There is no Batman in Gotham City comics.

Chapter 6 Audience with Maroni

Gordon walked cautiously along the corner of the venue, but his old partner Harvey Block stepped into a pool of sticky blood and lit a cigar in the center of the casino.

"Be careful not to destroy the clues left by the criminal."

"Come on, Gordon! There are clues everywhere here. This guy didn't even try to hide his identity." Brock said nonchalantly, taking a deep drag on his cigarette and smiling to show off his smoked teeth.

He picked up a playing card from the ground.

The playing card looked like it had fallen into a bucket of glue. He struggled to lift it up, and dark red, sticky blood plasma stretched across the surface before "splattering" back onto the ground.

"You're lucky, it's an Ace. If I were you, I would definitely raise the bet too."

He whistled and glanced at the pitiful corpse at his feet, torn open from shoulder to crotch, with a pile of chips scattered around it.

He was a lucky gambler, but also an unlucky one.

He turned his gaze back to the playing cards and carefully plucked a hair from one of them.

This hair is as thick and stiff as a pig bristle.

After handing the clues to the lab staff, Brock, puffing out smoke, took off his filthy woolen top hat and yelled at Gordon.

"Hey buddy, did you find anything?"

"Yes, a major discovery!"

Gordon is investigating the scratches on the wall.

The scratches were about ten centimeters apart, the lower ones were thin and shallow, while the upper ones were short and thick—typical primate scratch marks. Gordon held out his hand to measure, estimating that if it were a human hand, the killer's hand would be at least as big as a car tire.

The killer possessed immense brute strength capable of tearing a living person apart, and also had a pair of large, hairy hands.

Is it Bigfoot?

Gordon's heart skipped a beat.

Harvey started yelling from the side.

"Did you know that a new guy was transferred from New York to replace the prosecutor who was assassinated by the mob last week? His name was something like Dent... Oh right! The same name as me, Harvey Dent!"

"I heard this kid graduated less than two years ago, but he's incredibly stubborn. He's sent a lot of wealthy businessmen and politicians to jail."

"Why are you telling me this?"

Gordon frowned and shook his head slightly. Even though he was known as a breath of fresh air in Gotham's police force, he had learned to "let things go when necessary" and "turn a blind eye" over the decades of his work.

To protect his daughter Barbara, he was forced to become the kind of person he despised.

If Harvey Dent is truly as upright as rumored, he certainly won't live long in Gotham.

Brock was still rambling on:

"Chief Luo just called me and said that we must solve this case before he arrives, so that the New York kid won't look down on us."

"Look down on me? The Gotham Police Department has long been a laughing stock in New Jersey!" Gordon blew his beard and let out a short, cold snort.

He knew these were all Rob's excuses; in reality, he didn't want Harvey Dent to get involved in the cases related to Maroney.

If Harvey Dent were to collude with him, he would take a share of his money; but if he remained upright, he would hinder Rob's ability to make money. Either way, it wouldn't be a good thing for Rob.

"Hey! Come quick, look what I found!"

A young police officer peeked out from around the corner and waved to the two old men.

The two followed and saw that the toilet looked as if it had been dug up by a giant groundhog, with clods of dirt and debris all over the floor.

The officer pointed to the large hole in the very center and said:

"I think those strange things crawled out of Gotham's sewers. Should we send people down to search? Maybe we'll find more clues?"

Gordon and Brock exchanged a smile.

"Shall we go down and take a look?"

"Okay, but I'm warning you beforehand: if we encounter any monsters, I'll have to run ahead of you."

……

Oswald awoke from his coma, shakily got up, leaned against the wall, and vomited a puddle of clear water.

"Wei, where are we...where is that damn woman?!"

"She got away. You don't expect me to catch her all by myself, do you?"

Qin Wei touched his nose and avoided eye contact.

Until a minute ago, Catwoman was still pestering Qin Wei. Judging from her relentless attitude, if Qin Wei didn't give her an explanation, he probably wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

The girl left reluctantly when she saw that Oswald was about to wake up.

"Wasn't I in the casino? How did I end up outside?" Oswald's memories returned, and he finally sensed the incongruity.

"Ah...yes...how come...right! Don't you remember? You chased after us together. Your face looked strange then. So you had already lost consciousness?"

Oswald blinked, his handsome face filled with doubt.

Qin Wei's lie was so clumsy that he couldn't even guess that it was Qin Wei who conspired with Catwoman to get him out.

After exchanging a few more words, Qin Wei figured the massacre was over and suggested they go back to the casino.

Before they even stepped out of the alley, several tall figures blocked their way.

Backlit, Oswald couldn't see the other person's face, but the overwhelming murderous aura didn't lie.

"You go first!"

He shielded Qin Wei behind him and drew the dagger from his belt.

"You've gotten yourselves into big trouble. Daring to attack the Romans, are you prepared to be hunted down by the entire city?"

But the other party's answer surprised Oswald.

"What nonsense are you talking about? The boss sent us."

Oswald sheathed his dagger. In Gotham, the title "boss" usually referred to Mr. Maroney. But Mr. Maroney had sent someone over so quickly—had something serious happened?

He leaned closer for a closer look and discovered that it was Mr. Maroni's personal bodyguard team.

These guys are all products of Blackgate Prison, no wonder they have such a strong murderous aura.

They usually lingered around Maroni, never leaving his side, but today they were acting out of character.

It seems something has indeed happened, and it's quite serious.

"You guys chat, I won't disturb you any longer, I'll be going now!"

Qin Wei was about to slip away when he realized something was wrong, but the alley was blocked by people. With the dark muzzle of a rifle pressed against his forehead, he had no choice but to obediently raise his hands.

With a black hood pulled over his head, Qin Wei was forced into the carriage by having his joints twisted behind his back.

Unable to see, he was gripped by immense panic.

Whether in the movies or comics, Maroney is merely a tool among Gotham's many villains. Apart from serving as cannon fodder for a third-party force, his only achievement is throwing sulfuric acid in Harvey Dent's face, creating the memorable character of "Two-Face".

But all of this applies to the omnipotent Batman.

To an ordinary person like Qin Wei, the title of the second-in-command of the Roman Empire, who held immense power in Gotham, was enough to make one tremble with fear, not to mention that this guy also possessed a cold-blooded and cruel gene etched into his bones.

He was a tyrant who treated human life like dirt.

If any of their subordinates made a mistake, they would face the cruel punishment of having their hands or feet cut off.

Then look at what he and Oswald did. They said they were chasing a thief, but they didn't catch him. Maroni must think they neglected their duties and deserted their posts.

Having committed such a crime, Qin Wei dared not imagine what fate awaited him.

The car stopped, and the two blindfolded individuals walked in a winding path. After an unknown amount of time, they heard a door open, and Qin Wei's hood was pulled off.

A dimly lit, empty study.

On the left, a tall, built-in bookshelf is filled with a wide variety of books, while on the right there is only an empty wooden desk with a half-smoked cigar on the ashtray.

"Wei, it seems we're in big trouble." Oswald licked his cracked lips, his voice trembling and hoarse as if a large hand was gripping his throat.

He recognized the place; he had first met Mr. Maroni in this study three years ago.

Meanwhile, Maroni was holding an ashtray and smashing the head of one of the unfortunate men to pieces.

Qin Wei remained silent. The sequel to the comic had already appeared the moment he escaped the casino. At this moment, he was pressing his face against the light, frantically flipping through the comic, trying to find clues to survive.