The Pale Rider's expression eased slightly. Whether he had accepted Superman's explanation or was satisfied with their proactive apology, at least he was no longer wearing such a grim face.
"As mayor, I must say that Gotham welcomes every visitor. I hope you enjoy yourselves here, provided you don't break the law or make too much of a commotion and create safety hazards."
The words themselves were perfectly pleasant, but hearing them come from someone with that face was simply too strange. Batman, who was accustomed to reading microexpressions for information, would rather stare at the food on his plate than look at the Pale Rider even once.
Superman was naturally handling it better. After all, he was not the one facing the Joker every day, and the Pale Rider was not wearing that terrifying makeup, so Superman accepted it well enough.
The Pale Rider was elegant in manner, witty in speech, and had quite a few insights of his own about Gotham's tourism industry. He and Superman were getting along quite well.
Naturally, this made Batman feel intensely awkward, though he did not know why. In any case, he found the meal utterly tasteless.
Just when the dinner was finally nearing its end, the Pale Rider stood up to answer a call. Batman hurriedly nudged Superman with his elbow.
Superman understood at once. Batman wanted him to use his super-hearing to listen in on the Pale Rider's call.
"...What? Why did this happen? Sheriff Gordon has already gone over. All right, remind him to preserve the physical samples. I'll arrange for people to block off the roads now so the ambulances can get there as quickly as possible."
Superman's brows slowly furrowed. Batman looked at him, and Superman lowered his voice to tell him a few things. Batman's brow