"No. This has nothing to do with right or wrong," Lucas said, shaking his head as he looked at Kara seriously.
"This is simply how humans are."
"Take the Philadelphia incident, for example. I could have stood by and done nothing. No one asked me to intervene."
"But I didn't want too many people in that city to die, so I chose to fight that monster."
"In that battle, three districts were destroyed by the aftermath, and dozens of people died because of the collateral damage caused by the clash between me and the creature."
"A large portion of those people actually brought death upon themselves—through greed, lust, and other dark impulses. You could even say they died by their own choices."
"But so what?"
"Their families, their neighbors, and even people who had never known them don't care about the reasons. They only look at the outcome—and then blame everything on me."
"They never stop to consider this: if I hadn't stopped Kro, with that monster's combat power, how many people in Philadelphia would have died?"
"Do you think they can't think of that?"
"No. They can."
"They simply needed an outlet for their emotions—and I became that outlet."
"The Philadelphia prosecutor filed charges against me immediately, all because of his ridiculous so-called justice."
"Of course, I could have ignored it—using the special privileges granted by the President, or relying on my own strength."
"But then they would have attacked me with words, insulted me endlessly, and vilified me without restraint."
"So I paid the money. And I went to prison."
"Only then were they willing to calm down."
"Because only in that way could they suppress the fear, jealousy, and even rejection they felt toward the power I possess."
Kara's beautiful eyes widened in disbelief.
"That's far too much! You saved Philadelphia, and this is how they treated you?!"
Lucas let out a scoff.
"It doesn't matter. I don't need their approval—it's meaningless to me."
"But have you ever thought about this?"
"If even I, someone who is also human, can be treated like this…"
"Then if one day they discover that you and Clark are not Earthlings, the malice you face will be even greater—far more extreme."
"That kind of malice doesn't care what you've done for them, what you've given, or even what you've sacrificed."
"They'll use vicious words, radical actions—sometimes even fabrications—to justify targeting you."
Kara's expression slowly darkened.
"Is that really true? But the people around me are all so kind."
Lucas shook his head.
"That's because they don't truly know who you are yet. They think you're just an ordinary person like them."
"When your identity is exposed one day, yes—there may still be people who continue to treat you as a friend."
"But believe me, there will be far more who harbor hostility toward you."
"Because that is human nature."
Human is a human.
Humans will always be human.
Kara sighed softly, then asked,
"If you don't care what they think, why did you still choose to go to prison?"
Lucas smiled faintly.
"Because humans must always pay the price for their choices."
"No one gets to treat me that way and still live peacefully as if nothing happened."
"I'm not you. And I'm not Clark."
"I don't possess your boundless selflessness, nor your ability to repay hatred with kindness."
"I'm human too."
"I have selfishness. I have emotions."
Kara gripped his hand nervously.
"Do you want to take revenge on them? I don't believe you would. If you truly wanted to, you would have acted already."
Lucas suddenly smiled openly.
"You're right. I'm not a butcher, and I'm not a supervillain. I won't raise my hand against them."
"But humans will invite disaster through their own selfishness."
"And disaster will punish them."
"They will suffer the consequences of their own actions."
"Trust me—it won't be long."
Kara asked anxiously,
"When that happens… will you help them?"
Lucas didn't answer.
Instead, he stood up, took her hand, and walked toward the gravity chamber.
"Come. I want to show you something."
He opened the gravity chamber door and led Kara directly into the core training room.
The moment she stepped inside, Kara frowned slightly, though her body continued to move normally.
"This place feels… strange," she said, looking around.
"This is a gravity chamber," Lucas explained.
"It can artificially increase gravitational force."
At that moment, Deadshot walked out of the shower room. Fortunately, he had anticipated Kara's arrival and was fully dressed.
"You're the assassin I caught by accident," Kara said, looking at him.
"…That would be me," Deadshot replied, glancing at Kara, who was standing calmly in the mid-gravity environment. He couldn't hide his frustration.
"Why is he here with you?" Kara asked Lucas.
"I think he's capable," Lucas said.
"I plan to let him join the Guardians."
"He's a killer!" Kara objected.
Lucas met her gaze calmly.
"People aren't frozen in the worst thing they've ever done," he said.
"Yes, he's killed. I won't deny that. And I won't excuse it."
"But what matters is what he does now—and what he chooses to do next."
Kara shook her head sharply.
"You're talking like that erases his past. It doesn't. Those people are still dead."
Deadshot immediately tensed. Being taken down effortlessly by Kara was not a memory he could forget easily.
"I've killed people too," Lucas said with a smile.
"Do you hate me for that as well?"
"That's different," Kara said, wrinkling her nose.
"You did it to save innocent lives!"
Deadshot relaxed slightly and moved aside, watching the exchange.
"But if his abilities are used for good," Lucas continued,
"he could save even more people."
"Would you really give up an opportunity to help more people just because of his past?"
"No matter how strong you are, you can't help everyone on your own—can you?"
Kara fell into silence, her thoughts locked in conflict.
After a moment, she sighed helplessly.
"Fine. But I'll be watching him. If he makes another mistake, I'll personally send him back here."
Both Lucas and Deadshot silently breathed a sigh of relief.
"You're welcome to supervise me, Miss Kara," Deadshot said politely.
Kara was pure-hearted, but people like her could also become stubborn and extreme.
As for Deadshot, it made little difference. He had killed for money and purpose—working as a Guardian still allowed him to put his skills to use.
After all, he wasn't a madman who needed to kill just to survive.
"So," Lucas said, smoothly changing the subject,
"how does the gravity chamber feel?"
"It's fine," Kara replied, looking around.
"But at this level, I don't really feel anything."
"That's because it's not turned up yet."
Lucas turned to Deadshot.
"Floyd, could you step outside for a moment? I'm about to raise the gravity."
"..."
'Fuck— I hate these inhuman monsters. Damn it!'
Deadshot cursed internally as he walked out.