Team Assembly

What pleased Shimizu was that the two chief stewards of the Bat Family did not discuss this matter with him.

"I know, I know, Mr. Wade. We are very grateful for the help you and your friends have given Bruce."

Alfred and Lucius rose voluntarily and gave Shimizu a slight bow.

"There’s no need for that. I just want to know, what exactly did you come to see me about?"

Alfred and Lucius exchanged a glance.

"It concerns Batman and Bruce Wayne."

Alfred began.

"Even though Gotham’s underworld is now nearing unification and the crime rate has fallen slightly, this city still needs a Batman who can act at any time and strike fear into criminals, suppressing evil and preventing the crime rate from rebounding."

"You don’t intend to drag me in to be Batman, do you?"

Shimizu raised an eyebrow slightly.

He had no desire to be like Batman, patrolling Gotham all night without a break.

Though if it let him get his hands on some of Batman’s good stuff, he wouldn’t mind taking on the job part-time for a while.

"No, we are not asking you to become Batman. Young Master Grayson will temporarily assume that responsibility for some time, until Master Wayne returns.

"We came to you, Mr. Wade, in the hope that when necessary, you can use your transformation ability to impersonate Master Wayne. Batman can be Bruce Wayne, but Bruce Wayne cannot be Batman. I believe you understand that. And when necessary, we would also like you to attend certain events and meetings as chairman of Wayne Enterprises in Master Wayne’s place."

Shimizu tapped the table but did not answer immediately.

Lucius understood. He was asking for compensation.

No matter what, this trouble had ultimately been caused by Bruce Wayne himself.

If it had been a righteous superhero like Superman, he surely would have offered help without asking for anything in return. But the man before them was a capitalist.

A major capitalist whose wealth ranked among the top thirty in the United States.

"That is why Alfred invited me here. I believe Wayne Enterprises could engage in more business cooperation with Wade Group as compensation."

Lucius spoke.

Wasn’t this the perfect opportunity?

"Ahem. Well, I heard Bruce mention nanobots before. I’d like to know how far Wayne Enterprises has progressed in nanotechnology."

Lucius exchanged another discreet glance with Alfred.

The latter gave a slight nod.

"Mr. Wade, while this is a commercial secret of Wayne Enterprises, it—"

"Wait."

Shimizu interrupted Lucius’s useless business negotiation spiel.

"Speaking of secrets."

Shimizu took out his modified phone, swiped across it a few times, and set it on the table.

A holographic projection depicting the Arc Reactor’s blueprint appeared above the screen.

"I believe Mr. Lucius is familiar with this. But it is a secret of Wade Group and of mine personally—a secret among secrets. All related materials have always been locked in my private archive, which is isolated from external networks. Only I have access to it…"

Lucius covered his forehead with one hand in exasperation.

This time, cleaning up after Master Wayne was going to cost them dearly.

While Shimizu was haggling with Lucius.

In a distant universe.

Bruce Wayne felt pain throughout his body and opened his eyes.

Hm.

It was not an unfamiliar ceiling, but a familiar sky.

Gotham’s sky.

"You’re awake."

Hm? Why did that voice sound so familiar too?

Bruce Wayne overcame the pain with sheer willpower and barely managed to sit up from the ground.

This man was…

Gordon?

Much younger than the one from the original universe.

"I never expected that after being dead for so many years, you would be resurrected in an alley like this."

Gordon took out a cigarette, lit it, and spoke.

This world… was a world without Batman?

Bruce Wayne looked at Gordon.

He needed to learn more about this world.

Marvel World.

Current Destiny Value: 79.3%

Shimizu looked thoughtfully at the Destiny Value on the System Panel, which had suddenly risen by another small amount.

Just now, his incarnation in the DC World had completed the main construction of IPEAC’s departments and successfully assembled a highly capable team.

The Black and White Canary sisters had joined, while Martin Stein had accepted Shimizu’s generous offer to become the scientific consultant and head of the research department for both Wade Group and IPEAC.

Shimizu could provide world-class experimental equipment and substantial investment for his physics research.

As for Jefferson Jackson, the fusion partner compatible with Martin Stein, that was even easier.

He had once been an athlete, the quarterback of his high school football team.

But unlike other student athletes, he lacked experience and did not possess an indestructible body capable of withstanding a Nuclear Bomb. He had suffered serious injuries several months ago, and his academic subjects were severely unbalanced, leaving his overall grades mediocre.

His academic performance was not enough to qualify him for loans subsidized by the local state government, so all he could do was try his luck.

And he came from a poor single-parent family.

Jefferson’s dream of attending college was nearly shattered.

When the Flash’s team and Martin Stein had found him, he had been working as a mechanic in an auto factory.

Disheartened, Jefferson had refused to join them as Firestorm. He only wanted to earn money honestly and support his family.

Shimizu’s solution was straightforward.

Jefferson happened to be working as an apprentice at Wade Auto Shop.

Shimizu simply made him a full employee, raised his salary, and transferred him to Wade Group headquarters.

Hm, he would work in the research department, where his job involved being researched. On the side, he could work part-time as a hero at IPEAC and save the world, all while earning double pay.

At first, the young Black man had been somewhat reluctant. But when Wade Group’s employee benefits were delivered to his home and his mother looked at him with gratified eyes, he compromised.

The Rogues, on the other hand, posed a minor problem.

It was not that they were unwilling. Shimizu paid them enough to satisfy their every extravagant whim.

This villain team was as united as a superhero team.

Captain America wanted Shimizu to help get his companions out of Blackgate Prison—they had been defeated and sent there by the Flash and Green Arrow working together.

Naturally, Shimizu wanted to get them out and add them to his own team.

Unfortunately, he had arrived too late.

Amanda Waller had already set her sights on them. They would likely be recruited into the Suicide Squad.

Weather Wizard, Captain Boomerang, Pied Piper, Trickster, Rainbow Raider—half of the Rogues’ core members had been taken away.

But Shimizu promised that if the Rogues helped him secure the position of IPEA director, he would let them reunite.