Decryption Complete

"Clap clap clap."

Vicki applauded from the side. Her lovely face had turned nearly as red as her hair, her chest heaving violently, her expression full of excitement.

"Bravo, Mr. Deathstroke. You're the strongest warrior I've ever seen."

Su Ming slung the shotgun over his back again. Dealing with that dinosaur had taken little effort, and the minor impact from earlier no longer hurt with the help of his Healing Factor.

"Even if you call for an encore, I won't be coming back out. Hurry up and do your part. Once we get the intel, we're leaving."

He could not get tangled up with this woman. Otherwise, she would have an endless stream of questions and demands. Su Ming only wanted to use her good luck to accomplish his goal; he had no intention of getting too deeply involved with her.

"Oh, all right. But can I take a piece of the dinosaur as a souvenir?" Vicki hesitated before voicing her request.

Su Ming turned and walked toward Barbara and the others. With Oracle's skill, the decryption should be nearly finished.

"Whatever. But if you think you can figure out Batwoman's identity from the raw material supplier once you reach the Batcave, save yourself the trouble. She isn't that stupid."

"Hmph."

Vicki stamped her foot. She did not know why her thoughts were always seen through, but she was a reporter. What was pride worth?

Wearing high heels and a tight miniskirt, she trotted over with a swaying gait to the mechanical dinosaur's wreckage, pulled out a huge eyeball, then reached her little hand into a crack in its head and tore out a length of wire still connected to hardware.

Su Ming could not be bothered with her. Vicki's curiosity surpassed everything else; it was practically a disease. Still, she knew very well where other people's boundaries lay.

She was smart too. She had probably already realized that neither of them intended to kill her.

He came up behind Barbara's Wheelchair and watched lines of characters flash across the large screen. The fluorescent glow illuminated the three faces, but he had no idea how things were progressing.

"The dinosaur's dealt with. How's it going over here?"

"Almost." Barbara did not even turn around. She operated the keyboard and console at the same time, entering something into them. "Open sesame."

A brand-new image appeared on the large screen: a bird's-eye view of Gotham. Miller's spatial calculation ability immediately told him that this was likely the perspective of the gargoyle atop Wayne Tower, where a camera had been installed.

Beyond that, Batman's database was always linked to every major department. Any data they had would be synchronously copied here as well.

"She's monitoring the entire city."

Barbara murmured to herself. The various scenes before her left her shaken. As she became more familiar with the system, she discovered that bat cameras covered the entire city.

She understood Batwoman's motives, but not why this was necessary. With privately installed cameras this dense, nothing happening aboveground in Gotham could remain a secret from her.

From private rooms in luxurious high-end restaurants to the underpasses where homeless people lived, her surveillance cameras were everywhere. She watched over everyone as a potential criminal. Several cameras were even aimed directly at Gordon's home.

Su Ming patted the top of her head, bringing her back to herself. "Welcome to the Dark Knight's inner world. Yes, she's exactly what you think she is."

"This is insane. I don't know if what she's doing is really good. She's violating everyone's privacy, whether they're criminals or not." Barbara frowned. She found it hard to accept. She had always believed Batwoman was someone like her, someone who bore goodwill toward the world.

But thinking about it, she should have known. Batman never appeared during the day because there was only darkness in his heart.

"To Batman, Gotham's citizens only exist in two states: 'already criminals' and 'not criminals yet.' He trusts no one."

Cindy sneered from the side. She disliked Batman's style. Strictly speaking, even though she killed people everywhere, she at least believed in contracts. She thought herself more suited to this society.

"Even my father? He's always supported her." Barbara found it hard to accept. She gripped the armrests of her Wheelchair tightly, her gaze unfocused.

"Even your father." Su Ming sighed. The Batwoman of the Dark Multiverse was even darker than the Batman of the Main World. He comforted her, "To Batwoman, your father is merely unlikely to become a criminal, with a low threat level. Although she considers Gordon a friend, the friends in her mind are different from those of ordinary people. Batwoman will always keep something in reserve, just in case."

Barbara sat there in a daze. She did not know what she was thinking, but compared to Batwoman, Deathstroke was a notorious villain known throughout the world, a synonym for bloodshed.

"No, that's only your speculation."

"Maybe. But I heard something before. Why don't you hear it too?"

Cindy had heard Su Ming talk about Barbara's uniqueness, and she had also seen the power of the network. She definitely could not let Barbara side with Batman, so she immediately cut in.

Barbara looked at her, her eyes full of inquiry. In truth, she had already seen what kind of person Batwoman was from many parts of this computer, but she did not want to believe it.

Cindy held her helmet in her arms and sat on a console nearby. "After what happened to you last time, Gordon and Batwoman caught Jester. Gordon raised his gun at Jester, but Batman blocked the muzzle with his own body."

"What does that prove? That Batwoman is sleeping with Jester?" Barbara was distraught. At the mention of Jester's name, she trembled like a little rabbit.

"If it had been me or Su instead of Batman, we wouldn't have stepped in front of it."

Cindy gripped Barbara's Wheelchair armrest and pulled her closer. Looking into her sapphire-blue eyes, she watched the fear within them gradually become filled with her own reflection.

"That's because you don't care about the law!" Barbara turned her head away, refusing to look at Cindy. Her slender fingers also left the keyboard and crossed over her chest, as if she felt a chill.

"That's because I knew Gordon wouldn't fire!"

Cindy pinched her cheek and turned her head back, forcing her to look at her and face reality.

"Batman and I both memorized Commissioner Gordon's record! We both have a complete psychological profile on him! We both know exactly what kind of person he is! His emotions won't make him lose control. Gordon will do what a police officer should do! But what about Batman? Do you think blocking that gun was a sign that he trusted Gordon?"

Barbara had no answer. Although she did not know the exact circumstances at the time, when she woke up in the hospital, Gordon had been utterly despondent. He only told her that he was a police officer first, and her father second.

He had cried as he apologized to her. Barbara had not understood then, only assuming Gordon was grieving over her legs.

So after learning the truth today, Barbara finally understood. His choice to give up on killing Jester had been his own, and had never had anything to do with Batman.

Gordon's despondency had not been only because of her. It was because he had realized that Batwoman never trusted anyone.

He had been a police officer in Gotham for over thirty years and had worked with Batwoman for more than a decade, yet she still would not trust him. Even though he believed he had kept her secrets, in reality, those were only the things she had allowed him to know.

Batwoman always had plans of her own.