Clark turned toward the voice in shock.
The figure stepping into the dim streetlight was someone he knew extremely well—yet someone who absolutely should not have been here.
Footsteps echoed softly on the empty road as Victor Kent emerged from the darkness. His pace was calm and steady, as if he had merely been taking a quiet walk rather than arriving at the scene of a violent confrontation.
"Victor… what did you just say?"
Clark's voice carried confusion and disbelief. His eyes widened as he tried to understand how his brother had suddenly appeared here.
"How did you even get here?" Clark asked quickly. "I carried him all the way out of town to this road. Even driving a car, no one could reach here this fast from the school."
His mind was still spinning from the fight.
And if he hadn't misheard…
His brother had just told him to kill someone.
"I said kill him, Clark."
Victor ignored the question entirely. His eyes moved briefly toward Jerome, who had barely managed to stand up again.
Then he repeated his words calmly, his tone serious and unwavering.
[Rage from Jerome +0.02, killing intent +0.02…]
Victor noticed the faint notification in his mind.
Unexpected.
Even this man could generate emotional points, though the amount was pitiful compared to Clark.
Still, every bit counted.
"If you don't do it," Victor said coldly, "then I will."
"No!"
Clark immediately shook his head.
"How can we kill someone?" His voice rose with disbelief. Since childhood, Martha had taught him compassion and restraint.
The idea of murdering someone felt completely impossible to accept.
For a moment, Clark even felt that the brother standing in front of him had become strangely unfamiliar.
"He's already killed more than one person," Victor replied evenly. "He's a madman. Someone like that deserves death, doesn't he?"
Victor had heard the earlier conversation clearly.
And honestly, he didn't even need the explanation.
The madness written across Jerome's face was enough to tell the story. Anyone who could calmly prepare to slaughter hundreds of people without hesitation had already stepped far beyond the line.
"We can't carry out a lynching," Clark said slowly.
His expression tightened as he spoke, clearly struggling to maintain his composure.
"We have laws. We can take him to the police station and let the courts handle it. He'll receive the punishment he deserves."
Clark didn't deny that Jerome might deserve the death penalty.
But no individual had the right to place themselves above the law.
"You let him see your face."
Victor stopped arguing.
Instead, he began walking calmly toward Jerome, who was still swaying weakly on his feet.
"My face?" Clark frowned.
"Do you think an ordinary prison can hold someone like him?" Victor asked without turning around.
"And when he escapes… do you think he'll forget you?"
Victor wasn't worried about Clark himself.
Clark's body was practically indestructible.
But revenge rarely targeted only one person.
"If he follows you," Victor continued quietly, "and finds our home… what happens then?"
The words struck Clark like a hammer.
His expression changed instantly.
For the first time since the fight began, he realized something he had completely overlooked.
Clark slowly touched his face.
In the chaos and panic earlier, he had forgotten the most important rule.
He hadn't hidden his identity.
Now Jerome had seen him clearly.
Suddenly, Clark understood exactly why Victor had immediately suggested killing Jerome.
Meanwhile, Jerome had been staring at Victor with growing unease.
Facing Clark hadn't frightened him.
Clark felt like a powerful but gentle giant.
But the man walking toward him now was different.
Victor's eyes were cold—so cold they resembled death itself.
Jerome could see something in those eyes.
Victor hadn't been speaking figuratively.
He truly intended to kill him.
And someone who could calmly approach a man capable of controlling electricity… clearly wasn't ordinary.
Stab!
Jerome suddenly raised his hand.
Electricity exploded outward.
But Victor vanished before the attack even reached him.
Victor's abilities did not include true super speed.
His movement speed merely approached the speed of sound.
But that was more than enough.
"To avoid future trouble," Victor said calmly, "your death sentence will simply be carried out early."
His voice sounded right beside Jerome's ear.
Before Jerome could react, Victor's hand closed around his throat.
He lifted Jerome effortlessly into the air.
It looked as easy as lifting a small chicken.
Jerome's eyes widened in terror.
Victor's grip was like an iron vise crushing his neck.
Air refused to enter his lungs.
His face rapidly turned purple as his legs kicked helplessly in the air.
"Y-you… what kind of monster are you?"
Jerome stared at Victor's skin in horror.
It had turned a deep purple.
He clawed desperately at Victor's hand, trying to pry it away.
Driven by pure survival instinct, Jerome forced his power to activate.
"Let… let me go!"
Stab!
Violent electricity surged into Victor's arm.
The current burned half of Victor's sleeve to ash.
But his body didn't move even slightly.
It felt like Jerome was trying to shake a statue made of steel.
"Victor… what happened to you?"
Clark stood frozen several meters away.
He was already torn between protecting his parents and refusing to kill someone.
Now his brother's sudden transformation left him completely stunned.
"How did you become like this?" Clark asked, staring at Victor's purple skin.
"You're not the only one with secrets, Clark," Victor replied calmly, glancing toward him.
He could crush Jerome's throat anytime.
But he didn't.
Victor had a suspicion he wanted to confirm.
Clark quickly realized that Victor's appearance wasn't the most urgent issue right now.
In a blur, Clark rushed forward and grabbed Victor's wrist.
"Put him down, brother," Clark said urgently.
He pulled hard.
But Victor's arm didn't move.
Clark increased his strength.
Still nothing.
The force he was using now could easily make an ordinary person release their grip.
Victor's hand remained immovable.
Clark tried again.
The strength in his arms increased to the level capable of bending thick steel bars.
Cracks began spreading across the asphalt beneath Clark's feet.
Yet Victor stood like an unshakable mountain.
His body didn't move at all.
"How are you doing this?" Clark asked in shock. "Are you really Victor?"
Clark stopped increasing his strength.
He was afraid he might accidentally injure his brother.
Victor had suddenly become terrifyingly mysterious.
"Victor… you can't kill him," Clark said firmly after a moment.
"Some lines can't be uncrossed once you step over them."
Clark looked directly into Victor's eyes.
"If Mom and Dad were here, they wouldn't agree with this."
Clark's expression grew serious.
He genuinely regretted not thinking more carefully earlier.
But he didn't want Victor to deal with the consequences of this situation by committing murder.
"Think about what our parents would say if they found out about this," Clark said quietly.
One second passed.
Then another.
The two brothers stared at each other in silence.
"…Fine."
Victor suddenly loosened his grip.
"You don't have to kill him."
Jerome collapsed onto the ground as Victor released him.
"However," Victor added calmly, "I'll take a precaution."
Bang!
Before Clark could react, Victor swung his hand and struck the back of Jerome's head.
The blow didn't look powerful.
But Jerome felt as if a baseball bat had smashed into his skull.
His vision went black instantly.
Without even a chance to react, he collapsed face-first onto the cold asphalt road.
"You still killed him?" Clark asked in alarm.
Clark quickly checked Jerome's breathing.
The man was still alive.
But no matter how loudly Clark called his name, Jerome showed no sign of waking up.
"I turned him into a vegetable," Victor said calmly. "That way he can't hurt anyone again."
"What?"
Clark looked up in disbelief.
"Victor… you…"
"You were about to say that this is still a form of lynching and unacceptable, right?" Victor asked, raising an eyebrow.
Clark opened his mouth.
That was exactly what he had been thinking.
Turning someone into a vegetable to prevent revenge sounded horrifyingly cruel.
But then Clark remembered something.
This entire situation had happened because of his own carelessness.
Victor had already listened to him and spared Jerome's life.
Did he really have the right to scold his brother now?
Clark fell silent.
"This matter ends here," Victor said flatly.
"Take him somewhere he can receive treatment and don't get involved in this again."
Victor glanced briefly at Jerome lying motionless on the road.
Then he turned and began walking away.
[Fear from Jerome +0.04, anger +0.03, hatred +0.004…]
A steady stream of emotional points flowed in.
Victor felt satisfied.
"Sure enough," he thought, "even a vegetative person still has brain activity."
That made Jerome far more valuable alive than dead.
Moments later, Clark suddenly reappeared beside Victor.
"I left him at the entrance of the hospital in town," Clark said quietly.
Victor glanced at him briefly.
"Let's go back to school," Clark added. "If people notice we're both missing, it might cause problems."
Victor nodded faintly.
As Clark had carried Jerome away earlier, Victor had carefully observed his brother's speed.
Clark moved so quickly that only faint motion trails were visible.
"My strength and durability are definitely far beyond Clark's right now," Victor thought calmly.
"But when it comes to speed… Clark still has a huge advantage."
Victor suddenly felt curious.
If they fought seriously—without using kryptonite—who would win?
"Victor…" Clark said quietly after catching up with him.
His expression looked complicated.
"So many things happened today."
Clark hesitated before continuing.
"What exactly is wrong with your body?"
....
Join my P*atreon for 100 premium chapters ahead of the public release.
Link: pa*treon.com/MysticVerse (Remove the *)
Free members also get 2 advanced chapters for free.