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Starting in 'The Boys' to Become the Ultimate Lifeform_chapter_0379_en
Chapter 379
Chapter 378: Decadent Charles! Do Mutants Deserve to Be Called Heroes?
A few seconds later, the Lobby erupted into noise, like a pot of boiling water. Some people were relieved they had escaped, while others quickly rushed to the cloth bags to search for their belongings.
"Oh my god, he saved all of us, and even helped us recover our losses." A man in a suit looked at his recovered wallet, so excited he wanted to kiss it twice.
"But he's clearly a Mutant."
Under the extensive propaganda of certain politicians and Scientists, Mutants had long been equated with bloodthirsty demons. Therefore, even though they had just been saved by a Mutant, a small portion of people still believed that Mutants were deliberately trying to gain the goodwill of humans, and that there must be unknown evil purposes hidden behind the scenes.
"Hmph! I don't believe the nonsense from the Media. I only believe what I see. The fact is right in front of us now; it wasn't the Police who saved us, but a Mutant."
The man opened his wallet, counting the cash inside while ridiculing the Police's incompetence.
Only the Security Guard Iva, who had been injured by the Hijacker, rushed out of the noisy Lobby and stood on the Roadside, looking up at the sky. Unfortunately, Xia Shang had already flown far away, and the pure, cloudless sky was a clear blue.
He secretly clenched his fist, his mind constantly replaying the words Xia Shang had just spoken. As the voice echoed in his ears repeatedly, Iva's gaze gradually became fervent.
............
A week later, in the Club President's Office at the Weiss Newspaper Agency.
Camille, with a solemn expression, handed a newspaper to Xia Shang and said in a heavy tone, "Recently, a Mutant calling himself Homelander appeared in Washington. In a short period, he frequently took action, striking down and preventing multiple crime activities.
I heard that many of the public already regard him as the guardian deity of Washington. This was originally a good thing for us, as it could indirectly boost the sales of our new publication.
However, his actions have also implicitly embarrassed some important figures.
Yesterday morning, Michael, the chief of the Washington Police Department, publicly stated that Homelander has no law enforcement authority and all his actions are equivalent to crime. Furthermore, multiple newspapers across the United States have jointly moved to suppress and smear this Homelander, even The Washington Post is no exception. I suspect it's likely the Government high-ups who demanded they do this.
If it's truly an order from the Government high-ups, then our new publication might be banned."
"Do they understand what freedom of speech is? If the Government dares to ban us, I will immediately provide funding of one hundred million US Dollars to make large numbers of protesters appear in every City in the United States. I refuse to believe the Government dares to go head-to-head with me." Xia Shang sneered as he spread out the newspaper and continued, "How are the preparations for the new publication coming along?"
Camille was still in shock and hadn't fully recovered. Facing his superior's question, he paused for a moment before immediately answering, "After the printing factory worked overnight, our warehouse has accumulated over three million copies of the new publication. We expect to start distribution tomorrow morning."
"Not enough. Have the printing factory print another ten million copies. Money is not an issue. Within a week, I want every resident in Washington to have a copy of Mutant Weekly." Xia Shang, holding The Washington Post, spoke calmly, but his words made Camille's pupils contract sharply.
"What? Do you have an opinion on my decision?"
Xia Shang put down the newspaper and looked directly into Camille's eyes.
In an instant, cold sweat broke out on Camille's back, as if a sharp sword was hanging over his head. If he dared to shake his head, the sword would likely pierce his head immediately.
"No... no opinion. I'll go do it right away."
"I don't care what means you use, even if you scatter newspapers on the Street, you must achieve the target of everyone having a copy." Xia Shang propped up the newspaper and leaned back in his chair as he spoke.
"Understood." On the other side.
A mysterious and ancient castle stood in the Suburbs of Westchester, New York. The surrounding area was lush with green grass and exceptionally quiet.
In one Room, Charles Xavier, with long hair, lay slumped on the desk in a decadent state, sleeping soundly. Around him were two empty cans of beer, as well as some newspapers and magazines.
"Look at this." Hank, wearing a pair of black-rimmed glasses, rushed into the Room and vigorously shook Charles's shoulder.
"Don't disturb my sleep."
Charles had long lost his youthful, spirited appearance. He looked completely like a homeless person on the Street.
But there was a reason he had become this way. In 1963, after parting ways with Magneto, Charles returned to the United States and founded a private School specifically for accepting Mutants.
At first, everything was normal. Until the Vietnam War broke out. At the request of the Government, the faculty and students from the School were transferred to the Battlefield in batches, and the Government treated Mutants almost as items for consumption.
After learning this information, Charles wanted to stop it, but it was useless. In the end, he could only watch helplessly as his students and Teachers died tragically one by one. Some died on the Battlefield, while others went missing.
There was nothing he could do. Charles could only close the School and blame himself, believing that he had caused everyone's death. If he hadn't founded X Academy, perhaps Sean and Alex wouldn't have died. Now, only he and Beast Hank remain from the First Class X-Men. Even though 11 years have passed since that painful time, Charles still couldn't forgive himself.
"A powerful Mutant has appeared in Washington. His name seems to be Homelander."
Hank stuffed a newspaper into Charles's arms and said with some surprise, "Unlike Magneto, he actually chose to use his ability to help humans. Some people even call him the guardian deity of Washington."
"So what... I just want to get a good sleep right now. Can you please not disturb me?" Charles adjusted his sleeping position and continued to sleep slumped on the desk.
Seeing this, Hank shook his head helplessly. If it were Charles from ten years ago, he would probably have been extremely excited upon hearing this information.
But now, although the pain in Charles's body had disappeared under the effect of the drug, the pain in his heart still remained. If things continued this way, Charles would likely continue to be numb, avoiding all problems by sleeping.
"Sigh."
Hank sighed softly, then walked out of the Room and gently closed the door.
"Click!" The moment the Room door closed, Charles rubbed his face with both hands, then turned on the desk lamp. Under the dim yellow light, he carefully unfolded the newspaper Hank had given him.
[Absurd! Do Mutants Deserve to Be Called heroes?]
The glaring headline on the newspaper made Charles's mood sink instantly.
Mystique publicly killing Dr. Trask did not resolve the conflict between humans and Mutants; instead, it intensified the conflict and increased people's hostility towards Mutants.
"Homelander, you shouldn't have appeared at this time. Humans will never allow a Mutant to become their hero." (end of chapter )
A few seconds later, the Lobby erupted into noise, like a pot of boiling water. Some people were relieved they had escaped, while others quickly rushed to the cloth bags to search for their belongings.
"Oh my god, he saved all of us, and even helped us recover our losses." A man in a suit looked at his recovered wallet, so excited he wanted to kiss it twice.
"But he's clearly a Mutant."
Under the extensive propaganda of certain politicians and Scientists, Mutants had long been equated with bloodthirsty demons. Therefore, even though they had just been saved by a Mutant, a small portion of people still believed that Mutants were deliberately trying to gain the goodwill of humans, and that there must be unknown evil purposes hidden behind the scenes.
"Hmph! I don't believe the nonsense from the Media. I only believe what I see. The fact is right in front of us now; it wasn't the Police who saved us, but a Mutant."
The man opened his wallet, counting the cash inside while ridiculing the Police's incompetence.
Only the Security Guard Iva, who had been injured by the Hijacker, rushed out of the noisy Lobby and stood on the Roadside, looking up at the sky. Unfortunately, Xia Shang had already flown far away, and the pure, cloudless sky was a clear blue.
He secretly clenched his fist, his mind constantly replaying the words Xia Shang had just spoken. As the voice echoed in his ears repeatedly, Iva's gaze gradually became fervent.
............
A week later, in the Club President's Office at the Weiss Newspaper Agency.
Camille, with a solemn expression, handed a newspaper to Xia Shang and said in a heavy tone, "Recently, a Mutant calling himself Homelander appeared in Washington. In a short period, he frequently took action, striking down and preventing multiple crime activities.
I heard that many of the public already regard him as the guardian deity of Washington. This was originally a good thing for us, as it could indirectly boost the sales of our new publication.
However, his actions have also implicitly embarrassed some important figures.
Yesterday morning, Michael, the chief of the Washington Police Department, publicly stated that Homelander has no law enforcement authority and all his actions are equivalent to crime. Furthermore, multiple newspapers across the United States have jointly moved to suppress and smear this Homelander, even The Washington Post is no exception. I suspect it's likely the Government high-ups who demanded they do this.
If it's truly an order from the Government high-ups, then our new publication might be banned."
"Do they understand what freedom of speech is? If the Government dares to ban us, I will immediately provide funding of one hundred million US Dollars to make large numbers of protesters appear in every City in the United States. I refuse to believe the Government dares to go head-to-head with me." Xia Shang sneered as he spread out the newspaper and continued, "How are the preparations for the new publication coming along?"
Camille was still in shock and hadn't fully recovered. Facing his superior's question, he paused for a moment before immediately answering, "After the printing factory worked overnight, our warehouse has accumulated over three million copies of the new publication. We expect to start distribution tomorrow morning."
"Not enough. Have the printing factory print another ten million copies. Money is not an issue. Within a week, I want every resident in Washington to have a copy of Mutant Weekly." Xia Shang, holding The Washington Post, spoke calmly, but his words made Camille's pupils contract sharply.
"What? Do you have an opinion on my decision?"
Xia Shang put down the newspaper and looked directly into Camille's eyes.
In an instant, cold sweat broke out on Camille's back, as if a sharp sword was hanging over his head. If he dared to shake his head, the sword would likely pierce his head immediately.
"No... no opinion. I'll go do it right away."
"I don't care what means you use, even if you scatter newspapers on the Street, you must achieve the target of everyone having a copy." Xia Shang propped up the newspaper and leaned back in his chair as he spoke.
"Understood." On the other side.
A mysterious and ancient castle stood in the Suburbs of Westchester, New York. The surrounding area was lush with green grass and exceptionally quiet.
In one Room, Charles Xavier, with long hair, lay slumped on the desk in a decadent state, sleeping soundly. Around him were two empty cans of beer, as well as some newspapers and magazines.
"Look at this." Hank, wearing a pair of black-rimmed glasses, rushed into the Room and vigorously shook Charles's shoulder.
"Don't disturb my sleep."
Charles had long lost his youthful, spirited appearance. He looked completely like a homeless person on the Street.
But there was a reason he had become this way. In 1963, after parting ways with Magneto, Charles returned to the United States and founded a private School specifically for accepting Mutants.
At first, everything was normal. Until the Vietnam War broke out. At the request of the Government, the faculty and students from the School were transferred to the Battlefield in batches, and the Government treated Mutants almost as items for consumption.
After learning this information, Charles wanted to stop it, but it was useless. In the end, he could only watch helplessly as his students and Teachers died tragically one by one. Some died on the Battlefield, while others went missing.
There was nothing he could do. Charles could only close the School and blame himself, believing that he had caused everyone's death. If he hadn't founded X Academy, perhaps Sean and Alex wouldn't have died. Now, only he and Beast Hank remain from the First Class X-Men. Even though 11 years have passed since that painful time, Charles still couldn't forgive himself.
"A powerful Mutant has appeared in Washington. His name seems to be Homelander."
Hank stuffed a newspaper into Charles's arms and said with some surprise, "Unlike Magneto, he actually chose to use his ability to help humans. Some people even call him the guardian deity of Washington."
"So what... I just want to get a good sleep right now. Can you please not disturb me?" Charles adjusted his sleeping position and continued to sleep slumped on the desk.
Seeing this, Hank shook his head helplessly. If it were Charles from ten years ago, he would probably have been extremely excited upon hearing this information.
But now, although the pain in Charles's body had disappeared under the effect of the drug, the pain in his heart still remained. If things continued this way, Charles would likely continue to be numb, avoiding all problems by sleeping.
"Sigh."
Hank sighed softly, then walked out of the Room and gently closed the door.
"Click!" The moment the Room door closed, Charles rubbed his face with both hands, then turned on the desk lamp. Under the dim yellow light, he carefully unfolded the newspaper Hank had given him.
[Absurd! Do Mutants Deserve to Be Called heroes?]
The glaring headline on the newspaper made Charles's mood sink instantly.
Mystique publicly killing Dr. Trask did not resolve the conflict between humans and Mutants; instead, it intensified the conflict and increased people's hostility towards Mutants.
"Homelander, you shouldn't have appeared at this time. Humans will never allow a Mutant to become their hero." (end of chapter )
