“The Professor isn’t going to expect us to work for free, is he?” Roy spoke calmly.
He had no idea whether joining the X-Men came with anything resembling a full benefits package, but there was one thing he was certain of.
Being an X-Man definitely came with a stable income.
The reason was simple.
First, Professor X was hardly short on money.
Calling him wealthy would be putting it mildly.
Second, judging by how Cyclops bought a new car every now and then, being an X-Man obviously paid.
Otherwise, someone who was technically “unemployed” like Cyclops could never afford that many cars.
Cyclops was indeed a teacher at the mutant school, but Roy seriously doubted Professor X paid him the same salary as an ordinary schoolteacher.
“It’s perfectly normal for you to care about that.” “After all, boys your age tend to have quite a few things to spend money on.” Cyclops teased him.
He didn’t say it outright, but Roy knew exactly what he meant.
Dating and chasing girls cost money!
Sincerity might be important in a relationship, but that didn’t mean you could get by without spending a single cent.
Those were two entirely different things.
“Official members of the X-Men do receive a salary, although it isn’t particularly high.” “If we’re talking about the standard salary alone, it’s thirty thousand dollars a month.” “Mission compensation is calculated separately.” Cyclops continued.
Thirty thousand a month?
Hearing that, Roy smiled in satisfaction.
Thirty thousand dollars might not sound astronomical, but it certainly wasn’t a small amount either.
Take New York police officers as an example.
After five and a half years with the NYPD, an officer earned a little over ninety thousand dollars a year before overtime.
That averaged out to only seven or eight thousand dollars a month.
And that was after five and a half years of service.
A newly graduated police officer earned only a little over forty thousand dollars a year.
Of course, the risks involved were different.
But no matter how Roy looked at it, a guaranteed monthly income of thirty thousand dollars was already very good.
“Anything else you want to ask?” Cyclops looked at Roy and smiled.
Roy hadn’t said anything, but his expression alone made it obvious that he had no complaints about the salary.
“Not for now.” Roy answered quickly.
“If there’s anything else you want to know later, feel free to ask me anytime.” With that, Cyclops and Phoenix left the training room.
The cafeteria.
Having just finished training, Lorna and the others sat together, eating dinner while chatting.
“I knew Roy was strong, but I didn’t expect him to be that strong.” “Mr.
Scott never said anything, but I have a feeling the training we went through this afternoon wasn’t anywhere near the difficulty Roy usually trains at.” Iceman sighed.
“I felt the same way.” Colossus agreed.
Although they had all participated in the practical combat training alongside Roy that afternoon, Roy had handled everything with absurd ease compared to the rest of them.
At times, they even felt as though they were holding him back.
“Could you two show a little ambition?” “He started this training a week before us.
Of course he performed better.” “If I had a week of training too, I could do just as well as him.” Lorna said stubbornly.
After speaking, she stabbed a piece of fried chicken with her fork and bit into it viciously.
“I heard some of the other students say that Roy sometimes leaves the school at night to train by himself.” Shadowcat looked at Lorna, who seemed to be taking out her frustration on the fried chicken, and spoke slowly.
“He trains outside?” “Where?” Lorna immediately turned toward Colossus.
Colossus was Roy’s roommate.
If anyone knew where Roy trained outside the school, he was the most likely person to know.
“Don’t look at me.
I have no idea where he goes.” “But he does come back pretty late sometimes.” “I remember one time he didn’t return until around one or two in the morning.” Colossus quickly replied.
Clearly, that wasn’t the answer Lorna wanted.
“I’ve decided.
I’ll ask Mr.
Scott or Ms.
Ororo later.” “They definitely know where Roy goes to train.” Lorna said immediately.
The moment she finished speaking, a voice came from behind her.
“No need to make it that complicated.
If you want to know, just ask me.” The speaker was none other than Roy.
Before he had even sat down, Lorna immediately demanded, “Tell me honestly.
Where’s your secret training spot?” Roy didn’t answer right away.
Instead, he sat down beside Colossus.
Only then did he leisurely ask, “Why?” “You want to come too?” Uh… Lorna originally hadn’t planned on doing any extra training.
The exercises that afternoon were already more than enough for her to digest.
But the moment Roy asked, she answered without hesitation.
“Yes.
I want to go too.” “If you can train extra on your own, then so can I.” With that, Lorna raised her slender, fair neck and looked at Roy with an almost haughty expression.
“What about you guys?” “Do you want to come too?” Roy ignored the proud-looking Lorna and turned toward Iceman and the others.
“I’ll pass.
I need to spend time with Rogue tonight.” Iceman immediately replied.
“I’m going to the art studio tonight.” Colossus didn’t have a date, but he had no intention of doing extra training either.
“I’m tired.” Shadowcat answered with complete seriousness.
Roy had expected the three of them to have no interest in extra training, but he hadn’t expected all three to give their excuses immediately.
Looking at Iceman and the others as they silently returned to their food, Roy turned back to Lorna.
“If you want to come, that’s fine.” “But let’s make one thing clear first.
I’m not carrying you there or carrying you back.” “The training spot isn’t that far away.
Only a little over twenty kilometers.” More than twenty kilometers?
Lorna froze.
She had assumed Roy trained somewhere near the school.
She hadn’t expected his training location to be more than twenty kilometers away.
“You don’t need to carry me.
I have a driver’s license.
I can drive there myself.” Lorna quickly replied.
“You can’t drive to that place.” … Lorna’s large, beautiful eyes widened as she stared at Roy in disbelief.
Almost half a minute passed before she finally said, “Unless there’s something wrong with your head, why would you travel that far just to train?” Roy raised his head and looked at her calmly.
“There’s definitely nothing wrong with my head.” “Twenty-something kilometers is basically an after-dinner walk for me.” “You’re the one who needs to seriously think about whether you really want to go.” “If you wear yourself out just because you’re too proud to back down, then you’d be the one with something wrong in the head.” The moment he finished speaking, the metal fork in his hand suddenly bent ninety degrees.
Its prongs, which had been pointing toward the food on his plate, now pointed directly at his head.
“I’m going!” “Who’s afraid of who?!” Lorna unconsciously clenched her fists and declared with overwhelming confidence.