The Captain's Downfall

It was still the house Hughie was currently living in.

The moment he pushed open the door, Lu Wen saw the man in a black coat, radiating menace and madness.

The one netizens called the "oi guy"!

There was also the burly Black man, Marvin, nicknamed Mother's Milk! He was also the only remotely normal person in the Boys.

"Hey, Hughie, see that? This friend of yours looks like he wants a thrilling round of hand-to-hand combat with me."

Lu Wen plopped down across from Butcher, meeting his cold, hardened gaze without flinching. Instead, he turned toward Hughie beside him and raised an eyebrow.

Hughie stood awkwardly to the side. Marvin said nothing, while Butcher leaned against the couch with one hand propping up his chin.

A whole room full of people, and not one of them had any fucking manners.

"You're the one who fought Soldier Boy to a draw?"

In the end, Butcher broke the awkward silence.

"No! I won. I left that guy in the dust on a bicycle!" Lu Wen said, a mischievous grin spreading across his face.

"Huh?" All three of them froze and exchanged looks, none of them understanding what Lu Wen meant.

"Ahem. All right, let's put winning and losing aside for now! We called you here to ask just one thing! You fought Soldier Boy and didn't lose. Can you fight Homelander, then?"

Lu Wen didn't answer right away. He quietly watched Butcher's eyes, so eager for an answer.

"I can't fly!"

"What?"

"I don't have any energy attacks, either!" Lu Wen didn't reveal that he also had a chest cannon. He was here to complete a mission and pick up some freebies along the way, not help the Boys exact their revenge.

Butcher said nothing this time, but he already had his answer. He was somewhat disappointed, though he had expected it.

After all, that monster was terrifyingly strong.

But Lu Wen's next words rekindled hope in his heart.

"Oi, don't look so disappointed, old man! Sure, that overgrown baby is strong and hard to kill! But he can't kill me, either!"

Butcher's eyes lit up! Did that mean...

"I can't beat him to death, but I can keep him occupied! If you really want to hire me for something, that's as much as I can do."

With that, Lu Wen leaned back against the couch and waited for Butcher's answer.

Butcher caught his meaning, too. If they wanted Lu Wen to help keep Homelander occupied, they would have to pay a price! Hopefully, it wouldn't be one they couldn't afford.

"What do we have to give you?"

"I want you to help me find where Vought stores Compound V! I'm going to pull off something big!"

Hearing Lu Wen say he wanted to pull off something big, Butcher broke into his signature twisted grin-wicked, excited, crazy, and just a little sleazy.

"You... want to destroy them?"

Butcher thought he had found another kindred spirit!

"No! But what I'm going to do will make things very unpleasant for them! So don't try to recruit me. I can't stay in this place for long." Seeing what Butcher had in mind, Lu Wen shook his head.

"All right!" Butcher shrugged, a little disappointed.

"I can agree to your terms! I'll help you find that fucking Compound V! But let's get this straight first. Will you only act after we find the location, or can you join us now?"

"Right now is fine. I don't have anywhere to go for the time being, anyway. If there's something within my abilities, I'll help."

Hearing that, Butcher finally felt reassured.

He had come at just the right time.

Butcher gave Marvin a look, and Marvin immediately understood.

"I'll go ask around."

With that, the burly Black man left Hughie's home to put his intelligence network to work.

After Marvin left, Butcher looked at Lu Wen, considering his next steps and how to use this powerful helper who had suddenly appeared.

"Rest here for a bit. There are drinks in the fridge! We'll come get you later."

That twisted, lopsided grin still on his face, Butcher pointed at the fridge, then took Hughie out with him.

"Buddy, we'll be back later. Remember to stay in touch." At the door, Hughie turned back to say goodbye.

Fine, at least he had some manners!

After they went outside and got into the car, Hughie couldn't help asking Butcher.

"What do you want him to do?"

"Make these supes tear each other apart, of course! He can fight, can't he? Then let him fight a good one for us!"

"Hey, I think I mentioned that he isn't-"

"All right, all right, little Hughie. I know there's a lot more to his background! But what does that have to do with us? We're just using each other. He wants Compound V, and I want him to fight Homelander or Soldier Boy. What's wrong with that?"

Butcher spoke as though it were perfectly obvious, utterly shameless about it. As long as he could achieve his goal, the other man's origins weren't worth mentioning.

"All right, we should go find that Crimson Countess. We'll find out later whether he's really got what it takes."

That evening, Butcher and the others picked up Lu Wen and headed for the Crimson Countess's location.

This former member of Payback had fallen so far that she was now an adult livestreamer.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk."

On the way, Lu Wen watched the livestream on his phone in the car, clicking his tongue.

"What? Feeling sorry for this old darling?" Butcher glanced at Lu Wen's expression in the rearview mirror and teased him with a sleazy air.

"No! I'm not interested in some dried-up, yellowing old cabbage. I'm just observing a moment of silence for a captain who's about to go down."

Lu Wen turned his phone around and pointed to the shirtless guy connected to the stream on-screen.

But a moment of silence was one thing. Whenever he thought about what that guy was about to experience, he couldn't help wanting to laugh!

Hahaha! (๑´ㅂ`๑)

Inside the suggestively decorated room, thick with a sensual atmosphere, the Crimson Countess had just lain down on the bed. Holding the string of beads a fan had sent her, she was about to perform her special trick for the camera!

Bang!

The crash of the door bursting apart interrupted her spellcasting!

A dark blur shot through the doorway. Before the Countess could turn around to see what was happening, her whole world spun, and then she lost consciousness.

The violent jolt also knocked over the phone streaming the broadcast!

On the other side of the screen, the captain preparing for takeoff had already reached the point of no return. Unfortunately, in the last second before the camera lost its picture... what he saw was a chin covered in a thick beard...

Then the signal cut out, and the unfortunate captain went down in Butcher's thick beard...

"OMG! Mate, you're bloody fast. You didn't kill her, did you?"

Butcher ran into the house and saw the Crimson Countess unconscious on the floor, leaving him very worried about the next part of the plan.

"She's fine. I know my own strength. Splash some water on her and she'll wake up."

Lu Wen hurried through his explanation and promptly left the room! He felt as though staying any longer would make genital warts sprout all over him!

What happened next had nothing to do with him. He was just wondering whether that old popsicle would fight him if he showed up in a bit!

If they fought this time, he was definitely going to give him a thorough beating!

While they waited, Starlight arrived! She had brought Marvin, too.

"What are you doing here?" Butcher asked with a frown. This wasn't part of the plan.

"I just thought we needed some backup! Besides, Starlight might know the information he wants."

Marvin pointed at Lu Wen.

"Okay, then one more question! Who's this handsome guy?" Starlight pointed at Lu Wen.

Butcher stopped the argument that was about to break out and pointed toward a small grove nearby, telling them to go talk over there.

Lu Wen left with Hughie and Starlight. He wanted Starlight's information, and he was also worried that the old popsicle would fight him on sight. Better to let Butcher handle it himself.

Watching the three leave, Butcher glanced at Marvin, who was looking back at him...