Capítulo 272: Chapter 177 Phantom of the Opera (Part II) _2
Batman looked around and realized that it seemed like everyone was expecting something from him. During his moment of hesitation, the Joker on stage yelled: "Alright, who else is there? Good heavens, even the Godfather of Gotham is here!"
The Godfather didn't get up but raised a hand, waving it slightly.
"And also…"
The Joker seemed to choke up momentarily, he said, "What was that word again? Wait...uh…"
He fumbled around in his pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper, reading out, "Rhodes... Professor Riggs!"
Shiller got up and nodded to those around him, then waved his hand.
"I hate this name, it's quite a tongue twister," Joker murmured under his breath.
Then he rekindled his enthusiasm and said, "Welcome to the grand opening performance of the great comedian, Jack!"
"What did I say before? What was the plan called?...'Owl Downfall'? No, no, no! I have changed my mind, that name is too ordinary, it does not suit me!"
"Now, I am going to call it - The Death of the Owl!"
With his uplifting tone, the band began to play the opening music, and instantly, the curtains behind him were pulled open and several lights focused on the center of the stage.
Hanging from the ceiling were several ropes, from which dangled people, bound from head to toe. There were men, women, old and young, but they all had one common feature - they were wearing white bird-shaped masks.
The Joker wrapped a speaker around himself with a strip of fabric, causing his suit to bunch up and look rather comic, but he didn't care.
Excited, he rushed into the orchestra, taking a triangle iron and dinging it vigorously, then loudly stated: "Ta-da! The actors are on stage! Our protagonists are here!!!
"Hey, that camera over there, is it all set up? You have to ensure that the entire Gotham audience can see clearly!"
Big Beard gave an OK gesture.
The Joker turned in a circle, facing the victims suspended by ropes in mid-air, he said: "I bet you are all wondering how I found you."
"Do you remember the charity dinner held on Elizabeth Street a few days ago? The food that day was delivered by me…"
"And what about that day? Oh... it should've been about ten days ago, I can't remember, what was the name of the restaurant? That was also me, I'm quite a diligent driver, the places you frequent, I'm often there too!"
"You thought you hid yourselves well?" The Joker said while laughing hysterically. "Featherless owls are hideously ugly, you can't hide anymore, hahaha, all your feathers have been plucked, you look as ugly as newborn ducks, hahaha!!!"
One of the people tied up, whose mouth wasn't taped, shouted, "Impossible, our disguise was clearly…"
"Your hearts ache!" Joker interrupted him, saying, "You pretend not to care, thinking you're just like your usual selves, but your hearts are bleeding, I can smell that scent of blood."
"What did you lose? What made you so panicked and heartbroken? Could it be…" The Joker chuckled. "Could it be money, hahaha!!"
"Hahaha, I'm sorry, I shouldn't laugh, but I could not help myself, you guys...you guys!!! Hahaha, all of this for money!!!"
Joker laughed so hard that he ran out of breath, he bent over clutching his stomach, almost as if he was about to die from laughter at any moment.
Laughter also came from the audience. Batman glanced at Shiller, who suddenly seemed to realize something. He covered his mouth and said, "Oh, I'm fine, I just couldn't help it. It's really quite funny, especially when…"
Shiller looked around, and whispered to Batman, "...especially when I think about how all that money is now in my pocket."
The Joker gradually recovered from his laughing fit, he noticed that the Court of Owls members he had tied up were silent. His smile still lingering, he asked, "Why so serious?"
"Isn't this funny?"
Then, he turned to the audience and asked, "An organization proclaiming themselves as the Controller of Gotham! Has actually because of the loss of money…hahaha! A secret society claiming to be a great dark force, surprisingly exposed because of money, isn't this…hahaha!!"
Many in the audience also began to laugh and it eventually evolved into a thunderous laughter.
The only ones silent were Batman, and the members of the Court of Owls on the stage.
The members of the Court of Owls felt the same as Batman, had they gone mad, or had the world?
"Why can't we...you impoverished yokels! Do you know how much money that was? It was a trap, we were extorted, we..."
"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" The Joker rushed over, viciously striking the head of one of the members with the small iron stick he had used to ding the triangle iron. He said: "Explaining a joke is the bane of a perfect joke! Shut up!"
After a while, the Joker, panting heavily, went back to the front of the stage and said: "Alright, the opening ceremony is over, let's get this show started!"
Then, he walked over to the people being hung up, tore off the tape from their mouths, and said to them: "You should see, you're all hung at different heights…"
"And now…" The Joker stepped on the ground and said: "Below the floor is a big surprise, just like the one I sent you before."
"Starting from now, the ropes binding you will slowly descend, if any one of you touches the ground … Boom! Hahaha!"
"Of course, you all have a way to save yourselves, when someone dies, their rope will no longer descend."
"You should have felt by now, in your hands bound behind your backs, each of you is clutching a button, when you press this button, someone randomly chosen among you will die."
"And to my audience!" The Joker turned around and said, raising both hands: "Take out your tickets, they have clues!"
Then he turned to the bound people and said: "Each of you can choose an audience member to ask, to guess who your button corresponds to or who in your group has a button that corresponds to you."
"And then!" The Joker raised his voice, and said: "Consider whether to press the button in your hand..."
He then took a bow in the middle of the stage, and as the spotlight cast pitch black shadows from his unruly hair, his joyous expression turned somewhat terrifying. His voice reverberated, rising and falling rhythmically, in the hollow theatre:
"When I heard that a so-called savior named Batman had appeared in Gotham, I almost thought I was going crazy."
"But I'm not crazy, so of course, he is not a savior."
"But that damn bat impersonator, he rejected me, ignored me, and even insulted me as a mass-produced assassin…"
"Now, I have proven that I am not, so now it's your turn...Batman."
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