American Comics: Multiverse of Madness

500(Milestone). Return.

Drifting in the House of Mystery that flows through time, a crimson portal suddenly opened in the hall.

The first thing to emerge from the portal was a black glove, and then, slowly, Alex stepped out from the portal.

"Calibrate the timepad and link it with the House of Mystery, save all reports since my departure, and compile the action reports of the Overseers as well."

(Understood, uploading the data now. You can check it anytime, master.)

The voice of Miss Minutes echoed in Alex's mind, and the familiar voice made him relax a little, easing the tension that had been building inside him.

Every time Alex had traveled before, Miss Minutes and other friends had been with him. This time, having spent so long in the The Boys' universe, Alex still wasn't quite used to it.

Now, he had finally returned to his own world, and he could finally let go of the anxiety and vigilance he had been feeling.

He had to admit that after not communicating with Pietro, Kara, and the others for so long, he missed them a little. They had all followed him to the zombie universe, and he wondered what they were doing now.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Looking around, the House of Mystery was eerily quiet.

"Where is everyone?" Alex frowned and couldn't help but ask. "Have they not returned yet? Miss Minutes, how long has it been since I left?"

Upon hearing Alex's question, Miss Minutes replied while organizing the data.

(According to the data calculations, you've been gone for a year and three months.)

"What!?" Alex raised an eyebrow. Although he had suspected this before, as time flowed differently between universes, and given that he had been in the polluted upper universe, the concept of time had been harder to estimate.

But hearing that he had been away for so long still left Alex feeling somewhat complex emotions.

A year and more—it wasn't too long, nor too short. He had left without a sound for this long, and he wondered how the Overseers had fared. Had they encountered any difficulties?

Sighing, Alex walked through the hall, his palm brushing the back of a leather sofa as he muttered.

"Miss Minutes, what about Pietro and Kara?"

[According to the latest action report, they are helping people in the wastelands build a space observatory. With the equipment from the zombie hero universe, their construction is progressing quite smoothly.]

Suddenly, Miss Minutes jumped out and landed on Alex's shoulder.

[Whew, it's been so long since I've been out for a walk. Watching those guys all the time is boring. Master, do you know how torturous it was for me to wait for you?]

Glancing at Miss Minutes, Alex chuckled. "You could disguise yourself as the House of Mystery's AI. As long as you don't show yourself, no one will know your true identity."

[And you say that! When Mr. Fantastic and Stark returned, they immediately developed several AIs. Now, there's hardly any space left for me in the House of Mystery. Even the vacuum cleaner has its own AI!]

Miss Minutes pouted, clearly upset.

"They really have that much free time?" Alex shook his head, laughing.

[Yes, Stark even started brewing wine. After studying time flow with Mr. Fantastic, he tried to create a device that controls small time flows, so they could drink decades-old wine in just one second.]

"Why didn't they just go to the prehistoric era of the wasteland universe, bury a few bottles of wine, and then jump to thirty years later to retrieve them?" Alex asked curiously.

[No idea, maybe they're lazy. Or maybe it's the scientists' mindset. Who knows what wine even tastes like?]

Miss Minutes sat on Alex's shoulder, swinging her legs, her expression a little melancholic.

Noticing Miss Minutes's mood, Alex pressed his lips together and quickly changed the subject. "By the way, nothing happened to them while I was gone, right?"

[No, everything's fine. They followed the plan you set and brought back all the technologies and equipment from the zombie universe. I opened the portal for them, and they jumped back here from the Supernatural universe.]

"Nothing went wrong along the way?" Alex asked again.

[Nope. They met up with the Winchester brothers, but without you there, they were pretty sad about it.]

As Miss Minutes was talking, she suddenly remembered something and said.

[Oh, by the way, I heard something about a Leviathan escaping from Hell over there.]

"Then what happened?" Alex's interest piqued.

In the Supernatural universe, Leviathans were strange monsters that were incredibly hard to kill. Their giant mouths could devour anything, and even angels were on their menu.

[Then Damian rushed over, shouting something about the best family gathering. To avoid unnecessary misunderstandings and to get the tech back to the wasteland as quickly as possible, Clark and the others returned ahead of time. Only the Bat-family stayed behind.]

"In that universe, Batman really does have an aura boost. As long as it's not the Creator God personally intervening, if Bruce Wayne's around, they won't fail." Alex nodded thoughtfully.

[The Creator God probably abandoned that universe. Ever since Lucifer and Michael fell, no divine energy has appeared there. Bruce Wayne speculates that the Creator doesn't want to have any interaction with us.]

"It's also possible. That guy really isn't very bold." After a brief pause, Alex asked again, "Hmm, is there anything else? Any other news?"

[Anything else?]

Miss Minutes looked at Alex somewhat confused, frowning as she replied.

[Nothing particularly noteworthy. The Bat-family members have already returned, and the Overseers are maintaining the stability of the wasteland universe. Now, besides Earth, other planets are also gradually starting the rebuilding process.]

"I mean, something related to me," Alex cleared his throat, quietly reminding her.

[Something related to you?]

Miss Minutes tilted her head, then suddenly seemed to remember something and flashed a teasing smile.

[Got it, Master. You're asking about how the Overseers, or Pietro and Kara, feel about you disappearing without a word, right?]

"Cough, cough, yes. That's it," Alex gave an awkward laugh.

He had left in a rush and hadn't had a chance to say goodbye to everyone. The only ones who knew about his departure were Tony Stark and Susan Storm.

In fact, it wasn't that Alex didn't want to tell others, but this journey had to do with the source of the pollution, and the dangers involved couldn't be explained in just a few words. If others had known he was going on another adventure, they definitely wouldn't have agreed.

Take Pietro and Kara, for example. If he told them he was going into the pollution to find the source, those two would absolutely follow him, and it would be impossible to shake them off.

But only Alex knew that the pollution wasn't something so simple. Even if they came along, they'd probably be of no help and could instead make things more difficult for him.

And as it turned out, to travel into a universe of pollution, one had to possess skills like Michael or Lucifer, involving possession and descent. Neither Pietro, the mutant, nor Kara, the Kryptonian, could do that.

So, in the end, Alex had chosen not to tell them and decided to explain everything when he returned.

Now, he was back.

Looking at the somewhat uneasy Alex, Miss Minutes covered her mouth and giggled. When Alex couldn't take her gaze anymore, she finally spoke.

[Don't worry, Master. They're not unreasonable. After experiencing the zombie hero universe, everyone in the Overseers has realized the dangers and severity of the pollution. They won't blame you for your decision.]

"Really?" Alex crossed his arms.

[Of course. Don't you trust the bond you share with them?]

Miss Minutes smiled slightly. Hearing her words, Alex couldn't help but smile back.

"Well, actually I..."

Alex was about to say something when suddenly, his words trailed off. At the same time, Miss Minutes's figure vanished instantly, and the entire hall returned to silence.

Frowning slightly, Alex slowly turned his head.

In the shadowy corner of the hall, a pair of bulb-like pupils emitted a faint starlight. Looking closely, Alex could see the outline of a human figure standing there.

Alex squinted his eyes, staring at the thin bald man. His expression was one of helplessness.

"Hey, buddy, the House of Mystery may drift through the flow of time, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have doors. Couldn't you knock?"

"Forgive my rudeness, Time Bard. The existence of an Watcher is different from the life forms you understand. Wherever my gaze falls, I exist in that place."

The Watcher's voice was calm, just as Alex remembered it.

"Yeah, yeah, but I hope next time your gaze stops at the door of the House of Mystery, that way it'll be easier for you to knock."

Alex casually said this, not sure if the Watcher had heard him. He then sat down on the sofa.

"Wait, why are you calling me 'Time Bard' now?"

The Watcher stepped forward, emerging from the shadows and revealing its true form. Then, it flashed a subtle smile and spoke.

"Your name is now renowned among the Watcher group. Not only did you successfully resolve the pollution in the zombie universe, but you also personally entered the nest of the pollution and came out unscathed. That's simply incredible."

Approaching Alex, the Watcher stared at him with its large, intense eyes.

"Now, across the multiverse, every Watcher is spreading your name. As soon as I sensed your return, I immediately rushed over."

Feeling the intense gaze, Alex started to feel a bit uncomfortable.

If he remembered correctly, the eyes of an Watcher could link with each other, so behind these big eyes, there must be countless 'viewers.'

Thinking of this, Alex quickly raised both hands, covering the Watcher's bulb-like eyes.

"Alright, alright, stop it. If you've got something to say, say it. If not, then just leave. I'm busy here, and I don't have time to hang around and chat with you."

.....

?30 advanced chapters on p@treaon?
For advance chapters: /Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
501. The One-Way Mirror of Reality!!
502. The Identity of the Traveler.
503. I Heard It!
504. Three Entry Points.
505. I’m Going to Smother Him!