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"Aren't you going to look at the contract terms?" Homelander teased. "Vought's legal department are notorious Vampires."
"No need."
Natasha closed the contract and pushed it in front of Homelander.
"Back at S.H.I.E.L.D., Fury was always talking to me about ideals, sacrifice, and the good of all mankind. Then he'd turn around and dock my field allowance."
She looked at Homelander, her tone more relaxed than ever before.
"But you're different. You talk directly about money, benefits, and health insurance. It might be tacky, but you're truly looking out for me."
"To be honest, Anthony." Natasha looked at Homelander with a complex gaze. "After doing dirty work for S.H.I.E.L.D. for so many years, I always thought I'd die in some unknown gutter."
"...Now I truly feel that working with you might be the best decision I've ever made."
"I never paint pies for my employees. Because I have enough flour to bake them a cake directly."
"And... Natasha." Homelander walked over to her, looking directly into Natasha's eyes.
"...Here, you don't need to do that shady dirty work anymore. You can stand in the sunlight and receive the people's applause. You can be a hero, not a killer."
Natasha was silent for a moment, then suddenly broke into a bright, heartfelt smile.
"Everything is great, except for the fifteen-thousand-dollar clothing allowance being too low."
"Hahahaha!"
Homelander burst out laughing.
"Go find Ashley. I'll have her add three more zeros."
The system notification sound rang out at the right time:
"Detected that the original Avenger, Black Widow Natasha Romanoff, has officially joined the faction!"
"Gained special popularity value + 50,000!"
"Reward: [Allied Super Agent Combat Suit]!"
"Black Buzzard Special Handguns: Two units, switchable between armor-piercing and high-explosive modes, effective range of 300 meters."
"Space-Time Belt: Developed by Future Tech Corp, it can return the user to their position and state 5 seconds ago, negating damage while retaining memories of the event. Cooldown: 30 seconds."
"Super-Concentrated C4: Tiny in size but immense in power; no building, vehicle, or vessel is safe."
"All-Terrain Steel-Toed Combat Boots: Allows for agile movement across various terrains, especially in water combat, enabling the user to swim long distances without fatigue and fight freely underwater."
"Bulletproof Athletic Vest: Provides strong protection, reducing lethal damage in a hail of bullets."
Holy shit!
Time reversal!
Even if it's only 5 seconds, it often represents a whole life!
I'll keep this one. As for the other gadgets... seeing Natasha get up to leave.
"Natasha."
Homelander pretended to pull out a black tactical briefcase from under his desk and pushed it toward Natasha.
"This is your onboarding gift pack."
"What is it?" Natasha asked, looking puzzled.
"Open it and see. You'll like it." Homelander maintained a mysterious smile.
Natasha opened the case skeptically.
Two sci-fi-looking, all-black "Black Buzzard" handguns lay quietly in the shockproof foam, next to a pair of high-tech-looking combat boots. And then there was a whole box of ordinary-looking "chewing gum."
As a top Agent, Natasha's eyes lit up with just one look.
She picked up one of the guns; the moment she touched it, she couldn't put it down, stroking it incessantly.
"Where did this come from?" Natasha asked. "This craftsmanship and feel... even Tony couldn't make this."
"Vought exclusive, not available on the market." Homelander naturally wouldn't say it was from the system. "That gun doesn't need reloading, those boots let you walk on rock walls as if on flat ground and make you more agile than a fish in water. As for that gum... use it carefully. One piece can level half a block."
"This gift is too precious." Natasha closed the case and looked at Homelander. "Are you this generous with every new employee?"
"Only for those who are worth it."
A warm current surged in Natasha's heart.
"Thank you."
She stepped forward, stood on her tiptoes, and left a lipstick mark on Homelander's cheek.
"I'll help you train those kids into the best warriors. I promise."
After saying that, she picked up the equipment case and turned to leave with flair, her figure swaying gracefully.
"Gained special popularity value + 10,000! (From Natasha Romanoff)"
Haha, this is just another form of equipment recycling! Homelander thought... after watching Black Widow leave.
Homelander turned on the TV, which was currently broadcasting a special report on the Avengers' going-mad incident.
The screen repeatedly showed the scene in front of St. Agnes Orphanage, where Homelander, his face covered in blood, held up a collapsing building with both hands to protect the orphans in front of him.
The headline was striking: "The Only Thing That Can Make Anthony Bleed Is Love!"
The scene shifted to countless citizens spontaneously coming to lay flowers beneath Vought Headquarters.
Real-time popularity value continued to pour in toward Homelander.
And amidst this massive stream of data, two inconspicuous notifications caught Homelander's attention.
"Ding! Gained special popularity value + 5,000! (From Mary Sue Potter)"
"Ding! Gained special popularity value + 5,000! (From Matt Murdock)"
Skye?
Matt Murdock? Daredevil?
These two names appearing at the same time and contributing high amounts of special popularity value only had one reason—St. Agnes Orphanage.
That was where they grew up.
The scene of himself holding his ground against Hulk in front of that orphanage had clearly touched them deeply.
3:00 PM. V.G.D. Base, High-Level Tactical Briefing Room.
On one side of the long conference table sat three dejected men.
Tony Stark held a cup of iced coffee but didn't drink it, just staring blankly at the ice cubes in the cup.
Clint Barton had his head in his hands, elbows on the table, radiating a decadent aura of "I want to retire, right now."
Bruce Banner had a bitter expression and remained silent.
Thor occasionally extended his arm in one direction, seemingly summoning something.
In front of them, a giant projection screen occupied the entire wall.
On the screen, a "highlight reel" of the incident was playing on a loop.
Scene 1: Tony Stark was kneeling on the ground, shouting obsessively at Lorelei: "For the Queen! My missiles are already thirsty for battle!"
Scene 2: Hawkeye Barton was like a giggling creep, feeding grapes to Lorelei and looking like he enjoyed being stepped on.
Scene 3: Thor was being smashed around on the ground like a ragdoll by Hulk, with the video background audio even dubbed with "Puny God."
Scene 4: The most fatal scene—in a high-definition close-up, Tony Stark, controlling the mark 43 armor, accurately fired a green T-VEX solution into Hulk's mouth.
"Turn it off... Anthony..."
Tony Stark lay slumped on the table, head in his hands, radiating an aura known as "social death."