Chapter Thirty: Immortality Is a Curse

"You will never know what others have been through, and you will never be able to fully empathize. There are countless ways for a person to fade from white to gray, and then to black—to wither away—but we can only ever see the final, withered result."

Peter patted Clark on the shoulder. "Therefore, we can never truly empathize with others, nor can we make others empathize with us."

Clark and Homelander both listened intently.

After bowing his head in thought for a moment, Clark, the "ten thousand whys," continued to ask, "Then what should we do?"

He felt a little lost right now.

"That is why some wounds must be licked by ourselves. And, although we cannot fully empathize, companionship is also a way."

He felt he needed to instill some positive values in the two of them; otherwise, what if these two boys grew up to kill and burn without restraint?

This was the American comic book world, after all. Even though these two brats were at the top of the food chain, there was no telling when some extraterrestrial creature might pop up and give them a beating.

Even if he didn't really believe in most of the positive energy he was preaching.

"I will always be with you, Dad."

Clark pondered for a long time before finally squeezing out this sentence.

Seeing such a perfect opportunity to express his loyalty, Homelander immediately added, "Me too, Dad. I will always stay by your side."

"I will be with you both, too."

Peter ruffled their hair. "Alright, it’s getting late. Time for bed."

Homelander didn't leave immediately. He waited until Clark had gone upstairs before saying, a bit sheepishly, "Dad, you still haven't told me the bedtime story you promised!"

He was still thinking about that story.

"Which one do you want to hear?"

Inside Homelander's bedroom, Peter picked up a fairy tale book and said, "Let's get this straight: no zombies, and no horror stories."

Hearing that he couldn't choose zombies or horror, Homelander looked a bit dejected.

"Okay, Dad."

In truth, he didn't care much for the story itself; he just wanted Peter’s company.

He had originally expected Peter to scold him for pushing little fatty Dale down the slide. When the boy's mother came to confront them, he thought for sure he would get a spanking.

But in the end, not only did his father not reprimand him, he left Mrs. York speechless and even praised his actions.

That made Homelander feel validated and valued.

Since Dad said the best way to understand others is through companionship, then he would simply keep his father company.

With these thoughts swirling in his mind, Homelander gripped his milk bottle and looked at Peter, waiting to see what story his father would tell him.

Peter flipped through the book. "Alright, this is the one: The Mermaid Saga."

"Legend has it that there is a kind of fish in this world, and as long as you eat its flesh, you can gain the ability to live forever."

Peter read slowly from the book:

"There was once a village where all the elders were immortal. These elders served a fifteen-year-old girl. One day, a young man passed through, and the elders, fearing he was searching for the secret to their immortality, killed him..."

Peter recounted the story of *The Mermaid Saga* to Homelander.

Based on the work of manga artist Rumiko Takahashi, *The Mermaid Saga* follows the protagonist as he arrives at an obscure, all-female village, where he happens upon a girl named Mana, whose feet are shackled.

After listening, Homelander asked curiously, "Dad, can immortality really drive people that crazy?"

"Yes. We are all subject to aging, sickness, and death, so some people will always want to hold onto their youth."

At this, Peter touched his own face.

Thanks to his wristwatch, he had managed to maintain an almost unchanging appearance.

It seemed he would need to disguise his looks in the future—perhaps by growing a beard or dyeing his hair white.

Otherwise, his secret of eternal youth would surely be discovered.

By then, who knew? Someone might act just like the elders in the mermaid story and come after him for the secret of immortality.

Although his physical fitness now surpassed that of an ordinary human, and he had Clark and Homelander as his enforcers, no petty villain would be a match for them. But being discovered would always be a nuisance.

Just like recently, Martha kept pestering him for his skincare secrets.

Closing the book, he looked out the window.

In the pitch-black night, moonlight spilled over the crops like a layer of silver, and the entire farm was filled with a tranquil atmosphere.

...

"Splash!"

On the Smallville River, something heavy seemed to have fallen into the water.

Immediately after, police cars came racing toward the scene.

Several cruisers, lights flashing red, rushed over at top speed.

Officer Ryan held his pistol, jumping out before the car had even come to a full stop. He pursued the sound toward the riverbank. The remaining officers also charged toward the water, weapons drawn.

"Damn it!"

Seeing the now-calm surface of the river, Ryan gritted his teeth and cursed.

He and his men had finally managed to ambush the serial robber near the jewelry store.

He hadn't expected the guy's abilities to be so monstrous—not only could he withstand the impact of bullets, but he could casually lift motorcycles from the roadside.

Several officers who couldn't dodge in time were directly injured by the debris.

Fortunately, he had brought heavy weaponry and subjected the guy to a "bullet storm."

Unable to withstand the heavy fire, the robber didn't linger; he threw several motorcycles at the police cars, setting them ablaze, and fled the scene.

Ryan and his officers had chased him to this spot, only to watch helplessly as the suspect jumped into the river and vanished.

"Damn it! Who here knows how to swim?" Ryan shouted at the surrounding officers.

He felt deeply frustrated that the long-wanted criminal had escaped right under his nose.

The officers looked at each other, then all shook their heads.

Being a police officer was just a job; they weren't about to risk their lives like that.

Not only was the river current swift, but the robber might be lying in ambush underwater. One wrong move and they could end up dying in the line of duty.

"What’s downstream from here?" Seeing his subordinates remain silent, he asked with a frown.

One officer replied, "It's the Smallville Elementary School."

At that moment, on the river surface near Smallville Elementary.

The calm, faintly greenish water suddenly rippled, and a figure emerged from the depths.

The sturdy, muscular young man tore the mask from his face.

"Splash! Splash!"

He thrashed his arms and quickly swam to the bank.

Wiping the water from his face, he stripped off his shirt.

As he walked step by step onto the shore, his body underwent a drastic change.

His once-taut muscles began to slacken, and his youthful face aged rapidly.

In moments, he had transformed from a muscular young man into a man of fifty or sixty years old.