Since Soldier Boy's revival, he had rarely appeared on camera. Most of the time, the footage came from fans who happened to run into him and secretly filmed him.
Of course, some people filmed him openly, but they inevitably got an earful.
What no one had ever expected was that this low-profile veteran would deliver a bombshell the very first time he appeared at such a major event.
His words went off like a bomb in the congressional hall, and the shock waves were rapidly spreading beyond it.
After a brief silence, the room erupted. Reporters hammered their shutters like mad, their flashes merging into a blaze that nearly lit up the entire hall.
"What did he say?"
"Homelander is Soldier Boy's son?"
"Is that true?"
"How many secrets is Vought hiding?"
"Soldier Boy has a kid? My heart is broken..."
Countless voices mingled together. What should have been a solemn hearing had been turned into a marketplace by this father and son.
The effect was striking, too. For a short while, everyone seemed to have temporarily forgotten about Homelander's situation.
All of Vought Tower was in chaos. Inside The Seven's conference room, the superheroes gathered around, staring at the screen.
They had known this secret for some time. In fact, it had been circulating within a small circle since Soldier Boy's return. The general public simply knew nothing about it.
The superheroes of The Seven all knew that Homelander, with his volatile temper and vast array of godlike powers, showed a childish side in front of Soldier Boy.
Although Homelander would stubbornly argue otherwise or pretend not to care, every time Soldier Boy actually left his sight, he displayed an almost imperceptible unease and anxiety.
The father and son got along very well, but for the sake of Vought's