The next morning, Axel climbed out of bed and casually pushed Selina, who had sprawled across him, to the side.
Unceremoniously displaced, Selina grumbled under her breath before slowly lifting her head to glance at him.
After living together for more than half a month, any idealized image she once had of Axel had long since disappeared. In fact, she no longer bothered maintaining any pretense around him and had gradually begun showing her true personality.
She let out a lazy sigh, rolled onto her side, exposing her smooth back, and deliberately nudged Axel with her hip.
Watching her wriggle around like an oversized cat, Axel resisted the urge to laugh and lightly kicked her on the backside before getting dressed.
As he put on his shoes, Selina asked drowsily,
"Going somewhere?"
"Of course. Don't you think other worlds are interesting? I..."
Before he could finish, Selina interrupted him. She yawned and lazily waved a hand.
"You definitely drank too much last night. Otherwise, you wouldn't have forgotten already."
She stretched beneath the blanket.
"Think about what you promised someone."
With that, she rolled over again, curled into a ball, and resumed sleeping. As she settled into a comfortable position, she pulled the blanket up around her waist.
Axel frowned.
Last night?
What happened last night?
After a moment of thought, the memories finally returned.
After Vesemir and the others pleaded for Geralt's resurrection, Axel and the Lady of the Lake immediately got to work.
Less than two minutes later, Geralt and Yennefer were alive again.
The moment Geralt woke up, he instinctively shouted:
"Pitchfork! Pitchfork!"
The trauma clearly ran deep.
Fortunately, there were no pitchforks at Kaer Morhen, and Geralt certainly wasn't afraid of the Wild Hunt's corpses.
Once resurrected, he and Yennefer quickly grasped the situation and joined the celebration without much hesitation.
After all, strange visitors and dimensional events were hardly unheard of in the Witcher world. Compared to the Conjunction of the Spheres, Axel's appearance was simply another bizarre twist of fate.
As a result, everyone drank until well after three in the morning.
The Wild Hunt had been defeated, the war was over, and everyone needed an outlet for the pressure they had endured.
Even Bruce got dragged into the festivities.
In fact, Axel had personally ensured that nearly everyone drank themselves senseless. Even the Lady of the Lake eventually ended up soaking in the hot spring.
Then came the farewells.
With her arms wrapped around Axel's leg and her chin resting on his thigh, a thoroughly drunk Ciri had declared:
"You all go sleep. I'll... I'll come visit your world tomorrow. You took me there once. I can feel it. I'll definitely find it again. Maybe... maybe I'll bring some friends too."
Her actual words had been far less coherent, but Axel remembered the meaning clearly enough.
He had promised to stay home and wait for her.
That was the agreement.
Muttering to himself, Axel clicked his tongue.
"Fine. I haven't spent much time at home during the day lately anyway."
He stood up.
"I'm staying in today. We'll have breakfast, and if Ciri shows up, I'll take everyone shopping."
A thought suddenly struck him.
"Damn it, I haven't even properly explored Gotham myself."
As he spoke, his armor flowed over his body and transformed into a casual suit.
After straightening his collar, Axel left the bedroom and headed toward the kitchen.
Just as he reached the doorway, Rachel stepped out of Bruce's room.
Seeing Axel, she blinked before her eyes lit up.
"Big Brother, Bruce said the strangest things last night. Did you really go to another world?"
She laughed.
"I've never seen him that drunk before. He threw up twice! Though I have to admire him. Even while drunk, he cleaned up after himself."
Rachel pointed toward the distant laboratory building.
"And he was awake before seven-thirty. He's already working in the lab. That man is unbelievable."
Axel nodded.
"Just another world, kid. I said I'd go, so I went."
He grinned.
"Though it was dangerous, so I wasn't bringing a defenseless girl like you."
Then he added dramatically:
"Did Bruce tell you they killed over three thousand elves?"
"Elves?"
Rachel tilted her head.
"Axel, I've played The Witcher. Weren't you fighting the Wild Hunt?"
"Haha."
Axel waved dismissively.
"I was trying to scare you. Besides, elves are usually the victims in most worlds."
Laughing, he continued into the dining room.
The manor's chef was already preparing breakfast.
For once, Alfred had failed to appear.
Bruce could recover quickly because he was still relatively young.
Alfred, on the other hand, had consumed enough alcohol to concern even Axel.
Settling into his seat, Axel began enjoying breakfast as the chef brought out dish after dish.
Then a violent gust of wind erupted directly in front of him.
Lightning crackled.
Plates, utensils, and soup flew in every direction.
The next moment, Axel watched with a dark expression as Ciri cheerfully stepped out of a dimensional portal.
Landing on the dining table, she immediately called behind her.
"Geralt, hurry up and get off the table!"
"I know."
Geralt stepped through after her.
"I just didn't have time to move. Besides, I wasn't the one who teleported us onto someone else's breakfast."
Wearing a pair of small round sunglasses, he waved at Axel.
"Good morning, Your Divinity."
He jumped down from the table.
The instant he landed, Axel tossed him a bottle of brandy.
Geralt caught it automatically and examined the bottle.
"Alcohol from your world?"
He nodded.
"The bottle is impressive."
Looking around, he added,
"And this place is clearly a castle. So people in other worlds live in castles too."
Then he stopped speaking.
His gaze had drifted beyond the windows.
Past the gardens.
Past the grounds.
Toward Gotham's skyline.
Geralt froze.
"What is that...?"
Walking to the window, he stared in fascination.
Beside him, Ciri grabbed two mango puddings and handed one over.
"Stop staring for a minute. We'll see everything later."
She smiled.
"Try this. It looks delicious."
Geralt accepted the pudding and absentmindedly shoved it into his mouth.
His eyes widened.
"This is excellent."
After another bite, he finally returned to Axel's side.
For some reason, he was now looking at Axel with pity.
Axel immediately noticed.
"What is that expression?"
He narrowed his eyes.
"Why do you look like you feel sorry for me?"
Geralt hesitated.
It was still difficult for him to reconcile Axel's casual behavior with the concept of a god.
After collecting his thoughts, he pointed toward Gotham.
"Although you're a deity, life must be difficult here."
"Huh?"
Geralt continued.
"Those enormous towers must be where the powerful live."
He glanced around Wayne Manor.
"But your castle isn't especially grand, and it's located far from the city."
Then he pointed toward Gotham again.
"Look at those incredible structures, then look at your overgrown grounds."
His expression became even more sympathetic.
Axel stared at him for several seconds.
Then he kicked him.
"Buddy, I can tolerate ignorance. Being pitied by you is another matter entirely."
Turning toward the chef, Axel pointed dramatically.
"Bring more mango pudding."
Then he pointed at Geralt.
"We're taking this old man into Gotham. He clearly has no idea who he's talking to."
Geralt merely shrugged.
Nearby, Ciri laughed and slipped her arm through Axel's.
"Let's go."
Her eyes sparkled with excitement.
"I wanted to explore another world yesterday, but everything happened too quickly."
She leaned against him.
"Since this world also has giant cities, you'll have to make up for everything I missed."
With the Wild Hunt gone, some of the burdens she had carried since childhood seemed to have finally faded.
The constant running.
The relentless training.
The feeling of always being hunted.
For the first time in years, she could simply enjoy herself.
Geralt noticed it too.
Although part of him felt uneasy seeing her cling so closely to Axel, he was ultimately happy to see her acting like a normal young woman instead of a fugitive.
Axel threw an arm around her shoulders.
"No problem."
He grinned.
"Today I'll give you the full Gotham experience."
Then he raised a hand.
"Bring out my Pagani Zonda... actually, never mind. Too many passengers."
He changed his mind immediately.
"Get the Rolls-Royce."
A servant hurried toward the garage.
While they waited, Axel led Ciri and Geralt out into the courtyard.
"My castle isn't anything special," he said. "Like most castles, really."
He gestured toward Gotham.
"The city is much more interesting."
"That's true."
Geralt nodded thoughtfully.
"And I think I've figured something out."
"What?"
Geralt pointed toward the skyscrapers.
"Those towers are filled with people."
He crossed his arms.
"Every window contains more people than an entire village."
His expression became serious.
"They don't look like homes for the powerful."
He paused.
"They look like prisons."
Before Axel could respond, several pandas wandered across the courtyard.
The instant they appeared, both Geralt and Ciri tensed.
"Damn, bears!"
"What are bears doing here?"
Their swords were out in an instant.
The pandas stopped walking and looked at Axel with visible confusion.
Axel immediately waved his arms.
"Put those away!"
He pointed at the pandas.
"Those are treasures. Treasures!"
Ciri blinked.
"Treasures?"
"Yes!"
Axel looked genuinely offended.
"They're pandas."
He pointed accusingly at both of them.
"There aren't many left in the entire world. If either of you hurts one, I guarantee you'll regret it."
Ciri frowned.
"They're just oddly colored bears."
Then she shrugged.
"Fine."
Turning toward Geralt, she lowered her sword.
"They don't seem aggressive."
Geralt reluctantly sheathed his blade as well.
Curious, Ciri approached one of the pandas and reached for its round ear.
The panda effortlessly dodged her hand.
Even so, its appearance was so harmless and awkward that both witchers immediately found it strangely adorable.
At that moment, a Rolls-Royce Phantom rolled into the courtyard and stopped in front of them.
To Axel's surprise, Floyd was behind the wheel.
Lowering the window, Floyd waved.
"Boss, if you're showing them Gotham, you'll need a proper guide."
He grinned.
"Someone who knows every corner of the city can show you things you'd never notice on your own."