"Cough… cough, cough…" Queen Maeve staggered to her feet, hands trembling as she pushed off the ground. She glared at Fenris with both fear and fury.
"If you don't want to lose everything, don't ever say that name again!"
Fenris looked at her warning gaze and smiled. "Interesting. Your eyes are telling me something… you're afraid!"
"But you're not afraid of me hurting her, or of me using her against you. You're afraid someone else might hear her name."
"Tsk, tsk… how pathetic."
There was nothing inherently special about the name "Elena." What made it special was her identity. Elena was Queen Maeve's ex-girlfriend.
Yes, ex-girlfriend.
That's why Maeve didn't dare let anyone know about their relationship. It would ruin the carefully crafted public persona Vought had built for her. And more importantly, she absolutely couldn't let Homelander find out about Elena's existence.
Even though her brief PR relationship with Homelander was over, his narcissistic, tyrannical nature meant he would definitely kill Elena if he ever found out about her. Maybe even Maeve too.
A so-called world-famous superhero, worshiped by millions, unable to even protect her own lover... calling her pathetic wasn't an exaggeration.
Not at all.
"Pathetic?" Maeve scoffed. "When you come face-to-face with him, you'll see just how meaningless and laughable courage really is. Everyone bows before him. You won't be any different."
There was no doubt about Homelander's strength. A corrupted Superman was a terrifying concept in itself.
Maeve feared him. The rest of The Seven feared him. Even the staff serving him feared him.
And they should.
Homelander was what Superman would look like in the real world if stripped of restraint. Clark Kent's humble and self-sacrificing nature was, in a sense, just self-imposed suffering to please others.
Fenris actually agreed with Maeve's assessment. He would bow to Homelander.
When Homelander was kneeling in front of him.
"Alright. What do you want?" Maeve gave in. She couldn't risk Elena's safety.
Fenris's lips curled into a roguish smirk. Originally, he had planned to use Maeve to get insider info on The Seven's activities, then follow from a distance and collect their powers as a bystander.
But now? He had changed his mind.
He wanted to see the look on Maeve's face when she realized the so-called unstoppable god among men was kneeling before him.
"You can contact Homelander, right?" This time, Fenris didn't refer to him indirectly. He said his name out loud.
Maeve suddenly felt a wave of unease. She clenched her teeth. "Whatever you want, whatever you're planning, I'll cooperate. Just don't make this messier!"
Boom!
As she spoke, the roof of the abandoned warehouse burst open under immense pressure. The stars and stripes billowed in the air as Homelander landed, brushing off imaginary dust from his shoulder. His expression was cold as he looked at Maeve.
"Translucent told me you were in trouble. But now… I want to know what kind of trouble will become worse if I find out about it."
His voice was like an icy blade in the heart of winter. Calm, sharp, and terrifying. His gaze carried the chill of ancient glaciers, completely devoid of warmth.
Maeve felt like her heart had stopped. She could already picture the terrifying scene of Homelander killing Elena... and then killing her.
Her head dropped. Fear gripped her so tightly that she couldn't speak. Her brain shut down, running only one thought on a loop: Elena would die because of her.
"She won't talk. So you tell me," Homelander turned to Fenris, his eyes full of detached indifference, as if Fenris was a mere insect.
"Daffodils don't bloom in winter… So what are you acting all high and mighty for?" Fenris fired back without hesitation.
Maeve's head snapped up, eyes wide in disbelief.
Is this guy insane?
How could he talk to Homelander like that? Was he not afraid of death? Did he even understand what fear was?
Luckily she didn't ask out loud. Otherwise, Fenris would've told her: "The best way to eliminate fear is to face it. Bring it on!"
Maeve was shocked by Fenris's boldness. Homelander was just as surprised. His cold eyes began to glow with a fiery red.
Heat vision.
"I think you're looking to die," Homelander said, his voice cold as ice but his gaze burning hot. The perfect contradiction.
Fenris chuckled dismissively. "You think I should act like this, or act like that. Just take over my life while you're at it. Who cares what you think?"
Whoosh!
Homelander's furious eyes flared, and a beam of blazing red heat vision shot out instantly.
Ding!
"Combat detected. Drop reward: Heat Vision (Homelander)."
Homelander's heat vision was powerful, but not invincible.
It couldn't harm Stormfront, who had superior durability, and Fenris's current defenses weren't weak either. He could probably tank it for a short while. If he had also received Homelander's super durability, he might've taken the hit on purpose.
But instead, it was time for a surprise.
Fenris activated his dimensional teleportation just before the heat vision could strike. The wall behind where he stood was vaporized, collapsing into rubble, but Fenris had vanished.
"Where is he?" Homelander growled, scanning his surroundings in frustration.
Suddenly, a familiar sizzling sound echoed in his ears.
He spun around, only to see a pair of glowing red eyes staring back at him like a demon.
That's… my heat vision?
Impossible!
Absolutely impossible!
Before Homelander could react, Fenris's heat vision slammed into him, sending him staggering back several steps.
The blast didn't cause any real damage, but it enraged him.
Homelander couldn't tolerate anyone else having the same powers as him.
"You're dead!" he roared, his expression ice cold as he unleashed another blast of heat vision.
Fenris fired back immediately.
Boom!
Two identical beams of searing red light clashed in the air. The hiss of burning energy echoed through the warehouse, and the blinding glow lit up the entire area.
For a moment, it was a perfect standstill.