Clark let out a long, melancholy sigh.
Seeing that, Axel grinned, sat back down beside the fishing hole, and smacked Clark hard across the thigh.
Unlike when he teased everyone else, Axel didn't hold back at all.
"Ow!"
Clark yelped, grabbing his leg.
Axel burst into laughter.
"What are you worrying about?
Do you seriously think hundreds of thousands of Kryptonians are going to show up and conquer Earth?
Come on. What do you take me for?
Even if something that ridiculous actually happened, I'd stand there, take everything they threw at me, and turn every last one of those invaders into refugees."
Axel stood confidently, his grin filled with absolute certainty.
That confidence was contagious.
Looking at Axel's fearless smile, Clark suddenly felt reassured.
It made perfect sense.
To Clark, Axel was both his closest friend and the world's most dangerous criminal.
He was effectively Gotham's ruler and arguably the strongest defender Earth possessed.
If Kryptonians ever came to conquer the planet, they would have to deal with Axel first.
Thinking about it, Clark almost felt sorry for them.
If they really invaded, most of the men would probably die horribly.
As for everyone else, they certainly wouldn't get the easy victory they imagined.
Clark silently prayed that any surviving Kryptonians stayed far away from Earth.
Hopefully, humanity's peace would remain undisturbed.
With Clark's mood finally improving, Lex also relaxed.
The tension disappeared from his face, replaced by a smile.
"Axel, I have to admit, it's reassuring to have someone like you in our world.
Then again, that's exactly how it should be.
If we're already afraid of enemies that haven't even appeared, we have no business building the Human Federation.
My goal is to use humanity's excess strength to spread human civilization and help humanity thrive across countless universes."
"Hey."
Bruce immediately frowned.
"Our purpose is to bring hope to humanity wherever it's needed, not to spread ideology, Lex."
After correcting him, Bruce patted Clark on the shoulder.
"Don't worry.
We'll bring your ship home.
My aircraft can return to Gotham on autopilot.
Can you fly this ship?"
Clark nodded.
"No problem.
My father's ship has an advanced AI navigation system."
Everyone then looked toward Axel.
He was still sitting on the ice, holding the polar bear cub.
Meeting their expectant stares, Axel casually scratched behind the cub's ears.
"What?"
He smirked.
"I'm taking this bear family back to Gotham."
Lex laughed loudly.
"Are you planning to let your panda meet a family of polar bears?"
"I don't care.
I like them.
They're smart."
Axel stubbornly stood up with the cub still in his arms.
Nearby, the anxious parent bears became increasingly restless.
Bruce and Lex exchanged helpless looks before each restrained one of the adult bears to keep them from panicking.
Clark could only shake his head before returning to the ship.
Moments later, the Kryptonian vessel's engines awakened after eighteen thousand years of silence.
A tremendous roar echoed beneath the Arctic glacier.
The frozen ground trembled violently as the massive spacecraft forced its way through layers of ancient ice and rock before rising into the night sky.
The sleek vessel hovered above them.
Holding the mother bear by the scruff, Bruce watched with admiration.
"An incredible machine.
We still have a long way to go before humanity reaches this level."
Lex smiled.
"Not just the two of us.
We can't carry humanity's technological future alone.
We'll need more brilliant minds.
Didn't we already discuss a candidate?
Axel recently visited the Marvel Universe.
Whatever flaws Tony Stark has in his personal life, his intelligence is undeniable.
We'll need Axel to take us there."
Lex turned toward Axel.
Axel nodded.
"No problem.
Tomorrow around noon, we can head over together.
Actually, let's make it four people.
You and Bruce aren't exactly powerhouses, so Clark's coming as security.
Maybe we'll bring even more people.
If only our universe is represented, the Human Federation will look like a club from a single world."
As Axel laughed, the Kryptonian ship settled directly above them.
A beam of light descended.
The next instant, everyone was back aboard the bridge.
Clark looked around.
"Ready?
Want to test the ship's speed in Earth's atmosphere?"
"Absolutely."
Lex smiled.
"I'd love to see what seventy times the speed of sound looks..."
He stopped mid-sentence.
Outside the viewport, Wayne Manor was already in front of them.
Lex froze.
"...What?"
He rushed to the window, completely stunned.
"That isn't speed.
That's spatial manipulation.
Clark..."
He looked around the ship in amazement.
"No wonder Krypton dominated the stars for so long.
This technology is extraordinary.
More importantly, it's given me even more motivation."
Bruce smiled.
"Good.
That's exactly what our Human Federation's chief scientist should be saying."
Lex blinked.
"Chief scientist?"
He looked at Bruce.
"I won't deny I'm qualified.
And I certainly question your work-life balance.
But you're more than capable yourself.
Don't you want the position?"
Bruce snorted.
"Why would I?
I'd rather be the chief of staff deciding where the organization goes."
Chuckling, Bruce walked through the open hatch into the courtyard.
After releasing the mother bear, she immediately looked around uneasily, panting from the unexpected warmth.
The father bear wasn't much happier.
Moving directly from the Arctic to Gotham felt like stepping from a freezer into an oven.
Looking at the uncomfortable family, Axel smiled and rubbed the cub's head.
"Looks like I'll have to build them an iceberg."
Bruce answered without looking back.
"You can dig it yourself.
I'm not volunteering for your zoo."
He activated the Batplane's autopilot from his gauntlet.
Meanwhile, in the Arctic, the expedition team had finally arrived near the excavation site.
Even from a distance, they had felt the violent tremor caused by the spacecraft's departure.
Several Arctic foxes sprinted across the snow in panic.
Under the moonlight, everyone stared at the enormous crater left behind.
Lois inhaled sharply.
"Something huge was buried here... and it's gone."
The expedition leader drew a slow breath.
"Miss Lois, whatever was here, we don't want it appearing on television or in tomorrow's newspapers.
Out of respect for General Lane, I'd rather not be forced to stop you."
Lois reluctantly nodded.
"I understand, Captain."
She lowered her camera.
"Honestly, I don't think I'll find the answers here anyway.
Everything points to Gotham.
If I want the truth, I need to find the man responsible."
Determination filled her eyes.
She still remembered the horrifying massacre Axel had shown her.
The fear remained.
But fear belonged to ordinary people.
She wanted to become a journalist worthy of winning the Pulitzer Prize.
If the truth demanded courage, then she would face it.
Even if it cost her life.
She had accepted that long ago.
...
The night passed.
Axel slowly opened his eyes.
Ciri and Selina were sprawled across the oversized bed.
Compared to Selina's effortless elegance, Ciri radiated untamed energy.
Axel glanced at the scars covering Ciri before gently rubbing her lower back.
The exhausted witcher opened one eye.
"Axel, stop teasing.
My whole body still feels weak.
My legs are killing me.
If you're still in the mood, go find someone else.
Catwoman is right here.
Or that Korean girl you brought back yesterday.
You could even visit the Lady of the Lake or Triss."
After lazily complaining, Ciri shifted onto Selina, using her chest as a pillow.
Selina pushed at her twice before giving up.
Watching the two of them, Axel curled his lips before getting out of bed.
The maids entered shortly afterward and attended to him as usual.
Several minutes later, dressed and smoking a cigarette, Axel stepped into the courtyard.
Victor Zsasz was already walking toward him.
"Boss."
Victor approached and lowered his voice.
"The Gotham mayoral inauguration is in three days.
You know about it, right?"
Axel smirked.
"So?
Why are you telling me?
Has Oswald gotten so full of himself that he won't even invite me personally?"
Victor laughed awkwardly.
"Boss, he wouldn't dare.
He didn't send me.
The problem is that he's completely focused on becoming mayor.
Because of that, the organization has started running into management issues."
He handed Axel two reports.
"These summarize our recent expansion.
Since we wiped out the Court of Owls, the Dead Souls Gang has absorbed nearly all of Gotham's underworld.
The problem is that we've grown too quickly.
I'm reaching my limit.
Oswald used to handle a lot of the administration, but now politics takes all of his attention.
The gang needs another capable administrator.
Otherwise, our expansion is going to slow down."
Victor couldn't help thinking of Bruce and Floyd.
One had no interest in management.
The other preferred solving problems with bullets.
Neither was suitable.
Axel read through the reports and nodded.
The organization really was short on capable administrators.
People with leadership skills were still rare in Gotham at this point.
Harvey Dent hadn't risen to prominence yet.
Even Oswald was moving into politics.
After thinking for a moment, Axel smiled and patted Victor's shoulder.
"Old Zsasz."
He chuckled.
"I think it's time I called old Falcone.
The man retired less than a month ago, but things have changed too quickly.
Has he rested enough?
Good.
Then it's time for him to come back."
===
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