Kapitel 22: The Dark Knight and the Iron Man
Bruce ended the call and quietly made his way to the third floor.
He pulled out a small, two-inch bat-shaped gadget and attached it to the door lock.
With a soft click, the door opened effortlessly.
He silently entered the room and quickly scanned its layout.
At first glance, nothing seemed unusual.
The room was tidy and comfortable, with a simple and elegant design.
He also noticed a faint scent in the air.
It was subtle, and pleasant, with a hint of something sweet, like milk.
But on his second glance, he noticed a metallic object placed high on the shelf.
Its shape resembled a small launching device.
Just as Bruce was about to get closer, the door to the inner room suddenly creaked open.
A face appeared behind the door—one that Bruce Wayne knew, but not too well.
It wasn't exactly unfamiliar, but not someone he expected to see either.
Tony Stark stood there, frowning while staring at him coldly.
Bruce froze in place.
—What the hell?
He had several backup plans, but Tony Stark showing up in Soren's room wasn't part of any of them.
"Bruce Wayne," Tony said, crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes, his sarcasm in full swing, "Look who it is. Gotham City's idle billionaire, busy buying up restaurants and conquering the food industry. Care to explain why you're sneaking into a little boy's room?"
Bruce paused for only a second before coming up with the perfect excuse.
He raised a hand to his forehead, pretending to stumble and slur his words like a drunk man, "Who... who are you? Never mind, don't tell me... I'm looking for the bathroom... Where's the bathroom?"
As he spoke, he staggered around the room, and his small phone quietly slipped into his pocket.
He acted like the typical Bruce Wayne, who often drank too much at parties and was desperately searching for a restroom.
But Tony Stark, a genius in his own right, wasn't fooled.
No matter how convincingly Bruce played his part, Tony wasn't buying it.
He'd already spotted the phone in Bruce's hand.
Thin design, wide screen, double-layer retractable mechanism, and a sleek, unadorned black finish—the phone's design was nothing like any WayneTech product on the market.
Tony quickly realized that, just like himself, Bruce Wayne was also secretly working on some "new tech" of his own.
Lex Luthor mysteriously appeared at the door with an excited grin on his face.
However, instead of breaking up the fight, he was egging them on!
"Wow, Tony Stark, Bruce Wayne, you two... you two! This is great... I love watching people fight," he cheered, clearly enjoying the escalating tension instead of trying to calm things down.
Luckily, before things got completely out of hand, the owner of the room arrived just in time, moving at lightning speed to stop the brawl from escalating.
Standing in front of him was Bruce Wayne, AKA Batman, the Dark Knight.
Soren's face flushed with embarrassment.
"Is Batman good-looking?" you might ask.
It's not just about looks.
There's something about him that's rare—his steel-blue eyes, his high, sharp nose, and you just know he's strong in every way that matters.
His broad arms that was wrapped in a suit, seem like they could easily smash a criminal's face into the ground... In short, his brute force is off the charts.
Classic Bruce Wayne, Gotham City's heartthrob!
Soren shyly looked away, his face red.
Meanwhile, Tony was still trying to kick Bruce, but Soren, with surprising strength, held him by the collar, preventing him from moving.
"Let me go!" Tony yelled, growing angrier at being restrained by Soren's strong grip.
He tried to pry Soren's arms off, but to his frustration, they wouldn't budge an inch!
This discovery bruised Tony's ego a little, making him feel embarrassed.
So, he stopped struggling and tried to compose himself, wanting to look like a dignified adult, not someone who is arguing with a kid.
Soren, with his face bright red, was practically hiding behind Tony, trying to use his body to block Batman's distractingly handsome face.
He shook his head and whispered softly from behind Tony, "Mr. Stark, please, don't fight. Let's talk this out."
Tony was both annoyed and amused by Soren's nervous plea.
He calmed down and repeated, "Let go of me, Soren. I know what I'm doing, but you don't. This man—I caught him red-handed. He snuck into your room and was looking around. He definitely has an agenda."
Soren was startled by Tony's words and instinctively glanced at Bruce Wayne, who was standing nearby.
Batman, searching his room?
What was he trying to find?
Did he discover his secret?
The thought of Batman's suspicious nature made Soren anxious.
As a fan, he wanted to trust Batman completely and would willingly be honest with him about anything.
But letting Batman know everything about Dr. Manhattan so soon might not be a good idea for the Dark Knight.
On the other hand, lying to Batman was even worse.
Batman, being at the peak of both physical and mental abilities, would catch even the smallest slip-up.
If Soren made a mistake, Batman would see through him, and explaining things would become much harder.
So, how could Soren talk his way out of this?
Soren felt a bit nervous and hid his head behind Tony again.
Bruce, in response to Tony's accusations, just frowned slightly.
He shrugged his shoulder and spread his hands, "Look, I don't know what you're talking about… I was just looking for the bathroom. If that offended you—both of you, I can apologize."
He spoke while pretending to be unsteady and slowly shuffling towards the door, "—Or you could just talk to my butler about cutting a check. Seriously, where's the staff here? Why is no one showing me the way?"
Bruce was perfectly playing his role as the carefree rich guy.
"Hey! Wayne, don't you dare leave!" Tony yelled, frustrated as he saw Bruce heading for the door.
But with Soren still clinging to his shoulders and constantly begging him to calm down, Tony couldn't move and could only watch as Bruce Wayne walked out.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein