[3rd POV]
Today, Gotham City seemed even gloomier than usual.
A raindrop sounded as they poured from the sky, and the icy, bone-chilling mist seeped into their lungs with every breath, causing involuntary shivers.
The clouds in the sky are thicker and heavy than usual, making the already dim daylight appear even darker.
The shadows of Gotham were deeply disturbing.
Inside the Gotham City Police Department in the city center, a conversation is happening that feels even more uncomfortable.
"It was me that drove the getaway car. I'll put it in writing, if ye want."
I delivered the package to the woman. To Dent's Wife, y'know. I'll put it in writing, If ye want.
"I followed Dent back to his home. Yes, it was me. I followed him all the way home. I'll write that down too if you want me to."
"I followed Dent Home, I did. Followed him home. I'll put it in writing, if ye want. Put it in writin, I will."
'There were five statements, including Mickey's.'
'Rehearsed. Clean. Whatever The Roman is paying them... he's getting his money's worth.'
Batman thought silently to himself.
A police officer waiting nearby heard a deep, rough voice from the dark say, "Bring Mickey back up."
Meanwhile, in an old building in East End...
"Breaking News! The Five Members of the Irish Gang Confess to Attempted Murder in Bomb Plot Targeting Gotham District Attorney Harvey Dent!"
"As of now, Mrs. Dent remains hospitalized and unconscious. We will keep you updated with more news."
Tony stared at the bold, black headline in the newspaper with a wide grin.
How did things get this bad?
It all started a few days ago when he received that particular mission…
...
***FLASHBACK***
"Thank you, Sugar Daddy! You're the best! You come here, and lemme give you a big kiss—mua!"
"Ding!"
[Mission: Playing with Fire]
[Description: The Roman sets his sights on Harvey Dent because he believes Dent burned twenty million dollars of his dirty money… and maybe even killed his nephew.]
[Objective: You help the Irish Mob to bomb Harvey Dent's house, but the property damage must not exceed twenty percent. Moreover, Harvey Dent and Gilda Dent must survive.]
[Note: This is a high-risk, low-reward job. It's perfectly understandable if you don't want to take it—after all, you don't have infinite money or a cheat.]
[Status: Incomplete (0/1)]
[Reward: Advanced Cooking Proficiency]
Tony looked at the mission and thought for a long time.
It's not because he was worried about right or wrong but because the mission sounded totally insane.
'I help the Irish Gang bomb Harvey Dent's house? Me? You want me to build the bomb? Do you think the origin of Two-Face would be less interesting if there wasn't a guy named Tony Smith to get hurt?'
'The property damage can't be more than twenty percent, and Harvey Dent and Mrs. Dent have to survive. Do you even know what you're giving? The mission says to help him, but the job is to blow him up. What do you want me to do... wait a minute.'
He looked at the mission name and suddenly remembered something.
Before coming to Gotham, Tony had played a game called Dark Souls.
It featured a notoriously bizarre item: Dung Pie.
This is an item that can be thrown by someone and can inflict toxic status on enemies, but also on themselves.
What kind of strange item is that?
What's the point of it?
It made no sense until he ran into a group of monsters that used venom arrows so toxic they could kill a player in seconds.
Those annoying creatures had him stuck for an entire afternoon.
During one particular moment when they were attacking him, Tony started fighting back with dung pies—and to his surprise, the dung pie built up toxicity, which somehow made the venom arrows' deadly poison immune to him.
From then on, every time he fought those enemies, Tony would toss a couple of dung pies at the ground first just to build up toxicity and immunity.
"I'm a genius!"
After realizing this, Tony immediately took the job.
Sure, dealing with the gang was dangerous.
Even though dealing with the gang was dangerous, and blowing up Harvey Dent's house might make Harvey remember him, Tony couldn't avoid it.
After all, Tony was the one who burned that twenty million. Harvey had just happened to be there at the scene because of the ledger Batman gave him.
Moreover, Tony can't let a good prosecutor take the fall for his mess.
If Harvey Dent was destined to become Two-Face one day, Tony hoped he wouldn't be part of that story.
Even if he couldn't be a good guy, at least Tony didn't want to be a bad guy.
"Hey, Tony, what are you spacing out for?"
Claude gave him a casual slap on the shoulder, "You thinking about what to do tonight?"
"Isn't it obvious?!"
Tony replied with a confident grin, "I'm just a poor restaurant waiter, but I'm thinking of watching cooking livestreams and learning how to cook. That way, when I post pictures, I can pretend I have a wife who made the food."
"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have asked."
"No, no, no—"
Lloyd suddenly joined the conversation, clearly excited, "It's payday tonight, remember? Why not spend a little money, go to a bar, meet a pretty girl, buy her some drinks, and have a fun night out? That's way better than just staying home!"
"Or we could have a party at my place."
Bridget added the party junkie, "There are a lot of girls coming."
"Oh right, it is payday today."
Tony's ears ignored everything else, and he could only think about getting paid.
A whole month's worth of asset points would finally hit his account tonight, and just thinking about receiving them made him start humming cheerfully to himself.