“You want to exchange trust, don’t you?” Vivi thought for a moment and handed him a microphone.

The tiny Batman clutched the oversized equipment and sighed, fumbling around his face. “Do you need to find a magnifying glass?”

“No need…” Vivi didn’t have to fetch a magnifying glass to see his tiny face. After a moment of silence, she said, “When you mentioned revealing your identity, I already ‘saw’ your name.”

【Gotham’s Wealthiest】

She had only ever seen that title hovering over one person—Bruce Wayne, Gotham’s billionaire playboy.

Philanthropist, billionaire, Gotham’s wealthiest man. He had disappeared from the city for a week, apparently chasing after some beautiful woman from Africa. Now that Bruce’s identity had slipped, the rest were easy to figure out—his eldest son, Dick Grayson, was Nightwing; his third son, Tim Drake, was Robin.

So that means Vivi had fought alongside Nightwing to take down Black Mask, only to later invite him to be the deputy warden under her alias, Bella?

No wonder the little cop refused to stay on, even though it meant a promotion. He wasn’t just an officer—he was a vigilante protecting a city. Just like how Batman wouldn’t become the warden of Blüdhaven’s prison, no one could imagine Nightwing abandoning his city.

It wasn’t until she joined the night patrols that Vivi began to understand them, though some things still eluded her.

“You’re so rich, why are you playing vigilante?”

Bruce countered, “Are you short on money?”

On the surface, Vivi looked anything but poor. In reality, however, the mayor owed eight million gold coins: “…Yes!”

“Well, there you go,” the tiny man inside the flower smiled. “You need money, and I have money. And we both want to make Gotham a better place. With a shared goal and a reason for cooperation, we have a foundation for working together.”

It made sense, Vivi thought. Had she just landed a wealthy sponsor?

“But,” she hesitated, “Batman, I know you’ve been fighting criminals, putting them in prison, investing in Arkham, doing everything you can to rehabilitate them… but we’re not the same. I want to kill them.”

Perhaps it was the atmosphere, or maybe the rarity of such an opportunity for candid conversation, but Bruce responded in a calm tone. “I want to kill them, too, because they’ve killed innocent people… What makes you think I don’t want criminals punished? I’ve been trying, and I’ve been failing.”

“—The Batman, who makes criminals fear him, is a failure.”

“Because he’s just human, he has to prepare before every fight, train himself, gather intelligence, come up with countless contingency plans. And yet, he still fails,” Bruce seemed to be speaking as Bruce Wayne, assessing Batman. “That’s why he’s often afraid—because he can’t imagine what Gotham would become if he fails completely. He’ll grow old, and everything he’s worked for will burn away, and Gotham will remain unchanged.”

“That’s why I… don’t kill,” the man said with difficulty.

“Vivi, I don’t kill because Batman will die one day,” he said, “and what can truly change this city is the law, not Batman.”

“You really want Harvey Dent, Two-Face, to become Gotham’s White Knight again,” Vivi suddenly commented, veering away from Bruce’s previous train of thought, “but you still left the choice in his hands.”

The two sat in the warm light of the room, staring at each other in silence. After a while, Vivi slowly looked away. “Harvey won’t die, but he will be punished.”

“He kills, he destroys the city—he should be punished,” Bruce agreed.

Damn it, Vivi thought, sorting through the situation, feeling a twinge of guilt despite everything. But Batman… this guy was the one who started it!

“I’ve been watching you, analyzing you,” Bruce continued when Vivi remained silent. “I’ve been teaching you how to fight, and I know you love this city.”

Vivi nodded: Of course!

“But I still don’t trust you, or the person behind you,” Bruce said.

“Hmm?” Vivi raised an eyebrow.

“You don’t have to trust me either,” Bruce’s voice now had the unmistakable tone of Batman. “And I’ll stop you when you cross the line, even if it means I might fail. But that doesn’t mean we can’t work together. Changing Gotham isn’t just talk—it’s about action.”

“You’ll help me,” Vivi said, staring at him, “but sometimes you’ll also stop me…”

This felt so strange. For a moment, Vivi felt like Bruce Wayne in front of her was a real person. Had the game’s algorithms improved this much? Behind the data, it felt like there were unspoken words, more complicated issues she hadn’t quite figured out yet.

Better not think about it!

“Besides,” Bruce continued candidly, “I’d also like to take this opportunity to pull you away from Mr. C. It’s not manipulation… it’s because we’ve lived through some terrible days, and we want you to become a better person, Vivi. I don’t know your relationship with Mr. C, or how you can break free from him, but this is just advice—he’s dangerous, and you should know that.”

Without a doubt, Mr. C had controlled Penguin’s mind, gained a following of fanatics like Violin, displayed Batman’s statue in the city center for entertainment, made a large number of criminals “disappear” on the spot, resurrected Vivi, and toyed with the power of death… Even Vivi herself, when looking back on everything attributed to Mr. C, found it hard to confidently claim “Mr. C isn’t a bad guy.”

Vivi asked, “So what are you planning to do?”

Bruce replied, “Hmm, I think I can start by investing $200 million into the city’s sewer system, fundraising for the poor in the East End, and the day-to-day maintenance of Blackgate Prison.”

Vivi: “!”

A money strategy?!

Folks, it’s a money strategy!

Couldn’t he give a little more?

“From today on, I’m officially on your side,” Vivi declared decisively. “Mr. C wouldn’t mind—he’d be absolutely thrilled!”

For some reason, as soon as she said that, Vivi felt as if an invisible burden had fallen from the sky, landing squarely on her silver-haired benefactor’s head—yet another responsibility weighing him down.

【You have completed the side quest: “The Identity of Matches Malone” and its subsequent task: “The Identity of Batman.”】

【You have completed the side quest: “The Identity of Batman” and its subsequent task: “Collaboration with Batman.”】

【You have earned: 100 diamonds, and 8 million gold coins (with future earnings projected, exact total unavailable).】

Batman chuckled ambiguously, not saying whether he believed her or not.

Vivi snapped her fingers and said, “Right now, there’s no obvious force left in the city to resist, and at night, Gotham doesn’t need Batman to protect it—not at the moment. We can focus entirely on city building.”

A figurative question mark seemed to hover over Bruce’s head. “What exactly happened?”

“The city now has tireless protectors—not just one, but a force large enough to form an army.” Vivi spread her hands. “Those who want to destroy the city are locked in a special prison. They’ll be free once they stop tormenting themselves. If you ask me, that might not happen for at least a month.”

“… Can that rose keep Harvey for a month?” Bruce only asked that one question.

It seemed their little “trust talk” had some effect. Vivi wrinkled her nose. “Yes, I have a special preservation method.”

Stored in a system space where time doesn’t flow.

They exchanged glances, and Vivi hummed softly. She temporarily added Batman, Bruce Wayne, and Matches Malone to the estate’s friendly list. After confirming that he wasn’t an “intruder,” the “Sun Knight” rose released Bruce.

Before her stood the black-haired, blue-eyed billionaire, dressed in his gardener’s outfit, the one he wore when trimming roses. But as soon as he emerged, Vivi pushed him out the door, shoving him out with an undeniable force. “I think neither of us wants to pry into each other’s little secrets, right? The estate is now closed to you. I’ll visit Wayne Manor for training this afternoon!”

After kicking out her rich benefactor, Vivi stood at the door, hands on her hips, deep in thought. “Perfect… my contracts with Nightwing and Catwoman are finished, and I’ve learned most of the skills I need. Next—”

“Next, I’m flying solo!”

Gotham’s newest vigilante, Nightwatch, was officially going solo. After all, no one said being a vigilante meant you had to be tied to the Bat-family, right?

Bruce gazed at the thick fog before him, shook his head, and took off his jacket, draping it over his arm. After confirming his bearings, he decided to walk to Wayne Manor.

After all, it wasn’t too far.

As he walked, he observed the city after the long night… The sun had already risen, though it was, as usual, hidden behind thick clouds. The pale light filtered through the overcast sky, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary in Gotham. From a distance, no explosions or collapsing buildings could be seen. The expressions of the pedestrians weren’t strange, either… or were they?

They seemed anxious, muttering words like “candy wrappers” and “balloons,” even ignoring the wealthy man walking past them. Then again, maybe a typical billionaire wouldn’t dress like a gardener.

Bruce quickened his pace. According to Vivi, more than one person had been imprisoned—most likely a whole bunch of them. And Bruce had a good sense of just how many criminals Gotham held.

Bristol County exuded a calm and peaceful atmosphere. Far from the city center, disasters rarely struck here, and the pace of life was slower. The people were mostly friendly and warm, making it one of the few places in Gotham that didn’t quite feel like Gotham.

Suddenly, Bruce heard gasps from the people around him—something was descending from the sky, casting a large shadow. He looked up, his pupils narrowing: a gargoyle statue had come to life, flying like the creatures he had seen on the surveillance footage—gargoyles that had come to life and stolen Vivi’s body. That moment flashed in his mind as the gargoyle descended. Bruce rolled to the side, dodging its claws, and gripped a nearby fence, preparing to snap it off and strike the creature!

“What are you doing?” a child’s innocent voice asked from the onlookers.

Bruce froze. The gargoyle hovered in midair, lowering its head to show him the balloon tied around its neck.

“Wow!” a cheer erupted from the crowd.

“Hurry, grab it—quick—” Bruce heard people shouting excitedly. “You’re the lucky one—”

Bruce: “…?”

He realized the creature wasn’t attacking him. Instead, it remained docile, its wings sending gusts of wind as it flapped them, making it hard for the onlookers to keep their eyes open. Yet they stayed eagerly, with some mischievous teenagers even jumping up to try and touch the gargoyle’s claws.

Bruce hesitated, his hand slowly reaching up to untie the pink balloon. His muscles were taut beneath his shirt, as if what he held wasn’t just a string, but the fuse to a bomb.

The gargoyle tilted its head, its claws brushing gently against his head before it spread its wings. In a matter of seconds, it became a tiny speck soaring through the cloudy sky.

He pulled out his signature playboy smile and glanced around at the gathered crowd. “Can anyone tell me what exactly is going on?”