[26] : Testing New Strength, Speech!
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....
As the altitude gradually increased, Roger felt the thinning of the air.
When he went to rescue Flight 37, Roger had already felt the thin air at high altitude, but that level was still bearable for him.
But now, as he was about to leave Earth's atmosphere, Roger felt his breathing becoming increasingly difficult.
Homelander's lung structure was not like Superman's. He didn't have Superman's powerful cardiovascular strength, so he also didn't have abilities like freezing breath or Superman's nearly infinite internal respiration.
Although his cardiovascular strength was far beyond that of ordinary people, it was still far inferior to Superman's.
As he was about to leave Earth's atmosphere, Roger distinctly felt a faint stinging on his skin.
That was the cosmic radiation outside of Earth. He couldn't withstand this cosmic radiation, and due to the different pressures inside and outside his body, just approaching interstellar space made Roger feel extremely uncomfortable.
"Is it not possible..."
Stopping in mid-air, Roger looked up at the deep starry sky and down at the brilliant blue Earth, regretfully muttering to himself.
It seemed that having a biological force field like Superman's was just a fluke or another cheat after his transmigration. Other than having a biological force field similar to Superman's, Roger's other abilities had not been enhanced at all.
He couldn't absorb sunlight to become stronger, nor could he survive in the starry sky. Just flying to this distance, Roger already felt somewhat hypoxic.
Perhaps he could rely on the biological force field to resist cosmic radiation and external pressure, but without the ability to internally circulate his breathing, he could only stay in outer space for a short while.
It was like human diving. Without equipment, the time humans could survive underwater depended on how long they could hold their breath.
After taking one last deep look at the cosmic starry sky, Roger no longer lingered and turned to fly back to Earth.
"But the view from the sky is really beautiful."
Roger looked toward the distant horizon, admiring the sight that only he could see with the naked eye.
...
"So, you're saying Homelander lifted an entire plane?"
At the eighty-second floor of Vought Tower, the floor where Vought International's board of directors resided, in an office, Vought's true leader asked Madelyn in front of him.
Looking at the dark-skinned leader of Vought, Madelyn took a deep breath and nodded.
"That's right. We don't know how he did it."
"So we have reason to believe he has gained new abilities."
Stan Edgar put down the pen in his hand and spoke to Madelyn.
Madelyn nodded. This was the only explanation so far.
In fact, Homelander saving all the people on a plane was a good thing for Vought International, but him showing abilities he had never displayed to Vought before was not a good thing.
This meant that Homelander might be hiding something from Vought. More seriously, it might mean he had already gone out of control.
Edgar thought for a moment and asked, "Have you asked Dr. Vogelbaum?"
Jonah Vogelbaum was the doctor who had once been responsible for Homelander. He had overseen Homelander's experiments when he was a child and could be seen as a father figure to him. No one understood Homelander better than he did.
"Not yet, but Dr. Vogelbaum probably doesn't know either."
"Why are you so sure?"
"Because right now, the person closest to Homelander is me."
Madelyn said seriously.
Madelyn could see Homelander's attachment to her. Although she didn't know why Homelander had not been hovering around her recently, she was still certain that she was the person in Vought who was closest to Homelander.
Madelyn was confident in this.
Edgar knew that Madelyn was trying to use 'motherly' control over Homelander, so he didn't question further. He said to Madelyn, "Alright, then try to get the company's psychological therapist to approach him."
"That might anger him..."
"It doesn't matter," Edgar said. "If he gets really angry, that's actually a good thing."
"I understand."
Madelyn understood what Edgar meant. If Homelander got angry and hurt or even killed the therapist, it would prove that he was still the same Homelander as before and that there was no need to worry too much.
A violent and irritable Homelander was easier to control.
But if he restrained his temper and had hidden thoughts, it would prove that Homelander had grown, and Vought would need to draft a new control plan for him.
Madelyn left the eighty-second floor and returned to her office. After thinking for a while, she called Homelander.
Homelander and Maeve had done well with the plane hijacking incident. The story of superheroes saving an entire plane of passengers would make headlines in major newspapers the next day, and online, Homelander and Maeve's popularity had reached another level.
They were now undoubtedly world-class stars. As long as they publicly supported the bill to have superheroes join the Department of Defense, even if the senators didn't want Vought to succeed, they would have to vote in favor at the meeting.
Madelyn had been busy with this for a long time, and now it was time to reap the rewards. So she planned to call Homelander over, hoping he could push things along to make this process smoother.
Soon, Roger, wearing his hero costume, walked in. But unlike before, he was no longer wearing the cape that represented America.
"Where's your cape?"
When Roger came in, Madelyn asked in confusion.
Roger said, "I had the image department redesign it. I don't really like that cape anymore."
"Why?"
Madelyn asked curiously. "You were the one who turned the red cape into its current form. Now you want to change it back?"
"No, of course not."
Roger sat on the sofa, took off his dark red gloves, and said to Madelyn, "I just think the American flag is too narrow. I should adopt an image more aligned with the world."
"Don't tell me you want to have a world map on your cape."
Madelyn frowned.
Roger's mouth twitched slightly, and he said, "I wouldn't do that. That would be too stupid. I just want to change the cape to a solid color. How about black?"
"Black?"
Madelyn looked Roger up and down. "A black cape wouldn't match your current outfit."
"So, should I change the hero costume to black too? I like black."
"Then you might as well take Black Noir's equipment. Homelander, there's already a hero in the Seven who has a black-themed outfit. You don't need to change yourself into that image."
Madelyn advised. Before Roger could speak, she continued, "Besides, blue represents the sky, the world, and hope. That's the image you present to the outside world. You are hope. There's no need for any unnecessary changes."
"Alright, alright. I was just saying. No need to overreact. So, what did you want to see me for?"
Seeing Madelyn's strong reaction, Roger didn't insist and instead asked why she wanted to see him.
Madelyn knew this wasn't the time to discuss whether Roger's hero outfit was suitable. She took a deep breath, pulled a piece of paper from her drawer, and said to Roger, "You and Maeve did well with the plane hijacking incident. Many senators have decided to vote in favor of our bill at the meeting, but it's not enough. We can do even better.
"So, in a few days, there's a charity event being held by an organization, and you need to give a speech as a guest. Here is your speech draft."
Madelyn said, placing the speech filled with words in front of Roger.
...
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