"Huh? Is that really me?"
That day, he remembered. Or rather, he was forced to remember.
He felt a sudden, piercing headache, as if a memory hidden deep in his brain had been unlocked.
"Like… did I really live another life and reincarnate?"
If there were people around, they'd probably say, "What's this guy muttering about?"
Luckily, he was alone in his room.
"Uh…"
He was sitting on a hard bed, frowning with his arms crossed, nearly tipping to the left, thinking: Is this seriously happening to me?
Years of memories said yes.
It was strange to have these memories and recollections of another life.
Eugene "Flash" Thompson, that's his name. No, it's his name and another name… His name is different from when he lived in the old world, but it's a name he's been familiar with for many years in this world. He has no intention of saying anything about names now, despite his dormant memories being recovered.
"Does this change anything?"
The memory he had, the memory he has now, is that he's a character from a certain movie… It's a story from an animated series, The Spectacular Spider-Man.
"Oh, crap, this is a pain in the ass," he thought.
He stood up and looked at himself in the mirror. Tall, blond, muscular, and—let's just say—well-endowed, making him perfect for the role of a womanizer.
"This guy might not be the best, but he's good-looking." He was indeed a handsome young man staring back in the mirror.
He looked every bit the flirt and womanizer in appearance, but with a well-defined face and, for the second time, a chiseled body. His sturdy frame gave off an aura of strength.
"Ahhh…"
He let out a loud sigh.
It wasn't just the fact that he remembered that bothered him now—it was the reflection of his behavior before remembering.
His body remained the same, his past remained the same, but his way of thinking had changed, and he was still Flash, yet not Flash, so to speak. In other words, his normal thought process had awakened, and he no longer felt like being a bully.
"Well, just because I remember doesn't change anything. Let's head out."
Flash stood up and headed straight for the front door. A cool breeze greeted him as he stepped outside.
"Uh…" A big sigh escaped him.
Flash didn't even cover his mouth with his hand. It was a sign he was feeling a bit off, a bit confused, and unable to accept the current situation.
That's when Flash was wandering aimlessly through the city.
"Let me go!"
"It's no big deal, alright? I promise I won't make you feel bad."
"Please, no!"
"If you get too feisty, I'll have to shut you up… Hey, little girl?"
"What?"
There was a man trying to take a girl home against her will right in front of him.
He looked sleazy. The passersby pretended not to see her and didn't help.
Though it wasn't his problem, Flash decided to play the busybody.
"…Who the hell are you?"
"Damn, look, just give it up."
The man turned to Flash as he approached.
Caught in the act, the woman also looked at Flash, and… her eyes widened. The man's face also surprised Flash—because she was no stranger to him.
She had long, silky blonde hair that reached her back, a beautiful face, large breasts that strained against her clothes in a way that would stir any man's desire, and stunning legs peeking out from under her skirt, all of which made her incredibly attractive.
Yes, her name was Gwendolyne Stacy.
"…Flash."
"…What the hell's wrong with you?"
Flash laughed both at Gwen, whose eyes seemed to reflect dashed hopes, and at the man who looked startled by Flash's appearance. He hadn't expected either of them to look at him like that… or at all, for that matter.
He took a step forward, and the man stepped back.
Approaching slowly and staring down at the man from his towering height, Flash spoke.
"Get lost."
"H-H-Hey!!"
The man bolted at full speed and took off.
Flash was surprised by the man's lack of guts but then turned his attention to Gwen, who was next in line to be dealt with.
She looked away as if scared, but Flash nodded and said, "Sorry for startling you. I'm sure he won't come back, but be careful on your way home."
"…Oh."
With that, Flash walked past Gwen.
She didn't say a single word of thanks until he was already past, but Flash didn't mind. But when he was some distance away, he heard a voice behind him.
"Hey, thanks, Flash!"
"…"
He hadn't expected her to thank him after he'd gone so far.
That's why Flash turned back to Gwen.
Her expression at that moment was a smile like that of a child, and there was no doubt it was a beautiful smile for anyone to see.
==
"She's really pretty, isn't she?"
When Flash got home, he thought about his encounter with Gwen.
Well, she certainly had the look of a heroine. She had a combination of charm that would make any man yearn for her and want to devour her body.
But… knowing what he knew about this world, Flash got serious.
He lay on his bed for a while, thinking about things…
==
It was Sunday, and he had no classes. After sleeping, he woke up at 3:33 p.m.
Flash had just woken up when he noticed an additional attribute system had appeared in his retina.
Enlightenment: 5.1
Strength: 5.5
Physique: 5.5
Agility: 5.6
Note: The average three-dimensional value for adult males is 5.
Those were the only words on the attribute panel.
Flash's attributes were slightly above those of ordinary people. After all, he was an athlete and needed to maintain his physical condition.
"How did I get this?" That was his biggest question at the moment.
In the Marvel universe, he knew powers didn't just appear out of nowhere; there had to be an explanation. One possibility was that he'd awakened as a mutant, and this was related to his mutant powers.
"How does this work?"
…
After standing there thinking for a while, Flash had an idea.
"Maybe exercise can trigger a reaction in the attribute panel."
Flash's training method was, in fact, relatively basic.
Push-ups, 20 reps per set, three sets.
Squats, 20 reps per set, three sets. Then a one-hour run.
That was Flash's typical workout routine.
…
After returning from the bathroom, Flash, dressed in athletic wear, immediately lay down and started doing push-ups.
Twenty push-ups weren't difficult for Flash. He kept the pace and finished in half a minute.
He stood up and rested for 20 seconds. While resting, Flash opened his attribute panel again and immediately noticed a change.
Strength: 5.5 (5.6) ↑.
"What does this mean?"
The 5.2 in parentheses and the upward arrow—Flash really couldn't figure it out.
After staring at it for over 10 seconds, there were no further changes in his attribute panel. Flash decided not to think about it anymore and continued exercising.
Three sets of push-ups were completed.
Strength: 5.5 (5.8) ↑.
Flash started doing squats.
Three sets of squats were completed.
Physique: 5.5 (5.8) ↑.
Then Flash turned on the treadmill and set the speed to 8.
Run!
An hour later, his agility attribute had also changed.
Agility: 5.6 (5.8) ↑.
"Running for half an hour increases agility by 0.1."
However, Flash didn't feel like his body had improved…
He wiped his sweat and reflected.
But suddenly, he felt an intense hunger in his stomach.
"Weird, I'm getting hungry really fast today. And I'm a bit more tired than usual."
The exhaustion left Flash with no desire to cook a proper meal.
He settled for a canned meal to quickly satisfy his hunger, but a wave of drowsiness hit him instantly.
Dazed, he stumbled downstairs, crawled into bed, and soon fell asleep.
==
Flash slept deeply through the night.
He woke up at seven in the morning, feeling refreshed.
He immediately opened his attribute panel and checked his stats.
Enlightenment: 5.1
Strength: 5.7
Physique: 5.7
Agility: 5.8
Flash was surprised and muttered to himself, "Something's not right."
He remembered that before going to bed last night, his attributes were:
Enlightenment: 5.1
Strength: 5.5 (5.8) ↑.
Physique: 5.5 (5.8) ↑.
Agility: 5.6 (5.8) ↑.