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The next day, Vought, 82nd floor.
Kevin met Edgar, who was working there with gold-rimmed glasses, in a temporary meeting room on the floor where most of the group's senior executives had their offices.
"I thought you'd familiarize yourself with The Woods' work before coming to me again, The Deep."
That was the first thing Edgar said when he met Kevin.
Kevin immediately understood and retorted:
"So, what happened in The Woods was indeed arranged by you?"
"A small test."
Edgar said, pointing to the opposite seat, signaling Kevin to sit down.
"A test?"
"Yes, a test."
"What was the result?"
Kevin didn't ask about the test content, only the result.
Edgar smiled and replied:
"Quite satisfactory. Your abilities are very surprising; almost all Supes are no match for you, but…"
"But what?"
"Your methods are a bit too gentle in handling things. Of course, that's not a big problem."
Edgar used the word 'gentle'.
Kevin recalled his handling process and did not refute it.
Perhaps, from the group's perspective, Kevin's methods were indeed too gentle.
He didn't hurt those Supes too much; he merely incapacitated them.
If this were handled by another Superhero, like Homelander or Stormfront, it would almost certainly mean that at least some Supes would die in The Woods.
Kevin was a bit soft-hearted towards Supes, which might be a drawback in the eyes of the group's senior executives.
While Kevin was still pondering, Edgar skipped the topic of the test and asked:
"So now, what do you want to discuss with me?"
Finally getting to the point, Kevin took a deep breath and said:
"You seem to want me to be the leader of The Seven, but actually, Mr. Edgar, I'm not very interested in the leader's position."
"Oh?"
Edgar looked up, meeting Kevin's eyes, and asked curiously:
"Joining The Seven and becoming its leader is something many people strive for. Why are you not interested?"
"Because I now understand that Vought is not just a simple entertainment company. Superheroes and the entertainment industry are merely side businesses for the group, am I right, Mr. Edgar?"
From the perspective of a member of The Seven who previously had no idea what Vought was doing, it was perfectly reasonable for Kevin to say this now.
Previously, Kevin didn't know about Compound V, The Woods, or the secret affairs of Vought, so he naturally assumed that The Seven was the entirety of Vought.
But now, Kevin knew more things, whether it was Compound V or The Woods, the institution that researched Supes; he knew them all clearly.
Therefore, Kevin felt there was no future in staying with The Seven, which also made sense.
But this could not convince Edgar.
"Kevin, if I remember correctly, you like money?"
Edgar remained calm, speaking slowly:
"The Seven is the quickest way to make money. Performances, endorsements, program interviews… as long as you have fame, you can earn unexpected wealth."
"Normally, that's true, but obviously… no matter how hard we try, we won't earn as much as you, Mr. Edgar."
Kevin finally stated his objective.
Edgar's smile also receded slightly. He tilted his head, scrutinizing Kevin, and suddenly understood something.
"You want to join 'us'?"
"Why not?"
"Hahaha, Kevin, you are very interesting. In all these years, among the Supes who wanted to join us, you are the first."
Edgar suddenly laughed out loud. He took off the glasses he had been wearing while working and pointed at Kevin with his finger as he spoke.
But he neither said yes nor no.
After laughing, Edgar said softly:
"To be honest, I'm somewhat interested in you, Mr. Kevin. If possible, I could allow you to truly enter Vought's management, but unfortunately, we currently have no open positions."
"So that means, if there is one, I can enter?"
"Of course."
Edgar answered without hesitation, but then reminded Kevin:
"Provided there truly will be an open position."
"I understand. Thank you, Mr. Edgar."
Having received the answer he wanted from Edgar, Kevin sincerely thanked him and prepared to leave.
But before he left, Edgar called out to Kevin again:
"Kevin."
"Mr. Edgar?"
"The experimental subject you have there, I won't interfere, but you must remember not to let her cause trouble, do you understand?"
Experimental subject?
Edgar suddenly brought this up, and Kevin took a moment to react.
After a short while, he realized who Edgar was referring to.
Kimiko.
This girl, who was hunted by Black Noir of Vought in the early parts of the original work and almost killed by him, was now, as expected, known to the senior executives of Vought.
But perhaps because of Kevin's existence, even though Edgar knew about Kimiko, he did not choose to send Black Noir to take Kimiko away or kill her.
Edgar allowed Kimiko to stay with Kevin, on the condition that Kevin keep an eye on Kimiko and not let her cause trouble.
Or rather, not let her get involved in Vought's affairs.
Otherwise, Edgar wouldn't be reminding Kevin here.
Did he think I would let Kimiko act, to kill a group executive? To use Kimiko as a weapon for my murders?
I wouldn't do something so foolish…
Understanding Edgar's meaning, Kevin pondered.
A moment later, he nodded to Edgar, indicating that he understood, and then left the 82nd floor of Vought.
Through his conversation with Edgar today, Kevin understood Vought CEO's intentions.
Supes joining Vought was a relatively rare occurrence within the group; perhaps no one had ever brought it up before.
Even the wife of Vought's founder, Stormfront, seemed unable to interfere with Vought's decisions, only operating as a Superhero.
The request Kevin made today, if not unprecedented, could certainly be described as extremely unusual.
But Edgar didn't seem to object to Kevin doing so.
On the contrary, Edgar seemed to think highly of Kevin and pointed out the 'open position' as a condition for Kevin to join the group's senior management.
However, Kevin also knew that although Edgar had given him a condition, Kevin couldn't simply find a group executive to eliminate and then seize their position.
Directly using violent means to eliminate a competitor would probably be the lowest-tier approach in Edgar's eyes.
If Kevin truly wanted to join the group's senior management, he would need to leave no evidence, and even with the prerequisite of not dirtying his own hands, eliminate the person he wanted to eliminate.
In other words…
"Using a borrowed knife to kill."
Kevin thought of this idiom and instantly thought of someone who could be his 'knife'.
With that thought, Kevin took out his phone and looked up a person's number.
It was Hughie Campbell's phone number.
It was the number Butcher had left last time.
...
Butcher Billy once again emerged from the CIA with a gloomy face.
This meeting with his old acquaintance, Susan, ended in a breakdown of their negotiations again.
But this time was different from before.
Previously, Susan said Butcher didn't have enough evidence to prove that Vought was manufacturing Compound V, which was why Butcher and Hughie risked collecting evidence.
But now there was enough evidence, and Susan also showed interest in the matter, yet she refused to let Butcher go after Homelander!
In fact, the conditions Susan offered were already very generous.
She promised to give The Boys an operational base, dedicated support teams, and provide intelligence to The Boys, even covering travel and daily expenses, all reimbursed by the CIA.
Susan's only condition was that Butcher give up on Homelander and focus solely on Vought.
"It's all bullshit!"
Butcher angrily punched a nearby wall, cursing loudly.
Not going after Homelander, wasn't it because she was afraid that this currently strongest Superhero would flip the table?
But what had Butcher been targeting Vought for all this time? Wasn't it to go after Homelander?
It was precisely because Homelander had once coerced his wife, causing her to disappear with her fate unknown, that Butcher accepted the invitation from the former CIA Deputy Director Mallory to become one of 'The Boys' targeting Vought.
Now, with the downfall of Vought seemingly within reach, Susan was unwilling to accuse Homelander.
It would be strange if Butcher could accept that!
"Fine, if you don't accept, I have my ways…"
After finishing his angry curses, Butcher took out his phone, about to call someone.
But at the same moment he took out his phone, a call came in; it was Hughie's call.
It was quite rare for Hughie to call on his own initiative.
Butcher narrowed his eyes slightly and answered without much hesitation.
"Hey, Butcher? There's something I need to tell you."
"Hmm? What is it? Did you guys mess around while I was gone, or did you find some other evidence?"
Butcher asked casually, and Hughie shouted from the other end:
"Neither! It's none of those things you mentioned, okay?!"
Then his voice became much softer as he explained:
"It's The Deep! He just called me, said he has something he wants to discuss with us, wants to meet us."
"What?"
Butcher froze, his steps halted, and he reconfirmed what Hughie had said.
Once he confirmed that he wasn't hallucinating, and that The Deep of The Seven had really called to invite him to meet, the smile on Butcher's face gradually grew wider.
Susan, that old bitch, wouldn't go after Homelander?
It didn't matter, now, a helper who could deal with Homelander had arrived, hadn't he?
Clutching his phone, Butcher took a deep breath and said to Hughie on the other end:
"Tell The Deep I agree to meet him, but I'll set the time and place for the meeting."
Although he decided to meet The Deep, Butcher would not truly entrust his life to a Superhero.
He needed to make thorough protective preparations before daring to face The Deep, who was currently riding a wave of popularity.
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