"Huh?"
Kamala's face instantly fell.
So even her idol had come to take her stuff?
What should she do?
Homelander was the superhero she admired and respected the most—she really didn't want to upset him.
But she had already grown fond of the bracelet!
What's more, it was a gift from her grandmother.
Kamala was torn.
Alex smiled. Seeing her fidgeting and scratching her head, how could he not know what she was thinking?
"First, let me make one thing clear," Alex said gently.
"I'm not like those people just now. I do need that bracelet, but I'm talking to you about it."
"If you don't want to give it up, I won't force you. That's your right."
"And if you are willing, I'll pay a price to trade for it. I won't take it for free."
His tone was calm and sincere.
He wasn't trying to trick Kamala—it was genuinely how he felt.
At his current level, there was no need to deceive a little girl.
"Really?"
Kamala was completely relieved—and excited.
"Homelander, you're willing to trade with me? That's amazing! Doesn't that mean I'd get something from you?"
She was thrilled for a moment, but then gradually calmed down.
She thought of a key issue and slowly shook her head.
"Homelander, I don't mean anything bad. I really like you and respect you—I'd never want to disrespect you."
"But becoming a superhero has always been my dream. And now that I finally have superpowers…"
Her voice trailed off, her face full of hesitation.
"So you're worried about that?" Alex waved his hand casually.
"If that's the case, then I think you actually have more options."
"Superpowers, huh? I can give you those too."
It sounded arrogant at first—but Alex wasn't bragging.
With Krakoa's current tech alone, turning Kamala into a tech-based super-soldier would be ridiculously easy.
A cool suit of armor, for example.
Alex could guarantee it wouldn't be any worse than an Iron Man suit.
And that wasn't even mentioning—
Over the past two years, Alex had discovered countless parallel worlds.
A casual trip to another universe could solve everything.
For instance—
Going to the One Piece world and grabbing a Devil Fruit.
For Alex, that would be effortless.
"Homelander, you're not lying to me, right?"
"You can really give me superpowers?"
Kamala practically screamed, nearly bursting Alex's eardrums.
At that moment, all her concerns vanished.
She excitedly started asking what kind of powers Alex could give her.
Alex chatted briefly with her and got a good sense of her preferences.
Compared to tech-based heroes who relied on armor, Kamala clearly preferred "self-mutating" superpowers.
From that perspective, the bracelet wasn't even her best option.
"Homelander… is that really possible?"
"You can let me have incredible power myself?"
Kamala stared at Alex with eyes full of anticipation.
"Of course," Alex replied without hesitation.
"Homelander, the bracelet is yours."
"Honestly, it's really hard to control anyway. I don't like it that much."
Kamala changed her mind in less than a second.
"Wait—wait!"
Just as she was about to hand over the bracelet, Kamala suddenly paused.
"It was a gift from my grandma. At least let me tell her first."
"Of course," Alex agreed immediately.
"That's only right."
With that settled, there wasn't much else to say.
Alex took Kamala and started leaving the chaotic scene.
---
Clatter—clatter—clatter!
But to Alex's surprise, the moment they stepped outside, they were surrounded by a large group of heavily armed special forces.
Each soldier raised a glowing, high-tech rifle, aiming directly at Alex and Kamala.
"Homelander!"
Kamala was terrified and instinctively hid behind Alex.
Alex's gaze instantly turned cold as it swept over the soldiers.
"Who gave you the guts to point guns at me?"
His voice was icy.
"Ho—Homelander?"
"How is Homelander here?"
"No way… why is Homelander here?"
The scene erupted in shocked, panicked murmurs.
Cold sweat broke out on the soldiers' foreheads. Their hands trembled as they held their weapons.
Almost instinctively, they all looked toward a woman in a black trench coat with slicked-back hair.
She was the field commander.
"Homelander?"
"Put the guns down—now!"
"All of you, lower your weapons immediately!"
The woman herself was drenched in sweat as she shouted the order.
Only then did the soldiers lower their guns, as if they'd been granted a pardon.
Heaven knew—even if they had ten lives, they wouldn't dare aim weapons at Homelander.
"Homelander, we're from the Department of Damage Control. Sorry for the offense just now."
The woman stepped forward, identified herself, and even showed her credentials.
"Damage Control?"
"The organization Stark set up to clean up superhuman messes?"
Alex raised an eyebrow and quickly recalled what they were.
That's right.
An agency specifically created to deal with the aftermath of superhuman activity.
After all, whether heroes or villains, many enhanced individuals existed beyond normal authority.
So who cleaned up the mess?
Who paid for the damage?
The Chitauri invasion of New York, the crash of the three helicarriers during the Insight incident, Sokovia's rise and fall—
In response, Damage Control was formed.
Behind the scenes?
Tony Stark and Wilson Fisk.
Yes—Iron Man and the Kingpin.
The woman gave an awkward smile, not daring to contradict Alex in the slightest.
If he wanted to belittle Damage Control, so be it.
After all—
He was Homelander.
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