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However, Homelander's opinion meant nothing in Edgar's eyes; it had no effect whatsoever.
Facing the enraged Homelander, Edgar remained calm: "This is the unanimous decision of all shareholders. The outcome is set, and your opinion is not important."
"But why him?!"
Homelander was unwilling.
Kevin smiled and said, "Captain, when you say that, it's as if I'm not qualified to be in this position."
"Shut up! You're not needed to speak here!" Homelander ordered Kevin to shut up.
Normally, Kevin would have given Homelander some face, but with Edgar present and having been promoted, Kevin couldn't back down in front of Homelander.
So, right after Homelander gave his order, Kevin quickly said, "I am now the Vice President personally appointed by Mr. Edgar, so obviously, Homelander, I have the right to speak."
Now Kevin didn't even use the title 'Captain,' directly calling Homelander by his name.
To openly provoke Homelander while he was furious.
This act of bravery, which could even be called recklessness, made those who understood Homelander's character sweat for Kevin.
A-Train, seeing this, simply lowered his head and stared at the patterns on the table, as if there was something fascinating inside.
Though Maeve was surprised by Kevin's boldness, her gaze never left him, flickering slightly as she looked at Kevin, as if pondering something.
Annie, beside Kevin, looked at him worriedly.
She knew from Kevin how strong Homelander was and what kind of person he was, and she was afraid that this difficult-to-deal-with 'Captain' would make trouble for Kevin now.
After all, Kevin hadn't told her how powerful he was now, so it was normal for Annie to feel worried.
The atmosphere in the conference room instantly became extremely tense, the scene almost like a prelude to a major battle in a movie.
Even if the two started fighting the next second, no one would find it out of place.
Kevin's increasingly disrespectful address indeed made Homelander even angrier.
He ignored Edgar's presence and questioned Kevin, "Are you threatening me with Edgar's name?!"
"If thinking that makes you feel better, then you can think that."
"So you're trying to say I'm scared of you, Deep?!"
"I never said that, and I don't think you're truly afraid of me."
As Homelander gradually approached, Kevin also slowly stood up, facing him directly: "I'm just a little unclear, you seem to have a big problem with me becoming Vice President? Why? This is just a personnel appointment."
Kevin asked knowingly.
Of course, he knew why Homelander had a problem with him.
It was because he possessed power that could threaten Homelander, and because a former loser, whom Homelander never thought highly of, had suddenly become a manager above him. This greatly annoyed Homelander, which was why he refused.
But Kevin wanted Homelander to say it himself.
To say it in front of everyone, to make people fully realize what kind of person Homelander was.
Unfortunately, even though Homelander was furious to this extent, he still retained some rationality:
"You're a member of The Seven! How can a member of The Seven become our manager! I'm the Captain!!"
This phrasing sounds a bit familiar... Should I say 'You'll regret this' to go along with it?
Kevin couldn't help but inwardly mock what Homelander said.
Fortunately, Kevin knew what to say and what not to say.
He didn't actually cosplay a Superheroe version of Naruto and Danzo with famous lines, but instead calmly smiled at Homelander: "So you're worried about that? Then rest assured, I will leave The Seven."
...?
Upon hearing this news, Homelander's previously angry expression instantly froze, and confusion appeared in his blue eyes.
Kevin continued, "You're right, being a member of The Seven and Vice President conflict with each other. I can't be both Vice President and a member of The Seven, so I can only leave The Seven.
"In the next few months, I will issue a statement and have a retirement performance, officially withdrawing from The Seven. So... are you satisfied, Homelander?"
Becoming Vice President meant Kevin couldn't continue to stay in The Seven.
The reason wasn't a conflict of power, but because Kevin simply didn't have that much time to hold down two jobs.
The work of The Seven wasn't much less than that of a Vice President: daily filming, interviews, commercial performances, endorsements... a whole lot of miscellaneous things.
If he continued to stay in The Seven, the Vice President's work would definitely not be done well.
And no artist who successfully transitioned to being a Boss was ever seen still taking on various activities and participating in various shows every day.
At most, they would film a few movies to show that they still existed.
Kevin also planned to do this, so he definitely couldn't stay in The Seven, and it wasn't important anyway.
"You... leave? But this... how is that possible? Your movie..."
Homelander still couldn't believe it.
Kevin still had many unfinished activities in The Seven, including filming movies and documentaries. How could he just leave?
Kevin had an explanation ready: "My movie will be the last movie of my Superhero career. I will say goodbye in that film."
...
Hearing Kevin say this, Homelander was speechless.
He had never expected Kevin to leave The Seven, and so when Kevin dropped this bombshell, it instantly choked all the words Homelander wanted to say.
Even his anger gradually subsided.
With Homelander silent, the conference room instantly became extremely quiet.
Edgar waited for a moment, and seeing that Homelander still had no reaction, he slowly said, "It seems you two have no objections? Then it's settled."
If Homelander had no objections, how could anyone else dare to have any?
After Edgar made the announcement, he didn't linger, getting up and leaving. He had more matters to attend to and couldn't stay there indefinitely.
After Edgar left, the atmosphere in the conference room became very strange.
Homelander stared at Kevin without speaking, his expression extremely gloomy, exuding an unbearable pressure that made those around him not even dare to breathe loudly.
Kevin, however, ignored his expression and immediately got to work: "Alright, everyone, do what you need to do now. For the next few days, continue with the schedule previously arranged by Ms. Madelyn. Once your schedules are adjusted, I will arrange new work for you."
After speaking, Kevin winked at Annie and continued, "That's all for now. I'm going back to my office. If anything comes up, as before, have Ashley notify me."
Kevin spoke to everyone very formally, then left The Seven's conference room with Ashley, who was now his assistant.
As soon as he stepped out of the conference room, a loud crash echoed from inside.
The sound was very loud, clanging and banging, as if something had been smashed.
Ashley jumped in fright, but Kevin didn't stop walking, merely instructing Ashley, "Later, replace the conference room table with a better one."
"Uh... yes, sir!"
...
Back in what was originally Madelyn's office, Kevin's first order of business was to change out of his Superhero uniform.
From today on, Kevin wouldn't have to walk around in that ugly Superhero uniform every day, looking like a weirdo in disguise, which was very strange.
Kevin preferred more casual attire, which was easy to wear and felt light.
Even the suits he was preparing now were casual types, not too tight, and very convenient to change into.
In Madelyn's office, Kevin entered work mode, officially handling the tasks Madelyn had left behind.
The work of the Vice President of the Hero Management Department was not complicated; in most cases, he only needed to outline a general strategy, and his subordinates would naturally complete the rest.
Only extremely important matters required his personal attention.
For example, the scheduled meeting with the Secretary of State today.
Because of the Supervillain incident yesterday, Homelander had found Compound V in the factory located in the Supervillain's area.
What Kevin needed to do was convince the Secretary of State that this Compound V did not originate from Vought, but rather someone had stolen the Compound V formula and developed it independently.
As for why Compound V leaked out, perhaps Madelyn would know? Kevin, at least, didn't know.
Kevin would tell the Secretary of State this, and this was also Edgar's intention.
Knock, knock, knock.
Kevin was working in his office. Not long after, he heard someone knock on the door. Kevin didn't even look up: "Come in."
The door was pushed open, and surprisingly, it wasn't Starlight who came to see Kevin, but Maeve.
Once Maeve entered, Kevin looked up at her, surprised, and said, "You should still have a documentary to film later, right? Why are you here to see me?"
"How did you do it?" Maeve asked directly as soon as she entered.
Kevin was puzzled: "Do what?"
"I mean... the Vice President. How could Edgar let another Supe stand above Homelander?"
Maeve and Homelander were considered members of the same cohort of The Seven; they joined around the same time. She had been in The Seven for a long time, so she understood Edgar very well.
Although she didn't know about Compound V or the dark secrets of Vought, she knew very well that Edgar didn't particularly like them, the Supes.
This was evident from the fact that Edgar rarely met with them.
Yet Kevin had somehow fought his way through and become the Vice President after Madelyn?
And even suppressed Homelander?
Maeve felt that she must not have woken up properly today to be experiencing such an absurd hallucination.
"Perhaps Edgar values me highly?" Kevin responded playfully.
Maeve had a 'you're kidding me' expression.
Seeing that Maeve wasn't laughing, Kevin shook his head rather uninterestingly and said, "The reason is simple: because right now, only I can keep Homelander in check. No one else can."
"You?"
"Yes, me. Before this, Homelander listened to Madelyn very much, and Madelyn used 'love' to influence him. I am not as great as Madelyn, nor could I fall in love with a man, so I can only use force and power to make him obey.
"No one else can withstand Homelander's 'retaliation.' Only I can, and that's why Edgar chose me."
The Hero Management Department was a very important department within Vought now.
When Madelyn was still alive, she could use Homelander's love for her to make him obey her every word.
But after Madelyn's death, Edgar couldn't find another person with management skills who could also love Homelander and make him obey.
Kevin then came into Edgar's sight.
At this moment, even if his strength wasn't as great as Homelander's, he at least didn't have to worry about Homelander bothering him. Even if he truly ordered Homelander and made him angry, Kevin could at least save his life.
But if it were anyone else...
They would either be completely subservient to Homelander, becoming Homelander's lackey.
Or they would be found dead at home the next day, and the Supervillains' list of crimes would increase by one.
There was no other possibility.
Therefore, it wasn't about how Kevin did it; it was that at this stage, Kevin was the only person Edgar could choose.
Not even Stormfront.
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