Batman stood before the Exiled Order, his expression unreadable.

  The masked leader leaned forward.

  “You think Arcadia is a world of opportunity?”

  Their voice was cold.

  “That if you climb the ranks, you’ll reach the top?”

  They chuckled.

  “That’s the first lie they tell you.”

  A flick of their wrist—and the room changed.

  The torches dimmed. The walls shimmered, transforming into a massive projection of Arcadia’s history.

  Batman watched silently.

  What he saw changed everything.

  Arcadia’s True History

  A world bathed in war. Arcadia had not always been ruled by the System. Once, it had been a nd of gods and kings, of chaos and ambition. But then—

  Something changed.

  A force descended upon the world. An entity beyond mortal comprehension. It didn’t conquer with weapons. It rewrote reality itself.

  [Initializing System...]

  [Restructuring Arcadia...]

  [Establishing Power Hierarchy...]

  And just like that, Arcadia was no longer free. The Exiled Leader’s voice cut through the visions. “The System wasn’t created to make people stronger.”

  A pause.

  “It was created to control them.”

  Batman’s mind raced. If the System wasn’t a tool for power, but a mechanism of control— Then what was he really climbing toward?

  The Exiled Leader continued. “Every rank you climb, every title you earn—

  it’s not just power.”

  “It’s a chain.”

  The strongest weren’t the freest. They were the most bound. Sves to something greater.

  Batman’s jaw tightened.

  This changed everything. The academy. The rankings. The entire world. If this was true—

  then the real battle hadn’t even begun yet.

  The Exiled Leader’s voice dropped to a whisper.

  “You’re different, Traveler.”

  “You weren’t born into this system.”

  A pause.

  “That means you can break it.”

  Silence. Then—

  “Join us.”

  Batman said nothing. His mind had already decided. This wasn’t just about survival anymore.

  It was about freedom. And Batman had never been one to accept chains. ---