[Product name: One-Time Divination Crystal Ball Price: US$3,000 each Effect: Provides the user with one accurate divination, without requiring any medium. Note: Although it can only be used once, it is still a beautiful decorative piece. Perhaps you could sell it to a sucker.]
"What a beautiful crystal ball... Wait, where did you pull that from?"
Harvey watched in astonishment as Zuo Ci produced a crystal ball roughly the size of a child's head from behind his back. He had absolutely no idea what had just happened.
Seriously, where had something that big come from? Did he have that much room inside his clothes?
"Don't make such a fuss, Harvey, my boy. You'll get used to it."
Gordon patted Harvey on the shoulder. Although this was also his first time seeing Zuo Ci pull out a prop, he had worked with Batman for so long that he didn't find it strange at all.
How could anyone who hung around Batman possibly be normal?
"All right, quiet down, everyone. I'm going to start the divination."
Zuo Ci set the crystal ball on the ground, then sat down cross-legged with a show of ceremony and gently rested both hands on it.
"Crystal ball, crystal ball, tell me why the Joker went after Harvey Dent."
Harvey and Gordon gathered around curiously, while Batman silently switched on the miniature camera inside his cowl.
As born-and-bred Westerners, they naturally recognized Zuo Ci's lines as those of the queen in Snow White, but they didn't dare ask too many questions. Magic was, after all, well beyond their understanding.
As Zuo Ci posed his question, ripples gradually stirred within the previously clear crystal ball. Then a pale, owl-like mask slowly emerged.
"Holy shit, the Court of Owls? How did the Joker get mixed up with them?"
The instant Zuo Ci saw that mask, he lost his composure.
He had considered that the Joker might simply have been bored and looking for some fun, or that a mob unhappy with Harvey had hired him. He had even considered the possibility of a personal grudge between Harvey and the Joker.
The one thing he hadn't expected was for the Joker to be involved with those fuckers in the Court of Owls.
"The Court of Owls... What is that?"
Harvey and Gordon studied the image in the crystal ball with grave expressions. They had no idea what the Court of Owls was, but judging by Zuo Ci's reaction, this was probably no simple matter.
"How should I put this? You've heard of the lizard people, right?"
At the words "lizard people," Harvey, Gordon, and even Batman all felt their hearts skip a beat.
As America's most famous urban legend, the lizard people were practically a household name. Put simply, people believed that the world was secretly ruled by a group of lizard people, and that politicians, presidents, and the like were really nothing more than a bunch of clowns.
Ridiculous as that urban legend was, in DC-or at least in Gotham-it was actually true.
"Of course, when I say lizard people, I don't mean they're literally lizard people.
"The so-called Court of Owls is an organization formed by a group of old aristocratic families. They're scattered across the world and have secretly controlled Gotham for centuries. No one knows they exist, and nothing escapes their gaze.
"Not only that, they also command a group of assassins called Talon. Every one of them is highly trained and has undergone extreme modifications, making them ageless and immortal, with physical capabilities far beyond those of ordinary people.
"And they're one of the main reasons Gotham has turned into the hellhole it is today."
The more the three men heard, the more alarmed they became. They had never imagined Gotham harbored such a terrifying shadow organization. An ageless, immortal army of killers, backed by wealthy and powerful old aristocrats-it was simply outrageous.
If they hadn't just been through the Joker incident and learned what Zuo Ci could do, they probably would have treated all of this as nothing more than a story.
Batman felt it most keenly. Ever since he had first taken to the streets, he had vaguely sensed something lurking behind Gotham's surface. Now, with Zuo Ci's explanation, many things suddenly fell into place.
But when Zuo Ci saw their solemn expressions, he scratched his head, finding it a little hard to keep a straight face.
"That said, you don't really need to get too nervous. To put it bluntly, the Court of Owls is basically just a bunch of rats in the sewers. They're not actually all that impressive.
"They claim to control Gotham, but the truth is they've been losing their grip for ages. Never mind anything else-the city's two major mobs, along with the supervillains who've popped up in recent years, have already pushed Gotham out of their control.
"Besides, I don't know whether worshipping their god has rotted their brains or what, but every last one of them is basically an idiot. They spend all day begging some evil god to descend. Who knows what they're thinking?"
Zuo Ci really couldn't be blamed for looking down on the Court of Owls. Apart from seeming somewhat impressive in their debut, they were basically a bunch of clowns every time they appeared afterward. Not only did they never accomplish anything, they were constantly courting death.
For instance, there was the absolute joke of them summoning the Batman Who Laughs through their worship, trying to boss him around, and promptly getting killed for it.
Later on, Batman couldn't even be bothered to deal with them himself and simply handed the Court of Owls business over to Nightwing. They really had no prestige left at all.
"As for Talon, they really are a threat. Even you, Batman, need to be extremely careful if you run into them."
If there was anything about the Court of Owls that warranted caution, it was probably Talon. After all, when they first appeared, just a few of their assassins could overpower Batman or even seriously injure him.
Even later, when they became mass-produced and their strength dropped significantly, they were still elite enemies at the very least, and somewhat troublesome to deal with.
So extreme caution was still necessary when facing them.
"So what's the connection between the Joker and the Court of Owls?"
Gordon and Harvey were a little dazed by this sudden, enormous revelation and were still trying to catch up. Although Batman was also somewhat unsettled, he immediately seized on the key issue.
Their most pressing task was to establish the relationship between the Joker and the Court of Owls.
Was the Joker ageless and immortal too, just like the Talon assassins?
"That? I don't know. I really don't."
At Batman's question, Zuo Ci helplessly waved his hands.
"I'll pay."
"Come on, it's not about the money. The problem is that this is dangerous, you know? We could end up dragging all sorts of weird things into this, and if that happens, everything will get a lot more complicated."
This was the first time Batman had seen Zuo Ci refuse, and he immediately understood that the matter was truly serious. If even someone as money-hungry as Zuo Ci was backing down, he could only imagine how dangerous it must be.
"I can pay more."
To be safe, Batman decided to probe him once more and see whether he was genuinely worried or simply trying to squeeze more money out of him.
The moment those words left his mouth, Zuo Ci visibly paused, and his tone abruptly changed.
"More money, huh? Well, in that case, it's not exactly..."
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