A temporary return!

"Hey, brother, I heard about what happened to you. But let me make this clear: I had nothing to do with it."

He swayed slightly, the drug-fueled high sending his confidence soaring, his tone brash and arrogant:

"I'm not afraid of your challenge at all. In fact, I can't wait for this race. I'll show everyone who the fastest man really is!"

A-Train rocked from side to side, utterly exhilarated after taking Compound V.

In the stands, Butcher, who had been watching A-Train all along, spotted the change in him immediately.

"He's already juiced up. Looks like we won't be getting anything out of this."

Butcher looked away and casually scanned his surroundings. His gaze paused, and an amused smile curled his lips as he caught sight of a familiar figure.

"Oi, oi, oi, look who I've found. Isn't that Shen? You actually came to watch A-Train race Shockwave? I thought you weren't all that interested in A-Train."

At that familiar voice that practically begged for a punch, Solomon's brow twitched. He turned toward the teasing, heavily bearded face, irritation instantly rising within him.

"Fuck! Why did I have to run into you here, you bastard!"

Butcher stepped closer and pointed toward the VIP stands at the highest point of the stadium.

"Oi, oi, we're friends who've been through hell together, aren't we? Look up there!"

Solomon instinctively looked up, and his heart immediately tightened.

Homelander stood high above them with his hands behind his back, surveying the audience from his elevated position. His sharp eyes had already taken in both Solomon and Butcher.

But he thought little of it, assuming they were simply two fans who liked him.

Solomon lowered his gaze expressionlessly and glared coldly at Butcher.

"Fuck you!"

Homelander had seen his face.

Once the shit Butcher had done came to light, he would be branded Butcher's accomplice too.

The more he thought about it, the more irritated Solomon became. Not bothering to waste words, he gave Butcher the middle finger and turned to leave.

"Oi, we're heading out. Want to come along?"

Solomon stopped abruptly. He quickly weighed the pros and cons, working through the timing of the plot. Kimiko would be appearing soon.

Kimiko's regenerative ability was unquestionably a top-tier talent.

Even after a devastating head injury, she could completely restore her body and return from the dead. It was a lifesaving ability he absolutely had to obtain!

But he currently had no idea where Kimiko was. Butcher would still have to dig up the only lead.

Trying to find scattered Metahumans on his own would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.

Only by following the main group's lead could he reliably keep pace with the plot and harvest abilities.

In that instant, a bold idea flashed through his mind.

What if I could infiltrate Vought International?

With Vought's nationwide intelligence network, any scattered Metahumans or Compound V test subjects would be in their records.

Then he wouldn't have to search so hard. All those resources would be at his fingertips.

But getting into Vought would be a little difficult right now!

Even Vought's internal elevators required fingerprints or something similar. He could turn invisible and follow other people into Vought International now, but he had no way of getting anyone to investigate those Metahumans for him.

Unless I had sufficient standing at Vought!

Like being a member of The Seven!

The thought flashed through Solomon's mind, but it passed just as quickly.

Joining The Seven would be easy for him. After all, he had Translucent's ability and could easily take his place.

But the risk would be just as deadly. Once he joined The Seven, he would have to face the volatile, violent, bloodthirsty Homelander day and night.

This twisted man-child, desperately starved of love, acted entirely on his moods. The slightest misstep could get him killed.

Solomon would never willingly entrust his life to a mentally stunted lunatic.

As his thoughts churned, the sharp crack of the starting pistol rang out across the track.

Two figures instantly shot forward. Air cracked, and afterimages crisscrossed the track.

The race ended quickly, without any suspense.

Boosted by drugs, A-Train firmly outpaced Shockwave, who had been regaining his form, and secured the victory.

Solomon gave the triumphant A-Train an indifferent glance, pushed aside his distracting thoughts, and quietly followed Butcher and the others out of the stadium.

They drove away. Inside the vehicle, Hughie's face lit up with delight the moment he saw Solomon, and he immediately came over to hug him.

"Hey, Shen! What are you doing here!"

Solomon smiled faintly and patted his back, his tone resigned.

"That bastard Butcher called me over. I figured I'd come along and see you."

Butcher turned and grinned, a note of appreciation in his voice.

"Shen, I told you, you're smart! Very smart! Far more capable than you look."

Then he changed the subject, turning to Hughie and asking with interest:

"By the way, how do you know Starlight?"

Leaning beside the window, Solomon listened to their conversation and slowly closed his eyes, reviewing the results of his training over the past three days.

Through continuous practice and adjustment, he had gained a preliminary grasp of his super-speed ability. He could sprint steadily in a straight line and run laps, matching A-Train and Shockwave's basic racing level.

But his shortcomings remained glaring. Once he reached full speed, his control over his body dropped sharply. He could only make slight adjustments to either side, with no way to perform difficult maneuvers such as sharp turns or instantaneous changes in speed.

This wasn't a lack of proficiency, but a limitation imposed by both his physical attributes and the ability itself.

At supersonic speeds, the force of inertia was terrifying. Forcing a turn would only throw his body off balance and send him flying.

At that moment, he fully understood how A-Train had lost control.

When a speedster sprinted at high speed, visual anticipation simply couldn't keep up with their movement. They could avoid distant obstacles, but sudden events at close range left no room to dodge.

Dozens of minutes later, the vehicle pulled smoothly to a stop by the roadside.

They switched to another discreet surveillance van. Inside, a bearded Black man stared fixedly at the screen, keeping The Female's apartment under round-the-clock surveillance.

Seeing the unfamiliar Solomon, Mother's Milk frowned slightly and asked:

"Who's this?"

"Solomon. He's one of us."

Butcher kept it brief, a note of approval in his voice.

"Thinks fast. He was the one who came up with the lethal method we used to deal with Translucent."

Surprise flashed through Mother's Milk's eyes. He looked Solomon up and down and said with genuine admiration:

"Wow. That's pretty impressive."

Butcher leaned toward the surveillance screen and asked in a low voice:

"What's the situation?"

"She's been working out like crazy for an hour."

Mother's Milk watched the figure on the screen, his tone level.

"Ever since she injected Compound V, she's been abnormally wired."