In the abandoned factory, Hughie wiped the blood off Butcher's forehead and mouth.

then glanced at Roger, who was scrolling through his phone. Hesitating a bit, Hughie walked over and asked, "Um... Homelander, I haven't asked yet, but why did you bring us here?"

Roger looked up at Hughie and replied, "Just to have a simple chat. We wouldn't need to do this, but it seems like you wouldn't listen unless I beat you up a bit."

Roger pointed at Butcher lying on the ground. He swore he came with good intentions. After all, if things went wrong and Vought discovered that their cash cow had changed, they would definitely do something about it.

Whether through bribery or threats, Vought wouldn't leave Roger alone, so he needed a backup plan. He didn't want to become the world's enemy under Vought's manipulation.

But obviously, Butcher couldn't stay calm when facing Roger. Understandably, who could remain calm when facing someone who might have raped and killed his wife?

Roger could understand, but that didn't stop him from giving Butcher a beating. Only through face-to-face conversation could Roger grasp how annoying this guy was.

"What do you want to talk about?" Hughie asked cautiously.

Roger glanced at Hughie and said, "Let's talk about Translucent and Compound V. You guys killed Translucent, didn't you?"

Hughie swallowed nervously and quickly shook his head. Roger asked, "Are you saying you didn't?"

"No, no, it was... it was me... No, not me, they pressed the bomb button! Oh, God..."

Panicking, Hughie blurted out the truth. At that moment, he felt utterly hopeless, thinking that Homelander, knowing the truth, would send him to prison or even kill him himself.

Seeing Hughie's fear, Roger reassured him, "Relax, I haven't said anything yet. If there's any reason to be scared, it should be when I actually do something."

"You... you're not going to arrest us...?" Hughie asked in shock.

Roger glanced at him and continued scrolling through the news. "Arresting you would be pointless. Although Translucent was innocent, you guys aren't exactly good people either. But so far, you're the only team daring to take on Vought, so... I won't arrest you for now."

"What... what do you mean? Do you want to team up with us against Vought?"

"No, I never said that. I just said I wouldn't arrest you."

Roger distanced himself from the idea. For now, he didn't want to fight Vought; after all, they were still paying him.

He just wanted a backup plan, at least for the moment.

Hughie couldn't quite grasp what this 'Homelander' wanted, but knowing he wouldn't be arrested or killed made Hughie breathe a sigh of relief. He slumped to the ground next to Butcher.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

The scene was quiet for a while before Roger suddenly asked Hughie, "Shouldn't you contact your remaining two companions?"

"Can... can I?" Hughie asked.

"Of course. If you don't contact them soon, they'll think you and this guy are already dead."

Roger half-joked. Hughie couldn't laugh, but with Roger's permission, he quickly took out his phone to call Frenchie and Mother's Milk.

Roger added, "When they come, tell them not to do anything stupid. I don't want to have to beat them up too."

Hughie conveyed Roger's request to Frenchie and Mother's Milk over the phone. Roger believed that as long as those two were smart, they'd realize how irrational it was to oppose him.

But even if they did try something, Roger's super vision and super hearing were not to be underestimated.

However, Roger recalled that in the original second season finale, Frenchie had set up a bunch of speakers playing sounds only those with super hearing could hear.

forcing him to leave his son to handle it. Because it had been a while since watching the show, Roger forgot how Frenchie managed that. But this memory reminded Roger that Homelander wasn't invincible.

Even Superman had kryptonite; surely, someone could find a way to counter Homelander.

As Frenchie and Mother's Milk were on their way, Roger looked at the unconscious Butcher and thought about what to say next. After a while, Hughie suddenly spoke up, "Actually... actually, we didn't want to kill Translucent, but we had no choice..."

"I know," Roger replied. "At the time, you were enemies. It's normal to act that way."

The Boys and the Seven were at odds back then, and even now, they weren't entirely friendly.

Hughie's girlfriend had just been killed by A-Train, and the others had grudges against the Supes. In such circumstances, expecting them to be rational was unrealistic. But Roger still found it a pity.

Translucent was a jerk. He often used his invisibility to spy on women in locker rooms and bathrooms. By law, he deserved to be locked up for a few years. But despite his perversions.

he wasn't a murderer. Unlike Homelander, who frequently went on killing sprees, or A-Train, who ran people over without a care, Translucent was more like The Deep: a pervert with some issues but not inherently evil.

Just like some celebrities who are detestable and lack basic morals but at least don't have blood on their hands.

Translucent didn't deserve to die. If he were still alive, exposing his misdeeds and kicking him out of the Seven while handing him over to the justice system would have been punishment enough. But now it was too late; he was dead.

Roger didn't want to hand the Boys over to the American justice system. Vought's influence was vast and far-reaching. Turning them in would be a death sentence. These people couldn't die yet; Roger needed them to divert Vought's attention.

"You really are different from the other Supes, Homelander," Hughie said.

Roger looked at him and asked, "Do you say the same to Starlight?"

"What? No... of course not... Wait, how did you know about me and Starlight...?"

Mentioning Starlight, Hughie instinctively wanted to explain, but then he realized that Roger wasn't supposed to know about their meeting.

Roger pointed to his ear and said, "I heard it. At the time, I thought you were her secret boyfriend. I didn't expect you to be involved in Translucent's death."

"No... I... I'm not in that kind of relationship with Starlight."

"Relax, kid. Everything takes time. Now it may not be, but that doesn't mean it won't be in the future.

Starlight is a good girl. She's purer than anyone else in the Seven."

Roger said softly. Compared to the other members of the Seven, Starlight was as pure as could be.

But Roger didn't like girls like Starlight. Otherwise, he might have pursued her.

"Uh..."

As Hughie and Roger were talking, Butcher slowly regained consciousness. He heard their conversation, struggled to sit up, and said, "What? Kid, are you friends with this damn Supe now?"

Hughie had an awkward smile on his face, and Roger looked at Butcher meaningfully. This Butcher still had a mouth that deserved a beating. If he could, Roger would sew Butcher's mouth shut to get some peace.