Chapter 812: Red Hood (Part Six) (Patreon)

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Bruce returned to the Red Hood Gang's base with Jason. It was getting late, and most of the children had already returned to sleep. When they saw Jason covered in blood, carried by a stranger, a mob mentality took over, unlike anything Bruce had ever experienced in his life.

These children were like wild and vicious stray cats, showing their sharp Talon-like fangs to anyone they perceived as an enemy. Even if they knew they might not stand a chance, they would not back down.

Fortunately, Jason had only suffered a cut, and although the bleeding looked frightening, it didn't pose a threat to his internal organs. He weakly uttered, "Don't attack!"

His voice was barely audible because Jason didn't want to exert too much effort, but as soon as he spoke, the entire scene fell silent. Bruce was amazed by the discipline and obedience of these children.

Despite the resentful glares they still cast at him, none of them attacked.

Bruce often put himself in Jason's shoes and wondered if his eleven-year-old self could have done this. He believed that leading the Red Hood Gang to wealth was not difficult, but the real challenge was winning their loyalty—something Batman had never excelled at.

But for Jason, it seemed effortless. He took a deep breath and said, "I'm fine; it's just an external injury. Big Sis, get the first aid kit from the cabinet, Cookie Sisters, fetch some needles and thread, Ellie, get a basin of clean water, and I think there should be iodine... someone find that. The rest of you, leave this place and go to sleep. We have work to do tomorrow."

In less than a second, the children dispersed, though many of them looked back several times, showing genuine concern for Jason. However, they all obediently followed his orders and left.

Bruce found it incredible, but he knew now was not the time to be surprised. He organized the items brought to him and began preparing to suture Jason's wound.

As Jason saw the man with the Red Hood before him, he extended his hands. Big Sis next to him was startled at the sight and let out a gasp, but quickly covered her mouth as those hands had almost no skin, and the muscles and bones were clearly visible.

Suddenly, Jason started to struggle and pushed Bruce aside, saying, "Big Sis, come over here; I'll teach you how to do it."

"What's wrong?" Bruce pressed him, saying, "I can provide first aid and stitch the wound. You shouldn't move; it will cause more bleeding."

"Get away; I don't want strangers touching me!" Jason turned his head away. Bruce watched him without moving, and Big Sis hesitated to approach, as Jason was still in his grip.

Jason sighed and said, "Fine, I haven't quite mastered the method Professor taught me. What I mean is, your hands shouldn't touch water. Don't you know that an injury like this can get infected if it's exposed to water?"

Bruce glanced down at his own hands, which didn't hurt at all.

Connor's newly developed Lizard Serum included some neurological advances that could largely block pain sensations. Bruce currently felt occasional itching all over his body and occasional sharp twinges, but it wasn't severe pain.

Bruce hesitated for a moment but eventually released his hands. He turned to the girl next to him and said, "You come over here; I'll show you how to do it."

Approaching was Cookie Sisters' younger sister. They were both younger and hadn't done much rough work, so their skin was well-maintained. They could suture with finesse, avoiding contact with the wound and alleviating Jason's pain.

In this rudimentary underground cellar, there definitely wouldn't be any anesthetics. Bruce looked around at the children for a moment and realized they knew more than they let on. They weren't suggesting the use of certain drugs to alleviate pain because they were unaware of them; they were just too afraid to mention it.

Jason must have a strong aversion to those drugs, and because he was highly respected among these children, no one dared to speak up.

Seeing Jason's pale complexion, Bruce knew he must be in a lot of pain. But in this shabby and dimly lit underground base with no windows, they were both silent, not looking at each other.

"Are you in pain?" Jason suddenly spoke up.

Bruce thought he had misheard and asked, "What?"

"I asked if you're in pain," Jason emphasized.

Bruce hesitated for a moment, then looked at his own hands and said, "No, I don't feel anything."

"We're all like this..." Jason's tone was very low, as if he were enduring something. He said, "Even if it hurts, we absolutely can't scream. If I cry out first, they'll cry too. If we all cry, it's over."

Bruce's hand on the edge of the bed trembled slightly. He turned his head to look at Jason, but all he saw was his pallid face. Jason continued, "This might be the most important reason today. If you want to join the gang, you absolutely can't cry out."

"Even if you're in excruciating pain or on the verge of death, you can't scream. You can't shed tears, you can't show weakness to anyone or anything. You have to make them believe that even before you die, you can still take a bite out of them..."

Bruce closed his eyes tightly for a moment, then looked at Jason and said, "But you're not really like that, are you? You're not this violent, stubborn, or strong. You want to cry, don't you?"

Jason rolled over, lying flat on the bed with his eyes closed, and his eyelashes trembled. He said, "I've lived like this since I was little, and I never thought there was anything wrong with it. But now, I feel really sad, not because the wound hurts."

"Why is that?" Bruce asked.

"It's because I've seen another way of life, a life I dream of and prefer..." Jason's voice began to tremble, and he continued, "Staying in a classroom, discussing various questions with a Professor I really like, questions that have nothing to do with filling one's stomach..."

"But those moments are always fleeting, and I still have to come back here and endure this pain, live this kind of life."

Bruce couldn't believe what he was hearing from an eleven-year-old. He asked, "Why don't you leave then?"

"Why don't you leave, Batman?" Jason mumbled, as if in a dream. "Why don't you leave this rotten city, Bruce Wayne?"

In that moment, Bruce hazily felt that Jason might have been influenced by something and was no longer the same.

He no longer resembled an eleven-year-old child. He was trying to read Batman's soul, but instead of going crazy, he had delved deep into his heart.

During those two months spent in the slums, countless waves of despair had assaulted his inner self. But looking back now, even in the most disappointing moments, he had never considered leaving Gotham.

Pain was pain, but the path to liberation did not involve fleeing.

"When I didn't know you were Batman, you said you wanted to reform the order here, and I found it ridiculous. But I still decided to help you because whether you succeed or not, at least you'd know someone was on your side."

"After I found out you were Batman, I still decided to help you because we are so alike... You could leave, and so could I."

Bruce noticed that Jason's body was trembling, and he reached out to touch Jason's neck, feeling that his temperature was slightly low.

Bruce stood up, touched the basement wall, and said, "The temperature outside has dropped, possibly due to a typhoon. This can't continue..."

Since Gotham's underground had turned into ice, the average annual temperature had dropped by more than ten degrees, almost matching high-latitude areas. Even in the summer, the sudden temperature drop during a typhoon made it bone-chilling.

After uttering his last words, Jason fell silent. His breathing became slower, as if he had drifted into a dream, but his body kept shivering from the cold.

In a daze, he felt someone embracing him, but he thought it was an illusion because no one had ever hugged him since birth.

The embrace was so warm that it reminded Jason of a fairy tale, where a little girl selling matches lit them and saw various wonderful scenes.

With this beautiful dream in mind, he slept until dawn. When he woke up, he felt much better. At that moment, Bruce entered with a plate of steaming steak.

Jason struggled to sit up and asked, "Where did you get this?"

"The nearby restaurant owner's car got flooded, so it won't start. I helped him fix it, and he gave me breakfast," Bruce explained. The aroma of the food was almost intoxicating, making Jason's eyes widen.

"Eat; you need to replenish your strength," Bruce handed the plate to Jason, who swallowed hard and said, "No, this is your loot. I can't take it..."

"Don't you want to receive tuition?" Bruce sat down and looked into Jason's eyes. "I can provide you with breakfast every day. That's the tuition I'm paying."

Jason sighed and picked up the plate, taking a hearty bite of steak as he chewed and said, "The first lesson today is that only rich people have breakfast."

Jason devoured the steak, feeling more energetic afterward. Then he looked at Bruce and asked, "Wait a minute, you said the restaurant owner's car got flooded. Why did it get flooded?"

"Don't you know? It rained heavily all night yesterday, probably the heaviest rainfall in Gotham in the past five years. Many places were flooded," Bruce explained.

Jason widened his eyes and immediately tried to get out of bed, but Bruce stopped him, saying, "Where are you going? Your injury..."

Jason pounded the bed and said impatiently, "Are you daft? Do you think everyone's houses are like your Wayne Manor, impervious to wind and rain, where you can leave them unattended?"

"Our two strongholds in the front and back streets are likely flooded, and their basements are low. They might leak, and if too much water seeps in and freezes at night, we could get frostbite..."

Jason hobbled out of bed, but Bruce pressed him back down and said, "What do you want to do? Just tell me, and I can give orders to them."

Jason impatiently waved his hand and said, "You can't command them."

Seeing Bruce's disbelief in his eyes, Jason sighed and sat back on the bed, saying helplessly, "Well, you can give it a try, but may God help you."

Seeing Jason lie down again, Bruce left the room and began instructing the children with the tasks Jason had assigned to him.

However, Bruce soon realized that commanding these children brought back some unpleasant memories from his past.

Teaching one Aisha had required him to practically rewrite the entire human child education from scratch. Here, there were more than twenty Aishas.

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Next Chapter>>Chapter 813: Red Hood (Part Seven)