"Ugh! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah!"
As his body uncontrollably tore through the spaceship, General Zod could only scream silently in the vacuum of space.
Ever since learning that Earth was home to a powerful individual who had even bullied Kal-El, a pure-blooded Kryptonian, like a younger brother, Zod had imagined his eventual confrontation with Axel countless times.
Yet in none of those fantasies had he ever imagined being slapped so hard that he couldn't even tell which direction he was facing.
After what felt like an endless series of impacts, Zod finally felt himself slam into something with a heavy thud. His body continued sinking into the ground until he was buried an unknown distance beneath the surface before finally coming to a stop.
"Ah…"
Zod groaned weakly. His entire face was numb. Perhaps his jaw had been shattered.
Or perhaps something else was wrong. At the moment, he was too disoriented to tell.
Being able to brace himself against the ground, force his way upward, and burst out of the crater was already fortunate enough.
After all, Axel had only slapped him across the face.
As a result, Zod's body had not sustained particularly serious damage.
He shot out of the crater and hovered in space, looking down at the strange planet beneath him with a bitter expression.
What was this grayish-yellow planet?
Where the hell had Axel sent him?
Was this even still the Solar System?
Then Zod looked upward and saw the sun.
Thankfully, the sun was still there.
He remained suspended in space, absorbing the sunlight and allowing his body to recover while carefully examining his surroundings.
Only then did he finally determine his location.
Mars.
He had been slapped all the way to Mars.
But that made absolutely no sense.
Zod scratched his head, unable to understand what had happened.
How had he reached Mars so quickly?
That speed was even beyond the speed of light!
Where were the laws of physics?
Where were the laws of physics he had studied so extensively on Krypton?
Had Axel slapped those away as well?
Confused and completely alone, Zod uncharacteristically allowed himself to display a weak expression.
He pressed his lips together, sighed helplessly, and lamented.
"In that case, how am I supposed to revive Krypton on Earth?
Can that man really be defeated by anyone?"
At that moment, Zod felt a strange tingling in his teeth. The sunlight had already restored much of his physical condition.
His body was recovering, but the damage to his confidence showed no signs of healing.
Now that his original plan to conquer Earth had been completely shattered, Zod couldn't help thinking that Jor-El, despite everything, had actually given him a worthwhile suggestion.
Earlier that afternoon, he and Jor-El had spent a long time discussing the lost city of Kandor aboard the Kryptonian ship.
Zod's original decision had been to ignore it.
There was no denying that hundreds of thousands of Kryptonians were tempting.
But there were two major problems.
First, Zod didn't believe the people of Kandor were worth saving. Most of them were the very people who had betrayed him.
The brave Kryptonians who had been willing to follow him had mostly died during the rebellion. In Zod's eyes, the survivors were little more than cowards.
But that wasn't the main reason.
The real problem was that if the unknown enemy capable of stealing an entire Kryptonian city possessed such overwhelming power, how could Zod and his twenty or thirty surviving soldiers possibly reclaim Kandor?
Even with all his ambition, Zod didn't believe his forces had any chance of defeating such an enemy.
More importantly, Zod believed that once he recovered the Codex and found a suitable planet to terraform, he could use the Codex and the genetic technology within the Kryptonian ships to produce at least a million new Kryptonians within ten years.
At the time, Jor-El's suggestion had seemed completely misguided to him.
But now...
Zod understood.
Jor-El might have been ruthless. He might have betrayed him, betrayed their friendship, and even beaten him.
But his reputation as a brilliant scientist had not been undeserved.
That man really did have a talent for seeing the bigger picture.
Thinking about this, Zod's expression gradually hardened.
He needed to return to Earth as quickly as possible.
He had to prevent his subordinates from getting into an even larger conflict with Axel.
After that, he would take his remaining forces and search the universe for Kandor.
With that decision made, Zod gritted his teeth.
"Very well. I've found my direction again, and I've found the future of our race.
So from now on, I can...?!"
Meanwhile, back on Earth, in Gotham City.
Axel looked toward the sky where Zod had disappeared and grinned with satisfaction.
Beside him, Fiona's eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets.
"Just now... was that...?"
Fiona murmured, completely unable to process what she had witnessed.
Hearing her voice, Axel took two steps forward until he stood directly in front of her.
"What was that? That was a meteor."
He laughed before continuing.
"You're Fiona, the Kryptonian adjutant, right? How's your eyesight?
If it's good enough, look in the direction Zod flew and tell me whether my slap tore through the ozone layer.
If I accidentally cracked the ozone layer, that would be pretty interesting. Hahaha!"
While laughing, Axel casually placed an arm around Fiona's shoulder.
The instant his large hand settled there, Fiona flinched before throwing a punch straight at his face.
Axel caught her fist with his left hand.
Slap!
A shockwave erupted.
Fiona's hand was firmly trapped in Axel's grip while his right hand struck a vulnerable point on her body.
Thud!
Fiona's body involuntarily doubled over, a pained whimper escaping her lips.
As she bent forward, Axel released her wrist, moved behind her, and casually struck her backside.
Smack!
The force sent Fiona flying upward, using the impact point as a pivot.
"Damn it!"
The other Kryptonian soldiers were still reeling from the shock of watching their General get slapped away.
But when they saw Fiona attacked, their straightforward instincts took over. They rushed toward Axel together.
"Let go!"
"Presumptuous!"
"Bastard!"
Axel couldn't understand their Kryptonian language anyway.
Seeing the Kryptonians flying toward him one after another, Axel smiled.
With his left hand still holding Fiona around the waist, he swung his right hand.
Slap!
The first Kryptonian was sent flying.
Slap!
Another followed.
Slap, slap, slap, slap, slap!
In less than a second, every Kryptonian soldier except Fiona had followed Zod's path.
Axel had effectively turned Mars into a massive fireworks display.
Kryptonian-brand fireworks.
Fiona, meanwhile, was still being held by Axel and hadn't even figured out what was happening when a series of screams reached her ears.
"Let go of me, you bastard!"
She shouted while reaching down to strike Axel's leg.
Before her hand could connect, Axel released his grip, caught her around the waist, and lifted her.
"Tsk, tsk. You're the only one left, little Kryptonian.
So, Miss Kryptonian Adjutant, you wouldn't want your entire race to be reduced to just you, would you?
Think about your General. Think about your soldiers.
I can send them flying with ease, so killing them wouldn't exactly be difficult either.
Even if killing you might take a little more effort, it wouldn't be particularly troublesome."
Axel positioned Fiona with her back against him, wrapping his left arm around her shoulders while his right hand rested against her tight suit.
Fiona had a highly trained, capable physique, though that also meant her figure was relatively modest.
That did not stop her from having a firm, athletic build.
Yet instead of continuing to resist, Fiona gradually stopped struggling.
She spoke with an indifferent expression.
"Is this your hobby? Diverting your attention to physical matters like this?
God of Earth, I sincerely hope you possess qualities more worthy of admiration. Watching this vulgar display is hardly impressive, and your lack of..."
"Hm?"
Fiona suddenly cried out in pain as Axel's grip tightened.
At the nearby cake shop, Mera stared at the scene in disbelief.
She covered her eyes with one hand, though she continued peeking through her fingers, her cheeks flushed.
Beside her, Vulko swallowed hard before leaning toward Mera and whispering.
"Your Highness, please be careful around him from now on.
From what I've observed, the surface dwellers have developed a remarkably... decadent lifestyle."
"Indeed... Wait."
Mera's expression changed.
"That King... he's looking at me."
Axel had already turned his head and was staring directly at her.
Mera immediately fell silent.
In the distance, Axel casually released Fiona and chuckled.
"What are all these titles people keep giving me?
Some call me the God of Earth. Others call me the King of the Surface.
Forget all that.
I'm just a huge menace, can't you see?
What do I need gods' or kings' titles for? Pfft."
Just as Axel finished speaking, a figure suddenly flew toward them from the distance.
An instant later, several cracks appeared across the ground in front of Axel as Clark landed with an awkward expression.
Clark had plenty of things he wanted to say after seeing his fellow Kryptonians.
But right now...
His fellow Kryptonian seemed to be getting harassed.
So what exactly was he supposed to do?
Should he criticize Axel's behavior on Fiona's behalf?
Or should he simply stand there and pretend he hadn't seen anything?
Cough, cough!
Clark, clearly unsure how to handle the situation, stepped away from Fiona and quietly protested.
"Axel, freedom doesn't necessarily mean doing whatever you want. Sometimes, freedom also means choosing not to do something you don't want to do."
"Yes. I don't want to see someone like Fiona standing there without reacting, so I won't do that.
You're absolutely right, Clark."
Axel laughed and casually tossed the expressionless Fiona aside.
The moment her feet touched the ground, Fiona cautiously retreated several steps.
She then fixed Clark with a deep, scrutinizing gaze.
After a moment of hesitation, she quietly asked,
"Kal-El?"
"Uh, I don't really use that name, but I know who you're referring to."
Clark gave her a relaxed smile.
"And you? What should I call you, ma'am?"
Seeing Clark's easygoing expression, Fiona frowned.
"The smile of a weakling. Foolish.
Kal-El, has Earth taught you nothing except how to smile obsequiously?"
"What?"
Clark was stunned.
"Obsequiously?"
He touched his face in confusion.
"How can you tell this is an obsequious smile? That's ridiculous."
"Hmph. You foolish young man."
Fiona scoffed again before crossing her arms and turning her attention toward Axel.
Meanwhile, beside the cake shop, Vulko finally breathed a sigh of relief now that Axel and Clark had begun speaking normally.
He quietly stepped back and transmitted everything he had witnessed to Atlantis.
At that very moment, preparations for war were underway in Atlantis.
Arthur Curry, looking thoroughly bewildered, followed the line for weapons until he reached Nereus, who was distributing equipment to the soldiers.
Nereus looked Arthur up and down, his expression becoming slightly displeased at Arthur's rough appearance.
He casually picked up a short axe and handed it to him.
Arthur stared at the weapon.
"That's it?
Why the hell do I only get this? Why does everyone else have proper weapons?"
"You're still on probation, criminal."
Nereus answered while roughly pushing Arthur aside and continuing to distribute equipment.
"If you're truly willing to fight for the Ocean, then once I'm certain of your loyalty, I'll give you something more suitable."
Arthur looked at the short axe in his hand, clearly dissatisfied.
He approached another soldier, intending to exchange weapons.
Before he could do so, Orm suddenly appeared in the center of the equipment area.
He called out to Nereus.
"King Nereus, Vulko has sent good news!
The last Mother Box is still in human hands!
Vulko personally witnessed its existence. As long as we go to the surface and personally guard the Mother Box, the ancient threat will never return!
But that's not even the most important part.
The most important thing is that we finally have an opportunity to demonstrate the power of the sea to the surface!
On one hand, we must protect the Mother Box.
On the other, we must use this opportunity to prove our strength to every surface dweller!
The banner of our return to the surface will be raised today!
Our ancestors were born on land, and now we have every right to reclaim it!"
As his voice echoed through the equipment area, Orm raised his trident high.
Inspired by their prince, the Atlantean soldiers aboard the flagship raised their weapons as well.
Arthur, however, merely curled his lips in disdain.
"You should worry about how you're going to deal with that devil in Gotham.
Honestly, ever since I heard about that guy, I've even avoided ships traveling along the Gotham route whenever I swim past.
Damn it, once you meet that guy, you'll understand.
That devil is ridiculously strong, boys.
He's unbelievably strong!"
~~~
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