Tim silently sent the photo to Barbara. He certainly had no ill intentions, merely seeking her help in analyzing the situation. After all, he was tied up with other tasks at the moment, right?

The man in front of him was moving forward with a balance unattainable by humans. Tim quickly snapped out of the initial “thrill” and rationally deduced that this was definitely not Bruce, but rather something akin to a doll or bionic being, created in Bruce’s likeness.

Frowning, he wondered, “Does the mastermind know who Bruce is?”

Ignoring the fact that the doll must have been dressed after being made, even if it was a fully clothed doll, removing the mask would reveal the true identity of Gotham’s Dark Knight. Who could resist such a temptation?

“It’s a tough life, isn’t it?” he shrugged. “Bat?”

“That’s not me,” came the calm voice of his foster father over the communication, faint elegant music audible in the background. It seemed he was unable to leave the banquet.

“The best outcome is that it’s just an illusion, and the mastermind doesn’t know your identity. Or, slightly worse, they already know but haven’t disclosed it,” Tim added, chasing after the figure again. “For now.”

“There’s good news,” Barbara chimed in. “I compared the shadows on the wall. When it moves, the shadow is flatter than normal.”

Tim instinctively joked, “A slimmed-down Batman?”

Barbara coughed, suppressing a laugh. “It means what we’re seeing doesn’t align with reality. It can fool the naked eye but not machines. It’s indeed an illusion carried by some object.”

Good news. It seemed Batman had kept his cover.

“Don’t get too close,” Barbara warned. “It might suddenly explode. You know the kind of stuff those guys make, anything could happen.”

Tim had already caught up, only to find “Batman” hitting the wall again, probably due to the controller being distracted. So, the scene before him was—

Batman’s lower half was plastered against the wall, his upper body bouncing back and forth elastically, his forehead hitting the wall.

It really didn’t seem like Batman. If it were him, he could’ve easily broken through the wall.

Expressionless, Tim scanned with the device on his arm: “No heat source detected, wait, there seems to be something small at my feet…”

The small creatures at his feet seemed to regain their senses and promptly turned a corner, leaving Tim face-to-face with that smiling face.

Tim: “…”

He felt he needed to schedule some psychological counseling after this. Otherwise, he might develop a psychological shadow from his foster father’s smile.

This was too bizarre!

He reached for a dart, but suddenly, a wire hook made of iron dropped from the ventilation shaft above, hooking onto “Batman’s” cape, and swiftly pulled it up into the vent.

Tim: “!?”

Okay, it was definitely a flat object…

After it was taken away, two mice that were previously obscured by “Batman” were revealed.

Tim was somewhat bemused: “…So the real cause of the panic was just two mice?”

“How would we know,” one of the grey-backed mice exaggeratedly shrugged its paws. “We’re just here to work.”

“Bye~” the other, darker mouse waved at Tim. “You did a great job, Robin. Everyone likes you—by the way, which Robin are you?”

The two mice jumped down the water outlet, one after the other.

Tim paused for a moment: “Oracle, did you hear that?”

Barbara replied, “I heard mice squeaking, what’s up?”

Tim slowly exhaled—he might really need to see a psychologist.

But, before that, he had to chase after the person using the wire hook.

If Vivi knew the psychological shadow that the [Stray Animal Rescue Sign] combined with the little mice had caused Tim, she probably… well, she wouldn’t feel guilty.

After noticing the overlap between the human-shaped standee and Robin’s location, she climbed into the ventilation shaft to retrieve the prop.

Thinking back, this prop should have been used for its original function. Who pushes a standee around during a promotion? It should be fixed in one place—like in the Mayor’s office, for example.

The AI kept transmitting nearby messages to her:

[After the personnel evacuation, security staff have now assembled outside. They claim to have “seen Batman.”]

“Tell Shelk not to let the security personnel come in.”

In this situation, it was as if the entire map had been cleared, leaving only four people behind—Vivi herself, Robin, Spider-Man, and Catwoman, disguised as a worker.

The next second, the worker’s green dot turned into Catwoman’s red dot, indicating she had discarded her disguise and decided to go big.

But… Vivi took off her glasses, lifted the ventilation shaft cover, and jumped down from above.

Now, she was not Bella Bettywen, without any enhancement from glasses, she was her original self, “VV.”

She raised both hands, one still holding a bucket, but her turn was leisurely—after all, Robin was a good guy, and so was she; weren’t they on the same side?

Behind her, Robin’s head first displayed a [Shocked] bubble, which was then replaced by an [Angry] emoji.

Vivi: “?”

Wait, why are you angry?

“Robin, may I call you that?” Vivi showed a friendly smile. “I need your help to deal with Catwoman.”

The angry bubble disappeared, and the boy’s emotions seemed to return to calm. “I came here chasing Catwoman. What has she done?”

“Follow me,” Vivi glanced at the map. “She’s inside the factory.”

The girl in front of him was still dressed in the same way: a plain white robe, barefoot on the ground, and nothing else but an incongruous plastic bucket in her hand.

When they met in the sewer, she at least wore shoes and a coat, but Tim now recalled that under the coat was the same plain, unpretentious robe—this reminded him of certain unsavoury organizations.

At their second encounter, she had already become a corpse. Her coat and shoes were gone, her white robe soaked in sewage, and the bullets inside her body were not removed, resembling a discarded doll that had been played with to the point of boredom — still maintaining an unrotted, unblemished appearance, yet the green of her eyes had lost their light.

Their third meeting was now. Tim only had to turn his head slightly to see the brand on the back of the girl’s neck, “VV.” There were no wounds, no death, no stains… as if she was brand new…

He suddenly asked, “Are you sure you want to walk barefoot like this?”

The girl looked down in confusion, “Ah, it’s okay, right? I won’t feel any pain anyway…”

She raised her head, showing him a carefree smile.

“You’re so strange,” she muttered softly. “Why are you angry again…”

She didn’t know that every one of her facial expressions was appearing on the Batcomputer, and micro-expression analysis proved she wasn’t lying.

Human experimentation was a line that no one in the Bat-family could tolerate.

Barbara’s voice rang in his ear, “Two hours ago, the gargoyle by the church suddenly came to life, snatched the body from a police car, and threw it into the furnace of the factory, which belongs to the Mayor. I think you’ve already seen the video, Robin.”

“What about when you die, does it hurt then?” Tim asked.

“Um,” the girl paused for a second, “No, it doesn’t hurt, it’s okay…”

As she spoke, she began to laugh and even gave a “Yay” sign. “Dying for a better Gotham, isn’t that good?”

They climbed up to the second floor, one after the other. The girl seemed to know where Catwoman was, even muttering, “How is Spider-Man here too?” Tim wondered if Peter changing his mask made any difference.

“How should I address you?” They had reached the top third floor of the factory, the entire factory resembling a heat reactor. Parts of the workshop’s high temperatures concealed human activity. The girl’s ability to find Catwoman must rely on a method unique to her — an unscientific kind.

After a long pause, Tim couldn’t help but turn around, only then hearing a slightly confused voice: “Vivi, just call me Vivi. No one has ever asked for my name before… that’s strange.”

There was an odd sense of embarrassment being asked for her name in the game — didn’t NPCs already know her name, like Anna Alex or Bella Bettywen, or even “C”? But being asked face-to-face, she wasn’t the Mayor, a police officer, or the mysterious C, and had to reveal her online name. So embarrassing!

Thankfully, she didn’t choose a weird name like “Sword of Angels” or “Flag of the Empire” or “Old Adam.” That would have been a lifesaver!

The location of Catwoman finally appeared in the room in front of them, right where the furnace that “VV’s” previous body had been thrown into was. Robin stepped in front of her and pushed open the door, Vivi peeked out from behind him, quietly reaching her hand into the red bucket.

The room was empty, the map showing nothing at the location marked for Catwoman. The machinery was not in operation; it was unclear what Catwoman was planning to do here.

— That’s the drawback of a flat map. They had already walked through all three floors, which meant Catwoman was still at that point. But Vivi couldn’t get her three-dimensional coordinates; she might be underground or perhaps on the roof.

Just like a real cat.

Her fingertips touched something; Vivi glanced at Robin, hoping it wasn’t his personal item.

She pulled out a remote control.

【Side quest advanced: Catwoman’s Hostility · Bomb!】

【Catwoman actually wants to destroy the factory, filled with hazardous materials. Under her bomb, the entire factory would be annihilated, and the Mayor’s initial investment would evaporate — but now, the remote control of the bomb is in your hands.】

【You understand what Catwoman wants to do and why she wants to do it. So, what choice will you make?】

“Catwoman isn’t here?” Robin said. “But I have a bad feeling…”

The scanner swept over the area repeatedly. Unexploded items showed no reaction, but in such an environment, even without the remote control, any accidental trigger during a fight could vaporize everyone along with the Mayor’s coins.

Vivi grabbed Robin’s arm and asked in a low voice, “Can you defuse a bomb?”

“What…” Tim suddenly realized. “Oh my God, did she go to Arkham to study under the Joker?”

The bomb’s location was marked, and their task was to defuse it in this dangerous environment.

But Vivi knew Catwoman was nearby because the range of the 【Portable Trash Bin】 prop was 20 meters.

Vivi looked up, her gaze resting on the exhaust vent above—

It was pitch black up there, but if Catwoman was really there, would she try to detonate the bomb?

Choosing remote control over a timer, Catwoman probably only wanted to vaporize the Mayor’s coins and not harm innocent workers… but the Mayor’s coins are innocent too, right!?

Vivi reported the bomb’s coordinates to Robin. Although she, as a layman, could use the wrap, it wouldn’t be good to accidentally trigger it during the process.

Then, she hooked her little finger, and a shiny badge silently slid from her sleeve into the little bucket in her hand, making no sound at all — the bottom of the bucket was empty.

Catwoman was also a famous cat, so giving her the 【Cat Medal】 should theoretically be fine, right?

But, could she bear such an “honour”?

The map icon for [Catwoman] suddenly disappeared, and a heavy thud came from above the exhaust vent.

Robin, who had just defused a bomb, quickly returned, pulling Vivi back two steps and shot a claw hook, pulling down the vent’s iron plate—

Along with a bang, a set of black tight suits, a long whip, steel cat claws, a mask… even a hair tie fell down.

Tim: “?”

All of Catwoman’s equipment was there. Was she running around naked?

On the rooftop, a black cat incredulously rubbed its face: “Meow?”