You need that fierce hatred of evil

"Exactly, you need that fierce hatred of evil!"

Lynn was very pleased with the results of his brainwashing. He ruffled little John's blond hair. "Of course, you're still young, and you still need to learn what's right and what's wrong. As long as you hold on to that belief, you'll definitely become the greatest hero in the world."

Little John nodded hard and popped the strawberry candy into his mouth. His cheeks bulged, but his gaze became exceptionally resolute.

The afternoon was free time.

Little John was allowed to walk around the isolation corridor outside the laboratory for fifteen minutes.

Lynn followed behind him with his coffee, like a dutiful bodyguard.

At the end of the corridor was a member of the logistics staff responsible for clearing away the trash.

He was a burly fat man who often threw his weight around this oppressive underground facility, taking advantage of his control over supply distribution.

At that moment, the fat man was hiding in a surveillance blind spot, furtively taking a ripe red apple from a fruit basket meant for the senior researchers. He gave it a casual wipe on his clothes, opened his mouth, and took a huge bite.

This was hardly a big deal in the laboratory. People usually turned a blind eye.

But today was different.

Little John stopped in his tracks and stared fixedly at the fat man stealing the apple. The usual childish innocence was gone from his azure eyes, replaced by a chilling coldness.

Lynn followed his gaze, and his heart suddenly sank.

Not good.

Before Lynn could speak, little John was already striding briskly over to the fat man on his short little legs.

The fat man was thoroughly enjoying his apple when he suddenly saw the most dangerous "little lord" in the entire laboratory standing before him. He was so startled that he nearly swallowed the apple core.

"What... what do you want, you little freak?"

The fat man stammered a little and instinctively took a step back.

Little John ignored what he had called him and simply declared loudly, as though delivering a verdict, "You stole something that doesn't belong to you. Stealing breaks the rules. Breaking the rules is evil."

The fat man froze for a moment, then looked around. Seeing that the only person present was Lynn, a low-level researcher with neither power nor influence, he immediately grew bolder.

"None of your damn business, you little brat. Get back to your sterile room, or I'll cut off your nutrient paste today!"

The fat man waved his hand viciously, trying to shoo little John away.

How does this fat guy have the nerve... Lynn silently gave him a thumbs-up.

Little John's expression did not change in the slightest. He merely raised his head slowly, his delicate little face solemn.

"Evil does not need to be forgiven. Bad people must be punished. I am a hero."

As soon as he finished speaking, little John reached out with his seemingly soft little hand and seized the index finger the fat man was pointing at him.

Then he gently bent it backward.

Crack.

The crisp sound of snapping bone was particularly piercing in the quiet corridor.

"Aaaah!!"

The fat man screamed like a pig being slaughtered and dropped to his knees with a thud, clutching the finger bent at a grotesque angle. Cold sweat instantly soaked his back.

Little John looked down at the fat man rolling on the floor. His eyes were perfectly clear, without anger or cruelty, only a matter-of-fact calm.

He even turned to look at Lynn nearby, an innocent smile asking for praise appearing on his face.

"Lynn, I punished evil."

Lynn's hand froze in midair around his coffee cup, and a few drops spilled onto his white coat.

He looked at the fat man wailing on the floor, then at little John, whose face all but proclaimed, "I'm a champion of justice." The corner of his mouth twitched uncontrollably twice.

Lynn took a deep breath and silently sipped his now completely cold coffee.

Forget it. Whatever else, it's better than him firing lasers everywhere in the future.

At least he has a reason for using violence now.

Lynn stepped forward, patted little John on the shoulder, and gave an earnest sigh.

"Well done, John. But next time you encounter theft on this level, breaking one finger is enough. Whatever you do, don't use your heat vision. It makes cleaning up a real hassle."

Little John nodded seriously, indicating that he had committed this new "rule of justice" to memory.

Lynn felt that he still seemed to have a very long road ahead of him as an educator.

For now, though, he decided to get himself a fresh cup of hot coffee.

In the infirmary, the smell of disinfectant mixed with coffee was somewhat pungent.

Lynn leaned against the doorframe, holding his third cup of instant coffee that day as he watched the pandemonium inside.

Bob, the fat man from logistics, was sitting on a hospital bed, howling and drenched in sweat.

Dr. Sarah was a middle-aged woman with heavy dark circles under her eyes. With her brow tightly furrowed, she deftly set Bob's bent finger and applied a splint.

"How many times have I told you not to provoke that test subject?"

Sarah scolded him without looking up, making no effort to be gentle as she deliberately pressed a sore spot. "Who do you think you are? Even if that boy twisted your head off, Director Madelyn would say you accidentally bumped it against a doorframe!"

Bob twitched in pain, his features scrunching together. "I just took an apple! Who knows what suddenly got into that little freak! He actually judged me in that icy voice and said I was stealing!"

"Damn Vought International. Damn Compound V."

Bob cursed as he wiped away his sweat. "I think the higher-ups have gone mad, insisting on making some artificial god. Look at China across the ocean. Pick any old man out of those Qi-practicing Outsiders, and he can smash a tank with one slap. Then look at those wizards in Europe hiding in castles and waving little wooden sticks, or those Onmyōji in Japan playing with talismans... There are so many monsters in this world, but the people upstairs just have to keep the most uncontrollable one in a basement!"

Lynn took a sip of coffee and raised an eyebrow.

In the months since he had transmigrated here, this was also what he had found most absurd about this world.

At first, he had thought this was simply the universe of The Boys, with Vought International dominating through its superpowered people.

Only later, while organizing the laboratory's data archives, had he discovered just how much this world had going on.

There really was an Old Celestial Master on Mount Longhu in China. According to Vought International's top-secret assessment files, that Old Celestial Master's threat level was immeasurable.

Although Europe's Ministry of Magic kept a low profile and rarely meddled in ordinary people's affairs, Vought's higher-ups had always coveted its Space Magic and tried every means possible to steal the technology.

Japan's Onmyōryō even frequently came to blows with Vought's Superheroes over minor friction on the international waters of the Pacific.

And there were all the various specialties of other countries...

Faced with supernatural powers all over the world, Vought International's only source of confidence was Compound V and the little blond boy playing with blocks in the sterile room.

Humanity's future ultimate weapon, Homelander John.

That was also why the company's higher-ups placed such importance on John's upbringing, to the point that their strictness could even be called pathological.

They did not need a person with feelings, only a perfect weapon capable of suppressing superpowered beings across the globe.