Chapter 6

[1st POV]

I woke up in a lot of pain. I was lying on a hospital bed in Gotham General with a serious injury.

I had a bandage on my left arm, and looking under the hospital gown, I confirmed that my forearm had either been shot or otherwise injured. 

Besides that, I had several bruises and scratches on my face.

"Awake, hero?" 

The doctor asked cheerfully as he entered the room. 

"I've heard a lot about you. You're quite the celebrity now."

"Excuse me? How long was I out?"

"Almost a whole day."

"What happened to me? Do you know?"

"Oh, absolutely. After all, you were brought here by none other than Batman himself, along with Robin. Your forearm was injured by some metal debris. Luckily, it's not too deep, but you'll need to stay here for at least a week. Then, I think everything will heal nicely, and we can let you go."

I sighed in relief as I reviewed the news about the hostages and Joker's capture. 

Thankfully, all the hostages made it out safely, and that psycho and his sidekick were now likely recovering in Arkham.

After the doctor left, I started catching up on the flood of messages that had come through. 

There were a lot of missed notifications during the hostage situation, Joker's twisted games, and everything else that happened after. 

It was time to sort it all out.

"Ding!"

[Completed Quest: "Meet the Joker"]

[Reward:

+1000 Experience

+1000 reputation with saved residents of Gotham and the police

+2000 relationship with the Joker.

+2000 relationship with Batman/Bruce Wayne.

+1500 relationship with Harley Quinn.

+1500 relationship with Nightwing/Richard "Dick" Grayson.

+1500 relationship with Jim Gordon.

+500 relationship with Robin/Jason Todd.

+500 relationship with Arthur McCoy.

10 % chance that the Joker won't want to kill you.

2% chance of encountering a "celebrity." in Gotham

'Why does it seem to me that the last point like a bad idea for me? Alright, I need to see what's next…'

[Completed Side Quest: Gambling is Everything!]

Reward:

-Title: "Unlucky"]

I couldn't help but smirk. 

Losing the "Unlucky" title was a relief; it felt like a weight lifted off my shoulders.

The odds were starting to look more in my favor especially with that 10% chance that Joker might now not want to kill me. 

As I scanned that 5% chance of encountering a "celebrity" in Gotham, a chill ran down my spine. 

Knowing Gotham's idea of "celebrity," that last perk sounded like it could bring more trouble than luck.

It seemed like this was just the beginning, and the road ahead in Gotham would be anything but quiet.

Reward:

[+10 Luck]

[+10 Intuition]

[You have gained a new skill: Cheater - Level 1]

I scoffed, staring at the Cheater skill with mild anger. 

I only focused on remembering the cards and hoped for some luck! 

It's not like I was actually cheating… but this system had a way of sticking names where they didn't belong.

[+3 Talk No Jutsu]

Apparently, I'd leveled up that skill three times. Looks like those pep talks during the hostage situation paid off more than I thought.

[+10 AP]

[+Level Up!]

[+Level Up!]

"Ding!"

[The Player himself has taken notice of you. Your bravery, dedication, and ingenuity in a difficult situation have earned you the chance to unlock the ability to manipulate chakra.]

[However, there are specific requirements to awaken this skill:

100 Ability Points

Strength: 50

Agility: 30

Endurance: 45

Intellect: 20

Intuition: 30]

Is it really?!

Oh, Holy Molly! This is all completely real, and I can be like a ninja in the glorious anime Naruto. 

Of course, I can't expect much, as I won't have sensei like Naruto. 

However, this will seriously help me in Gotham, where any ability is worth its weight in gold for survival. 

In the worst case, I could strike or infuse bullets with chakra and that's already a significant advantage over the others.

On this positive note, I didn't even notice when I fell asleep.

...

Arthur woke me up.

He showed up with some of our colleagues and Gordon, who stood beside him, smoking his pipe.

I learned a few insignificant bits of news from them, but there was news that concerned me.

First, I will soon be awarded a medal for bravery that will be added to my personal record. 

The second was that Katherine had come to the precinct, based on Arthur's description and his gestures to describe her figure. 

She wanted to see me. 

However, they told her I was here and gave her the address. 

So, I think she'll be here soon.

Before they left, I asked Arthur to swing by the bookstore and pick up a few books for me to read.

Once he was gone, I realized I could just buy a tablet. 

Thankfully, they already have them here, and I could download as many books as I need.

As the evening got closer, I had new visitors. 

It was Katherine with Kira and Alice. In addition to their attention, I was pleased that they brought a lot of tasty treats. 

The food in this hospital isn't very good.

"How did you manage to get caught by the Joker so quickly?" 

Katherine smiled.

"I guess I'm a lucky guy."

"Your luck seems a bit strange. Heh-heh. So, how long will you be here?" she asked.

"A week, I think. Although they might keep me for two."

"Oh good, then we have time." 

Catherine exclaimed happily.

"Um, I hesitate to ask, but what exactly do we have time for?"

"I mean you'll make it to the opening of a business for an old friend of mine. Since I have two invitations, you'll be accompanying me!"

"Why not take Kira with you?"

"Kira isn't a fan of these events neither am I. But my acquaintance loves such parties. I owe him a lot, in a way. He's even a distant relative of ours."

"I see. Well, then I'll be there."

"I'll let you know when the meeting is, and we'll find you a suit."

"I already have one!"

"Alright, alright. Then I'll take a look at your suit. If it doesn't good, we'll find another one."

"You women just want to show off and find new outfits." 

I sighed wearily, eliciting a chuckle from all three of them.

"Alright, I think that's enough news for you. Alice, Kira, let's leave our hero to rest alone in this stuffy room. Get well!" 

She said before leaving.

Well, now I also had to stew over the gathering of Gotham's wealthy residents. 

I hope nothing happens there. Otherwise... I feel my title of the Unlucky will return.

A few days passed after Catherine, Kira, and Alice visited me. 

The kind doctor allowed me to walk around the hospital. 

So, I took some strolls from the cafeteria and bathroom to the patient lounge. 

It was a small room with computers, internet access, and a TV.

At another midnight, I decided to watch a movie because insomnia was haunting me.

After grabbing a cola and chips from the vending machine, I sat down alone in the lounge.

In addition to a new melodrama, I also watched one of the installments in the Freddy Krueger saga.

It seemed like I could just sit and watch movies… but I suddenly needed to use the bathroom. 

As I was exiting the stall, I heard a strange scraping and noise.

"Ding!"

[New Quest: Strange Sound

Description: You heard a strange noise. As a real cool cop, you are obliged to check the area for the presence of "something."

Reward: 

+Variable

[Failure or Refusal:

A decrease in attributes.

A decrease of -500 in relationships with all "superheroes".]

[Do you want to accept the quest?]

[Yes/No.]

Of course, yes. Moreover, I couldn't sleep and decided to distract myself.

The noise was coming from the lab. 

The noise was so complicated that I didn't understand anything. 

I just sensed that something was off, but I didn't have my phone with me.

To be continued...