American comics: Praising the sun, starting from Gotham!

in the room.

Pamela Ivy wasn't actually angered by the noise from the two fanatics outside.

She was manipulating the mutated steel cleaner she had snatched from Xiu En's arms.

Originally, this thing had green stems and leaves, but now it has turned completely into a dark bronze color.

"Bear with it, it might feel like your lungs are being scrubbed clean like a pot."

Ivy said coldly, tapping her fingertip lightly.

As if it had received a command, the plant suddenly extended seven or eight stiff, copper-wire-like tendrils, which stuck to Xiu En's chest and back.

A tingling, almost numb, tremor traveled into my body.

The burning sensation that had been igniting sparks in Xiu En's throat visibly transformed into wisps of golden energy, which were drawn away by the greedy copper wires through his pores.

Although it looked like a bizarre biochemical experiment site, Xiu En felt he hadn't breathed so easily in a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, the system sent a notification.

[The hostile force, the Court of Owls, has been completely routed. Its leader has been captured, and its main forces have been turned/eliminated/frightened unconscious.]

Xiu En leaned back in his chair, and even with plant tubes hanging from his body, he couldn't hide the upturned corners of his mouth.

He could almost see countless golden rays of merit lining up to enter his pocket.

[Cause and effect settlement in progress...]

[The host successfully guided and altered the predetermined fate of six court pawns (lv.0) who were destined to die—Rating: Excellent.]

[Successfully turned the legendary unit Claw Alvin to the enemy, and incidentally purified him into a fanatic—Rating: Excellent.]

The system seemed to have been tapped, and an ancient-style font appeared.

[Delaying Lincoln March – Rating: Top Grade.]

A small firework exploded in front of him on the virtual screen; of course, only he could see this special effect.

The quest chain "Shadows of Gotham" has been completed.

[Reward issued: Lifespan +50 days.]

Fifty days!

This is a good job for almost two months.

If you convert it to daily tasks, he would have to spend 50 days in Gotham, a place without sunshine!

But to Alvin, who had just freed himself from the vines and silently crept into the room to stand guard against the wall, it was a completely different scene.

He looked at the messenger.

Although the terrifying plant witch was using those blasphemous tentacles to rub against the adult's body and extract golden holy blood, the adult's face showed an expression of transcendence and even compassion.

Especially at that moment, the radiance on the adult's body, which had been dimmed, suddenly became stable again.

"He...is enjoying suffering."

Alvin gripped the hilt of the knife.

"This is bearing the weight of metal for the city."

Ivy, who was manipulating the plant to absorb energy and record data, glanced at the mud-covered bodyguard and rolled her eyes in an extremely elegant manner.

"If only you could pour all that water out of your brain and use it to water plants."

She muttered something, then retracted one of the cleaner's tentacles, looking with satisfaction at the section of branch that had completely turned golden.

"Not bad, at least this time you won't cough up a spark that could set the house on fire."

The burning sensation in my lungs, as if I had swallowed a pound of red-hot coals, finally subsided.

Xiu En took a deep breath, his alveoli expanding and contracting.

He slumped in the medical chair, his gaze passing through the system screen visible only to him. The words "Lifespan +50" on it were more pleasing to the eye than any world-famous painting.

"That rich guy Bruce in the tight suit really outperformed us this time."

Xiu En shook his neck.

He picked up a glass of cold water that someone had placed on the table next to him and drank it all in one gulp.

"Yesterday they were acting out Gotham City's Court of Owls with me, and today they've been completely razed to the ground. Is this the true value of money? Tsk, the efficiency of capitalists—as long as the money's right, they can clean up a city faster than washing a dish."

Pamela Ivy was carefully transplanting the steel cleaner plant into a glass jar filled with a special nutrient solution.

Hearing Xiu En's words, she didn't even turn her head, but just snorted coldly.

"That's what he does best. He paves the way with money, finishes with his fists, and then stands on the moral high ground to give a speech about protecting others."

She turned around, wiping her hands with a towel still covered in dirt, and stared at Xiu En with green eyes that seemed to be scrutinizing a specimen.

"Don't be too happy yet. Although your lungs are no longer hot, the degree of metallization has increased."

"If you don't want what you cough up next to cut your trachea, you'd better stay away from those crazy people who get you all worked up. Also, remember to pay the consultation fee. You know I don't accept checks, I only accept cash. Remember to come every day."

Alvin, who had been like a statue, moved.

The mud on his body had dried and was falling off with each movement.

He ignored Ivy's sarcasm and instead took Xiu En's earlier remarks as some kind of divine revelation.

"That is the Lord's mercy."

"That mortal hero was merely an executor of your will. It was because you descended here and exposed the owl's falsehood that the darkness receded so swiftly. If you wish, I can go to that so-called Wayne Enterprises now and wipe out the remaining remnants."

As he spoke, he actually struck a pose as if he were ready to rush out and tear the enemy apart, the kind of pose that he would immediately go to his death if Xiu En nodded.

"Stop, stop, stop!"

Xiu En quickly waved his hand, stopping the security captain who had just gained the ability to use a Stand and wanted to solo the dungeon.

He touched his flat stomach, from which came an untimely, thunderous protest.

Lifespan has increased, but the energy consumption of the body is also real.

"Instead of cleaning up the remnants, I'd rather clear out the inventory at the nearby burger joint. Since that guy won so decisively, there's no need for me to save him any money."

Shuen pulled out the black supplementary card Bruce had given him from his pocket. He wondered if Bruce had forgotten about it, but he hadn't asked Shuen for the card back.

He held it between two fingers and shook it; the black and gold card surface reflected an alluring luster under the light.

"Alvin, go ask those kids what they want to eat. Today's bill is on Wayne. Bring me whatever high-calorie junk food they want—fried chicken, pizza, fries. It's to celebrate... well, to celebrate Gotham's improved air quality."

Before Alvin could even receive the order, the door to the medical room was flung open.

Jerami burst in like a mud-covered monkey, his face beaming with the excitement of someone who had witnessed a wonder of the world, and spoke to Ivy.

"Boss! Boss! Come out and see!"

He pointed out the window, ignoring Ivy's murderous glare, because his muddy footprints were on the clean floor.

"Weren't there two big guys tied up with green vines? One ran away, and the other one can actually do all sorts of amazing tricks while rolling around! Just now he even did a caterpillar dash for us with his chin on the ground, and now all the new bald kids are clapping for him! He says it's some kind of blessing from the earth god?"