Floyd's pupils contracted sharply as he stared at the man before him.
His daughter Zoe was the one person no one could touch, but she was also his weakness.
As a mercenary, his own life was already a tangled mess. He didn't want Zoe to end up like him.
But the man before him had specifically investigated him. If he refused the man's demands, Zoe could very well get hurt.
"You're threatening me with my daughter?"
Floyd stared at Lynn, enunciating every word.
"Zoe is the only person I care about now. Do you know what happens when one of the world's top mercenaries has nothing left to lose?"
Lynn raised an eyebrow. "A wise man knows when to yield. I'm sure you know what you want."
Floyd sneered. "Are you Japanese?"
"Why are you insulting me?"
Lynn's brows knitted tightly.
"And even if you wanted to insult me, did you have to say something that offensive?"
He was a transmigrator from China, not to mention a player. How could he possibly be Japanese?
"Believe it or not, I can have your daughter kidnapped and sent to Arkham Asylum. There are plenty of pedophiles there. I'm sure your daughter-"
"Stop, stop!" Floyd hurriedly interrupted him. "Don't fucking finish that sentence."
Just listening to the man's words made images of his daughter being abused spring unbidden into his mind.
Anything but that... please!
He took a deep breath, steadied himself, and explained:
"The people I hate most are the Japanese. And they love saying 'a wise man knows when to yield' in broken Chinese."
Hearing Floyd's broken Chinese, Lynn finally realized it had been a misunderstanding.
"Even so, you shouldn't use such an offensive insult. You've hurt my feelings now.
"Join our Bat Gang, then transfer me three hundred thousand for emotional damages. Otherwise, I'll have you arrested and send your daughter to Arkham Asylum."
Floyd: "..."
You want me to join you and pay you?
Isn't this fucking robbery?
"Why should-"
"I'm sure the sickos in Arkham Asylum would love her."
Floyd clenched his teeth and swallowed a "fuck you." "I'll join."
"Good. A wise man knows when to yield." Lynn smiled and nodded.
[Currently recruited NPCs: Harley Quinn, Selina Kyle, Floyd Lawton] [You may view the recruited NPCs' individual panels]
Lynn opened Deadshot Floyd's individual panel.
[NPC: Floyd Lawton] [Status: Mentally stable] [Assets: 3,768,075 U.S. dollars] [Skills: Beyond-Visual-Range Sniping, Ricochet Shot, Rapid-Fire Headshot, Mastery of All Firearms, Modification Expert, Strategic Command, Military Combat, Disguise and Infiltration...] [Items: Modified Barrett M82, X-Ray Tactical Goggles, explosive bullets...] [Affinity: -30]
I have to admit, Deadshot's skills are pretty impressive, Lynn thought.
He remembered that in one DC comic, Deadshot had even shot The Flash while he was running. He was practically the greatest marksman in the DC Universe.
But one thing puzzled him-
Why was his affinity negative?
Was it just because he had threatened Deadshot with his daughter and then extorted three hundred thousand dollars from him?
What a petty guy!
[Main Quest "Recruit Members for the Bat Gang" completed] [Rewards obtained: Harley Quinn affinity +20, Yan Shuangying Character Card ×1 (I bet your gun... has no bullets!), Beretta 92 (unlimited ammunition edition)]
Lynn raised his eyebrows slightly at the blue system notification that suddenly appeared before him.
"Looks like Harley succeeded on her end too."
"What exactly does your Bat Gang do?" Floyd asked curiously.
Lynn waved a hand. "Never mind that. You can go home now. I'll let you know when something comes up."
Floyd: "..."
Why did he feel like he'd just signed on with a crew of crooks?
A few days later, at Zeus Securities in the Diamond District.
The neon sign glimmered faintly. Beneath it, streetwalkers leaned against the alley entrance, gazing at passing pedestrians with desire written all over their faces.
Floyd stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, his eyes fixed on the two airships floating above the city like enormous whales.
"So this is our base, and the Bat Gang's first mission is to rob Joker and Riddler?"
He wore his custom metal armor, a metal helmet, and X-Ray Tactical Goggles, with several of his usual guns beside him.
"Of course." Lynn nodded.
Floyd: "..."
Would any sane person rob those two broke lunatics?
With that much time and effort, we might as well head to Wayne Tower, rob Bruce Wayne, and make a real score.
Harley chewed bubble gum, twirling an adamantium club in her right hand.
"Why does this club feel a little like... a human bone?"
Beside her, Lynn silently rubbed the nose of his Baldy Bear Mask.
You guessed right. That's one of Zombie Wolverine's bones.
Ever since killing Venom Wolverine last time, he had kept his skeleton.
Unfortunately, he hadn't found a way to melt adamantium, so he could only dismantle the skeleton and give the bones to his NPC teammates as weapons.
She wasn't the only one. Catwoman, Selene, had also switched to Zombie Wolverine's adamantium claws.
Selene stared at the coldly gleaming metal claw mechanism on her hand, extending and retracting the claws at will.
Her eyes shone as she turned to Lynn beside her and asked curiously:
"These sharp claws work much better than my old ones. And... they're incredibly hard and sharp. Where did you get them?"
"Oh, I took them off a corpse."
Catwoman: "..."
Ignoring Catwoman's reproachful gaze, Lynn looked up at the quest panel before him.
[Story Quest: Robbery] [Quest description: Unable to solve your riddle, Riddler has chosen to cooperate with Joker to plunge Gotham City into panic and prove that he is the true Riddler. Lead your Bat Gang to rob them.] [Quest rewards: Experience +100, Gotham Reputation +50, affinity with all Bat Gang members +20, random items ×2, random Character Card ×1]
How is a story quest different from a main quest?
Lynn was puzzled. He remembered that most of his previous quests had been daily quests, side quests, main quests, or boss quests.
He had never encountered story quests or event milestones before. What had triggered this story quest?
[Story quests are related to NPCs the player interacts with. When an NPC's affinity reaches a certain threshold, a story quest will become available.]
"So that's how it works."
Lynn figured this story quest had probably become available because Harley's affinity had reached a certain level.
"Are you sure the Justice League and those lunatics won't team up against us?"
An articulate female voice interrupted Lynn's thoughts.
He turned to see a tall, voluptuous woman with long, flame-red hair leaning against the wall, watching him with languid eyes.
Her pale skin had a green tint, and the plants beside her were covered in blossoms. She looked like a flower fairy straight out of a fairy tale.
In reality, however, she was no flower fairy. She was the deadly Poison Ivy, who could control plant growth.
The air around her contained all kinds of plant spores, which her power could turn into towering trees at any moment.
She could even control scraps of plant matter in people's stomachs, making them take root and sprout inside their bodies.
Green Lantern Hal Jordan had once had plants shoved up his ass under Poison Ivy's control, leaving him with diarrhea for days.
"Relax. The Justice League probably won't come after us." Lynn shook his head.
Anyone else might have been wary of Poison Ivy's powers, or even afraid.
But he had never turned his cheats off since activating them, so he wasn't afraid of her at all.
"Why?" Poison Ivy and Catwoman asked, looking puzzled.
It wasn't just them. Deadshot Floyd also turned toward Lynn, apparently eager to hear his explanation.
"It's very simple."
Lynn explained with a perfectly serious expression.
"Joker and Riddler are both supercriminals, the sort of criminal scum superheroes are supposed to fight.
"By robbing them, we're fighting criminal scum too. So in a sense, we're superheroes as well, and the Bat Gang is also the Justice League."
Poison Ivy: "..."
Catwoman: "..."
Deadshot: "..."
Is... is that how it works?
Why did they feel like something was off?