2 Chapter 2: Backstabbing
Feeling his bones almost crushed by the brutal force, Jekyll immediately realized he couldn't just sit and wait for his fate.
Snap!
Jekyll once again used the Deceive skill. Just like in the game, he disappeared instantly from his original spot and teleported to a spot ahead.
"Hmm? A metahuman?—"
Hearing the deep, resonant voice and facing this man in the classic outfit that felt familiar, Jekyll's heart skipped a beat.
The muscular, towering figure clad in a pure black bodysuit and a deep, dark cape draped behind. The most distinctive features were the black pointed ear hood and the prominent bat emblem on the chest.
Wasn't this the typical attire of Batman?
As Batman stood up, glancing in his direction, the chillingly solemn aura in his eyes sent shivers down Jekyll's spine. However, Batman's gaze quickly scanned past him, as if he didn't exist.
Jekyll realized he was currently under the invisibility effect from the Deceive skill. But going by the game's settings, this invisibility effect probably wouldn't last long.
While Batman temporarily couldn't see him, Jekyll cautiously tiptoed, trying to make as little sound as possible, and hid behind a nearby glass jar apparatus.
"Hmph!"
Hearing Batman's grunt, along with the swoosh of a Batarang being thrown, Jekyll momentarily thought he had been exposed. But upon closer look, he realized the direction the Batarang flew was opposite to where he was.
Clang!
That was the sound of a Batarang being deflected. In the dim corridor, a massive figure, resembling a small mountain, marched toward this direction with heavy steps.
"It seems I'll be receiving extra payment when I return—The originally agreed-upon deal was just to clean up the scene, but it didn't mention tidying up Batman."
The voice sounded as if it were muffled through multiple masks, yet the murderous intent in its tone sent chills down the spine.
Jekyll could see Batman clenching his fists, his muscles tensing up in a ready stance.
"Bane, you actually came back to Gotham yourself—I was thinking of how to send you back to Arkham. Before anything else, tell me who hired you from behind and what kind of research is happening here?"
This was an unusually tall and muscular man, half of his fierce face obscured by a massive breathing apparatus, with two transparent tubes connecting to two metal canisters behind him.
Jekyll immediately recognized him as the classic depiction of Bane, a supervillain in the DC Comics series.
"Hahaha"
Bane let out a harsh, grating laugh, then cracked his knuckles, emitting a creaking sound.
"I'll tell you, Bruce—on your funeral!."
This seemed to be the signal to commence the battle. Bane and Batman charged at each other simultaneously, engaging in agile yet power-packed combat.
Witnessing this scene, more awe-inspiring than in the movies, Jekyll pieced together all the information in his mind and grasped his current predicament.
Without a doubt, he had reincarnated into Gotham City within the DC superhero world. To be precise, it seemed he had taken over the body of an experimental subject of some villain.
Although Jekyll had previously entertained fantasies about reincarnating and acquiring cheat codes to ascend in life, when it actually happened to him, he felt more unnerved, especially in Gotham City, a place akin to the difficulty level of hell in this crazy world.
After all, in this mad world, a reincarnator's cheats—be it the most formidable cheat codes or familiarity with plot settings—seemed to have almost no effect. In fact, they might even backfire.
As a bit of a geek, Jekyll had some knowledge of DC comics. He understood that for those type of comics, retcons and changing settings were routine occurrences.
Even for the same character, their characterizations and experiences often had multiple, even dozens of versions within the official timeline, making it impossible to use them as a reference.
Moreover, cheat codes were utterly insignificant against the god-like and literal god beings in this world. Not to mention the omnipotent Superman in terms of settings, there are also beings like Parallax and Darkseid. And even those at the multiverse level like The Batman Who Laughs(The Darkest Knight) and Doctor Manhattan.
What was worse, in other worlds, one could evade trouble by avoiding the protagonist; at least finding a safe corner to live a life. However, in this world, even if you escaped Gotham, you couldn't escape Earth being attacked; and even if you fled Earth, alien legions awaited.
If one day, the Flash decided to have a change of heart and reboot the world, there would be no escaping, not even at the far reaches of the universe.
Splat!
A crisp snapping sound snapped Jekyll back from his reverie. Thinking about these things was too far-fetched now; merely escaping from the two people in front was a challenge in itself.
The duel between Batman and Bane had reached its climax. Despite Bane seeming to have the upper hand in strength, Batman appeared to have found a way to counter him. In a deft backflip to evade Bane's bear hug, Batman's Batarang unexpectedly severed one of Bane's venom tubes.
"Ugh."
Bane visibly slowed down, and Batman seized the opportunity. Landing swiftly, he swiftly moved to the other side of Bane, intending to cut off his other venom supply.
However, in that instant, the unexpected occurred.
"Hey hey hey, hahaha, hey hey hey, hahaha—"
At Batman's feet, out of nowhere, a small box appeared. When its lid popped open, a clownish figure emerged, emitting a shrill, grating laughter while spraying venom towards Batman.
"This is—psychological attack? Is this your trick, Joker!!"
Jekyll stared in astonishment as Batman, with his hand covering his face, showed signs of pain underneath his mask.
Who would have thought that Batman had inadvertently stepped on the box he had just set up using his skills?!
Now the situation quickly reversed. Seizing the opportunity, Bane charged forward and landed a punch in Batman's abdomen.
Batman arched his body but was not allowed to fall. Instead, Bane grasped his body and lifted him horizontally.
"No matter how many times I've done it, breaking your spine feels just as satisfying."
Bane pressed Batman's back against his knee, then, using both hands, twisted Batman's body into a horrific angle.
Bane's triangular eyes revealed a cruel and savage grin. Batman's low, painful groans, along with the sickening sound of bones cracking, were as beautiful to him as divine music.
Snap!
However, amidst his euphoria, a distinctive unpleasant sound of a ruptured tube resounded.
Batman's body collapsed to the ground, leaving Bane in disbelief as he looked at his hands. His muscles all over his body quickly shrunk in a short time, while a chill ran down his neck.
"You came here to deal with me originally—so killing you is just self-defense, right?"
In the next moment, a sharp blade, stained crimson, pierced out from Bane's throat.
