Bang! Bang!
The gunshots came fast and thick, mingled with utterly deranged laughter, like some kind of medieval classical music that chilled listeners to the bone.
A figure wielding two pistols aimed at the security guards and lobby manager cowering in a corner of the bank.
Every shot sent someone crashing to the floor, drenched in blood.
The rusty smell of blood filled the air, making Lynn wrinkle his nose.
His gaze settled on the figure holding the two pistols.
The figure wore a purple suit, a deranged grin spread across his pale face. He looked as crazed as a demon.
It was none other than Lynn's target-Joker.
Seeing his target, Lynn took a deep breath. Without hesitation, he charged forward with the woman's corpse slung over his shoulder.
"Boss, Batman's here!"
Batman?
Joker, who had been firing nonstop, froze at the words. Then the corners of his mouth rose uncontrollably, his smile growing more and more sinister.
Sure enough, his old adversary had arrived just as planned.
Joker lowered his guns and turned toward the Joker Gang member who had spoken.
The man wore a clown mask and a wool coat modeled after some cartoon character. Below that were garishly colorful shorts and a pair of flip-flops.
As if that weren't enough, he also had a woman who looked a little dead slung over his shoulder.
Once Joker got a good look at Lynn's outfit, the corners of his mouth twitched.
What the fuck was he wearing?
Did the Joker Gang have someone with such a bizarre sense of style?
Whatever. He was just cannon fodder. Batman was the priority right now.
Joker, an outstanding graduate of Arkham Asylum, asked his "underling":
"Where's Batman?"
"On the ceiling!"
As Lynn spoke, he took two steps forward, edging closer to the bag of money beside Joker.
Joker hastily looked up and, sure enough, spotted Batman lurking in an upper corner.
"Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho... Batman, I found you!"
When lovers met, blushes flared.
An unnatural flush spread across Joker's face. He raised his pistol and moved to pull the trigger on Batman.
Meeting Joker's deranged gaze, Batman's expression hardened. He prepared to leap down and put an end to this.
With his skills and the preparations he had made, all he had to do was guard against Joker's laughing gas, and this bank robbery would be over.
But then-
Thud!
A corpse slammed into Joker. Caught completely off guard, he was knocked flat beneath it.
While Joker was still dazed, a man's voice reached his ears.
"Thanks for robbing Gotham Bank for me, pal."
Lynn grabbed the bag of money and activated the Bolt character card at the same time.
Before the Joker Gang members could react, he took off at a dead sprint, disappearing from everyone's sight within seconds.
Hanging from the ceiling, Batman blinked, a trace of bewilderment lingering on his gloomy face.
As a seasoned superhero, Batman rarely smiled.
Yet, for some reason, seeing Joker get robbed made the corners of his mouth rise uncontrollably.
Wee-woo! Wee-woo! Wee-woo!
Shrill police sirens sounded outside.
Gritting his teeth, Joker shoved the corpse off himself with both hands.
"Holy shit! Mr. J, you got robbed!" Harley Quinn exclaimed in surprise.
The deathly white foundation on her face looked rather unsettling. Her red-and-black jester outfit hugged her rounded figure, showing off her lovely curves.
"I know, Harley. I don't need you to remind me!" Joker said through gritted teeth.
As an outstanding graduate of Arkham Asylum, he didn't care about getting robbed.
The problem was...
Batman was here!
Batman had seen him get robbed, too.
What would Batman think of him now?
Would he think Joker was nothing special, since some nobody had managed to snatch the spoils right out of his hands?
Fuck. I had to find that guy and settle the score!
[Personal funds: $10,680 → $110,680] [Mission progress: 50%]
"No wonder people say the most profitable methods are all written in the law books."
In a dark alley, Lynn rubbed his chin thoughtfully with his right hand.
"Taking people's money really is easier than getting them to pay up."
He opened the system's mission tab and checked the bank robbery mission again.
"Tch, just like those ads from that Mi company before I transmigrated. Robbing Joker only got me to exactly fifty percent. I still have to piss off Batman to finish this mission."
Left with no choice, Lynn pulled his phone from his pocket and continued pestering Batman through the communicator.
"Beep, beep, beep!"
The call was rejected instantly.
"Is he busy?"
Looking surprised, Lynn stared at the Nokia phone as it exited the dialing screen.
"Next time, I'll try calling at four in the morning and see if he's asleep."
Joker was still over at Gotham Bank anyway. He could head back in a bit.
As for whether Batman and the police might catch him, Lynn's stance was simple: could you even call yourself a player if you never spent any time in jail?
"I need a new outfit. This Pleasant Goat costume's stats aren't cutting it anymore."
With a thought, Lynn immediately changed into another outfit from his system inventory.
He looked at himself on his phone screen-bear head, armor made of iron plates, and skate shoes-and nodded in satisfaction.
"I'm a player. When I'm doing missions, I've got to max out my stats."
What player dressed like a normal person while doing missions and watching cutscenes?
Just as he was about to set off again, Lynn suddenly frowned.
"I've been in this alley for over ten minutes, and not a single mugger has come looking for me. Is this even Gotham?"
Something was wrong. Twelve-out-of-ten wrong.
Just then.
"Hey, buddy. How about lending me a little spending money?"
Oh~
That's more like it.
Lynn raised his head and looked ahead.
In the alley's dim light, a burly man wearing a hood, a face mask, and black sunglasses stood before him.
The man also held a Glock 17, which he was currently aiming at
Lynn.
Lynn's eyes lit up at the sight of the burly man.
He looked a little broke, but since he had a weapon, he qualified as a cannon-fodder teammate.
Pointing his index finger at the man, Lynn said as if it were the most natural thing in the world:
"You. You'll do. Come on, let's go make some big money."
The burly man, who had been preparing his mugging spiel, froze at those words.
"Huh?"
Lynn grabbed him.
"What do you mean, huh? Don't you want money? Joker just robbed Gotham Bank. We can just go rob him."
Although he had taken a hundred thousand dollars from Joker, surely the great Joker couldn't have stolen only that much.
Besides, wherever Joker was, Batman was bound to be there too.
If he wanted to anger Batman, he would have to find Joker again.
The burly man stared in bewilderment at the strangely dressed man.
Was this guy... messed up in the head?
Still, on second thought, robbing a bank did seem like a faster way to make money than mugging someone.
But Joker...
Who in Gotham didn't know Joker's fearsome reputation?
One wrong move, and that lunatic would put a bullet in you.
Seeing the man hesitate, Lynn urged him, "Think about your Audi, your wife's Dior, and your son's Oreos."
"How can you sleep at your age?"
The burly man: "..."
This guy was insane, wasn't he?
Just as he was about to shake his head.
Lynn pulled a rocket launcher out of nowhere.
Its dark muzzle pointed at the burly man. He could even smell the heavy weapon's strong scent of gunpowder.
The burly man swallowed and declared with righteous conviction, "Let's go. We'll rob Joker right now."
There was no reluctant submission to superior firepower here, only a burning desire for money.