Although there was much applause in the banquet hall, most of those who were excited and cheered for Bruce Wayne were elites from all walks of society who were alone.
The combined strength of this group of people was actually negligible.
However, the few individuals who were exchanging opinions with grim looks and watching Bruce Wayne on stage with ashen faces, they were the true controllers of Gotham City.
Those people were all famous families of Gotham, controlling immense energy and power.
"Gotham Industrial Old Town is the most complex and dark place in the entire city, a mixed bag of dragons and snakes, where forces and interests are deeply intertwined.
He wants to cut out the whole rotten part of Gotham, which is commendable, but he probably can't bear the cost of this action."
Catwoman frowned slightly, her expression a little displeased as she said.
It could be said that Bruce Wayne had detected the root cause of Gotham, but what he was doing was trying to uproot Gotham's underground forces in one go.
Not just the underground forces…
"Gotham has long had no clear black and white, but a turbid, mixed gray.
Bruce Wayne's plan is actually against all of Gotham."
Ron understood what she meant and chuckled softly.
The Water is too deep here, and the interests involved affect the entire upper echelon of Gotham.
"He's too reckless and impulsive," she commented regretfully, not optimistic about the plan's progress, even doubting whether Bruce Wayne could survive the earthquake he was stirring up.
"He's not reckless, he's just had his emotions suppressed for too long."
Looking at Batman on the stage, his eyes deep and showing no fear, observing the audience below, Ron said playfully.
Bruce Wayne looked at the audience, maintaining a confident smile on his face, subtly observing who was showing clear meaning towards him.
He wasn't sure how much opposition this plan would provoke, but no matter the situation, he was already prepared.
No matter the cost, he would accomplish this.
Even if the entire Gotham rolled over him, Batman would not show a hint of fear.
He suppressed the darkness and Fire in his heart every day, preventing himself from casually venting and losing control, devouring others.
He had endured for too long, ready to fight against everything.
"But… he might not be in trouble either."
Catwoman's tone changed again, as if she had thought of something.
"What do you mean?"
"This group of high society people have their own rules; they won't easily engage in a fight to the Death."
Catwoman looked at the people in the banquet hall with disdain and said.
No matter how much wealth and power, a single bullet can take it away, but Gotham's upper echelons have their own rules, and they won't resort to such methods unless absolutely necessary.
Once some rules are broken, it will be a complete collapse.
Today, if you infringe on my interests, I'll hire a gunman to kill you; tomorrow, others will follow suit, and if too many people die this way, the so-called noble families will no longer appear so powerful and superior.
Who would fear figures who can be killed by a group of thugs and gunmen? How would they keep their gangster subordinates in check?
"So, this group of guys at the banquet will definitely sit down and talk to Bruce Wayne first, and if they can't persuade him, they'll at most stop his plan."
"Not necessarily…"
Hearing Catwoman's guess, he gently shook his head and turned to walk out.
Batman had already seen what was going to happen in Gotham and understood it perfectly; there was no point in staying.
"Not necessarily?"
Catwoman didn't understand Ron's meaning, and she followed him closely, smiling confidently.
"Does a Master from nowhere know this city better than me?"
As a native of Gotham, she understood Gotham's darkness and operating rules very well.
"Some of the vast darkness of this city is beyond your reach…"
Ron said without looking back.
What Catwoman said was based on the premise that Gotham's upper echelons were mutually wary.
What if they were always united?
"For example—the Court of Owls."
"The Court of Owls?"
Catwoman was startled; she felt it sounded familiar, as if she had heard it somewhere.
…
"Young Master, something has happened!"
Late at night, after the banquet ended, Bruce Wayne, who had been chatting happily with many people, returned to the back house.
The old butler, Alfred, hurried over with a worried expression, looking uneasy as if something bad had happened.
"What is it?"
"Young Master, have you heard of the Court of Owls?"
"The Court of Owls?"
While unbuttoning the collar that tightened his neck, Bruce Wayne, who had drunk a lot but showed no sign of intoxication, asked with a serious and unalarmed expression after a moment of thought.
"Alfred, why do you bring this up?"
Alfred quickly led him to the study in the mansion.
On the valuable desk in the study, a line of writing was burning.
"Bruce Wayne, you have been sentenced to Death by the Court!"
A Death sentence and also a murder premonition, below the writing was a symbol of an owl's head.
"I thought this plan would be obstructed, but I didn't expect the obstruction to come so quickly."
Seeing this threat, Bruce Wayne raised an eyebrow, as if someone had simply greeted him, and laughed.
"This is not an obstruction, they want to kill you, Young Master," Alfred emphasized, his aged face filled with worry.
"Beware the Court of Owls, watching your every move.
Peeking from the shadows of Gotham City, hidden between low walls and attics…"
Bruce Wayne slowly recited a strange nursery rhyme that had been circulating in Gotham for unknown reasons.
"Does the Court of Owls mentioned in this nursery rhyme really exist?
Or is someone trying to act under this name?"
His eyes were cold, and he murmured in a low voice.
…
Whoosh, whoosh.
"I remember a nursery rhyme mentioning it."
On the highway, a sports car was driving, and Catwoman asked doubtfully while driving.
That nursery rhyme was incomplete and had been circulating in Gotham for a long time. According to its content, the Court of Owls seemed to be a terrifying organization.
"Does it really exist?"
"Yes, it's not some nursery rhyme to scare children."
Ron sat in the passenger seat, casually looking at the scenery outside, and said.
The Court of Owls, a dark and powerful secret society whose origins can be traced back hundreds of years. Even before Gotham appeared, the Court of Owls already had its base. Since the colonial era, they have exerted their influence, consolidated power, expanded their forces, and ruthlessly eliminated dissidents.
Their Shadow was present in the establishment of Gotham, and they later moved their base to Gotham, with their members becoming the prominent families of Gotham. It can be said that the Court of Owls has been the secret ruler of Gotham all along.
"What Bruce Wayne wants to do shakes the fundamental interests of the Court of Owls.
Gotham is going to be very lively next, Batman versus the Court of Owls…"
"Batman versus the Night Owls?"
Catwoman felt confused when she heard this, the Court of Owls was definitely the Court of Owls, but did Batman refer to Bruce Wayne?
Why would Bruce Wayne be Batman?
"Why do you say that?"
"What comes to mind when I mention Batman?" He glanced at her and said.
"Batman!" She immediately thought of that famous legend of the night in Gotham.
"Is Batman Bruce Wayne?!"
Catwoman, who was driving, was shocked by this news, and the steering wheel swerved, nearly causing the car to overturn.
The Dark Knight, who loved to do good deeds at night, had brought down two successive underground kings, and instilled fear in all underground forces, was actually Bruce Wayne of the Wayne Family, Gotham's richest man?
"Wait a minute, why do I suddenly feel like Batman isn't that amazing if he really is him?"
She muttered with a strange expression.
"Not enough."
The car shook violently, but his expression didn't change, and his fingers lightly tapped the car door.
"What's the point if things just roughly follow the original course?"
He wanted to add fuel to the Fire and make things more interesting.
"To change Batman's fate, for example, what would happen if his identity as Bruce Wayne was permanently exposed?"
But actually, there's no need to explicitly state it.
Ron turned his head and asked Catwoman, also confirming her suspicions.
"Batman, a Gothamite, a White male between twenty-five and thirty years old, between 1.8 and 1.9 meters tall, with a distinctive butt chin.
He wears a battle suit worth millions of U.S. dollars, drives a Batmobile and Batcycle worth tens of millions of U.S. dollars to fight crime, and updates his equipment from time to time.
Moreover, this equipment cannot be bought with money unless there is a military industrial enterprise supporting it. Who can you think of?"
"Bru… Bruce Wayne?"
Catwoman summarized it, and it seemed that only Bruce Wayne in Gotham fit these characteristics.
The next day, on Gotham's internet.
An identical question sparked a huge discussion!