We're not reading Puppy Hero today

Lynn withdrew his hand and took a small sip of the now-lukewarm black tea from his paper cup.

"Besides, those rule-breaking guys outside didn't become that way overnight."

Lynn explained patiently, "Do you know what decade it is?"

John shook his head. His concept of time extended only to the simulated lights switching on and off each day.

"It's the late nineteen eighties."

Lynn pointed at the rather bulky surveillance cameras overhead.

"Human civilization has existed for thousands upon thousands of years, but the explosion in technology only happened in the last hundred years. Those bad people with powers, though, have been around for thousands, even tens of thousands of years."

A trace of confusion flashed in John's blue eyes. "Thousands of years? Then they must be really old."

"Yes, very old, with very deep roots."

Lynn shifted into a comfortable position against the wall, as though telling a long, drawn-out story. "In the distant East, those people who can fly around and split a mountain with a single slash of a sword have their own sects and rules. Through meditation and cultivation day after day, they've accumulated hundreds of years of power. And in Europe, those wizards with little wooden sticks hide in castles ordinary people can't find, studying thick books of magic and passing down their traditions for generations."

Lynn paused, looked at John's earnest little face, and continued, "These powers take ordinary people a lifetime, or even several lifetimes, to learn. But things are different here."

"We have Compound V," John answered before he could continue.

Young as he was, he had heard the researchers mention that term plenty of times in the laboratory.

"That's right. Compound V."

Lynn sighed. "It's like a shortcut. Those grown-ups with superpowers outside can gain power just by drinking a potion. But that power is very unstable, and most of them think they can bully ordinary people however they like because their power came so easily. That's why things are such a mess outside right now."

What Lynn left unsaid was that, in international superhuman circles, Vought International was really just a nouveau riche upstart.

A few decades ago, the hero Vought had been proudest to show off was Soldier Boy, who went around smashing things with a shield.

Now Soldier Boy had disappeared to who knew where, and Payback, the previous generation's hero team, had fallen apart.

Most of the so-called superheroes active outside these days were empty showpieces packaged to make movies and star in commercials.

When they encountered Outsiders or wizards with genuine centuries-old traditions, they often got their teeth knocked out.

That was precisely why Vought International's senior management had become so deeply anxious.

They urgently needed a figurehead who could dominate an entire era.

And that figurehead was the six-year-old blond boy before him, still drinking black tea with his head full of thoughts about how to break other people's legs.

"So, John."

Lynn set his empty paper cup aside and placed both hands on John's shoulders. "You're different from all of them. You didn't mutate by drinking a potion. You were born with the potential to surpass everyone. Until you're fully grown and have learned how to control your own power, going outside will only make things worse."

Only half understanding, John lowered his eyes and looked at his palms.

"Like... Puppy Hero can't run around wherever he wants before he learns to bite, right?"

The comparison made Lynn laugh. "That's pretty much it. You have to wait patiently. Only when you're strong enough, and your head is full of the right rules, can you push open this door and tell those bad people who are hundreds of years old what justice really is."

John nodded hard and picked up another building block, his gaze even more focused than before.

At the same time, in the president's office on Vought International's hundredth floor above ground.

A young Black man in a sharp suit sat on a spacious leather sofa, his expression stern.

He held a freshly printed briefing in his hand, his brow slightly furrowed.

This was the young Stan Edgar, currently a senior vice president at Vought International, though anyone with eyes knew it was only a matter of time before he took over the company.

Madelyn stood before the desk, facing Edgar, her expression even graver than it usually was in the laboratory.

"Has the San Francisco incident been hushed up?"

Edgar set down the briefing, his voice so steady that no fluctuation of emotion could be heard.

"Public relations has already issued a statement claiming it was a series of underground natural gas pipeline explosions."

Madelyn answered quickly, "We also arranged for Black Noir to take a few photos assisting with rescue work in the disaster zone. That's diverted the public's attention somewhat."

Edgar leaned back against the sofa, tapping his fingers lightly on the armrest.

"A natural gas explosion. We've already used that excuse four times this year. The public may be easy to fool, but they aren't idiots."

He stood and walked to the enormous floor-to-ceiling windows, looking down over New York's bustling streets.

"Why did those ronin from Japan come to our territory to cause trouble?"

"Intelligence looked into it."

Madelyn opened the folder in her hands. "It seems they were fighting over a magical artifact that had made its way out of Huaxia. Those ronin clashed with a local Outsider gang. Two of our superheroes tried to mediate, only for the other side to blow up half a street with a talisman. The heroes themselves were also seriously injured and hospitalized."

Edgar gave a cold laugh. "Mediate? They went there to embarrass themselves. Our products are still too fragile in the face of those genuine supernatural powers. The abilities granted by Compound V are too one-dimensional. Against those people with their bizarre methods, they have no way to fight back."

He turned his head and fixed Madelyn with a sharp stare.

"How are things at the laboratory? That boy."

"He's developing perfectly."

At the mention of John, Madelyn straightened a little. "Every one of his physical metrics is breaking its limits every day. Strength, speed, defense-we haven't seen an upper limit yet. Most importantly, we just promoted a researcher named Lynn to handle his psychological counseling. So far, the results have been surprisingly good."

"Oh?" Edgar raised an eyebrow. "That little monster who won't even spare the other researchers a second glance actually listens to a low-level employee?"

"This Lynn seems to have his own methods. He's instilling a very fanatical concept of justice in John."

Madelyn hesitated, but reported the truth nonetheless. "It sounds a little childish, but the boy really has become more disciplined."

Edgar fell silent for a moment, then nodded slightly.

"Let him use whatever methods he likes. As long as he can make that weapon obey, I don't care if he teaches the boy to chant sutras."

Edgar returned to the desk and tossed the San Francisco disaster briefing into the shredder.

Accompanied by the faint sound of the machine devouring paper, Edgar's voice echoed through the spacious office.

"Tell this Lynn that the company can approve whatever resources he wants. But within ten years, I want to see an impeccable Homelander capable of establishing absolute deterrence in this world. I've had enough of cleaning up after those people with swords and wooden sticks."

"Understood, Mr. Edgar." Madelyn nodded.

In the underground laboratory, Lynn suddenly sneezed.

He rubbed his nose, muttered something about whether the air conditioning was set too low, then casually took that day's picture book from the cart beside him.

John immediately dropped the building blocks in his hands and obediently came over.

"We're not reading Puppy Hero today."

Lynn opened a new book, its cover showing a little cartoon figure in a cape. "Today, we're going to talk about how a hero should line up to break their legs when lots of bad people cause trouble in a city at the same time."

John opened his brilliant blue eyes wide and listened with the utmost attention.