The Death Knell

The aroma of the food gradually spread in the small area, and the old butler's craftsmanship was as good as ever, which seemed to bring a touch of warmth to the dark and humid bat cave.

The Joker grabbed his hair, put his elbows on the table and laughed non-stop. He seemed to have heard another funny joke from Batman.

"Here it comes again, here it comes again, this kind of hypocritical justice. I opened your wounds and killed your fiancée. You still let me live in your home and invited me to dinner. You are so kind. Thank Martha for me for giving birth to such a good son like you, hahahaha..."

Batman was still sitting in the dark, his head tilted slightly, and he used his arms to support his cheek on the armrest of the chair: "..."

"To be honest, if I didn't know you as well as I do, others would definitely think that you are the number one hypocrite in the world. Your ahimsa and your cold-blooded ruthlessness are all just fake. But I know that this It’s you, life is sometimes more painful than death, and darkness is the final destination, right?”

As the clown spoke, he picked up the knife and fork with a smile, pierced the omelette and played with it, then stretched his whole face over the plate and licked the half-cooked egg yolk with his tongue.

Then he shook his head, tilted his mouth and spat to the side.

The old butler's food was very good, but it didn't taste like bat, and he didn't like it.

Batman didn't react at all to his waste of food, as if he didn't see it, so the Joker showed an aggrieved expression, twisted a few times in his chair, and suddenly seemed to have thought of something.

"Bat, you actually want me to die, right? But you can't let me die in your or Laughing's hands. What do you think I should do to find Deathstroke?"

"No, if you're done eating, go back to your room."

The clown rolled his eyes and said, "Don't even think about it. There isn't even cable TV in that room. How much did it cost you to build it? Did your purchasing agent steal your money?"

"...."

"Forget it, you actually don't want me to be safe, and you don't want yourself to be safe, I understand, hahaha..." The clown picked up the napkin and wiped his mouth, smiled at the old housekeeper, but suddenly he felt something in his arms. Zhong pulled out a pistol and pointed it at him.

Batman jumped up, trying to block the trajectory of Alfred, but the Joker had already pulled the trigger.

"boom!"

When the gun went off, Batman didn't feel like he was hit, but he didn't believe that the Joker could miss at such a close range.

At this time, he saw the clown falling from the chair to the ground, his chest bleeding profusely, foam rising from the wound, and making a sound like a broken bellows.

That gun fires bullets in the opposite direction when the trigger is pulled.

"Prank gun, when?"

Batman rushed over and picked up the Joker. He saw the movement of Arkham guard Bob leaving the city through his brother's eyes, and guessed that he was an agent who escaped from prison.

The metal detector also reacted when the Joker entered the Batcave, so Batman guessed that the Joker also had a gun.

But the Joker shouldn't have time to modify the guard's firearms. If he floated all the way from the bridge to the underground river in the Batcave, he shouldn't have the chance to modify the guns at all.

Blood gushed out of the Joker's mouth and he was shot in the heart, but his self-healing ability allowed him to delay for a while.

Seeing Batman's puzzled expression again, he smiled happily.

Of course he knew that Batman was monitoring the city, otherwise how could the Joker let Bob go? Isn't it just to show Batman?

If Bob was killed at that time, how could he mislead Batman? What about making him think he was carrying a guard's gun?

He bought the prank gun in Arkham and kept it in his arms. Asking Bob for the gun later was just a cover-up. If Batman or the Bat Family intercepted Bob, they would also know that he gave the gun to the Joker. .

Even if no one stops him, Batman's surveillance system will definitely capture someone leaving Gotham in the middle of the night. After he determines Bob's identity, he can deduce the 'truth'.

The Justice League has been pursuing the truth, but it is boring for the Joker.

Because it's all a scam.

When Old Bob leaves and is seen by Batman, he truly completes his mission, hahaha...Only in this way, when the Joker suddenly pulled out his gun and pointed it at Alfred, Bat Only a knight would take a bullet for the butler instead of coming to take his weapon.

So the suicide was successful and Batman was deceived again, which provided the Joker with double happiness.

"Haha, cough... only in this way can you defeat the Laughing Bat. Remember, it was me... who made you..."

After the clown finished speaking intermittently, his head tilted and there was no sound again.

A wisp of green smoke invisible to the naked eye, as if alive, emerged from the Joker's mouth, adhered to the nearest Batman, and merged into his body from the surface of the dark uniform.

Batman held the Joker's thin body, the warmth of his blood mixed with the coldness of the river.

But he had never felt so happy. Various emotions hit his mind, including relief, fear of being helpless, and resistance to what was about to happen.

But the main thing is not that.

The inner pleasure made his face twitch crazily, as if something was trying to rush out of his body from his throat. He summoned all his willpower to fight against this feeling, but only the joy could not be suppressed.

The laughter of his loved ones grew louder in his memory, and Batman felt complete, complete as a human being.

Alfred walked quickly behind Batman, grabbed his shoulders and asked eagerly: "Master, why are you... laughing?!"

.............................

The heavy rain in the city was still pouring down, and Wayne Tower, which seemed to reach straight to the sky, was no exception at this time. The washed-out and slightly white building exterior looked more like a monument.

Wayne Tower was built by Batman in the main world during the Night of Owls. Some Batmans in other worlds have it, and some don't, depending on how much darkness they have dealt with.

At this time, outside the elevator leading directly to the top of Wayne Tower, a blind guard was working the night shift.

He wasn't blind before, he was just blinded by poison gas during a Scarecrow attack on Wayne Group.

For a guard, being blind is equal to unemployment, but this is not the case at Wayne Group. Bruce Wayne is a world-renowned philanthropist. He will not let a loyal employee who becomes blind due to a work-related injury lose his job.

After the construction of Wayne Tower was completed, Bruce transferred Bill here, and the environment here was better than during the Wayne Tower period.

Now his job only involves carrying a chair and sitting at the elevator door every day. This is really an easy job.

After all, there are thirty strong young guards at the gate of Wayne Tower. Those who have not served in the special forces for several years are not eligible to participate in the interview with Wayne Group. On top of the elevator, there are the same thirty guards. They rotate in two shifts a day, and they are all armed to the teeth.

So Bill only needs to sit in the elevator at night every day, and occasionally listen to the radio or something to pass the time.

He was alone and had nowhere to go but Wayne Tower. His family had long since died, and now Wayne Group was his home.

But today it was raining and flooding, and there was no radio station to listen to. Bill held his guide stick with both hands and sat there listening to the movements in the spacious hall.

After becoming blind, my hearing has been greatly enhanced. This is probably the window opened by God as the saying goes, right?

He heard a series of footsteps, which sounded familiar yet unfamiliar.

Bill stood up tremblingly, leaning on his stick, and turned his head to adjust the direction so that he could hear the voice more clearly: "Hello, hello? Who are you? The other guards should have told you that no one is allowed to enter here. Apart from......."

"I've already 'said hello' to the other guards. Good evening, Bill, nice to see you!" A familiar voice sounded with a smile, and the visitor was getting closer and closer.

Bill relaxed, and a smile appeared on his old face: "Good evening, Mr. Wayne, I'm glad to hear your voice too."

"The weather is really bad today. I wasted a lot of energy on the way here, hehe~"

Mr. Wayne made a deliberate gasping sound, and Bill seemed to be able to see the kindness on the young man's face. He still liked to joke with employees as before.

"Yeah, although I can't hear how heavy the rain is outside, but all the joints in my body tell me how humid it is today."

Mr. Wayne seemed to have a deep understanding and sighed: "I am not young anymore. I always feel that the muscles on my face are a little stiff recently, and my smile is not so natural."

Old Bill reached out to fumble for the elevator button and replied with a smile: "It's all due to the earth's gravity. The bags under our eyes, the corners of our mouths, and the flesh on our faces are all drooping. So are you going up today?"

"Of course, as always, Bill, as always."

Mr. Wayne pressed his hand on the DNA detector beside the elevator, and the instrument immediately reported a confirmation message: "Verification passed. Welcome back, Mr. Bruce Wayne."

The sound of putting on gloves could be heard in the air, and Bill didn't find it strange. Rich people and big bosses all like to wear leather gloves.

He heard Mr. Wayne ask him again: "How are you doing? How are your grandchildren out there? How are you doing?"

Bill pressed the button of the elevator, and the sound of the cables and the car running came from beside him. He replied gratefully but a little embarrassed: "They... are all fine, and the new pacemaker is also very good." It works, thank you so much, Mr. Wayne, not just for the surgery, but for everything.”

There was the sound of the windbreaker flapping not far away, as well as the slight friction of metal. When Mr. Wayne answered, his voice fluctuated from left to right, as if he was looking for something:

"You're welcome. You were injured in the scarecrow's attack. This is what I should have done."

"No, that's not it. I know what other bosses would do. I have to say..." At this time, the elevator came, the door opened with a crisp sound, and Bill heard the light footsteps. Entering the car, he quickly smiled and helped hold the elevator's automatic door: "You are really a kind person."

"Hehehehe...Thank you for the compliment, it means a lot to me!"

The elevator door closed, and the familiar sound of machine running came again, but what was a little strange to Bill was that after closing the door, he seemed to briefly hear the sound of sharpening knives in the elevator?

Maybe it's an illusion...