Chapter 19 : You are the strongest

Maybe it was fear, or maybe it was the worry that the Black Emperor would find this place again. Either way, everyone was too mentally exhausted to do anything, yet they still couldn't sleep at night.

Falling asleep was hard enough—and even after managing to drift off, they would wake up multiple times. A single gust of wind or rustle in the grass was enough to make their bodies tense up.

Everyone was caught in that kind of tension.

This was destined to be a restless night.

The image of the Black Emperor leading the massacre at the CIA base had left a deep psychological scar on everyone.

Rorschach didn't sleep either—but not because he was scared like the others. He was excited.

He couldn't wait to test out his new power—the heat ray.

"It's so late... everyone must be asleep by now, right?"

With that thought, Rorschach gave in to the urge. He quietly lifted the quilt and got out of bed.

He planned to head to the yard and find a place to try it out.

Charles's yard was big enough for him to experiment safely—he just needed to avoid damaging the flowers and plants.

Squeakyaah

Rorschach opened the door cautiously, tiptoeing so he wouldn't disturb anyone.

But as soon as he stepped outside, a surprised voice called out:"Rorschach?"

Rorschach turned around, equally surprised."Raven?"

She stood there in a nightgown. Though loose-fitting, it still revealed her curvaceous figure.

More notably, Raven wasn't using her human disguise—she appeared in her natural blue-skinned form, with glowing lines across her body.

Clearly, she'd dropped her transformation while asleep.

Like the others, she hadn't been able to sleep either and had gotten up to grab a drink. She hadn't expected to run into Rorschach.

"Can't sleep?" she asked casually, walking toward him.

Rorschach silently cursed himself—next time he snuck out, he really needed to use his super-hearing to scout the surroundings first.

He smiled calmly on the outside. "You couldn't sleep either?"

"Everyone's still shaken after what happened today," Raven said, stopping right in front of him.

He could feel her breath. Her scent—light perfume—lingered between them.

"But... you're different, Rorschach." She looked up at him with a teasing glint in her eyes.

"Since we're both awake, maybe we should go to your room. You can tell me why you're so brave."

Is this girl seriously hitting on me?

Rorschach was momentarily speechless.

He knew Western women could be bold, but this was the first time he'd experienced it firsthand. If she were in her human form, he might have gone with it.

But her current appearance—while not ugly—just didn't appeal to him.

"Raven, I'm not sleeping because I have something to do," Rorschach said seriously.

"Is it because of how I look?" she asked, a bit disappointed.

She hesitated for a moment, then transformed—shimmering into the image of her usual human disguise, looking just like Rorschach's "cousin."

"How about now?"

It was a perfect copy.

Rorschach sighed internally.This is like going on a blind date after already seeing the real photo—no matter how good the edited version is, it's just not the same.

"Raven, look into my eyes."

She thought he was about to say something romantic—why else would he ask her to look him in the eyes?

But the next second, his eyes began to glow red.

"Rorschach?!"

Raven jumped back in surprise, all her flirtation vanishing in an instant.

"See? I think I've awakened a new ability," Rorschach explained.

Only then did Raven realize he wasn't trying to brush her off—he really did have something going on.

"I want to test it properly. Can you take me somewhere suitable?" he asked.

His heat ray wasn't something he needed to keep secret, so he didn't mind showing her.

"Sure, no problem. We should find a big, open area."

"Charles's place has everything—except a shortage of space," Raven said with a smirk.

She led him to a large playground in Charles's backyard. Yes, a literal playground—can you believe it?

Plenty of space.

Rorschach took a deep breath. He gathered the energy inside him, channeling it toward his eyes until two beams of fiery light surged forward.

Zzzzap!

Twin heat rays burst from his eyes.

"Holy crap!" Raven gasped, covering her mouth. Even as a mutant, the spectacle stunned her.

She could feel the power radiating from those beams without even touching them.

Fwooosh!

The twin rays lit up the night sky like blazing spotlights—bright, intense, and beautiful in their own way.

To Rorschach, they were the most magnificent beams of light he had ever seen.

Unfortunately, the rays only lasted for five seconds before fading. Any longer, and his eyes wouldn't be able to handle it.

But considering he'd only unlocked 5% of his potential, Rorschach wasn't disappointed. Five seconds was just the beginning.

He found some rocks nearby for more testing.

The heat rays sliced through them like butter. Stones that should've been solid crumbled to dust.

"Yes... this heat ray is going to be one of my trump cards," Rorschach said, satisfied.

"You're getting stronger again," Raven murmured in awe. "You're already the strongest among us."

Until now, most people believed Alex had the most potential—his energy blasts were no joke.

Even Rorschach had been wary of him.

But now, with this new ability, he could go toe-to-toe with anyone.

Especially since Charles's mind control didn't work on him at all—there was no doubt.

Rorschach was the strongest mutant in the group.

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