American Comics: Multiverse of Madness

449. Deserved Death!

(T/N): Since it's Christmas there is mass release.

🎄🎄Merry Christmas🎄🎄

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A cold chill ran down Lyle Chris's spine, and he was suddenly plunged into an icy abyss by a single, nonchalant sentence from Alex.

At that moment, his mind went blank. It felt as though he had fallen into a bottomless pit, and that his entire future was doomed. Even Vought wouldn't save him; they'd let him fend for himself.

In Lyle's eyes, Alex was just a reporter from Newsday. But if Alex had said something like that, it meant he knew about all the horrific things Lyle had done.

And worse, Alex could expose it at any time.

If that happened, no one would stand by him. Cannibalism was a huge scandal, and even Vought's PR team would have no choice but to abandon him.

After all, he was just a disposable, somewhat fading host in the wilderness survival genre, not someone Vought would waste resources on.

"Mr. Chris, what's wrong?"

Since Alex's voice was so quiet, and the surrounding noise and music drowned it out, Emma didn't know what Alex had said to Lyle.

But Emma was quite sensitive to people's expressions, and she could clearly see that Lyle's face had changed. He looked... terrified?

But how could that be? This was Lyle Chris, the man known as "Lyle the Grandfather" by fans. He'd survived the world's most dangerous places—how could he show fear like this?

Hearing Emma's voice, Lyle forced himself to calm down.

He knew he couldn't sit back and do nothing. What he needed to do was stay calm. He couldn't afford to make any rash moves. Right now, the best plan was to see what this reporter wanted.

Since Alex knew his deepest secret, it meant Alex had leverage over him. Any move Lyle made could ruin him completely.

But Alex hadn't exposed him yet. Instead, he had approached him directly. This meant there was still hope—at least he might have a chance to turn things around.

But how that would play out depended on Alex's intentions.

With this thought in mind, Lyle forced a smile and spoke to Emma.

"Ah, sorry, I've got something private to discuss with Mr. Parker here. I'll be stepping away for a bit."

"Alright, I understand. I won't disturb you," Emma replied, nodding politely. She understood that Lyle must have something important to deal with, so she didn't press him further.

Seeing this, Alex didn't say much. He simply stood up and gestured for Lyle to lead the way.

Lyle sighed as he lowered his head. But when he stood up, the smile returned to his face, calm and friendly.

Nodding at Alex, they both headed for the exit of the villa.

At that moment, Emma suddenly realized that in her excitement over talking to Lyle, she had completely forgotten to take a video of him or ask for his contact information.

She immediately felt like she had missed out on a huge opportunity.

"Ah, I'm so mad!"

Frustrated, she tugged at her hair. If she had recorded a video, with Lyle's popularity, she could've gained a lot of followers.

After all, Lyle was a household name. He used to appear on TV all the time. How could she have missed such a great chance? Who knew when she'd get another one.

"Damn it."

With a deep sigh, Emma suddenly thought of Alex. She looked up and scanned the crowd, trying to find him.

"Does he really need this long to go to the bathroom?"

She had already taken a while eating, and then she spent a long time talking to Lyle. It felt like forever, yet Alex still hadn't come back. Emma couldn't help but feel a little annoyed.

She looked around, seeing people socializing, but for some reason, she suddenly felt a pang of loneliness.

Even though the place was lively, Emma felt out of place, like she didn't belong. The sensation made her feel almost suffocated.

Staring at the glass of wine in her hand, she thought for a moment before deciding not to call Alex after all.

She glanced at the direction Lyle had gone and downed the rest of her drink. Standing up, she headed for the bathroom.

When she reached the restroom, there was no one inside. As she entered, it became clear that Alex wasn't there either.

Emma furrowed her brow. She didn't know where Alex had gone after leaving, but she didn't dwell on it. She had more important things to do.

"What a waste, I just got full."

Looking at her small stomach in the mirror, Emma felt a bit regretful.

But the next moment, she pushed all of that out of her mind. She turned around, lifted the toilet seat, and started to stick her finger down her throat to induce vomiting.

"Ugh!!"

The food she had just eaten came rushing out, yellow and unpleasant, into the toilet.

What was surprising, however, was that as Emma vomited, her body seemed to "shrink."

No, it wasn't just shrinking by a little—her whole body seemed to deflate, like a balloon with a hole. The more she vomited, the smaller she became.

"Ugh."

As Emma's body continued to shrink, her clothes fell to the floor.

Seeing this, she quickly threw her clothes in the trash, covering them with some tissue paper, and continued to vomit.

By the time she had emptied her stomach, her body had shrunk to the size of a phone card. If you didn't look closely, you wouldn't even notice her.

This, in fact, was Emma's superpower created by Compound V.

It allowed her to change her size through vomiting and eating, somewhat similar to Ant-Man or Atom, though she lacked their precision and ease in using it.

There were other superheroes under Vought with similar abilities. One, called "Termite," had the power to shrink his body.

But unlike Emma, Termite could shrink and return to his normal size in an instant, whereas Emma, although she had the ability to grow, had a cumbersome "preparation" process that made her ability less practical.

Emma hurried out of the restroom, gripping the pant legs of others to accelerate her pace, making her way from the restroom to the villa's front door.

By the time she stepped out of the villa, the sky had already darkened. The night provided perfect cover, making it easier for her to hide.

A cold breeze swept over Emma, causing her to shiver. She scanned the surroundings, trying to spot Lyle.

With the birthday party and dinner about to start, most of the invited guests had already arrived. There weren't many people outside the villa at this point.

From Lyle's expression earlier, it was clear that the journalist had said something important. Emma deduced that the two of them wouldn't be discussing things in front of a large crowd.

That led her to the conclusion that the woods around the estate would be a perfect spot for their conversation—quiet, dark, and free from any interruptions.

After figuring out the direction Lyle and Alex had left in, Emma immediately made her way toward them.

As she expected, after leaving the villa, Alex and Lyle had headed down a secluded path, making their way deep into the woods.

"What do you want to say?" Lyle couldn't hold back anymore. "I don't understand what you mean. If you're trying to slander me, I'll have Vought's lawyers deal with you personally."

With no one else around, Alex simply turned his back to Lyle and gave him a mocking smile. "Don't joke around, Mr. Lyle. If you're following me, then it's clear you know exactly what I'm talking about. Besides, without evidence, do you think I'd come looking for you?"

Upon hearing this, Lyle's fists clenched tightly. "So what do you want? What's the benefit of destroying me?"

"Of course there's no benefit to me, so it's simple. I need you to offer me something in return. A secret this big—I'm sure your competitors would pay a hefty sum for it," Alex said, turning to face him.

Lyle's heart lightened considerably at that.

At first, he had worried that this journalist might be some relative or friend of the people he had wronged, but now it seemed like it was all about money. That made things easier.

"No problem. Name your price. As long as I can manage it, I'll make sure you're taken care of," Lyle said, folding his arms.

"I think you should name it," Alex replied with a smile, his eyes glinting coldly. "If I do, you probably won't be able to afford it."

"A million, how about that?"

Lyle threw out a number.

But Alex didn't respond, not even changing his expression, just smiling and staring at him.

Not being able to gauge what the other person was thinking, Lyle's eyelid twitched as he furrowed his brow and spoke again.

"Two million. That's my bottom line."

Alex still didn't react.

"Don't be ungrateful!" Lyle growled in frustration. "That's enough money for you to live luxuriously for the rest of your life. Even my competitors wouldn't offer this much!"

"Heh."

Alex shook his head slightly.

"I'm just curious," Alex said, his voice dark. "You're willing to give me that much money, but how much did you spend on your 'ingredients'?"

"What are you talking about?" Lyle's face froze with anger.

"I'm just thinking," Alex sneered, "someone like you, a filthy piece of trash, shouldn't even be called human. The irony is, so many people actually like you. What do you think would happen if they knew the truth about you?"

In that moment, Lyle realized what was happening. This guy wasn't after money—he was setting him up to ruin him completely.

"You're asking for death!" Lyle snarled.

Without warning, Lyle struck, his fist flying toward Alex. He imagined crushing the journalist's skull in one blow.

But in the next instant, Alex grabbed his fist with one hand and held it still, rendering Lyle's attack useless.

"How is this possible!?" Lyle's eyes widened in shock.

Alex wasn't just some regular man—he was a Supe, and while he might not be as powerful as some of the top heroes, he was far from an ordinary person that someone like Lyle could just mess with.

With a firm grip on Lyle's fist, Alex smiled coldly. His other hand raised slowly, revealing a purple card between his fingers.

Lyle stared at the card, which depicted a muscular man with golden hair and a yellow combat suit. The image had sharp claws, a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth, and fierce tiger-like eyes filled with brutality.

"I heard you're not afraid of any animals in the wild," Alex's voice was soft but chilling as he waved the card in the air.

The card vanished into thin air, revealing Alex's face behind it. Lyle's eyes widened in horror when he saw that Alex's pupils matched those of the creature on the card. When Alex opened his mouth, sharp teeth flashed, just like the ones in the image.

"You!!"

Before Lyle could finish his words, Alex suddenly twisted his arm with terrifying force. There was a sickening crack as his bones snapped, and Lyle's body froze in agony, his voice caught in his throat.

Alex didn't give him the chance to scream. With both hands, Alex grabbed Lyle's head and twisted violently.

Crack!

Lyle's terrified expression was twisted to the back of his neck. His body went stiff and lifeless, losing all strength.

Silently, Alex stood over the crumpled corpse, his gaze still icy.

The environment didn't allow for more torture, and given Lyle's crimes, his swift death felt almost like mercy.

With a cold grunt, Alex glanced over at the bushes in the shadows.

After a brief pause, Alex grabbed Lyle's body by the collar and dragged him into the deeper woods, disappearing into the darkness.

.....

📢30 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
For advance chapters: /Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
450. Acting.
451. The Truth?!
452. A New Possibility.
453. Infiltrating Vought International!
454. Coercion.

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