Chapter 16: Physical Stats Enhanced Again
Benjamin and Holander sat face-to-face, drinking cola and eating burgers and fried chicken while a notification chi rang in his ears.
[Ding!]
[You have made Holander feel the heavy weight of a loving father’s affection. Holander has never eaten a al with his family, nor has he ever been told by a family mber that he’s a good boy. He will always rember that "good boy" you just said. Reward acquired: Super Strength Lv5 upgraded to Lv6.]
[Current Abilities:
Nuclear Energy Blast Lv3 (Can release high-intensity radioactive energy capable of incinerating anything and burning away the Compound V inside a target’s body.)
Super Strength Lv6 (Possesses the top-tier super strength of elite Supes.)
Super Defense Lv5 (Invulnerable, immune to conventional firearms and most Supe attacks.)
Self-Healing Lv5 (Extrely high cellular activity, capable of rapidly repairing fatal wounds.)
Radiation Resistance Lv5 (Completely immune to nuclear radiation and all harmful rays.)
Super Speed Lv1 (Possesses the speed of a standard Supe.)
Eternal Youth (Physical form permanently remains at its peak.)]
Benjamin hadn’t expected the reward to be this generous this ti. Perhaps it was because Holander had genuinely felt the heavy weight of family... affection? His strength was already on par with Holander’s, maybe even slightly greater, and now that it had reached Lv6, he had absolutely beco even more powerful. Benjamin felt a surge of raw power coursing through his entire body... This feeling of growing stronger was undeniably satisfying.
Unfortunately, Benjamin would have preferred to acquire Super Speed or Super Flight to cover his major shortcomings. Although he wouldn’t get run circles around by a rental bike anymore, a regular sedan could still easily outpace him. Soldier Boy’s current speed was probably just a bit faster than an ordinary human’s? He wasn’t entirely sure himself.
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Unlike Soldier Boy’s idle thoughts, Holander was currently using his straw to poke at the ice cubes in his cup, making them clink gently against the cola. During the al, he glanced at Benjamin several tis. Back in the elevator, Benjamin had just agreed, saying, "Isn’t eating with family exactly what you’re supposed to do?" At the thought of this, the straw in Holander’s hand slipped, hitting the bottom of the cup with a sharp squeak.
He quickly adjusted the straw and lowered his head to take a sip of cola. The soda wasn’t very cold anymore, but he drank it slowly, as if using the motion to mask sothing—perhaps the sudden light welling up in his blue eyes. Holander abruptly spoke up, "The chicken legs in the cafeteria are a little salty."
Benjamin snorted. "Then tell the kitchen to use less goddamn salt next ti. Do I really have to handle every petty little detail?" Holander’s expression twitched slightly; he was still caught up in his emotions.
Just then, the smartphone in Benjamin’s pocket—the one he’d been using for less than a week—began to buzz. He pulled it out and glanced at the screen. It was a news push, a CNN breaking headline, with a glaring red "Breaking News" banner stretching across the top of the screen. His gaze lingered on the headline for a brief mont before he turned the phone toward Holander to show him. The screen read: "Starlight to Join The Seven! Vought Announces Welco Banquet Tonight, Rising Star Annie January to Make Her Official Debut."
Starlight was coming. Tonight. Holander glanced at the screen, his expression unshifting. He had known about Starlight joining The Seven long ago, of course.
"This decision was finalized before you beca Executive Director, but obviously, if you don’t like the new mber, we can kick her off," Holander quickly explained. He didn’t understand why Benjamin cared. Perhaps it was because Starlight’s addition hadn’t gone through his approval?
Shoving his phone back into his pocket, Benjamin picked up his tray and stood up. "Doesn’t matter. Just don’t let it happen again. And generally speaking, aside from today, I won’t interfere too much with the day-to-day trivialities of The Seven. You’re still the captain of the team." Benjamin, of course, had no intention of kicking Starlight out; he still had to bully The Deep tonight.
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After finishing their al, the two split up by the elevators. Holander went to handle the Compound V matter, while Benjamin took the elevator up to his new domain, which in less than a day was already being referred to as the "Office of the Returned Legend." The office Vought had assigned him was located on the fifty-sixth floor of the building, designated specifically for the Executive Director of Superhuman Affairs.
Pushing open the door, describing the sight inside as rely "luxurious" would be an understatent. The entire office was nearly the size of a two-bedroom apartnt. A massive curved floor-to-ceiling window directly faced the Hudson River. At this mont, the final glow of twilight was slowly fading from the river’s surface, bathing the room in a palette of interlocking dark gold and deep blue tones.
The desk was a solid piece of polished black walnut, massive enough to hold a tactical planning eting on. Resting on its surface were the latest Vought-customized tablet, a set of paper docunts, and a naplate embossed with gilded letters: "Executive Director of Superhuman Affairs." Those words signified that Soldier Boy’s control over Supes was absolute, his status ranking definitively above Madelyn’s.
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anwhile, deep beneath Vought Tower, at the Compound V Storage and Managent Center.
Holander stood before a row of temperature-controlled storage cabinets glowing with a cold blue fluorescence, the hem of his cape dragging along the epoxy floor, casting a dark red reflection. Standing in front of him were two technical directors in white lab coats: a tall, lanky man wearing glasses, and a short, stout man whose hairline had receded to the top of his head. Both were trembling to varying degrees. The thin one’s knees were shaking, while the fat one’s hands trembled as he held his tablet.
"Shut down all black market distribution channels completely. From today on, send a copy of the warehouse inventory logs every single day."
"But... But Mr. Holander," the lanky man pushed up his glasses, "if we completely cut off the black market channels, the Board of Directors—"
"Are you saying," Holander turned his head, flashing him a smile, "that you want to debate the Board’s opinions with ?"
The lanky man’s glasses slipped down the bridge of his nose. "N-No, sir. No objections. Shutting it down completely. We’ll close them today."
Holander patted him on the shoulder. The force wasn’t heavy, but the lanky man’s knees visibly buckled. "Good. I like efficient people." Holander wondered if he was picking up his father’s habit of patting people on the shoulder.
Soon enough, A-Train also received the news. He was actually confused at first, but quickly realized that this was likely Soldier Boy’s command. A-Train let out a sigh. Since he no longer needed to run errands for Holander... would he still be able to skim any more Compound V? Thinking about the upcoming race made A-Train incredibly anxious. Fortunately, he still had a decent amount of personal stash left over.
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/ForgottenDaoist (@ = a, link is in my profile).
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