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*****
Louise walked out of the office, paused mid-step, turned back, and looked at Clark. Her eyebrows, carrying a trace of sharpness, gently furrowed as she asked, "Clark, is it alright if I call you that?"
Clark nodded.
"Then may I ask, why have you been staring at me since we entered the office?"
Louise asked calmly.
Clark's gaze wasn't hostile—just filled with a bit of curiosity and inquiry—which piqued her interest.
Clark scratched his head and gave an apologetic smile. "I once knew someone with the same name. That's all... sorry."
Louise smiled faintly and said, "Seems like I'm not the person from your memory."
"You're not."
Clark shook his head.
That much, he was certain of.
As for the Louise in his memory, he hadn't seen her since that day.
As for what he felt about her...
If he had to say, it was gratitude—gratitude for the perfect ending she brought to his high school days.
"Alright then. Tomorrow, at the airport, 8 o'clock sharp."
Louise said this lightly, turned, and headed back to her desk. Suddenly, she glanced over her shoulder and said to Clark, "Don't forget the materials for the interview."
Clark looked at her back as she walked away and adjusted his glasses.
This senior of his seemed very efficient, with the air of a professional career woman. Hopefully, she wouldn't be too difficult to work with.
Shaking his head, Clark returned to his desk and got back to work.
…
At the Kent household, in Mike's bedroom.
Mike had a computer in his room. Besides using it to check the news and play games, its most important function recently had become—battle!
A war of words.
Opening a browser and searching for "mutants" would bring up a flood of news. Mike's mission was to scour forums and news sites, find people badmouthing Erik and Charles, and then launch into heated debates.
Mike had only started doing this recently.
It all began when Clark casually mentioned some news he saw online. Mike looked it up himself and—
Damn, some people were saying really outrageous things.
Not only were they slandering Magneto and Professor X, but they were also insulting their entire family.
Well, since he had time to kill anyway, Mike decided to fight back.
Another forum.
Mike stretched out his fingers, then clasped them together, producing a series of popping sounds like crackling fireworks.
He placed his hands on the keyboard, eyes narrowing in focus. His fingers began to fly.
It was as if countless hands were flying over the keys. The sound of furious typing filled the room—like a Gatling gun on overdrive.
A few minutes later, Mike nodded in satisfaction.
All the offensive remarks on the forum had been buried under his replies.
As for the backlash from the other users...
Under his terrifying speed, they didn't stand a chance.
"Hmph, amateurs."
Mike muttered coolly, closed that forum, and moved on to the next one.
An hour later, Mike stretched contentedly and stood up, heading downstairs.
The X-Men had been quite active lately. Aside from dealing with ordinary criminals, they had also handled several cases involving superpowered individuals. On top of that, they'd recently clashed with the Brotherhood led by Erik.
The fight... was intense!
But aside from the secret research facility experimenting on mutants—which was exposed and then destroyed—there were zero casualties on both sides.
That research institute, in addition to being destroyed by Erik, also had to face condemnation from the Xavier Institute once the truth came out.
In the end, the school used the incident to rally public sympathy for mutants and managed to gain a wave of support.
In truth, the exposure of the facility was thanks to Charles, who coordinated with Erik to stage a dramatic and public confrontation.
Speaking of battles...
Mike paused in thought.
It had been a while since they discovered the Kryptonian spaceship, but no Kryptonians had appeared yet.
Was it like Jor-El said—no survivors left on Krypton? Or had Zod and the others failed to escape the black hole? Maybe the journey was simply too long and they were still on the way? Or perhaps something had happened en route?
Mike didn't know the exact reason, but he hoped it was the first.
Thinking too much wouldn't help. Whatever came, they'd deal with it. If they show up—it just means another battle.
"Hm? Why are you back so early today?"
Just as Mike came downstairs and was about to head to the supermarket, Clark walked in through the door.
Clark nodded. "Dad, are you going out?"
"Getting groceries."
Mike put on his coat and changed into his shoes. "Wait for Gwen to get back. I have something to discuss with both of you."
"I'll come with you," Clark said.
Clark buttoned up his coat again.
"Let's go then."
Mike and Clark left the house and headed to the nearby supermarket.
The father and son walked side by side, their breaths forming clouds of mist that drifted in front of them with every exhale.
"Dad, I'm going on a business trip tomorrow."
"A business trip?"
Mike looked a little surprised. "You've only been at your job for a short time, and they're already sending you out?"
"Yeah." A faint smile appeared on Clark's face. "I'm going to Monaco."
"Monaco?" Mike rubbed his chin, a look of puzzlement flashing across his face. "I feel like I've heard something about it recently..."
"Tony Stark. He's going there to participate in a racing event and to promote the Stark Expo."
"So, you guys are going because of him?" Mike muttered. "Should I give Tony a call so you can do an exclusive interview?"
"No need," Clark chuckled. "I'm just an intern reporter. I still have a lot to learn."
Mike nodded, then lowered his voice and asked, "Your identity hasn't been discovered, right?"
Three days ago, on his way to work, Clark had encountered a building fire. The situation was critical, and with many people still trapped inside, he had no choice but to don his suit and go in to save them. Someone had snapped a photo, and it ended up on the front page of the newspaper that very day.
Clark adjusted his glasses and said, "No. Your advice really worked, Dad."
"That's good." Mike nodded, then glanced at the supermarket ahead. "What do you want for dinner?"
"Anything's fine."
Meanwhile, inside the supermarket...
Gwen was shopping for snacks with Luke and Parker.
Most of the money she had earned recently had been saved up. Every now and then, she allowed herself a little treat by buying some snacks to satisfy her cravings.
"Peter, I didn't know you lived so close!"
As she tossed snacks into the shopping cart, Gwen struck up a conversation with Peter.
Peter gave a sheepish grin. "I didn't expect it either. We actually live pretty close."
"Eight blocks away is close?" Luke said with a deadpan look, clearly unimpressed. "Are you two awkwardly trying to make small talk?"
Peter blushed slightly. "It's only about a ten-minute walk."
"Exactly!"
Gwen dropped three lollipops into the cart and turned to Luke, who was pushing it. "Come on, keep up. Let's go over there. Don't buy too much of each thing."
If they got too much, it wouldn't all fit in her backpack.
(End of Chapter)