Axel appeared beside Victor as the latter sprinted toward the Iceberg Lounge.
Victor froze for a second when he saw Axel. Then, grinning awkwardly despite the blood on his chest, he lifted his severed arm stump and hollered, "Boss… that damn Amazon actually cut off my arm, but I'm fine! I gave her hell before she did it!"
Axel looked at him with tired patience.
"Don't try to get sympathy from me, Victor. I'll never forget that you jerk off in public."
Victor's pale face turned bright red.
"Jesus Christ! Can't you say something normal for once? I lost an arm, Boss! Even if you don't care about me, at least don't provoke me!"
"You jerk off."
"Ah, just shoot me! I really don't like talking to you!"
"You jerk off."
Victor finally ran out of comebacks. He let out an annoyed breath and kept running with his head down.
Seeing him quiet, Axel found it boring. He followed behind him, speaking in that mild, sarcastic tone of his.
"Given how unlucky you are, I'll let it go this once. Go get your arm fixed soon. I hope you don't lose too much function, haha."
"Boss, can't you say something happier? You know what I really want to hear. What happened to that bitch? Did you at least get the upper hand?"
Victor asked, eyes bright with morbid curiosity.
Axel met his gaze, pursed his lips, and gave him a light pat on the back.
"What are you thinking, Victor? Wonder Woman isn't someone I can handle in three days of messing around. If I want a real contest with her, I'll need at least three more days of training."
He spread his hands with a cheeky grin.
"Don't think I'm not trying to help you get revenge. I just can't beat her yet. I swear, the best I managed was grabbing her arm. That woman's strength is unreal. She's a demigoddess, the daughter of Zeus, and I'm just a regular guy with slightly better strength and speed. Holding my own for a second is already something."
Axel shrugged, looking helpless.
Victor thought for a moment while running, then said, "Boss, have you not regained your power yet? You don't need to hide it from me. Do you need souls? Some ritual? Or… I don't know… something else? I just want you to get strong and take that arrogant woman down!"
They burst into the Iceberg Lounge. Victor headed straight for the on‑site medics, while Axel followed, still talking.
"I'm no god, Victor. I didn't lose power and I don't need to fetch it back. I can't even fly. If I were divine, I'd at least have flight, right? I'm just stronger than usual and tougher than most. That's it. Talk to you after your surgery."
Axel slipped into the gaming room and froze in surprise when he saw his screen still on.
His match hadn't ended!
Because he'd built a huge lead earlier, his team had held the fort while he was gone. Relieved, Axel jumped back in, pushed his early advantage, and smashed the enemy's main objective in under six minutes.
Seeing the victory notification, Axel exhaled, satisfied. Competitive games had become ridiculous since his reflexes cranked up, and winning felt addictive.
Just then, the office door flew open. Oswald Cobblepot staggered in clutching his thigh, fresh blood soaking his pants.
"Buddy, you were here the whole time, right? Did Wonder Woman flatten the club and get you too?"
Axel asked, concerned.
Oswald exhaled in irritation, then shook his head.
"If that woman who wrecked half of Gotham with you was Wonder Woman, you think I'd have got away? No, Boss. I'm bleeding because I was excited. I heard news about her."
He collapsed onto the sofa, worried and twitchy.
"I didn't know Gotham had someone that dangerous when we were planning to blow the city up. If she interferes tomorrow and the next day, we'll have to get creative, Boss."
A weird, eager grin spread across Oswald's face.
"That woman probably sees herself as a hero, right? So I figured, if I recruit some desperate folks, give them two days of food and women, then unleash them as a bomb squad… they'll run straight into targets."
The grin got worse as he pulled up a map on his phone.
"And I finally understand why you stockpiled nukes, Boss. Against someone who can go anywhere? Nuclear might do something. I've marked safe detonation zones. I even got two nukes delivered here. Use them when you want."
Axel blinked at him, then nodded with a smirk.
This was textbook Gotham villain energy.
Penguin didn't headline every crisis, but villains all had roles. Oswald made money and chaos; bigger players handled the big shows. Everyone had their place.
Axel clapped once in approval.
"Well done, Oswald. That's the kind of ambition I like. Do what you think best, but try not to run into Wonder Woman yourself."
Oswald shot up and dashed out, tripping over nothing but brimming with confidence. He immediately started barking orders into his phone.
Once he was gone, Axel leaned back on the couch and closed his eyes.
What he'd said about getting stronger wasn't a joke. He had been evolving—not just power, but his whole system. Victor was accidentally right about a ritual, though Axel wasn't feeding on souls. His power growth functioned like one.
Because of the odd "Seven Days" challenge he'd set for himself—mimicking creation—some internal process had started.
Now he didn't need death to level up. Injury alone fed it.
He only realized it after Wonder Woman left him bleeding.
And that change solidified after the third day of his internal framework, right after pushing Falcone out of Gotham.
Even back in Smallville, he only grew stronger through death… but that was no longer the case.
===
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