Chapter 418: Suspicion in the Metropolis (Part 4)_1

A body plummeted from the sky, and at the moment it hit the ground, time seemed to slow. Splatters of red blood spread out like sea foam, splotching onto the tablecloth's tassels suspended in air. The silver candlestick fell, snuffing out the candle's flame, and only a wisp of smoke lingered afterwards.

The moment the body crashed to the floor, every refined lady present screamed in panic, stumbling and falling to the ground. The gentlemen were not faring much better; they paid no heed as their expensive shoes were crushed underfoot. Like a school of sardines caught in a fisherman's net, they began trampling over each other, shouting, and fleeing in terror.

Shiller turned his head to see Lionel take two steps backwards, covering his mouth in apparent horror. His normally composed face was pale with a faint twitch in his fingertip, his eyes reflecting disbelief.

However, he quickly regained his composure, took a few deep breaths, then shouted, "Don't move! We have security!"

His shouts didn't serve any purpose; the piercing screams drowned out all other sounds. People fought desperately to get further away from the body, from that awful place. In the chaos, many people fell and blocked the exit route, leading to an even greater pandemonium.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

With the sound of three gunshots, everything quieted down. The whole banquet hall seemed to be on pause. Everyone's mouth hung open as they stared at a group of people entering from the main door.

The leader of the group was dressed as a federal agent, holding a pistol in his hand. The ones behind him were dressed similarly; they were obviously part of the same organization, but completely different from the Metropolis police.

"Federal Bureau of Investigation."

The leader walked to the center of the banquet hall and said, then flashed his badge for everyone to see. After putting away his badge, he reloaded his pistol. At his signal, two agents behind him stepped forward to inspect Mayor White's body.

At that moment, Lionel paced forward from the crowd. His face was still pale. He bypassed the blood-soaked landing point of the body, walking towards the leading agent. He shook hands with him, saying, "Benjamin, about time you got here. I was about to have someone go and get you!"

"How could such a thing happen at a charity gala co-hosted by the Luthor Family and the city government?" Lionel's features crumbled in misery, a tiredness etched on his face that he had never shown before.

He put on a sad expression and said, "I know, the security situation in Metropolis has not been optimistic. The police chief couldn't offer any explanation, so the mayor and I agreed to bring in the agents, but who could have foreseen...."

The agent called Benjamin's face darkened into a grimace, appearing indifferent to the chaos, but many attendees started airing their grievances.

The banquet hadn't even officially begun, and the guest of honor, Mayor White, was already a lifeless corpse. It was like telling all the attendees that the agents' elaborate security checks were a sham.

Many in the crowd roared with questions such as, "What the hell is going on? How did the mayor die?"

"What kind of check did you conduct? Can't you even detect a gun?"

"Weren't your body checks thorough?"

"Yeah, you wouldn't even let me bring a fan, how on earth did someone bring a gun in?!"

The banquet had invited celebrities from the whole East Coast, including businessmen, politicians, scholars, and media personalities. After the initial panic, they gradually regained their composure and began aggressively questioning the agents in the center of the room.

Among them, a talk show host from the Chicago radio station, brandishing his fist, shouted angrily, "Look at this! This is the result of sacrificing our privacy! It's their plot to implement surveillance laws!"

"That's right! Why are you still blocking the door?"

"Get out of the way! I want to go home! I don't want to be trapped in here with this horrifying corpse!!"

"Move! Let me leave…"

Benjamin's face remained impassive as he looked around coldly, his thumb tracing the pattern on his pistol. He spoke, his icy voice reverberating through the room.

"The mayor is dead. No one can leave now."

"What do you mean? Are you trying to keep us locked in here?!"

"How can you do this?! This is unlawful detention!!"

Outcries of dissatisfaction rang through the crowd again, but the agent named Benjamin turned a deaf ear. He signaled and several agents came in from the banquet hall's door, barricading the entrance.

More alarmingly, all the agents were fully armed, and several attendees who reacted too vehemently were directly stunned by anesthetic spray and dragged by the agents into a corner.

At this point, no one dared to protest loudly. Some gnashed their teeth, muttering curses under their breath. Some looked crestfallen and resigned. And some cunning guests stealthily took out their mobile phones or other communication devices, trying to contact certain friends to rid themselves of this predicament.

The moment the body had fallen, Bruce had covertly pressed a contact device on the back of his wristwatch. This satellite communication equipment would connect with his mansion's lab and Batcave's equipment, providing him with data analysis support at any time. But just now, he realized that all signals had been cut off.