Chương 82

Vought's press conference began with Stan Edgar standing at the front. Homelander stood beside him. Starlight and Queen Maeve were also present. The reporters in front of them wanted to ask several questions. Vought had given them clear instructions before the conference began. No question could be asked freely. Anything they wanted to raise had to pass through Vought first, and the company would decide whether it could be asked. Edgar looked across the gathered media and began speaking.

"Our investigation has confirmed that Stormfront previously operated under the name Liberty. We have also confirmed that she was a Nazi." The reporters remained quiet.

"Everything that has been happening over these past months was also connected to Stormfront," Edgar continued.

"Even Homelander did not know who she was or what identity she had used before." Homelander did not react.

"Starlight and her boyfriend, Adam, discovered the truth before we did. They began investigating Stormfront after finding that information. At the time, Vought did not possess enough information to understand what they had discovered." Surprise appeared across the faces in front of him. Every reporter there knew who Adam was. The internet had already divided into two sides over him. One side called Adam a Supe terrorist. The other called him a hero. Starlight turned toward Edgar in shock.

'Was that the right thing to do? Did he have to make my relationship with Adam public like this?' She kept the question inside while Edgar continued.

"During that time, Stormfront captured Starlight and imprisoned her inside Vought Tower without our knowledge. She also captured Starlight's mother. Those actions forced Adam to take the step he did." Edgar allowed the statement to settle before continuing.

"Vought is opening an internal investigation. Its purpose will be to identify every person inside this company who knew what Stormfront was." After finishing the statement, Edgar stepped back. There was no blood on Homelander's face now. He stood with the others, but his attention remained elsewhere. Stormfront's condition had shocked him. She had been left badly injured and unconscious after the fight. Homelander also understood what the public would think of her once the truth spread.

Her name would now be connected to Liberty and her Nazi identity. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. The fight with Adam had already shown him that he needed to become stronger. That need remained in his mind while Vought and everyone around him continued pushing their decisions onto him. Even now, he had to remain beside Edgar and accept the company's public statement. Adam was in a much better position.

Unlike Homelander, he did not have to stand there and carry Vought's pressure. Adam could go wherever he wanted and do whatever he chose. He could even kill anyone he wanted if that was his decision.

'But he doesn't.' Homelander considered Adam's refusal to kill a weak mentality. Homelander smiled inwardly at that thought, but his expression showed none of it and remained serious.

'That weakness will kill him.' He thought about it for several seconds.

'And if it doesn't, I'll use that weakness to kill him myself.' Several months passed. Adam met Grace Mallory and spoke to her directly. He told her the entire truth about Becca and Ryan without hiding any part of it.

"Becca is alive," Adam said.

"But Butcher cannot learn that." Adam visited Becca several times during those months. She remained in the same small town where he had found the clinic throughout that time. Becca agreed with Adam that keeping the truth hidden from Butcher was the right choice. She planned to change her appearance completely before leaving the town. After that, she would live with her sister. Ryan would remain with Becca and move with her to her sister's new home. When Becca went to meet her sister, Adam accompanied her.

Adam knew several things could go wrong, and being there with Becca proved useful. Adam convinced Becca that remaining near the city was not the right choice. He also convinced her sister that they needed to move somewhere far away. Mallory helped them relocate without telling Butcher where they were going. Once everything was arranged, Becca left with Ryan. Her sister went with them. Butcher later asked Mallory what had happened to Ryan.

"I hid him," Mallory said.

"You don't need to take care of him yourself." Her answer settled both problems for Butcher. Ryan had not been left alone, and Butcher could respect Becca's last wish without keeping the boy beside him. He still disliked remaining apart from Ryan, but Mallory convinced him to accept the arrangement for at least some time. Hughie and Adam joined the new organization being established under Victoria Neuman. Its official name was the Federal Bureau of Superhuman Affairs, or FBSA.

Adam entered the Bureau while knowing Victoria's real origin. He already had plans for how he would deal with her, but for now he kept those plans to himself. He also understood exactly what he had joined. The Bureau was another extended arm of Vought. By working inside it, Adam was effectively entering Vought through a different path. Mother's Milk returned to his family and began living with them again. Frenchie and Kimiko moved away from the group as well and began handling their own work together.

Starlight and Adam's relationship became public during those months. The government also removed Adam's designation as a Supe terrorist. Many people who had spoken against Adam became quiet. They had not started supporting him or speaking in his favor. They stopped attacking him. Most of the misunderstanding that had formed around Adam slowly settled after those changes. Elsewhere, Homelander stood inside a confined chamber. Thick steel walls surrounded him. He drew in a deep breath.

His chest expanded while his cheeks filled with air. Homelander blew straight ahead. Powerful wind rushed across the chamber. A human-shaped steel target stood ahead of him, anchored deep into the ground. The steel figure shifted slightly backward when the wind struck it. A moment later, it moved forward again. The steel target was made from material that could not be broken easily.