There is no Batman in Gotham City comics.

Chapter 168, Section 65: Thomas Wayne

Chapter 168, Section 65: Thomas Wayne

"This cigar has absorbed some moisture. That's how it is in Gotham; you have to take better care of them here for them to give you a good experience."

Thomas exhaled a puff of smoke toward the ceiling, his eyes half-closed as he sank into the sofa.

He wore a dark blue, wrinkled trench coat with mud splattered at the hem, over which was a pilling pale yellow knit sweater. His legs were crossed, and ripped, dark red socks peeked out from his trousers. Yet, this outfit, which looked as if it had been taken from a scavenger, could not conceal the menacing aura emanating from him. Just standing in front of him made Royce's heart race inexplicably.

After ruling out the possibility of falling in love at first sight with Isaiah Thomas, the older man felt he had met his match.

"Mr. Wayne, may I ask what the purpose of your trip is?"

Although the other party had said he wanted to see the boss when he entered, Royce knew that as a loyal subordinate, he should eliminate any potential threats to Qin Wei.

"I don't think I have that much to say to you. Please don't misunderstand, this is not arrogance, but rather out of consideration for safety."

H

Thomas turned his head, his gaze like a sophisticated scanner, sweeping from Reus's toes down to his face.

"Royce Ben, formerly Maroney's henchman, one of the three poorest men in the East End—" *spits out*

He said he wasn't arrogant, but his eyes were full of contempt.

"I know far more than you think, so don't test me; it won't do you any good. Now do as I say,"

Withdraw all those lying in ambush at the door, then bring Wei before me.

Thomas Jr. didn't seem to care. Perhaps because his parents died at Maroney's hands, he harbored a deep-seated hatred for gangsters and looked down on these scum who should be buried at the bottom of Gotham. Normally, being high and mighty, he would never have come into contact with these annoying guys, but these were extraordinary times, and he had to grit his teeth and try to get used to everything.

"Of course I can do that, but you have to take off this garment and then undergo a thorough body search by a specialist."

Royce clenched his fists, refusing to budge an inch. This was his only means of resisting the overwhelming aura emanating from young Thomas. At least he was certain of one thing: the aura his opponent exuded was a murderous aura, not the unintentional manifestation of someone harboring murderous intent, but rather a natural consequence of killing too many people.

Thomas Wayne II, the high-ranking chairman of Wayne Enterprises, where does this aura come from?

"Royce Ben, your answer greatly displeases me. If I could, I could easily kill you, but that would defeat the purpose of my coming here."

"I'm here to seek cooperation, so I will forgive your ignorance and recklessness, but only this once."

Thomas took off his jacket and draped it over his hand, then opened his arms to Reus.

"Come on, let's search you. Are you just standing there waiting for me to walk into your arms?"

Reus breathed a sigh of relief.

The dozen or so seconds that Thomas stared at him were torture for him.

He walked up to him, but just as he reached out to pat Thomas's pocket, his wrist was grabbed.

"I just lied, Royce Ben, and I will not forgive your ignorance and recklessness."

Looking down at his opponent with a condescending gaze, Thomas Jr. smirked and, to Royce's horrified dismay, delivered a kick. Royce's ribcage snapped with a sharp, chilling crack, and he fell to his knees in agony.

But in order not to alert the Romans lying in ambush outside, he didn't make a sound.

He hadn't forgotten what Thomas had just said about "cooperation".

Royce hadn't been able to help with the bus incident on the snowy night, so he was even less willing to ruin the cooperation. He knew his boss had been worrying about reinforcements these days, and if this matter could be accomplished, what did it matter if he got injured a little?

"Hopefully, this will make you feel better!"

Reus trembled all over from the intense pain, cold sweat dripping from his forehead onto the stall.

"Now—can I—can I continue the body search?"

Thomas frowned slightly, admitting that he had underestimated his opponent.

"Of course, please go ahead."

After confirming that Thomas was not carrying any weapons, Royce dialed Qin Wei's number, trying his best to suppress his rapid breathing throughout the call so that the other party would not notice.

Before Qin Wei arrived, he hurriedly left with the help of his subordinates.

Qin Wei met the guy who called himself Little Thomas in the reception room. To be honest, the two did look alike, but that didn't mean anything.

He also looks remarkably like Matchstick Marlon. Could these three be brothers?

"How can you prove your identity?"

Qin Wei got straight to the point, unceremoniously sitting down on the opposite sofa, resting his hands on the back of the chair and glancing sideways at Thomas.

"My identity is not important; what matters is what I'm doing."

Through the billowing smoke, Thomas frowned; Qin Wei's roguish posture greatly displeased him. He knew Qin Wei was a clone.

But ironically, this thing, which wasn't even human, shared the same blood as him. However, it seemed the other party was unaware of this, which suited Thomas well, as he didn't want to bring it up.

"So what are you going to do?" Qin Wei asked.

"Can't you use honorifics?!" Thomas finally lost his temper, squeezing the end of his cigar and staring through the smoke at Qin Wei.

It was indeed a fierce and menacing gaze, and the aura was quite imposing, but it had no effect on Qin Wei.

In the past six months, Qin Wei has killed quite a few villains.

"Ha~ That's ridiculous. This is my home, and I don't need you to set rules for me."

Qin Wei rolled his eyes and casually crossed his legs.

Thomas Jr. took a deep breath. He could go after Royce, but not his partner: "I want to bring you under my wing. Our goal is the Court of Owls. If you work for me, we can overthrow the Court's rule over Gotham."

"It sounds tempting, but why should I listen to you?"

"Because I'm the only one with information about the court." Thomas finally revealed his bargaining chip.

"How to deal with Claws, the structure and operation of the court, and which direction we should take to destroy the court—all of this is in my mind. All you have to do is become my henchman and clear away all obstacles in my path."

"Oh? You mean besides 'Amber Gold,' 'The Round Table,' and 'The Arbitration Tribunal,' there's something else I don't know?"

Upon hearing this, Thomas's pupils dilated; Qin Wei's intelligence network was far more extensive than he had imagined.

"Did Lei Xiaogu tell you that you were colluding with the Assassin's Guild?"

"The fact that you can ask this question shows that you don't know much more than I do."

Qin Wei leaned over the coffee table, crossing the "interpersonal safety" line, and looked directly into Thomas's eyes.

As their lights converged, Night Owl felt a slight sense of crisis.

Qin Wei promptly averted his gaze:

"I have a collaboration project here, what do you think? Join me, become my henchman, and clear away all obstacles in my path, but first, you have to show me if you have the ability."

He returned Thomas's words to him, which was tantamount to stabbing the latter in the back of his proud pride.

One by one!

Thomas stubbed out his cigarette on the wooden coffee table, his thumb swirling and rubbing the still-sparkling end of the cigar.

Are you provoking me?

"What a hypocrite! I was just repeating what you said."

Qin Wei put on that indifferent look again and lazily sank into the sofa.

In fact, no matter how tempting the offer from Thomas Jr., he would never risk his life for the other party, even if what the other party said was true. He doubted everything; how could someone as cunning as Qin Wei possibly entrust his life to him?

The two men were remarkably similar in this respect, so the negotiations were doomed to fail from the outset.

"Wei, you're nothing but a pathetic clone. You look like my brother, but you're copying me in your behavior!"

"Perhaps you don't know why the name of the Judgment Knight spread so quickly and so widely!"

"Because I started doing this many years ago, donning black clothes and blending into the streets and alleys, I—"

"But you didn't avenge Thomas and Martha."

Qin Wei's words seemed casual, but they were actually a deadly blow to the heart.

Thomas's facial muscles began to twitch violently, which was proof enough.

Qin Wei was right; Isaiah Thomas couldn't bring himself to harm Maroney. Both men belonged to the Court of Owls, and if he insisted on revenge, he would be betraying the court, and all his years of feigned brainwashing and forbearance would be wasted.

"I slaughtered the entire Dissent Arbitration Tribunal!"

The man suddenly raised his voice, trying to use the decibels to cover up his inner anxiety and unease.

But Qin Wei still responded casually:

"Very impressive, but Maroni died at my hands."

"Killing Maroni won't make a difference; he's just a pawn!!!"

"I know, but I killed him. You keep saying I'm just a clone."

Qin Wei stood up with Thomas and stretched.

"But I did what the person in question couldn't do, which makes the whole thing quite dramatic."

The man grabbed his coat from the sofa and stormed off, deeply hurt by Qin Wei's words.

Due to being brainwashed by the drugs administered by the Court of Owls, he was unable to experience any positive emotions, such as love, family affection, friendship, being moved, excitement, or joy.

The owl that roams through the night can only relieve the pressure in his heart, but it cannot fill the heart that has long since dried up.

So he found a goal in his confused life: to avenge his parents, even though he had no feelings for Thomas and Martha.

He still put in an effort that most people couldn't imagine.

But just now, Qin Wei ruthlessly tore off his bloody disguise.

Yes, a compassionate person, a dark hero who considers himself a knight of judgment, actually let the murderer who killed his parents go unpunished for more than twenty years.

From this perspective, the whole thing is indeed quite dramatic.

Just as Thomas's hand was about to touch the doorknob, Qin Wei's voice rang out from behind him.

Unlike his previous nonchalant tone, Qin Wei lowered his voice this time.

"Now that we've finished discussing that matter, let's move on to the next one, which concerns Royce and your attack on my men on my turf."