Dante kept his expression cool and collected, but internally? He was screaming.
Why the hell did Iron Man show up?!
Yeah, he'd sent a request to Fury via his personal terminal. Something along the lines of: "Hey, kinda drowning in clowns here, please send backup with enough firepower to clear a mall."
But this much combat power?
He wasn't asking to demolish Arkham Asylum itself!
"Tony Stark! What are you doing here?!"
Even Punchline couldn't hide her shock.
A Batman without prep time? Still manageable.
But now a billionaire in a flying mech suit dropped in?
Yeah, this was bad.
Punchline shot Dante a look full of hate and resentment. That smug grin on Dante's face all but confirmed it—Iron Man was the backup this cursed FBI agent had summoned.
"Damn it… Retreat!"
"You think Arkham Asylum is a drive-thru? That you can show up with a gang and just leave whenever you want? Or that the Federal Bureau of Investigation will let several hundred armed maniacs stroll away?" Dante flashed a grin as bright as the explosions outside. "Mr. Stark, go nuts. Wipe out the Joker Gang's main force. Use heavy firepower if you need to—I won't hold you responsible."
"I'm not a mass-murdering psycho…"
Tony Stark muttered as he launched into the sky, headed for the perimeter.
Still, backup was backup. And Tony played team ball when the situation called for it.
A few hundred goons? For him, that was Tuesday.
The tide had turned.
Dante and Batman didn't wait another second—they charged straight into the mob like wolves tearing into sheep.
Harley Quinn followed close behind, dodging weapons like she was dancing. She completely ignored the Joker Gang idiots aiming at her and sprinted straight for Punchline, who had already started running like hell.
Sure, she and Joker were over. But seeing the girl who'd replaced her still made her gag.
Two quick bang-bang gunshots took out the doorknob ahead, forcing Punchline to turn around.
"Harley Quinn," Punchline sneered, "you still can't let go of J, huh?"
"Whether I'm obsessed with Joker or not doesn't matter. What matters is—no one replaces me."
She smiled, a sweet and terrifying contrast to the oversized pistol in her hands.
Just as she was about to leap forward and teach this Dollar Tree knockoff who the real queen was, a pair of hands yanked her collar back.
"Let me go!"
"The hell I will!" Dante barked. "Why are you trying to melee someone with daggers when you have a gun?! Are you high on multiverse drama logic?!"
He yanked her behind him.
By this point, more than half the Joker Gang in the hall were already on the floor, groaning in pain.
And Ada hadn't even moved—she was calmly watching Batman mop up the rest.
"Ms. Joker," Dante said evenly, turning to Punchline, "I strongly advise surrender. Unlike Batman, I don't do the 'no-kill' thing. If a criminal with a record like yours resists arrest, I will shoot to kill. And I will not hesitate."
Batman finished off the last few thugs just as the sound of explosions and chaos echoed from outside.
The room went dead quiet. Uncomfortably quiet.
"I surrender."
Punchline's voice cracked slightly. She bared her teeth, but she couldn't force out a smile—especially with Batman glaring holes through her.
In just a few minutes, their advantage had completely flipped.
---
When the FBI field agents and the Gotham Police found Jack Lawson's kidnapped son in an abandoned factory on Gotham's south side, they wasted no time storming into Arkham Asylum.
James Gordon, Gotham PD's lead commander on scene, led the charge. He pushed through the front gate, face full of urgency.
Then stopped dead.
The chaos he expected?
Replaced by a scene from a superhero press conference.
Joker Gang members were scattered all over the floor. Standing tall in the middle were Iron Man and Batman.
Before he could say anything, a hand tapped him on the shoulder.
He turned—and a badge was held up in front of his face.
"World Federal Bureau of Investigation, Level Seven Agent. Dante Alighieri."
"...You're the one who issued the joint rescue op?"
"Yup. That was me. FBI and Gotham PD—one happy dysfunctional family."
"So you're the one who took down Joker and his gang?"
"What, don't believe me?" Dante smiled lazily. "Same rules in every world, huh? FBI and local cops always got beef. But even if you don't trust the Bureau, you trust that guy, right?"
He tilted his head toward Batman—who was now chatting casually with Tony Stark, both of them looking like CEOs at a brunch meeting.
Gordon smacked his lips and eyed the ridiculously young Level Seven Agent.
As the acting chief of Gotham PD—and the next Commissioner, assuming nothing exploded—he knew how rare a Level Seven classification was.
Legally, someone like Dante could command across police jurisdictions.
He waved his hand, signaling the officers to move in and start arresting the unconscious gang members.
No need to haul them to the station—they could be locked up right here in Arkham, which was way better equipped than any detention center.
"And this guy…" Dante reached out and yanked Jack Lawson—the now-shaking, clearly exposed mole—by the collar. "These clowns can stay here with the other lunatics, but he doesn't belong in a cage full of maniacs."
"That said, he's definitely fired as Vice Warden… Wait—is that Harley Quinn?!"
Gordon instinctively reached for his gun.
"Relax. Harley Quinn was actually a probationary agent for the FBI. She's made a full recovery," Dante said with a straight face. "I picked her up from the hospital and reinstated her myself."
Recovered?! Gordon nearly choked.
He looked at Harley—who was twirling a pistol and humming to herself like a murderous Disney princess—and wiped a bead of cold sweat off his brow.
Nope. No way.
He twisted Lawson's hands behind his back and hauled the guy out.
Better to leave this place before things got any weirder.
He was already starting to feel like the weirdness was contagious.
And he did not want to end up wearing one of those tight spandex uniforms.
---
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Stark," Dante said. "Shouldn't you be in New York? How'd you get here so fast?"
"You must be Agent Dante—the one Fury won't shut up about. Pleasure to meet you." Tony wasn't the least bit stuck-up. "I've been hanging out in Metropolis lately. That's why I got here so fast."
Everyone knew Metropolis and Gotham were basically separated by a glorified puddle.
But still…
Wait.
Dante suddenly remembered a ridiculous tabloid headline he saw earlier.
"Don't tell me you moved to Metropolis just to chase after Lois Lane?"
"Miss Lane is the first woman who's ever treated me like I was not special," Tony said, totally sincere. "That kind of rejection? Extremely rare."
"…Mr. Stark, are you the domineering CEO straight out of some webnovel? Oh wait—you actually are."
Dante rubbed his temples.
"No one's ever told you how cheesy that line sounded?"
"Lois Lane said exactly the same thing." Tony laughed, carefree as ever. Then he extended a hand.
"Call me Tony."
(To be continued.)