Do It!!!

Raven ran from my room to Dad's room in 19 seconds.

Repeating the survival tips and wake-up lines I'd taught her took 13 seconds.

In 32 seconds, I'd press the Dad Pager. Dad would come flying over, in an estimated 2–5 seconds?

During that time, I'd establish one indisputable fact: Stormfront was the mastermind behind all of this. Then I'd finish her in one blow.

But!!

Ryan looked toward the corner of the set where the equipment was piled up. His mother, Becca, appeared there, her eyes glistening with tears and delight.

Beside Becca stood "Oi Man" Billy Butcher, one corner of his mouth curled up.

Hughie and Mother's Milk came next, followed by Frenchie, who cried out in panic, "No!!! My love, what happened to you?" Kimiko had already collapsed.

But I—

But I... wanted to be a mastermind too...

It was all Starlight's fault. She must have told Becca.

"Ryan, are you okay?"

Stormfront, who had been ready for this, was the first to rush over. Her face full of urgency and concern, she acted as if she cared deeply about his safety.

Ryan shook his head and sighed. "You're forcing me to use violence!"

"What?"

Stormfront froze, wondering if she'd heard him wrong.

But Ryan suddenly pointed into the crowd and yelled to Maeve, who had just arrived, "Maeve, my Super Hearing tells me that person's acting weird!!"

And just as Maeve turned to look where he was pointing, he made another unexpected move.

He abruptly lowered his head, then drove forward with all his strength and slammed straight into Stormfront's arms.

"Ryan?"

Stormfront was completely dumbfounded.

She'd planned to show concern for Ryan and then protect him when another supe attacked him, earning Homelander's absolute trust in the process.

But... what was wrong with this kid?

He'd never acted close to me before, but now he's throwing himself into my arms. Could it be...

He's scared? Wetting himself?

Before she could figure out what was going on with Ryan, a sudden sensation of weightlessness seized her.

At the same time, a sentence rang in her ears, making her hair stand on end and her face change dramatically.

"Mom! Stormfront's a bad woman, and she has bad-guy accomplices here! Get out of here, quick!..."

The next second, a deafening crash blasted a massive hole through the roof of the soundstage.

The crash instantly silenced everyone inside.

They stared up at the hole in the roof, their minds full of questions. Someone had just collapsed, sure—but what was this? What had happened that they didn't know about? Could someone please explain?

"Oh no, Ryan... come back!"

Becca cried out in terror.

At almost the same time, another shout rang out: "Oh my God!! Ryan, you little menace... I'm fucking dead again!"

"BOOM!!!"

A figure plummeted from the sky with a roar. Stones and dirt sprayed across the ground, and a beautiful miniature shock wave spread outward from the impact point the instant it formed.

Stormfront emerged from the rising dust, her entire body radiating a gloomy aura.

Just then, another small figure drifted slowly down.

"Twenty-nine seconds left."

Ryan said something that made no sense to Stormfront.

Stormfront stopped in her tracks, her cold gaze fixed on Ryan.

"You..."

She was about to ask how Ryan knew, but a string of questions crowded into her mind in an instant.

Why did Ryan know about this but not tell Homelander? Why was he doing this? What was his goal?

And... most importantly, why was this Ryan so completely different from before?

"Make the most of your time, Stormfront. This is a good chance for me to measure the gap between us. Don't overthink it. With your limited brain capacity, you won't figure it out."

Stormfront sneered. "I don't know what's gotten into you, but Ryan... you got one thing right."

Ryan casually loosened up his arms and legs, grinning as he waited for her to make her threat.

Now, he had unleashed all his superpowers and dropped every pretense.

"I really should make the most of my time. Edgar still has a supe who can alter other people's minds. Before your father finds out..."

Stormfront gathered her power.

A crackling, pale-purple current appeared in the blink of an eye, writhing like a swarm of snakes.

Stormfront clenched her fist. "I'll capture you!!"

BANG—

The air boomed. In an instant, the powerful current formed a vast magnetic field spanning several kilometers. Its tremendous magnetic force pulled and propelled Stormfront forward.

Her fist, wreathed in wild coils of lightning, slammed mercilessly toward Ryan.

Super Vision!

Super Hearing!

His vision pierced through clothing, making the way her muscles tensed and the direction they moved perfectly clear.

The sound of the air currents picked up by his hearing confirmed the precise path of the incoming fist.

But it also told him that without superhuman reflexes or speed, he couldn't dodge.

"Ha! Then I won't dodge!"

An indescribable thrill surged through Ryan's body. His blood boiled.

His mind raced, and the data for his Steel Body flashed before his eyes in an instant.

[Steel Body · Level 4]

Upgrade experience: 1/200,000

Level 4 effects: --omitted--. Added protection for vulnerable areas (eyeballs, ear canals, mouth, lower...). Added minor energy-attack resistance, light radiation resistance, and low-level mental-damage resistance.

His body could freely tense and relax. Stamina drained rapidly at maximum strength—Super Stamina could replenish lost stamina.

Stormfront's punch was one thing, but the damage from her plasma current was a problem. However...

"BOOM!!"

"Impossible!!!"

Stormfront's savage punch landed, sending Ryan's small body flying.

But she was stunned to discover that her punch had done far less damage than she'd expected.

She could excuse her fist being stopped short of his face by claiming Ryan had reacted quickly. But why hadn't her lightning...

"Your Super Durability shouldn't be any stronger than a low-level effect!"

Ryan halted in midair after being knocked away and lowered his crossed arms. Feigning confusion, he replied, "Can't you control the strength of your own Steel Body?"

"That's not possi— You, you can?"

Ryan grinned, baring his teeth. "I can!"

Edgar and I were both fooled!!

Stormfront instantly lost her composure. She was already furious enough to fly up and kill the little liar when a scorching Heat Vision suddenly shot toward her.

Stormfront raised her hand to block it, but Ryan's shout followed close behind: "Stormfront, guess which other superpower I've been hiding the true strength of."

A sudden chill ran through her. Without a word, Stormfront shifted position with her magnetic field.

The Heat Vision drifted past her and struck the ground... kicking up nothing but a cloud of dust.

I... I got fooled again???

"Ahhh... I, I'll kill you, you little brat..."

Before Stormfront, nearly driven mad with rage, could completely lose control, Ryan had finished setting up his attack and thrown off her battle instincts. Then he fearlessly dove down at her.

Even if we're gonna "do it," I still have to put a "condom" on you to weaken you first.