Axel Voss was jolted by Bruce's roar.
"What?"
He genuinely had not expected Bruce to be this furious. All Axel had done was invite Rachel to sit in the mansion. He had not actually done anything to her, right?
Axel turned his head and glanced at Rachel. She was currently pressed close to Selina Kyle, Selina's breath warm against her neck, her hand far too familiar against Rachel's chest.
Axel nodded to himself with renewed certainty.
Yeah. He definitely had not done anything to her.
With that settled and without the slightest hint of guilt, Axel turned back to Bruce and calmly raised his middle finger.
At the same time,Lex Luthor was completely ignoring Bruce's existence. He continued rambling excitedly, eyes bright with obsession.
"Axel, even if you are immortal, you still need to cherish your body. Try not to let yourself get damaged," Lex said rapidly. "I will relocate the laboratory as soon as possible and start developing multiple types of combat suits for you. Full coverage, full protection."
As he spoke, Lex tried to wriggle free from Axel's grip, already desperate to throw himself into work.
Axel tightened his hold without ceremony.
"Sounds great, Lex," Axel said, tone lazy. "But besides battle suits, I'm short on a few other things too."
He sighed dramatically.
"I'm broke as hell. I bought a couple of nuclear bombs recently, and now I'm out of Dollars. I can barely eat properly, I dress like crap, and paying the mansion staff is starting to hurt. Think you can help me out?"
"You should avoid dangerous things like nuclear weapons," Lex replied immediately, frowning. "That said, if you are particularly fond of them, it does raise fascinating questions about whether human evolution could develop a tolerance, or even a dependency, on radiation."
He paused, then added far too eagerly, "I could secretly manufacture some for you. But you must promise to take care of yourself. No casual detonations, and absolutely no testing whether you can survive a direct blast."
Axel gave him a thumbs-up, genuine admiration on his face.
"You're incredible," Axel said. "But I was actually just asking for food and drinks, buddy."
Lex blinked, then waved it off. "That's trivial. I'll have my assistant coordinate with your butler to design a healthier diet and lifestyle plan. Cost is irrelevant. I have never lacked money. My intellect can take humanity further, and whatever is happening with you might take us even farther."
That was the final straw. Lex struggled harder, practically vibrating with impatience.
"Let go of me, Axel. I need to begin research immediately. Watching your body evolve like this, I cannot waste a second. Together, we will usher in a new era for mankind."
"That can wait," Axel said flatly. "Nothing's changing in one afternoon. I've decided, we're having lunch first. Serious business comes later."
Axel's refusal was absolute.
From a distance, Bruce's expression darkened to a truly impressive shade of green.
He was still using force.
"You've gone too far, Axel!" Bruce roared.
He parked the Cullinan beside Lex's plane and stormed over. Without hesitation, Bruce grabbed Lex's hand and spun toward Axel, fury blazing in his eyes.
"Let go of his damn hand!"
"What the hell?" Axel raised both hands, baffled. "Relax."
He stared at Bruce like he had just lost his mind. "I'll admit I made a new friend, and sure, he's got some similarities to you. But this level of jealousy is a bit much, don't you think?"
Axel deliberately stepped back and then eyed Bruce's hand clasped around Lex's with exaggerated curiosity.
Lex, finally processing the situation, frowned. "Where did this lunatic come from?"
Bruce froze.
"Who are you?"
Only then did he truly look at Lex's face. His body went stiff.
He had made a mistake.
Before Bruce could recover, a trembling voice came from the sofa.
"Bruce… you two… you actually…"
Rachel's gaze was fixed on Bruce's hand holding Lex's. Her lips quivered, and then the tears came.
Today was cruel beyond measure.
First, she thought Bruce had found someone else. Then she encountered the most terrifying man in Gotham. After that, she was restrained and harassed by the very thief she once prosecuted.
And now this.
Not only did Bruce have a new lover, he had apparently lost seven years of her waiting to another man.
Rachel Dawes broke down completely.
Bruce reacted at last, shaking Lex's hand off as if burned.
Lex narrowed his eyes, studying Bruce carefully. "You are… Bruce Wayne."
"Alexander Luthor," Bruce replied coldly. "Your ideas are… impressive."
He turned and headed for Rachel, speaking stiffly as he walked. "This was a mistake. An accident."
"Yes, of course," Lex sneered behind him. "Otherwise, how would I have found intrusion records from Wayne Enterprises on my private network?"
Lex accepted a silk scarf from his assistant and meticulously wiped the hand Bruce had touched.
Bruce stopped and turned back.
His expression darkened, then slowly shifted into something resembling reluctant admiration. He had infiltrated LuthorCorp's network with extreme care. Very few people in the world could have traced it, let alone dismantled his countermeasures and identified the source.
Lex extended his hand again, smile sharp. "Our previous meeting lacked decorum. Let us try again. I am Alexander Luthor."
Bruce snorted but shook his hand. "Bruce Wayne."
He released it instantly and hurried to Rachel's side.
Selina was still holding Rachel's hand, clearly enjoying herself. Bruce hesitated, then spoke stiffly.
"Madam, please let go of my… friend."
"If she's just a friend," Selina replied lazily, pinching Rachel's cheek, "then I see no reason to."
Bruce's jaw tightened. "We were together seven years ago. When I left Gotham, we had not broken up."
He grabbed Rachel's wrist. "Rachel, stay behind me."
He pulled her close, positioning himself between her and Selina.
Selina leaned back, bored. "You ruin games so quickly, Bruce."
"We are not toys," Bruce said quietly.
Rachel steadied herself and wrapped her arm around his. "You never sent a breakup message. So no, I was not single these past seven years."
Bruce nodded firmly. "That's right."
He turned, intending to leave with her.
Axel clapped loudly, irritation clear, and stepped into their path.
"Bruce."
He shoved Rachel aside without ceremony and slung an arm around Bruce's shoulders.
"Don't rush off chasing romance the moment you get back. Alfred's been missing you like hell. No one leaves this mansion today without my permission."
He raised his voice. "Alfred, lunch. For everyone."
"Yes, Master," came the reply from , filled with rare, genuine joy.
For once, Alfred could see Bruce and Rachel at the same table.
If things went well, maybe in a few years, he would even be holding a little Bruce, hearing the word Grandpa.
===
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