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"Eliminate Supes?"
Mallory looked at Kevin with a slight confusion.
If Mallory remembered correctly, The Deep, who was standing before her, should be one of the Supes.
But now he was saying he would help eliminate Supes?
Putting aside why The Deep, as a Supe, would make such a request, just consider the request itself.
How could he eliminate the existence of Supes?
Even if Compound V stopped being produced, the world was gradually being taken over by Supes.
This was because the offspring born between Supes, and even between Supes and ordinary people, could potentially give birth to new Supes.
Translucent's son inherited his father's transparency ability.
Polarity's son inherited his father's ability to manipulate metal.
Compound V was hereditary, something etched into the genes, which meant that even without Compound V in the future, Supes would continue to proliferate endlessly.
How could Kevin make Supes disappear?
Moreover, a Supe saying he wanted to make Supes disappear from this world was inherently hard to believe; at least Mallory and Butcher would not believe it.
"Yes, eliminate Supes. I know you won't believe it, but this kind of thing is never talked about, it's done. Just wait and see."
Kevin saw their distrust but offered no explanation.
He had no obligation to explain so much to them; he only needed to do what he was supposed to do.
Skipping this topic, Mallory said:
"Then let's talk about Supes. If you can control Vought, are you sure you'll help us curb those crazy Supes?"
"Of course, Vought needs to transform. When Compound V is no longer their top product, then their so-called Supes will lose their meaning, and this world doesn't need so many heroes."
Vought had a large number of Supes.
Don't be fooled by the TV series where they seem to be few and far between, even counting the past 'Payback' seemed to be only about twenty or so.
But this was only the surface.
Just like the entertainment industry, the 'stars' who are widely known and familiar are the cream of the crop; the Supes known to the public on screen are also the pinnacle of the 'Superhero' industry.
There were many more, like Eagleshaw and Blindspot, who were unknown Supes.
They were like unknown, eighteenth-tier celebrities, existing but not widely known.
In fact, a little thought would reveal the truth.
Godolkin University's 'Lamplighter's Crime Fighting Academy' graduated a large number of students every year.
And Godolkin University had been established for decades now.
Over these decades, even if only half of the graduates became Supes, that would still be over a hundred Supes entering the industry.
After years of accumulation, there were at least several thousand by now.
Even accounting for those who reached retirement age or Supes who became disillusioned with the industry and left, the total number was certainly over a thousand.
With so many Supes, their existence had severely disrupted social order.
Some Supes were not heroes at all, but villains disguised as heroes.
Kevin personally believed that these Supes should not exist.
He would reduce the number of Supes, only needing to leave a few truly righteous Supes to form a genuine Superhero Alliance.
There was no need for so many people.
Therefore, the Superhero reduction plan was inevitable.
"It's hard to imagine hearing that from a real 'Superhero'."
Mallory chuckled with emotion.
Kevin chuckled lightly:
"I'm no longer one of them."
"Alright, in any case, we understand your demands. As long as you can control Vought, we will help you get what you want."
"Then, a pleasant cooperation?"
"A pleasant cooperation."
Kevin and Mallory shook hands, marking a verbal agreement.
Although it was only a verbal agreement, as long as both parties adhered to the promise, they would both be willing to continue the transaction.
After all, maintaining the transaction would not harm their respective interests.
Furthermore, written agreements held little binding power for Supes like Kevin.
Signing an agreement or a verbal agreement, it was all the same.
After finishing his discussion with the CIA's Vice President, Kevin left the bar openly.
Mallory and Butcher watched him leave, and once they were sure he was far away, Butcher asked:
"Are we really going to cooperate with him? Don't forget Lamplighter…"
"He's not like Lamplighter." Mallory interrupted Butcher, "I can tell he genuinely wants to change Vought from within."
"Heh, genuinely."
Butcher pouted, his face full of disdain, a curse word about to escape his lips.
Mallory looked at Butcher:
"That's your flaw, Butcher. You always treat all Supes as enemies, even in cooperation, you won't be serious. But actually… Supes are also people."
"…"
Being human meant they also had desires, dreams, and even… righteousness.
…
"Yo, the skill tree has been so generous lately."
After ending his conversation with Mallory and getting back into his car, Kevin grinned as he saw another skill point added to his account.
The Super Villains incident ignited the internet, allowing Kevin to gain one skill point every day before.
Additionally, his active role in exposing Compound V, and the rampant spread of Compound V online, gave Kevin a substantial amount of skill points.
Accumulated points, plus those from the Compound V incident, brought Kevin's skill points to nine.
And annihilating the Supervillain Alliance also gave Kevin a good number of skill points.
Although this was an organization that had not appeared in the original plot, perhaps because it was related to Kevin, his leading The Seven to eliminate it also earned him five skill points.
A total of fourteen points, plus the one point from the meeting with Mallory just now, made a total of fifteen points.
Kevin's skill point count had increased again.
Not to mention, the two hot topics of Super Villains and Compound V had not yet subsided; even if the popularity of these two topics had begun to show signs of fatigue, Kevin would still gain at least seven or eight skill points in the coming week.
Even with a conservative estimate, he would gain at least five or six skill points.
By then, Kevin could upgrade his Water Manipulation to LV5, which he had not yet improved.
He could also unlock a few more skills.
Not only that, but acting against Edgar in a few days should also bring in a large number of skill points.
Kevin would then be wealthy again.
After organizing his current skill point count, Kevin drove happily towards Godolkin University.
The Supes captured from the Supervillain Alliance yesterday had all been sent to The Woods.
Miyashiro Kenji was among them.
Because he was Kimiko's younger brother, Kevin specifically spared his life, and he was now receiving Cate's brainwashing 'treatment' in The Woods.
The explanation given to Kimiko was that Miyashiro Kenji was injured in this battle and needed treatment, and once he recovered, he could meet Kimiko.
There was no other way, because of Vought's special live broadcast, Kimiko saw Miyashiro Kenji.
After this incident ended, she immediately rushed to ask Kevin and Annie about Miyashiro Kenji's current condition.
To avoid upsetting Kimiko, Kevin could only say this.
Kevin even wondered if it would be okay to let Kimiko know what he was doing to Miyashiro Kenji, if possible.
Miyashiro Kenji was too severely brainwashed, and if this continued, it would definitely harm both him and Kimiko. Kevin felt that even if he told Kimiko the truth, she would probably understand.
However, the premise was that Cate could indeed use memory deletion to override Flash Army's brainwashing of Miyashiro Kenji.
"I should find time to tell Kimiko; after all, he's her brother."
Constant concealment was not advisable. Miyashiro Kenji and Kimiko were siblings, and their experiences were largely similar.
If Kimiko wasn't told in advance, she wouldn't intentionally hide her past with the Flash Army.
This could very likely make Miyashiro Kenji recall his old memories.
After all, memories deleted by Cate could potentially be recovered; in the original plot, Golden Boy recovered some memories, which led him to Professor Brink, ultimately resulting in that tragedy.
Rushing non-stop to Godolkin University, Kevin entered The Woods and found the room where Miyashiro Kenji was being held.
Unlike the rooms where the 'test subjects' were confined, Miyashiro Kenji's room was a laboratory separated by glass.
Any new, useful methods for Supes that were developed would typically be experimented on here.
High-ranking personnel of The Woods could observe the reactions of the test subjects inside through the laboratory glass.
Miyashiro Kenji was currently in this laboratory.
His hands were encased in metal, preventing him from stretching, and he sat huddled in the corner of the laboratory.
Even though there was a bed nearby, he didn't lie on it, his gaze fixed on the direction of the glass.
As if he could see the people outside through the isolation glass.
"How is he?"
When Kevin arrived, Dr. Cardosa was holding a tablet and recording something.
Seeing Kevin approach, he replied:
"He's fine. Aside from the initial frenzy of trying to break the restraints on his hands, he's been very quiet otherwise."
"How are the other Supes you captured?"
"They're like the other test subjects, confined to the supervision level. Should we experiment on them now?"
Cardosa inquired.
Unlike the children in The Woods, these Supes captured from the Supervillain Alliance did not possess their current superpowers from a young age.
They were test subjects who were injected with Compound V later in life and successfully survived.
Dr. Cardosa was very interested in them and wanted to develop a drug targeting Supes through his research on them.
However, Kevin disagreed, so he could only temporarily set aside his thoughts and merely observe these individuals.
Kevin's current status was no longer what it used to be, not only because of his position as Senior Vice President, but also because Kevin single-handedly quelled the public uproar of this Compound V incident.
At least in the eyes of Vought, Kevin convinced The Seven to help Vought eliminate the Supervillain Alliance, diverting public attention.
He therefore gained more prestige within the group, and his status in The Woods also further improved.
Originally, it was agreed that Cardosa, Indira, and Kevin would jointly manage The Woods.
But now it seemed like it had become Kevin's personal domain.
"No need. All other experiments are also suspended. No one is allowed to move until I say to restart."
Kevin commanded.
Cardosa, however, showed a troubled expression upon hearing this:
"This… isn't very good, is it?"
The various experiments in The Woods were strategic policies set by the group's upper management. Even if Kevin held great power in The Woods, openly defying the group's established strategy seemed a bit out of line, didn't it?
"There's nothing wrong with it. Just listen to me."
Kevin glanced at Cardosa indifferently, giving a firm order, then asked:
"Also, did you find what I asked you to look for?"
"Oh, I've already organized the data you wanted. It's all here."
Reluctantly accepting Kevin's command, Cardosa then took out the data disk he had prepared earlier from his pocket and handed it to Kevin.
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