Free Web NovelChapter 25: 25: Internet Breaks, Omega Beams?
You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks.
~ Tywin Lannister
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Starlight’s exclusive interview dropped the very next day.
It aired on an independent platform called "Voice of Truth."
This was a small online outlet with only 300,000 subscribers. They had a solid rep for actually speaking real shit and were pretty popular with younger audiences.
Because it was independent and not controlled by Vought, it carried real public trust.
At the same time, being small meant lower barriers, which made it easier to dodge Madelyn’s meddling.
The host was a young woman whose vibe matched Starlight perfectly. Two girls sitting together chatting created a naturally warm, relatable picture.
Girl helping girls.
The stream exploded. Within five minutes of going live, viewers smashed past two million.
It hit trending on multiple platforms at once.
Ten minutes later it crossed five million.
Hillel once again witnessed just how terrifying Starlight’s popularity and traffic really were.
The host started the questions.
"Annie, have you seen that video circulating online?"
Starlight nodded. She wasn’t wearing her Seven uniform today. She dressed like a normal girl, looking pure and innocent.
She came across like an ordinary young woman instead of some distant supe or untouchable superhero.
This was the angle Hillel had pushed for.
To sell the victim story, she had to come back down to being a regular person. Otherwise people couldn’t relate.
Just like celebrities always complaining about how hard they have it, how tough making money is, how exhausting filming is, while earning thousands of times what normal people make.
How the fuck are regular folks supposed to feel sorry for that?
"Is what happened in that video real?"
"It is."
Starlight’s voice trembled and she looked like she was about to cry.
She looked pitiful as hell.
Even Homelander watching off-screen couldn’t help muttering how good her acting was.
"On my second night in The Seven, The Deep came after me in the conference room."
"I was terrified. I didn’t know what to do. He was a veteran, I was the new girl. I wasn’t even sure if fighting back would get me kicked out of The Seven."
The live chat went nuclear.
[ @MilkLover: My heart breaks for Annie! ]
[ @HomeFapper: The Deep is a fucking animal! ]
[ @BabyMomma: What the hell is Vought doing? ]
[ @StarLighter69: This is straight-up oppression! Tyranny! ]
[ @ThePeakFan: Fuck The Deep, no wonder I always hated that guy! ]
[ @MoistCritical: @ThePeakFan We have seen your previous comments, buddy.]
[ @Clavicular: Damn, The Guardian Mogs Homelander! ]
[ @Karen’sKid: Do you think Starlight is still a virgin? ]
[ @GuardianFan: Kid above, don’t make me come and beat the living sh*t out of you!! ]
[ @SingleMomKaren: @Karen’sKid You are grounded, young man! No internet for you! ]
The host handed her a tissue. Starlight clutched it tight and kept going.
"But that video isn’t complete. Someone deliberately cut out the second half."
"What was in the second half?" the host asked immediately.
"The Guardian kicked the door open and stopped The Deep."
The host cut straight to the full video.
On screen, Hillel smashed the conference room door open with one powerful kick. The rune on his suit stood out sharply.
He stepped in front of Starlight and blocked The Deep.
"Shut the fuck up!"
The Deep tried to explain, but Hillel shut him down with one sentence.
Immediately after, the two of them went at it.
The Deep tried to pull rank and bully The Guardian into backing down.
But The Guardian didn’t give a single fuck. He stood firm for fairness and justice.
In the end, Starlight really didn’t just roll over and take it!
The live stream viewer count blasted straight past ten million.
The chat was scrolling so fast it was impossible to read properly. It looked like a raging river of text.
Swish swish swish!
[ @ThePeakFan: The Guardian!!! My fucking number one hero! ]
[ @StarLighter69: You are the real hero! ]
[ @NerissaRavencroft: I’m actually crying right now. ]
[ @SophieRain: Big head or small head? ]
[ @NewYorker: Vought doesn’t deserve a hero as good as The Guardian! ]
[ @Ironmouse: This is too much, I’m crying to death! ] fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm
[ @xQc: I didn’t expect The Guardian to stay clean in Vought’s giant shit vat. Well done, buddy!! ]
Next, Starlight moved on to the Homelander angle.
"After that, The Guardian reported everything to Homelander."
"Homelander was furious. He had already been quietly investigating The Deep and A-Train, gathering evidence."
"This press conference was the official move Homelander made once he had enough proof."
"But someone didn’t want the truth to come out the right way, so they stole the video, cut out the second half on purpose, and tried to turn the whole thing into a scandal to attack The Seven."
"They’re not just hurting me. They’re hurting The Guardian, hurting Homelander, and hurting everyone who still believes in justice!"
Starlight spoke with real sincerity because she actually believed most of this version. frёewebnoѵēl.com
At least the important parts were true...
The Guardian really had saved her.
Homelander really had kicked The Deep out.
The interview ran for forty-five minutes.
Peak online viewers hit twenty-three million.
That number took the tiny "Voice of Truth" outlet from niche to mainstream overnight.
Less than an hour after the interview ended, public opinion flipped 180 degrees.
The Guardian saving the damsel in distress went mega-viral across the internet.
The story that Homelander had been investigating in secret for a long time got widely accepted. His approval rating didn’t just stop dropping — it started climbing again.
It was even 0.8 points higher than before the press conference.
The Guardian’s public favorability had shot into the top five among all supes in America.
Even Vought’s stock decline halted and started to recover.
Edgar put down the newspaper and looked at Madelyn sitting on the sofa beside him.
"You said The Guardian was a Soviet spy? Doesn’t look like it now."
"He’s just a young guy with some naive ideas, still clinging to that basic sense of justice. We’ve seen plenty like him before. This time not only did you fail to handle him, you actually pissed him off."
"That’s one thing, but you couldn’t even see things from the company’s perspective. We’ll leave it at that. I’ll report to the board."
"From now on, Ashley takes over all public relations authority. You stay focused on the Godolkin situation."
Madelyn clenched her fists so tight her knuckles went white.
To keep her from interfering, Hillel had deliberately picked a small independent outlet.
She hadn’t even gotten a chance to meddle.
Now even Edgar didn’t buy her story anymore.
...
On the other side, Hillel opened his system panel.
The numbers were climbing fast.
Current Ability Points: 99,214 / 100,000
Hillel watched the counter tick up bit by bit.
99,800
99,900
99,950
..
..
Ding.
[ Congratulations to the host. Ability Points have reached 100,000 / 100,000 ]
[ Level Up: Lv.2 → Lv.3 ]
[ Unlocking new abilities... ]
Hillel opened his eyes.
An insane wave of power exploded through his body, hot as molten lava.
Every single cell was rearranging, strengthening, evolving at crazy speed.
Muscle fibers, bone density, senses — everything jumped hard.
[ Level: Lv.3 ]
[ Strength: 3,000 Tons ]
[ Speed: Mach 30 ]
[ Defense: Tactical Nuclear Weapon Immunity ]
[ New Abilities: Unobstructed X-Ray Vision, Omega Beams ]
[ Space Flight: 2 Weeks ]
[ Current Ability Points: 0 / 250,000 ]
Hillel stared at the panel and took a deep breath.
Three thousand tons of strength! Mach 30 speed!
A Viltrumite elite warrior.
The weaker kind, sure.
He had only upgraded his bloodline so far. Real combat power needed time and age to build. By Viltrumite standards, he was basically still a newborn baby.
But he got two new abilities on top of it.
X-Ray Vision and Omega Beams.
This was fucking nuts!
Viltrumites didn’t even have X-Ray Vision or energy beams. The system he brought with him was clearly a heavily modded and boosted version.
Hillel looked up at the chimney of an abandoned building in the distance.
He narrowed his eyes.
Deep in his pupils, two red dots lit up.
Sizzle—~!
Two scorching red beams blasted out, hitting the chimney dead on from five hundred meters away.
The metal chimney instantly glowed red, melted, and slowly collapsed like a candle.
Were these the Darkseid-style Omega Beams?
Hillel blinked. His eyes felt completely fine, no strain at all.
That was nowhere near full power.
Nice!
He could be Homelander’s daddy now.
New mission prompts popped up on the panel.
[ Mission Updated ]
[ Main Mission: Establish an Irreplaceable Status within Vought ]
[ Side Mission: Find Translucent ]
[ Side Mission: Butcher’s Next Move... ]
[ Side Mission: The Seven – Cate and Jordan... ]
[ Side Mission: Edgar’s Favour...]
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