章節 13: [13] : The Second Personality

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In an alley near the hotel, Queen Maeve was pacing back and forth. Not long after, Roger arrived with burgers and juice. He handed some food to the still-hungry Kimiko and then offered some to Maeve, asking, "Would you like some?"

"No, thanks!" Maeve stopped walking and asked Roger, "What's going on here?" She wanted to lash out at Roger, but the negative impressions of Homelander kept her restrained. Swallowing a few F-words, Maeve tried to maintain her composure.

"Do you want the truth or a lie?" Roger asked.

"What?" Maeve was taken aback.

Roger sat beside Kimiko, watching her eat, and said, "The lie is that I found this girl locked in a basement while I was passing by, and I rescued her out of a moment of compassion."

"And the truth?" Maeve inquired.

"The truth..." Roger sighed and lowered his voice, "The truth is, this girl is a victim of Vought. They transformed her into a superhuman, planning to unleash her to create chaos. Then, we superheroes would come in to 'save the day.' That way..."

"... the Department of Defense would approve superheroes joining the military," Maeve finished Roger's sentence. Hearing this, she immediately grasped Vought's intentions. They had always wanted superheroes in the military to gain more power.

But what shocked Maeve more was Roger's behavior. He told both a lie and a truth, but to Maeve, both sounded like lies. The real Homelander would never do something against Vought's interests. Moreover, if Vought truly planned what Roger said, Homelander would benefit the most, gaining more fame and adoration, becoming the world's brightest star—exactly what Homelander always desired.

"You're not Homelander..." Maeve suddenly stated. She took a few steps back, looking at Roger with a mix of fear and realization, "You're not Homelander at all!"

"I..."

Roger wanted to deny it, but Maeve continued, "Do you remember the Oscar ceremony for '12 Years a Slave'? The producer sitting next to me?"

"He sat next to me and chatted all day, but two days later, he was found dead in his office."

Maeve's mention triggered Roger's memory of Homelander's past actions. That incident happened a long time ago, shortly after Maeve joined the Seven. Homelander wanted to pair up with Maeve as an on-screen couple and had arranged for her to team up with him. A movie producer who fancied Maeve tried to pursue her, but his advances led to his death. Homelander had visited his office, used his heat vision to decapitate him, and then burned the entire office down. Maeve knew about this and from that moment, always complied with Homelander in public. They became an on-screen couple, and although they eventually broke up, fans still saw them as the perfect match.

Maeve knew what Homelander was capable of, how dark his heart was, and that he was a murderer who acted recklessly under the spotlight. Seeing Homelander rescue someone and appear here for Kimiko made Maeve instantly realize this person couldn't be Homelander. Even if he looked like Homelander and had his powers, he wasn't Homelander!

"So you're not Homelander. Who are you?" Maeve asked seriously.

"I'm not Homelander... but I can explain..." Roger said, feeling a bit dry-mouthed. He glanced at Kimiko, who looked puzzled, and patted her head reassuringly. Kimiko didn't understand their conversation; she didn't speak English and was mute, so Roger felt safe discussing Vought's secrets in front of her.

Facing Maeve's interrogation, Roger presented the reason he'd prepared long ago. He knew he was different from Homelander and that one day, someone would question his identity. So, he had a cover story ready.

"Have you heard of dissociative identity disorder?" Roger asked, avoiding Maeve's fearful gaze. "You can think of me as... Homelander's second personality."

"Dissociative identity disorder?" Maeve's first reaction was disbelief.

"Yes, DID. Homelander and I are two sides of the same coin, but I've always been suppressed by him. Recently, for some unknown reason, his personality started to fade..."

"So, you emerged?" Maeve asked.

"Exactly. Do you believe me?" Roger looked up at Maeve in surprise.

He had prepared for a lengthy explanation, but Maeve seemed to believe him already. Maeve thought for a long time and then said to Roger, "Why wouldn't I? Homelander would never rescue someone like you did. If there's no other explanation, could you be Homelander's doppelganger?"

Maeve pointed to Kimiko, emphasizing that Homelander would never rescue someone without cameras around, nor would he do anything against his own interests. If Kimiko's existence were exposed, it would harm Vought and the many superheroes under its umbrella, including Homelander.

So Roger's claim of being Homelander's second personality was believable to Maeve. If Homelander were replaced by a doppelganger, Vought wouldn't let him roam freely. And a doppelganger having the same appearance and powers as the original was too far-fetched. The DID explanation was more plausible.

Knowing the person in front of her wasn't Homelander, Maeve felt relieved. She looked at Roger and felt a strange impulse. "We need to find a place for her," Maeve said, "and you need to explain Vought's superhuman project to me in detail."

"Of course. Now that you know, I won't hide anything. Once she's settled, I'll tell you everything. But be prepared," Roger warned Maeve.

Since Maeve already knew, there was no point in keeping secrets. Roger needed a true ally in this world.

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