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In stark contrast to Queen Maeve's visible worry, Homelander seemed completely unconcerned, calmly reassuring her, "Don't worry, Maeve. Even if that cuckold comes, Soldier Boy still won't be able to defeat us… He has new help, but don't I? You haven't forgotten the two new members I recruited this time, have you?"
Queen Maeve was startled at first but quickly reacted, tentatively asking, "You mean… that little bug wandering the streets, Spider-Woman?"
"Exactly, it's her."
Homelander said smugly, "You'd best not underestimate her strength just because she's a street hero. I specifically checked her combat videos online before. Although she lacks some practical experience, her potential and the extreme combat power she can unleash at critical moments are far stronger than all other members of The Seven, excluding myself."
"What?" Queen Maeve asked, full of suspicion, "You really think she's stronger than me?"
"Don't be nervous, I mean the power she unleashes in extreme states is a bit stronger than yours, but that's not the key…"
Homelander ignored Queen Maeve's angry glare and continued indifferently, "The important thing is that her superpower doesn't come from Compound V, so this time she's very likely to be a crucial part of our plan against Soldier Boy… Ah, I can't wait to witness that moment myself!!"
Although Queen Maeve was displeased by Homelander's recent 'belittling' remarks about her, the tension on her face eased considerably.
However, just as she was about to ask something else, the phone on the desk suddenly rang.
"It's me, what's up?"
Homelander casually picked up the phone and asked. Immediately, a somewhat flustered report came from the other end, "Sir, I'm truly sorry to disturb you suddenly, but someone called and insisted on speaking with you personally… He claims to be Soldier Boy!!"
"Oh? Then put him through."
Upon hearing Soldier Boy's name, Homelander's face showed no emotional fluctuations, as if the caller was a completely unrelated person.
A few seconds later, Soldier Boy's voice came through the phone, "You must be Homelander, right? I think you should know who I am, and what I've done before…"
"Get straight to the point. Are you calling to officially declare war on me now?" Homelander interrupted expressionlessly.
"No, I just got some interesting news from Mind-Storm when I killed him, so I think it might be necessary for us to discuss it face-to-face."
"Don't be so self-important in front of me. I already know about your collaboration with Billy Butcher…"
Homelander mercilessly exposed him, "If you're trying to use that as an excuse to trick me into coming over, and then ambush me with that cuckolded coward, I advise you to give up such a foolish idea!"
However, before he could finish speaking, Soldier Boy on the other end of the phone directly threw out what he believed to be a reason Homelander couldn't refuse.
"No, kid, don't be so agitated… I remember it was the autumn of 1980. I suddenly received a call from Vought Corporation executives, and then I was called to Vogebaum's lab to assist them with a certain experiment, some bullshit experiment about genes… I still remember they arranged a tall beauty for me back then, her name was something like Danielle Dene, I can't remember her name or face anymore, anyway, I only remember her private parts were as hairy as a female hound…"
"…"
Homelander's face immediately darkened, as he had already guessed what the other party wanted to say.
It was nothing more than the secret about his origins, but he had already learned this secret by checking Vought Corporation's confidential files.
But what truly disgusted, even repulsed Homelander, was that this secret was now being spoken by Soldier Boy himself, and in such a mocking and playful manner. It instantly shattered Homelander's last shred of good fantasy and expectation for his 'genetic father'.
This "long-lost" bastard father of his was clearly no different from anyone else!!
At this moment, Soldier Boy, completely unaware of Homelander's emotional change, continued to ramble on the phone:
"Simply put, the lab staff wanted me to * her, and then release my life essence into cups or test tubes they had prepared beforehand. I was very puzzled at the time, what on earth were they doing…"
"Until I found the answer from Mind-Storm… Now it seems, all my life essence back then was used by Vogebaum to create a freak… He should have been born in the spring of 1981, and he was a boy…"
At this point, Soldier Boy, whether out of pride or mockery, subconsciously laughed, then paused slightly, seemingly just wanting to hear Homelander's reaction on the other end.
But to his great surprise, Homelander on the other end remained 'unmoved', as if he had just been talking about someone else's business.
Seeing that he failed to provoke the other party, Soldier Boy, feeling bored, ended the silence and continued, "Let me tell you something very interesting. If Vought Corporation executives want me to continue being a superhero, I will not hesitate to let you be the focus, after all… what father wouldn't want to give his halo to his son?!"
Killing with words!
These words were all deliberately used by Soldier Boy and Billy Butcher after their discussion to provoke Homelander.
Because a clear-headed Homelander was clearly more threatening and challenging than a Homelander in a state of madness.
So they decided to attack the mind first, then kill!
But such a strategy was clearly useless against the current Homelander. "You have no chance, because Vought Corporation is now run by me… and I don't need your halo at all. As an outdated old man, your popularity is simply not worthy of being compared with mine!!"
"Huh?"
Soldier Boy evidently didn't expect Homelander to answer this way. He turned his head to glance at Billy Butcher, who was equally bewildered beside him, and said somewhat angrily, "Kid, don't be so arrogant. When I was the headliner at Vought Corporation back then, you weren't even born yet…"
However, he then calmed down under the joint persuasion of Billy Butcher and Hughie Campbell.
"Alright, I've said everything I wanted to say. If you've considered it, you can send me the exact location information."
With that, Soldier Boy angrily hung up the phone.
The pre-battle harassment strategy had clearly failed!!
"So… you really believe the nonsense he just said?"
Queen Maeve asked with a strange expression. Clearly, with her far superior hearing, she had heard their entire conversation.
Homelander did not directly answer her question but first looked at his assistant, Ashley Barrett, and instructed, "Find all past files on Soldier Boy for me immediately!"
"Yes, sir, I'll bring the information to you right away." A bewildered Ashley Barrett immediately scurried out of the office.
Once only Homelander and Queen Maeve remained in the office, Homelander slowly began to speak, as if recounting something he knew by heart:
"It seems Black Noir and the Vought Corporation executives have been hiding many secrets from me all this time…
I still remember, when the company first brought me in front of the cameras, they promised me that I would have a team of my own in the future.
And at that time, I desperately hoped to become family with my future teammates, because I grew up in a laboratory and never had a family of my own.
But now it seems, what I got was a bunch of useless trash who like to go against me!!"
Then he leaned his upper body slightly forward, his sharp gaze fixed on Queen Maeve opposite him, and said, "Before this, I always thought Black Noir was more important than all of you combined. You were never my family, and I never needed your help… But now it seems, even he is not my family."
"If Black Noir weren't dead right now, I would kill him with my own hands."
"Wh-… Why?" Queen Maeve asked subconsciously, not knowing what kind of evil spirit possessed Homelander.
"Because he never told me about Soldier Boy. He betrayed me, and what I hate most in my life is betrayal!!"
Homelander appeared very agitated, as if Soldier Boy's words had caused a huge impact on his inner self… No, it should be said that it completely shattered his long-held fantasies and expectations for the missing family role of 'father'.
"Maeve, I don't care if you were feigning submission before, but if you truly want to receive the favor and blessing of the God of Pleasure, then you'd best not play any tricks in this mission, otherwise, the first person I kill will be you!"
Queen Maeve's face suddenly became very ugly. She disliked being threatened, but she dared not confront Homelander directly. She could only suppress the anger in her heart, replying stiffly with some annoyance and resentment, "I understand."
...
...
Night fell.
At Vought News Network's broadcast studio on the 60th floor of Vought Corporation.
Ding—
The elevator opened, and four figures emerged: the fully armed Soldier Boy, Billy Butcher, Hughie Campbell, and… Kimiko, whose superpowers had been restored!
It's worth mentioning that Kimiko, who had previously lost her superpowers after being hit by Soldier Boy's "chest blast," was able to regain them because Soldier Boy and Billy Butcher, during their pursuit of the TNT Twins, unexpectedly discovered The Deep participating in a large orgy there. They even filmed him having sex with an octopus on their phone, and used it to threaten him into revealing the location of the laboratory where Compound V was stored.
Considering that having one more supe would increase their chances of winning when finally dealing with Homelander, Billy Butcher had Hughie Campbell use his "teleportation" superpower to successfully steal a permanent Compound V from the laboratory and then sent it to the hospital for Kimiko to inject…
And this time, the personnel they brought were far more than just these four people; Marvin and Frenchie also came along.
Although Marvin was still grumbling about Billy Butcher's "betrayal," under the repeated persuasion of Hughie Campbell and others, he finally decided to prioritize the bigger picture first, and then settle scores with those two bastards, Soldier Boy and Billy Butcher, after taking down Homelander.
However, he and Frenchie consistently refused to inject Temporary Compound V, and their objective for this operation was not to fight Homelander.
Instead, it was to use Vought Corporation's high-end biochemical laboratory to develop a nerve anesthetic agent called Novichok.
As for its purpose… it was to sedate Soldier Boy and "seal" him again after successfully dealing with Homelander.
That's right, even before the battle officially began, Billy Butcher had already started plotting against Soldier Boy, who was supposedly a temporary teammate.
After all, in his eyes, the other party was merely a necessary tool to kill Homelander!!
"Look, the culprit who turned all of New York upside down has finally decided to show himself?"
In the empty broadcast studio, Homelander looked calmly at the four figures, while Queen Maeve, standing beside him, had a face full of wariness.
There was nothing they could do; Soldier Boy possessed the means to completely neutralize their superpowers.
To say they weren't afraid would be a lie!
"That's right."
Billy Butcher, walking at the very front, couldn't have been more pleased. He first scanned the broadcast studio left and right, and after confirming there were only Homelander and Queen Maeve, he laughed mockingly like a movie villain, "What, your new partner didn't come? I distinctly remember you saying in your Daily Bugle interview two days ago that you were going to team up with your new partner to deal with us?"
"Is it that she didn't want to work with a scumbag like you, so she deliberately stood you up?"
But who would have thought, Homelander wasn't angry at all; his emotions were incredibly stable. He first raised his hand to check the time, then slightly bent his index finger, pointing at Billy Butcher opposite him, and said, "Don't worry, she will definitely come, but… you'd best pray to God that you live to see the moment she appears!!"