[T/N: For next 4 days, till next Wednesday, there will be one 1 chapter per day instead of 2. Have a great day~]
The information on his retina disappeared.
Homelander thought over the note section.
'Completing any two of the first three requirements will actively end the event.'
'And if I complete the fourth one, not only will the event end, I'll also get a 'Perfect' rating.'
Now Homelander knew that after a disaster event ended, there would be different types of evaluations such as "Perfect," "Successful," and "Smooth."
The disaster level and the evaluation were both related to the rewards.
The higher the disaster level and the better the evaluation, the more and better the rewards would be.
Although he did not know the exact disaster level of this event, one thing was certain. Its scope of impact was greater than the Sylvester Town incident.
In other words, the disaster level was at least above "D-."
If he could get a "Perfect" rating on top of that, then the rewards would be even more generous than the last "Sylvester Town incident."
With that, Homelander's choice was already very clear.
That was to complete the fourth requirement.
Kill the mastermind, Jeff.
For Homelander, to complete the fourth requirement, he only needed to solve one problem.
That was Jeff's location.
Homelander glanced at the "Titan" armor below.
He recalled what Jeff had just said.
This former employee still held a grudge about being kicked out of the company by Arnold. That was why tonight, instead of choosing the simple option, he chose to hijack the entire Manhattan.
'If I wanted to watch a good show, where would I be?'
'Of course in front of a big screen.'
'If that's the case, Jeff himself should be on Manhattan Island.'
With that thought, Homelander said nothing. He suddenly shot into the sky, smashing another hole through the Empire State Building, and disappeared into the night.
Maeve and the others watched as Homelander suddenly left. Everyone was confused, not knowing what he meant by doing that.
Edgar cleared his throat and said, "We should leave. Since Homelander has already gone, there's no point staying here."
Maeve nodded and said at once, "We'll protect Mr. Edgar while he leaves."
Seeing Edgar and his group heading toward the door, Jeff did not stop them, so as not to create unnecessary trouble.
Tonight, his opponent was not Vought, nor was it the superhumans.
He did not want to waste energy on Edgar. So he controlled the armors by the door to move aside and clear the entrance.
Seeing that, Maeve and the others quickened their pace.
At that moment, the guests behind them shouted, "Don't leave us behind!"
"Take us with you!"
Some even gritted their teeth and risked rushing toward the door, immediately drawing attacks from the mechs.
Seeing this scene, light flared in Starlight's eyes. In a low voice she said, "Mr. Edgar, I'll stay."
"Although I may not be able to do much, I'll try my best to calm the hostages."
"Besides, this can also play a key role in building our company's brand image."
Edgar was taken aback. He had not expected Starlight to be willing to remain in such a dangerous place.
The president did not think for long. He nodded, "All right. But if you truly encounter danger, you must find a way to protect yourself."
Starlight nodded.
Maeve looked back at the girl. She was surprised as well, and on Starlight's body, she seemed to see a certain figure.
Starlight thought Maeve was worried about her, so she nodded, showing that she could handle it. Maeve then turned around and quickly escorted Edgar out.
After that, Starlight turned around and said loudly, "I'm Starlight, reserve member of the Seven. Please don't worry. I'll stay here and get through this with everyone."
She then looked at the "Titan" armor on the stage, "Mr. Z, attacking hostages won't help you get what you want any faster."
Jeff's synthesized electronic voice sounded, ["I agree. But that is on the premise that they don't challenge my bottom line."]
Starlight nodded. She made her eyes glow and cast a bright light from above her head, making herself more noticeable and drawing the attention of the crowd in the hall.
She looked around and said, "Everyone, stay where you are. Don't move. I'll protect you."
With Starlight's reassurance, the guests in the hall finally began to calm down.
The "Titan" armor looked toward Starlight, then stepped back two paces. Jeff kept his word and did not let the armors harm the hostages again.
At that moment, Arnold's phone rang. He took it out and saw that it was Hansen, the deputy director of the Security Bureau.
He quickly answered.
However, the voice that came from the phone was not the deputy director's.
["Mr. Arnold, this is Wilson."]
Arnold's mind buzzed. Of course he knew who Wilson was.
This was the Secretary of Defense.
A major figure he had always wanted to build connections with.
Immediately after that, he heard the Secretary of Defense continue, ["Listen, Mr. Arnold."]
["I need to know what 'Zero' is. That will determine our attitude toward Mr. Z."]
———
After leaving the Empire State Building, Homelander rushed up into the clouds, shining together with the stars and moon.
Standing high in the sky, he looked down at Manhattan.
At this height, Manhattan was only the size of a biscuit in his eyes.
But that did not stop Homelander from clearly seeing every single person on the ground.
Even if they were as tiny as dust, they could not escape his eyes.
He was scanning Manhattan, searching for Jeff.
Anika from the Analysis Department had provided a photo of this former employee. As long as he was on Manhattan, Homelander would not miss him.
Of course, there were many people in Manhattan. This was not a task that could be completed in a short time.
Before he found Jeff, he noticed that on the river to the south of Manhattan Island, several police boats were approaching.
Before the boats could reach the shore, Homelander suddenly saw several unusual splashes appear on the river's surface.
Those splashes sped across the water, chasing after the police boats.
Within the splashes, Homelander saw those "Deep Sea Merman Series" armors. Thinking of how the "Raptor" armor had taken these "mermaids" away earlier, it was clear.
For tonight's operation, Jeff had carried out careful arrangements and meticulous planning before taking action.
At this moment, those "Deep Sea" armors dove into the river. The armors quickly approached the boats on the surface. Then, from inside the armors, miniature torpedoes were launched one after another.
The torpedoes cut through the river water, leaving trails of bubbles. Before the boats could reach the shore, they struck the bottoms of the vessels.
So from midair, Homelander clearly saw fireballs erupt from those police boats.
The people on board either jumped into the water themselves or were thrown into it by the force of the explosions.
A few unlucky ones were hit in vital spots by flying debris during the blast and died on the spot.
The explosions of the boats on the river quickly drew attention. Especially those stranded on the nearby bridges, unable to leave for the moment, all crowded to the edges of the bridges, pointing and talking.
Homelander shifted his gaze and stopped paying attention to the river. He looked toward Times Square.
Since Jeff had set up the "Earthshaker" in Times Square, it was very likely that he himself was at the scene.
———
While Homelander searched for the key target, inside the New York Police Department headquarters, Director Rowe stared at the large screen on the wall, watching the boats he had sent out being sunk. His face was extremely dark.
At that moment, a series of footsteps sounded outside the office. Then a voice said, "I am Jersey, Director of the Office of the Department of Defense. Now, I need your cooperation."
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