In a daze, Jimmy felt himself being lifted and then experienced a sudden sense of weightlessness before crashing into something—it stank terribly.
A figure dropped down beside the garbage bin where Jimmy had landed. The person swiftly cut the ropes binding Jimmy's waist, pulled off a gas mask that also functioned as a dust and infrared filter, and quickly carried Jimmy out into a dark alley.
In the faint light, one could see a skull emblem on the man's back…
From the rooftop, Erika narrowed her eyes as she watched the mysterious figure disappear with Jimmy into the alley, deep in thought.
"Splash—"
A bucket of cold water suddenly drenched Jimmy's head.
"Cough! Cough!" Jimmy choked and opened his eyes, blinking groggily as he looked around. The room felt vaguely familiar.
Just then, Jimmy heard footsteps and quickly turned his head to see a middle-aged, heavyset white man handing him a kettle. Jimmy gulped down two big swigs. Once his throat felt less raw, he finally looked up and rasped, "Frank… why am I here?"
Sitting across from him was none other than Frank, the arms dealer. Jimmy suddenly realized—this was Frank's hideout.
Frank spoke in a low voice, "He was the one who rescued you! I gotta say… you've got guts, barging into Kingpin's main stronghold all by yourself!"
"What!?" Jimmy froze, then looked utterly frustrated. He hadn't expected that building to actually be Kingpin's headquarters!
Seeing Jimmy's expression, Frank added softly, "You're strong, but still far from enough to take down Kingpin." Jimmy frowned at this. Kingpin's strength was indeed terrifying, and that cane of his was especially troublesome!
"That cane isn't just a fancy accessory," Frank continued, seeing Jimmy deep in thought. "It was specially forged in the East, at great expense. The shaft is made of Adamantium alloy. It has more than a dozen built-in mechanisms—it can shoot electricity, poison gas, explosives, concealed darts, and when close, it doubles as an electric baton. It even emits an anti-metal electromagnetic field, so metal bullets can't get near him at all."
"Damn…" Jimmy sucked in a sharp breath. No wonder Kingpin had clashed with so many superheroes and still survived!
After a moment of silence, Jimmy sighed and asked, "How can I beat him?"
Frank grinned, "Work with the Punisher."
Jimmy nodded heavily. Without his full strength back, he had no chance against Kingpin alone.
"Alright, let me lay it out for you," Frank said, taking a puff of his cigar and glancing at Jimmy, who now looked surprisingly humble. "First, lure the snake out of its hole—blow up two of Kingpin's drug factories first. Then, hit his last factory. By then, he'll be waiting for you with all his assassins."
"Hmm… sounds good, but I don't have any explosives," Jimmy said helplessly.
Frank burst out laughing. "Ha! I'll provide them for free!"
"…Fine." Jimmy sighed. He knew he was being used, but he was determined to deal with Kingpin one way or another!
"Excellent!" Frank nodded, then waddled over to the bed and pulled out a bag from underneath, tossing it to Jimmy. Jimmy frowned and opened it, finding three black bodysuits inside.
Seeing them, Jimmy froze. "How long was I unconscious?" he asked, frowning.
"Three days," Frank replied casually while rummaging under the bed again.
Jimmy fell silent for a moment. He pulled out his phone from his spatial ring and saw countless missed calls—Peter, Gwen, and several unknown numbers. Most of all, there were dozens from Karen.
Staring at Karen's name, Jimmy stayed silent for a long while before finally tossing the phone back into his spatial ring.
His mission here was technically complete. He just needed to quietly wait out the last week before he could return. There was no need to get involved with Kingpin anymore.
But… Jimmy clenched his fist. He had come all the way to this colorful world—how could he leave without leaving behind a legend?
"Frank, I'm hungry," Jimmy muttered.
Frank laughed. "Go to the kitchen; there's food there!" he said while fiddling with a rocket launcher he had pulled out from under the bed.
Jimmy shrugged. Though his strength still hadn't fully recovered and was stuck around 100, his appetite wasn't affected at all. He felt like he could eat an entire cow!
After eating his fill in the kitchen, Jimmy returned to find Frank sitting solemnly among a pile of weapons.
"What's up?" Jimmy asked, sitting down beside him.
"These are for you," Frank said, turning his head slightly awkwardly. "They're older models, but still pack a punch." What Frank didn't mention was that these weapons hadn't been maintained for ages, so he wasn't even sure if they'd work without exploding…
"Oh! So many!" Jimmy's eyes lit up as he picked up a grenade launcher and started playing with it excitedly.
Frank nodded. "I heard you can store items away and summon them instantly," he commented.
"Yeah." Jimmy nodded. In an instant, the grenade launcher in his hands vanished, then reappeared.
"Good! Take those explosives too," Frank said, pointing behind Jimmy.
Jimmy turned around to see three large backpacks.
"They're remote-controlled. I've already set them up. Just take the explosives from the bags and attach them to the big oil tanks marked 'No Fire'—that'll do," Frank explained.
"…You really trust me that much?" Jimmy asked quietly after a pause.
Frank laughed. "Because you're a lot like me!"
"Like you?" Jimmy looked puzzled.
"Yeah. And you know it—I'm actually his partner," Frank nodded.
"Oh!" Jimmy had guessed this long ago.
"And he never misjudges people," Frank added with a grin.
"Huh?" Jimmy looked even more confused.
"Never mind." Frank shook his head, tossing an earpiece to Jimmy.
"This will guide you," Frank explained.
"It's late—time to go!" Jimmy said softly. Then he suddenly froze, rushed into the bathroom, and moments later emerged wearing a black Spider-Man suit without the mask.
Looking at the heavy weapons and explosives, Jimmy sighed and began storing everything in his spatial ring. For the first time, he realized his ring was completely full.