Free Web NovelChapter 14: Chapter 14: Homelander is a Child
Chapter 14: Homelander is a Child
Hearing Soldier Boy insult The Deep, the corner of Homelander’s mouth twitched visibly, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he barely held it together.
The Deep’s face flushed the color of pork liver. He wanted to say something—wanted to defend himself, to argue, to say that those dolphins were willing participants.
But The Deep glanced at Homelander, then at Benjamin’s disgusted face, and ultimately chose to keep his mouth shut.
Benjamin didn’t waste any time on him; he was just a useless piece of shit who liked fucking fish.
Starlight hadn’t arrived yet. If the events of the original show really went down when the time came, he would just find an opportunity to bully and discipline him again.
Soldier Boy shifted his gaze to the last person who needed to be called out individually.
"Maeve."
Maeve froze slightly. She had already been called out once regarding the matter with Translucent.
"You need to be a real superhero."
The tone of this statement was completely different from all the previous reprimands.
To be honest, aside from being a lesbian, Maeve didn’t really seem to have any other notable flaws.
And being a lesbian was nothing—certainly better than fucking fish.
Compared to the others, she was still relatively normal.
Maeve didn’t speak; her lips moved slightly, and she nodded heavily.
Soldier Boy really seems different from the rest of my teammates... Maeve thought to herself as she looked at Benjamin’s perfect, charismatic face.
"I will, sir," Maeve said.
Benjamin withdrew his gaze, looking at Homelander, who was enjoying the drama from the sidelines. "The rest of you leave. Homelander, stay."
The sound of chair legs scraping against the carpet echoed throughout the conference room.
Translucent was the first to stand, quickly turning invisible and slipping away.
The Deep followed closely behind, his head lowered, looking rather upset.
When A-Train turned his wheelchair, a wheel slammed into a table leg with a dull thud, prompting him to mutter a low curse.
Ashley scurried out right behind them.
Maeve was the last to leave.
Her steps paused slightly as she passed Benjamin’s side, casting a quick glance at him before swiftly exiting.
The conference room door slammed shut heavily behind her.
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Benjamin turned around to face his son.
Homelander stood beside the head of the long table, his cape draping quietly behind him.
His arms had shifted from being crossed over his chest to hanging down at his sides.
The previous posture of standing with crossed arms and watching coldly was gone, replaced by a stance that even he wasn’t quite used to.
Because everyone else had been reprimanded, leaving him entirely alone in the room.
Will Father lecture me? Homelander thought to himself.
Benjamin picked his shield up off the table, its metal edge clicking lightly against the rim.
He hung the shield onto the back of a nearby chair, pulled that chair out, and sat down.
He raised his hand, pointing his index finger at an adjacent chair.
"Sit."
Homelander hesitated for less than a second.
Then he sat down.
He didn’t lean against the backrest; instead, he straightened his spine, placing his hands properly on his knees, his ten fingertips just resting on the edges of his suit’s knee armor.
His cape was pressed behind him, draping through the gap between the chair cushion and the backrest, piling into a small pool of red on the carpet.
Benjamin found the posture mildly amusing.
The stance felt somewhat familiar. In reality, he had rarely seen Homelander sit like this.
In his memory, Homelander either crossed his legs, leaned back against the chair to strike a condescending, lazy pose, or simply stood, staring down at others with those blue eyes, a smirk of effortless superiority permanently etched on his face.
But right now, Homelander’s posture—knees together, hands flat, spine straight—was no different from a ten-year-old kid sitting in the principal’s office waiting to be scolded.
An image flashed through his mind.
In Season 5 of the original show, his original body took Homelander to find Marathon.
Back then, Homelander wore his suit but sat on the sofa, hands on his knees, spine perfectly straight, quietly listening to the old-timers chat. His posture was exactly like a child accompanying his father to visit an elder’s house.
Even when faced with Marathon’s crude jokes, Homelander didn’t immediately fly into a rage and kill him; he restrained himself, entirely because he was showing respect to Soldier Boy
At his core, Homelander was nothing more than a child.
Staring at those hands resting on his knees, Benjamin suddenly realized something.
The man in front of him didn’t smoke, didn’t drink, didn’t do drugs, and didn’t frequent prostitutes. He had zero vices.
From a certain angle, he could even be considered a moral role model in the superhero community.
A model citizen... well, aside from his fondness for murdering people.
Granted, his penchant for murder was a problem larger than all of his virtues combined. fгeewebnovёl.com
But he was still a child.
A child who, after being tortured in a lab by Vought, was plucked out and thrown straight into the spotlight, never having had the chance to truly grow up.
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A/n: If you want to read ahead and find out what happens next right away, you can read up to 20 Chapters ahead on my p@tr~on: [email protected]/ForgottenDaoist (@ = a, link is in my profile).
