Jerome's Revenge

Kent Farm.

The two police officers left the farm without any leads. They had compared several witness statements, but the results were ultimately far from satisfactory.

Just as Clark had said, it was as if this had been some kind of paranormal incident.

Clark followed his father Jonathan back inside.

"What happened?" Jonathan's wife, and Clark's adoptive mother, Martha, looked at the father and son worriedly. "I heard the police talking about a conflict at school. Clark, did you get into a fight with one of your classmates?"

Clark shook his head. "No, it wasn't me, Mom. I didn't fight."

Jonathan seized the chance to speak. "Then who broke Whitney's arm, Clark? I could see the guilt in your eyes."

As the son he had raised with his own hands, Jonathan knew Clark's every subtle expression better than anyone.

"And why are you associating with someone from the Luthor Family?" Jonathan rubbed his forehead, a headache coming on. "The Luthors are all polished selfish people and scheming bastards."

"Jonathan!" Martha shot her husband a displeased look. "You can't judge someone you've never even met like that."

"No, it's the opposite." Jonathan shook his head, his gaze settling on Clark. "When I went into town this afternoon to buy groceries, I ran into Lana Lang's aunt. She told me about the youngest son of the Luthor Family. This morning, he took Clark street racing and nearly crashed into a school bus!"

"But he didn't hit it, Dad. Jino had it under control." Clark raised his head and instinctively argued back. He had seen Jino's terrifying reaction speed; avoiding a school bus was as easy as breathing for him.

"Jino." Jonathan repeated the name. "Your new friend is Jino Luthor, right?"

Jonathan shook his head with a pained expression. "But that kind of behavior clearly disregards other people's safety. It's reckless, Clark."

"If possible, I'd like you to stay away from him."

Even without meeting him, Jonathan could infer Jino's personality from what he had done around town: an extreme indifference toward strangers.

He did not want Clark spending time with someone like that and being influenced into becoming a person with no sense of responsibility.

"Yeah, you're always telling me what to do." Clark lowered his head, his face full of impatience. He raised his fingers one by one, listing his father's restrictions.

"I can't play football, and I can't take part in track events either."

Clark looked up rebelliously. "I've been trying so hard to be an ordinary person, Dad. But now I even have to follow your wishes when it comes to who I make friends with?"

"Clark, that's not what I mean."

Jonathan tried to explain, but Clark did not want to listen. He stood up, leaving the food on his plate untouched, and headed upstairs.

"Jonathan."

Martha placed a hand on Jonathan's shoulder, her tone reproachful. "You're controlling him too tightly."

Jonathan sighed, his expression complicated. "I know, but I'm even more afraid that he'll lose control of his abilities and expose himself to this world."

Tuesday.

Early morning.

Jino said goodbye to Lex. One headed to high school, while the other planned to inspect the Luthor Family's chemical plant in town.

Lex drove his gleaming blue sports car down a country road, billboards and hedges on both sides flying past his windows.

"Time for a smoke." Lex held the steering wheel with one hand and reached into his pocket with the other, intending to light up and relax.

Boom!

An explosion sounded in the distance. Lex looked up to see a thin young man suddenly standing in the middle of the road, smiling at him eerily.

"Your time is up, Lex!"

The young man raised both hands, and countless currents instantly covered his arms.

"Hah!"

With a low shout, the young man unleashed thick, python-like bolts of electricity that struck the sports car's tires.

Bang! Bang!

The tires exploded, and the sports car spun out of control, racing toward the roadside.

"Oh, shit!"

Lex jerked the wheel, but the car remained uncontrollable and smashed through the guardrail beside the road bridge.

Splash!

The shattered metal railing fell into the freezing river along with the sports car.

At the same moment Lex plunged into the water, Clark happened to be passing along that road at Super Speed.

He saw with his own eyes a man conjure electricity in his hands and blast a sports car into the lake before fleeing the murder scene at incredible speed.

"I have to save him."

Clark stopped and dove into the lake without hesitation, swimming toward the bottom.

Inside the sports car,

Icy darkness, cold, and suffocating pressure—those were Lex's first sensations.

Lake water poured through the gaps in the doors. The expensive sports car had now become a watery cage meant to claim his life.

"Mmph!"

Water flooded Lex's mouth and nose. He struggled to open his eyes, but all he could see was a murky blur.

After choking down several mouthfuls of water, Lex's vision gradually blurred from his inability to breathe. Through the haze, he seemed to see a figure slowly swimming toward him.

Splash!

Clark plunged into the water and shot through the lake like a torpedo, reaching the car in an instant.

Glancing at Lex, who had passed out inside from choking and lack of oxygen, Clark grabbed the roof and tore hard. The sturdy roof was ripped open by his tremendous strength, leaving a gaping hole.

Clark reached in, seized Lex by the collar, and dragged him out of the lake.

He laid the unconscious Lex flat on the grass by the lake and bent down to listen to his heartbeat.

The heartbeat was weak. Clark had no time to hesitate. He pried open Lex's mouth and began giving him rescue breaths according to the first-aid knowledge Jonathan had taught him when he was young.

"Don't die. Hang on!"

Following his first-aid training, Clark gave Lex air while pressing both hands together against Lex's chest.

Under Clark's repeated compressions, Lex soon opened his mouth and spat out a huge mouthful of lake water.

Seeing Lex awaken, Clark's face showed immense relief.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

The awakened Lex coughed violently. He slowly opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was a youthful, immature face.

"You saved me?" Lex looked up at Clark.

"Yeah. You looked like you needed help. I saw some strange guy attack you." Clark frowned as he described the figure that had suddenly appeared.

"That's right. It was a premeditated murder." Lex smiled calmly, though Jino's warning from the previous night came to mind. Perhaps the person who had just attacked him was Jerome, who had suddenly disappeared not long ago and gained superpowers.

Smallville High School.

In the hallway, Jino slung his backpack over one shoulder, shoved one hand into his pocket, and headed for the classroom while ignoring the strange looks from the students around him.

Beep, beep.

Jino took out his phone and pressed the answer button.

Clark's voice sounded from the other end. "Jino, your brother fell into the water!"