Aquaman Arthur's ill-timed crude remark instantly blew up the entire scene.
"Call a cleaning company? Arthur! That's the Joker!"
Barry Allen's voice cracked as he pointed at the corpse on the ground, wearing an expression that screamed, "Are you seriously ill?"
"I know."
Arthur carefully poked the Joker's face with the tip of his trident.
"Yep, he's dead as a doornail. Now Gotham's average attractiveness level has gone up more than one notch."
"You!"
Bruce spun around, his voice beneath the mask sounding like it was dredged up from an ice cellar.
"Shut up."
Arthur pouted, deciding not to fan the flames further, but the expression on his faceI just love watching you fume because you can't touch mewas more provoking than ten thousand insults.
Diana sighed, stepping forward, attempting to play the role of mediator.
"Bruce, now is not the time to be angry. We need to handle this properly."
"Handle it?"
Bruce sneered, pointing at the corpse on the ground.
"How do we handle it? Give him a magnificent funeral, broadcast live across all of Gotham, and tell everyone that the murderer is one of us?"
"We could say he died from complications of the explosion."
Cyborg Victor's red electronic eyes flickered once, offering the most rational solution.
"Data models show this narrative has a ninety-three percent credibility rating and will minimize negative public opinion."
"I refuse."
Bruce's answer was decisive.
"I will not lie. Commissioner Gordon will know the truth. The Joker is dead. That is all."
"Then what?"
Barry looked at the gloomy Bruce, confused.
"How do we explain it? Tell the whole world that Superman's cousin poked him to death with one finger? And then everyone gives us a 'Team Award for Eliminating Scourges'?"
"He just wiped out a country a few days ago, then walked away from the Avengers, and now what? He comes here to break my rules again?"
Bruce's fists clenched audibly. He didn't answer Barry, turning his fury once again toward the culprit who had already flown away.
"He is an executioner. Clark is also an accomplice! He clearly could have stopped him!"
"Give it a rest, Bruce."
Arthur finally couldn't hold back, hoisting his trident onto his shoulder.
"Put your hand on all your high-tech armor and tell me, in that situation just now, could you have held back? Your wife and child were almost turned into a 'Stargazy Pie.' Could you still talk about law with the murderer?"
"It's only because you don't have a wife, otherwise you'd be more agitated than anyone."
"..."
Bruce was utterly choked by that statement.
He couldn't imagine what he would do if someone important in his life had been strapped to that chair.
Would he... cross that line?
The thought sent a tremor through him.
Seeing Bruce sink into silence and the others exchanging awkward glances, Arthur felt completely bored.
"Alright, alright, you guys can take your time holding a memorial service here. The Atlantis seafood buffet is waiting for me."
After speaking, he whistled and turned to leave.
"Uh, then I... I'll go see if anything is happening in Central City..."
Barry made an excuse and zipped away in a flash of lightning.
Victor said nothing, merely nodding to Bruce before activating his back thrusters and flying away.
Diana was the last to leave.
She looked at Bruce's lonely silhouette and whispered, "Bruce, you are not alone."
Bruce did not turn around.
"I always have been."
Helplessness and heartache flashed in Diana's eyes, but she finally turned and vanished into the night.
Above the ruins, only Bruce remained, along with a corpse that would never laugh again.
He crouched down, looking at the Joker's lifeless face.
They had chased each other for so many years, fought for so many years.
He had always believed their saga would end with one of them completely giving up, or being locked away forever in a place they could never escape.
He never thought the ending would be this abrupt and undramatic.
What Bruce felt now was absurdity, emptiness, and a rage stemming from utter denial.
His life's work, the line he had always held, was nothing but a joke in Tel-Rol's eyes.
"Heh heh..."
Bruce looked at the Joker and suddenly began to laugh softly.
The Joker is me.
He pulled out his communicator, his voice devoid of any warmth.
"Alfred."
"I'm here, Master Bruce."
"Initiate the latest armor upgrade protocol. The uncontrollable factors are too great."
Meanwhile, on the top floor of the tallest building in Metropolis.
Tel-Rol dropped Kara onto the rooftop floor.
"Hey! What are you doing!"
Kara scrambled up, dusting off her uniform, and glared at him angrily.
Having been grabbed by the wrist and flown all the way from Gotham, she felt like her wrist was about to snap.
She was both embarrassed and furious.
"Taking you out to eat."
Tel-Rol pointed to the glass door next to the rooftop, which glowed with luxurious light, his expression entirely matter-of-fact.
"This restaurant, I hear the steak is flown in from Kobe, molecular gastronomy, three Michelin stars. You definitely haven't eaten here."
Kara was going insane trying to follow his logic.
"Who wants to eat with you! You just killed someone! Do you have any idea what you've done!"
"I do."
Tel-Rol frowned slightly, his eyes full of incomprehension.
"I solved a huge problem, saved at least hundreds of innocent lives in Gotham over the next decade, and helped your love-struck cousin maintain his 'no killing' reputation."
He spread his hands.
"By all accounts, this is a great thing. You should be giving me a commendation banner, not howling at me here."
"That is not the point!"
Kara was so anxious she stamped her foot.
"We do not kill people! That is the bottom line! It was the first thing Clark taught me!"
"Oh, then did your cousin teach you whether that bottom line is still necessary when upholding it means your family will die?"
Tel-Rol took a step closer, looking down at her.
"Little Kara, you have to understand one principle."
"Bruce's set of 'rules' is based on the premise that he has the absolute ability to lock up his enemies and that he himself does not have a fatal weakness that can be exploited."
"But the Joker proved that those rules have loopholes. And Clark, he has weaknesses."
He pointed to his own chest.
"Your hearts are simply too soft. Mine, however, is made of iron."
Kara was stunned speechless by his crooked logic.
She wanted to refute him, but she felt... maybe he had a tiny point?
Seeing her conflicted expression, Tel-Rol was amused.
He reached out and pinched Kara's puffed-up, angry cheek.
It felt quite nice, soft and squishy.
"Ah! What are you doing! Don't touch me!"
Kara slapped his hand away sharply, as if she had been electrocuted, her face instantly turning red down to her neck.
"Alright, stop thinking so much."
Tel-Rol retracted his hand and clicked his tongue.
"Even the biggest problems can wait until after we've eaten. Come on, let's go eat. If we don't hurry, they'll close soon."
Having said that, he ignored Kara and walked straight through the glass door himself.
A waiter saw a man wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt, baggy shorts, and flip-flops walk in. He was about to stop him but was silenced by a single look from Tel-Rol.
That look wasn't fierce; it was the indifference of something at the top of the food chain.
Just like a person wouldn't notice an ant passing beneath their feet.
Kara stood on the rooftop for a while. The cold wind blew, allowing her to calm down completely.
Then, her stomach gave an embarrassing "rumble."
After traveling from Kent Farm to Gotham and going through so much, she was already starving.
She glanced at the glass door, then looked down at her conspicuous Supergirl uniform.
Argh, this is so annoying!
In the end, hunger triumphed over shame.
She gritted her teeth, hardened her resolve, and followed him inside.
"Wait a minute!"
She shouted at Tel-Rol's back.
"You're paying for this! I'm ordering the most expensive thing!"
"No problem, I've got plenty of money!"