Compared to the Hellfire Club, which has a history spanning more than two hundred years, the Mutant Underground is a tiny, second-rate group.
Any one of the Club's core members could easily wipe out such a small team.
The real threat lies not in their raw power, but in the vast influence they command.
At its peak, the Hellfire Club could quietly spark conflicts between superpowers—proof of its reach.
Agencies like the Sentinel Services, which terrify the Mutant Underground, pose little danger to them.
Consider this incident: Without Raymond's sudden arrival, John and Lorna might have escaped Absorbing Man, but Clarice and Sonya would have been captured.
And that was with only one core member—Absorbing Man—on the scene, acting merely to recruit Clarice. Had he come to crush the Mutant Underground, he would have brought extra mutant agents. Against that, John—a rank-three mutant of average strength—and Lorna—rank-four potential but little training—could never win. (TL/N: Read Auxiliary Chapter for clarification)
Raymond sees the Mutant Underground clearly: it's a small, weak outfit, even below third-rate groups like "Division Three" and "Summerland" that battle David elsewhere. He can cut Clarice's ties to the Mutant Underground because it is weak, and he is her brother. With some persuasive talk—or a show of force, if needed—John will likely release her.
The Hellfire Club is a different story.
Absorbing Man is strong enough to have fought many heroes and still roam free. Yet, with the right strategy, Raymond could defeat him without using the Tao Pai Pai personality. With it, he could easily crush him.
However, killing Absorbing Man would only make things worse. The Club would never ignore the death of a core member. They would send stronger agents to investigate and might use extreme measures. They're not fools who would keep feeding Raymond experience points.
Even Tao Pai Pai unleashed permanently couldn't rampage unchecked against such a force.
So, unless he has no other choice, Raymond won't tear things open.
As for the dead mercenaries? They're pawns. The Hellfire Club won't start a war over them; their loss won't make a big difference.
Of course, if it had been Raymond, he wouldn't have gone on a killing spree so easily.
But the Deadshot personality isn't someone who goes easy on others.
Raymond's orders were to deal with those people only if Clarice and the others were safe. For Deadshot, the safest way to ensure that was to kill them all.
Only the dead can't pose a threat.
"Forget it. Let's get them out of here first and think of a plan later…" Raymond shook his head and walked out of the building, unable to come up with a better idea for now.
A few minutes later, Raymond pulled up in a car in front of the girls.
He rolled down the window and called out to the four of them.
"Hello, Brother Raymond! I'm Clarice's classmate, I'm Michelle (Irene)!"
As soon as they got in, Michelle and Irene both tried to get close to Raymond at the same time.
When they realized they had the same idea, they gave each other a sharp look.
Compared to the overly friendly girls, Clarice and Sonya were quiet. Once inside, they didn't say a word.
Clarice stayed silent because she had been caught lying and felt guilty. Sonya didn't know how to face Raymond after witnessing the bloody scene earlier.
Raymond smiled politely and greeted the two chatty girls, then looked at Clarice in the front passenger seat and asked, "Aren't you going to explain?"
Clarice hesitated and looked back at Sonya.
Sonya quickly understood. She gently placed her hands on Michelle's and Irene's heads.
In an instant, both girls passed out and slumped into their seats, fast asleep.
Raymond realized this must be one of Sonya's abilities. It reminded him of Mantis from Guardians of the Galaxy, though probably not as powerful.
"You're a mutant?" Raymond asked Sonya through the rearview mirror.
"You really do know about mutants…" Clarice wasn't surprised.
When Raymond had mentioned S.H.I.E.L.D. at home, she had guessed that he might already know about them.
But Clarice didn't know how Raymond felt about them, so she didn't dare speak up back then.
After all, based on stories from her many mutant friends, even family members often held negative views of mutants.
She didn't know how Raymond or her parents would react, so she kept the truth to herself. She didn't want to ruin their relationship.
But now that the truth was out, there was no hiding it anymore.
"Actually… I'm a mutant too." Clarice said, taking off her colored contacts to reveal the gem-like green eyes that had appeared after her powers had awakened.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Raymond kept driving, his tone calm.
Clarice froze, unable to answer.
Sonya stepped in for her. "Mr. Raymond, since you already know about mutants, you should also know that many of them don't have it easy. Especially those whose appearance changes after awakening—they've been treated unfairly far too often…"