I really don't have time to keep playing with you~

"What are you doing here?" Butcher looked at Lu Wen.

"Hughie said that old popsicle was a little unreliable and asked me to help you out if I had time. I was bored, so I came to take a look."

Butcher glanced at Hughie. Hughie scratched his head awkwardly; he hadn't expected this either.

"Since everything's fine, I'll head out! But remember to call me when you go after Homelander." Glancing in the direction Soldier Boy had left, Lu Wen got ready to leave.

He really didn't want to share a space with that nasty old bastard.

"No need. We can handle it."

Butcher raised his chin, looking like a real badass.

Lu Wen had only taken two steps when those words made him stop. He slowly turned his head to look at Butcher.

"Give it a rest, Butcher. Quit bullshitting! Back in Vermont, the three of you couldn't even pin down an injured Homelander. Now that he's recovered, how are you going to handle him?

"With your knockoff Cyclops act? Or that old popsicle's chest cannon, which is harder to squeeze out than a constipated old man's shit? Don't make me laugh~"

Injured?

Hughie and Butcher exchanged a glance, each seeing confusion on the other's face.

"Before he went to your place, we had a fight! I lost! But I injured him, then I ran away."

Copying Butcher's earlier manner, Lu Wen showed off his record in an extremely pretentious tone.

"How do I know you're telling the truth?"

"Didn't you notice how new Homelander's suit was? His old suit got damaged during our fight. He would definitely replace it with one made of exceptionally shiny fabric."

At that, Hughie and Butcher exchanged a glance! Come to think of it, Homelander's uniform really had looked new that day.

As their thoughts churned, Soldier Boy returned with an extremely ugly expression.

"Heh~ Have fun on your own for now. Just call me when it's time."

With that, Lu Wen turned and left.

"What would we call him for?" Soldier Boy asked Butcher, looking thoroughly displeased.

But before Butcher could answer, Lu Wen raised his right hand high without looking back and gave him the internationally recognized gesture of friendship.

"You fucking *****!" Soldier Boy swore, then broke into a run after Lu Wen on his long legs.

But...

A few minutes later, Soldier Boy stood in the middle of the woods looking constipated. Lu Wen was long gone.

For those few minutes, he had run for all he was worth, but he just couldn't catch up! That guy had walked forward at an unhurried pace, yet he was bizarrely fast!

The bastard had dodged the shield he threw, too. In the time it took him to bend down and pick it up, the guy had vanished.

His feelings had already been complicated! A fight would have been a good way to blow off steam, but now look! He was even angrier.

"Idiot. You can't even jump! Don't you know how slow you run?"

Lu Wen raised his middle finger behind him again. Without so much as mussing his hair, he had left Soldier Boy in the dust once more.

This trait is so handy. Hahahahaha~

The next day, at Marvin's house...

The burly Black man with a compulsion for cleanliness watched in distress as Queen Maeve's lovely feet, covered in mud from who knew how much walking, rested carelessly on the coffee table he had wiped so clean it reflected the light.

"What are you looking at?" Maeve's constant staring made Lu Wen uncomfortable all over.

"You give me the feeling you're up to no good."

"Shoo~ Go play somewhere else." Lu Wen rolled his eyes at Maeve, unsure what she wanted.

He was trying to make himself as inconspicuous as possible. He had been here for quite some time, and now he just wanted to finish robbing Vought and leave.

Judging by the group, it probably wouldn't be long. All he needed was someone to keep Homelander occupied for a while.

"Pfft~"

The others, who were discussing killing Soldier Boy, all turned to look at Lu Wen.

"Is something wrong?" Starlight asked.

"Nothing. I just think you're kind of cute." Lu Wen stood and stretched, still smiling.

"What do you mean by that?" Marvin demanded with a frown.

"Nothing. As long as you're happy! I'm going to scout Vought again. Good luck. I believe in you."

Grinning, Lu Wen gave them a thumbs-up and left Marvin's house under their puzzled or displeased gazes.

He certainly wasn't going over to Butcher's to join in their squabbling. Besides, the moment they met, he would definitely end up fighting that nasty old popsicle again! Better to save some energy for dealing with Homelander later.

Time ticked by, and the sky gradually darkened until the city lights came on and night completely enveloped New York City.

"Buddy, I'll give you anything. I'm even willing to suck your dick! Please, let me go!" With his face bruised and swollen, The Deep knelt before Lu Wen, begging in terror.

The corner of Lu Wen's eye twitched...

"Why do these assholes always think below the belt whenever they get into trouble? Homelander did it when he begged for mercy, and now this fish boy's doing it too! Can't they offer something worth a damn?"

Lu Wen gently raised his hand and slapped him, neither too lightly nor too hard, but hard enough to make The Deep dizzy.

Just a few minutes earlier, he had been drinking soda and scouting the place, waiting for the Boys to make their move so he could take advantage of the chaos to rob it.

But in this very deserted, dark alley, a furtive-looking Deep had suddenly appeared!

Showing up was one thing, but the moment he saw Lu Wen, he had to start shouting in alarm! Why couldn't he have just walked past quietly like nothing was wrong? He just had to give away Lu Wen's position!

At such close range, with Homelander's super hearing, Lu Wen didn't want Homelander discovering him this early. Getting discovered would really hold things up!

So he had given fish boy a beating while he was at it.

From The Deep's perspective, though, he was undoubtedly in despair...

After Homelander had just forced him to murder a presidential candidate, he had planned to sneak back to Vought to report in. Who could have imagined he would run into that unknown Supe who could fight Soldier Boy!

That damned mouth of his! Why had he needed to shout? He could have just pretended he hadn't seen him! Now he was done for...

Watching a helicopter rise from the roof of Vought Tower up ahead, Lu Wen knew it was almost time.

"Two choices. One, I blow your head off right now. Two, you take me to the warehouse underneath Vought where they keep Compound V. Pick one."

Lu Wen grabbed The Deep by the collar and hauled him up.

"Well... if you want Compound V, I can get you a few vials. The warehouse is a highly classified area with dedicated guards. We can't go near... go! I'll take you right now!"

Seeing Lu Wen raise his fist, The Deep hurriedly changed his tune!

"That's more like it. You could've just said that from the start." Lu Wen released The Deep's collar. The latter staggered two steps before regaining his balance, clutched his neck, and coughed twice, bending a little lower than before.

The Deep led the way. As they turned out of the alley, he hunched his neck like a plucked quail and hugged the wall as he headed toward Vought Tower, still muttering, "Promise you won't kill me, or I won't take you."

"Keep talking shit and I'll kill you right now."

The Deep shut up.

After they entered Vought Tower, Vought employees were hurrying to leave everywhere. Blending into the crowd made them less conspicuous.

The Deep staggered ahead, leading the way and looking back as he walked, afraid Lu Wen might punch him the next second.

Lu Wen followed a step behind him at an unhurried pace, his gaze sweeping over the walls on either side of the corridor and the security cameras overhead. Several cameras had already been destroyed. Judging by the breaks, they had only just been violently ripped apart. Traces of torn metal remained along the edges, as though something hard had forcibly pried them open.

It was probably the Boys' work. That saved him some trouble.

"Turn left up ahead for the freight elevator. Take it down to basement level three, then walk another fifty meters to the warehouse," The Deep said quietly, his voice still trembling.

"But that elevator requires both fingerprint and iris verification. I don't have clearance..."

"Just lead the way."

The Deep didn't dare say anything else. He hunched his neck and kept walking.

With The Deep guiding him, Lu Wen soon reached the storage area. Before they even arrived, he spotted a large group of fully armed security personnel.

"That's it, but..." Before The Deep could finish, Lu Wen's fist grew larger and larger in his pupils!

"All right, you can log off now, fish boy."

The headless body slowly toppled over. Before he even realized what had happened, The Deep's miserable life came to an end.

Stepping over the blood on the floor, Lu Wen entered the guards' field of view!

"Who are you? Leave immediately!" At the security captain's sharp shout, a dense cluster of infrared beams converged on Lu Wen.

Lu Wen also noticed three men and two women among the crowd, watching him with keen eyes.

Supes?

Another warning from the security captain reached his ears, along with the sounds of gun safeties being disengaged.

A fierce, deadly battle seemed about to unfold!

But...

"I really don't have time to play with you~"

Orange light bloomed from Lu Wen's chest...