After sitting in the garden for a while, Marcus could only shake his head at their bewildered expressions.
Battle suits weren't meant to be used this way. And seriously—wearing pure white battle suits? Didn't they feel ridiculous?
In exasperation, Marcus had no choice but to direct them to use the controller on their wrists to change the appearance of the suits, causing them to gradually blend with their regular clothes.
"You guys!" Marcus sighed, speechless at their performance.
Arkham Asylum
Dr. Hugo Strange, psychiatrist and researcher, walked into the basement with a satisfied smile. As always, frozen corpses hung from the ceiling.
Beside these corpses stood enormous glass cylinders, each large enough to contain a human.
The tanks were filled with swirling green gas, making it impossible to see what was happening inside.
"The new formula, improved from the 'Viper' compound, is nearly complete. I wonder how effective this new version will be," he mused.
Dr. Strange had been experimenting ever since he obtained the 'Viper' formula.
'Viper' could stimulate human potential, but it worked by burning through the calcium in the body.
This self-destructive drug wasn't what he wanted. He had been continuously modifying the formula, using Arkham's patients and homeless people from the streets for his experiments.
Initially, the test subjects always developed various problems—the most severe being the intense depletion of calcium from their bones.
But with ongoing improvements, the side effects gradually changed. The calcium consumption weakened, but new problems emerged in other areas.
Many test subjects underwent physical transformations. Their bodies became incredibly strong, and they could even replenish calcium through calcium-rich foods. The side effect, however, was that they became as ferocious as wild animals, often losing their sanity completely—reduced to beasts.
Later, an organization lurking in Gotham's shadows sent him a drop of strange green liquid.
With the help of this mysterious substance, the side effects of his new formula were mitigated. While it still altered a person's appearance, it allowed them to maintain their sanity.
After completing his research, the organization left with his findings. Not long after, he heard news of an attack on Wayne Manor.
Those transformed killers gave him new ideas for his formula research.
Perhaps he could modify the formula again, allowing the subject's body to remain unchanged while still gaining extraordinary strength.
The glass cylinders now contained his latest test subjects, and the green gas was his improved formula.
"Don't disappoint me," Dr. Strange murmured, gazing at the containers.
"Your 'poison' won't work. Most of those transformed killers have been eliminated."
A figure stood among the corpses in the shadows of the basement.
Almost all of the modified killers had been dispatched with a single blow. Some unknown entity had appeared in Gotham and wiped out these experimental assassins.
Rather than discouraging Dr. Strange, this information intrigued him. Although the new formula was only a prototype, the beast-men who maintained their sanity possessed extraordinary power.
These beast-men weren't something ordinary people could handle. Even when the Gotham police captured the irrational ones and sent them to Arkham, they needed specialized equipment to subdue them.
But now, this mysterious figure was telling him that most of the sentient beast-men killers had been eliminated.
This astonished him. Nobody knew the power of these beast-men better than he did. Whoever killed them must possess incredible abilities.
"Soon, the new formula will be complete," Dr. Strange smiled, pointing to the large glass cylinders. "Once these experiments are finished, you'll have even more powerful killers at your disposal."
"Let's hope you create something that satisfies us. Otherwise... well, you know what will happen."
With those words, the figure standing among the frozen corpses vanished instantly.
Dr. Strange wasn't concerned by the threat. He looked at the glass containers housing his experiments, then left the basement with a smile on his face.
Though his new formula was far more potent than previous versions, he was now curious about who had eliminated those beast-men killers.
"How interesting. I hope you won't disappoint me too much," Dr. Strange said, standing before the window and gazing out at the dark, gloomy forest with anticipation in his eyes.
Gotham Police Department
Commissioner Gordon and his partner Harvey were going crazy these days. They had just sent all the beast-men to Arkham Asylum, and now more had appeared.
"Listen to me, Gordon—this kind of case is trouble from the get-go. We'd be better off not getting involved."
Harvey was strongly resistant to investigating this case.
He had survived in the Gotham Police Department for years by staying away from problematic cases.
But since partnering with Gordon, he'd been forced to investigate cases he would have avoided in the past.
"I know, Harvey. I'm going to check the morgue first."
Gordon brushed off his partner's concerns and hurried to the morgue. He needed useful information from the medical examiner.
In the morgue, numerous stitched corpses lay on tables. A heavily-armed doctor stood examining one of the bodies.
"Have you found anything useful?" Gordon asked.
"Yes," the doctor turned around. "These corpses were all torn apart instantly—meaning they encountered someone capable of ripping them to pieces."
Gordon took a deep breath. If he'd heard correctly, these beast-men had been literally torn apart.
"Are you sure? These are all beast-men. You know how abnormal their physical capabilities are."
The physiques of beast-men far exceeded those of ordinary humans. They had previously dissected a dead beast-man, and had been stunned by its physical attributes.
The dissected beast-man's strength had been five times that of an ordinary person. If they hadn't used specialized equipment to capture them, they would have been helpless against these creatures.
But now, the doctor was giving him shocking news.
The beast-men they needed special equipment just to capture had been torn apart. Who was powerful enough to do that?
The doctor answered with complete seriousness.
"I'm positive. The wounds on these beast-men are extremely clean. They were all killed and torn apart in an instant."
"However," he continued, "the injuries on those beast-men corpses over there are somewhat different. While they were also killed with a single blow, their bodies remain relatively intact."
Hearing this, Gordon walked toward the other corpses. He hoped to find information about the killer from examining the bodies.