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"Ah… boom!!!"
Soldier Boy let out a painful scream, and an incredibly powerful energy blast erupted from his chest, directly hitting the building in front of him…
…Meanwhile, at Vought Corporation.
"No, Homelander, you can't seriously want those two damned street heroes to join The Seven, can you? Don't you understand the consequences of doing that?"
Inside the office, Queen Maeve looked at Homelander with disbelief, unable to resist questioning him loudly:
"I think you should know better than anyone that their superpowers don't come from Compound V…
Which means that the methods Vought Corporation has used to control its superheroes in the past are completely useless against them."
"If they are undercover agents sent by some organization or media, then after they see the true operating model of The Seven, it will cause a fatal blow to the entire Vought Corporation!!"
Although Queen Maeve was right, her harsh words still made the new CEO, Ashley Barrett, tremble.
It's worth mentioning that after Homelander used Stan Edgar's adopted daughter—Congresswoman and Director of the Bureau of Superhuman Affairs, Victoria Neuman—to depose him, he had his former lackey take over his position and become the CEO.
After all, Homelander wasn't so stupid as to put himself directly in the line of fire. However, everyone at Vought Corporation, from top to bottom, knew that the person who truly held the power to give orders… was still Homelander.
And Ashley Barrett was merely a puppet he pushed to the forefront to put on a show.
However, what Ashley Barrett didn't know was that ever since Queen Maeve witnessed Homelander use mysterious power to defeat The Seven Vampire demons during The Seven Cities Vampire Crisis, her desire for the same power led her to willingly submit to Homelander… To be precise, she became a follower of the Slaanesh Cult—'Above and Below, I Am the Only Honored One'—that Homelander established!!
So, even though her words were very strong at the moment, Homelander, sitting in the boss's chair opposite her, remained unconcerned, with no hint of anger on his face.
Furthermore, he knew very well that what Queen Maeve had just said was the truth.
But knowing is one thing, and how to act is another!
Although Spider-Woman initially rejected Homelander's invitation, he wasn't angry about it. Instead, he greatly admired her straightforwardness and her courage to refuse him.
Because whether within Vought Corporation or The Seven, apart from Queen Maeve occasionally daring to offer different opinions to Homelander, others didn't even have the courage to defy his orders.
At first, Homelander quite enjoyed this feeling of being the sole authority, but gradually he grew bored and annoyed.
After all, what he truly needed was a group of subordinates with their own opinions, not a bunch of subservient, useless bootlickers…
Especially when he was almost put into "cold storage" by former CEO Stan Edgar a while ago, if it weren't for the timely appearance of the Sage, who helped him find a way to break the deadlock, he would probably have been shelved by Vought Corporation by now.
It was from then on that Homelander truly realized that he had to find a few members for The Seven who dared to "contradict" him at critical moments, who possessed independent thinking skills, and who could help him make correct decisions.
And the highly popular Spider-Woman perfectly fit his expectations.
As for the Lizard Man she mentioned on the phone, who had to join with her… uh, Homelander just considered that a Attachcondition for inviting Spider-Woman to join.
Thinking of this, Homelander waved his hand dismissively at the slightly agitated Queen Maeve, and said with certainty:
"Don't be so agitated, you can rest assured about this. I'm always very accurate in judging people… Spider-Woman would never do that!"
Accurate my ass!
Queen Maeve immediately rolled her eyes but said nothing more.
Ever since she learned from Homelander that the mysterious power capable of killing "demons" came from a god named slaanesh, her focus gradually shifted from The Seven and Vought Corporation to how to make herself stronger!
Because only by becoming stronger would she have a chance to defeat that bastard Homelander and thus get the life she wanted.
Now that Homelander refused to listen to advice and insisted on bringing in those two unstable street heroes, she simply couldn't be bothered to care.
Let him cause trouble; sooner or later, he would reap what he sowed!
By then, Queen Maeve would definitely be the first to jump in and kick him when he was down!
"Oh, Ashley, you should follow up with Spider-Woman later to confirm her official joining date for The Seven, and then arrange an event for her and me to appear together before the public…"
After a moment's thought, Homelander added, "Also, you should collect intelligence thoroughly these days. It would be best if, after Spider-Woman joins, you can find a sensational supernatural event like the Hyperspace Group resisting a demon invasion in front of the Empire State Building a few weeks ago, or a 'big' event that can cause a huge sensation like saving the President a week ago. Then, we two will solve it together… I guarantee it will instantly blow up the entire internet!!"
After tasting the immense benefits of traffic and widespread attention brought by The Seven Cities Vampire Crisis, Homelander had long since lost interest in ordinary violent incidents and criminal matters.
Go big or go home!
A week ago, Homelander had missed the grand battle in front of the Empire State Building because he had gone to another state to attend an important live awards ceremony.
This made him feel annoyed and regretful, but even if he had been in New York at the time, he estimated that the Department of Defense and General Ross would never have approved his request for action.
"Yes, sir, I'll get right on it…"
Ashley Barrett silently jotted down everything Homelander had instructed in her notebook. Just as she was about to leave the office to issue orders, her phone suddenly rang.
"Hello, it's me… What did you say?!"
Ashley Barrett's voice suddenly rose several octaves, immediately drawing Homelander's displeased gaze.
"What happened? Why are you so flustered? Don't forget your current position is CEO… I warn you, you'd better not do anything stupid that makes me regret giving that order, or you know what the consequences will be!!"
"I… I understand, sir."
Recalling the former colleague who had been decapitated in front of her, Ashley Barrett instinctively trembled, then suppressed her fear and reported:
"But I think you must see this sudden incident now…"
As she spoke, she had already picked up the remote control, turned on the TV, and tuned to The Daily Bugle's special program.
Before Homelander could ask, John Jameson's rough voice came from the TV.
"Dear viewers, just moments ago, an unexpected explosion occurred in Manhattan's Upper East Side. As of now, it has been confirmed by informed sources that at least 19 people died on the spot in this attack, and a building was reduced to rubble. The corresponding rescue and excavation efforts are still ongoing…"
"In addition, according to the New York Police and the Bureau of Superhuman Affairs, this explosion was caused by an unknown superhuman rogue, but the authorities have not released any more information about this superhuman rogue…"
While John Jameson was narrating, the TV also showed a not-so-clear surveillance footage.
In the footage, a burly but very disheveled middle-aged man, looking like a homeless person, first bent over in pain for some unknown reason, but the next second, an incredibly violent energy blast was released from his chest. The screen was immediately enveloped in a white light, and then it abruptly cut off at just the right moment.
But whether it was because the authorities didn't want to disclose too much relevant information at the moment, the surveillance footage, although capturing the person's figure and the course of the incident, did not show a frontal image of the male superpowered individual.
After a slight pause, John Jameson began his official exposé.
"However, according to another informed source who wishes to remain anonymous, this superhuman rogue who caused the explosion is very likely Soldier Boy, the former Captain of the Payback Superpower Squad, who was previously announced by Vought Corporation to have been permanently buried under the reactor due to a nuclear facility collapse during the 1984 Ohio nuclear leak incident…"
Next, John Jameson detailed Soldier Boy's past, but Homelander was already lost in a daze caused by some complex emotion, completely missing what he said afterwards.
It wasn't until Queen Maeve repeatedly shouted the same phrase into his ear that his consciousness was pulled back.
"F**k? Homelander, are you f**king listening to me or not?"
"I'm sorry, what?"
Homelander asked belatedly. Queen Maeve stared at him with a strange expression, then patiently repeated what she had just said.
"I said… We need to deal with this emergency immediately. After all, Soldier Boy was once Vought Corporation's most famous superpowered individual. Although we don't know how he 'died and came back to life,' if we don't resolve this huge hidden danger in time, Vought Corporation's stock price will probably plummet tomorrow morning!!"
Homelander, however, seemed to have paid no attention, remaining dazed for several seconds before responding, "Oh right, of course, we'll definitely handle it, so…"
Homelander took a deep breath, then, as if regaining his spirit, he said to Ashley Barrett with conviction:
"Immediately book all Sunday program slots. Tell the public they don't need to worry about this… uh, I mean they have nothing to worry about. Yes, absolutely no problem, everything is under our control."
What else could Ashley Barrett say?
Of course, it was flattery as usual, "Sir, that's very clever, a truly superb idea."
Superb your mother!
Queen Maeve couldn't stand the idiotic interaction between the master and servant. She immediately stood up from the sofa and said speechlessly:
"Homelander, are you even listening to me seriously? We don't have time to waste now; we must quickly resolve this troublesome guy!!"
Unexpectedly, this time Homelander seemed to be enraged by her attitude. He grabbed her chin and leaned in menacingly, warning:
"Watch your f**king tone. Don't think that just because you joined my cult you can be so presumptuous in front of me… You have no idea what that guy means!"
"I… I'm sorry."
Queen Maeve suddenly realized, forced a fake smile, and explained earnestly:
"I just… I mean… Don't you think that finding him and solving this problem is the best opportunity for your and Spider-Woman's first joint operation?"
"Hmm?"
Homelander was startled at her words, then his expression gradually softened. He said hesitantly, "You mean…"
"Exactly."
Before Homelander could finish speaking, Queen Maeve interrupted, "After The Daily Bugle's exposé of Soldier Boy's identity, I believe it won't be long before it attracts widespread attention and immense panic. You and Spider-Woman… oh no, we can definitely find him before Soldier Boy is targeted by the Bureau of Superhuman Affairs or some other organization… and take him out. That way, you will once again be seen by the world as the savior of New York!"
Undoubtedly, Queen Maeve's words hit Homelander's weak spot.
The reason he had been in a daze earlier was partly because he had unexpectedly seen his "genetic father," whom he had never met, and a strange sense of belonging had welled up inside him.
This news was also something he had accidentally discovered when he was going through Vought Corporation's top-secret files about himself after he had deposed Stan Edgar.
This had a huge impact on Homelander.
After all, he had always thought he was an "orphan" with no parents since childhood.
He never expected that he was actually deliberately created by Vought Corporation using Soldier Boy's genetic material?
If this had happened before, Homelander, upon learning this news, would have definitely launched a brutal massacre within Vought Corporation!
Because he could not tolerate such deception and the truth of his "birth"!!
However, for Homelander, who now had higher aspirations, this news merely surprised him…