"Good morning, New York."
With a cheerful voice playing from his headset, the manager of Huachi Bank took a sip of his freshly bought coffee and strolled into his office. He opened the window, closed his eyes, and savored the fresh morning breeze.
But then, a series of gunshots rang out outside.
For a second or two, he thought he'd misheard—until a masked gunman wielding a shotgun burst through his office door.
The coffee cup slipped from his hand, spilling everywhere.
Before long, Brooklyn's police department had received an emergency call and dispatched units. Within three to five minutes, several police cars had surrounded the bank.
A senior officer leaned out of his squad car and used a loudspeaker to address the robbers.
"Listen up! You're surrounded!"
"Don't think about doing anything stupid. Surrender now, and I'll put in a good word for you with the judge."
Bang!
The red and blue lights on top of the police car suddenly shattered as one of the robbers burst through the bank's main doors, holding an automatic rifle and firing a hail of bullets at the officers.
The police ducked behind their cars, gripping their hats as they returned fire.
But the robber didn't dodge. Instead, his skin suddenly turned an iron-gray color.
Bullets clinked off his body with metallic sounds, flattened casings piling on the ground.
The robber laughed. "Pathetic! Your bullets are like tickles to Ironhide!"
The captain's face fell. "Damn it, he's superhuman! Someone call The Seven!"
---
In the Seven Tower, Angelina noticed Homelander's distracted look and asked, "Master, is something wrong?"
Homelander snapped back to reality, tucking The Daily Planet back into his inventory as if by magic.
"Nothing much. Just discovered something interesting."
With a smile, he stood up and walked out of the room.
Lin Aida appearing in the DC Universe? That had to mean she was a superhuman, too.
He'd been careless. He should have used Insight on her back then—almost missed this treasure!
Yes, treasure! If Lin Aida could travel between universes, especially if she could bring others along, that would be an overpowered "cheat" on the highest level.
Just imagining the possibilities—visiting the DC Universe to pick up legendary items like Green Lantern rings, Poseidon's trident, or the God Killer sword… or hopping over to Marvel to commission a vibranium suit in Wakanda, maybe collect a few Infinity Stones…
The key to all of this? Lin Aida.
As he approached the elevator, phone in hand, about to contact Lin Aida, his assistant, Ashley, rushed over.
"Homelander! There's an incident at Huachi Bank in Brooklyn—a superhuman's robbing the bank, and the precinct's requested our support."
Homelander chuckled. "And why's that my problem?"
"I'd rather not risk a repeat of last time and end up in federal court for public property damage."
"Forget it. Go call the costume team; I'll meet them in the command center."
Leaving his assistant behind, Homelander strolled off.
Ashley's mouth dropped open in disbelief before she muttered, "He's still holding onto that incident? He wouldn't actually retire from hero work, would he?"
With Homelander's reaction, Ashley didn't dare act independently and deploy another member of The Seven. She had no choice but to follow orders and contact the costume team.
In the command center, Homelander took out his phone and dialed Lin Aida's number.
After a few rings, she answered, "Hello?"
"Hello, Miss Lin. This is John," Homelander said warmly. "We met at Walmart—the plumber."
"Oh, Mr. John!" Lin Aida sounded pleasantly surprised. "Is there something I can help you with?"
Gazing out the window, Homelander replied, "I wanted to apologize for last time. I'm truly sorry I couldn't make it. If you're free tonight, could I make it up to you with dinner?"
Lin Aida hesitated. "Tonight, I'm free, but…"
Homelander interrupted with a gentle firmness, "Then it's settled. Where shall I meet you?"
Lin Aida, clearly unused to saying no, reluctantly gave him an address.
Hanging up, Homelander turned to see the costume team entering the room.
He got straight to the point. "I need you to create a plumber's outfit for me."
The team members were momentarily stunned.
---
That evening.
In Chinatown.
Homelander stepped out of a taxi, dressed in an unassuming T-shirt and plaid shirt combo, with a cheap baseball cap and glasses. His hair was dyed brown.
Even he almost didn't recognize himself. The people around him certainly didn't.
For the first time since arriving in this world, Homelander felt completely invisible.
Their meeting spot was a small Chinese restaurant.
When he saw Lin Aida sitting in a booth, with her white cane by her side, he didn't rush over right away. Instead, he cast Insight on her from a distance.
[Name: Lin Aida]
[Life Level: 4 (Superhuman)]
[Status: Nervous]
[Ability: Multiversal Travel]
Gotcha.
So she was indeed a superhuman, and her ability was "Multiversal Travel." No doubt—she was the real deal.
Homelander started toward her, but just as he was about to reach her table, a group of men strolled over, sitting down beside her.
"Hey, Aida!"
"Long time no see. Where've you been lately? Haven't seen you come by for food."
One man greeted her casually, while another, seated beside her, stealthily reached a hand toward her pocket.
Trying to pickpocket Lin Aida?
Homelander's expression darkened instantly.
In his mind, Lin Aida was already classified as his "personal property," his gateway to other worlds. He couldn't let anyone mess with her.
But just as he was about to step in—
Thump!
A cleaver slammed down onto the table, causing the would-be pickpocket to jump in fright.
A middle-aged Chinese woman glared at the group, snapping in Cantonese, "You little punks, causing trouble on my turf? Get lost if you don't want a beating!"
The woman, clearly the restaurant's fierce owner, sent the men scurrying, sparing Homelander the trouble.
She sighed and put the cleaver away, then looked at Lin Aida and said, "Aida, dear, you need to find yourself a boyfriend soon. Or you'll always be at risk."
Lin Aida, realizing what had happened, gave the woman a polite smile. "Thank you, Aunt Mei."
After the owner left, Homelander finally approached with a smile. "Good evening, Miss Lin."
Lin Aida perked up, her head tilting toward him. "Good evening, Mr. John."
As Homelander sat down, he glanced toward the door, noting that the group of men still lingered outside, watching them.
He turned back to Lin Aida. "Been on any trips lately?"
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