Chapter 4:

{You have reached level 2!}

{All stats +5! Please select a stat to add another 5 points to!}

I put the extra five points in intelligence this time so I'd have more Mana for my magic revolver. It used Five Mana per shot, so now I could shoot it 90 times in one go.

Valerie Tepes (Dhampir Princess)

Class: Gunslinger (8/100)

Sacred Gear: Sephiroth Graal

Lv = 1 (0/400 XP)

Health = 450/450 (Constitution x 10 + Lv x 10)

Health Regeneration = (Constitution Per Minute)

Mana = 450 (Intelligence x 10 + Lv x 10)

Mana Regeneration = (Wisdom x 10 Per Minute)

Stats:

Constitution = 25

Strength = 20

Dexterity = 20

Intelligence = 25

Wisdom = 20

Charisma = 40

Perks:

Gamer's Mind

Gamer's body

Observe

Commanding Voice

Skills: Blades 1, Guns 1

I looked down at the outfit I was wearing and I grimaced. I was covered almost head to toe in blood. I looked like a freaking serial killer!

…Which I may or may not be at this point. And now I remembered that I still had to go to school today! All I wanted to do was lie down and take a nap but the sun was already starting to rise. I needed to get out of the bloody clothes I was wearing and rinse off. I'm glad I remembered to grab all the spare clothing from where I woke up.

With my new enhanced strength, I was able to pick T-Bone's body up off the street and I dragged him towards a nearby alley. I nonchalantly opened a dumpster and tossed him inside. With that handled, I flapped MY new wings and took off back into the air. Being able to fly was absolutely amazing! I flew back towards the scene of the crime…

The gang building had working electricity, so I was assuming it also had working water. I couldn't go to school covered in blood after all. I slipped back in through the fire escape window. I kicked in the doors of one of the random apartments and made my way towards the bathroom. I let out a sigh of relief when I turned a rusty shower knob and water started pouring out. It wasn't hot water, but I would take what I could get at this point. The cold water running over my naked body felt nice after I had exerted myself so much.

Once all the blood was completely rinsed off me, I put on a new outfit and decided to leave this building for good. I'm sure someone would discover it in the future and be absolutely horrified at all the bodies they would find. That wasn't my problem anymore though.

"This is going to be annoying." I muttered to myself. I was thinking that I could simply fly to school–wherever it actually was. Unfortunately, the sun was now high in the sky. A girl flying through the city with giant bat wings would stand out quite a bit. There was no need for me to go breaking the Statue of Secrecy right now.

I was going to have to walk. With a sigh of irritation, I started walking towards the city.

I made it a couple of blocks when I heard the sound of a car pulling up behind me. I expected them to keep on driving by, but to my surprise the car slowed to a crawl.

"Girl! What in the hell are you doing walking out here? Do you want to get robbed and murdered!? This is not a safe area!" A woman's voice yelled at me.

I was well aware this was not a safe area. However, it was a lot safer now than it was a couple hours ago…

[Good job clearing out that entire place, Valerie.]

I turned around to see who was driving the car. It was a pretty pale woman with black hair who looked to be in her mid twenties. She had been initially frowning at me. When I turned around and she saw my face, that frown quickly disappeared though. My eyes locked on her neck and I could see her gulp at my appearance.

She had a sudden blush on her cheeks, and I thought it was pretty cute to be honest. I wondered what a cute girl who didn't look any tougher than me was doing out here as well?

[Try using your Observe skill on her.]

{Jessica Jones - Level: ?

Thoughts about you: She is confused why an extremely pretty girl like you is walking around such a dangerous area on your own. She wants to help you so you don't get hurt…like she was long ago.}

It took a second for my brain to compute the information I just read. When it did…

'Jessica Jones!?' I thought in shock! 'HOLY SHIT! I'M IN MARVEL TOO NOW!? What the hell, system? You should have told me that!' Now I knew where I recognized the name Stark and Richard from, that the gang members were talking about earlier. I couldn't even see Jessica's level either. I figured Jessica must be a lot stronger than my current self.

[I knew I was forgetting something…]

The System was snickering at me in my head so I knew it absolutely did not forget.

"Are you going to say something? Are you alright? What are you doing out here in this area?" Jessica asked me in a much kinder tone than when she was scolding me before.

"Sorry. I was trying to think of what to say, but you wouldn't believe me if I told you why I was out here. If I give you $100 can you drive me to Midtown High?" I asked her randomly.

She was looking skeptical, but as soon as I mentioned money Jessica's eyes seemed to light up! She let out a polite cough and unlocked her car doors. "It's none of my business what a pretty girl like you is doing out here anyway. Hop in and I'll be happy to give you a ride. I know where Midtown High is. I went there myself a few years ago." She said.

I walked around the side of her car and got in. Jessica started driving again once I closed the door! "Thanks for stopping. I'm Valerie Tepes." I introduced myself.

"I'm Jessica Jones, and you're damn lucky that I stopped." As we drove down the road Jessica pointed towards the sides of the street.

I could see three heavily tattooed gang members of some kind loitering around. They were all glaring at us in hatred as Jessica drove by. Were those members of T-Bones gang? Shit, it looks like I didn't get all of them when I raided the building. They were going to be pissed when they found all their friends' bodies later.

"I'm sure those fine gentlemen wouldn't have done anything untoward for such a beauty like myself." I told Jessica as I glanced at them. Even if they tried, I had a magic gun now and I would just shoot them all.

Jessica snorted. "Those are T-bone's men. He's some new wannabe gangster that just rolled into Hell's Kitchen. Have you noticed that these past three streets are completely deserted? T-bone drove everyone away from this part of the Kitchen so he could run his drug business here." She spat out.

"And the police just let him?" I asked her. I had wondered why the streets have been so completely empty surrounding the area I woke up in. That wasn't normal, there should have at least been homeless people occupying most of those buildings.

Jessica scoffed. "They don't give a shit what happens in Hell's Kitchen. They've pretty much written off the area and don't even respond to 911 calls anymore. Don't come back here again." She told me sternly.

"I won't." I lied directly to her. I'd probably be back in a couple days to finish off the remnants of the Gang. 'Will I get any extra rewards for completely finishing them off?' I asked the System in my head.

[No, without their leader they'll end up being swallowed up by another gang. If you want more XP you can get it by doing things like Completing Quests. Defeating Enemies. Healing People. Crafting things. Some Gamer's even prefer Cooking to level up.]

That was good to know, and it gave me somewhere to start my level grind that didn't involve murdering a bunch of gangsters and criminals. Not that that hadn't been surprisingly cathartic after I got over the fear of dying.

I had the Sephiroth Graal in a lot more Mana now. I wondered how much XP I could get for healing sick people?

"So what were you doing out here?" I asked Jessica while we drove. We had officially made it into the city at this point. The streets became a lot more crowded and a lot cleaner.

"I'm a private detective," Jessica said. "I was looking for a girl who went missing near where I found you. I didn't find her…" She said bitterly.

Was she out there last night as well? I'm glad she didn't hear all the shouting and gunshots and came stumbling upon me… That would have turned out badly.

Jessica seemed touchy about that topic, and I decided not to push further for my own sake as well. Hell's Kitchen was in a pretty bad spot right now, so I'm assuming that girl didn't have the most pleasant of endings.

I figured we needed a change of topic, and I grinned when I thought of one. "So Jessica, are you single?" I asked her bluntly.

Jessica sputtered at the suddenness of my question, and her car swerved for a second. I giggled when other drivers angrily honked at us!

"The hell, girl!? You just came right out and asked that?" She asked me while gripping her steering wheel tightly. I could see her finger suddenly leaving indents in from her super strength.

I shrugged. "You're good looking and were kind enough to stop for me. I can't help but be a bit interested in you." I said to Jessica with a smile.

Jessica's cheeks were still red and she let out a scoff that sounded forced. "A-aren't you still in High School?" She asked me.

"I'm 18." I said. "I'm just transferring in for the last few months anyway."

"What about college?" Jessica asked me.

"I'll go… eventually, but for now I have other plans." I replied.

Jessica hesitantly reached into her pocket and pulled out a small business card. "My number is on the back." She mumbled with her eyes solely on the road.

I took the card and pocketed it with a grin. I was in this world less than a day so far, and I already had a potential date with a hot Superheroine! I was making some great progress!

[I think you just set a record there among all the other new Gamers…]

She was hot and single. I was hot and single… for now. Why shouldn't I ask her out?

[You're the Gamer. You do you…]

After that, we drove in silence through the city for about 20 minutes. Jessica was a bit embarrassed, and I didn't want to push her too far and have her rescind. I also had some other things on my mind. What was I supposed to do now? I was a gamer and my future was limitless. Where did I go from here?

[You'll figure it out eventually…]

…

Finally, we pulled up in front of Midtown High. I could see a bunch of students waiting around outside for the school day to start. I let out a small sigh of irritation knowing this was going to be my life for the next couple months at least.

"Thank you for stopping and driving me here, Jessica. Anyone else would have just kept on driving and ignored me on the side of the road." I told her with a smile.

Jessica smiled back at me. "No problem, Valerie. Now pay up!" She said with a grin and held out her hand. I laughed and handed her a $100 bill. She looked surprised that I had actually paid her. She quickly slipped the money into her pocket in case I decided to take it back. I obviously would not have done that.

"I'll call you…" I said as I handed Jessica the money that was promised and stepped out of her car. "The two of us can have lots of fun the next time we meet~.."

With a red face, Jessica drove off a second later without saying goodbye. I giggled at that. She had super strength and kicked ass on a daily basis, but she was acting shy around a pretty face.

[A supernaturally pretty face that puts pretty much every single supermodel in the world to shame.]

'Am I going to get even more beautiful the more my Charisma raises from now on?' I asked.

[No, your looks are pretty much at the peak of what's physically possible. Instead, higher Charisma will draw more people towards you and give them more favorable impressions of you. It has other benefits too that you will discover in the future.]

I started making my way towards the main school building. I figured that I would need to pick up a schedule or something.

[Don't worry! I signed you up for all the hardest classes! You better raise your Intelligence Stat soon!]

"..."

I was hoping the System was joking about that, but judging by its laughter, I didn't think that was the case.

"Hi there, can you tell me where the administration office is?"

"Y-you're talking to me!? It's um…uh…that's…uhhhhhh."

I tried to ask a nerdy looking boy standing by his locker for directions, but he froze up upon seeing my face. My 40 Charisma was too much for his hormonal teenage brain to handle. I sighed and decided to find it for myself. As I walked down the hall, I could hear laughter behind me as some other boys made fun of the one who failed to even answer me.

Thankfully there were signs and it wasn't that hard to find. I entered the administration office and saw an older heavy-set woman digging through a file cabinet in the back. "Hello, mam. I'm Valerie Tepes. Here to pick up my schedule." I called out to get her attention.

"It's in the basket there!" The woman didn't even turn around and just made a shooing motion with her hand.

I found what she was talking about easily enough. There were a few files with different students' names on them. I found my own and opened it up. My schedule was inside along with a map of the school that was easy to follow. I headed towards my first class of the day.

It was AP Calculus. I hadn't even taken regular Calculus in my last life… I was screwed. The school year was already halfway over!

'Thanks, System!' I thought sarcastically.

[You're welcome!]

The bell had rung while I was grabbing my schedule, so the hallways were devoid of any other students. I followed the map towards my first class of the day. The school was pretty big, so it took me around five minutes to find the classroom.

On the other side of the door, I could hear the teacher giving a lecture. I opened the door and stepped inside. The teacher stopped talking and turned towards me with a scowl on his face because I interrupted his lecture.

The second he saw me, though, his attitude immediately changed.

Being supernaturally beautiful really has its benefits…

His scowl slipped off his face, and he sputtered. "Er-um…Hello. And who might you be?" He asked.

"Hi. I'm a new student. I'm Valerie Tepes. It's nice to meet you all." I introduced myself to him and all the students gaping at me.

"God damn! That's the hottest girl I've ever seen in my whole life! She makes all the other girls in this class look plain!" One boy yelled loudly from the back of the classroom. A couple of the girls in the room turned and glared at him. He shrunk back in his seat.

"Thank you!" I replied honestly. I was still getting used to my new looks and appreciated the compliment.

I turned back towards the teacher. The man literally gulped. "Sorry for interrupting your important lecture." I said to him.

"N-no problem, Miss Tepes. Feel free to speak up anytime you have a question!" He said to me. He turned back to his students who were all also staring at me. "Does anyone have any questions for Miss Tepes?" The teacher asked the class.

Tons of hands immediately shot into the air, and I giggled.

One overweight student had even pulled out a cell phone and started recording.

Wait…

'Cell phone!? The hell, System? I thought you said we were in the past and technology like this didn't exist yet?' Now that I thought about it, I remembered one of the gang members mentioning a cell phone as well.

[I guess I forgot to account for all the geniuses of this universe. It seems that technology here is at least 30 years ahead of its time. Maybe more.]

I supposed that was the only explanation.

A beautiful girl with flaming red hair and bright green eyes raised her hand. "Your eyes are so pretty? Are they natural or are you wearing contacts?"

"They're natural. I've always had red eyes," I replied. I was thankful that my partially slitted eyes were only noticeable from very close up.

"What brands of makeup are you wearing!? You look amazing!" A blond girl next to the redhead asked.

"…I'm not wearing any makeup right now." I said.

All the girls in the class blanched at me.

"Naturally beautiful and good at math! She's an angel!" The boy who was recording with his phone exclaimed.

"Oh, I'm not actually all that good at math. I was actually going to inquire about tutoring. I'm joining halfway into the school year, after all." I admitted. Immediately after I said that, a bunch of boys in the class started shouting out loudly.

"I'll tutor you!"

"No, I will!"

"Pick me! I'll tutor you in whatever you want! All night long!"

The teacher clapped loudly to get everyone's attention and stop the pandemonium that had just gone off in the classroom.

He shut down all the thirsty boys vying for my attention. "Half of you idiots are barely passing my class as it is! None of you are tutoring anybody. Miss Tepes can be tutored by Miss Grey, Miss Stacy, or the Parker siblings. You four are my best students." the teacher declared.

I felt like having four students assigned to tutor me was a bit much, but I didn't complain after he mentioned their names.

Miss Grey? Miss Stacy? The Parker…siblings? 'What were the odds that these four are all main characters of Marvel?' I wondered.

[Pretty high odds considering you're the Gamer. Main characters of whatever universe you're in will naturally flock to you.]

I suspected as much.

"I have a question for the new girl!" One boy called out with an aggressive tone. He was wearing a letterman jacket declaring he was on the Varsity Football team. He was also glaring at me for some reason…

The teacher facepalmed and sighed next to me. I felt like that was a bad sign. Clearly, this guy was the class troublemaker.

"Yes, Flash? What would you like to ask Miss Tepes? Keep it short because we still have class after all," the teacher asked the guy.

Flash scowled, then pointed his finger at me. "I'll keep it short alright! Are you a mutant freak!?" He asked me. He spat out the words "mutant freak" with pure hatred in his voice.

Students all over the room also gasped at his question.

I had to admit that I was completely taken aback.

"A mutant freak?" I repeated.

"That's right! You're impossibly beautiful, and your red eyes aren't natural! You've got to be some kind of mutant freak! Your kind isn't welcome here! Get the hell out of my school!" He spat out hatefully at me!

XXX