinking he was still connected to them. And how could he live with causing his mother more pain?
At least the government knew he wasn't with his family anymore.
'At least I'll be the only one who suffers…'
Sigh.
Alex stretched his body, mentally preparing himself to become a full-fledged villain. But as bad as he felt on the outside… deep down, he felt an overwhelming sense of freedom.
Taking one last breath, Alex loosened up and started walking, almost as if he had finally achieved financial freedom.
On his way to the bank, his mind kept racing with questions.
Should he wear a mask?
But that would only make things harder.
Having a hidden identity didn't make sense—he was already being hunted by the government. And it would force him to limit himself, relying only on his physical body and not his techniques.
'There's no point in disguising myself like that.'
Nothing stays hidden forever.
As Alex approached the bank, he let out a quiet sigh, thinking about what he was about to do. This could easily make things worse for mutants… but sometimes, sacrifices were necessary.
Reaching the entrance, he took a deep breath and walked in through the front door.
The moment he stepped inside, all attention turned to him. People grew tense at the sight of his appearance.
Alex didn't care.
He simply walked over and stood in line.
At that moment, his mind was racing. What if someone he knew showed up? What if he made a mistake? Doubts and insecurities flooded his thoughts—but they didn't last long.
Soon, it was his turn.
"Hello, sir. How can I help you?"
The attendant had a perfectly crafted professional expression. She didn't seem to care at all about Alex's strange appearance—which somehow made things worse for him.
But he had already made his decision.
"Hello, miss… this is a robbery."
The attendant froze.
For a brief moment, her face went blank—then it quickly shifted into pure fear as she processed what he had just said.
Unsure of what to do, her eyes darted to the button beneath her desk—the silent alarm.
But she hadn't worked there long enough to have the composure to press it.
The mutant standing in front of her was clearly strong enough to walk in and announce a robbery empty-handed.
But… it could still be a bluff.
With no better option, she gathered what little courage she had and slowly reached for the alarm.
Alex noticed immediately.
Before she could react, his hand passed through the glass and touched her shoulder, startling everyone around them and drawing a few screams.
"Don't do that. I don't want to hurt anyone during this robbery."
His touch was almost gentle… but seeing that tattooed hand made it anything but comforting.
The girl nearly fainted from fear, barely managing to stay conscious.
As Alex stepped away, he turned and shouted to everyone in the bank.
"HELLO EVERYONE, I'M SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE, BUT I AM ROBBING THE BANK!"
Panic exploded instantly.
People started running toward the exit, fear and chaos spreading across the room.
Seeing the reaction his words caused, Alex covered his face, already regretting how he handled it.
He wasn't good with people.
For a brief moment, a dark thought crossed his mind—to simply cut through the crowd.
He immediately discarded it and took a deep breath.
"EVERYONE ON THE FLOOR BEFORE I KILL SOMEONE!"
Since no one was stopping and his "nice approach" clearly wasn't working, Alex decided to be more forceful.
Some people obeyed.
Others kept running.
That was enough.
Losing patience, Alex slashed at a table near the exit, completely destroying it in an instant.
That did it.
Everyone froze—then quickly dropped to the ground, lying face down.
Everyone except one elderly man, who struggled to get down.
Alex paused.
Then, surprisingly gentle, he grabbed a chair from the reception area and placed it beside the man.
"Here. You don't have to lie down, sir."
For a moment, the old man thought he was about to die.
But realizing the giant had only offered him a chair, he seemed to notice something.
"You're a good kid, why—"
Alex didn't listen.
He turned away before the man could finish and walked toward the employees, who were now lying on the ground in terror, hearing only his heavy footsteps approaching.
Once he got close enough, he grabbed the manager—a chubby man with neat hair and elegant clothes that didn't quite match his face—by the collar and lifted him effortlessly.
"Take me to the vault. Please."
Hearing the emotionless voice behind him and feeling himself lifted so easily, the man began trembling and quickly guided Alex.
"Turn left… t-there's an entrance to the vault room… p-please don't kill me…"
Seeing how terrified the man was, likely on the verge of tears, Alex let him go and followed the directions.
Soon, he stood before a massive, heavily reinforced steel door.
The vault.
Alex stared at it, analyzing, a few ideas forming in his mind—until he remembered something.
He didn't need to worry about damaging property.
Heroes destroyed buildings all the time, and no one complained.
Walking slowly toward the vault, he placed his hand against its surface.
"Hachi."
A small cut appeared.
Shallow. Almost like a scratch.
But that was just the beginning.
In the next instant, hundreds—thousands—of cuts erupted across the surface, tearing into the vault at an alarming speed.
"Not as fast as I expected… and I can't use too much energy, or I'll leave traces… might even create another curse."
Alex wasn't holding back anymore—but he still couldn't go all out.
Vox was harmless… at least to him.
But he had no idea if all curses were like that.
Better not risk creating more.
As the cuts continued spreading, slowly eating through the vault, it became clear it might take a little time.
Then—
A voice behind him.
"A-Alex?"
He froze.
Turning around, he saw someone very familiar—someone who had been all over the news.
Spider-Woman.
She stood there, unmoving, both hands covering her mouth—or where it should be.
"You know me?"
Surprised, Alex asked, curiosity rising.
There was no way… he was certain he didn't know anyone who looked like—
"Wait… I know that voice."
Realizing her mistake, Spider-Woman quickly tried to deepen her voice, attempting to disguise it.
"N-No, I just confused you with a friend."
"Me?"
Hearing that excuse, Alex clearly didn't buy it.
Someone with a similar physique… and the exact same voice?
He narrowed his eyes.
"Wait… GWEN!?"
"I-IT'S NOT ME!"
…
Realizing she had just exposed herself, Gwen lowered her head and gave a small nod.
That alone was enough to leave Alex completely shocked.
Seeing the situation, Alex made a quick motion with his hand—and every nearby camera was instantly sliced into dozens of pieces.
"You idiot. How are you going around revealing your identity like that? Go to the security room and destroy the camera hard drive."
Gwen blinked, confused.
Alex had suddenly started scolding her… while also telling her to commit a crime.
Only then did she fully process what was happening.
Alex was trying to break into the vault by force—and succeeding. The metal door was already covered in countless cuts, visibly thinner than before.
Meanwhile, Alex himself couldn't think straight.
He was completely thrown off.
His friend… was actually a hero.
And he had never even suspected it.
Worse—
She was here to stop him.
That realization settled in instantly for both of them.
There was only one possible outcome now.
Either one of them backed down…
Or they would fight.
_________________
Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed today's chapter, because it was a bit difficult to write. I've been a little busy with work lately, but I always try to stay consistent.
Also, I've got a question—would you like me to start adding the names of supporters at the end of each chapter?
As always, if you enjoyed it, feel free to send power stones or rate the story, it really helps a lot.
And if you have any constructive criticism or anything that could help me improve, don't hesitate to say it, I always read everything.
Also, just so you know, I really enjoy reading your messages, it genuinely makes me happy to see people enjoying the story.
Good night.
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