Farewell, Homelander!

"I will never allow you to slaughter people here!"

"I'll uphold justice!"

After sending Homelander flying, the white figure roared. The next moment, he flew toward Homelander.

"Why?!"

Over the sea, the white figure gripped Homelander by the throat. Homelander's face twisted in pain as he asked.

"Why? What a childish question!"

"Why would you think I'd allow there to be two people in this world who could fly?"

"Buddy! You're in my way!"

The white figure sneered. His words rang directly inside Homelander's mind.

"In your way?"

Homelander's eyes widened at the white figure's words.

The next moment, everything began to fall into place in his mind: the sudden plane hijacking, the gunmen armed with M16s, the man in the crowd who'd led the others in cursing him, and Free Man, who'd arrived just in time with an island after Homelander had been ready to abandon the plane...

There were also all the reporters filming him with their cameras, and those Clowns who'd all risen up against him...

"They're all your people!"

"You son of a— You set me up..."

Homelander finally understood everything. Starlight shone in his eyes.

"What did you expect?"

The white figure looked at Homelander's glowing eyes and raised two fingers.

"Do you love using Heat Vision that much, asshole?!"

The white figure's voice rang directly inside Homelander's mind. The next moment, he jabbed his fingers straight at Homelander's eyes...

"AAAH!!!"

Homelander felt a searing pain in his eyes, and a bloodcurdling scream burst from his mouth.

"Goodbye, Homelander."

The white figure gripped Homelander by the throat and forced him beneath the sea.

"You can pray for The Deep to send hundreds of thousands of salmon to save you..."

"Oh, sorry, I forgot. The Deep's on Huodao Island saving dolphins right now~"

"He doesn't have time to save you!"

The white figure mocked Homelander. His voice became arrows that rang through Homelander's mind, piercing straight into his heart.

"Ugh..."

Homelander tried to breathe, but the moment he opened his mouth, seawater rushed inside.

"Zzzzt..."

Homelander unleashed Heat Vision with all his might, forcing the white figure's fingers away. Then he kicked the white figure—Jupiter—in the chest and struggled upward.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?!"

Just as Homelander was about to break through the surface,

a voice rang inside his mind.

The next moment, he felt a powerful force tug at his cape, dragging him back under the water.

"You bastard..."

Homelander cursed inwardly, but he couldn't escape Jupiter's hold. The gap between their strength was just too great.

"I'm not the bastard. You are..."

"In the eyes of the entire world, you're the mastermind behind all this!"

"You're a demon! A devil!"

"And I'm the angel who destroys devils! The true God!"

Jupiter's voice kept ringing in Homelander's mind. He wasn't just destroying Homelander's body; he was breaking his will, too.

"After you die, I'll remember to leave a bottle of prepared baby formula on your grave~"

"You unloved, unwanted little brat, forever denied a mother's love!"

Jupiter's voice was like a devil's whisper, relentlessly tormenting Homelander's mind.

"What are you waiting for? Even Starlight doesn't love you!"

"Admit it~ No one in this world truly belongs to you, and no one truly loves you!"

"Your existence was nothing more than a fluke in an experiment. You're just a tool for making money, a slave to Vought. You've never had the right to choose, from the day you were born until now. But at least you can still choose one last thing, and no one can stop you from doing it: die!"

Under the sea, Jupiter came up behind Homelander and clasped both hands around his head. His voice didn't stop, continuing to ring inside Homelander's mind.

"..."

Homelander was powerless against Jupiter's overwhelming strength. At this point, he didn't even want to fight back. He knelt forlornly on the sandy sea floor...

"Please tell me..."

"Where... did I go wrong?"

Homelander asked Jupiter. He wanted an answer from this man who was stronger than he was—the strongest man on the planet. He wanted an answer to the question that had always tormented him: why couldn't a child who tried so hard to prove himself and earn love receive genuine love from his "mother"?

"You did nothing wrong..."

"You were just too weak, in both strength and spirit."

At last, Jupiter answered Homelander's question.

"Thank you..."

Homelander understood. He gave a faint, relieved smile.

"You're welcome~"

Jupiter shook his head and suddenly tightened his grip.

"Crack~"

Like General Zod, Homelander stared with open eyes, forever silenced.

"Advanced genes detected. Fuse?"

The system's prompt suddenly rang in Jupiter's mind.

"Of course."

Jupiter answered without hesitation. His most important reason for coming to this world was to gain Homelander's Heat Vision. Only someone with Heat Vision could truly be the Ancestor Person.

"Fusing genes..."

"Fusion successful..."

With Jupiter's consent, the system immediately fused Homelander's genes.

In an instant...

Jupiter felt his hearing and vision grow noticeably sharper.

Of course, those weren't the most important abilities. The most important one was...

Jupiter smiled faintly. The next moment, a crimson glow flared in his eyes...

"Zzzzt..."

An endless beam of light burst from Jupiter's eyes, shot through the sea's surface, and soared into the sky!

One! Two! Three! Four!

The beams came in bursts, destroying everything in their path!

"This is reporter Ronan!"

"We're on the front lines of the battle between Free Man and Homelander!"

"Beams are shooting out of the sea right now—that's Homelander's Heat Vision!"

"May Heaven protect us! Free Man must defeat Homelander, that demon!"

The reporter kept talking and praying, hoping Free Man could defeat Homelander—the depraved beast who'd deceived the entire Free Nation for decades, that monstrous bastard!

"Free Man! Free Man! Free Man!"

Although people had no idea what was happening in the depths of the sea, they could see the beams repeatedly shooting out of the water and imagine how terrifying the battle beneath the waves must be. Tension filled the hearts of everyone staring intently at their televisions. Almost without thinking, they chanted Jupiter's heroic title: Free Man!

"Boom!"

"Boom!!"

The planes dared not fly too close to the sea...

The water would periodically surge into tsunamis dozens of meters high, proof of the brutal battle raging beneath the waves!

The "battle" continued for an entire hour...

When Jupiter figured enough time had passed, he hoisted Homelander's battered corpse and flew toward the surface.

Just before breaking through, Jupiter seemed to remember something.

"Shh~"

He pressed one finger to his lips and looked at the creatures in the sea, signaling that this was a little secret—one they absolutely couldn't tell anyone~

"Splash!"

As the sea's surface broke, the man in the white bodysuit emerged. Without a doubt, he was Free Man!

"Free Man!!!"

All the survivors of Homelander's attack stretched out their hands and shouted with all their might!

"I won!"

Jupiter held Homelander's corpse. There was no joy in his eyes; if anything, he looked sorrowful.

"He... used to be my idol!"

"I really had no idea he was this kind of person."

"My heart aches..."

Jupiter looked at the reporters' cameras, his face carrying a hint of sadness.

"Free Man fought for the justice in his heart! For true justice! For the people! He didn't hesitate to defeat his own idol with his own hands! My God! What kind of spirit does that take?"

The reporters praised Jupiter, wiping tears from the corners of their eyes.

"I hope he can have a proper burial! He did many terrible things, but he also saved many people. There's no doubt that he was once a hero, at least!"

Jupiter spoke to the cameras with a sorrowful expression.

"Free Man chose to forgive Homelander for his crimes! My God! What an extraordinary breadth of heart! Let's celebrate Free Man's greatness!"

The reporters continued praising him after hearing Jupiter's words.

"Free Man is so great. He's a true hero, a God on Earth!"

"Free Man's magnanimity is truly worth learning from!"

"So great! I love you, Free Man!"

The people who'd once told Homelander they loved him now seemed to have changed. They loudly proclaimed their love for Free Man instead.

However, no one seemed willing to mention the people Homelander had killed or hurt in the process.

Everyone longed for the light. No one paid attention to the darkness...

So after Homelander's death, everyone began singing Free Man's praises!

From that day on, there would be no more Homelander in this world, only...

Vought...

"WTF!"

Starlight clutched her head. She couldn't accept it. It felt as though the whole world had changed.

"I'm sorry, but I had no choice..."

A-Train, holding a baby in his arms, apologized to Starlight. Before she could say another word, he vanished from the room.

"What the hell? What's going on with this world?"

Starlight gently rubbed her forehead as she sat in her chair. All at once, everything felt so unfamiliar. It was as if Vought was no longer the Vought she knew, and The Seven no longer belonged to her!

And all of it belonged to...

Starlight watched the live broadcast on television. It all belonged to the man the media were praising on-screen—the man who'd defeated Homelander!