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The destruction in Midtown Manhattan made the news that very day.

Homelander saw it in Vought Tower, too. Even through the screen, he could feel the astonishing power of that shock wave.

When had a Supe this powerful appeared?

With his keen senses, he had a strong premonition! This guy might just cause him trouble! And the guy fighting him didn't look like anything good, either!

And this damned Starlight-her endless babbling was so annoying!

After sending the annoying woman away, Homelander found things much quieter.

Several members of The Boys also saw the scene on television. Butcher, Hughie, and Marvin each headed toward the site.

Unlike the other two, Hughie caught that brief moment of combat in the surveillance footage shown on the news.

Isn't that Lu Wen? How did he end up fighting Soldier Boy? Hughie was horrified. What the hell is going on?

But he didn't dare say anything. More precisely, he didn't know how to explain why he knew a friend who could fight Soldier Boy without getting killed.

Butcher took the changing expression on his face as nothing more than the cowardly kid getting scared again.

After arriving, they fooled the police with forged credentials and entered the cordoned-off area. Looking at the high-rise with a deep furrow gouged through it and the ground cracked all over, Butcher couldn't hold back a curse.

"Fucking hell!"

That destructive power...

Once Butcher confirmed that Soldier Boy had done this, he immediately settled on a new plan! He knew Soldier Boy's fighting strength. He was one of the few who could stand up to Homelander!

As for that guy on the news who could go toe-to-toe with Soldier Boy...

He paid him no mind. Didn't know him! Not much value there.

After they left the site, Hughie sat in the back seat, listening to Butcher and Marvin argue up front about what they should do next. Quietly, he took out his phone, found Lu Wen's contact information, and sent a message.

[I saw you fighting Soldier Boy on the news. Are you okay? How did you end up fighting him? Are you hurt?]

After sending it, Hughie quietly waited for Lu Wen's reply while considering how to tell Butcher and the others about Lu Wen's existence.

After all, the way they'd met was a little hard to believe...

At the same time, he knew that if they could bring Lu Wen in to help deal with Homelander, their chances of winning would improve!

He just didn't know whether the mission he posted could include that.

After managing to get a dose of temporary Compound V from Butcher, he suddenly realized that this seemed like an opportunity!

"We... might be able to get some backup!"

Butcher and Marvin couldn't make sense of Hughie's inexplicable remark.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I know what I'm about to say might sound a little crazy! But believe me, I'm absolutely not lying!"

Then Hughie told the two of them about Lu Wen.

"What the fuck? You're saying you know the guy who fought Soldier Boy to a standstill?"

"Uh... yes..." Hughie began explaining how.

But he didn't go into that much detail! He only said they'd met by chance and weren't close! Still, if they spent some money, they might be able to negotiate hiring him.

After riding for over ten minutes and making sure no one had followed him, Lu Wen picked an alley at random and turned into it.

He respectfully dumped the heroic old wreck of a bicycle that had left Soldier Boy in the dust in a corner of the alley.

As for what the bicycle's original owner thought... he couldn't worry about that anymore. The guy had run for his life anyway. Besides, he'd more or less saved the man's life, so he would count this as repayment.

After casually hanging the mysterious money-demanding NPC that spawned as an alleyway specialty from a streetlight, Lu Wen found a nearby hotel at random and booked a room to rest.

Once inside, the first thing Lu Wen did was change his clothes. The outfit he'd been wearing had been torn apart in his fight with Soldier Boy. The owner had even mistaken him for a homeless man and nearly thrown him out.

That fight hadn't exactly been a loss, but it hadn't been a gain, either.

At least he'd confirmed one thing! His stats really were on par with Soldier Boy's. The V1 provided by the system hadn't enhanced anything.

His fighting skills were a weak point. He couldn't win head-on, but his opponent's reactions were slow. Next time, he could try using his speed to run circles around that old popsicle.

Lu Wen made a mental note of this, then opened his phone and checked it. Hughie hadn't sent any new messages.

Feeling the phone vibrate in his pocket, Lu Wen saw Hughie's message and replied.

[I'm fine. I just ran into him by chance. The guy had a PTSD episode and nearly got a whole bunch of people killed.]

After sending it, Lu Wen simply lay down on the bed.

This was much more comfortable.

A little while later, his phone vibrated.

He took it out and checked. It was Hughie's second message: "Butcher has confirmed Soldier Boy's whereabouts. We might make a move tomorrow."

Less than a minute later, he added another: "If you're available, could we meet tomorrow morning?"

Lu Wen looked at the screen and thought for a moment before typing back: "What time? Where?"

"Eight in the morning. The old parking lot under the Brooklyn Bridge."

"Got it."

After putting down his phone, Lu Wen summoned the system panel, opened the Trait Shop, switched back to the Marvel section, and began searching.

Soon, he found what he wanted.

Winter Soldier/Military Combat (green), two thousand points per minute!

"This is the one!"

Without purchasing it right away, Lu Wen closed the system panel. He only needed to know what to buy next time.

The next time he ran into Soldier Boy, he would not only leave him in the dust with his speed but also use technique to give him a thorough beating! One minute would be enough.

Meanwhile, in the office on the top floor of Vought Tower-

Homelander stood before the floor-to-ceiling window with his back to the empty conference table, looking out at Manhattan's skyline.

His face was reflected in the glass. His expression wasn't exactly good or bad, but the light in his eyes was a little darker than usual.

He had just imprisoned Maeve. He hadn't expected her to actually choose to stand against him.

But none of that mattered. He would take care of everything!

Pushing the matter of Maeve out of his mind, what occupied his thoughts most now was just who those two unfamiliar Supes were!

Vought had no records of them. It seemed two extremely uncontrollable risks had appeared.

The next morning, in the old parking lot near the Brooklyn Bridge, Lu Wen stood on a dust-covered stretch of open ground, watching Hughie push open the half-closed chain-link gate and walk in.

Hughie carried two cups of coffee and handed one over. "How did you sleep last night? From what I saw on the news, that place took some serious damage."

Lu Wen took the cup. "Not bad. I wasn't really hurt. Just ruined an outfit."

Hughie sat on the low wall nearby and took a sip of coffee.

"Butcher wants to move this afternoon! He said that now Soldier Boy has shown himself, we can't give him time to adapt. The longer we wait, the more he'll understand this world, and the harder he'll be to control."

Holding his coffee, Lu Wen didn't respond immediately. He gave Hughie, who was looking down at his toes, a couple of scrutinizing looks.

"So you told Butcher I was the one fighting Soldier Boy? You want me to join you?"

At that, Hughie raised his head.

"Would you?"

Lu Wen rolled his eyes at Hughie.

"What kind of nonsense are you talking about? Why would I join you out of nowhere? Don't forget, your mission brought me here! I'm only responsible for system missions, and I completed yours, but you still haven't settled it!"

"Sorry, I forgot." Hughie scratched his head awkwardly, summoned his subsystem, and settled the mission.

[Mission complete. Points have been credited to the host's account.]

Hearing the system notification, Lu Wen looked at Hughie again.

"This mission is complete. If you want me to help you with anything else before I leave, there is another option!"

Hughie's eyes instantly lit up.

"Really? What are your terms?"

"Take me to see Butcher."