In the backstage dressing room, Zatara was sitting in a leather chair, eyes closed in rest, with beads of sweat from his performance still on his forehead.
Suddenly, a grey mist appeared out of nowhere, swirling and gathering in the air.
A note drifted down from the mist, landing steadily in his hand.
Zatara first cautiously looked around, and after confirming that there was no one else present besides his daughter, he curiously unfolded the note.
The handwriting on the note was somewhat distorted, clearly indicating that the person who wrote it was not in a particularly good environment.
It only contained one sentence and a signature: Brucey has been swapped. You and Zatanna should come help my father and mother watch the imposter later. Do not alert them.
Gwen.
Seeing this, Zatanna, who had come closer, looked at the words on the note with a blank expression.
The little girl was only 4 years old and couldn't write yet.
But she understood that a note sent to her father using Backwards Magic, no matter what it said, must be important...
Gwen calmly glanced at Brucey, and after saying something to Thomas and Martha, she also started walking towards the restroom.
But from an angle they couldn't see, Gwen's brows were deeply furrowed.
Sitting in her seat earlier, she had already noticed something was amiss.
Brucey had clearly returned to her seat from the restroom, but the location of Brucey's bracelet on the Omnitrix had not returned.
If she hadn't been afraid of alerting them, Gwen would probably have directly grabbed the fake Brucey's neck and demanded to know where the real Brucey was.
As expected... she hadn't overreacted.
The Wayne Family always encountered trouble whenever they went out.
Just like a certain God of Death elementary school student.
Taking a deep breath, Gwen pushed open the door and entered the women's restroom.
A scent of high-end perfume intertwined with elegant incense, mixed with a faint, almost imperceptible smell of disinfectant, wafted towards her.
The crystal wall lamps overhead emitted a soft, warm light, illuminating the entire restroom.
The walls were tiled with black and gold marble tiles featuring exquisite patterns, gleaming faintly under the light, giving a feeling of extravagant decadence.
The doors of the three stalls were ajar, and Gwen checked them one by one, but there was no sign of Brucey being abducted.
Just then, with a 'bang', the restroom door was shut.
Gwen instinctively turned her head and saw the newcomer locking the door.
It was a burly man.
His face was meaty, veins bulging on his neck. He first froze when he saw Gwen, then asked into his earpiece: "Weren't we supposed to catch the younger daughter? Why is the older daughter in the restroom?"
"The older one is mine to dispose of? Good!" The other end seemed to have said something, and the burly man released his finger from the earpiece, a playful smile appearing on his face, like a cat that had caught its prey, slowly approaching Gwen.
He deliberately slowed his steps, his leather boots thudding heavily on the ground, making dull sounds that echoed in the confined space.
His gaze was like that of someone observing a trapped mouse, seemingly certain that Gwen had no escape.
But Gwen remained unhurried, her expression normal, as she slowly retreated backward, raising her left hand with the watch to her front.
After retreating to the wall of the restroom, she still sincerely advised, "Sir, did you make a mistake? This is the women's restroom."
Hearing this, the burly man raised an eyebrow.
The girl in front of him was too calm, completely unlike how ordinary girls react to danger.
But then he looked closely at her age... If a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl encountered such a situation, it would be understandable to react calmly.
But clearly, the little girl in front of him was only about 4 years old; at this age, no matter how good her psychological state, she shouldn't be so calm.
What the burly man didn't know was that Gwen was genuinely very calm.
The burly man's earlier statement, "Weren't we supposed to catch the younger daughter? Why is the older daughter in the restroom?" clearly indicated that their capture operation was not yet complete.
If Brucey had been successfully caught, these people would have achieved their goal and would not still be distinguishing between the older and younger daughters, nor would they send the burly man to search the restroom.
She had originally intended to give the other party an out; if they had retreated directly, she would have rushed to find Brucey.
Since the other party wasn't giving Wayne that respect, then... looking at the silhouette with 4 arms that appeared on her watch, although she felt it was a bit disheartening for her first appearance to be against such a small-time thug, still... her eyes were like burning torches, looking directly at the burly man, a mocking smile playing on her lips, "Let me think... it seems you enjoy bullying others, don't you?"
As soon as her voice fell, she decisively slapped the popped-up watch dial and shouted, "Hero transformation!"
The watch emitted an intense purple light, which spread rapidly like nimble purple flames, enveloping the entire restroom.
Within the purple light, Gwen's body began to transform.
As the light gradually dissipated, a tall woman suddenly appeared before the burly man.
She was dressed in a black and white, suit-style leotard.
Her skin was like scorching magma, appearing fiery red.
Her two pairs of golden eyes were bright and spirited, and her ear-length short hair was neat and sharp.
Although her muscles weren't as exaggerated as those of a bodybuilder, they still exuded a sense of explosive power.
Besides her two pairs of golden eyes, what was most striking were her four robust arms.
If one had to describe her, she was quite similar to the Tetramand princess in 'Ultimate Alien'.
Honestly, if one could accept two pairs of eyes and 4 arms, she would probably fit some people's preferences.
No kidding, she was really cool.
Most importantly, Four Arms, who is inherently a strength-based hero, has a specific characteristic.
In his alien race, the Tetramand, females are stronger than males.
Seeing her inhuman appearance, the burly man's legs couldn't help but tremble slightly, and a hint of fear flashed in his eyes.
Gwen noticed this and revealed a knowing smile, then spoke.
Gwen's voice, transformed into Four Arms, naturally was no longer the little girl's original tone.
That slightly hoarse, mature female voice broke the silence in the restroom: "What, you wouldn't only dare to target little girls, would you?"
After saying that, she even crooked her finger, her provocative clear.
The burly man was already scared, but hearing this provocation, anger instantly clouded his mind.
He let out a roar, like a raging bull, recklessly charging towards Four Arms, attempting to use his familiar fighting method to preemptively knock her down.
Four Arms curled her lip into a sneer, and slowly raised her Four Arms...
"Thud!" A muffled, heavy sound boomed from the restroom, likely the sound of something heavy violently hitting the wall.
Unfortunately, the soundproofing in this restroom was good, and the door must have used some special material, so the sound was greatly weakened, with only a little escaping.
And this was just the beginning.
Inside the restroom, heart-wrenching screams began to rise and fall.
One after another, each louder than the last.
Ten minutes later, a red light suddenly flashed inside the restroom.
"Creak," the restroom door slowly opened, and Gwen walked out composedly, water still dripping from her hands.
She unhurriedly pulled out a tissue, wiped the water from her hands, her eyes calm, as if nothing had just happened.
In contrast, inside one of the small stalls in the restroom, the burly man lay sprawled on the ground, battered and bleeding from his head.
His face was fine, except for blood still clinging to the corner of his mouth; he wasn't really injured elsewhere.
But his entire clothes were torn to shreds, and he looked utterly miserable.
On the surrounding walls, conspicuous cracks in the marble were even more shocking, making it seem as if someone had been swinging a sledgehammer at them.
But to smash it like that, the sledgehammer probably would have been ruined too, right?
Sledgehammer - no, the burly man: Do you think you're so funny?