Rumors Are Just Rumors, but Mine Is Officially Verified

"You don't have to hide anything. There's no one else here," the psychiatrist said. "I'm a professional psychiatrist, so relax. Be open and honest with me..."

"All right, in that case, I won't hide it from you. This friend of mine isn't just anyone. She's... my cousin."

"Go on."

"It's a bizarre story... she's pregnant."

"That's not exactly bizarre."

"But she's pregnant with her lover's child."

"That's pretty ordinary too."

"I just wanted to ask what I... what my cousin should do now. Should she keep the baby, or..."

"Let's try a hypothetical. From this moment on, you are your cousin."

"I'll try..."

"...It's perfectly normal to have concerns. This is a major decision, after all. But my advice is to follow your heart... Let's try a little hypnosis and let your subconscious tell you."

The psychiatrist quickly hypnotized the red-haired woman, putting her straight to sleep. Meanwhile, he went into an adjoining room to organize his medical records.

Not long afterward, the woman in red abruptly opened her eyes. She quickly opened the file envelope on the desk, found what she wanted, and hid it on her person.

"Thank you, doctor. I feel much better."

"Really? I've only just started your treatment..."

"I have things to take care of. What was bothering me earlier doesn't matter anymore." The woman in red smiled, opened the door, and walked out.

She went out to the street, hailed a taxi, and rode to a rather luxurious restaurant.

An impeccably dressed Italian was waiting for her inside. When he saw the red-haired woman arrive, he said impatiently, "Julianne, if you've come to bother me this late just to talk about that baby in your belly, don't blame me for getting nasty."

"Do you really think I'm that stupid?" Julianne covered her mouth and chuckled. "I came to tell you something important."

"What is it?" the Italian asked.

"It started when I went to see a psychiatrist earlier. I thought I might have prenatal depression, especially since the baby's father is an irresponsible bastard. That only puts more pressure on me..."

"Get to the point." The Italian frowned.

"Guess who I saw while I was at the psychiatrist's office?"

"Who?"

"Gotham City's District Attorney, Harvey Dent, the man who's put quite a few members of your family on trial." Julianne smiled smugly. "Didn't see that coming, did you? That seemingly righteous District Attorney has a raging demon hiding underneath."

"...You're saying Harvey Dent is mentally ill?" The Italian narrowed his eyes.

"Of course."

"Harvey Dent is mentally ill. Did I fucking need you to tell me that?" the Italian said impatiently. It wasn't as though he'd never dealt with Harvey. He'd noticed the man's mania long ago.

"Rumors are just rumors, but mine is officially verified." Julianne took a sheet of paper from her handbag. It was Harvey Dent's medical record.

"Aha! Julianne, you've done our family a huge favor!" The Italian eagerly reached for the medical record, but Julianne pulled it away first.

"Not so fast. This should be worth quite a bit, shouldn't it?" Julianne smiled. "I hear raising a child costs a lot of money..."

"Hey, would my son ever have to worry about money?"

"Then we'd better have a proper talk..."

The next day.

An arrest operation was underway in Gotham City. Commissioner Gordon had already led his men in surrounding a Mob hideout, but the Mob members refused to surrender. They had heavy weapons stolen from the military.

"A Barrett SSRS smart grenade launcher? Has the Mob's firepower really gotten this far?" Commissioner Gordon had the building surrounded, but still hadn't given the order to attack.

"What's going on? Why ask me for help? Don't you usually call Batman for this sort of thing?" Roland looked at the 30mm grenade launcher and couldn't help feeling a little intimidated. He wasn't a real Dragon, after all. One hit from that thing would finish him.

"Batman's wanted by the chief now. How would I dare call him?" Commissioner Gordon looked troubled. "You're the only one I can turn to."

"I'm not feeling too confident myself..." Roland gritted his teeth. "I'll see if I can sneak inside."

With that, he vanished into the night.

Just then, a dark figure appeared inside the building. He stealthily took down the Mob members one after another, knocking them unconscious and disarming them.

"You're here already." Hearing the repeated thuds of falling bodies and cries of pain inside, Roland hurried into the building, only to discover that Batman had already taken care of everything.

"Yeah. Getting past all those cops without being seen was a real hassle," Batman said. "I've dealt with everyone here. Take them outside."

"All right." Roland nodded and dragged the unconscious men out of the building.

Harvey Dent soon arrived as well and joined Commissioner Gordon for a press interview.

"Some bystanders said the person who subdued them was a priest in a skintight outfit. Is that true?"

"Ah... that was actually one of our Police Station's officers in disguise."

"How did the Gotham City Police Station successfully arrest so many heavily armed, vicious criminals?"

"Through our officers' rigorous daily training and advanced equipment..."

"District Attorney Harvey, are you married?"

"Uh..." Gordon froze. Why had the questions taken such a strange turn the moment they got to Harvey?

Harvey confidently announced that he had a fiancée and said he would marry her later.

"But more important than my personal life is my mission to wipe out the Mob in Gotham City!"

"Bullshit!" A Mob member whom Batman had beaten black and blue, but who was still conscious, struggled and kicked up muddy water from the ground, splashing it onto Harvey's face.

"You!" Furious, Harvey hauled him up and slammed him hard into the muddy water on the ground.

He raised his fist, ready to teach the man a lesson.

"Don't!" Startled by his actions, Commissioner Gordon hurried forward to stop him.

"Nice one... I mean, don't lose your head!" Roland stepped forward to stop him too, "accidentally" stepping on the mouth of the man on the ground a few times along the way.

The reporters present stared in shock, then all realized they were about to get a major story. Camera flashes went off nonstop.

Harvey stood awkwardly rooted to the spot. Faced with this scene, he suddenly had no idea what to say.

"It's no big deal. Have Commissioner Gordon slip those reporters some cash later. They'll know what to write," Roland whispered reassuringly.