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Kevin frowned as he hung up the phone.
It was Butcher who had called, for an unknown reason, but from Butcher's tone, there was a hint of undetectable tension.
It seemed something had happened to Butcher.
So what could make Butcher feel panicked?
Kevin couldn't figure it out for a moment; he even speculated whether Butcher had broken into the place where his wife, Rebecca, currently lived and was being hunted by Vought.
However, Kevin only thought about it, because if Butcher was really wanted by Vought, Kevin and The Seven under his command would have no reason not to have received the news.
"I'll have to ask."
Things related to Butcher must involve the main plot that Kevin had changed.
When Kevin participated in such altered main plots, he would also gain corresponding skill points, and there was no reason not to take advantage of such a free opportunity to gain skill points.
Having decided to meet Butcher, Kevin told Annie and Kimiko to go home first; it was already late anyway, and it was time to go back and rest.
"Why are you suddenly leaving?"
Annie expressed her confusion at Kevin's actions.
After that 'love confession' performance, Annie had been in an extremely sweet state all afternoon.
Annie had originally planned to give Kevin a 'surprise' when they got home that night to 'reward' Kevin's romantic behavior today, but now Kevin had to leave because of something.
"It's work-related. Don't worry, I'll be back as soon as possible and won't make you wait long, but you don't have to wait for me for dinner; you can eat first."
Kevin kissed Annie's lips.
Hearing it was work-related, Annie could only reluctantly let Kevin leave.
After separating from Annie and Kimiko, Kevin re-disguised himself.
Wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap, he slipped into the nearby sea and, by moving through the water, arrived at a bar on the outskirts of New York.
Inside the bar, Butcher had been waiting for a long time.
"Alright, what's the urgent matter you called me for?"
Kevin found Butcher in a corner of the bar. He sat down in front of Butcher and asked casually.
Butcher didn't beat around the bush; as soon as Kevin asked, he immediately dropped a bombshell:
"Susan is dead."
"...What?"
"Susan Raynor, Deputy Director of the CIA, she's f***ing dead! She died right in front of me! Blown up by your Vought's Supe, like squeezing watermelon juice!"
Butcher was a bit agitated in his words.
Susan was an acquaintance of his; although their relationship wasn't great, they had a romantic past, and she was also Butcher's helper within the CIA.
Yet, because of this intelligence deal, Susan died so tragically in front of Butcher. It would be a lie to say Butcher wasn't angry.
But he wanted to know even more: who exactly was the guy who blew Susan's head off?
Before meeting Susan, Frenchie had closely monitored the surroundings, and there were no suspicious individuals. This meant that the person who killed Susan came with Susan.
Someone was monitoring Susan, and they were undetectable.
At the same time, this person also possessed a superpower that could blow off someone's head at any time. If such a Supe wasn't found, Butcher's entire The Boys could be in danger!
When Kevin heard about Susan's death and how she died from Butcher, he understood what was going on.
The head-popper, Victoria Neuman, might have started acting under Edgar's direction.
"Before Susan died, what were you discussing?"
Thoughts churned in his mind as Kevin organized his thoughts and asked Butcher about the content of his conversation with Susan.
"It was about Vought smuggling Supe criminals. We investigated and found that Vought was transporting Supe terrorists from abroad. Did you know about this?"
"No, in my impression, Vought hasn't done such a thing."
"Then it seems Susan was right."
"What did she say?"
"She said there was a split within Vought, and the ones transporting the terrorists were another faction within Vought. She only told me that much, and then she... boom!"
As Butcher spoke, he fiercely picked up the cocktail glass on the table and downed its contents.
There being a split within Vought was something Kevin also knew.
But so far, Kevin only knew that the group should be divided into Edgar's faction and Stormfront's faction.
And Kevin wasn't sure whether it was Edgar or Stormfront who was transporting the Supe terrorists from abroad.
Kevin guessed that it was more likely Stormfront who transported the Supe terrorists, because she herself was conducting similar experiments.
Even what Homelander did was carried out with Stormfront's tacit approval.
Of course, it's also possible that transporting the terrorists was a shared idea between Edgar and Stormfront.
Even if they had disagreements elsewhere, their goal should be consistent in increasing The Seven's prestige.
Otherwise, Newman wouldn't have blown off the head of a CIA Deputy Director.
Or perhaps, Newman was simply eliminating all unstable factors for Vought under Edgar's instruction.
After thinking for a while, Kevin asked Butcher:
"You want to find that head-popper?"
"Of course! I don't want to be walking down the street one day and suddenly have my head explode! Since that person might be from your Vought, help me find them, or you might not see us again!"
Butcher didn't disguise himself when he met Susan.
If the person who blew Susan's head off remembered Butcher and The Boys' appearance, then The Boys would be at risk of being head-popped by that person at any time!
Butcher didn't dare to act rashly before finding that person.
"I understand. Leave this to me. I'll try my best to ensure she doesn't act against you again in the future."
"She...?"
Butcher's spirits instantly lifted when he heard this. He leaned forward and stared directly at Kevin:
"You really do know who that person is."
"I do, but due to Vought's upcoming strategic policy, I can't tell you her identity. In fact, I've already revealed a lot to you, Butcher."
Kevin deliberately used 'she' to give Butcher information.
Victoria Neuman is currently someone Kevin cannot touch, mainly because Newman has value in being recruited.
In Season 3, Newman dared to betray Edgar and join Homelander, so with Kevin, it's equally possible to get Newman to join him.
For a potential teammate, Kevin would not reveal most of her information.
But revealing a little, letting Butcher investigate, and causing a little trouble for Vought is still doable.
Newman is Edgar's secret card. Besides Edgar, very few people know Newman's identity. Including Kevin, he shouldn't know of Newman's existence.
If Edgar knew someone was investigating Newman, he would definitely suspect there was an insider within Vought.
But he certainly wouldn't suspect Kevin.
Because Kevin was 'unaware' of this matter.
"Okay, I don't care who that person is. I just hope that when we do things in the future, we won't get head-popped by her."
Butcher didn't press further.
He knew that if it was information that could be revealed, Kevin would definitely tell him. Conversely, if Kevin was vague, it meant that this was not information Butcher could know yet.
But it didn't matter; Butcher could investigate.
That was his forte.
After talking with Kevin, Butcher, somewhat settled, left the bar.
Kevin sat in the bar without moving for a long time.
He was thinking about how to approach Newman.
Victoria Neuman's public identity is quite easy to find. As a congresswoman, her information is basically public, and basic information can be found with a quick search on Wikipedia.
The problem was what identity to use to approach Newman without her suspecting him.
Kevin remembered Newman's weakness was her daughter, whose name seemed to be... Zoe?
It seemed to be that name.
Edgar said he would protect Zoe, which is why Newman trusted him and did things for him.
And then Homelander found Zoe and used her to threaten Newman into siding with Homelander, which is why Newman betrayed Edgar.
In other words, Edgar was fine; he wasn't important, and Newman didn't care about Edgar at all.
She only cared about her daughter.
So, to control Newman, he had to find Newman's daughter, Zoe, and control her.
Investigating as The Deep of The Seven would definitely make Newman suspicious, and approaching her as the Vice President of Vought would be even worse.
Unless the other party took the initiative to approach, Kevin's public identities could not be actively linked to Newman and her daughter Zoe.
Thinking seriously, Kevin suddenly thought of something.
He took out his wallet, found the administrator access card for The Woods that he kept inside, looked at it for a long time, and then got up and left.
...
Inside the principal's office at Godolkin University, Cate Dunlap was writing something with gloves on.
Those were the entrance exams for Godolkin University.
Next month, Godolkin University would officially begin its new semester. Cate had not passed the unified exam; even with the principal's arrangement to enter Godolkin University, she still had to take basic entrance tests to be successfully admitted.
So she was currently working hard, preparing to enter Godolkin University.
"Still studying so late?"
But while she was deep in thought, the door was pushed open, and someone walked in and greeted Cate.
Cate was slightly startled and immediately looked up, relaxing only when she saw who it was.
The person who walked into the room was The Deep of The Seven.
Because there was also an elevator to the lower level of The Woods in the principal's office, Cate was not surprised by The Deep's presence here. She quickly recovered and answered his question:
"...School is starting soon, and Indira said that if I don't work hard, I might not get into 'Lamplighter Academy.'"
"You want to go to Lamplighter Academy?"
"Of course! I... I want to become a Superhero like you, like The Seven!"
Cate spoke of her ideal.
Before knowing about Compound V, and before knowing Indira's true intentions for cultivating her, Cate was like most ordinary children with superpowers.
She longed to become a Superhero, longed to become a member of The Seven.
Telling her dream to someone she wasn't very familiar with made Cate a little embarrassed.
But The Deep did not mock Cate; instead, he said seriously:
"If you work hard, there will be a place for you in The Seven."
"Really?"
"I usually don't lie, provided you still have that dream by then."
The Deep seemed to be hinting at something, but Cate didn't think much of it; she just happily thanked The Deep:
"Thank you! The Deep!"
Cate had been in The Woods for so long that she also knew The Deep was a high-ranking official in Vought. If The Deep said she would have a chance to become a member of The Seven in the future, then she absolutely would.
There was no doubt about that.
Seeing Cate's happy expression, The Deep chuckled and sat down on the sofa in the center of the room.
He looked at the dark red leather gloves Cate was wearing, and suddenly stretched his hand towards Cate, making a request that seemed incredible to Cate:
"By the way, Cate, come here and try to touch me. See if you can hear my thoughts."
The Deep said this.
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