Late at night, at Elliot Manor.
The old mansion, located in Gotham City's East End, covered a vast area.
Several crows perched on the locust trees at the entrance.
A black car slowly drove up, disturbing the sleeping ravens.
They flapped their wings and cawed as they flew away, their mournful cries adding another layer of eeriness to the silent manor.
"We're here."
Thomas stopped the car, his gaze complex as he looked at the antique manor. "To be honest, I haven't come back much since I grew up."
"But," Thomas watched Letitia run excitedly into the manor, and he laughed, hands on his hips, "this is a good place for the mentally ill to rest."
Gino didn't respond, instead just stared at the manor.
Two stone owl statues stood at the entrance gates. He remembered when he came to visit his grandfather, Loren, as a child, the statues still had their ruby eyes.
Now, however, they were gone, a testament to the increasingly chaotic state of the city.
Thomas thought Gino was worried about Letitia. He sighed and patted Gino on the shoulder, saying, "Don't worry. I know a few good psychologists in this city. I'm sure we can find someone to treat Letitia."
The two of them walked into the manor while discussing Letitia's condition.
Greeting them was an old man with white hair, who bowed with difficulty while leaning on his cane. "The heir of the Elliot Family, welcome."
"The master is waiting for you inside."
As he spoke, the old man's eyes were fixed on Gino, as if the only person the master of this manor wanted to see today was him.
Hearing the old butler's words, Thomas's expression became slightly unnatural. He shook his head, "Letitia and I will wait for you outside."
Gino frowned, the image of Loren flashed through his memory.
He was a brutal old man who always had a stern face, and loved to shout and lose his temper.
Gino didn't have much to do with him; when he was a child, he stayed here and played with Thomas.
"Lead the way," Gino thought for a moment, deciding to meet this unfamiliar grandfather.
He pushed open the old wooden door.
A valuable chandelier hung from the ceiling of the living room, but it was already covered in dust.
The messy knives and forks and leftover food on the dining table were also silently telling of the former glory of the Elliot Manor.
Gino saw an old man in purple pajamas lying weakly on the sofa.
His skin was wrinkled, and his aged face and the back of his hands were covered in brown age spots.
The old man had thinning hair, saliva trickling from the corner of his mouth, and his eyes were closed. He looked as if he was about to die.
"Young Master Gino is here, Master Loren."
The old butler's voice woke Loren. The old man, practically one foot in the grave, slowly opened his eyes. His cloudy eyes carefully sized up Gino.
The old butler silently left.
"Come closer."
Loren said to Gino.
Gino took two steps, and as he got closer, he could smell the stench of decay emanating from Loren.
Time, what a terrifying thing it was, silently stealing a person's life.
Gino stopped.
The next moment, Loren suddenly reached out and grabbed Gino's wrist, his eyes filled with envy, constantly muttering things like "It's good to be young."
"What do you want?" Gino shook off the old man. He didn't know what the old guy had eaten at noon, but something sticky had landed on his wrist. Gino took out a tissue from his pocket and wiped it clean.
"Hey!" Seeing Gino's action, Loren let out a strange laugh. He said, "Don't dislike me. I called you here to give you a gift."
"You open the cabinet over there. There's a little present I prepared for you."
Gino raised an eyebrow and walked toward the corner cabinet in the direction of the finger. His gaze swept over the wooden cabinet. In Gino's eyes, the closed wooden cabinet gradually became transparent. He saw a small silver box and a plain white bird-shaped mask inside.
Focusing his attention, Gino narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed on the iron box.
His vision easily penetrated the silver iron box.
Inside, a pool of silver liquid flowed, resembling molten silver.
But what surprised Gino even more was that the silver liquid emitted a shimmering light, as brilliant as the Milky Way.
"What is this?"
Gino's interest was piqued. A liquid that could emit light?
The young man opened the cabinet and retrieved the iron box.
"Clack～"
As the iron box opened, a pool of silver liquid came into view.
"Sniff, sniff."
Gino sniffed at the substance, but it had no scent.
"Tasteless." Gino labeled the mysterious liquid once more.
"Well?" Loren coughed, interrupting Gino's thoughts. "Isn't it beautiful, isn't it amazing?"
"What is this thing?" Gino really didn't know what it was.
Loren gazed at the iron box in Gino's hand, his eyes deep. "This is called Amber Gold, a metal that can prolong life and has a slight ability to enhance a person's self-healing."
"You say it's metal?" Gino raised an eyebrow and touched the liquid, which felt cold, like a puddle of spring water.
Loren grinned, revealing his yellow teeth. "Of course, I lived to be ninety-five because of it."
Gino asked curiously, "So, how did you get it?"
"How I got it?"
Gino's words seemed to ignite Loren's anger. He shakily stood up, his voice hoarse. "This thing originally belonged to our Elliot Family!"
The old man was furious. He limped towards the wall with the curtains, then grabbed the black drape and yanked it away.
"Look at these oil paintings!"
Gino looked at the wall.
He saw several oil paintings hanging on the corner of the wall.
The first painting depicted four young people with their families aboard a sailboat. Each of them was full of fighting spirit, gazing at the sea, as if something were waiting for them.
"Cough, cough."
Loren coughed, pointing at the first oil painting, "This is the origin of Gotham City!"
"Four ambitious young men sailed across the ocean and arrived at what was once Gotham, a wild and untamed land."
Old man Loren's eyes flashed with a look of reminiscence, "The Wayne Family, the Elliot Family, the Kane Family, the Cobblepot Family."
"The founders of these four families built Gotham City!"
Gino's gaze shifted to the second oil painting.
The second painting was strange. It was split down the middle. The upper half depicted a city.
Above the towering city, a young man stood with his hands on his hips, looking down at the entire city.
And the lower section was a complex network of pipes, concealing a large hall within.
Several chairs were arranged in the hall. The figure at the head of the group was shrouded in darkness, resting his chin on his hands as if conversing with his companions.
Loren's voice echoed: "After Gotham was founded, the Wayne Family loved this city. They wanted it to develop freely, where everyone could receive education and have enough to eat, creating a city free from hunger and poverty."
"But, our Elliot ancestors didn't think so. They established an organization called the Court of Owls, recruiting influential local powers and hoping that the direction of the city would be decided by these established families."
Listening to Loren, Gino's expression gradually became strange. Good heavens, the Elliot family sounded like the villains!
------------------------
Completed English PDF of this fan-fic on my Patreon shop if you want to support and own the full fan-fic in one go. Just grab the PDF and binge the entire story from start to finish!
Guys, I've uploaded some High Quality english translated fanfic on my Patreon shop! Feel free to check it out-if you're interested, you can grab a copy and support me there.
Here are a few titles of recently uploaded fanfics:
" Saiyan's in the Marvel Universe "
" Marvel: Writing a Diary Iron Man Breaks Down at the Start "
" Marvel: Starts with Asking Questions About Iron Man "
" DC Universe: You're Fishing, And You Got the Superman Template? " many more are available
Your support means a lot-thanks in advance, legends!
patreon.com/SuperTL
(End of Chapter)