Clark's feeling was spot on. This young Superman was extremely interested in Battleworld. He asked questions non-stop while eating. Clark happily shared his experiences in Battleworld with him, as if recommending a game to a good buddy, praising everything from the graphics to the gameplay, and reveling in the excitement of cooperative online play, getting both of them hyped up.
As soon as they finished eating, Clark said, "You should go home and take a look. This thing can't be lost; even if it ended up in a landfill, it would fly back by itself. Just look around your house, and you're sure to find the invitation."
But the young Superman's expression faltered. He pursed his lips and said, "It's been a long time since I've been home. I... I can't go back."
Clark was a bit surprised. He asked, "You can't go back? What happened to your home? Wait a minute, your home is on Earth, right?"
Clark thought of a terrifying possibility—that this Superman might be Carl Ai'er, who had never been to Earth or hadn't spent much time there. His home was on Krypton, which naturally meant he couldn't go back home.
"Yes, but this Earth is a bit different from yours." The other sighed and said, "And I've always been somewhere outside, in a place where invitations definitely can't reach."
"Impossible." Clark immediately denied it. "Then you don't know how amazing the Battleworld developers are. If they want to find you, it doesn't matter where you are, the invitation will definitely be sent to you."
He thought for a moment and said, "Do you know Lucifer? The son of God, the highest administrator in the cosmos apart from God, he's the one who sends out the invitations. How could he not find you?"
The young Superman was stunned and asked, "Can it be sent to the Origin Wall?"
"What?" Clark had never heard this term before, but from the young Superman's tone, it seemed like a very remote place. Clark didn't dare to make any guarantees.
"How about this, I'll ask the development team to check it out for you," Clark said. "They keep records of all the invitations they've sent. If they sent one to you, they can find it."
The young Superman was about to say something, but Clark said, "The invitation is bound to your soul. Normally, it's not possible to send a second one, so no matter what, we need to find yours; otherwise, you won't be able to get in."
The young Superman clearly looked a bit troubled. Clark encouraged him, "Don't worry, the invitation has an auto-tracking feature. Even if it's sent a bit off course, it will trace back to you in no time. We might even find it inside my mailbox tomorrow morning."
The other person's expression became even more troubled, and he whispered, "If it's stuck on the Origin Wall, I'm afraid..."
When it came time to sleep, Clark looked around; he truly felt that his current house was a bit small. He wanted to have the guest stay overnight, but there was no space, so he had to say, "Let me take you to a hotel."
Just then, Natasha called, saying, "Haven't you sent him back yet? I need to ensure they're at the hotel overnight..."
"Right away, right away," Clark said with some embarrassment. "We were just chatting about going to Battleworld to play, and lost track of time. I'll take him there now."
Clark quickly took the young Superman downstairs. "The city hasn't been peaceful lately, with Assassin's Union activity, and someone has something to deal with Superman... what is it called again?"
"Kryptonite?"
"Ah, right, Kryptonite. It hurt like hell when I got hit before, so make sure you don't get hit." Clark and he got into the car and drove him to the hotel. Before leaving, Clark didn't forget to say, "Don't worry, I'll help you find the invitation. Once we find it, we'll have plenty of time to play."
Natasha saw that young face and showed a knowing expression. No wonder Clark got along so well with him—they were both young. However, Natasha also paid more attention, as young people tend to get into trouble, so she needed to clarify the situation first.
So, after escorting him to the door, Natasha didn't immediately give him a room card. Leaning against the door, she asked, "How are things in your universe? Any trouble?"
The other said nothing, just stared at her. Natasha sighed and said, "You seem to be new. Clark must have introduced you to some of our universe's situation. We're hosting a major event recently, so unless there's something special, try to avoid going to the city center, okay?"
"What's your name?" the other suddenly asked.
"You don't know me?" Natasha was slightly stunned. She was used to all the Multiverse visitors recognizing her because the Central Universe's Natasha had too much free time, constantly flirting throughout the cosmos, playing games in Battleworld and making the once-secret Black Widow agent a Multiverse celebrity.
"Have you never been to Battleworld?" Natasha asked, "This isn't your first time leaving your universe, is it?"
Without the other needing to answer, Natasha looked at his expression, picked up the walkie-talkie, and said, "Send someone over; there's a newbie here who needs a briefing on precautions..."
Natasha waved the walkie-talkie and said, "Wait here. Oh, by the way, if you haven't logged in to Battleworld, it's best you do—it's giving away two free dungeons this Saturday, remember to claim them."
With that, she went downstairs, clearly to adjust the security setup. After all, with a newcomer who hadn't even left his own universe, they had to make some arrangements for him. Even if he didn't intend to cause trouble, he might inadvertently cause some, so they had to proactively make adjustments.
Not long after, Coulson arrived. He was much more personable than Natasha, smiling as he shook hands with this Superman and said, "It's okay, everyone has their first time leaving home. When I first came to New York, I got scared as soon as I left the airport—I'd never seen such a bustling city before."
"Of course, your universe must be great too, it's just that the city on our side is newly built, so it's normal for you to find it refreshing. But remember, fresh as it may be, don't wander around the city aimlessly. The Rebirth Alliance monitors superpower users very strictly."
Coulson took the room card Natasha gave him and opened the door, then said, "I have quite a bit to say, let's go inside and talk slowly."
The Superman didn't oppose and walked in. Coulson instinctively glanced around the room, closed the door, went to the fridge to grab a drink, and the two sat face to face on the sofa.
"It's already late, I'll focus on the important parts. When traveling the Multiverse, the most important thing is to never use your own universe's situations to judge others; it's easy to suffer for it."
"For example, the Batman in your universe might be a scheming fellow, and you're used to listening to his advice on matters. But if you want advice from our universe's Batman, you'd suffer greatly."
"Every universe's environment and culture are different. If you can't change your stereotypes and insist on shoehorning them, trouble will definitely follow. Now, tell me about your universe's situation."
"There's nothing to say," the other person lowered their head and said, "I haven't returned in a long time."
"Where have you been during this period?" Coulson asked, "In your Origin Universe, or somewhere else?"
The young Superman shook his head. Coulson had to press further, "Is it that you're not there, or you don't want to talk?"
"Both," he said.
"Alright then," Coulson continued, "I heard from Natasha that you haven't been to Battleworld either, did you bring an invitation?"
"Didn't receive an invitation," he said, "I don't know where it is."
Coulson thought for a moment and said, "I'll help you inquire about it. Once you enter Battleworld, you'll quickly get accustomed. If you complete several quests, you'll have some friends in the Multiverse, so don't be too anxious; it's just a matter of time."
After speaking, Coulson stood up. Before leaving, he thought for a moment and asked, "Has the Batman in your universe joined the Batman Alliance of the Multiverse?"
"The universe I was born in doesn't have Batman," he said.
Coulson understood. He figured it must be like the Fusion Universe or the Nameless Bat Universe, where Bruce Wayne stopped being Batman, had no successor, or they had an age gap with Bruce retiring when Superman was just starting out. This situation exists in universes and isn't uncommon, but it makes things a bit more troublesome for them.
A Superman with Batman can go to Batman for advice when there's an issue. Most Batmans can help Superman solve difficult problems, making Superman's conduct more mature. But without Batman's help, Superman indeed might suffer.
Especially given the complexity of the Multiverse, with factions everywhere. Superman isn't good at dealing with this; having Batman's guidance would help. If there's really no one, then he can only slow down and develop gradually.
After Coulson left, the young Superman walked to the window, overlooking the bustling night scene of Forward York City. Despite his youthful face, his eyes revealed a sense of experience. He lightly pressed his hand on the glass, saying, "Multiverse..."
The next morning, there was a loud knock on the door. The young Superman sat up from the bed, somewhat bleary-eyed. He rubbed his eyes, got up, and opened the door to find Clark.
"Battleworld responded to my message," Clark said, "They said they've sent an invitation to where you stayed, you should go look for it."
The young Superman's face obviously tensed, "Are you sure?"
Clark directly took out his phone and sent him a message. Superman picked up his phone to see nothing but a jumble of characters.
"They said these are the coordinates for the initial delivery of the invitation; you should check here and you might find it. Want me to go with you?"
The young Superman's expression turned serious, "No, it's dangerous there, I'll look on my own."
"Then off you go," Clark said, "If you just registered, you'll receive some points, but it's best not to waste them. This weekend they'll present new quests, I'll check them out first, and when you return, we can play together."
"Should I drive you to the airport?"
"No need," the other replied, "You go ahead, don't worry about me."
Clark assumed it was just his introverted nature, not wanting to trouble others. Natasha, having long grown wary of this Superman's oddity and increased her monitoring on him, walked into Nick Fury's office and said, "He's left, and not through our teleportation portal."
Nick Fury squinted his eyes.