Chapter 119: Dying Is Too Easy

As Bruce was constructing the collider, an email arrived that made Carol truly feel like ending it all.

Bruce had no clear idea how long this mission of his would take, but he understood one thing—many people would come looking for him during this time.

To be precise, they weren't looking for Bruce Wayne or Batman; they were looking for the President of the United States.

Thus, the email Bruce sent to Carol—or rather, to the entire United States—was a letter of resignation.

With the country now largely at peace, Bruce knew he couldn't stay in office for long, nor did he want to.

He chose to resign voluntarily and endorsed Carol Danvers as the acting President and the next presidential candidate.

To Captain America, Bruce's decision was perfectly logical.

Even if Captain America himself had won the last election, he would have resigned under similar circumstances.

Steve Rogers was just a soldier.

And Batman was merely a vigilante of the night.

Carol stared at the email and recommendation letter, unsure of what expression to wear.

If not for an old classmate persuading her to return as Chief of Staff, she wouldn't have stepped back into American politics at all.

She had already seen firsthand the brutal power struggles within S.H.I.E.L.D. and understood that the political vortex of the United States was not something an ordinary person could navigate.

Yet, despite her frustration, a spark of excitement flickered in her eyes.

Because this time, she had a real shot at reaching the highest office in the nation.

Carol took a deep breath, forcing herself to stay calm.

She knew that compared to other presidential candidates, she lacked experience.

Despite her leadership during the country's internal turmoil and her many achievements, those politicians had once managed to impeach a sitting president in such dire circumstances.

So, what was stopping them from doing the same to her now, especially given her past controversies?

She considered holding onto the resignation letter for a few days to buy herself some time, but if anything went wrong during that period, the situation would spiral out of control.

So instead, she immediately released Bruce's resignation letter to all news media outlets, making it known to the entire country that the man in the bat suit was no longer the President of the United States.

At the same time, she officially assumed the role of acting President.

Bruce's resignation came just as the rebellion had ended, but no one dared to test the strength of the Ultimate Alliance at this moment.

Meanwhile, in the Batcave, Bruce had already put on a specially designed wristband.

He understood that forcefully opening an interdimensional portal using a collider might cause the other universe to reject him, so he created the wristband to maintain basic bodily stability in that reality.

As for finding Jessica, it wasn't a difficult task for Bruce.

After all, Jessica was essentially a clone of this universe's Peter Parker.

Bruce remembered from the memories of that young boy—most Spider-People were named Peter Parker.

He wasn't looking for Jessica specifically, but rather a multitude of Peter Parkers. As long as he found enough Spider-People, Jessica would inevitably appear before him.

He needed to find Spider-People—a whole lot of them.

As the symbiote suit covered Bruce's entire body, he activated the collider before him.

Kingpin's collider was meant to bring his family from another universe to this one.

Bruce's collider, however, was built to send himself to another universe.

Buzzz~~~

The collider roared to life.

Without hesitation, Batman stepped into the portal it created.

Meanwhile, on Earth-2099…

The Spider-People of the Ultimate Spider Army were drawn to the sudden flash of light.

"Hey, guys, we've got company," Shadow Spider said, looking toward the source of the fading light.

"Should we take them out?" Spider-Assassin immediately suggested killing the newcomers.

"No. They're on our side," Shadow Spider rejected the idea. He had already identified who these people were.

"How can you tell?" Spider-Assassin wasn't about to lower his guard against any potential threats.

"For starters, their suits," Shadow Spider pointed out.

As the light dimmed, another group of Spider-People appeared before them.

"Well, this just keeps getting weirder," said a classic red-and-blue-suited Spider-Man, crouching on a piece of machinery, unable to contain his surprise.

Spider-Ham, on the other hand, addressed the newcomers, who looked rather formidable. "Yes, yes, we come in peace. Listen up, because we don't have much time."

Before he could finish, Spider-Monkey cut him off.

"Holy crap! A talking pig?! This is insane!"

Spider-Ham fell silent, staring at Spider-Monkey. "Are you messing with me?"

Meanwhile, Shadow Spider crouched before Spider-Ham and extended a fist. "Secondly, I know this little guy."

"Heh, heh, being small doesn't mean I'm younger than you guys. We're all about the same age," Spider-Ham replied, slightly exasperated by Spider-Monkey but still happy to see a familiar face.

Spider-Ham then noticed Miles standing nearby. "Looks like you've really come into your own as a Spider-Man. This time, show us all those moves we never got to see before."

He patted Miles on the knee.

Miles scratched his head awkwardly but said nothing.

"Boss! You need to see this," called Ashley Barton, the Spider-Girl from Earth-807128.

"This is ridiculous—I'm in the middle of an important experiment! What the hell have you idiots done now?!"

From his lab emerged the black-and-red-clad Ultimate Spider-Man, wiping his hands clean.

The classic red-and-blue Spider-Man stared in shock.

"No. No way—"

He couldn't believe it.

Standing before him was Doctor Octopus—the Ultimate Spider-Man!

He was completely bewildered.

Was this Ultimate Spider-Man from another dimension or something else entirely?

"More Spider-People from other worlds," Ultimate Spider-Man remarked coldly, his tone as condescending as ever. He had never been particularly fond of other Spider-People.

"It's obvious you're here to join the Ultimate Spider Army, but you've arrived too soon. You're going to ruin everything!" Ultimate Spider-Man's irritation was evident.

And indeed, their sudden arrival had completely disrupted his plans.

An older Spider-Man from Earth-4 furrowed his brow as he scanned Ultimate Spider-Man.

"That's odd. My scanner says he's from 616."

The black-haired Spider-Woman standing behind him spoke up. "What? Like me?"

The older Spider-Man's expression changed drastically upon hearing this.

He was angry.

"Silk?! I told you not to follow me!"

Silk simply shrugged, saying nothing.

Meanwhile, Jessica Drew, the Spider-Woman of Earth-616, eyed Ultimate Spider-Man in confusion. "Wait, why is he here?"

"A clone?" asked Scarlet Spider, Kaine Parker, growing visibly agitated.

Ever since learning that he was a clone of Peter Parker, Scarlet Spider had developed a keen sensitivity toward other clones.

Just as he once mistakenly assumed Earth-65's Spider-Woman, Gwen Stacy, was a clone, only to later realize that Ben Reilly was the real clone.

So, it was no surprise he jumped to conclusions about Ultimate Spider-Man as well.

Peter Parker offered some clarification. "No. He's from the past. I remember him getting thrown out of time once—he must've been sent to this future."

At that moment, Peter noticed Spider-Man 2099 looking outside.

"Oh, crap!"

Clearly, whatever Spider-Man 2099 saw had shocked him.

Curious, Peter moved to his side.

"Miguel?"

"This isn't just any ordinary future. It's 2099! This is my time, my home."

Spider-Man 2099 was clearly shaken by the revelation.

"Miguel, please, now's not the time. We need to focus on dealing with the Inheritors right now!"

Peter Parker tried to get Spider-Man 2099 to focus on their ongoing battle.

However, the British Spider-Man from Earth-833 stopped them.

"Hurry up, everyone. We don't have much time. You all need to get to our safe zone before—"

Unfortunately, someone didn't want him to finish that sentence.

Ultimate Spider-Man stepped in front of British Spider-Man, pointed a finger at his face, and snapped:

"No! You British idiot! Shut up."

"And all of you brainless fools as well!"

Perhaps Ultimate Spider-Man realized that singling out British Spider-Man was unfair, so he turned his verbal assault toward all the other Spider-People who had just arrived.

"Before you all barged in, everything was under my control!"

He pulled out a small device.

"I've been studying these Inheritors for months! I assembled my army! I fought them! And I was going to win! See this? This is a stealth device I created. It masks our 'scent' from them."

"But it has its limits. Take Kaine, for example. His readings are abnormally high. Someone explain that to me!"

The Scarlet Spider looked confused.

"Back off! I don't know why—"

This time, the Elder Spider-Man provided an explanation to Ultimate Spider-Man.

"He is 'Other.' He may be a unique existence in any dimension."

"And then there's this girl, the one with the dangerously high readings."

Ultimate Spider-Man immediately pointed the device at Silk.

If the readings on Kaine were abnormally high, then the moment he aimed it at Silk, the device's readings went completely off the charts.

"Her… uh… levels have shattered all records."

"That's Silk. She's 'The Bride.' A special Totem—"

The Elder Spider-Man tried to explain what a Totem was, but Ultimate Spider-Man had no interest in his words.

To him, superstition had no place in science.

"Totem?! Spare me your mystical nonsense, old man. I'm talking about science. Our unique signatures have gathered in one place—too many of us, especially those two. It won't be long before the Inheritors—"

Before Ultimate Spider-Man could finish his sentence, two portals suddenly opened near them.

From the golden portal, a towering man in medieval royal attire burst out.

"Well, well, look at what we have here! Oh, Weaver! You have truly outdone yourself this time—so many Spiders! A feast worthy of the name!"

It was obvious that the newcomer was one of the Inheritors.

"Oh my God, look at this guy! He looks like ten Morluns combined!"

Peter Parker marveled at the sheer size and overwhelming power radiating from the Inheritor.

But Ultimate Spider-Man had no time for admiration. He immediately assumed an attack stance.

"You idiots! In any other situation, this would have been a disaster, but you're lucky—because I'm here!"

Clearly, Ultimate Spider-Man was far more confident than the other Spider-People.

"Ultimate Spider-Army, as I trained you—NOW—"

"ATTACK!"

At his command, the Ultimate Spider-Army sprang into action, following his battle plan to the letter, charging straight at the Inheritor.

"Ranged units, open fire!"

Ultimate Spider-Man treated the other Spider-People in his army as soldiers under his command. Following his orders, Spider-Assassin, Mecha-Spider, and Shadow-Spider unleashed a barrage of attacks on the burly Inheritor.

Unfortunately, their assault had no effect.

While most of the Spiders kept their eyes on the Inheritor, only one person noticed something else—the other, far less conspicuous portal.

Jessica from Earth-1610 stared at it. Something about its aura and scent felt eerily familiar.

"Looks like I found the right place."

The moment Batman stepped out of the portal, it felt as if the entire battlefield had frozen in time.

Jessica could hardly believe her eyes—Bruce had actually found them.

Bruce, however, wasn't looking at her. His gaze was locked onto the massive figure being surrounded by the Spiders.

"BOOM!"

The Ultimate Spider-Army's efforts had done nothing to slow the Inheritor down. Instead, he grabbed three Spider-People, flung them through the air, and smashed them through a wall.

"Enough with the toys! I'm hungry—bring me a real Totem!"

He grabbed Mecha-Spider from Earth-2818.

"ZZZZT!"

Sparks of yellow energy flickered over Mecha-Spider's body.

But they weren't mechanical malfunctions—these sparks had the same glow as the portals the Inheritors used to arrive.

It was clear that Mecha-Spider was about to meet his end.

"The Cyborg is down!"

Spider-Punk shouted to the others.

Just then, a black projectile embedded itself into the Inheritor's wrist.

Even though the Inheritor had long since developed resistance to pain, the sudden attack made him loosen his grip on Mecha-Spider.

Spider-Girl, Mayday Parker from Earth-982, saw her chance and rushed toward the Inheritor—alongside her was the Scarlet Spider.

"Daemos! I've been waiting for this moment!"

But it wasn't just Mayday who had been waiting for this. The Scarlet Spider had, too.

"Oh yeah? Get in line!"

His hands shifted, forming razor-sharp stingers.

But Daemos didn't care. He grinned in exhilaration, glancing at the Spider-People around him.

"The Other! And the Orphan Girl!"

"Oh, this is magnificent! Yes, yes! Just like that, Spiders! Make me work for my meal!"

Daemos was clearly enjoying the thrill of battle.

For him, the hunt was no fun if his prey didn't fight back.

Now, Silk finally understood why the other Spider-People hadn't wanted her to come.

"This is all my fault. I shouldn't have come."

The Elder Spider-Man didn't bother comforting her. Instead, he bluntly stated:

"Correct. You should never have left your safe zone."

"You—what—?"

Silk was momentarily at a loss for words. In her eyes, this old man was unbelievably callous.

Even Ultimate Spider-Man sneered.

"Wow, you sure have a way with words."

"But if you all don't mind, we still have a battle to finish!"

"And I intend to win—with my unstoppable Ultimate Spider-Army!"

Ultimate Spider-Man leaped high into the air, four extra spider-legs extending from his back.

Daemos remained oblivious to the danger. He continued grinning as he taunted the Spiders.

"Foolish little Spiders, I will feast upon you—!"

Before he could finish, unbearable pain interrupted his speech.

"AAAAAGH!!!"

Ultimate Spider-Man's four extra limbs had pierced straight through Daemos' body.

Peter Parker and Miles Morales were stunned.

"You… you killed him!"

But the chaos on the battlefield didn't faze Jessica.

She walked over to Bruce, curiosity in her eyes.

She wanted to know—how had her boss managed to find them?

Yet, when she got close, she noticed Bruce's serious expression.

A bad feeling crept up inside her.

"What is it?"

She dropped her initial question and instead asked what was on his mind.

Bruce's answer was short but chilling.

"He died too easily."

(End of Chapter)

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