"Bruce, what's wrong with you? What are you doing?"
"Who are you? What I do has nothing to do with you!"
Clark had good intentions, but Bruce didn't appreciate it at all. He picked up a bottle from the ground and drank directly from it.
But the bottle was empty. Bruce tipped it for a long time without a single drop of alcohol, then tossed it aside.
"Alcohol! Alfred, where's my alcohol!"
"Are you sure he's the one we're looking for?"
"I'm very sure, Diana. Don't let him being a drunk fool you. He's a smart man when he's sober."
However, Dane quickly felt that something was off. Looking at Bruce, he hadn't been like this for just a day or two.
With him not leaving the house for so long, how chaotic must Gotham be?
"This city gives me a very bad feeling. It's eerie and damp."
Diana precisely pointed out Gotham's characteristics.
"Don't underestimate this place. The villains who come from here may not be incredibly powerful, but they almost all have a few unique tricks up their sleeves."
"Some people can even get their hands on nuclear warheads. If Batman hadn't dealt with it in time, there would have been a spectacular fireworks show here."
"But when we just arrived, it was clearly calm and nothing was happening."
"That's why I'm even more worried. In a place like Gotham, calm is more terrifying than chaos."
"Because you don't know what's hidden beneath the calm surface."
"It seems you know Gotham very well."
This was said by Bruce, who seemed completely drunk. No one expected him to actually be sober.
"When did you wake up?"
Clark stared at him dumbfounded, feeling like an idiot.
"From the moment you entered this mansion."
Bruce roughly pushed Clark's hand away and simply ran a hand through his hair.
Dane mused, "How many surveillance cameras have you installed in this mansion?"
Bruce said coldly, "Everywhere you can see. All right, now it's my turn to ask. Who are you?"
"We are the Justice League!"
Clark puffed out his chest proudly.
Bruce nodded, though it was unclear if he had truly listened, then he continued to ask:
"How did you know my true identity?"
"Oh, that? Actually, many people in Gotham know your true identity."
As Dane spoke, Bruce's face twitched, and Dane continued to twist the knife:
"You see, Batman's gadgets, high-tech equipment, and so on, all cost money, right?"
"He's out every night, which proves he has enough free time."
"Rich and idle, plus Bruce Wayne just returned to Gotham, and Batman started appearing. And most importantly..."
Dane looked at him with a strange expression:
"Did you really think that by covering the upper half of your face, no one would recognize your chin? Your chin dimple is very obvious."
A chin dimple, commonly known as a cleft chin, is a very distinct groove on the chin.
Bruce's groove was quite deep, a very strong personal identifier.
In fact, the villains in Gotham who hadn't discovered Batman's true identity were mostly unfamiliar with Bruce Wayne; otherwise, they would have recognized him at a glance.
At this moment, after hearing Dane's analysis, Bruce's face had completely darkened, and his stoic expression almost broke.
He could only barely maintain his dignity, saying in a low voice, "What do you want to do by coming here?"
"Do you have phlegm in your throat? Why do you talk like that?"
This time, Bruce really couldn't keep his composure. Who are you? It's very impolite to keep exposing people's flaws, you know?
"I don't!"
"Ah, that's better. We're all on the same side, why put on an act?"
Bruce turned his head, not wanting to talk to Dane anymore.
Diana and Clark both secretly chuckled, thinking Dane was too harsh.
It was then that Dane became serious: "We came to invite you to join the Justice League."
"Justice League? Is this some third-rate Boy Scout organization?"
Bruce scoffed, dismissively.
Dane's eyes shifted, and he nodded thoughtfully:
"You're right, the three of us are 'Boy Scouts.'"
"But no matter what, we wouldn't treat criminals like a game of make-believe, catching them, releasing them, and then catching them again, endlessly..."
Bruce looked at Dane with bloodshot eyes: "What do you know! What right do you have to say that!"
Dane calmly uttered a few names: "Rachel, Barbara, Jason..."
With each name spoken, Bruce's demeanor weakened a bit.
The strong, capable facade he had put on quickly dissipated, and he reverted to his drunken stupor.
"I admire your adherence to the 'no-kill' rule, but your method of execution is too extreme."
Dane spoke without mercy.
"You clearly know that some criminals are beyond redemption, and procedural justice cannot sentence them to death. That's why Gotham is so chaotic."
"This city itself lacks the resolve to punish evil, which is why it needs you, Batman, to help it exercise this necessary 'justice.'"
Isn't executing murderers a necessary form of "justice"?
These words made Clark frown deeply; he leaned more towards Batman's "no-kill" principle.
But his reasons differed from Batman's; Clark inherently disliked killing.
Diana, on the other hand, strongly agreed with Dane's words.
For her, if necessary, physically eliminating enemies was the simplest and most effective means.
Legitimate violence is always needed, and precisely because ordinary people cannot do it, they hope that "heroes" can do it for them.
To help them carry out the simple justice in their hearts.
"No, we can't do that..."
Bruce murmured to himself:
"We must have a bottom line, to prevent us from becoming like criminals. If even we lose control, who else can stop us? What kind of justice is justice stained with blood?"
"We have no right to take other people's lives, even if they are criminals..."