Chapter 55: The truth comes out.
Steven was stunned and asked, "What do you mean?"
Lucas put his arm around his shoulder and said, "Let me give you an example. There is an American veteran who was a WWII medic. He retired from the Battle of Hacksaw Ridge. He believes in God and has never killed a single person; instead, he saved over seventy lives on the battlefield."
"Tell me, is he a good person?"
Steven said, "Of course he is a good person. Whether judged by the name of the war or his personal actions, he is a good person in the sense of America’s core values!"
"Then let me give you another example. There is a person who has been lazy since childhood, does not engage in productive activities, and steals or robs whenever he wants something. He has even murdered several people, and among those he killed was that WWII veteran."
"Do you think such a person counts as a good person?"
Steven shook his head, "No, he is even heinous."
"Then let me ask you again: if such a person, after continuously killing dozens of good people, not only receives no punishment but can also live out the rest of his life in peace, do you think that is fair?"
"It’s not fair." The reporter knew that America rarely sentenced criminals to death.
"You see, that is the problem. Bad people do bad things and are never punished as they deserve, while good people and their families suffer instead."
"Then I must ask you, can a murderer’s contribution to this country compare to that of the WWII veteran?" Lucas began to reverse-induce the reporter.
"Uh, this..." The reporter was evasive.
"Let me answer for you: no!"
"But we live in a country where everyone is free and equal. We do not divide people into classes based on their contributions, but we shouldn’t be shameless enough to equate rapists and terrorists with decent, law-abiding citizens."
"...Regarding what you said earlier about a life for a life, I disagree. I would rather trade the lives of one hundred terrorists for the life of one WWII veteran, because that is justice—pure justice!"
"I hope the audience in front of their TVs and phones understands that even if you are the only person left in the world who upholds justice, Guardian will stand against the entire world for you!"
"In my name!"
Lucas’s expression was serious, as if he had become the embodiment of justice.
Queen Maeve was initially worried that Lucas’s reputation would be damaged, but as the speech deepened, she found herself stirred by it.
Guardian was right!
Why should these rapists be allowed to talk about fairness with good people? If she hadn’t arrived just now, that little girl would have...
The reporter interviewed Queen Maeve again.
"Regarding that rapist..."
"...He won’t hurt anyone again. We confiscated his tools for committing the crime."
Lucas interjected from the side.
The reporter and Queen Maeve both laughed, and even the cameraman laughed.
In the end.
The reporter asked the cameraman to turn off the equipment, then secretly said something to Lucas.
"From a personal perspective, I fully support you, Guardian. Please hold on to your justice!"
The reporter was a white man, righteous to the core!
...
A few hours later, the video was uploaded to social media.
Title: [Queen Maeve Appears in Brooklyn Late at Night! Subdues Supe Criminal with Bare Hands and Saves Mother and Daughter!]
A minute later, another video was uploaded.
Title: [Guardian and Queen Maeve Join Forces! Brooklyn Supe Criminal Gang Wiped Out!]
The comment section exploded instantly.
[Holy crap, Guardian is back in Brooklyn!!!]
[Wait, Queen Maeve is there too?? When did they start partnering up?]
[Hasn’t Guardian always been a lone wolf? Why is he with Queen Maeve this time?]
[I ship it, I ship it, I ship it!!!]
[Guardian and Queen Maeve look so good standing together...]
[Are they together???]
[Brooklyn residents say: Who cares what their relationship is, anyone who comes to fight crime is a good person!]
...
The reporter’s exclusive interview had not yet been released.
According to Lucas’s guess, they might release that video when the topic reached its peak popularity.
An hour later.
Lucas and Queen Maeve stood on the roof of a building, overlooking the street below.
The police came out to clean up the mess, picking up the beaten-up criminals piece by piece to take back for identification. The smashed walls had to be hauled away by bulldozers, and there were several overturned cars, with their owners kneeling on the ground wailing.
Because some people hadn’t bought specialized commercial insurance for Supe damage.
Queen Maeve leaned against the rooftop railing, her emotions exceptionally stirred.
From Lucas’s speech just now, she judged that Lucas was completely different from Homelander.
Homelander was a giant baby, his destructive power a black hole that couldn’t be controlled, always bringing disaster to others.
But Lucas was not; he was a superhero who had formed his own sense of justice.
He had also never had any record of killing innocent people.
"It’s been a long time since I felt this satisfied," Queen Maeve said.
She took out a lady’s cigarette, mint-flavored; Lucas didn’t smell any weed.
It seemed the Queen was indeed in a good mood.
"Next, I will take you to fight crime in the streets and alleys of Brooklyn. In a few days, your approval rating should go up," Lucas said.
"I owe you one again."
Queen Maeve said.
"It’s not about owing or not. You are one of the few heroes in The Seven who still has justice in your heart," Lucas said seriously.
"Perhaps the justice in your heart was once covered in dust, but I hope you can remember the path you came from."
Lucas patted Queen Maeve on the shoulder, put his hands behind his back, and prepared to fly away.
"Wait."
Queen Maeve suddenly called out to Lucas.
"Anything else?"
"You... are just leaving like this?"
Queen Maeve stared at Lucas with burning eyes.
She had deep feelings today, especially after knowing Guardian’s true stance.
Then the next steps would be much easier.
"Not today, Queen Maeve!"
Unexpectedly, Lucas rejected Queen Maeve’s hint.
"Sex is sex, justice is justice; don’t mix them up."
Lucas took off with his hands behind his back, instantly breaking the sound barrier and disappearing into the horizon.
...
[Queen Maeve — Emotional Turmoil: Venting, Heart-fluttering, Conflict, Indecision]
[Evolution Points Gained: +19,847]
...
Looking at the emotions popping up on the panel, Lucas curled his lips.
He believed that the departure just now was very moving.
This is the routine!
True feelings in the world cannot be kept; only routines win people’s hearts!
That night, social media exploded.
#Guardian Queen Maeve# topic hit the top five trending searches in America.
#Brooklyn Night#, #The Rise of Queen Maeve#, and many other topics were at the top of the trending list, overshadowing Starlight’s biographical film and Homelander’s new spinoff movie.
Queen Maeve’s approval rating rebounded by 12 percentage points overnight.
Starlight sent a message with only one emoji: a cat sharpening a knife.
...
Current Evolution Points: 211,095 / 250,000
Yosh!