In the garden, on a wooden bench.
Wade held Jill's hand, looked at the gazes occasionally directed at them from the corridor, and said solemnly, "Calm down. She is a Supe just like us, but a bit special. Just check the Vought wanted list."
"Seriously?" Jill returned the phone with skepticism, took out her own phone, and started fiddling with it.
Wade placed his phone on the folder and theatrically waved his pen: 'You are Ghost? Escaped from the Red River Affiliated Center for Gifted Children... Hiding here, killing those veterans just to absorb the residual compound v?'
Ghost sat on the clock displayed on the phone screen, swinging her legs, and said carelessly, 'They all deserved to die. Who told those people to burn, kill, loot, and commit atrocities on the frontline battlefield!'
'I merely reversed the format in their minds, swapping the victims with their family members, and those people couldn't handle just watching.'
'What? Do you Godolkin University high achievers want to deliver justice for them?'
'Don't you lack a physical body? I'd only bother dealing with you if I were bored out of my mind.' Wade waved his pen left and right in front of the screen. 'However, I know where there is a large amount of compound v.'
Ghost fell silent for a moment, and her thought projection came through again: 'Tell me quickly! I need that stuff.'
Wade rubbed the screen, smiling at her: 'Is there such a thing as a free lunch? Tell me, what do you use that stuff for?'
'Large doses of high-purity compound v can help me advance further. I feel that if I keep absorbing it, I might regain a physical body.'
'Oh? So A-Train is also doing it for this?'
'Of course. Before, he was just a motionless mass of water. The fact that he can move around now proves it works, doesn't it?'
'How about a trade?' Wade tapped the screen with his finger. 'You work for me, and I'll provide you with locations and information about large amounts of compound v. A-Train has to follow me.'
'You don't think I'm still a gullible little kid, do you?' Ghost dodged his fingertip and sneered, 'A-Train is just my friend. Aren't you afraid I'll spread information about you everywhere when the time comes?'
Wade smiled without speaking: 'You're an escaped convict with no evidence. Will anyone believe what you say?'
'Hmph, this glamorous society has taught me a lot of new things.' Ghost extended a small, glowing hand from the screen. 'Your energy level is ten times stronger than that Ice Girl next to you... You are dangerous. Give me a convincing reason.'
Wade understood the psychology of Supes who were abandoned, lacked a childhood, and knew the truth. Vought, as the culprit, only sheltered and raised them to maintain stability and profit... Tragedies caused by children awakening their powers were everywhere. The long-term lack of childhood and parental love could not be compensated by any amount of money, power, or status.
Only those who were vested interests, had outstanding abilities, or were deeply subservient would be bought by Vought's fame, fortune, and influence. Most victims, upon learning the truth, could never remain grateful to Vought.
He pointed his index finger at the small, glowing hand: 'Do you know what characteristics those of us who came out of these institutions share?'
Ghost manipulated the phone within the screen, opening the browser to search: 'Let me check, Wade Thompson... Lived at the Red River Institute since childhood, entered Godolkin University at 18... I understand now, it seems you hate Vought too!'
'You guessed right!' Wade knew that threats were useless against a non-corporeal life form. All his disguises and information were useless in front of her, so being open and honest was more appropriate.
He completely dissolved the ice sphere floating beside him: 'Work with me, and I will provide you with a place to hide... We have a common enemy.'
Ghost fell silent again, and the phone screen started glitching and flickering.
Wade knew she was hesitating. He tossed the water sphere: "Think about your tragically killed companions, think about yourself... If the future you want is to hide like a gutter rat, then leave, and let's pretend we never met."
'Leave? I refuse to live like that. I want Vought Corporation and Homelander to pay the price, the sooner the better!' Ghost transformed into a silver stream of light and rushed towards Wade's head. 'Let me see if what you say is true!'
Her pinky-sized body immediately flew backward, landing on Wade's hair: 'Ouch, did you put a turtle shell in your brain? Why can't I get in, and why is it so hard?'
Wade felt the ripple in his Mental Barrier and transmitted his voice with a smile: 'Guess?'
Ghost lay on the Mental Barrier inside his head, continuously tapping: 'Guess your head! We had an agreement... A-Train and I are following you. Don't back out!'
A small hand made of Mental Energy stretched out from the barrier and firmly grasped her hand: 'It's a deal.'
Jill had just found Ghost's information and leaned over to look at Wade's phone, only to realize the image of the little Black girl inside had vanished: "Hey! Where did she go?"
"No choice, couldn't convince her." Wade put away his phone, shaking his head and sighing. "She comes and goes as she pleases, I really can't do anything about her."
Jill covered her face dejectedly: "What do we do then? Did she actually kill those people? Won't our investigation report be ruined?"
Wade withdrew the Soundproof Barrier and put the re-frozen water sphere into his bag: "When we get back, write...'Suspected death due to mass hallucination caused by strong electromagnetic interference.'"
"Ah—isn't that lying?"
"It's just stating the facts. Weren't our electronic devices interfered with?"
...Veterans Home, main entrance.
Wade and Jill walked side by side, having just emerged.
Before the two of them could take a breath of fresh outdoor air, the long-waiting crowd surged forward, three times larger than when they arrived.
"Cyclone! What exactly happened inside?"
"Was there really a Ghost?"
"Are there results from the investigation? Can you disclose anything?"
Questions bombarded them like rapid-fire artillery, accompanied by constantly flashing phone cameras.
While Wade protectively shielded Jill with his arm, separating her from the overly close crowd, he quickly put on the polite smile he had practiced in acting class: "Thank you all for your concern. We need to compile the specific details of the investigation before reporting them to the relevant authorities, so it is inconvenient to disclose them right now."
The crowd shouted loudly and chaotically:
"Cyclone, can you take me flying for a photo? And sign an autograph, please."
"I—I want to take a photo with the lovely Miss Ice Girl!"
Jill built an Ice Crystal Platform beneath her feet, put her hands on her hips, and chuckled, "Yes, please line up, everyone, one by one."
While Wade and Jill were busy taking photos and signing autographs, another conversation was taking place in their minds.
Ghost: 'Wow, that's a standard good student answer. You don't even blush when you lie.'
Wade: 'You should calm down for now. If you want to follow me, first learn to be quiet and lie low. You know the consequences if someone finds out.'
Ghost: 'Hmph, I know, Boss.'
Jill stood beside Wade, smiling and interacting with the crowd, but her attention was mostly focused on Wade.
She keenly sensed a vague feeling of distance surrounding Wade ever since Ghost left the garden.
'He must be hiding something from me.' This thought lingered in Jill's mind, and a slight sense of disappointment surfaced.
Half an hour later, Wade and Jill waved to the crowd again. Amidst gasps and admiration, they slowly ascended as air currents surged around them.
"Everyone, we need to return to school. Thank you all for your support!"
High in the sky, the wind whistled in their ears. Jill floated and climbed onto Wade's back.
Below was the miniature cityscape, and above was the vast blue sky. It was a world detached from the commotion on the ground, seemingly belonging only to the two of them.
Wade's silence and the stirring in her heart catalyzed the emotions she had long been brewing: "Wade."
"Hmm?" Wade turned his head to glance at her.
Jill took a deep breath, buried her face, and muttered softly, "I—I want to officially announce our relationship to the entire school... Is that alright?"
Wade's mind raced as he considered his words, and his flying speed abruptly dropped.
Ghost lay on the Mental Barrier, rolling around and saying, with an air of enjoying the drama, 'Whoa—Ice Girl confessed! Boss, is this considered internal team misconduct?'
Wade ignored the noise in his mind, looking at Jill's eyes filled with anticipation and nervousness. Emotions were never his primary consideration.
But Jill, this lively, pure-hearted girl who had been playfully bickering with him since the start of school and had taken him to meet her mother, indeed held a special place in his world.
Accepting her meant establishing a closer connection with the Damon Family, and it would also better explain why he hadn't been keen on stealing the spotlight at school recently and always kept a low profile.
Furthermore, Mena is currently managing Nexus Company. If her identity were discovered by Vought Corporation, they could trace the funding chain back to him from the start of the school year.
If he were exposed now, he would be close to death. Associating with Jill, this rich girl, and adopting the label of a gigolo who habitually lives off women, was like putting on a layer of protective coloring, making him safer.
Thinking this, Wade smiled and pinched Jill's cheek: "Alright."
Jill's eyes widened, joy and a purple blush spread across her cheeks, and she let out a muffled whimper.
Ghost disappointedly slapped the barrier beneath her: 'Tsk, he just agreed? Boring. I thought there would be some angsty romance plot.'
'You talk too much.' Wade retorted, accelerating towards Godolkin University.
Since Vought was distributing compound v everywhere, he would snatch food from the tiger's mouth—with the help of the elusive Ghost, he could confidently carry out many tasks, and they wouldn't be traced back to him.
Jill suddenly kissed him on the cheek and whispered in his ear, "What exactly did that Ghost say to you just now? Don't hide it from me!"
"Well, you'll need to prepare yourself mentally." Without thinking, Wade told her everything about Ghost and her companions' deeds and reasons for killing. "...She told us to mind our own business and then left."
"So Vought's affiliated institutions house these poor people?" Jill's mouth hung open, shocked for a long time. "War is terrifying too, turning normal people into utter criminals?"
Wade looked at the routine police-and-thief chase happening on the city streets below and comforted her solemnly, "At least it's not our turn to go to the battlefield, or our minds would break down too."
The frontline was exactly where the effects of the serum would be tested on a large scale. He could already foresee the scene of thousands of Nexus Individual Serums shining brightly on the battlefield. Vought would definitely discover clues by then.
He pondered the company's current development path, secretly worrying: 'Supe serums will inevitably be used in the military domain. We must grow large and strong to have a chance of implementing them for civilian use. It's still a long way before the serum is used routinely...'
Only by continuously creating trouble for Vought, keeping all their departments tied up, and forcing The Seven and their Supes to constantly put out fires, the longer the delay, the more beneficial it would be for him and his company's development.
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