Transmigrated into The Boys, Starting as Soldier Boy

Chapter 11: Chapter 11: Negotiations with Edgar

At two in the afternoon, in the street-facing café in Brooklyn.

Edgar arrived even more punctually than Benjamin had expected.

The man who ran the world’s largest superhero business empire pushed open the café’s glass door wearing a dark gray turtleneck and black trousers. No entourage. No security. Low-key enough to pass for a university professor in New York on a business trip.

If Benjamin had not known who he was, Edgar could have disappeared into any crowd on the street.

Edgar sat down across from Benjamin, ordered a black coffee from the waiter, then folded his hands on the table and looked at the man opposite him.

Benjamin leaned back in his chair, holding a cup of Americano that had already gone more than half cold. His posture was casual, like he was catching up with an old friend.

"Your son killed Black Noir last night."

Edgar got straight to the point.

"With his bare hands, in the lounge on the thirty-seventh floor of Vought Tower. The surveillance footage was very clear. I’ve already had it deleted."

Benjamin took a sip of coffee, his expression unchanged.

He had already guessed as much. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

The look in Homelander’s eyes when he left, the hatred burning inside them, needed an outlet.

And the body Benjamin had inherited already had a grudge against Black Noir. Not only Black Noir, but several of his former teammates as well.

They had no personal grudge against Benjamin himself, but since he had inherited this body, taking revenge for it was not unreasonable.

Besides, those memories were still very real in his mind.

Soldier Boy had never bullied a normal person.

And in this twisted world of The Boys, full of perverts and freaks, normal people were far too rare.

That was why Soldier Boy had bullied people so often.

Of course, bullying was wrong.

But forty years of torture was far more hateful than bullying that at least had a reason behind it.

"So you’re here to call me to account?"

"I’m here to do business."

Edgar’s tone was as steady as if he were reading a financial report.

"The situation is simple. You and John, Homelander, father and son together, have enough power to erase Vought International from the New York Stock Exchange completely. I’m not exaggerating. You know I’m telling the truth.

But by the same token, Vought also has the ability to, well, you understand. But I won’t tear everything apart, because that would not benefit us, or you, in the slightest."

He paused as the coffee was brought over.

He lifted the cup, took a sip, then continued.

"But I believe there is a better solution. We don’t intend to go to war with you, and we don’t intend to go to war with John. Quite the opposite. I want you to return to Vought."

Benjamin set down his cup, his gaze focusing on Edgar’s face for the first time.

"Let me return?" Benjamin sneered. "Did you forget who sold me to those Russians?"

"That was a mistake."

Edgar said it quickly, with almost no pause, as if he had rehearsed that line over and over at some negotiating table.

"A disastrous decision made by the previous management. Of course, I’m not here to defend it. I’m here to propose a new arrangement."

If I hadn’t seen the original, I might actually believe him.

Benjamin sneered inwardly.

Edgar took a folded piece of paper from his pocket, flattened it on the table, and pushed it toward Benjamin. It was not an official contract, but a handwritten outline of terms. The handwriting was neat and the points were clearly organized. It had clearly been written by Edgar himself, or at the very least personally drafted by him.

"Return to Vought and enter management as a Supe."

Edgar began laying it out, his finger tapping the paper.

"Not joining The Seven, but managing The Seven.

A brand-new title will be created: Executive Director of Supe Affairs.

Your authority will be above every member of The Seven, including Homelander. Every mission assignment, personnel transfer, and operation approval will require your signature. In the decision-making hierarchy for Supe affairs, your rank will be second only to the Board of Directors."

He raised his head and looked Benjamin directly in the eye. freewebnøvel.com

"In other words, the position I’m giving you is above your son."

The café suddenly seemed very quiet.

An old radio in the corner was playing jazz.

Benjamin knew exactly what Edgar was planning.

This old fox never made a losing deal. By giving Benjamin a position that looked impossibly high, he was really placing him and Homelander on opposite ends of the scale.

Benjamin would suppress Homelander, Homelander would suppress Benjamin, and the two of them would keep each other in check, while Edgar sat right in the middle of the scale and continued pulling the strings.

This was the art of power. The kind of game men like Edgar were best at.

But Benjamin did not expose him.

Because he had plans of his own.

"Why don’t you fucking step down right now, give me your seat, and let me become the head of Vought?"

"If the opportunity comes, perhaps you could get that far."

Edgar did not refuse. He simply stated something that might happen in the future.

Benjamin looked at Edgar, and his interest was stirred.

After all, he was a transmigrator. If he wanted access to Homelander, then aside from forcibly taking him away, joining Vought was the only option.

Besides, Benjamin was not the original Soldier Boy. His tastes were perfectly normal.

Queen Maeve, Starlight, and Neuman. It was impossible for Benjamin to say he had no interest at all.

He did not know whether Starlight had been humiliated by The Deep yet, but it should be soon.

Whether for reaching Homelander or enjoying life, Benjamin needed Vought’s resources.

And if he wanted to control the White House and the entire United States the way Homelander did in Season 5, Benjamin needed to join Vought too.

Then, later, he would find his chance for revenge.

"Executive Director."

Benjamin said,

"Add one condition."

Edgar raised an eyebrow.

"What I want to build is a proper superhero company, not an actor agency. Recover all the Compound V being abused out there, and make sure it never leaks again.

I know my damn wimp of a son is doing it, but all of this happened with your approval."

Edgar’s finger paused on the rim of his coffee cup.

This concerned Vought’s interests.

But he thought for less than three seconds.

"Deal."

Benjamin picked up the coffee, now completely cold, and drained it in one gulp. Then he set the cup down hard on the table.

"Then I start work tomorrow. If you fucking break the rules, or if you give me the chance, I’ll blow your head apart and shove it up your ass."

Edgar remained expressionless.