This day was destined to be unforgettable for many people.
At least for now, Batman, renowned for his rationality, did not keep harping on Tony and Steve's mistakes. He had confirmed the girl's safety the moment he found Little Merfolk, and now he seemed remarkably patient. There was no trace of the icy expression that had darkened his face when he discovered back in the Batcave that her tracker had suddenly stopped working and her phone was unreachable-an expression that had nearly turned the Batcave into an ice cave.
Upon learning that Miaomiao's disappearance had been part of Hydra's retaliation against the Avengers, Steve, standing nearby, also received a cold glare from Batman.
"You should have thought things through more thoroughly," Batman said in his gravelly voice. "This time it was Miaomiao. What about next time? Who else close to you will it be? Are they capable of protecting themselves?"
The two superheroes, whose combined ages exceeded a hundred, knew they were in the wrong. Under Batman's reprimand, they were reduced to children listening to a lecture from the school disciplinarian, neither daring to make a sound.
"I was careless this time." Tony made a rare admission of fault, looking rather dejected.
"No, it was me," Steve stepped forward. "I didn't accompany Miaomiao back, and that gave Hydra an opening."
"I'm not interested in arguing over which of you was at fault. Fortunately, Miaomiao isn't an ordinary little girl, but you need contingency plans for situations like this."
Batman said nothing more. He trusted that they had learned enough of a lesson from this incident.
Then he turned to the sleepy girl. "Miaomiao."
"Huh? Here!" The girl jolted halfway through a yawn and opened her eyes wide. The tears brought on by her drowsiness made her look even more pitiful