Gotham City, Wayne Manor.
Bruce Wayne was carefully frying steak.
He had always been rough in dealing with enemies and criminals, but when it came to the steak in front of him, he became gentle.
"Master Bruce, you're in a very good mood today."
Alfred, after folding Bruce's latest clothes and putting them in the wardrobe, said to him.
"Yes, once I have some leisure time, I try to divert my attention and engage in things different from what I deal with all day. For example, gourmet cooking, playing the piano, or cycling on the streets."
"Hmm, that certainly counts as a way to de-stress, but Master, haven't you been exercising your body recently? High-intensity training requires a strict diet. I've already hired a nutrition expert to create recipes and meal plans for you. Haven't you been following them?"
"Actually, I can't quite tolerate it."
Bruce stood up, facing the butler who was walking towards him, "We've all heard the saying – 'Batman' is never picky about food, but there are two principles I must adhere to: 'Batman never eats fish' and 'Batman never eats pie'. The meal plan prescribed by the nutritionist includes a bit too much of these two things."
"Hmm,"
Alfred thought for a moment and said, "Those reasons sound very much like your style, Master. But don't you love junk food the most? Hamburgers, cola, fries, potato chips. If you didn't have work and were left in the Batcave, you'd spend all day with those things."
Alfred mercilessly exposed Bruce's sophistry.
"Is that so?"
Bruce continued, without batting an eye, "That's just a way to supplement nutrition. Junk food and coffee can quickly help me recover my strength."
"But I often see you, Master, eating potato chips while watching satellite surveillance to observe criminal movements in Gotham, which seems like passing leisure time. That doesn't require much physical strength."
Alfred continued to joke with Bruce Wayne, whom he had watched grow up.
"..."
Facing the butler's joke, Bruce fell silent.
He felt it was best not to discuss food in front of Alfred anymore.
Alfred would not only supervise his healthy eating but also constantly make him English dishes.
Especially a famous English dish Alfred made – Stargazy Pie!
A group of fish, eyes wide open in death, made into a dish, all looking up at the sky. This kind of cuisine looked full of evil aura.
It felt even more unnamable and terrifying than the dark entities in the cthulhu books he read!
Just thinking about that dish made his stomach churn uncomfortably.
"Master, weren't you dealing with some strange people before? It seems you've been getting along quite well recently."
Alfred changed the subject, asking him about the Wonder Woman trio.
"Our current relationship isn't quite friends. We both maintain some suspicion and testing of each other."
Bruce placed the medium-rare steak on the plate, "If you meet a future friend, even if he swears that you will be trustworthy friends in the future, you will still have doubts about the future he speaks of."
Bruce's voice was a bit low, "I remember my father often told me when I was little that the future is just a dream away. I deeply doubt such an unrecognizable future, a future where everything suddenly changes, and no trace of the present can be found. Just like this Gotham City…"
He turned his gaze to the city outside, "If I wake up and see a Gotham where some external changes have occurred, I would easily accept it. But if I wake up and see a completely different Gotham, I would become suspicious."
"I understand what you mean, Master Bruce."
Alfred lowered his hands and nodded at Bruce, "Too distant a change gives people a sense of absurdity and unreality. But you still trust them, I can feel it, otherwise, you wouldn't have been working so hard for them these past two days, investigating the intelligence they want to obtain."
"Perhaps."
Bruce had finished frying all the steaks and turned to Alfred, asking, "Would you like a bottle of red wine, Alfred?"
"No, Master Bruce."
Alfred politely declined Bruce's red wine, "I still need to prepare dinner, so it's not suitable for me to drink red wine. Perhaps you, Master, can enjoy red wine with dinner."
"That works too."
Bruce nodded, just about to say something else, when the phone in the room rang.
Putting down the tableware, Bruce walked over and picked up the phone.
After a few words with the person on the other end, he hung up, his expression serious.
"What happened, Master?"
Alfred walked over and asked.
"Something happened in Metropolis."
Bruce frowned slightly, "Wayne Bank in Metropolis was robbed."
Metropolis, an deserted alley.
Clark took off his black stocking mask, picked up the bulging wallet, and prepared to leave.
Continuously buying luxury cars, spending at top nightclubs, staying in five-star hotels every day, facing such high expenses.
Clark disdained working and lacked the patience for slower ways of making money, so he could only maintain his lifestyle by robbing banks.
The bank he had just robbed was a private bank, rumored to be headquartered in Gotham City, Wayne Bank.
Now, national banks are setting up more and more security guards. There's no choice but to target banks that appear to have smaller business scales and fewer security personnel.
Although he didn't care about any security force, he would keep a low profile if he could.
After all, if it led to a helicopter chase and the matter escalated, it would not be conducive to his future open debauchery.
Not to mention whether the police would investigate him, he was most afraid of Eric discovering him and coming to subdue him.
Although he seemed reckless now, deep down, he was still a bit afraid of his younger brother. After all, the last time he wore the red kryptonite ring, he was beaten by the other party and eventually forced to take off the ring, returning to being the normal Clark.
"Whoosh!"
A dark shadow unfolded in front of him, followed by the sound of a cape sweeping through the air.
A hint of solemnity flashed in Clark's eyes.
Although he was wearing the red kryptonite ring, he showed no carelessness in terms of combat alertness and caution.
"Who?"
Clark took a step forward, looking into the dark shadows ahead.
"I've already seen you. If you want to keep hiding, I don't mind using my eyes to make you have nowhere to hide!"
Clark said impatiently.
He didn't like these guys who hid their faces.
Thud!
Batman descended from the shadows, his feet landing on the ground, his gaze sharp as he looked at the reckless Clark.
"Clark Kent?"
Batman's hoarse voice came from within.
"Do you know me, Batman?"
Clark saw Batman for the first time and had no special feelings for this future Justice League partner.
He just thought the battle suit the other person was wearing was a bit comical.
"May I ask why you dress up like this?"
Clark asked in a very annoying manner.
"It's not Halloween, so why do you have to wear something so strange, especially those two pointy little ears? They look like the animal dolls I bought at home, with both ears perked up, giving a feeling of seriousness mixed with comedy."
Clark mocked Batman's ears.
After putting on the red kryptonite ring, what changed and amplified was not only Clark's selfish thoughts and desires, making him a selfish person, but also simultaneously turning Clark into a reckless and very hurtful scoundrel.
"I know your brother, Clark Kent."
Batman did not dwell on Clark's words but instead brought up Eric.
"Although equally arrogant, in some respects, he possesses a rationality that even makes me wary. He understands Gotham, seemingly more than anyone understands darkness, but you are different."
Batman also launched a precise strike at Clark.
"You are completely and utterly buried in darkness. You cannot control darkness; you have merely become its subservient."
Batman's deliberately disguised hoarse voice came through.
"Now, I'm going to settle a score with you. Wayne Bank lost a total of 1.1 million in cash, two glass doors were shattered, a public piano was damaged, three safes were smashed, three bank security personnel suffered minor injuries and fractures, and five customers sustained varying degrees of minor injuries."
Batman's voice was filled with calm indifference, "I think you need to confess your actions to me!"
"Why confess to you, not to God?"
Clark asked in confusion.
Without waiting for Batman to answer, the scoundrel Clark instantly rushed in front of Batman.
His right fist went straight for Batman.
Using his natural intuition and combat experience, Batman began to move before Clark did.
The grappling hook in his hand shot out!
Bang!
The grappling hook slammed hard against the wall, and Batman pulled the grappling hook to swing his body over.
Clark, who remained in place and missed Batman, paused for a moment.
The next second, Batman quickly charged in front of Clark, taking advantage of the other's momentary pause, and punched him.
Bang!
A dull sound rang out. Batman's fist was tightly gripped by Clark, who had turned around at some unknown moment.
"Is that all?"
A sneer appeared on Clark's lips.
With his fist gripped by Clark, Batman did not panic and immediately used his most common "Proper Lady Kick"!
He lifted both feet, jumped up, and kicked at Clark in a slightly undignified pose.
But this level of attack still couldn't harm him. Clark reached out and instantly broke one of Batman's small ears.
.
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