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Hughie was gone.
When Hughie couldn't be found anywhere, Kevin had no choice but to conclude this.
Hughie had indeed disappeared.
It seemed there was an issue with his ability, which teleported him to some unknown place, and surprisingly, with his ability, he couldn't return.
This instantly cooled Kevin's excitement, which had been high due to the successful Compound V, making him hesitant to use the remaining Compound V on Annie.
Yes, Kevin guessed that the reason for Hughie's disappearance was likely due to his ability.
Hughie's ability was teleportation, and the enhanced ability caused him to teleport to a special place, and for some reason, he couldn't return—this possibility was not non-existent.
Annie's ability was different from Hughie's; perhaps after her ability was enhanced, she wouldn't encounter the same situation as Hughie.
But Kevin dared not gamble on that possibility.
Therefore, until Hughie's safety was confirmed, Kevin would not use the enhancement Compound V on Annie.
After instructing Vought to spare no effort in finding Hughie, Kevin turned his attention to the Compound V matter.
Although the Compound V developed by Banner was an initial version, ineffective against Supes with too high a degree of mutation, it still had some effect on those with a low degree of mutation.
Using his authority within Vought, Kevin found several volunteers with a high degree of mutation and injected them with Compound V.
Subsequently, as expected, their abilities disappeared, and the mutations that had plagued them returned to normal.
They became normal humans.
Their excitement at returning to normal was self-evident, and Kevin finally put down his worries about Compound V, beginning to have Vought mass-produce Compound V.
Two days later, the first batch of Compound V was officially put into use; a total of three hundred doses of Compound V were sent by Kevin to the newly established special agency, awaiting the arrival of the first batch of 'customers'.
With the Compound V's effectiveness confirmed, Kevin did not immediately launch a grand publicity campaign.
He first observed for a few days, confirming that the Compound V eliminated abilities without causing adverse reactions in Supes, and only then, with the consent of the individuals involved, did he release a video of the Compound V eliminating abilities online, under the name of Vought.
It became the first promotional video for Compound V.
"Hello everyone, I'm Kevin."
At the very beginning of the promotional video, Kevin's own image appeared.
Dressed in a suit, he stood in a solemn black shadow, with the light only illuminating him.
His expression was heavy and serious, his gaze fixed on the camera, seemingly able to see every person watching the video.
"Many people know me, they know I used to be a very famous hero Deep, and many people like me, after all, I'm a Superhero, and who wouldn't like a Superhero?"
Kevin spoke the opening lines, his expression unchanged, still serious.
"Supes, Superheroes, under Vought's propaganda in recent years, have become beautiful words; countless people want to become Supes, and even more want to become Superheroes.
"But while everyone is focused on the heroes in the spotlight, too many things have been overlooked.
"Overlooked are others, other Supes who have abilities but are almost like disabled people."
As Kevin's voice fell, another spotlight lit up in the darkness beside him.
Then a girl with a face full of bumps appeared in the light.
The girl's appearance was very ugly; although her face shape was still decent and her figure perfect, the bumps on her skin, one after another, like a toad's, destroyed all her beauty, turning her into an ugly 'monster'.
When the girl appeared in the promotional video, Kevin's voice continued:
"She, like us, is a Supe, but she can neither fly freely in the sky like Homelander, nor can she move freely in the sea like me.
"She can merely extend her tongue, yet precisely this insignificant ability has made her into her current appearance."
The camera gave a close-up of the girl, allowing people to see the details on her.
The girl's expression was very painful; she didn't dare to look at the camera, just kept her head down, avoiding the filming.
A moment later, Kevin's voice appeared again:
"Vought in the past ignored them, we ignored them, and everyone else didn't care about them; they... are the true victims of Compound V, they are the ones we should all be concerned about.
"Perhaps some will ask, why am I talking about this now, and even bringing the victims in front of the camera? Isn't this touching their scars?
"Yes, if they could only remain in this state forever, then it truly would be touching their scars, but... what if we could turn them back into ordinary people, restore their original appearance?"
After Kevin finished speaking, the entire screen brightened, and then a documentary-like video appeared on the screen.
In the video, the toad-like girl, covered in bumps, lay on a bed similar to those in a dentist's office, her arm exposed.
A blue Compound V was injected into the girl's body.
The video then sped up, and a few minutes later, all those unsightly bumps on the girl's body completely disappeared!
The girl's skin became smooth, and her appearance returned to that of a normal person.
The documentary segment in the video ended here, but Kevin's video continued.
The scene shifted; Kevin sat in a brightly lit room, and beside him, the girl, now restored to her normal appearance, sat with a joyful expression.
The girl looked at her reflection in the mirror, crying with joy.
Her appearance wasn't particularly beautiful, but it was by no means ugly; especially compared to her previous appearance, her current look could even be called beautiful.
Kevin stood up, standing behind the girl, facing the camera:
"Returning to normal, no longer being seen as an anomaly by others, being able to live freely in the sunlight—this... is what I want to do for those harmed by Compound V.
"Although the Compound V that can eliminate abilities is not yet perfect, I, Deep, as the CEO of Vought, make a promise here.
"We will definitely continue to research Compound V, striving to restore all Supes with physical mutations to normal!
"And before that, all Supes with mild degrees of mutation can come to Vought for a free injection of Compound V that can eliminate physical mutations.
"That's right, it's free! You don't need to spend a single cent; as long as you can come and are determined to let your abilities disappear, we will make your dreams come true!
"So come! Supes troubled by abilities, Supes who want to become normal people, I am waiting for you at Vought!"
At the end of the video, Kevin reached out to the camera.
Then the video pulled back, and various Vought promotions, along with videos of other Supes with physical mutations returning to normal, played consecutively until the video ended.
...
The promotional video about the Compound V that could eliminate Supe abilities was heavily publicized by Kevin at great expense.
Especially the large advertising screen in Times Square, New York, was exclusively occupied by Kevin.
This cost a lot, but Kevin felt it was worth it.
Because, after this video was released, regardless of the social reaction and impact for now, Kevin himself directly gained five skill points.
One video, five skill points.
This doesn't even count the impact brought about after the video was released.
For a moment, Kevin even felt that A-Train might have died in vain; his death seemed only slightly more valuable than a video.
Moreover, not only that, eliminating Supe abilities could also earn skill points, although not many; it took eliminating the abilities of several Supes to gain one skill point.
But don't forget, this world has no shortage of Supes.
The impact of the video was just the beginning.
Ordinary citizens watching the video were already arguing fiercely online; some thought Kevin did a great job, giving new life to those frail Supes troubled by their abilities.
But others thought Kevin was a traitor; he betrayed Supes.
Being able to turn Supes into normal humans meant they were no different from ordinary people, and some Supes who profited from being Supes protested this even more.
Especially the Superheroes.
Not only that, Kevin's office phone was almost blown up by the Secretary of State.
He questioned Kevin why he didn't discuss this with Congress beforehand but instead directly announced the effects of Compound V.
It should be known that the Department of Defense had just ordered a batch of Temporary Compound V from Kevin, and now Kevin turned around and released a Compound V that could disable superpowers.
what if these Compound V were used by enemies?
Congress wanted to talk to Kevin to discuss the matter of Compound V.
Kevin temporarily ignored them; no matter what, he had to make a portion of Supes lose their abilities, this was his plan, and only this way could he better manage those Supes.
Besides these people, there was one more person who was most furious in this situation.
Someone Kevin wasn't surprised by at all.
Stormfront.
She found Kevin again, in his office, and in front of him, she suppressed her anger and questioned him:
"Do you... know what you're doing?!"
"Of course, I do."
Kevin's answer was calm, forming a stark contrast with the raging Stormfront.
Stormfront, however, became even more furious:
"No, you don't! You are eradicating a nascent race!! I... I thought you were on our side, but..."
Before this, Stormfront had always believed Kevin was on the side of Supes.
She had always firmly believed that Kevin, with such powerful strength and continuously evolving abilities, was the most suitable leader for Supes.
So no matter how Kevin treated her, even if he harbored killing intent towards her, Stormfront could endure it and would try her best to cooperate with Kevin to satisfy him.
But now Stormfront could no longer endure it.
If Supes disappeared, Stormfront's idea of forming a Supe army would be completely shattered! Let alone the future Supe kingdom!
It was also at this moment that Stormfront realized Kevin was not on her side at all.
Perhaps he never had the idea of becoming a Supe king from the very beginning.
"Eradicating a nascent race?"
Hearing Stormfront's words, Kevin suddenly laughed:
"Ms. Stormfront, your accusation is too serious; I have never killed any Supe, I merely allowed those troubled by their 'abnormalities' to return to normal life.
"Moreover, I never believed that those with strange limbs or other things on their bodies could be called Supes."
"You're nitpicking!!"
"Even if I am, what then?"
Seeing Stormfront's relentless nagging, Kevin had no mood to continue arguing with her.
He said calmly:
"I am the CEO of Vought; what I do never requires anyone else's opinion; I do what I want to do, and it's not up to others, especially you, to manage."
Kevin was willing to communicate with Stormfront, which was just basic courtesy; it didn't mean Kevin was truly easy to talk to.
Just as he said, as the CEO of Vought, he could actually do whatever he wanted, without needing anyone else's advice.
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