Chapter 123: 123: Instigating—I mean—Meeting Becca

Becca greeted their arrival with pure resistance.

"I signed him up for piano lessons and music class. He has to go now," she said, grabbing Ryan Butcher’s hand and trying to pull him away.

"He’s just a kid. Don’t put so much pressure on him. You’re wasting his talent."

Homelander stepped in front of her and ruffled Ryan’s hair with a smile. "Would you rather have an awesome game of baseball with us, or go to that useless class?"

"I..." Ryan looked hesitantly at his mother. As a kid, he clearly preferred the first option.

"What’s the problem? A man should have his own backbone. Letting your mother decide everything will only make people look down on you." Seeing his son hesitate, Homelander clearly wasn’t pleased. He felt like Becca held a much higher place in Ryan’s heart than he did.

"Come on, don’t keep your teacher waiting."

Becca tried to pull Ryan away. She only wanted a quiet, normal life and didn’t want Homelander disrupting it.

"Let the boy decide for himself."

Becca’s actions had finally pissed Homelander off. His smile vanished as he spoke in a low, dangerous voice.

"Do you remember what you promised me?" If Becca hadn’t begged him with tears to spare Butcher, he never would have let the man go. In exchange, he had the right to spend time with his son.

Seeing the situation turning tense, Ivan stepped forward with a polite smile and extended his right hand to Becca. "Nice to meet you, Ms. Becca. I’m Ivan Greevs, Vice President of Vought. I wanted to see Ryan, so Mr. Homelander brought me along."

"Hello, Mr. Greevs," Becca forced a smile and shook his hand.

"Alright, let’s play some baseball," Homelander said, patting Ryan on the back. But Ryan still didn’t seem eager.

Becca bent down and told her son, "You can have the day off today, but you’ll need to make up the lesson tomorrow. Go get your baseball bat."

"Okay!"

Once he had his mother’s permission, Ryan ran excitedly back into the house.

The second Ryan disappeared from view, Becca’s fake smile vanished. She turned to the two men. "I only want Ryan to live as a normal child with a normal life. I don’t want him having anything to do with Vought. Homelander can stay, but Mr. Greevs, I’d like you to leave my home."

As a mother, Becca was extremely protective when it came to Ryan. She knew Ivan had come here with some agenda.

Ivan shook his head silently. Ever since Homelander learned Ryan was his son, there was no way the boy could go back to a normal life.

"Becca, I’m warning you. I’m Ryan’s father. I have the right to shape his future." Becca trying to kick Ivan out had embarrassed Homelander, who had personally invited him.

He stood with his hands behind his back and continued, "He is Homelander’s son, not some ordinary kid. He was born to inherit my glory and become America’s second greatest superhero, right after me."

"If you keep trying to raise him as a normal kid, I’ll consider taking him away from you."

Faced with Homelander’s threat, Becca clenched her teeth and stayed silent. She knew he was capable of anything. She turned to Ivan, her eyes filled with desperate pleading.

"Homelander, can I have a word with the lady?" Ivan asked.

Homelander saw Ryan running toward him with two baseball bats and his face lit up with a bright smile. "Go ahead."

The two of them stood in the shade of a large tree, watching the father and son play in the distance. Becca’s expression remained heavy the entire time.

"Ryan’s a good kid, but he can’t change the fact that he’s a supe," Ivan said calmly, hands in his pockets.

"So Vought wants to take him from me and turn him into another one of your profit machines, right?"

Becca’s words cut straight to the point. She turned and glared at Ivan with pure fury.

Feeling her murderous stare, Ivan remained unfazed. "The life you’re living right now is nothing but a fragile illusion. You have to accept that. Homelander showing up just burst that bubble early. The fantasy that you could keep living like normal people is over."

"You know, Ms. Becca, right now you’re like an ostrich with its head buried in the sand. But when the storm hits, that head is going to get ripped right out into the open."

"What the hell are you trying to say?"

Becca’s face twisted with anger as he struck a nerve.

"I’m saying running away isn’t a solution. Ryan might not have awakened his powers yet, but when he gets a little older, he’ll realize he’s nothing like normal people."

"Imagine if Ryan gets bullied at school. What if he can’t control his powers and lasers his entire class to death? Or what if some punk steals his crush and he snaps? There are countless cases like this. Our Vought database is full of them. Ms. Becca, I’m sure you don’t want your son to become a murderer."

As Ivan finished speaking, Becca’s brows furrowed deeply. She was clearly thinking hard.

These were exactly the fears she had been carrying. She had just forced herself to ignore them, betting that Ryan would never awaken his powers.

But was that even possible? Becca asked herself.

She had lived with Ryan for years. How could she not notice the signs growing stronger as he got older?

During one family activity, his eyes had even flashed with the same red glow as Homelander’s.

...

At the same time.

While playing baseball with his son, Homelander noticed that Ryan couldn’t catch a single ball he threw.

"Alright, Ryan. Use your powers," Homelander said, thinking the boy was holding back on purpose.

But Ryan just shook his head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

With no other choice, Homelander demonstrated himself. He turned and launched a baseball into the sky. The ball rocketed upward with terrifying force, shattering the sound barrier and vanishing into the blue sky in an instant.

Ryan’s mouth hung open in shock. When he saw his father looking at him, he said instinctively, "I can’t do that."

"You can! You’re my son," Homelander said firmly. He stepped closer to Ryan and asked, "Hasn’t anyone told you about your powers?"

"I don’t know." Very few people knew Ryan was a supe, Becca included. Homelander immediately realized she had never told their son anything about his abilities.

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Read 12 Advance Chapters—P@t- Captain69