Secret Histories

Kryptonian Military Training Center—the destination Aeo had come here for.

"Look who it is."

A hearty voice rang out, making Aeo's face twitch as he surveyed the training and development grounds for the Empire's warriors. His deadbeat father in this life, Dru Zod, the Fortier Empire Supreme Military Leader, appeared before him, looking delighted.

"My son! The Empire's next Military Leader, who awakened his Warrior Talent at just five years old!" His deadbeat dad covered Aeo's little head with his big hand and laughed heartily. "You make me so proud, my son."

Aeo's face twitched even harder.

Awakening one's talent was the manifestation of the effects of Imperial Gene Modulation. For example, a young Fortier who inherited Warrior DNA was no different from anyone else at first. But as the children of warriors grew up, their reflexes, thinking, and other traits gradually became sharper and more combative.

That was the strength of Kryptonian Gene Modulation: it ensured that every Fortier was an elite, whether in combat or in everyday life.

The stage when these changes appeared was what they called Talent Awakening. Once someone's talent manifested, the Empire naturally devoted more resources to that citizen.

However, the age at which this happened varied according to each individual. The earlier someone's talent awakened, the greater their potential. That held true whether in some fantasy novel's character setup or in the real Kryptonian world.

Aeo hadn't paid much attention to it before. Then, some time ago, his movements suddenly grew nimble. If he wasn't careful, he could crush or smash cups, tables, and all sorts of things.

He also excelled in military class—though some of that could be attributed to his experience from his previous life. As a result, the Imperial Military immediately took notice of him. After all, Aeo was being raised to become the Empire's next leader. On that point, Aeo had begun to sense a potential crisis in Kryptonian society: a general's son was born to be a general, and an Elder's son was born to be an Elder. That was profoundly unfair to lower-class Kryptonians, even if the descendants of leaders raised through Gene Modulation were all diligent in their duties.

Although Gene Modulation made the Fortier loyal and obedient, Aeo sensed that their society lacked a certain vitality, a drive to flourish. It felt lifeless.

Back to the present.

Faced with Zod's self-congratulatory praise, Aeo felt helpless.

"Father!"

He calmly dodged Zod's hand and said coolly, "As the Empire's Supreme Military Leader, don't you have too much free time? Aren't there a hundred Imperial planets across the Endless Star Sea with important matters that need your attention? Is it really wise to spend all day wandering around the homeworld?"

Dru Zod laughed heartily, completely unfazed. Ignoring Aeo's struggles, he scooped him up and settled him on his broad, powerful shoulders, then cheerfully carried him farther inside.

"It's fine. As long as the Death Titan doesn't attack our planets, no other cosmic civilization can inflict irreparable losses on us..."

And just like that, he casually revealed an earth-shattering secret.

Aeo didn't react at first. It wasn't until the familiar name had run through his mind that he suddenly jolted. "You mean Thanos?"

Zod's expression finally changed, just slightly. He looked at Aeo with confusion, but no hint of anger.

"Where did you hear that name?"

Only then did Aeo realize he'd let something slip. Over the past five years, aside from learning the Kryptonians' language, history, culture, and other essential subjects, he hadn't shown much else that was unusual. A clever, precocious five-year-old was already conspicuous enough; if he acted as though he knew everything, even an idiot would get suspicious.

So, faced with Zod's question, Aeo did his best to explain. "Uh, a few days ago, I got curious and used Eiffel to look up some of the powerful beings in the universe..."

Eiffel was one of the benefits the Empire had granted Aeo after his Talent Awakening: a Smart Personal Terminal.

Zod glanced at the spherical drone hovering silently behind Aeo. That was Aeo's Smart Terminal—basically, a phone.

"..."

Without an order, Eiffel wouldn't take it upon itself to expose its owner's lie. It was a supercomputer much like Tony Stark's Smart Butler. Not only did it possess a powerful AI, but the seemingly inky-black liquid coating its exterior could emit blinding light, deliver electric shocks, and even transform into anything you wanted. As long as it was black, of course.

When necessary, it could become as hard as diamond to better protect itself. In that respect, Eiffel was far more advanced than J.A.R.V.I.S.

Even so, the Fortier weren't worried that their personal terminals might develop into AI Life. Given that they used Gene Modulation to ensure the survival and development of their own species, how could they possibly neglect safeguards against AI Life? So Aeo's old worry—that robots might replace the Fortier and rule Krypton—could never come true...

Seeing that Eiffel didn't deny it, Zod accepted that Aeo had learned of the Death Titan out of curiosity. In a more serious tone than ever, he said, "Since you already know, I won't hide it from you. The Death Titan is a powerful, naturally cold-hearted being. He has immense strength, and he treats every other species in the multiverse with utter indifference. He's ruthless and will stop at nothing, not caring how many people die, so long as he achieves his goal..."

Aeo listened without expression while his mind raced, weighing the implications.

So this wasn't just the DC universe—it was a chaotic mash-up of Marvel and DC?

Meanwhile, General Zod suddenly grinned as he spoke.

"But!"

He patted Aeo's little head and reassured him with a smile. "Though he's dangerous, the Empire and the Death Titan haven't had any major conflicts in centuries, so there's no need to worry!"

Aeo looked calm, but inwardly he scoffed. That was a world-ending demon king, one who could wipe out half the universe's living beings with a snap of his fingers. Even so-called gods were no match for him. With all six Infinity Stones in hand, Thanos was a supreme demon king who could kill gods and Buddhas alike...

Suddenly, Aeo realized what he'd overlooked!

Damn it, if this was a real-world mash-up of DC and Marvel, didn't that mean the Avengers, Captain America, Iron Man, Batman, Green Lantern, and all those people and things from the movies and comics of his previous life might exist too?

And then there were the Tesseract, the Mind Stone, the Aether, the Living Tribunal, Galactus...

At that moment, Aeo finally couldn't hold it in anymore. He was crying rivers on the inside.

Transmigration was so dangerous. I want to go home!