As the sun rose, the day began like any other.
Axel, who never seemed to get enough sleep, was dragged into the bathroom by Selina and forced to wash up properly.
As he slowly woke under the water, Selina poked at him with her foot, clearly annoyed.
"You're always in a bad mood. Do you just carry your morning temper all day?"
"Don't start, I'm just like this," Axel muttered, still half-asleep.
With a lazy flick of his hand, he gathered warm water into a column and sent it splashing straight at her.
Selina reacted instantly, lunging at him and biting his neck in retaliation.
After spending some time messing around, Axel followed Selina out to help feed the animals, doing as Alfred instructed.
Not long after, Floyd left with his daughter for school.
Axel waved casually at Selina.
"I'm heading out."
"Yeah, yeah. I'll be leaving soon too."
Selina turned to Alfred, holding up a necklace.
"Alfred, the one I stole back yesterday, nice, right?"
Alfred hesitated, then sighed.
"Madam, that necklace originally belonged to the Wayne Family. It was auctioned off for charity some years ago for eight hundred thousand dollars. By now, its value has certainly increased."
He adjusted his posture, clearly conflicted.
"So technically, you allowed the family to earn money first, then retrieved its property afterward."
Selina frowned, irritation obvious.
"So everything I've stolen somehow leads back to the Wayne Family?"
Alfred replied without expression,
"Now it includes the Axel Family as well."
He pulled a small animal off his leg again, looking tired.
Axel smirked and headed for the gate.
Moments later, flames flickered, and his figure vanished.
He reappeared instantly inside The Seven's conference room.
Starlight jumped to her feet, staring at him in shock as he took the head seat.
"Mr. Ancestor, was that teleportation? That's incredible."
Axel leaned back, amused.
"Something like that. Better than yours, though. If I remember right, your power involves your eyes lighting up at very specific moments."
Starlight froze.
That was not what she expected.
Wait.
How did he know that?
Her face flushed, then paled almost immediately as her thoughts spiraled.
Before she could react further, the door opened.
Ashley hurried in, slightly out of breath.
"Sorry, Ancestor, I was two seconds late. I lost focus while watching the monitors. It won't happen again."
Axel blinked.
"Two seconds? That's not even worth mentioning. What, you think I'm some kind of petty boss?"
"No, I didn't mean that. I'm sorry."
Ashley apologized quickly, forcing herself to stay composed. She placed the schedule in front of him and began her report.
"As instructed, we didn't arrange a signing event for Starlight. Instead, she'll appear at a live crime response. But since we're not using the usual scripted methods, I'm concerned she might make a mistake on her first outing."
Axel glanced at Starlight.
"Will you mess up?"
"I won't," she answered firmly.
Axel spread his hands slightly.
"She's too confident. That usually means she will."
He looked back at Ashley.
"Pick small cases. Robberies, thefts, residential areas. Clear targets, simple situations, minimal variables."
"Understood."
Ashley nodded, then shot Starlight a brief look before continuing.
"You also scheduled your debut alongside Homelander. I'm concerned he might overshadow you. His popularity is…"
Axel cut her off with a chuckle.
"Why would that bother me? Everything here belongs to me. More attention just means more value."
He waved dismissively.
"Handle the rest yourselves. Learn how I operate."
Just as he spoke, the door opened again.
Madelyn walked in briskly.
Starlight stood immediately.
"Madam CEO."
Madelyn ignored her and approached Axel directly, bowing slightly.
"Good morning, Ancestor."
She leaned closer, glancing at Starlight.
"We need to talk privately."
"No need. Say it here."
Madelyn paused, then nodded.
"Our intelligence reports that Stormfront met with the Deputy Secretary of Defense last night. Shortly after, she traveled to a Soviet military facility."
She activated the satellite footage.
"The base was destroyed."
Her voice lowered.
"Analysis suggests the damage matches Soldier Boy's abilities."
She leaned closer, speaking more quietly.
"It's likely the Department of Defense sees you as a greater threat than he ever was. If so, they may send him, along with Stormfront, after you."
She swallowed.
"That's Soldier Boy."
Starlight frowned, confused.
"Aren't we supposed to be the heroes? Why would the Department of Defense…"
Then realization hit her.
"Wait. Soldier Boy? He's real? I thought he was just from movies and comics…"
"Enough," Madelyn snapped.
She turned back to Axel, tense.
Axel, however, smiled.
"So he's already out."
His grin widened.
"Perfect."
He raised his hand casually, fingers curling as if pulling something invisible.
"I'll just bring him here."
The next moment, a man appeared out of nowhere, lying unconscious on the floor in front of him.