Marvel: Father of Superheroes

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Mr. Astonishment watched Emma charging toward him, his eyes filled with amusement.

After learning about Emma's abilities from Clara, he had spent a significant amount of time gathering materials and crafting a helmet that rendered him immune to psychic energy—specifically to capture Emma.

Today, the helmet finally proved its worth, which brought him great satisfaction.

Emma, dazzling like a diamond, charged straight at Mr. Astonishment, her steps crushing through the snow and wind. Yet with just a sharp gaze, Mr. Astonishment used an invisible force to seize control of her, pulling her right before him.

"Up close, you're even more stunning," he remarked, a note of admiration in his voice.

Emma struggled fiercely, glaring at Mr. Astonishment in rage, intent on tearing him apart. But his gaze bore down on her as if she were a beautiful, struggling bird caught in his grasp.

Emma was on the verge of despair. She could see Scott and Richie about to be captured, while Raven, relying on her shapeshifting ability, had managed to blend in among the enemies to hide for a little while longer.

Meanwhile, in the distance, Mike finally lowered his binoculars.

He had thought the battle would end the moment the White Queen entered the fray. To his surprise, Mr. Astonishment possessed a helmet immune to psychic control.

That helmet shouldn't even be in his possession—it belonged to the Black King! How had it ended up with Mr. Astonishment?

But then again, this world was full of differences from the one he remembered. Changes like these were only to be expected. It was like a mechanic carrying a wrench while playing soccer—it might seem strange, but it wasn't entirely illogical.

A thought flashed through his mind as Mike set the binoculars aside.

He clenched his palm, and a simple mask that covered his mouth and chin materialized rapidly. He donned it without hesitation.

At nearly the same time, his heartbeat accelerated.

Grabbing the sniper rifle at his side, Mike fired a series of shots as though he didn't even need to aim. The bullets were sent flying toward predetermined targets.

Two identical spatial manipulators.

Mike wasn't sure if Mr. Astonishment had more subordinates, but eliminating those two was definitely the right move.

The spatial manipulators stood at the back of the crowd, not engaging in the fight. Their abilities leaned toward support, and there was no need for them to act at the moment. This gave Mike the perfect opportunity for a clean kill.

Two bullets streaked through the air, one after the other, and struck the manipulators' heads with near-perfect precision, shattering them into fragments.

Thud! 

The two collapsed onto the snowy ground, their blood splattering like crimson roses in bloom.

The crowd was shocked, while Raven, who was hiding among them, froze momentarily before scanning her surroundings in search of the shooter.

"Over there!"

The psychic extended her mental energy to its limit, scanning the area rapidly. Once she pinpointed Mike's location, she transmitted the image to several individuals linked to her mind.

"Quick! Take him out!"

Elvin's eyes narrowed as he shouted to the crowd. Two figures leaped into the air, heading straight for Mike.

A faint smirk tugged at the corner of Mike's lips.

Many mutants shared the same weakness—they relied too heavily on their powers. Unless their abilities were strong enough to nullify his bullets, they were nothing but targets.

The two mutants flew at incredible speed, but to Mike, who was in "assassin time," they appeared to be moving as slowly as elderly pedestrians.

The gunfire echoed again.

Ejecting orange-yellow casings into the snow, the sniper rifle unleashed two deadly bullets that tore through the chests of the flying mutants. The sheer kinetic energy nearly ripped their bodies in half.

Mike's thoughts shifted, and several cards appeared in his hand. As glowing particles dissipated, the cards transformed into shields that enveloped him in protection.

The Dark Shield. Power Word: Shield...

The next moment, an invisible psychic blast struck Mike's mind, but the Dark Shield absorbed the impact. Calmly, Mike aimed at the psychic in the crowd and fired again.

Bang! 

The bullet was detected in advance, and the psychic narrowly dodged it. It grazed her, scattering snow on the ground and leaving a stark bullet hole.

Unfazed, Mike adjusted his aim and squeezed the trigger once more.

Bang! Bang! 

One bullet after another shot out like death's invitation, sending enemy after enemy into the depths of hell.

"Damn it! He's too far away!" Elvin cursed under his breath. "Send someone to deal with him, quickly!"

Mike was positioned three to four hundred meters away. Among the group, a few had long-range abilities, but at such a distance, most couldn't even hit him. Those whose powers could reach him didn't pack enough punch to be a serious threat.

It was an infuriating and awkward situation for them.

Bang! 

A bullet flew toward Mr. Astonishment, but just a foot away from him, it was stopped midair by an invisible force.

Mike's expression showed a hint of frustration. He knew this guy wasn't going to be an easy target.

Mr. Astonishment finally glanced up at Mike. With a flick of his finger, the bullet he had stopped midair was sent hurtling back toward him.

Mike let out a cold snort and fired another bullet in response.

Clink! 

The two bullets collided midair, producing a soft metallic sound before merging into a disk and falling to the ground.

Mr. Astonishment raised an intrigued eyebrow at the masked Mike.

"Interesting," he murmured.

Bang! Bang! 

Gunfire echoed like the tolling of a death knell as more mutants charged toward Mike.

Simultaneously, one of Mr. Astonishment's subordinates, a mutant with teleportation abilities, flickered into the air. When Mike's bullet sped toward him, his body shimmered briefly and reappeared behind Mike, slashing down at him with a blade.

Mike, however, remained unfazed. Calmly pulling out two more shield cards, he layered himself with additional defenses and continued aiming at the charging enemies.

Among them were mutants with enhanced speed—priority targets he needed to eliminate first.

The moment the gunfire resumed, the blade-wielding mutant's attack landed.

Two more enemies dropped dead, but the sharp blade was stopped by one of Mike's shields, its force absorbed entirely.

"One blade to break through my shield? Ridiculous," Mike muttered.

The mutant froze, momentarily stunned that his attack had failed. Quickly, he teleported away from Mike, only to realize that Mike hadn't even acknowledged his presence and was still calmly firing at other targets. Furious, he teleported back behind Mike and slashed again.

One slash. Two slashes...

He swung his blade wildly, and after relentless effort, he finally broke through one of Mike's shields.

But Mike didn't so much as flinch. With a mere thought, he drew two more cards and effortlessly restored two layers of protection. Reloading his rifle, he resumed his methodical elimination of the advancing enemies.

By now, several of the mutants rushing toward him had already fallen, their bodies strewn across the snowy battlefield. Mike shifted his aim to the next targets.

A sniper might not be scary.

But a sniper who could continuously shield himself was a nightmare.

The blade-wielding mutant was on the verge of despair.

"Come on, man, give me something here," he thought, exasperated.

"I've been slashing you this whole time! At least react!

If you keep this up, people are going to think I'm just putting on a show!"

As if hearing the mutant's silent cries of frustration, Mike suddenly responded.

When the mutant instinctively raised his blade to strike again, Mike swiftly drew a pistol from his waist and, without turning around, fired a single bullet.

Bang! 

The mutant didn't even have time to react.

(End of Chapter)