It was unimaginable that Jonathan would sell the farm he had worked for more than half his life without discussing it with anyone in the family first. The idea sounded so absurd that for a moment no one in the room could fully process what it meant.
"Dad, who did you sell the farm and the house to?" Clark finally asked, unable to hold back any longer.
"Sold to Rick Rickman of Rickman Enterprises," Martha answered before Jonathan could speak. Her brows were tightly knitted with confusion and disbelief. "He plans to build a chemical plant here."
She simply could not understand how her husband could have agreed to something like that. Jonathan had always despised factories that released pollution into the environment without restraint.
"I… I don't know how it happened."
Jonathan lowered his eyes and touched the contract in his hand. His expression looked dazed, as if he were trying to wake up from a dream that refused to end. The signature printed on the paper was clearly his, yet he felt strangely disconnected from the act of signing it.
He slowly began explaining what had happened earlier that day.
"I was working in the barn when he showed up with several men," Jonathan said quietly. "He said he wanted to buy the farm again. I refused him firmly."
"He looked disappointed, shook my hand before leaving, and then…"
Jonathan's voice trailed off.
He frowned and tried to recall what came next, but his memory felt like a page that had been torn out of a book. No matter how hard he searched his mind, the scene simply vanished into a blank void.
"I… somehow seem to have signed it."
"Somehow?" Victor caught the key word immediately.
"I have no memory of that part at all," Jonathan admitted with frustration. "But the signature really is mine."
The handwriting on the contract matched perfectly. Even Jonathan himself could not deny it. He shook his head in distress, feeling utterly powerless.
"What are we supposed to say in court?" Martha burst out angrily. Her chest rose and fell with emotion as she turned to their two sons. "That your father was possessed by some evil spirit?"
She had already sent the original contract to a lawyer for consultation. The answer she received only made the situation more desperate.
"The lawyer said there are no loopholes in the contract," Martha continued bitterly. "There's almost no chance we can win if this goes to court. We only have three days to move out."
"But this is our home," Clark said, stunned. His eyes widened as he looked around the familiar house. "We've always lived here, on this land."
"Not anymore," Jonathan said with suppressed anger.
"I inherited this land from your grandfather," he continued quietly. "It has been in our family for generations, and somehow I sold it for a hundred thousand dollars."
"I still can't understand why I signed that contract."
Jonathan was certain of one thing. No one had forced him at gunpoint in front of his wife and children.
Yet somehow, the contract existed.
Within three days, the Kent family would have to leave the farm where they had lived for generations. The sudden news struck the family like a thunderbolt. The atmosphere in the house grew heavy and silent, and none of them even thought about eating lunch anymore.
After a long moment of silence, Clark suddenly seemed to remember something.
"Maybe I can ask someone for help," he said, his eyes lighting up slightly as he looked at his parents. "Maybe he can do something about this."
"I once saved Lex's life," Clark continued carefully. "You taught me since I was young that helping someone doesn't mean we should expect repayment."
"But I think this might be the one time when it's okay to ask."
As he spoke, Clark glanced toward Victor, who was standing nearby with a thoughtful expression. Clark's gaze carried a quiet determination.
This time, he wanted to prove something to his younger brother.
He wanted Victor to see that protecting their family did not always require violence or harsh methods. Sometimes problems could be solved peacefully.
And no one had to be harmed.
"I don't want anything to do with the Luthers," Jonathan said instinctively.
"Do you have any other options right now, Jonathan?" Martha asked sharply.
Jonathan opened his mouth to respond, but no words came out. Faced with his wife's question, the head of the household suddenly found himself speechless.
"It's someone with abilities."
Victor suddenly spoke after thinking for a moment.
He could not come up with any other explanation for something so strange.
"Rickman is an esper?" Clark's expression changed as he heard Victor's guess. He carefully considered the possibility.
After all, he and Victor had already encountered several people with unusual abilities.
Some could release electricity from their bodies. Others had insect-like characteristics. Some could change shape and absorb heat.
Compared to those encounters, someone with the ability to manipulate a person's mind did not sound impossible at all.
"Like the guy who attacked the school… and Tina?" Clark asked.
Jonathan and Martha exchanged surprised glances as they remembered the strange stories their sons had told them before.
"What else could make your father sell the farm he loves without even discussing it with us first?" Victor said, shrugging slightly.
"But even if we know that, how do we solve this?" Martha asked, frowning.
Victor deliberately maintained a relaxed posture, trying not to increase his parents' anxiety.
After all, even if they suspected Rickman had some kind of supernatural ability, could they really walk into a courtroom and tell the judge that the contract was invalid because Rickman had used superpowers?
"Mom, Dad, don't worry," Victor said calmly. "I'll go talk to him."
He narrowed his eyes slightly and smiled.
"With this little secret in my hand, Mr. Rickman might be willing to reconsider."
His tone sounded gentle, as if he truly planned to reason with the man. Then he turned and walked toward the door.
Clark's expression immediately changed.
Based on previous incidents, Clark knew that when Victor used that tone, things usually ended badly for the other person.
"I'm coming too," Clark said quickly.
"Clark, Victor, be careful," Jonathan warned as he stopped them briefly.
With Clark going along, both parents felt a little more reassured.
"If things don't work out, our family can move somewhere else in town," Jonathan said. "Your schooling won't be affected."
"The unity of a family doesn't depend on the land we live on."
Victor nodded calmly and reassured his parents before stepping outside.
After walking a short distance away from the house, Clark glanced back at the farm behind them.
"My parents don't realize that you don't need my protection at all," Clark said quietly.
"In fact, sometimes I have to protect others from you."
His parents did not know the darker side of Victor's actions. Clark could not reveal the truth yet, so he had to keep covering for him.
"Protect who?" Victor asked with a faint smile. "The man who used his abilities to trick our family out of our farm and house?"
Victor looked at Clark, sensing that his brother was trying to hint at something.
"Victor, you don't have to be so harsh every time you deal with something," Clark said seriously as he stepped in front of him.
"Rickman is extremely wealthy. If anything happens to him, the major newspapers will definitely report it."
Smallville might be a quiet town where strange incidents could be ignored, but Rickman's status was very different.
"If you turn him into a vegetable like the others," Clark continued, gritting his teeth slightly, "I won't cover for you in front of Mom and Dad anymore."
Victor raised an eyebrow as if seeing Clark for the first time.
Clark was actually threatening him with that matter.
Ever since Victor crossed that line and killed someone, Clark had clearly changed. When facing him now, Clark was no longer as gentle as before.
But when Victor thought about it carefully, Clark's words were not completely unreasonable.
Rickman was a famous businessman. His companies and factories had almost monopolized pesticide production in Metropolis and several surrounding cities.
If someone like him suddenly became a vegetable, the Metropolis newspapers would never ignore such a major story.
At that moment, a familiar notification appeared in Victor's mind.
[Template integration: 99%]
The progress had reached ninety-nine percent over the past two days. Victor quietly hoped that this new template would grant him an ability that could fully reveal the character's powers.
Even though he already possessed enough strength to protect himself, his parents still had to worry about him.
Victor found himself slightly distracted by the thought.
"Let's make a bet," Clark suddenly said.
Victor looked at him.
"Let's see who can resolve this situation first," Clark continued calmly. "And do it safely and properly."
Clark's voice sounded steady, but he did not reveal the plan forming in his mind.
The last time he nearly brought trouble to the family and caused problems for his father. This time, he wanted to use this opportunity to prove something.
He wanted to defeat his younger brother in his own way.
If Victor realized that Clark could handle things better, maybe his words would finally carry more weight in the future.
"Your suggestion is interesting," Victor said expressionlessly. "But I—"
"Don't refuse."
Clark interrupted him immediately.
His tall figure stood firmly in front of Victor like a solid wall. His eyes were steady and determined, filled with an unspoken concern.
For the first time, Clark carried an air of authority that was difficult to ignore.
"You've really changed a lot, Clark," Victor said as he looked him up and down with raised brows.
"Are you planning to establish your authority as the older brother now?" he asked with a faint smile. "Planning to discipline your younger brother before he completely goes down the wrong path?"
Clark silently clenched his fists.
Then he looked directly at Victor without hesitation.
"I'm doing this for your own good."
For a moment, Victor felt an instinctive resistance rise inside him.
He almost reached into his pocket, thinking about pulling out a piece of kryptonite and knocking Clark back into his original submissive state.
But then his expression suddenly changed.
"Fine," Victor said calmly.
"You agreed?" Clark asked, surprised.
He had been fully prepared to retreat several hundred meters instantly if Victor suddenly attacked.
....
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