Overnight Riches

No wonder the Skull Gang Leader was so terrified; who could have guessed that the attacker was the legendary Hawkeye?

Hawkeye was a marksman in the truest sense. With his bow and arrows as his weapons, he was a terrifying killer and a genuine assassin, always ready to deliver a fatal blow to his enemies.

Having been in the Marvel world for so long, this was the first time he had seen a superhero with his own eyes.

It made him almost unable to resist coming out to greet Hawkeye, but he held back. He knew that, as he was now, he absolutely could not be discovered.

"Take him down!"

Under the captain's orders, the special forces soldiers launched a fierce offensive against Hawkeye, firing countless bullets in his direction.

"Whoosh!"

Just as Hawkeye landed, he loosed another arrow. His speed was simply too fast; by the time the soldiers reacted, another man had been shot through the throat.

The dense rain of bullets riddled the trees, sending leaves fluttering to the ground. Hawkeye dodged the gunfire like an agile leopard. He drew his bow and fired, three sharp arrows turning into three afterimages that pierced the throats of three special forces soldiers!

In the blink of an eye, nearly ten men had died under Hawkeye's arrows, leaving the remaining soldiers stunned.

Because in front of this master archer, they were nothing but living targets. No one could escape his gaze; staying here meant certain death!

"Retreat!" the captain shouted immediately. The remaining soldiers, no longer willing to fight, scrambled to flee.

How could Hawkeye let them escape so easily? He aimed at the soldier running in the lead and fired at his back.

"Whoosh!"

Another man fell, causing the soldiers to run even faster, and Hawkeye immediately gave chase.

Just as he passed a pile of fallen leaves nearby, he suddenly stopped. Sensing something was wrong, he took out the bow he had just put away.

He drew his bow, aimed an arrow at the pile of leaves, and said coldly, "Who's hiding there? Come out!"

William felt a jolt of shock. His eyes met Hawkeye's, and he realized with dread that he had truly been discovered.

Just as he hesitated over whether to crawl out from the leaves, Hawkeye suddenly fired.

The arrow was incredibly fast, reaching William in an instant and slamming into the pile of leaves right above his head, flying past him by a hair's breadth!

William covered his mouth with all his might to keep from screaming. His heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was about to jump out of his throat.

The silence around him was deathly; even the chirping of birds and insects in the forest seemed to have ceased.

After a moment, Hawkeye seemed to shake his head. If anyone had really been hiding there, that shot would have flushed them out.

It seemed he had been overly suspicious.

"Damn it, almost forgot the main task." Hawkeye muttered. Remembering the fleeing soldiers, he quickly stowed his bow and vanished into the night.

Only after Hawkeye was long gone did William, who had been hiding in the leaves, poke his head out. He gasped for air, his body trembling uncontrollably.

That was too close; he had nearly died.

Hawkeye's arrow had missed his head by less than a centimeter. If the angle had been off by even a fraction, he would have been headshot.

But if Hawkeye hadn't shown up, the special forces would have caught him sooner or later.

Yet, why was Hawkeye here? Could S.H.I.E.L.D. have been tracking the Skull Gang all along?

There was no time to think about that now. Staying in this forest was still dangerous, and he needed to leave immediately. He looked in the direction Hawkeye and the others had gone and ran in the opposite direction, praying he wouldn't run into them again.

"Finally alive, I'm home."

William lay on his bed, not wanting to move a muscle. It had been two hours since he returned to his rental in Brooklyn. He had run through the forest for a long time, then caught a taxi after exiting the woods, getting off far from his home.

The driver had been stealing glances at him throughout the ride—or rather, at the briefcase in his arms. It had made William nervous, fearing the driver might try to snatch it, but fortunately, the driver was just curious and had no ill intentions.

"William, you have successfully completed the main quest: The Skull Gang's Secret. Congratulations on receiving an experience reward; your level has increased to Level 2. Rewards received: Loot Box x1, Gold x700."

The main quest was complete, but even now, there were many things William didn't understand. The Skull Gang, the special forces, Hawkeye...

This series of events told him that the briefcase was no simple object. Thinking of this, he quickly opened it. The moment he did, William froze, and drool couldn't help but leak from the corner of his mouth.

"A dream, this must be a dream!"

William could only use that word to describe his current state of mind. The case was packed tightly with bundles of tied-up U.S. banknotes.

The bills were stacked layer upon layer, filling the entire case. Each bundle contained 100-dollar bills; there was a full hundred thousand dollars here!

William hurried over to lock the door and pull the curtains shut. He picked up a stack of cash and let out a silly, giddy laugh.

Ever since he transmigrated into this Marvel world, William had been plagued by money troubles.

His monthly salary was pitifully small. He had been so sick of eating frozen sandwiches that he could barely stomach them, and he couldn't even afford a second-hand bicycle, living on the brink of starvation every day.

To keep his boss from finding out his bike had been stolen, he had to take an advance on his salary to buy a used one, leaving him so broke he could barely afford his next meal.

But things were different now. This hundred thousand dollars made him rich overnight. He could buy a brand-new bike and eat steak every single night!

"You currently have two Loot Boxes. Would you like me to open them for you?" Athena asked.

"Open them." He should have waited until midnight to open them, but William, flush with his newfound wealth, felt bold. He believed he was blessed by the gods of luck today and would surely pull something legendary.

To the sound of familiar music, the Loot Boxes began to vibrate, and three streams of light shot out, appearing before him.

White... White... Blue...

"Wow, blue sky and white clouds!" William covered his face with both hands, unable to help but cry out. White and blue were the lowest tiers—the so-called "blue sky and white clouds."

He looked at the final Loot Box, unable to help but hesitate over whether to open it. After struggling for a moment, he clicked on the box; he refused to believe his luck would remain that abysmal forever.

White! White...

The first two rewards of the second box were still white. As the third reward was about to emerge, William had already given up; it seemed he couldn't escape the fate of "blue skies and white clouds." Just then, the third reward flew out—it was purple!

"Thank heavens." With curiosity, William opened the purple reward. It was a skill card.

"A skill card? What is this?"

Athena explained, "After opening an Overwatch System Loot Box, there is a certain chance to obtain heroes, skills, weapons, equipment, consumables, sprays, or skins. Consumables include many items, such as skill cards, Ultimate Energy Supplements, and Time Hourglasses, among others."

Hearing Athena's explanation, William picked up the skill card: Sombra: Hack.

If he remembered correctly, Hack was one of the abilities of the Overwatch hero Sombra.

In the game, this ability allowed Sombra to hack enemy heroes, preventing them from using abilities and ultimates; it could also hack health packs to speed up their cooldowns and prevent enemies from using them. He wondered what use this ability would have in the real world?

Hack: Sombra's ability can hack any network, computer, or electronic device.

Note: This skill card is a one-time consumable and can only be used once.

"This skill card can only be used once. Once you release the ability, the card will automatically disappear."

Athena continued to explain, "Skill cards are divided into purple and gold grades based on their level. When you obtain a gold skill card, you will have the chance to gain a permanent ability."

William nodded, roughly understanding the use of the skill cards. Not to mention the permanent ones, even the one-time-use cards had great potential. If he could pull the ultimate abilities of the heroes, that would be fantastic.

Of course, William knew that for someone as unlucky as him, that was basically impossible.

Overwatch: William
Level: 2
Gold: 1000
Energy: 4 points
Skills: Sprint
Items: Sombra Skill Card
Unlocked Heroes: 1

"I can hack anything, and anyone..."

Sombra's beautiful figure appeared before William's eyes. Her right hand danced in the void, weaving strands of purple light together to form virtual keys in mid-air.

The Hack ability could only be used once. William decided that unless it was an absolute last resort, he would not use this card!

One hundred thousand dollars—was it really that simple?