"Lothar?!"
On the beach, the rescued Mera stared blankly at the side profile of the man before her, momentarily disbelieving.
His once black hair and eyes were now golden and green. If not for his face, she might not have recognized him at all.
"Didn't you... didn't you leave?" Mera had seen him depart with her own eyes while evacuating civilians; it couldn't be faked.
"Leave?" Hearing this, Lothar turned sideways, lightly descending to the ground. "Sort of. I just suddenly remembered I forgot something."
Would Lothar say he returned because he heard about the Mother Box? Of course not. He wasn't that foolish.
"Something?"
"...Money. I need this world's currency." Lothar, unsure how to answer for a moment, saw Woz's subtle hint on his right eye's optical display and blurted it out.
"..." Mera's expression was a sight to behold. The reason Lothar gave was incredibly flimsy. How could a flying descendant of a god need money for transportation? Yet, Lothar said it with such a straight face that Mera couldn't even voice her disbelief.
"Watch out!" A long sword, thrown from Diana's hand, struck the great axe that Steppenwolf had flung. Diana, emerging from the waves, warned Lothar: this wasn't a good place to talk.
"Move." To Diana's surprise, Lothar not only showed no gratitude but also found her to be in the way.
"Who are you?" Shaking his head to clear the dizziness from being knocked out, Steppenwolf caught his great axe, which had flown back into his hand.
He looked at Lothar with extreme gravity. He wasn't one to mince words; he felt the immense power of this man. So, he was deeply puzzled.
As a renowned military commander of Apokolips, he and the supreme being behind him had been observing Earth for a long time. Before today, he had no idea there was such a powerful being on Earth.
"My name? You're not worthy." Lothar beckoned to Steppenwolf, his provocation evident.
Since arriving in this universe, he hadn't had a proper fight. The frustration of losing to Odin finally broke loose after encountering his competitor, Steppenwolf. He needed to vent, a thorough and exhilarating release. And Steppenwolf's physique seemed suitable for a satisfying brawl.
"I hope your body is as hard as your mouth." Steppenwolf, dragging his great axe, attacked first. Feeling the danger from Lothar, he launched a full-power, lethal strike!
Tumultuous waves roared behind Steppenwolf, and the lightning in the darkened sky lost its brilliance. Lothar, as if stunned by this overwhelming might, stood unmoving.
"Lothar!" Mera, her face filled with worry, crossed her arms over her chest, ready to manipulate the water to form a defensive wall, but she was interrupted by Bruce Wayne.
"Don't attack, and you too, Diana." Bruce, helping Barry Allen up, kept his eyes fixed on Lothar nearby, stopping Mera and Diana from intervening.
"Bruce, you—"
Diana's questioning voice cut off abruptly.
The axe blade, which to them seemed capable of splitting anything, shattered the moment it met Lothar's right fist. Steppenwolf, who had attacked with the axe, was left holding nothing but a bare hilt.
"Huh?" After shattering Steppenwolf's great axe with a direct punch, Lothar showed no excitement, only a frown. Steppenwolf's attack... why didn't it match his expectations? Why did it feel... so weak?
Compared to Lothar's confusion, Steppenwolf's mind was filled with disbelief. What kind of joke was this? His weapon, which had accompanied him through countless campaigns and massacres across worlds, had shattered without warning???
"Hey, is that all you've got?" Lothar's disdain and contempt continued to fuel the burning rage in Steppenwolf's heart.
"You...!"
SLAP!
His thrown punch was caught firmly in Lothar's hand, then twisted forcefully.
CRACK!
A crisp sound of bone breaking echoed, and the massive body suddenly lost its balance. A tearing pain from his broken right arm rapidly swept through every nerve in Steppenwolf's body!
Impossible!
This guy!
Who is this guy?!
Why is he so strong—
RIP!
Blood splattered! Steppenwolf's eyes, wide with pain, were trying to tear free from Lothar's grip. An excruciating pain nearly suffocated Steppenwolf! His twisted right arm couldn't bear the strain; under Lothar's continuous increasing force, it was brutally torn from Steppenwolf's body!
"AAAHHHH!!!" The uncontrollable pain made the demon who had slaughtered countless worlds fall to the ground, howling!
"Tsk." Lothar contemptuously tossed the arm aside and walked step by step towards Steppenwolf, looking down at the demon's contorted face. His golden hair moved without a breeze, and his green eyes were filled with coldness and ruthlessness. He extended his right hand, his foot on Steppenwolf's chest, and said, "You're too weak."
"Die." Having lost interest, Lothar no longer had any desire to toy with Steppenwolf. A colossal surge of energy, reaching its absolute limit, gathered in his palm, aimed at Steppenwolf's head.
RUMBLE!
Suddenly, a pillar of energy spanned the sky, its blinding light so intense it was almost impossible to keep one's eyes open!
Hm?
Lothar, at the very center of the light pillar, felt a force far exceeding Odin's bearing down on him. Crossing his arms, the Saiyan, instantly boosting his energy to his maximum, was directly pushed out of the pillar's center!
"Lothar!"
"Lothar, are you alright?!" Mera, who had been astonished by Lothar's immense power, instantly snapped back to reality. She rushed to Lothar's side, trying to help him up, but Lothar shook her off with one hand.
"Move!"
His palms crossed, without any warning, a silver-white pillar of energy burst forth from Lothar's hands! The silver beam, sweeping across the sea horizon, was like a giant dragon soaring into the sky, raising colossal waves as it surged towards Steppenwolf, who was engulfed by the teleportation array!
BOOM!!!
The collision of two entirely different energies sent shockwaves that caused all the buildings along the coast to collapse!
Ruins stood tall, and dust filled the air. Even Diana, a demigoddess, was knocked back by the residual energy!
"It's useless!"
Inside the teleportation array, the one-armed Steppenwolf staggered to his feet, panting heavily.
"I will return, Earthlings."
"For myself, for this planet..." Steppenwolf's gaze was fixed on Lothar, who was still continuously unleashing energy.
"For... Darkseid!"
WHOOSH!
The teleportation array vanished.
The energy wave, having lost its target, slammed directly into the turbulent sea, instantly churning up monstrous waves.
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