The Roman

Yes, they couldn't let the others know about that place. Barbara might be allowed, but not the reporter. Su Ming didn't mind making things difficult for Batwoman, but villains knowing her identity and everyone on Earth knowing it were two entirely different concepts.

"Um, if I give you another clue, can you not blindfold me?" Vicki tried to bargain.

"No." Su Ming tore a towel into three pieces and blindfolded all three of them. "If you dare touch it, I'll break your toes."

"But you tied it so uncomfortably. And even if I wanted to touch it, I'd use my hands. Why break my toes?" Vicki kept squirming in her chair, looking extremely uneasy.

"Because I feel like it." Su Ming gave her a willful answer. "Where's your evidence?"

"You won't even let me see. I'm not saying anything, then. Just kill me." Vicki turned her head aside, stretching out her neck and offering it to Su Ming.

"I never said you couldn't see. You just have to wait until we get there. Besides, the person you want dead will die tomorrow." Su Ming explained his plan and pushed her back into her seat. Cindy drove like a maniac, and everything inside the car seemed to be shaking at high frequency.

"Fine, remember what you said. Hehe." Vicki laughed. She realized her luck really was pretty good. "I already know who the boss of those Men in Black is."

"Oh?"

Even Cindy was interested now. So many people had failed to uncover it—why had Vicki found it? She didn't think the female reporter was smarter than she was.

But Su Ming knew Vicki was just that uncanny. It was as if heaven itself looked after her. Forget finding clues—under the blessing of her lucky aura, it wouldn't even be impossible for her to resolve a World Crisis in the end.

That was how it was in the comics. Her luck was absurdly good. If some punks wanted to harass her, some major Superhero would definitely happen to pass by; if she wanted to investigate a story, clues would take the initiative to come right to her; if her boss wanted to criticize her, a big shot from the Board of Directors would immediately step up to support her.

When Su Ming had first decided to bring her along, aside from using the TV station to get things done, he had also had his eye on that good luck. Sometimes, luck really was necessary for certain things. She was a useful tool.

He just didn't know whether being lucky counted as a superpower.

"Go on," Su Ming signaled for her to continue.

"Ahem. I examined the wounds on the corpse. They were very distinctive, and I'm sure you saw them too, so I thought of ritual murder."

Vicki cleared her throat and launched into her lengthy explanation.

Cindy shook her head, lit her cigar, and blew out a smoke ring, but the wind quickly scattered it.

"I don't remember Gotham having anyone like Ripper."

"Don't rush me, I'm not done yet." The lower half of Vicki's face, visible beneath the towel, curled into a smile as she slowly explained. "I also never remembered Gotham having a Ripper, so from that unusual ritual murder, I made another connection—if this wasn't an original method, then it had to be based on a classical torture method. Eventually, I remembered seeing records of this before."

"An ancient punishment?"

Su Ming crossed his arms and closed his eyes, searching his memories carefully, but he still found nothing. All that came to mind were traditional Chinese tortures like being torn apart by five horses or chopped into pieces.

Cindy clearly hadn't thought of anything either. It showed on her face, and the cigarette hanging from her lips did nothing to help.

"Hehe, because it was disgusting, I didn't inspect the corpse too closely. But I estimated that the murder weapon was around sixty centimeters long, with a blade about five centimeters wide. That confirmed my theory. It was Abdominal Dissection Punishment. A while ago, when I was reporting on a ritual murder case, I happened to come across information about this punishment."

Vicki gave them the answer outright, though the name was indeed unfamiliar. Seeing that the other three had no idea, a sense of pride welled up inside her. Sure enough, all her efforts to become an outstanding news anchor had not been wasted. Her obscure knowledge had finally come in handy. She continued explaining.

"It was a punishment from Ancient Rome. The victim would be tied to a pillar, and a Roman Short Sword would make them die in regret as they bled out. If someone mentioned The Roman in Gotham, who would you think of?"

"The Roman Falcone?" Su Ming sighed. "If it's him, then yes, he really does hate Gordon and Batman."

"Hate? Heh. Gordon tricked him, and Batwoman tied him to the Bat-Signal and roasted him half-cooked. He hates them to death."

Cindy laughed as she cut in, shaking her head. She had heard what had happened ten years ago. Batman really was a little strange. Killing someone was one thing, but what kind of move was tying a man to a spotlight and roasting him?

But if Falcone had done all this, then the situation had become more complicated. Falcone was not some brainless big shot. He had been Gotham's dark emperor more than a decade ago. Any man who had climbed to that position in this world could not possibly be an idiot.

He would never do anything meaningless. The League of Assassins, an organization that had endured for centuries, definitely knew all kinds of ancient punishments. The wounds on the corpses were The Roman's signature, deliberately left for them.

It was telling them: I killed your people. Come find me.

If it had been The Roman from more than a decade ago, he would certainly have had the confidence to challenge the League of Assassins. Back then, Gotham had been entirely under his control.

But now, what did he have to fight them with?

"Could this be a frame-up? I remember Falcone was supposed to be locked up in Blackgate Penitentiary." Barbara wanted to check on the computer, but unfortunately, she was blindfolded too.

"Why is Gordon's daughter so adorably naive?" Vicki mocked her and even reached out to touch her little face, but Barbara dodged away. "In the second month after Falcone was imprisoned, he was paroled for medical treatment because of a 'sudden severe illness.' Looks like he's back now."

"Yes. No one would frame someone who vanished without a trace for ten years, especially when people had long forgotten him. Only he himself would bring up old grievances again." Cindy agreed with that view. The Roman had probably returned. After all, the clues in their hands could only lead to that conclusion.

The rain outside grew heavier again. Cindy had driven off the ring road, and the car was now bumping along a muddy path.

Shadows of trees continuously flashed past in the darkness beyond the windows. Rain lashed the leaves, producing an endless crackling sound beside their ears. Su Ming also noticed broken trees flickering past his view, showing that the wind was growing stronger as well. What had been a heavy downpour had now become a storm.

He hadn't known Wayne Manor was in such a remote place. Even the water and electricity lines probably had to be laid specifically for it. If something happened in the city, it would take time to get there. It was completely inconvenient.

Wouldn't it be much more convenient if Bliss lived next to the police station? The moment the Bat-Signal lit up, she could meet Gordon in under two minutes.

As he watched the plants and darkness outside the window, he let his thoughts wander, trying not to think too much about the Dark Multiverse. It was a sword hanging over his head. There was no benefit in constantly looking up at it.

After Vicki finished sharing her clue, she fell silent as well. Only her ears twitched slightly, as if she were trying to memorize the route through sound.

But that was not something someone like her, without special training, could accomplish. It was doomed to be wasted effort. Luck was not omnipotent.

His thoughts returned to Gordon's kidnapping.

If Falcone had deliberately drawn in the League of Assassins, then he had definitely made thorough preparations. Assassins were still human, merely well-trained. If they were ambushed by heavy firepower, they would die just the same.

Except for their leader, Ra's al Ghul, the immortal Head of the Demon.

It seemed that The Roman had somehow raised another force and was preparing to go to war with the League of Assassins. But as far as Su Ming knew, the two sides had almost no dealings with each other, much less any grudges.

As long as the money was good, the League of Assassins was more than willing to serve wealthy clients. Why had things turned out this way? And what did this have to do with Gordon?

If he wanted revenge, then the people he should have been after were Gordon, Batman, and Penguin.

Gordon had invited him to negotiate, only for him to arrive and find Batwoman there as well. The two had ambushed him, and Batman had humiliated him. Penguin had taken advantage of the opportunity to swallow up his territory and become Gotham's greatest power at the time.

Falcone should have been using the League of Assassins' services, not provoking them.