Adding Fuel to the Fire

Ashley Barrett turned to Lu Heng, her eyes full of pleading.

But Lu Heng ignored her.

He walked into the conference room, sat in the empty seat beside Starlight, and crossed one leg over the other.

"I think Homelander is right."

Everyone's eyes focused on him.

Especially Homelander's.

"What is The Seven? The symbol of justice across America!"

"Since it is a symbol, it has to be clean and pure!"

"If there are bad apples in the team and they are not removed, they will drag down the entire team sooner or later."

Lu Heng glanced at The Deep on the screen, then at A-Train slumped in his chair.

"Rather than wait for a scandal to break and take a beating, we should take the initiative and prove to the public that The Seven can cleanse itself."

"That would be positive for Homelander's image and The Seven's long-term brand value."

"Capital is short-sighted. They only care about squeezing out the biggest profits in the shortest possible time. They never consider long-term operations."

He turned to Ashley Barrett.

"Vought is big enough to absorb short-term commercial losses, but if The Seven's credibility collapses, that will be the real catastrophe."

Ashley Barrett's lips trembled.

Easy for you to say. It's not your money being lost!

I'm the one who's going to lose her job!

Ashley Barrett was on the verge of breaking down.

Homelander, however, found the speech quite pleasing.

For the first time, the way he looked at Lu Heng carried a trace of... approval.

"See? Even Guardian supports me. Edgar nominated him to supervise The Seven!" Homelander stood, his cape spreading behind him. "That settles it."

He turned to Ashley Barrett.

"Notify the Vought PR Department. Prepare a press conference."

"What?" Ashley Barrett's voice cracked.

"I want all of America to see with their own eyes that Homelander's team has no room for trash."

A-Train completely went limp.

The Deep immediately cut the connection.

He was probably taking it out on that octopus right now.

Translucent, Black Noir, and Maeve all reacted differently.

Only Starlight showed strong support for Homelander.

[Key Character A-Train—Emotional Breakdown]

[Ability Points Gained: +1,247]

[Key Character Queen Maeve—Curiosity, Appreciation]

[Ability Points Gained: +876]

[Key Character Homelander—Excitement, Inflation, Sense of Recognition]

[Ability Points Gained: +1,533]

Current Ability Points: 71,726 / 100,000]

The conference room door was pushed open again.

Everyone turned to look.

Madelyn stood in the doorway.

She wore a perfectly tailored black suit, with impeccable makeup and a deliberately composed expression.

Lu Heng's super-hearing caught her heartbeat.

It had already climbed past a hundred.

She was forcibly suppressing her anger.

"I heard!" Madelyn's voice trembled slightly, though she tried her best to keep it steady. "Our captain has some ideas?"

Homelander met her gaze. After the two stared at each other for a moment, Madelyn walked in with a smile and naturally placed one hand on Homelander's arm.

Her chest brushed against him ever so slightly, hoping to soothe Homelander's emotions through it.

"Shall we talk? Outside? Or right here?"

Homelander glanced at everyone else in the conference room.

"Right here is fine. There's nothing between us that needs hiding!"

Madelyn did not want to put on this act in public, but Homelander gave her no choice.

"Fine." Madelyn could only change tactics. "Ashley Barrett told me about your idea. You want to clean up the internal mess, show it to the public, and improve your image, right?"

"Right."

"It's a very good idea."

The moment Madelyn finished speaking, everyone froze.

Even Homelander himself thought he had misheard.

He had already prepared a whole set of arguments for Madelyn's opposition, yet she agreed right away?

"But your method is too crude. It isn't smart enough!" Madelyn abruptly changed direction. "Think carefully. If you publicly announce that you are kicking out A-Train and The Deep, what will the media write about you?"

"They won't write, 'Homelander is wise and decisive,' or 'Homelander is an incorruptible hero'!"

"Their headlines will be: <The Seven in Internal Conflict, Unequal Distribution of Power>"

"<Vought Management Out of Control, Proving That Private Capital Controlling Superhumans Is an Insult to Taxpayers>"

"<Superhero Team Falling Apart, Where Will the Public's Trust Go?>"

Madelyn's words gradually calmed Homelander down.

Her hand slid from Homelander's forearm to the back of his hand. The touch of her soft skin against his began to erode Homelander's resolve.

This woman knew far too well how to deal with Homelander.

"Listen to me. You cannot control the direction of public opinion. All of this requires the support of a professional team!"

Madelyn leaned close to Homelander's ear. "Let me arrange it, okay? I'll have A-Train and The Deep leave in the most dignified way possible, while maximizing your image at the same time!"

"All I need is... one week!"

She looked up into Homelander's eyes, her gaze as gentle as though she were looking at her own child.

You should know that Madelyn has a child. That child is her family, while you are only her job!

For some reason, Lu Heng's words suddenly echoed in Homelander's mind.

The crack of suspicion had already formed.

Homelander had always been suspicious and sensitive. At that moment, Madelyn's methods felt strangely familiar to him.

For the past decade or so, she had always used methods like this to make him obey.

First she agreed, then she guided him, using physical contact and maternal warmth.

While Homelander was growing suspicious, Lu Heng promptly provided another divine assist.

"Madelyn has a point."

Everyone looked at him.

Only Madelyn's eyes were filled with vigilance.

"But I have a question."

Lu Heng kept his legs crossed, tapping the armrest with his fingers. "You said you needed a week to handle this in the most dignified way possible."

"Then I want to ask, when A-Train got high and ran someone over last time, how long did Vought take to handle it with dignity?"

Madelyn's smile froze.

"Three days!" Lu Heng answered his own question. "Within three days, the Vought PR Department fabricated an excuse about 'mind control,' bought off several mainstream media outlets, and whitewashed A-Train from the perpetrator into the victim."

"It was indeed handled quite dignifiedly."

"But what was the result?"

He pulled out his phone, then remembered... Homelander had crushed it yesterday.

Lu Heng turned to Homelander. "Bro, you still owe me a phone."

Homelander did not respond, but the corner of his mouth twitched violently.

Lu Heng turned to Starlight. "Annie, lend me your phone."

Starlight froze for a moment, then took her phone out of her pocket and handed it over.

Lu Heng opened social media, found the topic page related to A-Train, and turned the screen toward Madelyn.

"Take a look at the comments."

[Mind control? Who are they trying to fool? A-Train is obviously a junkie.]

[Vought is whitewashing him again. Disgusting.]

[Does Homelander know his teammate uses drugs? If he knows and still does nothing, how is he any different from A-Train?]

[The commenter above, do you think Homelander is some saint? He might be the biggest cancer in The Seven!]

[Anyway, I'm never trusting The Seven again. Everyone has seen through Vought's scripted routine!]

Lu Heng read them out one by one, ensuring that everyone in the conference room could hear every word clearly.

Homelander's expression visibly darkened.

Especially at the last two comments, which were clearly aimed at him.

In truth, that was simply how the internet worked. No one could be perfect in everyone's eyes.

Even a living saint would get cursed at online.

But Homelander was nowhere near that rational.