I'm the Demon King in Marvel

Chapter 166: Hell Monsters Are Not Covered by Accident Insurance
Ordinary people don’t care what the big shots think or do. The residents who managed to escape from Houston only care about whether they and their families can maintain their lives.

Elman Watt is an engineer at a Houston refinery. Although everyone usually calls themselves "engineers", they know their own business and he is just a technician who is slightly higher than the bottom-level workers.

Working hard to survive in the fourth largest city in the United States, earning a salary slightly higher than the average wage.

Like most middle-class Americans, Elman is burdened with various loans, including student loans for college, mortgages, car loans, credit cards...

The monthly collection bills were like shackles that bound him tightly, making it difficult for him to breathe.

As soon as I receive my salary, it will be transferred to the bank, and it feels like I am working for the bank every month.

The once passionate young man was eventually worn down by time and life. He dared not confront his boss and became submissive. He worked overtime and diligently, fearing that his boss would take the opportunity to fire him.

Without his monthly income, Elman would be strangled by the chains of loans.

If he cannot quickly find a job that can pay off his monthly loan, the bank will take back everything he has, declare him socially dead, and he will become a homeless person with nothing.

Many times, Elman felt that he was no different from the slaves in ancient times. The only progress might be that the chain around his neck had changed from visible to invisible.

"Honey, it's been three days. If I can't go back to work, I'm afraid my income this month won't be enough to repay the loan," said his wife Bailey, worriedly.

The company will definitely not pay for these days of absenteeism and may even take the opportunity to lay off employees.

Bailey is also a college student. Like her husband Alman, she has average grades and cannot get a scholarship. In order to complete her studies, she has to take out a high amount of student loans.

This is the norm for young Americans. Some even take 20 to 30 years to repay their student loans.

Although they are a dual-income family, they have an average income and live very hard every month. They don’t even have children, and are forced to wait a few more years until the pressure of repaying the loan is less before considering the issue of having children.

Texas authorities have set up several temporary shelters outside Houston. The camp in the west is the largest and has the most people because the state capital Austin is located in the northwest.

Although black skeletons are still wreaking havoc in the area around Austin, at least the city has been saved, unlike Houston, which is so unlucky.

A large number of Houston residents gathered in the camp. In order to escape, they basically did not carry any supplies and could only survive on relief.

"I'll go out and ask when I can go back." Elman put on his coat that hadn't been washed for several days and walked out of the large tent.

Three days have passed, but the refugee camps outside Houston still only have makeshift disaster relief tents, with no more sturdy prefabricated houses to be seen.

Texas authorities believe the refugees will return soon and the money will not be wasted.

The camp is surrounded by high walls, and the authorities block the refugees from looking at the city on the grounds of "protecting the safety of citizens."

The massive bombing did not cause much smoke, and even though there were constant explosions in the previous two days, the residents who took refuge did not think much about it. After all, they thought the army was entering the city to fight monsters, and it was normal to hear explosions.

"Don't worry, everyone. The city is currently undergoing its final cleanup to ensure that every skeleton monster is destroyed."

There were government officials telling lies in front of the camp gate.

"You don't want a skeleton monster to suddenly jump out of the closet when you go back, right?"

Not long ago, the big screen in the shelter camp broadcast the battle between the National Guard and the evil villain. Most citizens hated Steve and the other two. After all, the Ghost Rider's dignity was too similar to the Black Skull who caused all this.

The battle lasted for a while. After venting his anger, Steve regained his consciousness and took hundreds of Houston residents who were rescued from the soldiers' guns and used the Rainbow Bridge to temporarily take refuge in Asgard.

Since no one jumped out to cause trouble, the Texas authorities immediately dispatched more soldiers, who kept wandering around the streets to lure the black skeletons out of the high-rise buildings.

These soldiers killed a large number of black skeletons and also saw many dead people.

Naturally, there were many Houston residents in the city who managed to survive because they hid well.

However, the fate of these survivors was not good. Some were brutally killed by the iron-blooded soldiers, and some were transferred to a place no one knew.

In order to cover up what happened in Houston, America's "elite eagles" are not afraid to do anything.

The targets of the so-called "cleaning" include the Black Skulls, as well as the bodies of residents killed by shock wave bombs and those who survived by chance.

After another two days of delay, the camp's pre-stocked supplies ran out, and the refugees' anxiety reached its peak, so the Texas authorities had no choice but to release the people. "Speed ​​up the follow-up cleanup, don't delay, bag the bodies and transport them away. It's normal to have a few bodies in such a big city and such a big disaster."

"Those who are still alive must be dealt with immediately. All disobedient soldiers must be replaced with obedient ones."

……

When Elman and Bailey left the refugee camp and stepped onto the streets of Houston again, they were stunned by the scenes before them.

The streets were almost completely destroyed, and the exterior walls of the high-rise buildings on both sides of the road were dilapidated, like unfinished buildings.

"It's over. Don't even think about going back to work this month." Bailey looked bitter.

"Don't worry, maybe the bank will give you a grace period. After all, such a big incident in Houston must be considered force majeure, not our fault."

Elman consoled him, "The government wants to rebuild the city, and the factory will surely start operating. At worst, we can go and work on the construction site."

With trepidation, the couple trudged through the dilapidated streets and spent several hours before finally reaching a residential area not far from the city center.

After the start of "counter-urbanization", wealthy people in developed countries in Europe and the United States moved to the suburbs, and urban areas with serious environmental pollution became vacant. People with a little assets would choose to live in suburban communities and drive to work in the city.

Due to heavy loan pressure, Mr. and Mrs. Elman could only buy an old house close to the city center.

This is a traditional brick-and-wood structure house with two floors and a courtyard. It is not far from the couple's company, so the commuting time is short.

Unfortunately, what was left before them now was only a pile of ruins. All the wood had been shattered by the shock wave, and one side of the brick and stone wall had collapsed.

"No...no!" Bailey threw herself into her husband's arms, tears streaming down her face. "This is not true!"

The hope of life is like this house, collapsing in an instant.

"I'll go find the insurance company!" Elman responded, "I bought home accident insurance!"

"Really?" Bailey asked with a glimmer of hope.

"Yes, one weekend half a year ago, an insurance broker came to my door to sell me insurance. He was so eloquent that I couldn't help but buy the insurance." Elman was very fortunate that he finally paid for the insurance.

"Hurry, let's find the insurance policy." Bailey was about to rush to the ruins.

"No, the insurance policies are now electronic and can be checked with a driver's license or social security certificate."

Elman took his driver's license, asked his wife to wait at home, and rushed to the insurance company before the afternoon was over.

As more and more refugees return to the city, it is no surprise that insurance companies have become a gathering place for people.

Most of the refugees who returned home came to the insurance company as soon as possible, and the rest simply did not buy insurance.

"We understand your feelings very well, but we are sorry that the current situation does not meet the compensation standards stipulated in the insurance contract."

At the gate of the insurance company, an insurance broker in a suit and tie stood behind a row of burly security guards, explaining to the client with a look of regret on his face.

After hearing his explanation, the customers were furious.

"Fuck! Who said it doesn't meet the standards? When I bought it, it was said to be accident insurance. Doesn't it count as an accident now?"

"That's right, if you dare not compensate us, we will come with guns to demand it!"

"Don't worry, everyone. Listen to me first." The insurance broker said loudly: "The accidents stipulated in the insurance contract only include natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods, tsunamis, hurricanes, meteorite falls, and wars caused by humans."

"But this time we encountered a monster from hell, which obviously did not meet any of the criteria."

While the client was confused, the insurance broker quickly added.

"It was our company's negligence not to take heaven and hell into consideration before. In future contracts, we will definitely take all the unexpected factors caused by heaven, hell, and aliens into consideration to provide you with more professional insurance services. We hope you will continue to support our products."

(End of this chapter)