Chapter 41 Cats and Bats (Part 2)

When Schiller saw Bruce's dark and frustrated look written on his face, he knew that the conversation with Catwoman might not go well.

"You didn't fight again, did you?"

Bruce said, "It's worse than that."

"Well, which ward is she in now?" Schiller asked.

"I mean, the situation in Gotham is worse than I thought."

"There are a group of bad guys here that you can't blame, because they have done well enough in this environment." Bruce said.

"I think you should find out now that being Batman is not such a simple thing?" Schiller said.

"Indeed." Bruce said, "I thought I had a hard armor, a helmet that can block bullets, sharp bat darts, and guns and bullets. With these things, what gangs can't deal with it?"

"Guns are indeed very useful." Schiller said.

"At least it can ensure that someone is willing to listen to what you say."

"I can't say 'you are wrong' to Selina, Bruce covered his eyes and said, "In fact, she has done well enough. "

"Jonathan probably doesn't think so. If I tell you now that Jonathan actually grew up in such an environment, and the crimes he committed were actually because no one taught him, what would you think?"

Bruce opened his mouth. He realized that he originally thought he was righteous, but later he knew that nothing was absolutely righteous. He thought he was at least fair, but now he found that he didn't seem to be fair enough.

He had to admit that he was partial to Selina. Many of the gangsters he punished were like Catwoman Selina, but they were not as lucky as her.

Their families and pasts were a mess. They went to work for the gangs not because they were such vicious villains or born bad guys, but because they just wanted to make a living.

It is much more difficult to get rid of the shackles of the original class than imagined, especially in Gotham.

This fact made Bruce feel a little desperate. He finally understood why Schiller said he didn't understand Gotham.

Because anyone who wants to completely Those who can't save Gotham don't understand Gotham.

Everyone here is a bad guy, but there is no bad guy here.

You can't find anyone who should be saved or who should be eliminated among these zombies.

There is no culprit here, everyone is the culprit.

This hero upgrade path is very different from what Bruce thought. He thought that as long as he arrested enough criminals, asked them for information, and then found the cancer that has been affecting Gotham, and finally brought them to justice, Gotham will get better and better.

But now he found that this is a bottomless pit. When he caught a group of cancers, there will be another group. When he punished a culprit, there will always be another one.

No one can Being able to withstand such consumption does not refer to wealth or body. Harvey believes that not only those who reach the end win, but Batman does not even have an end.

Bruce now realizes that his struggle with Gotham will take up his entire life.

Then he realized that wealth, equipment and fighting skills could not make him a real Batman, because his biggest enemy was not criminals, but giving up.

The biggest problem he faced was not how cunning his opponent was, but whether he was firm enough, whether he was firm enough to spend his entire life to endlessly waste with a city that could not be saved.

It was like an ordinary person spending his entire life trying to make the sun rise from the west.

Batman stood on the roof of the Gotham Central Building, and the wind was very strong here , whistling past his ears, under his feet, there are countless mediocre villains, like a group of ants building nests, from here you can clearly see everything in Gotham.

Batman originally thought that there was no order in Gotham, only chaos, but now he found that there was not only order here, but also more solid than anywhere else. If there was only chaos, he could rebuild order, but now, he couldn't even break the original order of Gotham.

After a while, Batman heard footsteps behind him, and Catwoman came over with her hands behind her back.

Seeing Batman turn around, she smiled, took out a gem from her back, smiled and handed it to Batman, and then said: "I picked a very beautiful little treasure from my collection. Of course, I can't bear to give you the biggest one, but I think this one is also good."

Before Bruce could speak, Catwoman said: "I talked to Maggie yesterday, and she said I should apologize to you, because no matter what, I shouldn't have scratched you with a dagger."

"I have never apologized to anyone. Those people want to beat me, so I beat them back. But I felt that you were very nice to me and even went for a ride on the tall building with me, and I stabbed you, which really seemed wrong.

She blinked her beautiful big brown eyes, which sparkled in the Gotham night, and said, "I can see that you are very upset. I hope this gem can make you feel better."

Batman looked down at the gem in his hand. It was a triangular ruby, a bit like his ear, cut very delicately, and had a charming luster in the weak light.

For the first time, he felt that this was not a mineral that was meaningless to humans except for its beauty.

Batman asked: "Do you want to hear my story?"

On the other side, Schiller was holding the phone and said: "Medical parole? How did he get approved? Although I don't want to blame you, the Gotham Police Department is really too frivolous..."

He thought about it, okay, the Gotham Police Department really has no lower limit to break.

Then he said to Gordon on the other end: "I hope he can stay in the hospital well and don't come back to cause trouble. You know, I am different from Batman."

Gordon hung up the phone and sighed. He knew it was not that simple. Although Jonathan finally went to the mental hospital after many efforts, Victor disappeared, and Lantalos died.

But the old president of Gotham University was released on medical parole and did not go to jail. He had been in Gotham for so many years and had some connections, so he succeeded in the end.

Schiller never hesitated to think the worst of a Gotham citizen. He knew that the old president would not let it go.

Sure enough, the next day, when Schiller was about to get off work, a girl rushed into her office in a panic. This was the girl who complained to the school when Christine disappeared before. She was Christine's good friend.

"Christine disappeared again?" Schiller asked.

"It's worse than that." The girl said anxiously: "Since then, Christine gave me a safe number. She told me that as long as this number is called on my mobile phone, it means that she may be in danger!"

Schiller quickened the speed of packing things. He said: "When did it happen?"

"Just three minutes ago! The phone was connected, but there was no sound on the other end!"

Schiller comforted the girl and then called Bruce. He said: "Bad news, Christine is in trouble again. I wonder if Gordon told you? The old principal did not go to prison in the name of medical parole. If he wants to retaliate, he will definitely retaliate against the person who testified against him first..."

Bruce immediately returned to Wayne Manor and put on all the equipment of Batman. It was he who persuaded Christine to testify against the principal, so he had to save the girl.

Unfortunately, this time the old principal learned his lesson. He did not use any inferior gangsters, but hired professional kidnappers. They did not leave any traces. The old principal seemed to just want revenge, not to use her to threaten others.

But this just shows that Christine is likely to be in an extremely dangerous environment.

After a while, Batman received a call from Schiller, who said: "The street where the Red Crow Gang in the East District used to be located, the drug manufacturing den that you destroyed..."

Before Bruce could ask why, Schiller hung up the phone, and Batman ran all the way, racing fast in the night of Gotham.

But now he doesn't have the Batmobile, and ordinary sports cars are not fast enough. It will take a while to get from Wayne Manor to the East District, and Christine may be hurt at any time. Although he doesn't like Christine, he doesn't want to see an innocent person being tragically killed.

Batman hammered the steering wheel hard, and he deeply felt that he must have a better means of transportation.

Suddenly, an unexpected number called, and Catwoman's voice sounded over there, she said: "Hey, I think I saw your girlfriend who waits for you on the street every day, what's going on? Why did they go to Maple Leaf Street? It's very dangerous there..."

"She was kidnapped, find a way to save her! No... I mean can you keep an eye on them?... Watch them from a distance, and then call me... Forget it, no no no, don't follow them, just tell me where they went."

"You sound like you need help." Catwoman said.

Batman seemed a little impatient, he said: "This is none of your business, just don't go out tonight and cause trouble for me."

After that, he hung up the phone and drove all the way to Maple Leaf Street.

After a while, Batman appeared at the end of Maple Leaf Street, which was indeed the original Red Crow Gang's base. He destroyed a den for making and producing poppies here. Batman has a good memory. He walked along the right side of the street and turned into two alleys.

As soon as he reached the end of the alley, he heard fierce fighting and gunshots coming from inside. Batman quickly found the back door and pried the lock open. When he went in, he saw a group of low-class thugs lying outside in all directions. These people were screaming on the ground, as if they were hit by joint skills.

Passing through the gatehouse and entering the living room, he could see seven or eight masked kidnappers lying on the ground. A whip with a whistling sound almost hit Batman.

Catwoman turned around and said, "Thank God, the little girl is fine."

Batman turned his eyes to Christine on the sofa. Her clothes were a little messy. If Catwoman hadn't arrived in time, something might have happened.

Then, Catwoman sniffed and frowned and said, "No, why do I smell oil? Is your car leaking oil? No, it's bad! It might be a Molotov cocktail. Hurry up and leave here..."

Before she finished speaking, the glass at the main entrance was directly broken, and countless Molotov cocktails wrapped in cloth strips were thrown in.

The raging flames rose up in a "whoosh". There were many fabric sofas, curtains and other flammable materials in this abandoned den.

After a while, the fire was very fierce. Bruce carried the unconscious Christine. As soon as they walked to the back door, they found that the back door that had been pried open had been blocked by heavy objects from the outside.

Obviously, this was a premeditated trap.

Batman's clothes are fireproof, but if they continue to burn, Christine and Catwoman will be in danger. Moreover, the fireproof clothes do not mean that he will not choke. The fire is getting bigger and bigger. The thick black smoke makes it almost impossible to see anything in the whole room. Several people coughed repeatedly.

Suddenly, there was a crisp "clang" sound from the right, as if something fell. Catwoman reacted quickly and whipped it directly, but when she dragged it back, it turned out to be a fire extinguisher!

Regardless of where the fire extinguisher came from, Catwoman shook it vigorously with the fire extinguisher. Batman said: "Go from the place where they threw the Molotov cocktail. There should be a vacuum area there!"

Batman led the way with a fire extinguisher, and Catwoman supported Christine from behind.

Sure enough, the man who threw the flask used a lot of force, so that the flask landed in the middle of the hall instead of in front of the door. There was nothing flammable in front of the door except a small piece of carpet. Batman took the fire extinguisher to put out the flames, and the two of them rushed forward.

When they reached the door, Batman first broke the door lock with a gun, and then began to hit the iron door with all his strength.

The man who threw the flask was obviously in a hurry, and the front door was not as blocked as the back door. Batman hit the front door several times and opened a gap.

But this also meant that the air began to circulate, and the fire became bigger. Catwoman was almost choked to faint. Batman could clearly feel that his hand on his shoulder began to slide down. Once he lost consciousness, she and Christine would definitely die.

Batman used all his strength and finally hit it hard. With a "bang!", the door was opened, and the three escaped. Catwoman breathed heavily. At this time, both Batman and Catwoman were covered with traces of smoke and fire.

After sending Christine back, Batman asked Catwoman, who was sitting in the passenger seat, while driving: "Why did you rush in to save Christine? It's dangerous, isn't it?"

Catwoman was still excitedly looking at the interior decoration of the luxury car. Obviously, she had never been in such an expensive car.

She cleared her throat and eased her excitement. After a while, she said: "Actually, I just thought of a lot of reasons for you to praise me, such as I plan to learn from you to be a good person, such as I am actually a righteous woman in my bones, or I can't stand those kidnappers hurting innocent people..."

Then Catwoman looked at him, and when he was stared at by those brown eyes, Batman felt his heartbeat fast again.

"You don't want me to do bad things, but I really like those gems too much, so I can do a bad thing once and do a good thing again, isn't that enough?"

"...Okay, actually I just want to make you happy." Catwoman shrugged.

"I know I can't be a hero. I just like stealing. This is a habit I've developed since I was a child. I don't know how to talk about big principles. Maybe the girl who always waits for you on the street is much better than me. After all, she is highly educated, beautiful and charming, and very innocent and ignorant. She has never done anything bad."

"But I am like this. I never think about those things. I just do what I want to do. You can think of me as a criminal or a hopeless bad guy. I am me, this is me, a cat."

Batman's hand holding the steering wheel loosened slightly. He didn't know if this was the answer he wanted.

But he knew that the romance, liveliness and sincerity of Catwoman were not the fundamental reasons why he fell in love with her.

A bat would fall in love with a cat. He just envied her freedom, which was the freedom he would never get as a dark knight.

He had made up his mind to fight this hopeless city to the end.

Looking at the luxury car that slowly stopped at the intersection, Schiller on the rooftop said to the symbiote in his mind: "... No, we can't go down. What's coming next is not something a child should watch."

The symbiote uttered a series of dissatisfied grumbles.

"Yes, I know you performed very well just now. You took the fire extinguisher from the coffee shop across the street and threw it in. You threw it very accurately!"

"But what happened in the car was just a meaningless reproduction process of humans. You symbiotes don't need this process. You just need to drop the dregs."

The symbiote fell silent, and Schiller didn't know if he understood it.

Schiller turned his eyes away from the luxury car and looked at the dimly lit night of Gotham.

Maybe this is a hopeless city, maybe Batman is just an ordinary person who feels desperate and confused, he thought.

But Batman is not alone, and he will never be alone.