Chapter 2190: Battle of the Twin Cities! (31)_1

What is Batman doing at this time?

In fact, he didn't follow the rest of us since Gotham descended into hell. It's not because his disease significantly improved. It's not because he has a less compulsive control over Gotham. It's because he simply couldn't come back.

On one hand, in the New 52 Universe, the Green Lantern Corps and Apokolips Corps are in the heat of a battle. After Wonder Woman and Superman join the fight, they consult Batman on almost every move they make. As the brain of the Justice League, Batman has to stay at the Justice League headquarters, supervising the war so that the two main fighters don't deviate from their mission even when not being at the frontline himself.

On the other hand, Batman's main reason for staying on Earth is because Thomas and Martha need him to take over the Earth-based assets of Wayne Enterprises, while also flipping houses for them in the New Gotham.

Actually, the final point is the most important one. House flipping is extremely profitable. Batman may be mentally ill, but now he is a mentally ill person with parents.

If Mr. and Mrs. Wayne were to request a psychiatric hospital to prepare a psychiatric diagnosis report for Batman, he would be declared legally incompetent, and his parents would become his legal guardians. From a legal standpoint, they could have him committed to Arkham Asylum.

If that were to happen, Batman would certainly resist, but most importantly, with his tortoise speed, he wouldn't be able to argue with Thomas, Martha, Robin, or Alfred.

So, he has to stay and take care of the family business for his parents.

Of course, there will be people who will argue that Gotham is a coastal city. When Sky City Gotham flew up, it took about dozens of meters of the foundation with it, and even though that doesn't sound like much, a coastal city sinking by that much would certainly be devastating. The city would be submerged by the sea.

But that's assuming the sea would be willing. Apparently, the sea is not willing at all.

To avoid flipping houses, Batman sought out Arthur, the Aquaman. He's the main cause Gotham hasn't been swallowed by the sea.

After Gotham flew up into the sky, the seawater around it did not obey the laws of physics, but it froze there in the tide, creating a unique water wall.

Batman expressed his doubts to Arthur who continuously shook his head according to what the Batman said and made it clear that for the sake of the harmonious relationship between sea and land, they were even willing to let the sea around Gotham recede over 200 meters and sign a treaty pledging that Gotham would never be submerged.

You must be joking. The fish in Gotham's waters have seen the world. The people of Gotham would discharge all sorts of waste into the sea, and the fish there had been diligently accumulating resistance to toxins and medications. Now you wanted these fish to rush to the middle of a cesspool. The moment Gotham took flight, the fish in the vicinity of 200 miles started fleeing in the night with rocks on their backs.

So, Batman had to stay behind to handle the chaotic business migration and real estate development.

These tasks were already tedious enough, but the battling Wonder Woman and Superman in the Universe still regarded him as a tortoise in a wishing well, insisting on consulting Batman even when they just wanted to fly forward one meter.

Batman, with his resolute willpower, was also getting tired of this life. During his phone calls with the Robins, he suggested countless times for the Robins to call him back.

But for some reason, either Jason or Damian was the one answering the phone. The more understanding birds in the Batcave never picked up the phone.

Batman knew that these crafty little birds must have been cheating in their "Who will answer Batman's call?" competitions. In the end, only Damian and Jason, who were more direct in their temperaments and characters, lost the contest and answered his call.

One day, Batman was once again huddled in his office, looking at a pile of Gotham New City urban planning reports sent over by the mayor of Metropolis.

How would Batman summarize the level of city planning? Even now, he has to say "the Court of Owls would have done a much better job."

As he sorted through the municipal planning map for gold, his communicator suddenly rang. He picked it up and saw that it's a call from Dick.

"Hello?" Batman actually took the initiative to speak after he picked up the phone. He and Dick hadn't talked on the phone for a long time. Recently, he's been keeping in touch with Jason.

"Uh, Batman, are you free right now? I have something to tell you," Dick's calm voice came from the other side,"Joker wants you to come back."

Batman immediately frowned, for he has repeatedly stressed to the Robins never to approach Joker. Just as he was about to say something, he heard Dick speaking again,

"Don't worry. I didn't get kidnapped or manipulated. I'm totally sober. Um...it goes like this...,"

Dick then gave Batman a summary of the recent situation in Gotham, and how Red Hood and Red Robin had brought Joker back when they went off to explore.

Even though Dick didn't describe what happened to the Joker, Batman could imagine that, more or less, the city had fallen into chaos after the fusion, and Joker wanted to watch his fun again.

Accepting Joker's invitation was not a good thing, but Batman was indeed worried about Gotham's current situation. After some thought, he decided to go back and have a look.

Just then the secretary knocked on the door and came in. Batman put down his phone and signaled her to speak. The secretary nodded and said,"Mr. Mayor has violated our agreement and did not choose the bid from Kane Enterprises in Reed Bay development project bidding. Instead, he chose a Metropolis based company."

"According to our investigation, the Mayor's nephew is the majority shareholder of this company. The company was only registered a month ago. It claims to have 40 employees, but in fact, there are only three people: two assistants and one accountant."

Batman held his forehead with his fingers.

Leaving aside how Thomas and Martha might roar at this decision, Batman would simply not allow Reed Bay's development to fall into the hands of a shell company.

At this very moment, another aide walked in, knocked on the door, and, pushing up his glasses, told Batman, "Sir, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has blocked all entrances and exits to the Gotham underground maze, arrested six alien-relic enthusiasts, and has imposed a media blackout."

"What is the Congress's response?" Batman asked.

"They argue that either aliens or the Chinese are responsible."

Batman slapped his forehead in exasperation.

"Furthermore, they don't particularly care who created it, just who ends up with it," the secretary said, pushing up her glasses, "They all have different ideas about how to utilize this colossal maze, but it's clear they all want a piece of it, as it's certain to become a future tourist hot spot."

"This is extremely dangerous," Batman warned.

They were courting danger, he realized.

Batman frowned in silence. He was well aware that tourism needed novelty and popularity -- it would be a bonanza if a few explorers died in the maze and the news spread across the globe.

The FBI's blockade was undoubtedly prompted by someone, probably to create a hype around the immense underground maze of the Court of Owls. No matter who got the maze in the end, it would be a gold mine.

"I can't let them proceed unchecked," Batman continued, "Get my plane ready. I'm going to Capitol Hill."

Once the two of them left, Batman stood up. He had to fight for the land left by Gotham because it was his hope for rebuilding an improved Gotham.

Of course, Batman knew about the curse of Gotham. Although he didn't understand the principles behind it, he understood that the curse was attached to the city rather than the land.

Now that the city was gone and only the land remained, did it mean that if a new city called Gotham was built on this land, there would be no strange curses to contend with and the possibility of genuine improvement would arise?

As Batman pondered this, he suddenly froze. If he chose to stay here and travel to Washington, it meant he wouldn't be able to return to Gotham for quite some time.

Regaining control of Gotham's land development would inevitably be a long battle. The Congressional hounds wouldn't relinquish their grip easily, and Batman had no intention of letting them sink their teeth into this endeavor. He would not back down.

This process would easily last two months. Although Batman was confident of his victory, any issues arising in Sky City Gotham during this period would be irrelevant by then.

What should he do?

Batman stood at the table, deep in thought. In the end, his desire to rebuild New Gotham overcame his desire to play games with the Joker. He played games with the Joker to save Gotham, after all, so it made sense to focus on his ultimate goal instead.

But just because he wanted to build a new Gotham it didn't mean he wouldn't save the old one. The Joker, the merging of Sky City Gotham with the new city -- all these problems had to be solved. But it was impossible for him to be in two places at once, which was a bit headache-inducing.

As Batman thought about a solution, he received another phone call. It was from Dick again, but this time his voice sounded much younger.

"Uh, hello, Batman, I'm Richard Wayne."

When Batman heard Dick give this name, he was taken aback for a moment, then he remembered that the younger Dick among the Robins from other universes had already taken the Wayne surname.

"I have something to discuss with you. Oswald just called wanting you to come back, but Nightwing went to find his friends, so I answered."

"Things don't sound good over there. I've just seen the news reports on TV. There's a lot of chaos in the city below, the Brooklyn Bridge has taken off, and all sorts of things have crashed into Stark Building."

"For some reason, the Batman of their universe hasn't shown up. Although I didn't much like Oswald's tone on the phone, I think you should come back if you have the time. What do you think?"

"Indeed," Batman said, his tone growing softer, not because this Dick was younger, but because he was more polite and courteous.

Even though his Robins had all experienced this stage, children always grow up quickly. After leaving the nest and flying around, they invariably return stronger, and also more reticent and stoic.

Just as he thought of this, Batman had an idea.

"Yes, Dick, I agree someone should step in, but it doesn't necessarily have to be me."

"But who else could it be?" Dick questioned, his voice laced with doubt. "You wouldn't believe the chaos in the city. It's not a mess any ordinary person can fix."

"And you happen to know someone who's not ordinary, don't you?"