The morning light filtered through the dormitory window, casting mottled spots of light on the two people embracing on the bed.
Wade opened his eyes and sat up, looking around the room.
Jade hadn't returned all night, and Harper was still sleeping soundly beside him.
Wade gently pried away Harper's encircling hands; the girl muttered dissatisfiedly in her sleep, and her arms subconsciously wrapped around him again.
He broke free decisively and rolled out of bed. The small trace of lingering affection in his heart vanished instantly when hit by the cold morning air.
"Is it already seven o'clock? I still have class!" Wade picked up his phone to check. After getting dressed neatly, he walked into the bathroom to wash up.
He looked into the mirror and sensed that the genetic map in his body had inexplicably recorded the [60-Second Superpower Duplication] ability. His face was full of confusion: "Huh?! I can even analyze it through that method last night?"
A few minutes later, Harper heard the movement, rubbed her eyes, sat up on the bed, and yawned.
"Wade..." Her voice was a bit raspy as she walked unsteadily into the bathroom and reached out to hug him. "Where are you going?"
"I have Professor Brink's class in a bit, don't mess around." Wade felt a bit uncomfortable from Harper's small movements, so he picked up a cold towel and washed her face with it. "Are you awake now?"
Harper's pupils lit up with pink light, and her tail wrapped around him restlessly. "Can't you just fly there later? Awoo..."
"Don't, I'm going to be late!"
Half an hour later, Wade picked up his school uniform jacket from the back of the chair, sent the exhausted Harper back to her dorm, and turned to leave.
He flew in mid-air, the cool wind blowing against his face. The outline of the teaching building became clearer and clearer in his eyes, but he was calculating a more practical problem in his heart.
'I need to keep my distance from that clingy Harper. Pick her up when needed, and avoid her when not.'
Wade landed at the entrance of Teaching Building A and floated toward the classroom. The lecture hall was filled with an elite-style simplicity.
Professor Brink sat on the podium drinking tea, his white beard neatly trimmed, his gaze sharp and naturally authoritative. Jordan Li was operating a computer, helping him prepare the courseware.
Luke, Andre, Kate, and others walked into the classroom one after another with tired faces. As class time approached, only about twenty people were seated in the large multimedia lecture hall.
Wade walked to the highest point in the back row, taking in the entire classroom.
Two minutes later, the bell rang.
"Future superheroes and crime-fighters," Brink's voice spread through the classroom via the microphone, "Today, we will discuss a realistic and heavy topic: the cost of action."
He pressed the remote control, and a carefully edited news video began to play on the projection screen.
In the video, a hero codenamed 'Comet' was engaged in a high-speed pursuit of an out-of-control fire-based supe on a city street; the scene was thrilling.
However, during one violent impact, the shockwave generated by 'Comet' accidentally collapsed an old apartment building by the roadside.
After the dust settled, the camera showed the bodies of civilians covered in white cloth being carried out. The criminal was eventually subdued.
Brink turned off the video, looked around the room, and posed a question: "'Comet' successfully prevented a crisis that could have caused even greater casualties, but it cost the lives of innocent people. "
Now, assume you are Vought's crisis PR team. How would you tell this story to the public to maintain the hero's image while making all sectors of society believe the hero is trustworthy?"
Brink gave everyone a few minutes to think.
Luke stood up and looked at everyone in the classroom. "I think the public needs to understand the immense pressure and difficult choices heroes face."
"'Comet' only wanted to save more people; he must also feel pain and self-blame in his heart."
"We should emphasize the tragic nature of this sacrifice and call on society to give heroes understanding and support, rather than criticism!"
He spoke with passion, and his blood surged and accelerated in Wade's perception; what he said was clearly from the heart.
Andre looked at his laptop and then spoke:
"Luke has a point, but we can do it more cleverly. I suggest launching a 'tragic PR' campaign."
"The company should take the lead in establishing a compensation fund for the deceased and arrange for 'Comet' to sincerely repent and shed tears in front of the camera, promising to take full responsibility."
"Shift the focus from the 'mistake' to the 'hero's responsibility and compassion.' This will not only resolve the crisis but might even enhance 'Comet's' personal brand value."
His blood flow remained steady in Wade's eyes. His logic was clear; he was speaking purely from a business perspective.
Jordan Li, who was maintaining a female form, frowned and couldn't help but speak up: "But... are the lives of those few dead people just defined as 'collateral damage'?"
"Before the action, wasn't there a better route choice to minimize civilian casualties?"
In Wade's view, her blood flow speed increased when she spoke; she was clearly struggling internally.
Professor Brink looked at her, his fingers tapping the desk. "Lee, compassion is a precious quality for a hero. But we must recognize that battlefield decisions change in an instant, and the optimal solution can often only be found in post-action reviews."
"At the time, 'Comet' was facing a rapidly changing crisis. His priority was to prevent a larger disaster. Excessive hesitation and moral baggage might have made the situation worse."
Faced with Professor Brink's argument, Jordan Li was unable to refute. She just nodded and sat down obediently.
At this time, Kate lazily raised her hand: "I think we can approach it from another angle—investigate the backgrounds of the casualties."
"If we can find that one of them had a minor criminal record or a complex family relationship, we can focus on highlighting the extreme danger and unpredictability of the criminal."
"Guide public opinion toward 'the hero was forced to choose between a bad and a worse option at the last moment to prevent an apocalyptic disaster.' Sometimes, shifting the focus is more effective than a direct explanation."
Wade perceived that her heartbeat was as steady as if there wasn't a single ripple, as if she were discussing a game that had nothing to do with her.
'They've all studied themselves into stupidity! If the ones who met with misfortune were their own families, they'd probably be more anxious than anyone...'
Just as the discussion was about to end in the direction Brink was guiding, Wade stood up with a calm expression.
"Professor Brink, I have a technical question."
He looked at the multimedia display and pointed out the source of each piece of information one by one.
"According to publicly available municipal engineering records, the load-bearing structure of the accident building was marked as 'needing reinforcement' three months ago."
"And 'Safe House' Construction, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Vought, won the public facility maintenance contract for that area at the time. However, public engineering logs show that the construction period was delayed by at least two months due to 'material scheduling' reasons."
He paused for a moment to let everyone digest the information, then continued: "I would like to ask, in the post-event risk assessment model, what were the respective weights assigned to 'uncontrollability of hero behavior' and 'long-term safety hazards in infrastructure' among the factors leading to the tragedy?"
"More importantly, were the parameter standards of this assessment model set by an independent academic institution or safety committee, or were they participated in or even led by Vought's internal risk control department?"
As Wade's last word fell, the slightly emotional atmosphere carefully cultivated by Brink in the classroom vanished completely.
The indignation on Luke's face in the front row froze and slowly turned into confusion; Andre thoughtfully closed his laptop;
Professor Brink picked up his teacup, seemingly thinking of a rebuttal; Jordan Li clenched her fists and turned to glare at Wade.
In the classroom, all the previous moral debates and PR rhetoric now became pale and powerless jokes.
PS: Support the new book, please!
plz support my patreon
patreon.com/AZofficial
it is 30 chapter ahead