20. Batman is Dead [Clan Dissolution - Yggdrasil & The Last Meeting]

Hello, this is my first time writing a fanfiction. If you notice any errors, please feel free to give me constructive feedback. English is not my first language, so if you notice any mistakes, please mention them in the comment section at the end of the chapter. Let's begin the story!

Word Count: 3880 Words.

Note: Just a reminder that I've changed the Guild Auxiliary chapter. I've made some changes to it. I've removed a couple of NPCs and added a few.

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"There you are. What took you so long?"

"I had to meet my Sister before coming here."

A young man who looked to be in his early twenties arrived at a table in a hotel in a hurry as he was questioned by the only female of the two occupants at the table.

He answered her as he looked around the table to find another man of his age group already seated.

"It's fine have a seat now."

"So, are you sure he is coming?"

"Yes, I have already talked about it with him. Though I had to give him all the items in our treasury. Including the Clan Staff."

"It's fine Akira. After all, it was he who designed it in the first place. Moreover, as you are the Clan Leader now, after you quit there won't be anyone capable of wielding it to make changes to our clan. It's just a simple weapon now."

As he rambled on, he was quickly stopped by the women at their table.

Yes, it was Ai who was with Akira and Hirata seated at the table. The person they were waiting for was none other than Vishanti.

"Why are even worried about it now, Mr Ex-Clan Leader? Akira is the current clan leader and he isn't even playing Yggdrasil nowadays. Also, you have already deleted your account. What is it to you about Yggdrasil? Are you regretting your choice now?"

Hirata replied to Ai as he picked up a glass of water. Now twirling it with his hands, he answered her.

"No, but Akira and Akane are still playing the game."

"Don't worry about it. So what all did you talk to him about?"

Ai hearing his answer, she knew it instinctively. Hirata though speaks with indifference towards Yggdrasil, but she knows it. He missed the game as much as she and the others.

Their adventures with an unknown player. Whose identity was a mystery to them. They knew him in the game and real life though he had seen their picture because of Akira, but both parties were clueless about the name and identity of the other.

Today it was going to change. They were going to see each other for the first time.

Though to be honest, his voice was regal, she had imagined him to be a handsome young man in their first meeting. But as the days passed, his behaviour and his excessive gaming addiction with a lazy attitude told her otherwise.

Though she hates to admit it, she had surprisingly imagined him to be a fat man in his twenties. A NEET playing Yggdrasil as his days passed.

Having given up on society.

She even had less expectations from Akira to arrange a meeting today. She didn't have much hope for the man to show up. It was something she and Arisu shared.

They enjoyed his company and he was a great guy to have around among dense idiots like Akira and Hirata. He was more mature for his age. He was a smart man. A man of many talents.

She would have never imagined him to be a NEET if not for him denying meeting them IRL on multiple occasions. Akira had bought it up many a time in the game. Though she and others had rejected his offer every time. She wasn't truly against meeting him IRL but his repeated rejection brought about this fantasy about him.

"Akira you didn't mention the reason for meeting did you?"

"No, I haven't Ai. Can't you trust me a little bit?"

"Well, your actions till now compel me otherwise."

Hirata was silent throughout their conversation. He was thinking about his future and their future as friends moving forward.

It has been a couple of months since they last met him. Even Akane had maintained her distance from them. None of them could reach her.

"So, what did He say when you met him?"

Hirata seeing them done with their conversation asked Akira.

"He was the same as always. But it was difficult contacting him. I don't know, he may have changed his game timings. But still, it was difficult to convince him to meet. Also, he spoke about how he had met none of us after the last meeting. That means neither.. "

"He hasn't met Akane either."

Ai didn't let Akira finish his sentence.

Everyone turned quiet after Ai spoke. They didn't know what to say.

They were shocked and speechless. No one wanted to break the silence.

'Hmm! There's still five minutes till the scheduled time.'

Ai slumped down on the table as she checked the time.

Just as they were passing time by going through social media, they observed a man approaching their room.

They were seated at a private section of the hotel where each table was placed in separate chambers or rooms. With see-through glass walls from the inside.

They saw him turn the Knob of the door to their room.

Unlike others in the hotel, he alone was wearing a mask. Customers after entering the hotel were instructed to remove the mask.

Even they were not exempted from this rule.

But the man who entered their room was wearing a mask and no employee of the hotel obstructed his path.

More so since the man was wearing what you could call a clown's mask. Not the usual air filter mask used for protection.

Or it may have been the same mask but designed as a clown's mask.

They were surprised.

"Who are you?"

Seeing him standing by the door looking at them, Hirata questioned him. He wasn't panicking as the hotel belonged to one of his brother's friends.

Which was why he was able to maintain his calm.

The man not responding to his question, walked towards them.

Pulling up a chair, he sat down.

Hirata was going to call the management when Akira interrupted him.

"Vishanti?"

Hirata and Ai were surprised. Shocked was a strong word.

"It's good to finally meet you Akira, Hirata and Ai."

"You are Vishanti?"

It was Hirata this time who asked him a question.

"Good guess Hirata."

"You also know our names. Akira?"

"It wasn't me."

"Well, I did my homework before coming. Akira is not at fault here."

After confirming it was Vishanti, they settled down.

"So can you remove your mask? We can't talk this way. Unless you have some issue, then it's fine."

"It's nothing of that sort, Ai. The mask is for privacy."

Bruce removed his mask and placed it on the table as he answered her question.

"Woah!"

She was shocked and so were Akira and Hirata. They were shocked for a multitude of reasons.

She was surprised to find her first prediction of him to be true. He was a handsome young man and a rich one at that going by his dress. It was a simple suit but the quality of it couldn't be camouflaged from her prying eyes.

As for Akira, Hirata and even Ai they were surprised to find him to be a foreigner. Listening to his flawless Japanese as they interacted with him in the game, they subconsciously assumed him to be a native man.

Never had they considered him to be a foreigner. Now, it dawned on them. Why did he refuse to meet them? He may have been restricted because of being abroad. Travelling was difficult for some.

Finally, they couldn't quite put their finger on it. They felt they had seen him somewhere before. But couldn't remember it. It confounded them. His identity still mysterious.

It was until Akira exclaimed loudly,

"You are Bruce Wayne!!!!"

Luckily for them, the room was silent-proofed. The table lapsed. They went silent soon enough.

They couldn't believe it.

All these months they had been playing with Bruce Wayne. They were playing with the richest man on this planet. Yet they had assumed him to be a nobody, wasting his time playing games.

"So, you're the infamous Bruce Wayne. The sole heir of Wayne Family."

"I believe I am. So, what was so important that you were willing to part with your Clan Weapon to meet me, Akira?"

"Ai"

Hearing Bruce call out to him, Akira not knowing how to proceed called Ai.

Ai seeing her name called out, looked at Akira as he pleadingly asked for her help.

Bruce watched as they silently conversed among themselves.

After coming through with their silent agreement, Ai taking the lead spoke out.

"We wish to apologize to you for what happened at our last clan meeting. We had wished to apologize to you back then but couldn't."

"So, the reason you called me all the way here is to apologize."

"Yes"

Her agreement was soon followed by Hirata and Akira.

Seeing him silent, Ai called out to him.

"Bruce?"

"It's nothing. I'm just surprised. I wasn't sure of the subject but I had an inkling of it."

Their last meeting wasn't pleasant to him or them. Arisu fought against Akane but they had dragged Vishanti or Bruce into their conversation.

It was the last time they had seen each other.

Neither of them had tried contacting each other after that.

Now all of a sudden, Akira dropped out of nowhere to call him to meet IRL.

Bruce hadn't bothered with their fight. As it was of no consequence to him. His goal was clear, to reach the New World. For that, he had to play till the very last day of Yggdrasil.

It didn't matter if others played Yggdrasil, he had to do his part.

He couldn't bother with the drama.

"So what else am I missing?"

The three were not sure of how to answer the question. They were hesitant to speak their mind.

They had confidently marched ahead with their plan to command Vishanti using their power and status if needed.

But all their plans failed upon knowing his identity.

They were helpless against him.

Hirata was alone thinking about the repercussions of their actions could have bought them. Arisu was impatient with her ego and her family status. She was too relent on her family dominance.

She failed to assume the worst case where Vishanti is superior to her family. Now that they were marrying, both were tied down till the end.

Her mistakes were his mistakes to face. He had to cover for her. Actions had consequences, they were to face it together.

He was surprised to see Ai apologise to Bruce first after meeting him. He was sure of it. Apologising was never part of the plan of Ai.

'Power and Money do have a lot of impact. Arisu was right. She talked of how Akane's or her family could silence Vishanti if needed.

They were confident in their families' influence on the World. Blinded by their power and money. However, they failed to assume that there are some with higher power than them. Now, it had come to bite them.'

"I am sure this was not the only reason you called me here. You should hurry up. I have work after this."

Ai gathering her courage spoke,

"It's about Akane. She wished to talk to you about something. But was unable to reach out to you."

"Hmm! Where is she now?"

"She couldn't come. She had some family matters to take care of."

Hirata having sat through their conversation injected.

Listening to them speak, his assumption may have been right. Bruce was now thinking of the reasons that could warrant this.

'But still, she hasn't tried contacting me has she?'

He spoke as he recalled any point of contact she could have used to contact him.

"She could have messaged me in-game. I would have met up with her."

"I don't know."

They talked about it for a few minutes until they had cleared up all the misunderstandings. At least what the three of them wanted to get cleared.

They couldn't afford to offend him now. If it was anyone else, they could have blazed the whole conversation one-sided.

After they were done with the talk, they ordered for some refreshments.

They sat while waiting for it.

As they all calmed down, Hirata asked Bruce.

"How did you come inside the hotel wearing a mask?"

It had been bothering him for a while now.

It was something that even his Brother had to follow. His Brother's friend owned a part of the hotel.

They were among the board members. So even they had to follow the rules.

"Oh! That. I bought the hotel."

"You what?"

All of them were now truly surprised. They couldn't believe their ears. He bought the hotel.

They were truly shocked now.

Just to attend a single meeting.

"They were too stingy with their rules. I was left with no other option but to buy it."

They were trying hard to get adjusted to his way of thinking when their drinks arrived.

As they saw Bruce drinking the fruit juice he had ordered, they couldn't help but stare. As they had ordered alcoholic beverages for themselves.

Observing their looks Bruce spoke,

"My mind is my weapon. I can't let my guard down under no condition."

"That explains a lot of things. How you were able to beat us in shogi. You were a beginner at it when we started but still managed to beat us. That's an extraordinary ability you have Bruce.", Ai spoke admiring his skills.

Bruce not minding their mixed reactions to him, continued drinking.

"So, what are you guys doing now? I'm sure Hirata is managing his family business and is also going to marry Arisu very soon. What about you guys? Is Arisu also busy?"

"Oh! She is busy with wedding preparations."

"You don't have to be so formal with me. We were game buddies weren't we?"

"Yes"

"So what about you Akira? Have any thoughts of marrying any time soon?"

"I.."

Bruce could see the blush on his face, as he secretly looked at Ai.

Ai, being oblivious to his looks or she knowingly or unknowingly was ignoring him. It was something only she knew.

They talked for another few minutes as they enjoyed their drink. Having completed his, Akira asked Bruce. It was something that had been on his mind after knowing his identity.

"So Bruce have you met Batman?"

"Batman"

Seeing Bruce's lost expression and Akira's fanatic look, Hirata answered Bruce.

"Akira has been a fan of Batman from our high school days. We got to know Batman in our High School. Hearing his fights and battle against Joker. All of us in our school were a fan of him.

We dreamed of one day meeting him. But sadly he died before we could meet him. With his arch-rival Joker. We all grew out of the superhero phase but Akira is still a fan of Batman."

"That's surprising. All these days we played in Yggdrasil and you never talked about him."

"So, did you meet Batman?"

"Yes, I did. It was at the orphanage run by my family. That day he saved it from Joker. It was at the time that I first met him face to face."

"So you know him."

"Yes"

"So do you really think he died in that fight with Joker? Batman was strong enough to survive an explosion on the same scale before. Then how could he have died that night? I am sure it was the officials doing to get control of the city."

"Don't bother Bruce with your theory Akira. Do you know how many people died because of their fight? I'm sure even Bruce had to suffer because of them."

Hirata seeing his vigour, stopped him before he could escalate it further.

"Don't worry Hirata. Batman was and is a symbol of Justice in Gotham. He has saved a lot of lives. He also took care of Joker. Even now the criminals and the government both are scared of him. They rethink their every move.

The government did take their stance in the last battle. They chose the narrative where both The Batman and The Joker died fighting each other. Their victims were the Mayor and his group. They were scared of going against him.

Even after the incident, Batman failed to show up on multiple occasions. There have been many imposters claiming to be him. But they were all fake."

Bruce spoke with seriousness as Akira, Hirata and Ai all listened with patience.

"He did a lot for the city. Joker was a criminal who had wronged a lot of people. His past may have shaped him to be what he was. His revenge against the government was for a noble cause in his perspective, well it might have been. We may never know of it.

He sought revenge against the government, but in the process, he dragged all of Gotham into it. Many lost their lives. His ways were wrong.

That's what I have observed. My observation might have been wrong, he may have really been a psychopath. Now we may never know. What we know is that he died that night.

As for Batman, he may or may not have died back then. He may be masquerading as a common man roaming around in our surroundings and we would never find out about it.

He has done his work, now it's the job of the people of Gotham to correct their city.

If you wish to hear my opinion on it, Batman most probably died that night."

" Not even you? "

Akira was disappointed by his last statement but after hearing his perspective. A man who witnessed Batman in his all glory. The perspective of someone from Gotham.

He could now understand Batman a bit more. The scenes of Gotham. The perspective of a rich businessman from Gotham.

"Well, At least the identity of Batman is dead. The Man behind it may be still hiding in the streets of Gotham waiting for his chance to rise again."

"I can't wait for that day."

Akira sighed.

As they got familiar with each other, Akira asked.

"Bruce I have always wondered about it. What does Vishanti mean? Now that I know your identity, it eludes me even further."

"Vishanti huh! He's a character from a famous comic from the twenty and twenty-first centuries. An entity similar to Outer Gods. He also has the title of Sorcerer Supreme. Since my build is of a Sorcerer, I picked him for my in-game name."

They talked further and after everything was done, they parted ways.

After Bruce left the room, they stayed back.

"Arisu you may have underestimated Vishanti a lot."

"You are right in that statement, Ai."

"So what are plans now, Hirata?"

"I'll lead my life not bothering with Yggdrasil or anything else. Just me and Arisu. We don't wish for any trouble. Bruce may be cool with all that happened but his family won't. Any bad move from our side will end in disaster."

"True."

"I'll take my leave now. I also have to meet up with Arisu after this."

"Take care, Hirata."

Hirata after everything said what had been on his mind since they met Bruce and left.

Ai seeing Hirata walk out of the room, looked at the other occupant and smiled. She saw as Akira waved at Hirata after walking him out of the room.

'Akane, I had thought you to be foolish. An idealistic Fool. Believing in fairy tales.

Arisu cared for you, but in the end, we both were fools.

You have knowingly or unknowingly caught the biggest fish. We would or could have never dreamt of this.

Bruce Wayne, a name known by all in this world. The Richest Man on this Planet. The Man with Power.

Marrying, dating much less meeting him is out of the question for most of the population.'

Ai smiled as she watched Akira's back.

Thinking back on their memories.

'Everyone is moving forward with their life. What Bruce said was true. We would never realise it when we transform from being friends to acquaintances. I guess it is time for me to also move on. We may or may not get to meet each other as we used to.

Everyone will be getting busy working for their future.'

She picked up her belongings and soon left the room in front of Akira was rooted at the entrance of the room thinking about their meeting.

He was awakened from his stupor by Ai's voice.

"I'm leaving now."

Akira seeing her come out of the room, chased her.

"So what did you think of the meeting Ai?"

"It was wonderful. What about you?"

They talked as they walked together to the exit.

"It was great. We finally met Vishanti and who could have guessed him to be Bruce Wayne? It was great."

"Well, you did wish to meet him, didn't you? But sadly the meeting couldn't happen till we stopped playing."

She turned around to see him as she spoke before she continued on her path.

"Yes. So what are your plans after this?"

He asked her nervously.

Ai showing a contemplative look, took some time to think. Akira grew nervous with each passing second.

She stood still as he pondered over the question.

Before long She continued on her way, as Akira followed her.

"So?"

"I guess I'm free. Unlike them, my family is quite lax. My brothers look after everything. You could say they do treat me like a princess. So, what's up with your question?"

He fidgetted around as he answered her,

"So what about we visit an amusement park?"

"Let's go"

"Wait. Let's go. Are you sure?"

"Yes, I am. Don't tell me, now you don't wish to go."

"No"

"No?"

"I mean yes. Wait till I get my car."

"Fine, but please don't keep me waiting."

"YESSS"

He shouted as sprinted towards the door, hurrying the guards to get his car.

Ai sighed at his shenanigans, she watched his back as he ran.

A smile formed as she thought of their prospects.

'I guess, I'm now stuck with this idiot for the rest of my life.'

She smiled as she ran after him, to stop him before he could make a clown of himself.

* * * * * * * * *

Though no one spoke of it, but the Clan was dissolved as of this moment.

It's players quitting the Game.

Bruce again found himself alone in Yggdrasil. Well, he still had World with him.

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**The End**

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