"Of course, I knew you'd come back, so I wanted to keep it safe for you. Everyone said you were dead, but I always believed you'd return."
Harley immediately expressed her loyalty.
"Is that so? Did you pray for me then?"
The Joker twirled the razor in his hand, gesturing it over Harley's face.
"Pr-pray?"
"Yeah, did you keep vigil? Did you light candles? Did you beg that big guy in the sky to send me back into your loving arms?"
"I… uh… uh…"
Harley stammered, unable to speak.
She naturally hadn't done any of those things.
At most, she had only sighed, thinking her Mr. J was indeed a man of character.
"What was that? I can't hear you! Looks like you don't want to talk much, that's fine, I'll talk then."
The Joker gestured with the razor in his hand and said to Harley, "Look, Harley, how much I missed you. I followed you, watched you closely, do you know?"
"I watched you hanging out with these strange little toys, the Suicide Squad, a weird team doing dirty work for Homelander, full of 'Mr. Karate' and quirky women. It's surprising, you actually got involved with Homelander's people. You don't know what he's done in secret. If villains could be rated, he'd be half a star more than me!"
(Mr. Karate: A men's aftershave lotion popular in Britain and America from the 1960s to 1970s, whose marketing strategy is still praised today.)
The Joker used the razor to pry open Harley's mouth and inserted it inside.
With the sharp blade in her mouth, Harley dared not move.
"Is it because I couldn't satisfy you, my boring Wildcat, after I left, so you found other fun?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Joker yanked the razor out of Harley's mouth.
The sharp blade instantly cut Harley's mouth.
Blood splattered into the air.
In pain, Harley could no longer bear it and fell to the ground, clutching her mouth.
"Ah ah ah!"
Clutching her mouth, Harley let out a painful wail.
The Joker stood up, stared at the blood on the razor, and nodded in satisfaction.
"Someone has to pay the price!"
Saying this, he ignored Harley and walked directly towards Amanda and her group lying on the ground.
As he walked slowly, he mumbled, "Which one should I start with?!"
"This one! This is the type I'd choose."
The Joker walked up to the unconscious Amanda, grabbed her hair, and tilted her head up.
"But I guess Ms. Waller isn't your good friend, but she'll do."
The Joker sighed dramatically, "I heard you were doing well with Deadshot before. I wanted to show him the circumcision I learned online, but unfortunately, he's dead. Now I can only set my sights on Ms. Waller. Speaking of which, I should drag you to Deadshot's grave and show you a Deadman's circumcision."
As he spoke, the Joker aimed the razor at Amanda's neck.
"Let her go!"
Harley Quinn stood up at some point, holding a pistol in both hands, aiming it at the Joker.
Although her face was covered in blood and sharp pain shot through her mouth, she still gasped for breath and said to the Joker, "Otherwise, I'll shoot!"
With a gun pointed at him, the Joker showed no sign of fear.
Opening his blood-red mouth, the Joker said to Harley, "You and I both know that's impossible, sweetheart. I made you. No matter what, you can't kill me!"
"Then… then try!"
Harley's eyes narrowed. Blood oozed from her mouth, giving her a very bloody taste, but she suppressed it to stay conscious.
Although she didn't like Amanda at all, even somewhat hated her, she couldn't just let the Joker kill her.
Amanda had given her a pass once when they were in the Suicide Squad.
The other party had several opportunities to press the micro-bomb in her head but never made that choice.
And now Amanda was Eric's person. If the Joker killed her now, with herself present, she would definitely be implicated and suffer the consequences.
She knew Eric's ruthlessness.
She also knew his vengeful nature.
So, no matter how she looked at it, she wouldn't let the Joker kill Waller.
At least not in front of her.
"It seems I underestimated Ms. Waller's importance to you, sweetheart."
The Joker retracted the razor, stood up, and said to Harley, "How about we make a deal now? You do something for me, and I'll let your close lady friend go, how about that?"
Harley hesitated for a moment, then nodded, "Okay, tell me."
When Eric arrived at the Gotham ice rink, what he saw were bodies lying on the ground and the unconscious Amanda and others.
Frowning, Eric observed the situation at the ice rink.
First, he used his x-ray vision to examine the Deadman with the twisted smile, then he squatted down and briefly checked on Amanda and the others. After confirming they weren't dead, Eric stood up and called the hospital.
An hour later, Eric appeared at Belle Reve Hospital.
Amanda had already woken up and was in good spirits. She was standing in the corridor, reporting the information she had investigated to Eric.
The Green Rain hadn't caused serious harm to her, and she quickly returned to work.
"Boss, we analyzed the Green Rain at the scene. Our preliminary judgment is that it's a compound similar to Joker Gas. It has some similarities with the Joker Laughing Gas that caused tourist Deaths at the ice rink, but its toxicity should be weaker than Laughing Gas. Laughing Gas can destroy the central nervous system, cause cardiac arrest, and produce hallucinogenic effects."
"I see."
Eric pondered for a moment, then said, "But the Joker didn't kill you."
"I don't know why, but he hasn't been in contact with Harley Quinn for over two years. His return must not be a coincidence; there must be some conspiracy. And I suspect the explosion at Gotham City Hall was also his doing!"
Amanda reported to Eric while operating the tablet in her hand.
She was directing her subordinates to conduct investigations street by street.
"How did he disable the security system?"
Eric frowned and asked her, "To knock all of you out without anyone knowing isn't an easy task. At least your vigilance shouldn't have been so lax!"
Amanda nervously put down her tablet and said to Eric, "Sorry, I… we haven't found the reason. Maybe he learned of our deployment from somewhere. Either internal or external!"
"Keep investigating!"
Eric looked into Amanda's eyes and said, "I will send Mera and Ice Queen to assist you. Next time, I don't want to see such results."
"Understood, I will prevent such things from happening again."
Amanda replied to Eric with a somewhat grim expression.
She felt her work had been somewhat negligent.
"Also, as a top-secret action team, I hope no rumors will spread from here. Enhanced soldiers have begun to enter Gotham City and are gradually clearing these obstacles. Before that, nothing can affect Gotham's cleansing progress."
Eric instructed Amanda before leaving.
Amanda nodded, "I understand!"
Meanwhile, in Gotham, at the ACE Chemical Plant.
Harley Quinn was waiting there.
She had been waiting for several hours.
The Joker told her to wait there, so she could only stay put and dared not move around.
Looking at the chemical pool beneath her feet, she felt a sense of dread.
Her rebirth had begun from this very pool.
She remembered the Joker's birth was also related to the chemical pool beneath her feet.
Why would the Joker choose this place?
Was it to celebrate his rebirth?!
"My sweetheart!"
The Joker said, carrying a corpse from a distance, as he entered through the chemical plant's gate.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, but you can't blame me. It took a lot of effort to get this corpse here."
"A corpse?!"
Harley's mouth gaped open in surprise, seeing the Joker carrying a corpse.
"Yes, it's the body of a Deadman, as you understand it, but this isn't just any Deadman; it's the King of Gotham. However, Gotham has now become a place more boring and vulgar than a strip club. I wonder if the King can ever reclaim his throne. I'm very much looking forward to it!"
The Joker breathlessly put down the corpse and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"The King of Gotham, who is he?"
Harley Quinn grew even more confused.
"Don't be too eager, sweetheart."
The Joker walked over to Harley and abruptly pulled back the black bag on the "corpse," revealing the true identity of the person inside.
"This!"
Seeing the figure inside, Harley stumbled back a few steps in shock.
"How is this possible?!"
Harley gasped.
The figure in the bag before her was none other than Batman, who hadn't been seen in Gotham for a long time.
Looking at the familiar mask on Batman's face, Harley composed herself and asked the Joker, "Where did you find him?!"
To this moment, she still couldn't quite believe the person in front of her was Batman.
"Just used a little trick and got him. He's truly pathetic; Batman has lost his former arrogance."
The Joker made a very sad face, "How I wish he would stand up and passionately kiss my hand!"
"He's not dead?"
"No."
The Joker looked at Batman on the ground.
"I have to thank Ms. Barbara and her selfless, great father—Commissioner Gordon. They finally showed some kindness and helped me steal Batman from that pointy tower. You know, sweetheart, I'm an impatient person and not one for mumbling spells, so getting into that dreadful place isn't easy. Thanks to those two, I was able to steal him! I should send them a letter of commendation."
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