After returning to the hotel, Carol couldn’t calm herself down for a long time.
’My little brother is suddenly a superhuman. What am I supposed to do about that?’
Every time she recalled Daniel casually crushing that handgun into a twisted lump as if he were kneading dough, she felt dazed.
’How is that even possible?’ she thought.
Lying on the hotel bed, countless thoughts raced through her mind.
’No. I need answers.’
Carol muttered to herself.
Today’s events had taken her emotions on a wild roller coaster.
First, she’d been frightened by the robbery, and then she’d been shocked by what Daniel had done. The combination had thoroughly rattled her nerves.
Finally, she sat up and walked to the room next door.
Daniel’s room.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Carol knocked on the door.
Inside, Daniel had already seen her through his enhanced vision. Given how well he knew his sister, he had expected this visit from the moment they returned.
"You came?" Daniel asked through the door.
The moment it opened, Carol got straight to the point.
"How did you do all that today?"
Daniel blinked.
"I just... did it naturally. What’s the problem?"
"Naturally?"
Carol’s voice rose immediately.
"Do you think that’s something a normal person can do?"
"Ahem..."
Daniel quickly glanced down the hallway.
"Come inside. Let’s talk inside."
Before Carol could say anything else, he hurriedly pulled her into the room.
They had just been discussing this in the corridor.
The last thing Daniel wanted was for hotel guests to overhear them and turn the whole thing into gossip. He wasn’t afraid of people knowing, but unnecessary attention would be a headache.
The door closed behind them.
The second they were inside, Carol fired off her questions like a machine gun.
"A normal person can crush a gun into a ball? A normal person can disappear and appear behind someone in the blink of an eye?"
"Relax, Carol. Just calm down."
Daniel tried to soothe her.
Honestly, his sister was overreacting.
In the future, there would be people flying through the sky with magical hammers. There would be giant green monsters smashing buildings whenever they got angry.
Compared to those, what he’d shown today was nothing.
If Carol was this shocked now, how would she cope with the craziness that would eventually become normal in this world?
"I only have a few small abilities," Daniel said seriously.
"Heh..."
Carol let out a skeptical laugh.
Then she folded her arms and stared directly at him, waiting for an explanation.
"Fine."
Daniel felt his scalp tingle under that relentless gaze.
"Do you remember when we went to Boston as kids?"
"Of course I remember."
Carol nodded immediately.
"I remember it very clearly. You acted like an idiot for a while after that."
"Exactly! That trip!"
Daniel pointed at her.
"After I recovered, everything started feeling different."
Carol frowned but remained silent.
"You know how much I like sunbathing."
"Yeah, no kidding."
Carol rolled her eyes. Her mood had mostly settled now.
No matter what happened, Daniel was still her brother. He was standing right in front of her, healthy and perfectly fine.
The panic she’d felt earlier had come entirely from worry. She’d been afraid something was wrong with him.
"After that incident, I discovered that sunlight could strengthen every aspect of my body."
Daniel presented his prepared explanation.
Carol’s eyes widened.
"Wow. That’s actually pretty cool."
Seeing her calm down, Daniel secretly relaxed.
"So you’re basically a solar-powered battery?"
Carol suddenly grinned.
"You absorb sunlight and convert it into energy."
The image popped into her head, and she immediately burst out laughing.
"Hahaha! That’s hilarious!"
She laughed so hard she nearly doubled over.
Daniel rubbed his nose awkwardly.
For a moment, he couldn’t even argue, because when she put it that way...
It actually made perfect sense.
"So," Carol finally asked after laughing enough, "you’ve been charging yourself with sunlight for over ten years. How strong are you now?"
Daniel thought for a moment.
"Not bad. Strong enough to protect myself."
Then he smiled.
"At least I don’t have to worry about being captured and dissected."
"You need to be specific."
Carol narrowed her eyes.
Daniel shrugged.
"Roughly on the same level as Captain America."
Carol froze.
"Steve Rogers?"
"Yep."
"That’s amazing."
She couldn’t hide her astonishment.
"So Captain America became stronger because of an experiment, while you became stronger because you spent time in the sun?"
"Now I understand why you’re in such ridiculous shape."
She sighed dramatically.
"You’ve been cheating all along."
There was a trace of envy in her voice.
After all, who wouldn’t want extraordinary abilities?
Daniel immediately caught it.
The longing, curiosity, excitement, and a little jealousy.
"I’ll help you gain powers too."
Carol blinked.
"What?"
Daniel’s expression became more serious.
After today’s robbery, he’d realized something important.
His parents rarely left Smallville. Their hometown was safe enough.
But Carol was different, she planned to join the Air Force.
That meant danger, accidents, combat ,unknown threats.
There was no way Daniel could stay by her side every second of every day.
’She needs a way to protect herself.’
The thought became firmer in his mind.
Carol stared at him.
"Wait. You mean I can become a solar battery too?"
Her eyes grew wider and wider.
Excitement and disbelief mixed together.
"No."
Daniel rolled his eyes.
"Not like me."
"Then how?"
"There are other methods."
Daniel smiled.
"Consider it a small gift before you leave for military service."
Carol immediately leaned forward.
"What method? How does it work? What do I have to do..."
Before she could finish, Daniel raised a hand.
"Don’t rush."
He cut her off.
"After we’re done sightseeing in New York, we’ll take a trip to Africa."
"Africa?"
Carol looked completely confused.
"What are we going there for?"
She stared at him.
"You’re telling me I can become stronger in Africa?"
"More or less."
Daniel nodded.
"I should be able to enhance your body."
Carol practically jumped from her seat.
"Seriously? How? Are you sure? What kind of enhancement? Is it dangerous? Will it hurt? How long will it take? What if it doesn’t work? What if..."
The questions poured out nonstop.
Daniel instantly felt a headache coming.
If he answered one question, there would be ten more.
Then twenty.
Then fifty.
So, he simply waved his hand.
"You’ll find out when we get there."
He refused to elaborate.
"And getting to Africa won’t take long."
"Really?"
Carol looked unconvinced.
"Really."
Daniel stood up and pointed toward the door.
"Alright. It’s getting late."
He was clearly trying to send her away.
"Go get some sleep. We have a full day of sightseeing tomorrow."
Carol pouted.
Just like when she was younger.
She always had to get to the bottom of everything.
Unfortunately, Daniel wasn’t giving her any more answers tonight.
"Okay, fine."
Reluctantly, she ended the conversation and returned to her room.
After she left, Daniel lay back on his bed and stared at the ceiling.
’If I remember correctly, that Black Panther prince and his family all gained their enhanced physiques through some kind of herb...’
He frowned.
’What was it called again?’
Too much time had passed.
His memory was fuzzy.
A few seconds later, he gave up.
’Whatever. Doesn’t matter what it’s called.’
’The important thing is that the enhancement can be reproduced.’
’I’ll take Carol there and let her try it.’
As for whether Wakanda would refuse?
Daniel had seriously never considered the possibility.
Once people saw what he could do, they wouldn’t want to make an enemy of him.
They’d want to befriend him.
At least, that was how he saw it.
As far as he remembered, Black Panther’s power wasn’t some divine miracle.
It was an artificially made up enhancement. In theory, it could be mass-produced.
The reason only the royal family used it was because they wanted to preserve their authority and maintain the mystery surrounding the throne.
Only the king was allowed to undergo the ritual.
’When the time comes, I’ll take a trip to Wakanda.’
A slight smile appeared on Daniel’s face.
’Show them a little strength, and I should be able to get what I need.’
Things might not have gone so smoothly twenty years later.
The future king would be young, stubborn, and willing to fight him head-on.
But the current king?
The current ruler was far wiser.
He understood politics, compromise, and the balance of power.
Daniel closed his eyes.
’It’s a little despicable.’
He couldn’t deny it.
’Honestly, it’s basically taking something by force.’
’Not much different from those two robbers today.’
A bitter smile appeared on his face.
’But for Carol...’
’I’m willing to do it.’
Family was the most important thing in his life.
Nothing else even came close.
No exceptions.
’Carol wants to become a pilot.’
’Too many things can go wrong.’
’If something happens to her and I could have prevented it...’
’I’d regret it for the rest of my life.’
Thinking that way eased some of the guilt in his heart.
Daniel didn’t want to become a slave to power.
He constantly reminded himself not to abuse his strength simply because he possessed it.
Power without restraint was a dangerous thing.
’This will be the only exception.’
He silently warned himself.
’From now on, I will never use force to pressure innocent people.’
After a moment of silence, he added one final thought.
’If I take their herb, then I’ll protect Wakanda for decades in return.’
’That will be my repayment.’