thefictionvixens Chapter 167, Section 64: No Battle in the Midfield
Chapter 167, Section 64: No Battle in the Midfield
Chapter 167, Section 64: No Battle in the Midfield (End of the first half of the volume; the next part is about gathering manpower for a counterattack)
As dusk settled, Gotham City awoke from the turmoil of the snowy night.
A cold wind, carrying fine snowflakes, swept between the tall buildings. The crossroads still bore the scars of the battle: embers from a burned bus, rulers in snowdrifts, bullet holes in concrete walls—all testifying to the horrors of war.
It's hard to say that justice won this war. Although Qin Wei rescued the school bus from the clown, the GCPD fell back into the hands of the corrupt police gang. Although the identity of the Judgement Knight was not exposed, the villain leader, Matchstick Marlon, was wanted throughout the city.
Wanted posters bearing Qin Wei's image were plastered all over the streets and alleys, accompanied by images of the Knight of Judgment and the Red Hood.
The brave warriors who went against the wind were made accomplices of the clowns and made to take the blame for this turmoil.
Of course, some people spoke up for Qin Wei, such as the rescued kids.
The children protested loudly, trying to tell their parents that the wanted poster was not for a criminal, but for the great hero who had saved them.
But who would believe a child's words? And even if they did, is the truth really that important to adults who have long been numb?
The Joker remains at large, while the Owl Court continues its rampant activities.
The only good news might be that Reus listened to Qin Wei's advice and didn't act rashly. The Romans, who escaped the police crackdown, became a strong pillar for this scattered squad.
As for Oswald, he returned to the Copport family.
The four major houses of Gotham are the backbone of the Court of Owls. Now that the other heirs have passed away, the Court of Owls will inevitably try to win Oswald's support, and it is even possible that they will absorb Oswald.
Qin Wei vaguely felt that he could break through the Owl Court from Oswald's perspective, but he didn't have any good ideas yet.
The Joker made a brilliant move, completely exposing the Bat-Family and the Court of Owls to each other's view.
If Qin Wei wants to establish order, he will inevitably overthrow the court; in order to ensure the legitimacy of its rule and to find "that thing" mentioned by the Wayne ancestors, the court also needs the support of the Wayne family head.
From God's perspective, the conflict between the two sides is irreconcilable.
From a local perspective, however, this war was truly inexplicable; the Court of Owls believed that "Bruce" was avenging his parents.
Qin Wei, on the other hand, believed he had discovered evidence of the existence of the court and was being hunted down.
The Joker exploited the information gap and played this game in a spectacular fashion.
But in any case, with the great battle about to begin, Qin Wei didn't want to think too much about things that wouldn't affect the outcome.
There is only one thing he needs to do.
Win this war.
After bringing Jason and Harvey back to Oswald's mansion, Qin Wei drew up a long shopping list.
To escape the pursuit and harassment of the Claws, everyone had to live in the air-raid shelter of the mansion until the end of the war, so he had to prepare more daily necessities for everyone.
But among this long list of purchases was a book called "Indian Myths".
"What do you need this for?" Royce couldn't help but ask.
Qin Wei took a sip of coffee to refresh himself. To his right lay a towering stack of books, all of which he had devoured in the last three days. They ranged from Gotham history to supernatural tales, and even included several instructional books on how to use laboratory equipment.
"I want to know Diablo."
"What is Diablo?"
"A vengeful demon, worshipped by Native Americans."
Qin Wei closed the book and rubbed his eyelids.
He's under a lot of pressure.
It's a pipe dream to launch a counterattack against the Court of Owls with the existing manpower; the most urgent task is to find allies.
His primary target was the League of Assassins, who had a deep-seated hatred for the court. So, he found Talia when she came to pick Dick up from school, hoping to get a chance to meet Rayshoe.
But Lei Xiaogu seemed to have anticipated this, and he was the first to send a letter of polite refusal.
The letter was written with earnest words, but Qin Wei could detect a strong sense of suspicion between the lines.
Unless he is absolutely certain, Lei Xiaogu will not risk the remaining members of the Assassin Alliance playing this dangerous game with him.
However, Lei Xiaogu did help in some way; he wrote down all the information he had about owls in the letter.
These materials are far more comprehensive than those provided by Dick, detailing the organizational structure of the entire court. The head of the court is a group of six called the "Round Table." It is known that the four major Gotham families were initially involved, but with the withdrawal of the Wayne family, the Kane and Cobblepot families also withdrew.
The Elliott family now almost completely controls the Round Table group; in other words, Thomas Elliott, the current head of the Elliott family, is very likely one of the Round Table members.
Beneath the Round Table is a 12-member organization called the "Disagreement Tribunal," who are the "enforcers" in the court and are not subject to the Round Table's supervision. Their main function is to determine who is "detrimental" to the court. After a vote, they will awaken their claws to assassinate the "sinners."
The recent mobilization of all its forces was orchestrated by the Dispute Arbitration Tribunal.
As for the claws, they're quite simple; they're not even executioners, just a scythe of death.
In addition, the letter included the origin story of the Court of Owls.
"Jewish Merchant Corps and Native Americans—"
Qin Wei read aloud, tapping his fingers lightly on the table.
He thought of someone: Chato Santana, the fireman from Suicide Squad, known as "The Vengeful Demon".
In his mind, the demon possessing Chatto was called Diablo, one of the gods worshipped by the Native Americans.
"If believers were being slaughtered indiscriminately by the Onssa people, and you didn't feel any unease, why would you choose to possess a mortal's body?"
Qin Wei decided to go to the air-raid shelter to ask Mr. Hacker for help.
Oh no, I shouldn't call him Mr. Hacker anymore.
After the storm subsided, he found Mr. Hacker in a dimly lit alley, a twelve-year-old boy with beautiful blue eyes.
Tim Drake.
In a corner of the air-raid shelter were Selena's workout equipment: pull-ups, dumbbells, and a punching bag that Jason was hammering away at.
The dull thuds filled the underground space. Jason was shirtless, his sweat soaked through the waistband of his sweatpants, forming a puddle on the concrete floor.
Qin Wei did not disturb Jason's cultivation and went through the underground hall to the residential area.
Boom boom boom!
"Get out of here!"
A middle-aged man's panicked roar echoed from inside the house, accompanied by a woman's faint sobs.
To ensure the safety of Tim's family, Qin Wei also brought his parents over—well, "kidnapped" would be a more appropriate word, since he is now a notorious wanted criminal.
As we see now, Jack and Janet believe their child has fallen for a bad guy, a misunderstanding that won't be cleared up anytime soon.
But in reality, Qin Wei himself didn't expect that his cautious actions would actually save the two people.
The person sent out by the corrupt cops that night to deal with the hackers was Captain George of the Boomerangs. Without his help, Tim's parents would have met the same fate as those in the main world.
They will die at George's hands.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Wei, my parents won't let me open the door."
"It's alright, I'll just talk through the door!"
Qin Wei told Tim about his idea of finding Chato.
"Tim!! You must never work for bad people!"
Jack started arguing again inside, followed by Tim's tearful response.
"Dad, if I don't work for him—he'll kill us!"
The boy's acting was truly outstanding; even the kidnapper, Qin Wei, felt a pang of guilt.
"Sigh...maybe we should just let them go—wait, who's the kidnapper?!"
Qin Wei scratched his head awkwardly, when his phone vibrated in his pocket. It was a call from Royce.
"Boss, there's a guy who looks a lot like you who wants to see you."
People who look very alike?
Qin Wei's first thought was Matchstick Marlon, but how could Royce not recognize Matchstick Marlon? Also, Royce's voice on the other end of the phone sounded very uncomfortable, as if someone was choking him.
Did that person say their name?
"Thomas Wayne II!"
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