Gotham Singularity (XI): The Death of Batman

The cold moonlight fell on the clown's dark green hair, blurring the outline of his face, but illuminating his eyes, which were filled with madness and chaos.

He laughed as he approached her.

The next second, gushing blood spurted from the clown's neck, seemingly staining the dark sky crimson.

Fujimaru Ritsuka sprang from the bed, panting heavily, still shaken. The room remained as dark and gloomy as when she fell asleep, the patter of rain outside drowning out all other sounds.

"It was just a dream," she murmured to herself.

"Good morning, senior!" A familiar, energetic voice rang in my ears, and the communicator lit up with a blue light.

Ritsuka paused, adjusted her expression, and answered in a lighthearted tone, "Oh, it's Mashu! Is it already morning?"

“Yes, you slept for five hours. If you want to rest a little longer, you should still have time,” Mashu replied with concern.

Shaking her head, Ritsuka could see the gushing blood from her severed carotid artery as soon as she closed her eyes. Taking a nap now would definitely not be a wise choice.

Instead, we should go and discuss with Mr. Holmes and the others what to do today.

Their time is running out. They don't know if there will be another cycle, or if the killer will strike again. They are now racing against death.

As Ritsuka descended the stairs, she saw Holmes leaning against the dimly lit window, gazing into the distance. "Good morning, Mr. Holmes!"

"Oh, it's Miss Ritsuka. Good morning."

Holmes turned his head, his wise eyes fixed on Ritsuka, "Did you encounter any unexpected events during yesterday's investigation?"

Fujimaru Ritsuka yawned and slumped onto the sofa. "No, I thought I was going to run into Batman and Robin."

A loud crash echoed as Jason stomped down the stairs. Despite having only slept for three hours, he was still incredibly energetic. "Isn't it a good thing we can't run into them?"

He had assumed that Batman, having obtained so much incomprehensible information from Matchstick Malone, would try to stake out them at night. Even though he had destroyed most of the surveillance cameras on his turf, that was Batman; he had never failed to catch anyone he wanted.

But that's good too, because he's not ready to see that guy again right now.

With a chuckle, Jason ruffled his wildly unruly black hair and headed towards the kitchen. But halfway there, he suddenly stopped next to Ritsuka. "Perhaps you should take a day off today," he suggested.

Fujimaru Ritsuka looked at Jason in confusion. He should be the one most worried about not having enough time right now, so why would he suddenly want her to rest?

“You can look in the mirror. Your complexion, or rather your mental state, is terrible. You look as pale as if you’ve been painted with cheap paint,” Jason said. “The situation isn’t so dire that we need to make patients work overtime.”

Fujimaru Ritsuka remained silent for a moment, instinctively avoiding those clear blue eyes. She simply said in her usual lighthearted tone that it was okay, she just wasn't used to staying up late.

The young man with dyed hair gave her a deep look, as if he had noticed something, or perhaps he simply disapproved of her defiant behavior. But he didn't pursue the matter further, and instead headed straight for the kitchen.

“He cares about you,” Holmes suddenly said.

“I’m sorry,” Fujimaru Ritsuka replied softly, her voice rising slightly. “Is it obvious?”

Holmes did not answer her question again. Although his proud mind almost instantly sifted through the sea of ​​memories to arrive at a conclusion he already knew.

But that's meaningless.

So, each lost in their own thoughts, they quietly watched the rain through the window. It wasn't until Jason came out of the kitchen with breakfast and habitually turned on the television that the sound returned to the room.

Another murder is being reported. Fujimaru Ritsuka, chin in hand, casually remarks to Holmes that Gotham's safety rivals that of Shinjuku. "No wonder the professor chose this place."

Holmes nodded in agreement with Ritsuka's comment that chaos is a breeding ground for crime, while staring at the pixelated corpse and subconsciously analyzing it.

The ability of [Understanding] suddenly gave him a bad feeling.

Jason found Fujimaru Ritsuka's overreaction laughable. It was just murder; it happened every day in Gotham. The police even celebrated days without shootings.

Until he heard the victim's name—

"According to our reporter, Bruce Wayne, the de facto head of Wayne Enterprises, was found dead near the Gotham Police Department at 6:00 AM today. The person who reported the incident..."

The sound of tables and chairs colliding repeatedly drowned out the host's reading of the script. Before anyone else could react, Jason had already pressed the remote control, and the TV screen went black.

The next second, the remote control was roughly thrown onto the sofa.

The room fell into a silent silence.

Fujimaru Ritsuka turned her head in confusion and was surprised to find that Jason's complexion was visibly worse. He kicked aside the debris blocking his way, "Ha, what kind of damn fake news is this! These reporters will do anything for money!"

"What's the reason this time? Is it the stock price? Or has he taken a bite out of someone else's pie?"

Jason Todd's voice echoed in the cramped safe house, mixed with the noisy rain and the loud banging of the wind against the windows, making him even more agitated.

Looking at the messy living room, Fujimaru Ritsuka lowered her eyes and said softly, as if popping a fragile bubble, "Mr. Todd, your hands are shaking."

If he hadn't believed the news reports, why would he have been unable to control his trembling?

The agitated voices stopped instantly.

“…My hands are shaking?” Jason’s brow muscles tensed instantly, his trembling knuckles turning white from being clenched. He took a deep breath, trying to calm the abnormal trembling, but to no avail.

The host's voice kept repeating in his mind; he simply couldn't believe it. How could Bruce have died so ordinarily in some corner?

He hadn't even truly met the man he once considered a father! He hadn't questioned Batman about why the Joker was still alive! He hadn't proven to him that the no-killing principle was wrong!

He had assumed he would have plenty of time.

After all, how could Batman die so easily?

"Jason, calm down." Holmes' calm voice rescued Jason from the turmoil in his mind.

Jason looked at him with almost desperate hope, as if he had found a lifeline, hoping to get opposition to the fake news from the world's number one detective.

Holmes simply shook his head, tapping his index finger lightly on the armrest of his chair. He calmly and cruelly turned the television back on, the news relentlessly reporting Bruce Wayne's death.

The reporters swarmed in like vultures hunting for food, their greedy eyes following everything about Bruce Wayne. Even death couldn't sway their consciences.

“This is a real event,” Holmes concluded. He turned off the television, not wanting to further agitate Jason’s already troubled mind.

The bright indoor lights failed to illuminate Jason's face. Ritsuka silently watched Jason, while Jason, his face somber, gazed into the distance through the window.

After a long while, or perhaps just a minute or two, as if he could no longer bear it, Jason yanked open the door and rushed out of the safe house without even taking his umbrella.

“I need to go out for a bit,” Jason said, instinctively raising his voice. “None of you come any closer!”

Rather than saying he was walking, it would be more accurate to say he was running away.

The door slammed shut, and the Chaldean group inside finally felt the air begin to circulate again.

“His face is even paler than mine now.” Fujimaru Ritsuka sighed; she had practically witnessed the entire argument from the sidelines. “Who is Bruce Wayne? What is Mr. Todd’s relationship with him?”

“It’s my fault.” Holmes opened his notebook and crossed out “unknown” in the Batman’s real name column. “I was going to keep this a secret for them, but now the time has come to reveal it.”

Within days of meeting Jason, he had already grasped most of the situation, and upon arriving in Gotham, he found answers to the remaining questions. His initial decision to remain hidden stemmed from respect for Batman and Jason.

Unfortunately, the current situation no longer allows him to engage in any extra gentlemanly behavior.

"Bruce Wayne is Batman, and also Matchstick Malone. Jason Todd is the previous Robin, and also his adopted son."

Fujimaru Ritsuka gasped.

Next, Holmes gave her a brief overview of Gotham's richest man's complicated family relationships, as well as Jason's unpleasant past experiences and ideological differences with his family.

The dream from that morning returned to Ritsuka's mind. She listened to the culprit who killed Jason and murmured, "The Joker?"

"What's the problem?" Holmes paused.

"No, it's nothing."

After listening to everything, Ritsuka remained silent for a moment, realizing how terrible the situation was. She knew how painful loss was, and that simply accepting encouragement from those who came before her and moving forward was not as simple as it seemed.

How could it be that simple?

“Miss Ritsuka.” Holmes seemed to sense her thoughts. He leaned forward, staring intently into her golden eyes, and said with unusual directness, “Remember, Chaldea will always be behind you.”

"..." Fujimaru Ritsuka suddenly smiled, her eyes filled with emotions that had been building up inside her. "I know." She lowered her eyes, not asking, "And you? Will you always be with me?"

Because she already knew the answer.

“I’ve always known.”

The Master that everyone was looking forward to, the Master that everyone saved.

Even after everyone has left, she will surely carry her memories to the day she finds the answer to "the meaning of life" and achieves the ending of "there is nothing left to do".

A ray of light pierced the darkness, illuminating the entire Gotham City in an instant. The fleeting light shone through the window and into those resolute golden eyes.

Fujimaru Ritsuka took a deep breath, sweeping away all the weakness and unnecessary emotions that shouldn't have arisen at this moment. She had something more important to verify.

"Mr. Holmes, why was Batman the second victim?"

“I’ve been wondering about that too.” Holmes crossed his arms under his chin. “Logically speaking, whether it was for protection or revenge, it shouldn’t have anything to do with the Night Knights who protect the peace of Gotham’s nights.”

Unless, Holmes pauses, unless the woman resents Batman for failing to save what is important to her, or complains that he didn't kill the villains who did evil.

He looked at Ritsuka; the girl's keen intuition led them to the same conclusion. He heard her murmur, "That was truly an undeserved disaster."

But is it really that simple?

Everything seemed to be rewinding. Fujimaru Ritsuka irritably rubbed her hair and suddenly asked, "Is there an umbrella here?"

"Are you going to see him? He might not accept your kindness."

"No, as a friend, I'm going to give him a choice."