Jin moved closer and closer toward the light. The nearer he got, the larger and brighter it became.
When he completely stepped into the light, Jin found himself inside a closed white space. In the middle stood a fountain decorated with an owl.
Jin looked around. There were two paths, one to his left and one to his right. It seemed that he had entered the labyrinth of the Court of Owls.
After a moment, the door behind him opened and a figure rushed in. It was Barbara, who had chased after him. When she saw Jin, she finally let out a sigh of relief.
She walked to his side, glanced around, and asked,
"Is this the lair of the Court of Owls?"
"Yes… and no."
It could indeed be considered the Court of Owls' lair, but more precisely, this was the maze they designed to torture their enemies.
In the original story, even Batman had almost died here. There was no food in this place—only the clear water from the owl fountain.
Under the dual torture of both mind and body, even someone with willpower at the peak of humanity like Batman had nearly fallen here.
[Sign in at the Court of Owls. Reward: Mysterious Stopwatch. Specific function to be explored by the host.]
Jin frowned. This was the first time the system had given him a mysterious reward.
However, before he had time to think about what it might do, numerous figures suddenly appeared around him and Barbara.
They were all humanoid weapons—the Claws of the Court of Owls.
Each of them held cold weapons of different shapes, pointing them directly at Jin and Barbara.
"It looks like we're surrounded."
Barbara stood back-to-back with Jin, watching the Claws around them vigilantly.
"Hehe~ I haven't fought side by side with you before."
Jin smiled.
"Then your chance has finally come."
Soon, the two of them began fighting against the large group of Claw assassins.
Jin was quite comfortable dealing with these Claws, but Barbara was not someone with overwhelming physical strength.
Although she possessed plenty of high-tech equipment, her physical abilities were far inferior to those of the Claws.
Because of this, Jin had to protect Barbara from getting injured while also dealing with the assassins.
Directly above them, members of the Court of Owls were watching the battle.
"I didn't expect them to find this place."
"It seems we underestimated these bugs."
However, none of them believed Jin and Barbara could handle their army of Claws.
After all, these were well-trained assassins.
Ten Claws against just two people—how could they possibly win?
——
Night.
Wayne Manor.
Alfred was collecting teacups from the dining table when suddenly a black shadow flashed past the floor-to-ceiling window behind him.
He quickly turned his head, but saw nothing.
Still, Alfred was certain it wasn't an illusion. Someone had likely bypassed the manor's detection and security systems.
He turned back and continued his work, but his body had already tensed, ready for any sudden danger.
Suddenly—
A cold flash of light appeared.
Alfred instantly tilted his head to the side, and a dagger sliced past his ear.
He fixed his gaze toward the direction it had come from.
A Claw wearing black armor dropped down from the ceiling and landed directly in front of him.
"It seems a thief has entered the house."
Alfred's eyes narrowed, a cold glint flashing within them.
Because of these people, his master had not returned for three days.
He picked up the pair of brass knuckles on the table and put them on his hand.
Alfred was far from an ordinary butler.
On the contrary, he possessed considerable skill in martial arts and combat.
Another Claw appeared behind him.
"Alfred Pennyworth. The Court of Owls has sentenced you to death."
Seeing this, a drop of sweat slid down Alfred's forehead. Both of them were top-tier assassins, which put him under considerable pressure.
"Bang!"
Suddenly, another sound rang out.
A figure crashed through the glass of the floor-to-ceiling window and landed on the ground.
Everyone's attention was drawn to him.
He wore ordinary black pants and a coat.
But the most eye-catching thing was the red helmet covering his head.
A completely new figure who had never appeared in Gotham before—whether villain or hero, no one knew.
If Jin were here, he would immediately recognize this person's true identity.
Jason.
The Jason who had died three months ago.
Now he had been successfully resurrected through the Lazarus Pit of the League of Assassins. After training under Ra's al Ghul, he had returned with a new identity—
The Red Hood.
Jason looked up and saw the two Claws surrounding Alfred.
A fierce glint flashed beneath his helmet.
Since being resurrected, his mind had become far more violent.
Anyone who harmed his family would face violence in return.
Now, he firmly believed in answering violence with violence.
Without hesitation, one of the Claws rushed toward Jason, engaging him in battle.
Alfred noticed that Jason's hostility wasn't directed at him.
His intuition told him that the man wearing the red helmet was not an enemy.
And strangely enough, his figure looked somewhat familiar.
Even his fighting style carried traces of his master's techniques.
——