The atmosphere in the conference room changed the moment the challenge was accepted, not because anyone expected Arthur to lose, but because Arthur Blackwynd had actually agreed to something like this that seemed pointless.

Even Batman looked mildly surprised by how quickly it had happened, but he already knew what Arthur was trying to do.

A few moments earlier, the meeting had been about warnings, Monarchs, and the future of humanity, now it was about a fight.

A very expensive fight.

Batman folded his arms across his chest and looked between Arthur, Elias, Renshiro, and Ethan before finally speaking.

"I have a place."

That immediately drew everyone’s attention.

Elias raised an eyebrow.

"A place?"

Batman nodded once.

"A facility designed specifically for situations like this. It should survive the fight."

Superman suddenly looked amused.

"You mean to say that..."

"Yes." Batman already knew where Clark was going with this.

"Our old training center, in our old base."

A faint smile tugged at Superman’s face.

"It was built to withstand us going all out."

Hal Jordan immediately snorted.

"Which sounded like a great idea until Superman punched me through three reinforced walls."

"It happened once."

"Twice."

"The second time doesn’t count."

"It absolutely counts man."

Flash laughed.

The room relaxed slightly, even some of the hunters looked amused.

Arthur listened quietly before shrugging.

"I was going to suggest some random uninhabited planet."

That made several people stare at him.

Arthur noticed.

"What?"

"You have random planets for sparring?" Mariana asked.

Arthur blinked.

"They are not mine but I can use them.."

The Brazilian hunter slowly shook her head.

"I don’t even know what to say.."

Arthur continued as if nothing unusual had been said.

"But this works too. Otherwise they’ll claim I chose unfamiliar terrain as an excuse."

Elias immediately nodded.

"Fair enough."

Batman stepped toward the central table and activated a holographic display.

Coordinates appeared, Arthur barely glanced at them.

Then he raised a hand and the shadows answered.

Several hunters stiffened immediately.

Even after everything they had seen and heard today, seeing Arthur manipulate darkness so casually felt unnatural.

The shadows twisted and expanded.

Then tore open, a colossal portal appeared in the center of the room.

Beyond it lay steel corridors illuminated by old emergency lights.

An entire facility hidden deep within a mountain.

Arthur gestured toward it.

"After you."

Mariana stared, Amari stared.

Even Ivan looked impressed.

Amari finally shook his head.

"We can’t do that."

Arthur glanced at him.

"Do what?"

"That."

The Nigerian hunter pointed at the portal.

"Open a doorway through space itself."

Arthur looked at the portal.

Then back at him.

"Oh."

As if he had forgotten it wasn’t normal.

"Right, it is only exclusive to Monarchs, or the Ruler’s themselves, not the vessels."

The hunters exchanged looks.

Renshiro looked annoyed and Ethan looked fascinated.

The teenager couldn’t stop staring at the swirling darkness.

For someone who had awakened only recently, every new thing seemed larger than life.

Barry was the first Justice League member to move.

"Been a while since we went there.."

He stepped through the portal with his hands in his pockets.

Hal followed beside him.

"I know, right?"

The Green Lantern looked ahead nostalgically.

"Last time I was here Superman beat the absolute crap out of me and I’m not talking about the spars we had."

Clark sighed.

"That’s not how it happened."

"That’s exactly how it happened."

"I was mind-controlled.."

"You still beat the crap out of me."

The hunters laughed.

Even Wonder Woman seemed entertained, one by one they entered the portal.

The hunters followed.

Then the League.

Then Superamn, then Batman and Arthur entered last.

The world shifted.

A moment later everyone emerged inside Mount Justice.

The facility stretched endlessly beneath the mountain, massive steel corridors branched in every direction, large support pillars disappeared into darkness above.

Observation decks overlooked training chambers large enough to contain tanks, and the old League insignias remained etched into reinforced walls.

The place felt more like a military fortress, a monument built by people who routinely fought gods.

Ethan’s eyes widened, the teenager slowly turned in place.

Taking everything in, the giant screens, the old League logos, the reinforced blast doors, the history of this place.

For a moment he looked less like a powerful hunter and more like a kid standing inside a childhood dream.

"Wow..."

That was all he managed.

Jean-Pierre laughed softly.

"I suddenly understand why Gotham produces strange people."

Superman smiled.

"Been a while."

Batman looked around the old facility.

For just a second something almost nostalgic crossed his expression.

"Yeah."

Arthur examined the structure.

And his eyes briefly glowed violet, then he nodded.

"This will do nicely."

Elias whistled and the German hunter looked genuinely impressed.

"The Justice League really trained here?"

"Among other places," Batman replied.

Ivan folded his arms.

"I expected something impressive."

His gaze traveled across the gigantic facility.

"But this exceeds my expectations."

Mariana laughed.

"I’m taking pictures later."

Batman immediately answered.

"No."

She sighed.

"Well, it was worth trying."

The group continued deeper into the mountain.

Eventually they reached the primary combat chamber.

The room was enormous, a circular arena hundreds of meters across with reinforced walls, energy dampeners, and observation platforms above.

Countless systems designed specifically to survive catastrophic amounts of damage, the moment everyone stepped inside, Elias smiled.

Now this looked like a battlefield.

Batman stopped near the edge of the arena.

"Here."

Everyone spread out, the hunters moved toward the observation section alongside the Justice League took positions above.

Arthur remained silent and calm, like he had simply arrived for a casual conversation rather than a fight.

Batman looked over the arena.

"This is where it will happen."

His voice echoed slightly through the chamber.

"This whole thing may seem unnecessary."

He glanced toward the combatants.

"But regardless of the outcome, we’ll gather useful data, that’s the whole reason why I never really spoke against it."

Arthur looked at Batman for a while then nodded.

"That’s great."

Elias rolled his shoulders, already eager.

"So what are the rules?"

Batman didn’t even hesitate.

"Rules?"

A small smirk appeared beneath the cowl.

"No rules."

Everyone turned mute, then Batman added,

"Just don’t die."

For a moment nobody spoke.

Then Flash nearly choked.

"what?" Hal said in confusion.

Several hunters exchanged bewildered looks.

Elias blinked then laughed.

"Okay."

He liked that answer.

"I hate restrictions anyway."

Arthur nodded.

"I wasn’t planning on restricting you."

His gaze settled on Elias.

"You can fight however you want."

Finally his eyes landed on Ethan.

Unlike the others, there was genuine interest there.

"You too."

The teenager straightened immediately.

"Of course sir."

His voice carried none of Elias’s arrogance and none of Renshiro’s pride.

"I’ll do my best."

Arthur nodded and that was enough.

Renshiro noticed.

Arthur had spoken directly to Ethan, again.

Not him and not Elias.

The Japanese hunter’s jaw tightened slightly.

Perhaps Arthur already understood.

’Perhaps he knew that I wouldn’t hold back regardless.’

’Or perhaps...’ Renshiro’s thoughts stopped there.

Because Arthur was already walking toward the center of the arena.

The Shadow Monarch moved with complete confidence.

Elias stepped forward, Ethan followed.

After a brief hesitation, Renshiro entered the arena as well.

The giant chamber suddenly felt much smaller.

Around them, League members watched closely.

Hunters leaned forward for a closer look.

Even Batman’s attention sharpened.

Arthur reached the center.

Then stopped, his black coat moved slightly in the artificial breeze of the chamber.

Violet eyes swept across the three opponents standing before him.

Elias, Renshiro, Ethan.

One eager. One prideful. One hiding far more than he realized.

Arthur smiled faintly, then spread his hands.

"Ready when you are."

/-\

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