Homelander

In other words, Homelander probably thought his own child was standing beside him right now.

And that they had just fought to a draw.

Ryan watched Homelander approach. His gentle eyes held something unmistakably paternal.

Homelander spoke.

"Where are you going?"

"Since when do I have to report my whereabouts?"

"I want to know."

"..."

The familiar exchange exhausted Ryan. He could already feel a headache coming on. If he wanted Homelander to stop following him,

he would probably have to fight him again. But what was the point of a fight if no one bled?

After their fight, Ryan knew all too well that their defenses were too strong. If they fought again, the people caught in their path would be the ones bleeding.

He didn't want that, so he sighed helplessly.

"What do you want?"

"Nothing. I just happen to be going your way."

Homelander stood beside Ryan, wearing an innocent expression.

Ryan found it deeply irritating.

"You don't even know where I'm going. How can it be your way?"

"So tell me where you're going, and then it can be."

"..."

Ryan had nothing left to say. Usually, he was the one driving other people up the wall. Today, he finally understood how they felt.

As they walked down the street, Ryan noticed the looks directed at Homelander.

Admiration, affection, longing—the gazes of passersby told Ryan just how deeply the people of this country loved the man beside him.

Too bad they didn't know that beneath his shining public image lay darkness and cruelty.

A lonely childhood might have caused it, but his twisted personality was no less real for that.

There was something else on Ryan's mind as they walked.

"We fought all the way from New York to Gotham. What did Vought International say?"

Homelander thought for a moment, then smiled reassuringly.

"Madelyn announced it was a superhero exercise. Vought International has sent people to settle things with everyone affected by the damage."

"So even after you took down a fighter jet, everything's fine?"

"That's right. Even after they sent a fighter jet to attack me, everything's fine."

Homelander spoke as though the matter was settled, his face practically saying, I'm being very generous.

The weather wasn't particularly hot. As he walked beside Ryan, he happened to see another father buy his child ice cream.

He followed suit and bought two ice creams, then brought one over to Ryan.

"It's so cold out. Have some ice cream to cool down."

"..."

Ryan had no reason to refuse a kind gesture. He took the ice cream and had a bite.

It was vanilla.

It melted on his tongue, leaving only sweetness and a delicate fragrance.

Ryan turned and saw Homelander eating his own ice cream.

After a few bites, Homelander picked up the conversation again.

"And you're a member of The Seven now. Madelyn plans to present that aerial battle with me as your debut."

"Debuting with a fight? Won't that make a bad impression?"

"No. Ryan, take out your phone and go online. You'll see how curious people are about you. They're amazed you could hold your own against me."

"Are you bragging?"

"It's a fact everyone in this country knows: I'm hard to beat."

Homelander's distinctive outfit stood out wherever he went.

He chatted with Ryan, thoroughly accustomed to the admiring looks from people on the street.

Ryan kept walking with Homelander in tow. Before long, they both stopped.

Homelander looked up at the place where Ryan had stopped. Judging by the sign, it seemed to be a video store.

But a strip of tape had been put up outside, and the shelves and walls inside showed signs of damage. It looked as if the place had been robbed.

Ryan pulled the tape aside and entered the video store. Hughie was nowhere to be seen.

Only the toppled shelves on the floor remained to show that something had happened here.

He looked around the shop. What caught his attention was a wire along the base of the wall. Someone had yanked it free of the tacks holding it in place.

Parts of it were charred black.

The scene looked as though someone had been electrocuted.

Ryan examined the wire, then left the video store alone.

He recalled Translucent saying earlier that he would find Hughie and ask why he had planted a listening device in the conference room.

Translucent hadn't returned to Vought International, and no one had seen him at the meeting that morning.

Given the state of the video store, there was a good chance

something had happened to Translucent.

Without hesitation, Ryan told Homelander, who had stayed close behind him, what he suspected.

"Someone actually went after a superhero?"

"You don't look worried."

"Bullets can't even penetrate Translucent's skin. What's there to worry about?"

Homelander showed no urgency. He said he would take a look around, then rose into the air and flew off across the sky.

Ryan stood there, dumbfounded. Homelander had no idea where Translucent was and no solid leads.

When he said he would look for him, he was relying entirely on his convenient powers.

X-ray vision and long-distance sight.

He was going to use those abilities to search for a needle in a haystack.

That would take far too long. Ryan didn't follow him into the air. Instead, he headed back to Vought International.

He asked the staff whether Translucent had returned. They told him Translucent was invisible, so even if he had, they wouldn't have seen him.

Ryan decided he shouldn't have asked. Still, he had another way to find out what had happened to Translucent.

That way was Hughie. Given the state of the video store, Ryan figured he had every reason to ask Hughie a few questions.

He called Hughie's cell phone. Ryan had visited the video store often enough to save both Billy's and Hughie's numbers.

When he called, Hughie seemed to be somewhere with a terrible signal. It was almost like his phone was out of service.

In any case, the call wouldn't connect.

After several failed attempts, Ryan couldn't keep dialing forever. He handed his phone to a Vought International employee and told them to try again every few minutes.

The employee was to contact him as soon as the call went through. Ryan, meanwhile, went to Vought International's Technical Department.

With the equipment there, Ryan could pinpoint the phone's location if Hughie answered his call.

Then he would know exactly where Hughie was.

He didn't have to wait long. About half an hour later,

a Vought International employee brought the connected call to the Technical Department and handed the phone to Ryan.

The Technical Department told him to keep Hughie on the line so they could lock onto his location.

Ryan had no choice but to make small talk.

"I went to the video store just now. The place was trashed. Is everyone all right?"

"You're worried about someone else? Enough to call and check?"

Hughie's voice came through the phone. He sounded exhausted from a sleepless night, and his voice trembled like he'd done something wrong.

Pretending not to notice, Ryan watched the Technical Department's computer as it steadily narrowed down Hughie's location.

But if possible, Ryan would rather Hughie tell him where he was himself.

He switched the phone to his other ear.

"Where are you? I want to see you."