A meeting of The Seven!

He pointed toward the empty seat at the head of the table on the right, then raised his eyes and surveyed the room.

"Let us officially welcome the newest member of The Seven-the new Translucent, JS!"

As his words fell, everyone wore a different expression.

A clear flicker of surprise crossed Queen Maeve's eyes, and her brows creased slightly. Her first thought was that Homelander had killed Translucent and then found a new one.

A-Train and Starlight looked curious, their eyes roaming over Solomon, completely unable to make sense of the situation.

Why had Translucent suddenly been replaced when he had been perfectly fine?

Only The Deep wore an inscrutable expression. He knew that the previous Translucent had already died a gruesome death-an extremely gruesome one.

As Homelander's number-one lackey, The Deep reacted immediately, leading the applause with a fawning smile plastered across his face.

Seeing this, the others could only clap along despite their confusion. Only Queen Maeve continued to frown, staring sharply at Homelander, her expression full of bewilderment and doubt.

She simply could not understand why Homelander would be so irrational as to rashly kill Translucent and replace a core member.

Homelander had long since noticed Maeve's gaze. He spoke calmly, his tone deliberately gentle, as though explaining himself, or perhaps soothing her:

"Maeve, don't look at me like that. I'm saddened by Translucent's passing too, but we can't let the public know the truth. If the news gets out, it won't just cause panic. It'll undermine The Seven's credibility. That's why I found JS and had him become the new Translucent."

A-Train suddenly caught on and cried out, his face filled with disbelief.

"Translucent is dead?!"

Though he had not been particularly close to Translucent, he had never imagined that a fellow member of The Seven would fall so suddenly.

Starlight looked even more shocked, her eyes widening slightly.

She had only joined The Seven a few days ago and had not yet fully adjusted to the pace here, only to witness the demise of a superhero firsthand. Her heart was filled with shock and unease.

Queen Maeve withdrew her gaze and glanced at Solomon, who remained invisible with only his clothes floating in the air. Her tone was cold and utterly unconcerned.

"If Translucent's dead, then he's dead."

Homelander shook his head gently, his tone instantly turning earnest.

"Maeve, I know Translucent had some unsavory habits, but he was still our teammate. We have to find whoever killed him and avenge him. Besides, they've already openly declared war on us! Deep!"

The Deep immediately straightened up, nodded respectfully, and began slowly:

"A few days ago, a good friend of mine, um, a porpoise, found a zinc box under the harbor. Inside was Translucent..."

The Deep instinctively glanced at Solomon and corrected himself:

"The remains of the previous Translucent. And inside the box were the words 'Coming for you.'"

The smile instantly vanished from Homelander's face, and every trace of gentleness disappeared. His gaze grew increasingly vicious, and the atmosphere around him abruptly turned oppressive.

"They knew perfectly well that I can't see through zinc containers, so they deliberately used a box like that for Translucent's body. But they also knew you could find it, Deep. This wasn't a simple murder. It was a declaration of war against me, a provocation against all of The Seven!"

His gaze swept over everyone at the conference table like a blade, the viciousness in his voice chilling. Everyone present lowered their heads, none daring to meet his eyes for fear of being caught in his fury.

Hearing Homelander say that he "couldn't see through zinc," he suddenly remembered something.

Black Noir seemed to be allergic to something!

But no matter how hard he racked his brains, he could not remember what it was.

Black Noir's strength and defense undoubtedly far surpassed his current capabilities. In a head-on fight, he had no chance of winning.

Besides, Black Noir was the brother Homelander trusted most. If he rashly attacked Black Noir, Homelander would absolutely kill him without hesitation.

But if he could find that allergen and expose Black Noir to it without anyone noticing, he might be able to defeat him easily and obtain his abilities.

That way, he could improve his strength without exposing himself. It was simply the perfect plan.

What exactly was he allergic to?!

Solomon sank into thought, his brows tightly knitted. Completely immersed in his own thoughts, he did not hear a single word Homelander said afterward.

Just then, the voice beside his ears suddenly stopped, and a slight force struck his leg. Someone had kicked him.

Solomon abruptly snapped out of it, looked up, and instantly froze.

Everyone in the room was looking at him, especially Homelander, whose burning eyes seemed about to turn into laser beams as he stared fixedly at him. The oppressive aura around him threatened to swallow a person whole.

Solomon hurriedly cleared his throat twice, pretending to be flustered and excited, his tone somewhat apologetic:

"Ahem, sorry, Homelander. I've only just joined The Seven, and I'm so excited to stand alongside all my idols that I got a little distracted. Where were you just now?"

Homelander slowly closed his eyes and let out a deep breath, using every ounce of his strength to suppress the anger within him. When he opened his eyes again, some of the viciousness had receded, but they still held an unquestionable authority.

"Show your face so everyone can get to know you, JS."

Solomon dared not delay. He immediately activated his shapeshifting ability, took on JS's appearance, and dropped his invisibility, revealing a young white man's face. He nodded slightly to everyone.

"Hello, everyone. I'm the new Translucent, JS. I look forward to working with you."

Homelander nodded slowly, his eyes still fixed on him, his tone icy:

"All right, turn invisible again. Until Translucent's case is fully resolved and we officially announce you as the new Translucent, you are not to show yourself without permission."

A perfectly measured hint of displeasure immediately appeared on Solomon's face, as though he resented Homelander's restriction. Inside, however, he was overjoyed. He could not have asked for anything better!

Homelander thought this was a punishment, unaware that it was exactly what he wanted.

"Yes, Homelander."

Solomon's tone was respectful. As soon as he finished speaking, he activated his invisibility again, his figure disappearing and leaving only the Translucent uniform suspended over his seat.

A faint, satisfied smile appeared on Homelander's face as he surveyed the room again:

"Everyone, get moving according to the arrangements we just made. Find Translucent's killer without fail, and drag out the bastard who dared to provoke us!"

He paused, then added:

"JS, stay behind. Everyone else can leave now."

Everyone rose and left, and soon only Homelander and Solomon remained in the conference room.

Homelander slowly stood and walked behind Solomon, step by step. His hands, clad in red rubber gloves, gently settled on Solomon's neck once more, his fingertips pressing down slightly with that familiar sense of pressure.