"I used a heavy dose of various weight-loss drugs to burn fat and lose weight quickly," Firecracker Girl said as she took a sip of water, showing no embarrassment at all.
Glancing around the upscale apartment—clearly beyond what an average superhero employee could afford—her eyes gleamed slightly as they landed on Russell.
"My superpower is nothing special. But as a superhuman, at the very least, my tolerance for drugs is far beyond that of ordinary people."
Russell remembered—Firecracker Girl was exactly this kind of woman.
Able to lactate even without pregnancy, willing to take drugs that harm the heart just to cozy up to Homelander and get revenge on Starlight. She would take the risk without hesitation.
A normal person would've died from such doses long ago, but for Firecracker Girl, it didn't seem to be a problem.
"Want to take a closer look at the new me?" Firecracker Girl stood up, pressing close to Russell. Her hand rested on his firm chest, her eyes sparkling—part challenge, part desire to be ravished.
"Heh..." Russell gave a cold smirk.
…
Russell, once again, didn't say no.
An hour later, in the king-sized bed of the top-floor apartment, he lay with one arm behind his head and the other wrapped around Firecracker Girl's serpentine waist.
Firecracker Girl rested her head on his strong chest, gazing up tenderly at his handsome, youthful face. Reflecting on the past few days felt like a dream.
What Russell had said to her made her believe he was an outstanding student at Godokin University. But after checking the university's honor roll, she found no trace of him.
The very next day, however, the news broke: Seattle's city protector, "Miracle Man," had vanished. She remembered Russell had searched for information on Miracle Man and was deeply shocked. Could this really just be coincidence?
"When I saw your handsome face on Vought's promo for the new member of The Seven, I couldn't believe it," she said.
"How did you do it?"
Firecracker Girl's eyes brimmed with curiosity. She desperately wanted to know how Russell had joined The Seven.
Russell looked down at the woman in his arms and simply asked, "Do you want to join The Seven?"
Firecracker Girl was stunned. She looked up into Russell's face. Though his expression was casual, like they weren't talking about a spot in the world's top superhero team, he didn't seem to be joking.
"Do you mean it? Me?"
Her mind flashed with the speculation she'd heard from journalists about Russell's mysterious background. Gripping the sheets, she sat up excitedly, needing confirmation.
"Of course," Russell said.
"You've always wanted revenge on Starlight, right? I'll give you the chance. What you do with it is up to you."
He had no interest in helping Firecracker Girl plan her revenge.
"But... The Seven is already full, isn't it?" she asked, puzzled.
"A-Train made a mistake. He's about to be removed from Vought," Russell replied.
That mistake, of course, was helping Homelander smuggle Compound V to terrorists, causing a major loss to the company.
But right now, Russell was more concerned with something else.
Even though he had defeated Firecracker Girl multiple times just now, the system hadn't successfully duplicated her template again.
She'd definitely become more agile after losing weight. Could it be that a template can't be copied twice from the same person? Or was it because her abilities weren't different enough from her previous template?
No rush. As the actual controller of Vought now, Russell had plenty of ways to test this out.
…
"The superhumans Homelander brought back—are they here?"
"Yes, Mr. Infinity" the assistant replied.
At the Sagebrush Psychiatric Hospital, Russell walked past rows of newly activated holding cells, hands behind his back, questioning the researchers and assistants trailing him.
"He moves fast," Russell chuckled. The researchers didn't dare comment—after all, Homelander, as the strongest superhuman in the world and someone with a volatile temper, was still terrifying.
Among the group, a man in a bomber jacket flinched slightly upon hearing Russell speak of Homelander so casually, almost mockingly.
He was Lamplighter, now retired from The Seven and reassigned by Vought as head of security here.
Though named a psychiatric hospital, Sagebrush was in fact a secret research base focused on one of Vought's most important projects—an adult version of Compound V.
Vought used mental patients sent here as test subjects.
"Who is this young man? How can he talk about Homelander so freely? He must have a powerful background. Even Homelander doesn't know about this place," Lamplighter thought to himself.
He had done plenty of dirty work for Vought and proved his loyalty before being assigned here.
Lamplighter decided to pretend he hadn't heard anything.
"Open this cell," Russell said, stopping in front of a filthy, wild-haired woman huddled in the corner, looking insane.
Russell recognized her—it was Himiko.
"Be careful, sir. This woman is extremely aggressive," Lamplighter warned, stepping forward with a lighter in hand to guard Russell.
His ability was to control fire—he could expand flames and raise their temperature.
ROAR!
As soon as the cell door opened, the woman pounced like a wild beast, baring her teeth, circling for an attack angle. She lunged at Russell, clearly the leader.
Before Lamplighter could react, Russell flashed forward, slapped her mid-air, and sent her crashing into the wall.
Bang!
She passed out on impact.
Lamplighter's vision blurred. That white-caped figure had moved so fast he hadn't even seen the strike.
"That's enough," Russell said calmly, moving on to the next cell.
After that, every cell containing a powerful superhuman was opened one by one. Without fail, each prisoner attempted to escape the moment the door opened.
But none of them lasted more than a second against Russell—they were all knocked out instantly.
"Is Mr some kind of battle maniac?"
The staff exchanged uncertain glances.
"Those who've been fully brainwashed by extremist groups will remain here.
The ones still sane—I'll have people draft contracts and release them to become superheroes under Vought."
"Yes, sir."
[Template: Himiko – Cost to solidify: 300 Conquest Points. Proceed?]
[Yes]
For just 300 Conquest Points to gain regenerative immortality? Totally worth it. Russell didn't even blink as he completed the solidification after leaving the facility.
For an average person, regeneration wouldn't matter much—they'd still be incapacitated by a bullet.
But paired with his enhanced strength from the Soldier template, this ability was a game-changer.
[Abilities: Carbon-Skin, Super Strength, Super Speed, Rapid Regeneration…]
Soaring through the skies, Russell's eyes gleamed with excitement.
With this new puzzle piece, he could finally challenge his "Uncle Omni-Man."
"Even if I can't beat him, I can wear him down all day!"
Without hesitation, Russell flew to his next destination—
Charity Hospital.
This hospital, in partnership with the Embrace of the Samaritan foundation, secretly administered Compound V to children whose parents had signed with Vought—turning them into future superhumans.
He hadn't forgotten about that laser-eyed baby.
....................................
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