Chapter 114: Bullying

"Better to be slapped with the truth than kissed with a lie."

- Unknown

...

Dean looked at the increasingly dark sky outside the library and turned to Cassandra, using gestures as he asked.

"Gotham General Hospital is quite far from here. Are you sure it's okay for you to come with me? We probably won't be back until it's late,"

Cassandra shook her head gently and responded with a few hand gestures.

"It's okay. I've been wandering for many years and have gone days without sleep. Day and night are pretty much the same to me."

"Uh... sorry, I said something unnecessary."

Dean said it with a stuttered voice.

"Also, you don't really need to use signs with me, Dean. I can understand what you're trying to say."

Then Cassandra made a series of hand gestures towards Dean.

"I know you're intentionally communicating with me using signs to make me feel more comfortable about being different from others. I appreciate your concern, but you don't have to do that. I'm already used to the ways I'm different from others."

"In the beginning, Barbara interacted with me using gestures just like you. But she doesn't do that anymore."

Dean nodded in understanding. He had felt a bit awkward using both spoken language and gestures at the same time during their conversation.

Speaking had become an instinct for him, and it was difficult to suddenly change.

Since Cassandra said it was okay and even brought up Barbara as an example, Dean quickly stopped gesturing and spoke normally.

'By the way, those gestures she used earlier, if I'm not mistaken, meant 'I can see what you're saying'... Why is it 'see' and not 'hear'?'

Dean wondered in his mind but didn't dwell on this matter. It was probably due to gesturing too quickly, like how people can stutter when they speak too fast.

Dean and Cassandra headed to Gotham General Hospital and planned to call a taxi on the way.

Even though it's best not to get into a car with any strangers in Gotham, whether it's a bus or a taxi, especially at night, Dean had just gotten his driver's license two months ago and hadn't bought a car yet.

Without a personal mode of transportation for daily use, he usually either took a taxi or walked.

The distance between Gotham General Hospital and Gotham City Public Library was far away.

Walking along the main road would take over an hour one way, making the round trip nearly three hours.

In this situation, choosing a taxi was a good choice.

Normally, Dean wouldn't waste money like this.

He would just find a secluded place to change into his homemade version of the Bat suit and glide around Gotham using his temporary Bat-Glider.

After all, Batman wasn't in Gotham, and he had nothing to worry about.

Wearing that suit, no one would dare approach him, even in alleyways. Those petty criminals who only bully the weak, seeing Batman, would turn around and run away.

The Bat suit is truly an important piece of clothing for walking around Gotham City at night.

However, now with a mute little sister by his side, Dean can no longer do those shady activities. He must follow the right path.

Unfortunately, it seems like all the taxi companies in Gotham are on vacation today because the two of them have been walking for quite a while and haven't even seen a single taxi.

They can't continue like this. Maybe he should ask Cassandra to head back first.

On the side of the road, Dean pondered, resting his chin on his hand.

"Cassandra, what if you...?"

Dean's words were interrupted as Cassandra suddenly ran into a nearby alley.

"Hey, hey! That place is dangerous. It's not where a young girl like you should go!"

Seeing Cassandra's actions, Dean tried to stop her immediately by running over and pulling her back.

"Mm!"

However, when Dean grabbed Cassandra's shoulder, he was shocked to find that he couldn't move her!

Additionally, Cassandra was pulling Dean's body forward.

He was unwilling to believe what's happening, Dean tries harder to pull Cassandra back, but she remains unmoved.

Not only that, but Cassandra's sprinting speed is getting faster, and Dean realizes that he can barely keep up!

'How can this little girl be so strong? And she's running so fast? Even professional sprinters might not match this, right?'

Dean felt disbelief in his mind as he fell behind.

'Could she be a superhuman? A metahuman? Or maybe an alien?'

After rushing into the alley, Cassandra's figure suddenly stops, and she looks expressionless as she stares into the alley.

Not far from them, a thin, weak-looking boy was sitting on the ground with his back against the wall.

Three boys the same age as him surrounded him, their faces contorted with scorn and mockery.

These people are quite young, around eighteen or nineteen years old, probably still in college, and most likely attending one of Gotham's public universities.

The leader among them, a big-built guy, had his foot against the wall while his shoulder was pressed onto the boy named Mikey.

He said, "Mickey, you made a big mistake today. Do you know what it is? You passed through the entrance of this alley. Do you know why? This is our territory!"

Immediately, the two boys beside him sounded in, "Our territory!"

"I'll tell you, we don't take trash here, and we don't welcome you! Yes, that's right, you're just a pathetic piece of trash!"

The big guy continued to insult Mikey.

"Trash! Trash!"

The two boys cheered from the side.

The big guy reached into Mikey's pockets, simply searching, and eventually pulled out twenty-one dollars.

"You've only got this much money on you? Truly living up to your trash status."

As Dean watched this scene happen before him, his eyelids twitched uncontrollably, and his mouth kept twitching.

What in the world is this?

Does Gotham have people like these?

Cassandra's face next to his displayed a hint of dissatisfaction, as if she couldn't stand such bullying of the weak.

"Hmm?"

At this moment, the three bullies noticed the arrival of two unexpected guests.

The big guy first sized up Dean and Cassandra, then his eyes flickered with disdain. He arrogantly sneered at the two and said, "Here come two more little pieces of trash."

"Listen up, you two little trash! This is the territory of our masked gang, and anyone who wants to pass here has to pay!"

Saying this, all three bullies pulled out strange skull masks—yellow, green, and red.

They didn't look intimidating at all; instead, they had a strange comedic vibe.

But wait, their faces were already fully visible; what's the point of wearing masks now?

Dean didn't understand, but he was really surprised.

A few seconds later, Dean's expression turned slightly serious because these three "Masked Gang" members revealed weapons.

Two baseball bats and a golf club

...

patreon.com/Sothisq

You can find up to 20 advance chapters at my patreon.