Laughing American comics, I am becoming more and more like a clown

Here's the question, what counts as normal?

The Joker said: "Back then, I would think independently, have my own sense of self, and all my actions would come from my heart. I wouldn't have any blurred or forgotten memories."

"I will reflect on my actions and am willing to suffer for them, even to face the death penalty...When the time comes, what you see will be the normal me in your mind."

……

The Joker's assumption was too extreme, but Batman did think about this possibility, but now, Batman didn't say it.

The white candle gradually burned to the end, and the voices behind the red curtain became more and more rapid and noisy. They were other madmen who were dissatisfied with the Joker's monopoly on Batman.

"Okay, okay." The clown stood up, his previous sadness gone, and he said something in line with his character: "Our friends have been waiting for a long time, Bat - I can't keep you for too long -"

Or perhaps the Joker is avoiding answers that might eventually come from Batman.

Anyway, before Batman could answer, he pulled back the curtain—

Below was what Batman had originally expected, an entertainment facility assembled with medical equipment and tables, chairs and benches, and the source of the noisy sound was now clear.

It's the crazy people who gather around the facility.

"Welcome to Arkham Paradise!"

"Today's fare—a bat!"

……

Compared to the clown's inappropriate opening premise, the subsequent performances were slightly less exciting.

It's just Batman's old-fashioned fight with his opponents, followed by a heartfelt confession, and then it ends.

Later, Batman figured out what was going on. Arkham's notebook was discovered, which contained a lot of records about "Arkham Asylum is alive" and "The shadow of the bat can never be escaped".

And these crazy words convinced the doctor and the madman, and so this night happened.

The asylum proves a theory to Batman - Arkham is the inner part of the Batcave, and everyone here is a part of Batman.

There's nothing new about this abstraction.

So Batman succeeds in stopping the chaos once again and leaves Arkham, the beast's mouth closes and it returns to darkness.

……

The Joker returned to his cell, but when he opened the door, he saw the uninvited guest who had arrived long time earlier.

He had anticipated this and just said:

"What's your name? ...Another me?"

Chapter 228 The Joker: Batman, kill me!

The police took over Arkham after Batman left, took away the involved caregivers, and finally calmed the lunatics down. However, at the end, they found that the Joker was nowhere to be found.

Gordon thought to himself.

……

The Batcave is now in chaos. Batman was harassed by Jason as soon as he returned here.

Robin, who was punished and banned from night patrol for a week because of his heavy-handedness during night patrol a few days ago, clearly heard everything that happened in the asylum through the communicator carried by Batman.

Including the Joker's remarks.

Batman's silence in the context was obviously misunderstood by Jason as a tacit agreement - he would let the Joker remain as he was.

As the kid born in Crime Alley grows older, his actions become more impulsive and violent.

"I heard you—you're not even willing to let the Joker be good!"

“That’s not getting better.”

"So you just watch the clown do those things!"

A month ago, a clown distributed laughing gas balloons at an amusement park, causing a major social problem. Thirty-four children died, more than two hundred children suffered irreversible injuries, and even more children and adults developed respiratory problems to varying degrees.

Apparently, the Joker's invitation to Arkham Asylum made Jason think of this.

Batman looked down at Jason, who was looking at him angrily with his head held high. His exposed jaw was tense, and he was controlling his expression just like he did when facing the Joker. Of course, it was more likely that he was controlling himself just like he did when facing the Joker.

"You need to calm down, Robin."

"Calm down! Calm down! Damn it! What else can you say besides this!" Unfortunately, Jason didn't buy it.

The Kid from Crime Alley, the Second Robin, Jason Todd

When the atmosphere reached a freezing point and both parties were silent, Gordon's voice came from the communicator:

"The Joker is missing, Batman."

"I'll take care of it." Batman stood up and was about to put his cape back on.

"Batman!"

Jason looked at him, eagerly and pleadingly:

"I can help you!"

Unfortunately, the figure didn't pause for even a second, only a cold and hard "no".

No one knows how dangerous the Joker is better than Batman. He has been trying his best to avoid Jason's private meeting with the Joker. Moreover, Batman has found that Jason has become more and more irritable as he grows older, and he is very worried that something he doesn't want to see will happen.

But Jason obviously didn't think so. He was eager to do something or prove something.

So after Batman left, he pretended to return to the room, and then secretly left Wayne Manor.

……

The camera did not capture the clown's departure, and there was no witness to see the clown leave. The only thing is that some people said that the cleaner Tom disappeared with him.

Tom was a temporary worker who had been employed for no more than two weeks, and his identity information was incomplete, but the asylum always recruited people who were good at what they did - even if the salary was high, there were few people willing to gamble their lives that the lunatics would not kill him when they escaped.

After a brief investigation, as expected, Tom was a fake identity. Perhaps the clown gang sent someone to rescue the clown.

The night in Gotham is exceptionally long, but no matter how long it is, dawn is approaching, and a little light appears from the east.

Jason wasn't wearing a Robin uniform, but a red hoodie and overalls. With his hands in his trouser pockets and a lollipop in his mouth, he looked like any hip-hop kid you'd see anywhere—his only flaw was his white skin.

Of course, this can also prevent him from having his magazine emptied by sleepy police officers early in the morning, greatly increasing his survival rate in official organizations. Unfortunately, his survival rate in the underworld is correspondingly reduced.

It's not necessarily true that Jason came out to look for the Joker. Without any information, it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. More importantly, he was just venting the anger that Batman had brought him during the quarrel.

After thwarting several robberies and beating the robbers to the ground, Jason unknowingly walked into Crime Alley.

——Where he lived before he was adopted by Batman.

Then he walked as if possessed by a spirit to the small house where he had lived but which had been robbed. Without stopping, he walked past it quickly.

The sun gradually rises.

Jason's gaze suddenly fixed.

He saw people dressed strangely and moving about suspiciously - such people were not uncommon in this city.

But this figure is indeed rare in that he is two meters tall and very thin. People with such a physique are rare. The last person with such characteristics was called the Crime King.

So he managed to get Jason's attention and he followed him.

The roads in Crime Alley are mostly narrow and long, with sewage flowing in the corners, garbage piled up, and red graffiti on the gray walls.

After turning several corners, the figure stopped without warning and looked in Jason's direction.

He wears a mask on the upper half of his face, and his eyes are like will-o'-the-wisp, cold and eerie. Combined with his unusual figure... people in Gotham will avoid him when they see him... His unusual appearance also means an unusual mental state in this city. Who knows if he is another super villain in reserve.

But it was too late for Jason to dodge, and he regretted his impatience, which led to his tracking being discovered.

"Robbery? Or theft?" But the man spoke faster, pulling out a gun from his pants pocket and pointing it at Jason: "Kid, I advise you to know your place."

Maybe it was the physical resemblance, but after he said it, Jack slightly dispelled his suspicions that he was the Joker - the London accent, the way he spoke.

It's not the weird, sharp voice of a clown, but the magnetic voice of an adult male with fully developed masculine features.

So now all Jason has to do is convince him not to shoot.

But before he was about to say something, the man put away his gun again and squinted at Jason - probably because he saw Jason's white skin.

"I seem to have seen you before."

…Jason forgot his disguise, and his back stiffened.

"Jason Todd? You're Wayne's son."

Jason was wondering whether he should take this opportunity to slip away or just laugh it off. He chose the latter and turned and ran away.

Unfortunately, this person anticipated Jason: "Wait!"

He caught up with her and followed closely behind her. After trying to shake her off several times without success, Jason stopped resignedly to avoid suspicion of his identity. "What's the matter?"

"...I'm Oberon Saxton." Oberon was in good health, only panting slightly as he handed over his business card. "I'm a writer... I'm currently writing a book about Gotham, so this is very presumptuous of you."

He said, "Can I ask a few questions?"

Auberon Saxton, a British author who researches global crime, also has his contact number.

Jason put it away, not interested in being asked questions, or rather, after becoming Wayne's adopted son, in order to avoid being compared with Grayson and to stop pretending at parties, Jason always avoided it whenever possible.

But now that I can't avoid it, I just want to get away with it.

"I studied crime in many cities and regions and found that some cities in the United States not only have unexpected criminals, but also superheroes."

"I think Gotham is the most representative of them all, so I'm going to write a book about Gotham, where Batman is inevitable."

Perhaps due to his interview experience, Oberon explained his background and purpose in detail before answering the questions, and his choice of words and sentences was very official.

He talked a little more, from Batman to the Justice League, then to his sponsor Wayne, and to Robin, who was about the same age as Wayne's son.

Then, before Jason's patience ran out, he asked, "I think Batman shouldn't put criminals in mental hospitals. It won't bring complete justice, and Wayne's funding for him is useless. What do you think?"

……

What a coincidence.

What he asked about was the conflict between Jason and Batman these days. The Robin part of Jason set off alarm bells.

As he made a perfunctory remark, he looked at Auberon again out of the corner of his eye, his attention drawn to the mask that covered the upper half of his face.

Then, like a sudden teenage curiosity: "Why are you wearing a mask?"