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Chapter 106: Two-Face's Choice
October 19, 2022 Author: Great Demon Spirit
"Tell me, where is Harvey?!"
Batman was panting heavily, pressing down on the Joker and slamming him onto the table. His bloodshot eyes emanated a bone-chilling coldness. After suffering a defeat at Tony's hands, he had immediately rushed to the Gotham City Police Department to question the Joker.
The Joker yawned. Although his bones felt like they were about to shatter from the impact, what interested him more was Batman's condition.
"Hehehe, did you win? Let me think, you must have lost, right? The strongest mortal faced a superhuman and was utterly defeated, then came running to me, looking like a mess, to ask for someone~~~ Hahaha, Batman, you should have won, then dragged Tony's corpse to me, proving to everyone your omnipotence." The Joker smacked his lips, his eyes gleaming as if he had seen something that excited him to the extreme.
He incited Batman to confront Tony, intending to use this method to tear off Batman's mask and then find an opportunity to trample on him mercilessly.
"Let me see, let me see... you took a full two hours, how pathetic. Two hours for you to pitifully ask me for someone..." The Joker raised his arm, pretending to glance at his empty wrist—in reality, there was something there: a watch drawn with a carbon pen.
"Don't test my patience any further, where is Harvey?!" Batman gritted his teeth, completely losing his composure, roaring furiously. His hoarse shouts reverberated through the entire interrogation room.
"Hehehe, remember what I told you? You have to break your principles to get what you want. The only way to survive is to have no principles. You lost your conviction with Tony, and next, you'll lose everything." The Joker's eyes wandered aimlessly. "You have to play a game with me, if you really want to save one of them."
"They?"
"Sometimes, I really think the face under your mask is Harvey, especially when you'd go to any lengths for Rachel... Oooh-hahaha! Does Harvey know about the deep love story between you and his little darling? Romeo and Juliet? Hahahaha!" The Joker revealed a triumphant smile, muttering to himself, occasionally letting out insane laughter.
"Where are they?!" Batman knocked the Joker down with a punch, roaring loudly. At this moment, a trace of dread arose within him. Would this madman, the Joker, let him easily rescue both of them? And there was an even more terrifying possibility...
"Killing me might be a good choice."
Another punch, accompanied by a roar: "Where are they?!"
"Choose one of two: your valued prosecutor companion, or your companion's beloved wife? Hehehehehe, you must make a choice. Punching me is useless. I will tell you their locations, but the crucial point is, you must make a choice." Under the other's gaze filled with killing intent, the Joker stated two locations.
"Harvey is on 250-52 Street, Rachel is on Cicero X Avenue—choose, Batman. You can only save one of them. One lives, one dies. How will you choose?"
Batman threw the Joker to the ground with an over-the-shoulder throw and furiously pushed open the door of the interrogation room. His dusty cape trembled with his movements.
Knowing the Joker's nature, these two locations were almost certainly real, and Harvey and Rachel were indeed imprisoned separately in these two places. But the most terrifying crucial point was that Rachel might be imprisoned on 250-52 Street and Harvey in Cicero. The Joker's chaotic mind and precise grasp of human psychology were enough to make anyone's scalp tingle.
Which one should he save? Or rather, where should he go? The Joker claimed that only one person would survive. How should he choose? Should he go to 250-52 Street, or Cicero?
Gordon was waiting outside. He asked decisively and directly: "Who are you going to save?"
"Rachel!" Batman said through gritted teeth, and immediately mounted the Batcycle upon exiting.
"Then we'll go save Harvey! Everyone move, head to 250-52 Street immediately!" Gordon roared, urging everyone to act at once.
Under the roadside lights, Batman sped away on the Batcycle. Now he could only take a gamble. No matter how he chose, it could be a trap deliberately set by the Joker. No one but the Joker himself knew whether he was telling the truth or lying. However, Batman himself was a man who dwelled in darkness, and deep down, he already had a faint suspicion—a suspicion that filled him with dread.
It was highly probable that the one imprisoned in Cicero was not Rachel, but Harvey.
The "Two-Face's Choice" was not merely a choice between two locations, but a torment for Batman's heart. Which one did he hope was imprisoned in Cicero? Which one did he hope to save? Rachel, his childhood sweetheart? Or Harvey, in whom he placed such high hopes?
Amidst the agonizing "Two-Face's Choice," Batman suddenly seemed to understand why Harvey liked to flip a coin. In his mind, Tony's words suddenly echoed: "How much do you really know about Harvey? How much do you know about the darkness in his heart—ridiculous! Harvey was the one he had chosen after careful consideration; his character, integrity, and morality were one in a million!"
The rapidly moving Batcycle carried Batman past one vehicle after another. The biting cold wind howled against his face, adding a few more degrees of chill. He wondered if it was his body that was growing cold, or the heart encased within it.
...
"Is anyone there, is anyone there! Is *anyone* there?!"
Harvey, in a semi-conscious state, seemed to hear Rachel's screams, a sound filled with immense fear. He suddenly awoke: "Rachel? What's wrong?" He struggled, finding himself tied to a chair, surrounded by oil drums, and a bomb on the table had just begun its countdown.
Harvey's many years in the police force instantly made him understand everything: he had been tricked by the Joker.
"Listen, my dear Harvey, they told me only one of us will make it out alive. Our friend will make the choice." Rachel said with a tearful voice, speaking into a phone not far away.
The two were having their final conversation from a very long distance apart. Their only remaining connection was the sound transmission machine between them; this was all they had left.
"No, it's okay, we'll both be fine, we'll both be rescued!"
Harvey struggled a few times but unfortunately failed. He fell to the ground, and worse, he knocked over a small oil drum. The oil from the drum flowed across the floor, covering half of Harvey's face, pressed against the ground.
"Harvey? Harvey? What's wrong! Don't scare me!" Rachel heard a lot of noise and cried out anxiously.
In the Outside World, Batman and the police split into two groups to save the people they intended to rescue. If one were to look from above, with the Gotham City Police Department as the center, they would look like two arrows, winding towards their respective targets.
On the rooftop of a house, Scarecrow Crane dialed a phone number, quietly waiting for the other party to answer.
"Anderson, prepare immediately, the time is almost here." Crane said, his eyes glinting slightly. "Tony ordered us to lie in wait in these two locations. We must complete the mission no matter what... You should understand the consequences of failure. If nothing else, at the very least you'd be beaten senseless by Batman and thrown into prison for nothing. And Tony certainly won't let you off the hook."
(end of chapter)
October 19, 2022 Author: Great Demon Spirit
"Tell me, where is Harvey?!"
Batman was panting heavily, pressing down on the Joker and slamming him onto the table. His bloodshot eyes emanated a bone-chilling coldness. After suffering a defeat at Tony's hands, he had immediately rushed to the Gotham City Police Department to question the Joker.
The Joker yawned. Although his bones felt like they were about to shatter from the impact, what interested him more was Batman's condition.
"Hehehe, did you win? Let me think, you must have lost, right? The strongest mortal faced a superhuman and was utterly defeated, then came running to me, looking like a mess, to ask for someone~~~ Hahaha, Batman, you should have won, then dragged Tony's corpse to me, proving to everyone your omnipotence." The Joker smacked his lips, his eyes gleaming as if he had seen something that excited him to the extreme.
He incited Batman to confront Tony, intending to use this method to tear off Batman's mask and then find an opportunity to trample on him mercilessly.
"Let me see, let me see... you took a full two hours, how pathetic. Two hours for you to pitifully ask me for someone..." The Joker raised his arm, pretending to glance at his empty wrist—in reality, there was something there: a watch drawn with a carbon pen.
"Don't test my patience any further, where is Harvey?!" Batman gritted his teeth, completely losing his composure, roaring furiously. His hoarse shouts reverberated through the entire interrogation room.
"Hehehe, remember what I told you? You have to break your principles to get what you want. The only way to survive is to have no principles. You lost your conviction with Tony, and next, you'll lose everything." The Joker's eyes wandered aimlessly. "You have to play a game with me, if you really want to save one of them."
"They?"
"Sometimes, I really think the face under your mask is Harvey, especially when you'd go to any lengths for Rachel... Oooh-hahaha! Does Harvey know about the deep love story between you and his little darling? Romeo and Juliet? Hahahaha!" The Joker revealed a triumphant smile, muttering to himself, occasionally letting out insane laughter.
"Where are they?!" Batman knocked the Joker down with a punch, roaring loudly. At this moment, a trace of dread arose within him. Would this madman, the Joker, let him easily rescue both of them? And there was an even more terrifying possibility...
"Killing me might be a good choice."
Another punch, accompanied by a roar: "Where are they?!"
"Choose one of two: your valued prosecutor companion, or your companion's beloved wife? Hehehehehe, you must make a choice. Punching me is useless. I will tell you their locations, but the crucial point is, you must make a choice." Under the other's gaze filled with killing intent, the Joker stated two locations.
"Harvey is on 250-52 Street, Rachel is on Cicero X Avenue—choose, Batman. You can only save one of them. One lives, one dies. How will you choose?"
Batman threw the Joker to the ground with an over-the-shoulder throw and furiously pushed open the door of the interrogation room. His dusty cape trembled with his movements.
Knowing the Joker's nature, these two locations were almost certainly real, and Harvey and Rachel were indeed imprisoned separately in these two places. But the most terrifying crucial point was that Rachel might be imprisoned on 250-52 Street and Harvey in Cicero. The Joker's chaotic mind and precise grasp of human psychology were enough to make anyone's scalp tingle.
Which one should he save? Or rather, where should he go? The Joker claimed that only one person would survive. How should he choose? Should he go to 250-52 Street, or Cicero?
Gordon was waiting outside. He asked decisively and directly: "Who are you going to save?"
"Rachel!" Batman said through gritted teeth, and immediately mounted the Batcycle upon exiting.
"Then we'll go save Harvey! Everyone move, head to 250-52 Street immediately!" Gordon roared, urging everyone to act at once.
Under the roadside lights, Batman sped away on the Batcycle. Now he could only take a gamble. No matter how he chose, it could be a trap deliberately set by the Joker. No one but the Joker himself knew whether he was telling the truth or lying. However, Batman himself was a man who dwelled in darkness, and deep down, he already had a faint suspicion—a suspicion that filled him with dread.
It was highly probable that the one imprisoned in Cicero was not Rachel, but Harvey.
The "Two-Face's Choice" was not merely a choice between two locations, but a torment for Batman's heart. Which one did he hope was imprisoned in Cicero? Which one did he hope to save? Rachel, his childhood sweetheart? Or Harvey, in whom he placed such high hopes?
Amidst the agonizing "Two-Face's Choice," Batman suddenly seemed to understand why Harvey liked to flip a coin. In his mind, Tony's words suddenly echoed: "How much do you really know about Harvey? How much do you know about the darkness in his heart—ridiculous! Harvey was the one he had chosen after careful consideration; his character, integrity, and morality were one in a million!"
The rapidly moving Batcycle carried Batman past one vehicle after another. The biting cold wind howled against his face, adding a few more degrees of chill. He wondered if it was his body that was growing cold, or the heart encased within it.
...
"Is anyone there, is anyone there! Is *anyone* there?!"
Harvey, in a semi-conscious state, seemed to hear Rachel's screams, a sound filled with immense fear. He suddenly awoke: "Rachel? What's wrong?" He struggled, finding himself tied to a chair, surrounded by oil drums, and a bomb on the table had just begun its countdown.
Harvey's many years in the police force instantly made him understand everything: he had been tricked by the Joker.
"Listen, my dear Harvey, they told me only one of us will make it out alive. Our friend will make the choice." Rachel said with a tearful voice, speaking into a phone not far away.
The two were having their final conversation from a very long distance apart. Their only remaining connection was the sound transmission machine between them; this was all they had left.
"No, it's okay, we'll both be fine, we'll both be rescued!"
Harvey struggled a few times but unfortunately failed. He fell to the ground, and worse, he knocked over a small oil drum. The oil from the drum flowed across the floor, covering half of Harvey's face, pressed against the ground.
"Harvey? Harvey? What's wrong! Don't scare me!" Rachel heard a lot of noise and cried out anxiously.
In the Outside World, Batman and the police split into two groups to save the people they intended to rescue. If one were to look from above, with the Gotham City Police Department as the center, they would look like two arrows, winding towards their respective targets.
On the rooftop of a house, Scarecrow Crane dialed a phone number, quietly waiting for the other party to answer.
"Anderson, prepare immediately, the time is almost here." Crane said, his eyes glinting slightly. "Tony ordered us to lie in wait in these two locations. We must complete the mission no matter what... You should understand the consequences of failure. If nothing else, at the very least you'd be beaten senseless by Batman and thrown into prison for nothing. And Tony certainly won't let you off the hook."
(end of chapter)
