Chapter 390 - 390: Harvey’s Little Scheme

"Nonsense! He's been missing for so many days that Wayne Enterprises' stock has already fallen quite a bit. If he still refused to show his face now, the investors would probably drag him out of his coffin themselves!"

Karl ignored the shouting from his subordinates.

He understood the situation perfectly well.

Karl knew that Batman and Bruce Wayne were the same person. While Bruce had been recovering from his injuries, there had been no reason for him to appear on television.

On the screen, the female host smiled pleasantly.

"Mr. Bruce Wayne, it's a pleasure to have you here. Just a moment ago, you said that you would stop the Batman television series from airing at any cost. Is that correct? But aren't you also the person who hates that Bat more than anyone else?"

Hearing that, Karl finally understood why his employees had been making such a fuss.

After all, when Gotham's richest man publicly declared his opposition to something, no one could simply ignore it.

"That's right! But I haven't changed my position at all!"

Bruce Wayne sat there with a dignified expression, showing no trace of his recent injuries. Heaven only knew what method he had used to make himself look so completely recovered.

"Batman is a violent vigilante who takes the law into his own hands. There are already plenty of foolish men and women in this city who worship him. Once a vigilante like Batman appears on television, regardless of what the actual content of the series is, his very presence on the screen will send those people the wrong message."

Bruce's expression remained serious.

"It would amount to indirectly encouraging people to imitate such a dangerous individual."

Karl listened in silence.

He understood perfectly well why Bruce opposed the production of Batman, but the sheer intensity of his opposition was beyond anything Karl had expected.

It was surprising that Bruce was willing to risk drawing attention to himself simply to interfere with the production of a television series.

"But as far as I understand, ABC Television—the Arkham Broadcasting Corporation—is privately owned rather than publicly traded," the female host said, deliberately shifting the conversation in a provocative direction. "It belongs entirely to one person. Unless its owner wants to sell, you can't simply buy the station, even if you are Gotham's richest man."

Almost everyone in Gotham City knew that the owner of ABC Television was Karl.

And everyone knew that Karl and Bruce Wayne had an exceptionally explosive relationship.

Bringing up Karl was guaranteed to create sparks.

Sure enough, the moment the subject came up, Bruce Wayne reacted like an offended rich kid and immediately scowled.

"Hmph! Why would I buy it?"

He snorted.

"So I can hand my money over to that rude bastard? Give it to Karl, the guy who couldn't even do his job as a cop properly and has now decided to make television shows?"

Bruce paused for a moment, apparently trying to calm himself before continuing.

"I won't give that guy a single cent!"

"However, if he's planning to hold a talent competition, then he'll obviously need judges."

A faint sneer appeared on Bruce's face.

"I'd like to see how many people are willing to risk their reputations by serving as judges on that show. Whoever he chooses, I'll criticize them publicly on social media!"

Karl scratched his head.

The whole thing was beginning to sound like an argument with an online troll, and he found the situation increasingly uncomfortable.

The Riddler noticed his boss's confusion, leaned closer, and quietly explained,

"Bruce Wayne apparently has his own newspaper column where he comments on Gotham's entertainment industry. He's already torn into several celebrities so badly they barely dared show their faces afterward."

The Riddler glanced toward the television.

"Looks like he's decided to target you this time. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so obsessed with interfering with your talent show."

Only then did Karl understand.

Bruce Wayne's business empire in the DC world was enormous.

He even had interests connected to the Daily Planet, the newspaper where Superman worked.

And apparently, Bruce also wrote opinion pieces for his own media outlets.

It sounded like little more than the ranting of an online critic, but when someone possessed Bruce Wayne's money and influence, even casual public criticism could become a powerful weapon.

A sufficiently influential billionaire could turn something trivial into a media storm with only a few words.

And at the beginning of Batman: Arkham City, Bruce Wayne had similarly used his status and influence to publicly campaign against the construction of Arkham City.

"Hmm... Looks like this rich guy really wants to play games with us..."

Karl rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"But this little stunt of his doesn't really matter. When it comes time to choose the judges, he won't have anything to say."

However, while Karl regarded Bruce Wayne's declaration as little more than a provocation, someone else interpreted it very differently.

That person was Harvey Dent.

As Gotham City's police commissioner in name, Harvey had been having a miserable time recently.

He might have experience prosecuting and dealing with hundreds of gangsters, but compared with officers who had spent years fighting crime on Gotham's front lines, that experience was not enough to automatically earn their respect.

Worse still, Karl had burned the files that had once been used to keep Gotham's police officers under control.

As a result, Harvey had become little more than an empty figurehead over the past few days.

His orders could barely make it out of his own office.

Constantine, practically the only subordinate he had who could freely act on his behalf, had inexplicably been found in an alley with nearly every bone in his body broken.

He would not be moving around again anytime soon.

That left Harvey feeling increasingly isolated.

If he wanted to restore his reputation and authority, Karl—the man who had obstructed him from the very beginning—was the perfect target.

Karl had entrenched himself in Arkham and accumulated enormous prestige and influence.

If Harvey could bring someone like that under control, it would immediately prove that the new commissioner possessed real authority.

And Bruce Wayne's television appearance had shown Harvey the possibility of gaining a powerful ally.

So Harvey arranged an early meeting with Gotham City's richest man to see whether there was any possibility of deeper cooperation.

"You asked me to come out this early?"

Bruce Wayne looked at Harvey with amusement.

"Looks like Gotham's new commissioner has more free time than I expected."

He leaned back casually.

"So, Harvey, why did you want to meet with me today? Is there something you need my help with?"

Bruce paused.

"I thought Karl was supposed to announce the judging panel today."

Hearing that, Harvey Dent sighed before laying out his plan for dealing with Karl.

After all, as far as Harvey was concerned, Bruce Wayne was publicly recognized as one of Karl's greatest rivals.

The two had clashed fiercely from their very first meeting.

If Harvey wanted an ally against Karl, there seemed to be no better candidate.

Even Constantine could hardly compare.

Who could have expected that after quietly listening to Harvey's entire plan, Bruce Wayne would instead furrow his brow?

"Karl..."

Bruce fell silent for a moment.

"I can't say there's much about that guy that I agree with."

Then his expression became more serious.

"But if I remember correctly, during one of your trials, he stepped in and took an attack from a mobster that was meant for you."

Bruce looked directly at Harvey.

"He was injured badly enough that he had to walk with a cane for quite some time afterward."

"And now you're sitting here asking me how to deal with him..."

Bruce shook his head.

"I'm afraid that's not a particularly good idea."

(End of Chapter)

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