My Reward

Unfortunately, Lin Mo was no ordinary child. He had a full set of adult memories, knew exactly what Vought would become, and when the time came, his Super Brain would tell him what to do.

After the lesson, the teacher placed a small badge bearing Vought's logo in his palm.

"This is a reward."

"You did very well today."

Lin Mo looked down at the badge and could barely keep his mouth from twitching. They really were treating him like a brat.

Still, he thought of Joanna. It was only right to look out for his own.

"Does Joanna get one too?"

"Of course. If she cooperates, she'll get one."

The teacher said, "You can tell her that well-behaved children get rewards."

Lin Mo looked up with an innocent smile.

"I'll tell her."

The teacher nodded in satisfaction. He would certainly tell Joanna. What he told her, though, was up to him.

Before long, another subtle change appeared in the Game Room: this time, they brought in a new puzzle.

It showed an enormous city. Several Superheroes in brightly colored uniforms flew among the skyscrapers, with the Vought logo printed at the top.

The researchers hoped the game would introduce both test subjects to Vought's heroic image.

When Joanna entered, she went straight to Lin Mo as usual.

She touched his wrist, looked into his eyes, and checked his voice.

Only after completing that routine did she sit beside him.

After a brief silence, Lin Mo took out the little badge and toyed with it. His aim was clear: he wanted her to ask about it herself.

What else was he supposed to do, pull it out mysteriously and show it off like some grand achievement?

Fortunately, Joanna noticed it at once. Curious, she reached out and touched its edge.

She controlled her strength well enough not to crush it.

"What's this?"

She had grown a little more fluent lately.

Though she still rarely spoke first, she could now ask simple questions.

"A reward they gave me," Lin Mo said. He could not openly defy Vought when the monitors outside would record every word they said.

"Why?" Joanna asked, puzzled.

"Because I answered a question in class."

Joanna looked toward the Observation Window and pointed at the researchers behind it.

"Obey?"

She had clearly heard the researchers talking among themselves, as well as the lessons played over the speakers.

Lin Mo's eyes shifted. He set the badge on the floor, then picked up two puzzle pieces.

"Do you think obeying is always a good thing?"

Joanna looked at him, even more confused.

The question was beyond her current understanding. She was clever, but her mind was still immature.

After thinking for a while, Joanna answered, "They say it is."

"What else have they said?"

"Don't hit people."

"That part's right."

Lin Mo fitted one puzzle piece into its proper place and pointed to it.

"Because hitting people hurts them."

"They also say we need checkups."

"Some checkups are to see if there's anything wrong with your body."

"That's right too."

"They say to obey."

Joanna paused.

"What does obey mean?"

Lin Mo did not answer immediately. The researchers behind the Observation Window were surely taking notes. He could not simply tell Joanna not to trust Vought.

That would make the company realize at once that its lessons had failed to shape his beliefs. He needed an answer that sounded consistent with the lessons while quietly changing their meaning.

"It means doing what someone tells you to do."

"Everything?"

"Not always."

Lin Mo picked up a puzzle piece that clearly did not belong in the spot before them.

"Look. If I tell you to put this here, do you think that's right?"

Joanna examined the picture and shook her head.

"It won't fit."

"Right."

"I was wrong, and you were right."

Lin Mo handed her the piece and explained patiently.

"Some things people tell you are right, and some are wrong."

"You can listen when they're right."

"And when they're wrong?"

"Ask why first. Learn to judge for yourself."

Inside the Observation Room, Marty, who was keeping the records, frowned.

Lin Mo had not openly contradicted Vought. His answer could even be interpreted as basic judgment training. But it clearly differed from the direct obedience stressed in the lessons.

Joanna took the piece and tried to fit it into the puzzle.

"Why?"

"It means asking them why they want you to do something."

Lin Mo continued, "If they want to check your body, you can ask what they're checking. If they give you medicine, you can ask why you need to take it."

"What if they don't answer?"

"Then you don't have to do it yet."

Behind the Observation Window, Marty's expression darkened.

"That isn't what we taught Lin Mo."

Dr. Vogelbaum did not draw a conclusion right away. He glanced at Lin Mo but still made no move to stop the session.

"He may simply be explaining reasonable obedience in terms a child can understand."

"Just keep watching."

In the Game Room, Lin Mo pointed to Joanna's hand.

"And if someone tells you to do something that would hurt people, you shouldn't do it."

"Not even Vought?"

Joanna looked up and asked in earnest. Researcher Vought had always emphasized that Joanna must obey her orders, but Lin Mo was teaching her something different.

Lin Mo fell silent for less than a second before answering firmly.

"No one."

A brief silence fell over the Observation Room.

Dr. Vogelbaum stood behind the glass, his expression unchanged. He still gave no order to end the session.

Marty and Frank, however, looked uneasy. Marty was the first to lose patience and spoke up anxiously.

"Dr. Vogelbaum, Lin Mo has already broken the rules we taught him. Why aren't we stopping this? Joanna's training could go off track."

"Calm down, Marty. Let's not rush." Dr. Vogelbaum did not seem anxious in the slightest.

That only made them more agitated. Frank was about to offer his own objection when Dr. Vogelbaum stopped him with a question.

"Think about it. If we separate them now, won't Joanna sense something is wrong? And if we cut the session short, might she lose control?"

"More importantly, nothing Lin Mo said was wrong. Constantly drilling obedience into her could backfire. Once Joanna is mature, she'll learn what Vought is really like sooner or later. Can you guarantee she won't turn on us then?"

His words left the Observation Room noticeably quiet. Even Frank and Marty fell silent. Dr. Vogelbaum was right; they had been too focused on whether the experiment might go wrong.

"All right. If there are no objections, let's keep watching." Dr. Vogelbaum turned his attention back to Lin Mo and Joanna.

In the Game Room, Lin Mo was not entirely sure where he stood. What he had just said had basically broken the rules.

After waiting a little, though, he realized the observers had not stopped them. He knew he had gotten away with it. Joanna was still too young.

Even if he had enough power to confront Vought head-on, he had no desire to become a public enemy so soon. Vought might be lacking in other areas, but it knew how to control public opinion through the media.

He could not make his lessons to Joanna look like an open attempt to turn her against Vought. The most effective way to influence her was not to tell her outright that Vought was evil.

Instead, he had to help her develop the most basic judgment. At the very least, when she joined The Super Seven and carried out Vought's assignments, she should think for herself rather than falsify things for a bit of publicity—or even harm innocent people.

Everyone set their own standards for right and wrong. She could ask why before doing something. Having power did not give her the right to hurt those weaker than herself.