Hall of Justice.
"Do you have nothing to say?"
Diana began slamming her hands on the table in front of Batman.
After the Emperor Viktor incident and the series of problems Viktor mentioned, Wonder Woman, as a fellow superhero, couldn't just stay out of it.
She followed everyone back to the Hall of Justice and was now confronting Batman again as usual.
"I don't believe I made any errors."
Batman glanced across the Hall of Justice.
This time, not even Superman had the time to step in as a peacemaker because he was busy scolding Shazam.
No one wanted to get involved with Batman's side, and the rest gathered around Superman.
"So none of you actually knew he was basically a child?"
Aquaman asked this while holding a jar of chocolate bars, making a loud crunching sound as he chewed.
Aquaman had followed them back as well.
The reason was the strong tremor in Atlantis from the battlefield, which disturbed the entire Atlantis.
In fact, the moment Emperor Viktor slipped away, Aquaman had emerged from the sea on the back of a blue whale, clutching his trident, shouting things like how rude the surface dwellers were to keep disturbing the peace of the ocean.
However, as soon as Viktor grabbed him and flew him up into the sky, Aquaman's attitude changed instantly, and all that earlier concern for Atlantis disappeared completely.
...
"Mera hasn't slept through a single night in days. I had to come up and see what was going on, or I wouldn't even be able to stay in my own palace."
Aquaman showed a bitter expression.
Viktor held him up like a freshly caught fish, and Aquaman even greeted Superman.
Superman, whose attention was entirely fixed on Shazam, gave him a brief nod and immediately went back to ignoring him.
Aquaman had no choice but to keep venting to Viktor.
"How long has it been since I left the Justice League? The Earth is already this chaotic? Even Superman can't handle it?"
He shook his arm in frustration, shaking off the seawater from Aquaman's body.
"Don't, don't shake me! I'm going to throw up!"
Aquaman yelled immediately.
Viktor rolled his eyes.
"Do you want to come along and listen? Find out what happened so you can at least give Lady Mera an explanation when you go back."
Aquaman strained his throat to suppress the urge to vomit for quite some time before finally nodding.
After that, they all went to the Hall of Justice except for Martian Manhunter, who went back to report to his superiors.
The rest gathered around Superman and Shazam.
...
Superman seemed unusually angry and also somewhat guilty.
"You're just a child. This was never supposed to be your fight."
Shazam, of course, refused to accept that and lifted his chin stubbornly.
"Do you remember the first time we met? I even landed a punch on you. What kind of child can punch Superman?"
"And then you were defeated by me."
Superman calmly dismissed Shazam's example.
Shazam looked awkward, glanced around, then pointed at Viktor and started shouting.
"What about him?! He's even two years younger than me!"
"One year. Thank you."
He had been looking down, cleaning under his fingernails, but suddenly found himself called out.
Viktor raised his head and corrected the record.
"I turned fifteen roughly two weeks ago. Viltrumites just don't have the habit of celebrating birthdays."
Rachel, who had been meditating quietly nearby, suddenly opened her eyes and then discreetly pulled out her phone and started tapping away.
Superman looked mildly helplessly, glanced at him, and found himself momentarily at a loss for words.
Yes.
Viktor was the example Superman couldn't argue with.
"His life was different from yours."
Superman tried to reason with Shazam.
"But he lives on Earth now."
Shazam argued confidently.
"What's wrong with being a kid? Did that mean I should be discriminated against? Before any of you knew who I was, didn't you all assign me missions the same as everyone else? I helped save the world alongside you multiple times, and now you want to kick me out?"
Shazam began to ramble.
"I have super strength, and just like you, I can catch bullets with my eyeballs! I also know magic that you don't. What reason do you have to kick me out of the Justice League?"
Shazam was shouting so loudly that even Diana, who had been staring at Batman, was briefly distracted.
Diana seemed to gain more confidence. She turned back and looked at Batman with a cold smile.
"The rest of us might not have known Shazam's real age, but don't tell me you didn't know either—you even pushed a child into dangerous situations multiple times!"
Batman gave Wonder Woman an even glance and pulled up a historical record.
"In fact, after I learned Shazam's real identity and age, I drafted a meeting outline to remove him from the Justice League. The problem was that the Aquaman situation happened immediately afterward. You all left the team, and the Justice League ended up severely short of manpower."
Diana seemed genuinely caught off guard by Batman casually throwing the blame back in her direction.
She almost laughed in anger.
"A lack of manpower is your excuse for keeping a child in the Justice League?"
"Your accusation is not convincing."
Batman replied.
"In fact, during our very own meeting, you and the others were quite insistent on keeping the even younger Viktor in the Justice League."
"Don't confuse the two, Batman. Viktor is not a child, at least in terms of his way of thinking. Aside from some minor psychological issues caused by his environment, he could be treated as an adult in every other aspect."
Diana then said something even more shocking.
"Do not make those who should not bear responsibility carry it. If something happens to them, I think you know the feeling of guilt better than I do!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa."
"That's too far, Diana. That's too far."
As soon as she said those words, even Superman on the other side lost interest in scolding Shazam.
They gasped quietly while cautiously watching Batman, who had fallen into silence once again.
Firestorm, who had only recently joined the Justice League, looked like a restless bystander missing out on all the gossip.
He looked around anxiously, but he didn't dare to ask anyone what had actually happened in the past.
Viktor was struggling to keep it together.
He knew Diana was probably referring to the incident where Batman's second Robin was beaten to death by the Joker.
However, from any perspective, he was not supposed to know about that.
Even when he had known Nightwing before, Nightwing had accidentally hinted at it, but quickly stopped himself.
Viktor could only imitate Firestorm's expression, constantly turning his head around like someone searching everywhere for gossip.
This time, Batman remained silent for a long time.
In the end, he stood up and looked away from Diana.
"I know. Which is why I've also thought of a solution, but now is not the time to implement it. The Earth is facing something far more serious. Even if you wanted me to apologize, at least wait until this matter is completely resolved."
The room's tense gazes all shifted toward Wonder Woman.
She also straightened up, and her tone returned to calm.
"Then I'll wait."
Just as everyone let out a breath of relief, Diana turned and walked back toward Superman's side of the room, and her gaze locked directly onto Shazam, who had only just managed to escape Superman's intense lecture.
Shazam's expression, which had relaxed slightly, collapsed instantly.
"Oh no… don't do this."
"Now, let us discuss the issue with Shazam."
Shazam collapsed instantly.
"I genuinely regret not punching those amazon women more when I had the chance back in that other world."
...
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