Case Closed

The Dollmaker had been found—only, he had been found as a corpse. They found him beneath the clock tower at Tricorner Docks, flattened from the fall.

Jerry and Otis gave their statements. They had chased the Dollmaker from the sewers all the way to the top of the clock tower, where he had fallen to his death after being frightened out of his wits.

The body was identified as Barton Mathis, the Dollmaker. Captain James Gordon personally inspected it and confirmed the identification.

The armored car robbery at 7:20 that morning and the Dollmaker murder case had both been solved and closed.

For the Gotham Police Department—and even the Gotham City Government—this was earth-shattering good news.

The shadow cast by the Red Hood robbery seemed to have lifted considerably.

Even Big-Mouth Todger, the Gotham TV host renowned for his venomous tongue and sharp criticism, who had cursed out everyone in the Gotham Police Department from top to bottom, had to hold his nose and say, "Well done."

It set the record for the fastest case closure in Gotham's history.

Captain James Gordon, who had been in charge of the case, was surrounded so tightly by reporters—like sharks smelling blood—that not even water could have passed through.

"Captain Gordon! Can you tell us how you solved the case?"

"I heard there was a man in black at the scene. Was he that strange person who has recently appeared on the streets?"

"Captain Gordon, was the Dollmaker's accidental death caused by police brutality? Did you drive him to his death?"

"Captain Gordon, we're from Gotham TV! What are your thoughts on this case? Could you tell us?"

"Captain Gordon..."

They held up microphones one after another, practically trying to shove them straight into Gordon's mouth. Gordon dodged with an ugly expression. These reporters were the uncrowned kings, after all.

With a few words, they could ruin a man...

"Quiet, quiet! We merely completed a mission, nothing more. Officer Miao Mu of the Arkham Police Department, one of the investigators on this case, was the first to discover the Dollmaker's trail and pursue him."

"Also, that man in black..."

Gordon frowned, unsure what to call him. But that guy truly had been a tremendous help in this case.

Then Gordon suddenly remembered the name Miao Mu had mentioned.

Batman!

"The man in black is Batman! We are very grateful for his contribution to this case. As a member of Gotham..."

Captain Gordon's interview played on the television screen, broadcast live by the station's news van with a delay of less than seven seconds.

The Gotham Police Department's conference room was deathly quiet. Everyone who had been ready to pop champagne now wore long faces.

What was Gordon saying? A man in black? Batman?

This was clearly a mission completed by their Gotham Police Department! And that Arkham Police Department... Officer Miao Mu?

Gillian Loeb, the commissioner of the Gotham Police Department sitting at the head of the conference table, raised a hand and gestured to the assistant beside him. The assistant hurried out to prepare Miao Mu's files.

Only Flass, captain of the Special Action Team seated on the right side of the conference room, squirmed in his chair as if his hemorrhoids had flared up.

Miao Mu lay in a bed at Gotham Central Hospital, fiddling with the Wayne Ring in his hand. It hung from the python-skin necklace around his neck, right beside the Golden Hexagram.

He needed to keep this thing safe. It might come in handy someday—the kind of handy that would make him a billionaire overnight.

"Mumu, look who's here?"

Jerry pushed open the ward door, eating a banana in one hand as he jerked his head toward the person behind him, a cheerful smile on his face.

Miao Mu looked over and nearly burst out laughing. It was Oswald, wearing a white coat with a stethoscope hanging around his neck.

"Oh, Doctor, are you here to treat me?" Miao Mu grinned from his hospital bed.

"Patients should lie still in bed and keep quiet. But seeing that you're safe and sound, I'm truly glad, brother."

Oswald walked over and sat in the chair beside the bed. Police stood guard outside, and someone from the underworld like him should never have been able to get in, so he had simply stolen a white coat.

And just like that... he got in...

He silently scorned those useless cops.

Oswald held out his hand. "That bastard is dead. I just watched the news. Maybe tomorrow, I'll see your photo on the front page, Officer Miao Mu."

Miao Mu smiled at that. As for which bastard had died, that would be a secret they would never tell.

Miao Mu raised his hand and clasped Oswald's, nodding. "Helping each other is best. I'm glad I could help you."

"Thank you..." Oswald nodded.

"By the way, what do you think about that big bat...?" Oswald suddenly asked.

They had seen him at the clock tower. But he had not made a move; he had merely watched the Dollmaker's body fall to its death before turning and leaving the scene.

"No thoughts... Just don't provoke him. He's not the sort of thug who attacks everyone he sees. But... you should watch out for him."

Miao Mu folded an arm beneath his head and gave Oswald a meaningful look. He was certain now.

His underworld brother was the future Gotham crime lord, the Penguin—Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot, a member of the Cobblepot Family, one of Gotham's four great families.

But speaking of Gotham's four great families... despite bearing the title of families, that was all they really had left.

Gotham City had originally been built under the leadership of those four families. But they had all gone downhill. The Wayne Family had only one heir left, while the Cobblepot Family existed in name only.

Only the low-profile Elliot Family and the Kane Family, Batman Bruce's maternal grandfather's family, remained in normal condition.

Gotham belonged to... the Court of Owls. What an irony.

"Heh, I'm not that easy to take down!" Oswald said stubbornly, even wanting to meet that big bat for himself.

Miao Mu helplessly curled his lips. He knew perfectly well what would happen if the Penguin faced Batman. Besides, Batman treated the Penguin like a walking information vending machine.

The kind that would spill information after one beating...

"Here's some advice: if he comes looking for intelligence, just tell him. Don't worry about saving face. It's not embarrassing."

Miao Mu silently added in his heart:

It really isn't embarrassing. The ones who think it is keep stubbornly talking back, and they end up spending longer in the hospital than they would in prison.

"Uh... I understand."

Oswald nodded helplessly, then remembered something else. "Oh, right. Maroni was arrested. Did you know?"

"Maroni? That smuggling boss from Tricorner? The biggest illegal drug supplier? Sal Maroni?"

Miao Mu recalled the name. He had learned about the man from Bullock, which was why he had pursued the trail toward Tricorner.

The Roman, Falneko, the unrivaled godfather of Gotham's underworld, had bought off half of Gotham City.

Maroni was also part of his forces. The kind who would have to bow and call him boss upon seeing him.

"Does that have anything to do with me?" Miao Mu looked up and asked.

Oswald shook his head. "No, but there's a bounty on that big bat. Kill him, and Maroni will pay five hundred thousand dollars."