The Cat Burglar hung upside down from the towering gantry crane, her body suspended in midair like prey caught in a spider's nest.
Her flawless face was flushed red—not from exertion, but from humiliation and fear.
Thick strands of white, sticky webbing bound her wrists, ankles, and waist, pinning her completely. Even her mouth was sealed shut, the silk stretched tight across her lips, allowing only faint, helpless whimpers to escape.
No matter how she struggled, the bindings didn't budge.
For the first time since she had stepped into the criminal underworld, true fear seeped into her bones.
She had no idea whose hands she had fallen into.
Or worse—what kind of thing had captured her.
Her mind raced.
Tonight was my first mission after joining Kingpin's gang… and I ruined everything.
But her regret had nothing to do with the mission itself.
What truly hurt was something far deeper.
My revenge… it was just beginning.
And now, it had been cut short in the cruelest way possible.
A voice suddenly spoke.
Deep. Calm. Inhumanly close.
"Who is Kingpin?"
"And why are you seeking revenge?"
The Cat Burglar jolted violently, her heart slamming against her ribs.
She twisted her neck, eyes darting wildly, desperately trying to locate the speaker. But her limited view showed nothing except darkness—the vast, pitch-black Abandoned Shipyard stretching endlessly around her.
No footsteps.
No silhouette.
Just the echo of that voice.
"Mmm—hmm!"
She whimpered in frustration, unable to speak through the webbing.
The next instant, the pressure vanished.
Her body spun once in the air before she was gently placed on the ground, her boots touching concrete with surprising care.
Before she could react, the webbing was torn away—first from her mouth, then her limbs.
She staggered slightly but quickly regained her balance.
Free.
Feigning composure, she stretched her arms and legs casually, as if she hadn't just been dangling helplessly moments ago. At the same time, her sharp eyes swept the area.
Still nothing.
No sign of her savior—or captor.
"You untied me just like that?" she said lightly, addressing the empty space ahead. "Aren't you afraid I'll run?"
Silence.
Then the voice again—low and close, like a whisper crawling along her spine.
"Answer my questions."
"Who is Kingpin?"
"Why are you seeking revenge?"
Her smile stiffened.
He's not showing himself…
That meant one thing.
He doesn't need to.
"You don't know who Kingpin is," she said carefully. "That means you're either not from New York—or you're not part of the underworld."
She paused, testing the waters.
"But you interfered in gang business tonight. So tell me—what do you want?"
Boom!
The ground shook violently.
Her breath caught as she stared in disbelief.
A massive steel I-beam—easily weighing several tons—had been lifted upright and driven straight into the concrete, sinking deep into the earth as if it were soft clay.
No machines.
No leverage.
Just raw force.
Her mind went blank.
Everything that had happened tonight defied logic.
The Squid Man.
The disappearing subordinates.
And now this.
A chill ran through her body.
This isn't human.
Fear finally appeared on her face—real fear this time.
But behind that fear, her thoughts were racing faster than ever.
I can't take down Kingpin alone.
I need help.
Her original plan had been crude but effective—offend as many gangs as possible, turn the underworld against itself, and strike Kingpin amid the chaos.
But now…
I've found something far better.
"This is your last warning," the voice said coldly. "Answer."
She swallowed.
"K-Kingpin is the leader of my gang," she said quickly. "He started expanding his power in New York about a year ago. He calls himself 'Kingpin' because he wants to rule the entire world's underworld."
Her words spilled faster.
"But New York alone has over fifty major gangs. Old families too—long-established crime organizations. So his expansion hasn't gone smoothly."
Batman listened silently.
Just like Gotham, he thought. Falcone. Maroni. Different names. Same disease.
"And why revenge?" he asked.
The moment she heard that word, the fear on her face vanished.
In its place—pure hatred.
"Kingpin killed my father."
Her voice was steady. Sharp.
"My father was the original Cat Burglar. Half a year ago, Kingpin demanded that he steal something for him. My father refused."
She clenched her fists.
"The next day, my father was found dead in an alley. It took me a month to confirm it—Kingpin ordered the hit."
Silence followed.
Long.
Heavy.
Just when she thought the presence had left, the voice spoke again.
"You're not lying."
Her heart skipped.
"Kingpin is already on my list," the voice continued. "Interested in cooperating?"
Her lips curved upward.
Bingo.
"Cooperate?" she said smoothly, crossing her arms and accentuating her figure without shame. "Of course. What do you want me to do?"
"Take a vacation."
She blinked. "A… vacation?"
"Yes. Our cooperation begins after it ends."
"Where?" she asked suspiciously.
"New York Police Department."
Her composure shattered.
"What?! No, wait—at least tell me—are you even human?"
The voice appeared right beside her ear.
"I am Batman."
Her eyes widened.
Then darkness swallowed her.
---
When she awoke, dawn was breaking.
She found herself and her subordinates tied up outside a New York Police substation in Manhattan, ropes and chains binding them tightly.
Sirens wailed faintly in the distance.
She sighed.
These restraints were nothing.
Trained by her father since childhood, she freed herself easily and disappeared down a street corner before sunrise.
As for her subordinates?
She left them exactly where they were.
Let Kingpin lose a few more pawns.
As she vanished into the city, a single name echoed in her mind.
"Batman…"
---
A few hours later.
A massive figure rose from a leather chair in an office in Hell's Kitchen.
Kingpin's neck was thicker than his head. When he stood, it felt like the room shrank around him.
"So," he said calmly, tapping his cane against the floor. "Another one."
The Cat Burglar stood before him, head lowered.
"Yes," she replied, carefully choosing her words. "Batman interfered. Joseph was shot. Squid Man escaped."
She told the truth.
All of it—except one thing.
Her cooperation.
Kingpin picked up the morning's Daily Bugle, his finger tapping a photo on the front page.
Squid Man.
"When did New York become a zoo?" he said with a smile. "First Spider-Man. Now Batman."
He looked up.
"Put a bounty on him," he said lightly. "Five million dollars."
At the same moment, deep within the abandoned shipyard, Batman stared at the same newspaper, already planning his next move.
The war had begun.
And Gotham's shadow had fully arrived in New Chapter