Multivers, Leveling Up in the World I Created

Chapter 402: 402 MCU 77

The Captain thought for a moment and then said to us,

"It seems we’ve found the bodies of victims from the super-soldier experiments here, just like at the Hydra base in Sokovia.

If any member thinks it will be too hard to see, let me know—we still need people to subdue the remaining forces.

And Jin, shouldn’t we call in the Helicarrier soon?

We need to detain the captured Hydra operatives and organize things like the super-soldier serum."

"Instead of the Helicarrier operating in the East Sea during the war, it’d be better to use the one stationed at the supply base in the Pacific."

"Good.

Then call it in right away."

As the Captain said, we split into two teams.

Bruce led the team to clean up the remnants, with Cosmo, Jess, Wanda, and Pietro, while the rest of us went to join Vision.

What was surprising was that Tony chose to come along.

Given how much he’d struggled last time, I thought he might sit this one out, so I asked him,

"Tony, are you sure you’ll be okay?"

"I need to see their reality.

That’ll justify what I do."

"That’s a fair point, but it’ll be hard..."

"Don’t worry.

I’m prepared."

Prepared—right.

The moment we arrived, Tony took off his Iron Man helmet and immediately threw up.

Behind the base, there was a parade ground like in a military camp, along with barracks.

The problem was what was next to them.

From a distance, I’d thought they were long trenches for defense—but they weren’t.

There were so many bodies that they couldn’t burn them all, so they had dug pits and buried them.

The bodies, mostly naked, were piled in heaps in the trenches.

The sheer number was staggering, and though it’s a crude comparison, it looked like raw sausages carelessly tossed together.

"Ugh... Damn it... No matter how many times I see this, I never get used to it."

The other members also grimaced or gagged at the sight.

The grotesque scene was bad enough, but the stench was unbearable.

Just then, T’Challa handed us something.

"I found this in the crematorium.

It’s a list of the people sacrificed in the super-soldier experiments."

The Captain looked at the list and asked curiously,

"It’s all numbers?

There were no names?"

"None.

Just numbers.

They didn’t even treat these test subjects as human.

I’ve seen many bodies before, but this is a first."

I also took a copy and checked—the number of victims exceeded several thousand.

North Korea had sacrificed an entire brigade’s worth of soldiers to mass-produce super-soldiers.

The military-style area seemed to be where the successful super-soldiers were trained.

"Tch... This is beyond cruel."

Even Falcon clicked his tongue at the document.

"It’s possible because it’s a dictatorship."

"But this is too much for us to handle alone.

Can we return the bodies to their families?"

"There are plenty of construction drones on the Helicarrier—they’ll help with the cleanup.

Until it arrives, let’s search for anything else."

"Right."

The members spent time examining various ledgers and searching the area while dealing with remaining stragglers.

When the Helicarrier finally arrived, we transferred the captured Hydra operatives and super-soldiers to the brig and, with the drones’ help, began placing the bodies in body bags and lining them up on the parade ground.

Since early summer was approaching and the bodies could decay, I used magic to freeze them for preservation and wrote identifying features on each bag to help families find their loved ones.

Meanwhile, members who couldn’t bear the sight loaded various documents, weapons, and super-soldier serum onto the ship.

"Huff... I never want to do this again."

"Tell me about it.

I could use a drink."

"I’m going to see this in my dreams."

"Thank god Peni didn’t come."

After the work was done, we washed up and rested on the Odyssey, but no one looked happy.

Naturally, no one had eaten properly either, so I prepared some simple snacks and dishes for everyone, and only then did they begin to eat and drink a little.

Then we heard a commotion—the Captain and Tony were arguing again.

The Captain must have seen the mess Tony and Pietro had made.

"Tony! What the hell is wrong with you!?

You could have subdued them!

Are you still acting out of revenge for your parents?"

"Hey Cap, don’t yell.

I’ve been throwing up a lot and I’m exhausted.

And you saw it too—subduing them is just giving them a chance, right?

But what’s the point of giving chances to those inhuman bastards?

If they survive and do the same things again, what would you say to the victims?

Chances are for humans, not garbage."

"Have you forgotten that some of them are victims too?

How many of those super-soldiers produced in North Korea and those countless bodies actually wanted to be there?

And they’re not garbage—they’re human beings."

"Let’s drop it.

I’m tired of arguing with you.

I’ve seen too much today, so I just want to drink in peace."

"Hah..."

The argument ended quicker than expected—Tony, clearly exhausted, backed off first.

The Captain gave up and came over to drink with us.

After that commotion, I turned on the TV to check the war situation and lighten the gloomy mood.

The members, curious as well, began watching.

While we’d been dealing with Hydra, the U.S. and South Korean forces had pushed north quickly, reaching Sinuiju near the Yalu River, but the eastern front had only advanced to Hamhung.

The underground tunnels were extensive and resistance fierce, so they weren’t advancing as fast as expected.

Moreover, like Japanese forces in World War II, many units were conducting suicidal charges with grenades, making the situation quite difficult.

Fortunately, every time U.S. and South Korean forces occupied a city or village, they distributed food, and the civilians were relatively cooperative.

As the war progressed, more refugees crossed into China, and Chinese military and police were seen beating them back—footage that was broadcast worldwide.

China would likely face much criticism over this.

"Are you going to provide support from the Avengers fund again this time?"

Natasha sat beside me, watching TV, and asked.

"No, unfortunately, since this wasn’t damage caused by us, I can’t use the fund.

Besides, we’ve given so much support that the fund is down 70% from when it was first established—we’re running low.

So this time, instead of the fund, I’ll make a personal donation."

"I suppose... It’s really been used heavily these past few years."

Both the Captain and Tony flinched at that—the Captain because of the Nigeria incident, and Tony because of the Ultron fiasco that had drained a significant portion of the fund.

Recently, their clash in France had also depleted funds again.

To be blunt, the two of them had pretty much eaten through the entire fund.

T’Challa, who had been listening quietly, spoke up,

"We’ll also contribute.

Given what happened today, we can’t just stand by."

We didn’t refuse Wakanda’s help—having them on board would make things easier.

The next day, after breakfast and some rest, the TV showed news coverage of the Avengers and Wakanda’s exploits based on footage I’d sent.

Of course, I hadn’t sent raw footage—it had been edited first.

I couldn’t show overly violent subdual scenes or the conflicts between Tony and the Captain on public broadcast.

"Wow! That’s me!

How do I look?

Pretty cool, right?"

Vulture beamed as the footage showed him flying around subduing enemies—he secretly enjoyed this kind of thing.

"I’m in it too!

I’m a good dog, right?"

"Of course.

Cosmo is always a good dog."

Cosmo wagged her tail happily when her scenes aired.

Natasha smiled warmly, petted Cosmo, and praised her.

After our footage ended, they showed the combat scenes of the robot ’Hellhound,’ built by the military using Gundam technology.

Though these units couldn’t fly, they used thick rectangular shields to block shells or dodged quickly, destroying tanks, bunkers, and trenches in an instant.

The Hellhounds’ unstoppable advance was a true disaster for the enemy.

"Wow... They fight well.

This could change the future of warfare."

Hawkeye said, and the Captain replied bitterly,

"It’s already changed.

This is exactly why I opposed it..."

Falcon patted the Captain’s shoulder and said consolingly,

"Cap, it’s unfortunate, but there’s no helping it.

Technology always advances.

Sooner or later, even more advanced tech will come."

"Yeah... I suppose..."

It was surprising to hear Falcon say that, but he wasn’t wrong.

As times change, weapons change too—and in a world like Marvel, with so many geniuses, it was even more inevitable.

Still, it was unlikely to develop into a world where mobile suits run rampant like in Gundam—the laws of physics were different, and there were too many obstacles.

Two days later, U.S. and South Korean forces arrived at the Hydra base.

We handed the base over to them and returned to the operational Helicarrier.

Fortunately, ballistic missiles no longer seemed to be coming.

The members and staff wanted to stay and watch the war’s progress, so only Natasha and I, along with a few staff members, transferred to the Helicarrier holding the captured Hydra operatives.

We returned to Damage Control, unloaded the materials from the Hydra base, handed over the captured operatives and super-soldiers to the U.S. military, and finally returned to the base to drop off the staff.

I made sure to give the hard-working staff generous bonuses this time as well.

Natasha and I rested briefly at the base before heading back to join the other members.

She seemed tired from all the back-and-forth and spent most of the time sleeping in her room.

"We’re going to Wakanda, so we’d like to borrow one Helicarrier—we need to bring personnel and supplies to support the refugees."

"Alright."

Since T’Challa asked, I cleared out the supply Helicarrier and lent it to them, then rested myself.

About a week later, word came that the war had finally ended.

The Hellhounds had played a part, but luckily, word spread that North Korea’s top leaders had been caught trying to escape through tunnels into China, and many units lost the will to fight and surrendered.

Thus, the unification that had never been achieved in reality was accomplished in the Marvel universe.

South Korea was swept up in a nationwide celebration, and the U.S. also greatly welcomed the war’s swift conclusion.

Many countries around the world sent congratulatory messages through the media.

However, China, Russia, Japan, and Taiwan remained outwardly silent—and looking at netizen reactions, most were negative.

The governments’ stances were likely similar—they feared South Korea would rise as a superpower through this unification.

The Avengers and Wakanda donated the supplies from the Helicarrier to the South Korean government—mostly temporary housing and food that had been used in Sokovia.

Since I could replicate them with [Matter Copy], there was no actual cost.

I also made personal investments.

Many countries wanted to invest in South Korea, but the government prioritized American investors first, as a gesture of gratitude.

That made it very easy for me to invest.

Naturally, I focused on the construction sector.

Most buildings in North Korea were substandard and couldn’t be used, so everything had to be rebuilt, meaning construction stocks would definitely rise.

Before prices skyrocketed, I used Minerva’s help to secure prime land early.

Interestingly, Tony was also investing heavily—he wasn’t about to miss this opportunity either.

In South Korea, there was talk in the National Assembly of erecting statues of the Avengers and President Matthew Ellis.

However, with massive unification costs, some argued it should be postponed, leading to ongoing debate among legislators.

I found the spectacle absurd—appreciative as I was, there were far more urgent matters at hand.

Trials for North Korea’s leaders and Hydra operatives also took place.

Given the scale of international crimes and evidence, the U.S., UN, and South Korea all vied to hold the trials, causing confusion for a while.

Eventually, they agreed to hold the trials in South Korea under UN international law, with the U.S. handling imprisonment.

It was broadcast live due to global interest.

Ironically, luck was on the North Korean leaders’ side—the International Court of Justice has no death penalty.

The maximum sentence they could receive was life imprisonment.

But asset forfeiture was possible, so their power and wealth were inevitably stripped away.

Still, not everything was good news.

Various countries demanded that South Korea repay North Korea’s debts.

However, the South Korean President firmly declared, "There is no reason to pay the debts of a collapsed puppet regime."

This was possible because unified Korea had emerged as a highly attractive investment destination, giving it diplomatic leverage.

This immediately shut down the attempts of opportunistic nations, which was quite satisfying.

’Looks like they can do things right when they actually try.’

Another interesting development involved the South Korean military.

Until the country stabilized, the service period was extended from 21 months to a whopping 30 months (2.5 years).

Troops were also deployed forward to the Yalu and Tumen rivers.

This caused social controversy, but from the nation’s perspective, it was unavoidable.

’Sorry, juniors.

You’ll have to suffer longer... but at least the shadow of war has lifted for now—take comfort in that.’

I silently said that and offered a prayer for their hard work.

Then, suddenly, a package arrived at my mansion.

The sender was "Rick Mason," and the recipient was Natasha.

Rick Mason was a freelance agent Natasha had known since the S.H.I.E.L.D. days, who had helped the Avengers on multiple occasions—whether out of justice or personal ties, I wasn’t sure.

I immediately called Natasha and told her about the package.

She opened it, read the letter inside, and began to explain what it was.

"Oh~ It’s from Rick.

He says this is old mail and personal belongings from a safe house in Budapest?"

"Really?

Who’s Rick, and what’s the Budapest safe house?"

"He’s a freelance S.H.I.E.L.D. agent—a friend I keep in touch with occasionally.

And the Budapest safe house was one set up by S.H.I.E.L.D.

It’s a long story, but simply put, it’s the safe house I used during the Red Room incident.

I didn’t know mail was still being sent there."

Natasha said as she rummaged through the package.

Inside, there was a suspicious black box.

Using my [Keen Eyes], I looked inside and saw a glass bottle containing a red liquid.

In that moment, I sensed that the story from the original ’Black Widow’ was just beginning.