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"...We now have reason to suspect that all Supes in the world were created by Vought..."
Cut.
"What is Vought doing? Do they think they are gods? Creating an entirely new species?"
Cut.
"Superheroes, Super Villains, are actually all the same; they are all Vought..."
Cut.
"Oh, you ask me what I think about this? What I want to say is, it's so cool to have such a potion that gives people superpowers! I..."
Inside The Seven's conference room, Maeve impatiently turned off the TV and threw the remote aside.
She sat down in her seat, rubbing her hair with both hands, her expression pained.
Among The Seven, Maeve was one of the few who didn't know about Compound V.
Even though she had accepted the current situation and decided to 'go with the flow' with Vought, she never knew that her superpowers were brought by Compound V.
So now that she knew the truth, Maeve simply couldn't accept the fact.
She had been trained as a hero since childhood, undergoing various combat trainings every day, originally thinking she could join Vought and become a hero. But in the end, under the harsh realities of life, she could only recognize the Reality and accept everything about Vought.
Having drifted aimlessly for so long, Maeve had already accepted the current situation.
But now, someone suddenly told her that she wasn't born this way, and she could actually live a normal life.
How could Maeve not fall into confusion?
She didn't even want to think about anything right now—forgetting her current identity, forgetting Homelander, and forgetting Vought and The Seven.
Leaving The Seven to find her ex-girlfriend and pour out her feelings at this moment.
But... leaving The Seven wasn't that simple.
Moreover, Maeve had left her girlfriend without a word back then and hadn't contacted her until now. Could she still be forgiven if she contacted her now?
Maeve's thoughts were a mess as she pondered these things.
Just then, she heard footsteps.
Starlight, holding a milk tea, walked in from outside. Although her expression was somewhat heavy, it also contained a hint of inexplicable joy.
Maeve didn't think much of it. Seeing Starlight approach, she quickly composed her expression and turned her gaze away.
She thought this would prevent Starlight from seeing her predicament, but she didn't expect Starlight to be more perceptive than she imagined.
"Maeve, are you okay?"
"I'm fine."
Maeve didn't want to say much to Starlight, but when she noticed that Starlight didn't seem as lost as she was, she couldn't help but ask:
"...You already knew about the news, didn't you?"
Logically, this was impossible.
As a newcomer who had joined the team less than a year ago, how could Starlight know such a secret matter?
But, who made Starlight have such a good boyfriend?
Even Maeve felt a bit jealous at the thought of this. Why didn't she have such a boyfriend to escort her when she first joined?
Instead, she ended up with that bastard Homelander...
Maeve was still thinking when Starlight had already sat beside her and said sincerely:
"Kevin told me. I've known about this for a long time, but... but because it's so important, I couldn't tell anyone."
"Uh-huh."
Maeve grunted, not wanting to speak.
Seeing that Maeve was once her idol, Starlight couldn't help but comfort her:
"When I first heard the news, I was as sad and angry as you. I even went to ask my mother about the situation, and now... my mother and I have already..."
At this point, Starlight paused.
She and her mother were no longer in contact, or rather, she didn't want to contact her mother until her mother truly recognized her mistake.
But these things were not suitable to tell Maeve.
So after a brief thought, Starlight skipped this part and continued:
"...What I want to say is, I understand your feelings, truly."
"Why are you coming to tell me all this? Or do you think I'll be like you, a little girl, crying in a corner over such a small matter?"
Maeve's words were still as sharp as ever.
She was like a hedgehog, wrapping herself in sharp quills, not wanting anyone to get close.
Except for the 'companions' she recognized.
"No, why would you think that? I mean... we can be companions, and you also want to be our companion, don't you? For... for dealing with Vought."
"?"
Question marks appeared above Maeve's head.
She seemed to find it hard to believe that this sentence came from Starlight.
After all, Starlight's boyfriend was a senior Vice President of Vought. What that position represented, Starlight, who was with The Deep, understood perfectly.
Yet now Starlight said she wanted to deal with Vought?
Was she planning to deal with her own boyfriend?
Maeve couldn't understand what Starlight was thinking.
Before this, Maeve did have the idea of cooperating with The Deep. She believed that The Deep was someone who could help her deal with Homelander.
But when The Deep became the Vice President and got along peacefully with Homelander, Maeve knew she had misjudged him after all.
No matter how The Deep had acted recently, everything he did was ultimately for his own benefit.
Becoming Vice President and cooperating with Homelander were all to pave the way for his 'financial future.'
He was even less likely to team up with Maeve to deal with Homelander.
Because of this, Maeve had never contacted The Deep during this period, even actively avoiding him and Starlight to prevent Homelander from finding any leverage.
She didn't want to be hurt again.
"I don't think I interrupted you two, did I?"
Just as Starlight was about to say something more, someone else arrived at the door.
Homelander, who had been nowhere to be found, appeared at the conference room door, standing there looking at Maeve and Starlight.
He seemed to have been standing there for a long time.
Hearing Homelander's words, Starlight immediately shut her mouth, her eyes darting around with a hint of panic.
She used her gaze to ask Maeve when Homelander had arrived and if he had heard their conversation.
Seeing Maeve shake her head lightly, Starlight finally breathed a sigh of relief and turned to face Homelander:
"Hey, Captain, good afternoon?"
"Good afternoon... Maeve, what's wrong with you?"
Homelander questioned Maeve as soon as he entered.
Maeve turned her gaze away and said casually:
"Just heard some bad news, feeling depressed. Starlight happened to come over and was comforting me."
"Bad news? What news?"
"...You don't know? Where have you been?"
Maeve expressed surprise.
What the news reported had already spread throughout the world, or at least throughout America.
But Homelander seemed completely unaware of it.
Where had he been?
Homelander frowned slightly.
He had just been to the apartment of Dr. Vogelsbaum, the doctor who raised him.
Mainly to inquire about Rebecca.
Because neither of them had turned on the TV and had been discussing Rebecca's 'story,' Homelander was unaware of Compound V.
Until now, upon returning.
Seeing Maeve and Starlight looking at him with surprise, Homelander was about to ask what had happened.
But then, members of The Seven entered the conference room one after another, making Homelander close his mouth again.
With all members of The Seven assembled, it must be something significant.
Homelander knew that even if he didn't speak, someone who arrived next would.
...
"Oh, everyone's here? Good."
When Kevin returned from the 82nd floor and saw everyone gathered in The Seven's conference room, he nodded slightly.
Maeve and Starlight were already in The Seven's headquarters.
Except for Homelander, whose whereabouts were unknown, everyone else had been called back by Kevin.
Kevin had originally thought he would have to wait a bit longer for Homelander, but he was surprised to see all six others, besides himself, already gathered in the conference room after he arrived.
This saved Kevin the trouble of having to go find Homelander.
"Since everyone is here, I'll say a few words. I believe everyone is aware that Compound V has been exposed. I imagine no one here doesn't know what Compound V is now, right?"
Kevin stood in front of everyone, asking without sitting down.
Everyone, including the usually 'straightforward' Stormfront, remained silent, tacitly agreeing with Kevin's statement.
Kevin nodded and continued:
"Very good, then I won't say much more. In short, Compound V is the foundation of Vought, and we all rely on this big ship, 'Vought.'
"If Vought falls, our interests will also be harmed, so no matter what, we cannot let this matter escalate... That, is Mr. Edgar's original words."
"To hell with Edgar."
Homelander cursed.
Knowing the deaths of his wife and 'son,' Homelander was very agitated now. He said directly:
"Just tell me what you think."
Kevin met Homelander's gaze:
"This Vought ship cannot sink yet. Conveniently, there's been a Supervillain Alliance recently dominating public attention, and even more conveniently, the Crime Analysis Department, through some 'clues,' has found the Supervillain Alliance's base of operations."
"So, what we need to do next is very simple: find them, eliminate them, and then let the world know that Compound V or whatever isn't important. What's important is that Vought still has Superheroes, and can still protect them..."
"I said, to hell with Vought!"
This time, Homelander didn't wait for Kevin to finish, interrupting him.
He stood up and pointed at Kevin, saying:
"You, and us, are together! Not those useless people on the 82nd floor who only know how to hide behind the scenes and point fingers! What does Vought's situation have to do with us? Who cares if they live or die?"
"I agree with that." Maeve surprisingly echoed Homelander's words, "We don't need to clean up Vought's mess."
"Alright."
Seeing everyone's reactions, Kevin knew he had said the wrong thing.
The people in front of him were not Vought executives on the 82nd floor who only knew how to listen to pleasant words. Here were a group of Supes 'created' by Compound V.
Kevin shouldn't have spoken about this from Vought's perspective.
He should have stood with them, as Homelander said.
"Then I'll rephrase." Kevin looked at everyone with sincere eyes, "Regardless of Vought, Super Villains are our enemies. Don't forget their declaration of war against us a while ago; that was a provocation against us."
"And heroes defeating villains, that's something even children's fairy tales know. So... do I need to continue? Companions? The Superheroes who protect this world should make their appearance."
As Kevin spoke, he stared intently at Homelander.
As if the 'Superhero' he spoke of was only Homelander.
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