Chương 19: Aftermath Report #19
I yawned, lazily stretching as I made my way out of the apartment complex. Mark, the security guard, immediately noticed my presence and smiled, waving his hand.
"Morning, Gray. You look like you're in a good mood today," Mark said as he regarded me with a smile. He was sitting on his chair, fiddling with his phone with one hand and holding a coffee with the other.
"Morning, what can I say? I had a good day yesterday," I replied, carelessly shrugging as I returned the greeting. I smiled at him as I walked by.
"Good for you, dude. Take care out there," Mark said, nodding at me as he turned his attention to the phone. He seemed emersed in it, and I couldn't blame him. Standing here all night must be boring.
"Thanks, you too, buddy," I replied, smiling as I waved him goodbye and exited the complex, taking a deep breath that felt refreshing for once.
...
I took my hands out of my pockets and straightened my back as I neared the usual spot in the park. I looked around, looking for my teacher and wondering if he was pissed that I left without saying anything yesterday.
I found him standing not far away, but he wasn't alone. There was a relatively tall Asian woman standing in front of him, and they seemed to be in a heated discussion, judging by how the woman's body language.
She had sharp features with an oval face, and I would even say she was attractive if it wasn't for the blank look on her face and how coldly calm she looked despite her body language and gestures suggesting otherwise.
"Enough," Richard said, cutting the woman off with a gesture as she was saying something about a weapon. He seemed impatient with her, based on his furrowed brows.
"I gave you my answer already, Sandra," Richard added, impatiently gesturing to the side with his right. "I'm not interested in your wager," he concluded, shaking his hand while giving her a stern, meaningful look.
The woman looked like she wanted to say something, but she turned to me for a second before huffing at Richard.
"You may have given me an answer Richard..." the woman said, eyes narrowing as she regarded my teacher. "But it is not the right one," she meaningfully added, faintly smiling as Richard dismissively scowled at her.
"I will take my leave for now, but make no mistake this isn't over, and I will be back," the woman said as she turned to me, giving me a vicious glare before she started walking away from Richard.
'Well, that can't be good...'
"I will have what I want, one way or the other," she remarked, without bothering to turn around as she kept walking. Richard didn't bother to reply and merely watched her leave.
"Charming, lady. She a friend of yours, teacher?" I asked after waiting for the woman to leave as I approached Richard. I didn't bother hiding the concern in my tone as I spoke.
"She's no one you should concern yourself with, kid," Richard said, carelessly shrugging his shoulder as if that would somehow forget the murder in the woman's eyes.
"Are you sure? Cause it looked like I should be very concerned from where I'm standing," I asked, raising an eyebrow at Richard's nonchalant words. That lady like the kind to beat puppies to death with kittens, and the way she looked at me made me feel she wanted to eat me up, and not in a good way.
"Well, if you're that concerned, maybe we should start training already?" Richard said, giving me an amused look and changing the subject much to my bemusement.
'It doesn't look like I'll be getting an answer...' I mused as I sighed and nodded in understanding. I'll let go of the subject for now and trust Richard.
"Good. Now tell me about what happened in the restaurant yesterday before we start today's training," Richard said, crossing his arms and sending me a questioning look. He didn't seem pissed that I'd left him there and took off, at least, so there's that.
"I took down all the thugs, but I got shot in the thigh," I replied, unconsciously straightening my back like a soldier reporting to a superior as I gestured towards my injury. He nodded, and I took that as a good sign and continued.
"I made two mistakes. First, I miscalculated my speed and almost got shot in the chest when I burst into the restaurant..." I said, awkwardly clearing my throat at the mention of my first blunder. He still didn't show any bad reaction.
"Second, I got distracted when one thug tried to run off with the cash, and the last one managed to graze my thigh with a bullet because of it," I added, mentioning the second and the biggest of the two blunders, but he still seemed unbothered.
"I see," Richard said, seemingly refraining from giving judgment right now as he nodded. "Why did you burn the restaurant?" he asked, getting straight to the point after a second's pause.
"Well, I kinda bled all over the floor, and I didn't want to leave any DNA behind for someone to track me down..." I replied, scratching my head. I knew many subtle ways to clean up blood stains and erase evidence because of my Crime skill, but I didn't have the time to use any, so I burned the place.
Richard hummed in response, going quiet for a second.
"Your martial arts and physical strength have improved tremendously, but you still lack experience and discipline," Richard said, nodding as if he had decided on something.
"We'll forgo strength and stamina. You already have more of those than you know what to do with," Richard said, waving a hand to the side. I had to agree there. I was physically more powerful and faster than him, but he'd kick my ass any time of the day 24/7.
"Once your wounds properly heal, we'll also start more active lessons to improve your experience," Richard added, crossing his arms as he regarded me with a look that dared me to disagree or object.
I didn't, and strangely enough, I was even looking forward to it a little bit. I knew what I was lacking, and getting into legitimate fights more often would help me build up my lacking experience, so I merely nodded, much to Richard's satisfaction.
"Good, now let's get started with sparring then," Richard said, smiling in satisfaction as he stepped back and beckoned for me to come and receive my ass-kicking for the day.
Now that; I wasn't looking forward to, not one bit.
...
The Tin Roof Club
Inside the penthouse
"I'm heading out, Harley," Selina said as she walked to the penthouse's exit dressed in an expensive black dress. It was tight, revealing, and left little for the imagination, which suited her needs perfectly since she was going to a fancy party for the rich and elite.
Selina regularly attended such events as they were the perfect place for finding new targets for her nightly activities as Catwoman. All it took was one smile and a bit of cleavage, and whatever unsuspecting rich second generation she was targeting would start boasting about their wealth and precious possessions.
Precious possessions that she would steal and sell off shortly after.
"Mkay kitty, take care..." Harley said, waving Selina goodbye from her spot on the couch. She was sitting there in her underwear, intently watching a drama show on the television.
"Don't forget what I said, Harley," Selina said as she paused at the door turning to Harley with a stern look, to which the latter sighed and gave her full attention.
"I know, I know... If ya find the nightclub flooded in Joker Venom or crawling with vines, you'd kick me out and never take me in again..." Harley said, rolling her eyes at her host. "Yer no fun these days, kitty..." she added with a pout as she turned her attention to the television.
"You better believe it," Selina said, huffing in bemusement as she opened the door and left, hoping her warning would stick.
...
'Eidetic Kinisthesya-Kinesthesia? Whatever the damned thing is, it sure is broken...'
I mused as I walked the streets of Gotham, feeling my entire body ache after a full day of beating by my oh-so-wonderful teacher's hand while looking at my Brawling skill that had increased by three levels.
'I wonder how many points I'd need to invest into my Mind before I could pronounce it properly...'
I chuckled as I thought of how effortlessly I managed to copy every move Richard showed me after a single glance, no matter how complicated, much to his astonishment.
I stopped in front of the building and inspected it. It was a relatively big two-story building, styled much like everything else in Gotham, gray and pointy, loud music coming from inside of it.
'The Tin Roof Club... yup, this should be the place.'
...
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