Batman, The Flash, and Shin waited outside of the lighthouse for nearly half an hour before knocking on the door.
The Flash glanced at his watch and muttered, "Man, that guy takes his time. I guess that matches his whole macho image."
Shin smirked and looked at the so-called fastest man alive.
"You call this a long time?"
The Flash blinked. "Uh… yeah?"
Shin resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Coming from the Pirate World, endurance was practically second nature to him. His physical stamina might not be as absurd as some of the powerhouses in the DC Universe, but if they were talking about lasting power…
Well, he was absolutely confident.
Even Batman glanced at him, clearly noting his reaction.
But before the conversation could continue, the door finally creaked open.
A broad-shouldered man stepped out, shirtless, his upper body covered in rugged tattoos resembling dragon scales.
Shin immediately thought of Kaido. That guy had a similar build, but his muscles were even more exaggerated—almost unnatural.
The man squinted at them, clearly annoyed.
"Who the hell are you? I don't remember ordering takeout."
Before anyone could respond, a tall blonde woman stepped out from behind him. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, then walked past them and left.
Shin raised an eyebrow.
"At least it's not Mera," he thought.
For a moment, he'd been worried that Aquaman had already started cuckolding his brother.
But thinking about it, Arthur Curry's image was practically overflowing with testosterone. Before meeting Mera, it was only natural for him to have multiple lovers.
Besides, Western values were different from Eastern conservatism. As long as it wasn't infidelity, it wasn't a big deal.
And well… Aquaman wasn't exactly religious.
"Arthur Curry, the world needs your help."
Batman got straight to the point.
"You must have noticed that you're different from normal people. The planet is facing a crisis, and I'm assembling a team."
Arthur blinked.
Then he scoffed.
"Listen, buddy, I know I'm a little… special. But I gave up on saving the world when I was sixteen."
He took a step back and pointed inside his house.
"If you're looking for a hero, go find him!"
Shin glanced inside—
And barely stopped himself from bursting out laughing.
Pinned to the wall was a massive Superman poster, featuring the Man of Steel in his iconic red cape and blue tights—thankfully, with no underwear on the outside.
Shin subtly side-eyed Batman.
Yeah… he's not gonna like this.
To most people, Batman was a Gotham legend. But Superman?
He was a literal god. The entire world saw him as a savior, a myth made real.
Even though some people criticized him, the truth was, that over 95% of America still admired him.
By comparison? Batman was just some urban myth.
Flash had no idea how to respond.
But Shin?
He stepped forward with a smirk.
"Arthur Curry," Shin said, crossing his arms.
"You're from Atlantis, right?"
Arthur's face darkened. His body tensed, and his eyes flashed with caution.
"I'm just a bastard prince—a member of the Atlantis royal family that was exiled at birth. I've never even seen Atlantis."
Arthur wasn't surprised that Shin knew about Atlantis.
To the public, it was a myth, but to world governments, Atlantis was an acknowledged reality.
Even during World War II, the Atlanteans had been forced to intervene when certain nations dropped too many bombs into their waters.
But Arthur?
He didn't care about Atlantis.
His mother, Queen Atlanna, had been exiled, and his father was a human lighthouse keeper.
The relationship between humans and Atlanteans had always been strained. And as a half-blood, Arthur had been unwanted in both worlds.
If he hadn't been royal, they probably would've killed him.
As far as he was concerned?
Atlantis could rot.
He had nothing to do with them.
"If you think getting me involved will help you negotiate with Atlantis," Arthur said, his voice cold, "you're wasting your time."
"Even though I have a few Atlantean friends, I barely know more than ten people in the entire kingdom."
Technically, Arthur still didn't know his full identity.
He assumed he was a normal Atlantean hybrid.
But in reality?
True Atlanteans couldn't even survive on land for long. They had to constantly return to water—like amphibians.
Arthur?
He could live on land indefinitely.
That alone was proof that he was something more.
If every Atlantean had Arthur's strength and durability, humanity would have been wiped out ages ago.
"Don't worry," Shin shrugged.
"I know that real Atlanteans can't survive on land like you can."
Arthur frowned.
"Then what do you want?"
"You have connections," Shin said. "Even if Atlantis ignores you, you can ask around—get some intel for us."
Arthur let out a bitter laugh.
"You don't know how stubborn they are," he muttered.
"They don't care about surface world problems. The only thing that gets their attention is ocean pollution."
"Besides, why should Atlantis care? Nothing that happens on land affects them."
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