Marvel: DNF Invades

After a hearty American dinner, Luke said goodnight to his adoptive parents, returned to his room early, and locked the door.

Midnight would mark the arrival of Thursday—the day Luke looked forward to the most.

Back in the day, the game's dungeons would reset every Thursday, and DNF would receive irregular updates. But those days were long gone.

Now, every Thursday at midnight, the system rewarded him with a "Magic Box" right on schedule. Just like the ones in the game, the boxes had a chance to contain valuable items.

According to Ross, "This is your reward for surviving another week in this world."

From past experience, the Magic Box could contain all sorts of things, but the most valuable by far were the skill books.

Skill books were a direct path to becoming stronger.

Any skill from any class in DNF could be unlocked—it all depended on luck.

Aside from skills, the boxes also granted various items with a wide range of uses.

Luke received his first skill book last summer, not long after he had traveled to this world. He was newly adopted and still adjusting to everything. That first skill book was a complete surprise. It gave him hope that he could actually grow stronger in the Marvel universe.

That skill was Draw and Slash, one of the signature moves of the Sword Master in DNF.

Luke secretly tested it when no one was around. He found a piece of wood, spent two days carving a wooden sword, and practiced in the backyard of his adoptive parents' house.

The next day, the neighbors called the police, claiming that a wild boar had broken through their fence in the middle of the night.

For a while, the so-called "wild boar incident" stirred up the entire neighborhood, but in the end, it led to nothing.

His handmade wooden sword, which took two days to craft, broke apart after a single use. It simply couldn't handle the sheer force of the attack. But that was enough for Luke to witness the incredible power of DNF skills firsthand.

All it took was a single thought, and he could instantly master any skill from the Magic Box. Once learned, it became second nature—his body would instinctively know how to use it at full combat potential.

From that moment on, Luke began eagerly anticipating every Thursday. But soon, even that wasn't enough.

"Too bad the system only gives out one Magic Box per week. If I want more, I have to buy them with tokens in the system shop."

The system shop had an overwhelming selection of items, but they were like cakes displayed behind glass—tempting yet untouchable. To buy anything, he needed tokens, which could only be obtained by exchanging real money. The conversion rate was 10:1—meaning $10 equaled 1 token. In other words, it was a pay-to-win system.

"What the hell does the system even need dollars for?" Luke had questioned at first.

Ross responded, "This is a test of your ability."

"My ability to earn money?"

"My suggestion: rob a bank."

"…"

But Luke was only seven—a genuine, penniless proletarian. Where was he supposed to get the money to buy tokens? For now, he had no choice but to rely on the free weekly gifts.

Luckily, the Magic Box followed a rule—after ten consecutive draws, a guaranteed high-tier reward was granted. These rewards had a high probability of being skill books. Because of this, Luke had been saving up for over two months, stockpiling ten Magic Boxes.

Since learning about the guaranteed skill book from ten draws, Luke had successfully pulled three skill books in the past six months. The skills he had acquired were Inch Punch, Mind Shield, and Draw and Slash.

Inch Punch came from the God of War class in DNF after job advancement. It was one of their signature offensive moves.

Mind Shield was another Fighter-class skill but belonged to the Qi Master subclass. It allowed the user to conjure a protective force field, blocking incoming attacks in a surrounding area.

Not a bad start.

"As the saying goes, 'A single pull can bring a miracle, but ten consecutive pulls will ruin your life…' Ugh." Sitting at the head of his bed, Luke muttered to himself. "Actually, ten consecutive pulls are a belief, a sacred faith for us unlucky people. Let's hope for a colorless skill this time."

"What kind of attitude is that?" Ross commented in his usual sinister tone.

Luke focused his mind, and suddenly, ten identical mysterious boxes materialized before him, neatly arranged in a row on the bed. The boxes weren't made of metal or wood, but some unknown material, covered in intricate, ancient patterns that exuded a mysterious aura.

"Let's begin," Luke said.

Ross, for once, seemed unusually focused on the results.

The boxes began opening one by one in order, and system notifications appeared in Luke's mind:

[Magic Stone ×1]

[Celia's Handmade Cake ×1]

[Resurrection Coin ×1]

[Celia's Special Cool Drink ×1]

[Colorless Crystal Fragments ×25]

[Data Chip ×1]

[Skill Book: Shock Grenade ×1]

[Colorless Crystal Fragments ×19]

[Celia's Handmade Cake ×1]

[Magic Stone ×1]

"A Shock Grenade? Not bad." Luke was satisfied with the result after waiting two months. Though it was a shame he didn't pull a colorless skill.

Shock Grenade was a skill from the male and female Launcher classes in DNF. As the name implied, it allowed the user to throw a grenade that stunned enemies upon explosion.

Holding the skill book in his hand, Luke activated it with a single thought. A warm sensation flowed through his body, and suddenly, knowledge of industrial assembly techniques filled his mind.

He instantly understood how to craft and assemble a Shock Grenade—his craftsmanship was now at a master level. Given the right materials, he could produce one within minutes.

Luke glanced around, then grabbed a remote-controlled toy car from his bed. Heading to the bathroom, he squeezed out some toothpaste and collected some grime from the drain, wrapping it in tissue. Lastly, he snuck into the living room and stole his adoptive father's lighter.

With everything prepared, Luke locked his door again, returned to his bed, and got to work. His hands moved swiftly and skillfully, assembling the device with surprising expertise.

Two minutes later, he had extracted the necessary explosive compound. Another half a minute to dismantle the toy car, and finally, he assembled everything into an improvised Shock Grenade.

Luke held a small bottle in his tiny hands, containing a faintly glowing fluorescent substance. This was his experimental Shock Grenade—though with limited materials, it wasn't at full strength.

"Doesn't look too impressive." Luke assessed his work. "In the game, the Shock Grenade applies a status effect that deals extra damage with every hit. I wonder how it works in the Marvel world?"

"Throw it at the door and find out!" Ross urged excitedly.

Luke rolled his eyes. "It's a grenade, you idiot. Even if it's a prototype, it could still blow up this room. I'm not sleeping in the basement."

Casually, he stored the homemade grenade in his system storage.

His newly acquired skill had already become second nature.

As for its power? That would have to be tested later.

"If I want to get stronger, I need to open more boxes," Luke sighed.

Now, he possessed four DNF skills—each highly useful. He was still far from being strong enough to survive in the Marvel world, but it was a solid start.

Opening boxes, expanding storage space, and feeding himself all required money.

His adoptive parents weren't wealthy. In America, the middle class wasn't poor, but resources were still limited.

He needed more food. The more DNF skills he mastered, the more energy his body consumed daily.

At just over a meter tall, Luke was more eager than ever to grow.

But money was the problem.

"Should I get a job?" he muttered.

"Work? What a low-level idea! Robbing a bank is way faster. Plus, it's exciting!" Ross cheered.

Luke ignored him.

According to New York law, minors had to be at least fourteen to work, and even then, their hours were restricted. With his seven-year-old appearance, no one would dare hire him.

"Oh, how long will it take before I have enough money to open more Magic Boxes…?"

Marvel's timeline was advancing fast.

If he wanted to survive here, he needed to get stronger—fast.

And for that, he needed money.

~~~~~~~~~~

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