452. A New Possibility.

452. A New Possibility.

The pollution disappeared?

Alex found himself at a loss regarding the current situation. He was absolutely certain that he hadn't sensed it wrong earlier—pollution had indeed emerged from Emma.

But the problem was that, in the brief moment it took for him to answer a phone call, all traces of that pollution had vanished. It was as if it had all been a figment of Alex's imagination, and the pollution had never appeared at all.

"This is a first..."

Alex had prepared himself for anything while studying pollution, knowing full well that the unexpected was to be expected. There was no reason to be overly surprised.

Yet, this situation felt oddly unreal, even to him.

"Are you still there?"

Emma's voice from the phone brought Alex back to his senses.

"Ah, yes, I'm here. Where are you? I'll come find you," Alex said, clearing his throat.

Emma, hearing his response, felt slightly reassured. She looked around, scanning for landmarks, before saying, "I'm on Moore Avenue, near a car wash."

"Okay, stay where you are. I'm on my way," Alex replied softly from the shadows.

Though he was only 50 meters away from Emma, the role he was playing demanded he pretend to be coming from a distance. The villa wasn't exactly nearby; even by taxi, it would take a few minutes.

Roughly ten minutes later, Alex finally stepped out of the alley.

As he emerged from the shadows, his appearance shifted seamlessly from that of a sharply dressed man to a young teen. The transformation was as smooth as changing clothes, flowing effortlessly.

Quickly making his way to Emma's side, Alex noticed she was still visibly unsettled, so much so that she didn't even register his presence.

"Emma, what's wrong?" Alex asked, feigning ignorance.

Emma, lost in thought, flinched at the sound of Alex's voice. She turned sharply, and upon realizing it was him, her emotions surged.

Before Alex could react, Emma threw herself into his arms, catching him completely off guard.

Alex remembered all too well that her clothes were ones she had scavenged from a trash bin—now rubbing against his.

Suppressing the urge to push her away, Alex asked, "What's going on? What happened?"

Emma wanted to explain, but for a moment, she didn't know where to begin.

The situation surrounding Lyle's death was far too complex. Emma didn't want to involve Alex, an innocent and ordinary person, as it would undoubtedly put his life in danger.

Still reeling from the night's events, Emma hadn't yet fully processed everything that had happened. It had all been so sudden. She could hardly believe that just minutes after their lively conversation, Lyle had lost his life.

Now that some time had passed, Emma felt a growing sense of dread. She realized that the situation was far more terrifying than she had initially thought.

Vought International's superheroes. The unknown superhuman who had killed Lyle. Every piece of this puzzle represented a force far beyond her ability to contend with.

Luckily, she hadn't acted impulsively and called the police. If she had involved herself in this mess, even as a superhuman, she doubted she'd be able to ensure her own safety.

Emma didn't want to spend the rest of her life hiding like an ant. Even with her ability to shrink, she doubted she could escape the notice of someone like Homelander. Against someone of his caliber, there was simply no way to run.

As Alex had predicted, news of Lyle's disappearance eventually leaked and sparked widespread controversy.

The catalyst was Lyle's agent, who had planned to meet him early to go over his script for an upcoming talk show. After trying every means of contact and failing, the agent went to Lyle's residence.

After knocking multiple times without a response, the agent broke into Lyle's house.

What he saw horrified him—a partially eaten arm still lying on the dining table.

Without hesitation, the terrified agent reported the matter to Vought International.

Upon hearing the news, Vice President Madelyn Stillwell was deeply alarmed. She immediately sent Homelander and a public relations team to the scene.

When they discovered human organs and fingers in Lyle's refrigerator, everyone knew they had a serious problem.

A superpowered individual who had developed a taste for human flesh was now missing.

If Lyle was dead, that would be one thing. But if he were alive and in the hands of someone with malicious intent, this would spell a massive scandal for Vought International.

Madelyn gave Homelander explicit orders: since Lyle was already missing, it would be best if he never reappeared. Only by doing so could they protect the company's reputation.

At the same time, Vought's PR team launched into action.

They began spreading news that Lyle had been diagnosed with a terminal illness and initiated a public campaign to mourn this "great adventurer" in advance.

Regardless of how the situation evolved, their goal was to control the narrative. By creating the impression that Lyle was either dying or already dead, they could minimize the fallout.

To divert public attention and suppress unwelcome rumors, Vought International also made another major announcement:

They revealed the newest member of The Seven—Starlight.

Nothing could command global attention more effectively than The Seven, the world's most powerful and high-profile superhero team.

When the news broke, it instantly dominated headlines.

Everyone began digging into the life story of the lucky girl who had joined The Seven, analyzing why she had been chosen.

Alex, too, followed these developments in silence.

As he watched the TV screen, focusing on the girl in the white suit, Alex folded his arms and fell into deep thought.

Recently, he had been pondering the origins of "pollution" and what it truly was. The events involving Emma had given him a crucial lead.

Since that night, Alex had been observing ordinary people around him.

Like a ghost, he moved across the globe, silently watching those drowning in despair, studying their every move. But after all this time, he had gained no new insights.

Frustrated, he turned his attention back to superpowered individuals.

Staring at Starlight, who beamed naively at the cameras, Alex made a decision.

It was time to embark on a journey to test a new possibility.

.....

30 advanced chapters on p@treaon

For advance chapters: /Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)

453. Infiltrating Vought International!

454. Coercion.

455. Surprise.

456. The Expert.

457. Helping Each Other.