“That man was very strange,” Bruce commented on the way home, quickly grasping the main point.
“But what he said about Wayne Enterprises engaging in criminal activities is very likely true.”
“Master Bruce, you are still too young.
I suggest you don’t focus too much on these things,” Alfred advised while driving.
“It won’t be too late to sort out the company when you come of age.”
“On this point, I stand with Alfred.” Rex agreed.
Agitating the dark elements within Wayne Enterprises prematurely could easily bring danger to the still-growing Bruce.
“But they are committing crimes.
If they aren’t exposed, they will harm a lot of people.” Bruce was reluctant to wait for the future.
“And after they are exposed?” Whenever Bruce got stuck in a dead end, Rex knew it was his cue.
“Let the law punish them.”
“Bruce, the law is executed by people, and wherever there are people, there is collusion.”
“That’s…
too dark.” Though he had only seen a fraction of it, Bruce felt disappointed by Gotham’s depravity.
“So, is that why you’re starting with the mob, Rex?
Like going undercover?” Bruce stared at Rex, suddenly realizing, his eyes seemingly sparkling.
“Uh…
yeah, prescribing the right medicine for the illness.” Rex admitted it, then struck while the iron was hot to further persuade Bruce.
“This city is indeed riddled with holes, but there are always people trying to patch it up—like me, like Detective Gordon.”
“So, Bruce, if you want to help, don’t rush.
Make yourself stronger first.”
“You have to understand your enemies first before you can find a way to deal with them.”
“For example, if you want to clean out the parasites inside Wayne Enterprises, you must first gather intelligence on them and understand how they operate.
Then, when you come of age and officially join the board of directors, you can take them down in one fell swoop.”
“Like a KO in a boxing ring?” Bruce was convinced.
He raised his fists and mimed a punch at Rex.
“Exactly, just like a KO!” Rex didn’t back down.
Treating Bruce as an opponent, he playfully sparred with him in the back seat, making Bruce laugh out loud.
Alfred, who was driving, couldn’t help but smile.
Since Rex had moved in with them, Bruce no longer locked himself in his room and was noticeably more cheerful.
As for what Rex said, although Alfred didn’t want Bruce getting involved in Wayne Enterprises’ mess, at least it had calmed the boy down for now.
He circled a few blocks to ensure he wasn’t being followed before arriving at Hornas Apartments, just as Stan had mentioned.
He didn’t use the front entrance; it required registration, and even a fake name would leave a trail.
Rex stuck to his old method: finding an open window and vaulting straight inside.
“503A, this is it.”
Click.
After unlocking the door with the key, Rex stepped inside quietly, gun in hand just in case.
However, this seemed to be Stan’s personal safe house.
There was no one else in the room, only mountains of documents and a small experimental workbench.
Putting away his gun, Rex quickly sifted through the materials regarding “Viper.”
Most of the documents were Stan’s collection of descriptions regarding WellZyn’s criminal drug abuse.
They were mostly victim profiles, with very little substantive evidence.
To Rex, these were useless; he had no interest in seeking justice for others.
In Gotham, apart from Batman, no one could truly deliver justice anyway.
“Found it!”
Rex finally let out a soft exclamation.
He picked up a document that clearly detailed the manufacturing method for the Viper serum.
Skimming a few lines, Rex—unsurprisingly—couldn’t understand it.
He carefully searched the room and packed up all the data related to the Viper serum to take with him.
Although Rex didn’t yet know if he could bring these items out of this world, one could never have too many good things.
If he couldn’t take it with him, he’d just have the Penguin find someone to synthesize it.
When the gang war broke out, he’d give Maroni a nice surprise.
Ring, ring, ring.
Shortly after leaving the apartment, Rex received a call.
“Don Falcone, how have you been lately?” Rex greeted first.
“Not bad.” Falcone’s voice on the phone was noticeably lighter.
He had recently found a new female companion who suited his tastes perfectly, and he was currently in exceptionally high spirits.
“Someone from Maroni’s side passed a message to me,” Falcone said.
“Let me guess,” Rex had a flash of inspiration.
“They didn’t come to snitch that Oswald is still alive, did they?”
“Yes.
It seems your mole is doing very well over at Maroni’s, well enough to make others jealous.” Falcone was a seasoned veteran; encountering such a situation, he could easily deduce most of the hidden truths.
“That’s good, saves me the trouble of sending someone to leak the news.” Rex wasn’t panicked.
He had originally planned to leak the fact that the Penguin was alive soon anyway; having someone else do the legwork was even better.
Is there anything you need to add?”
“Yes.”
“Tell Victor to hold back a little.” Rex decided to protect Gordon once more; after all, Gordon had never gotten the better of the bald hitman.
“I can do that.
But will Fish really bring me back a war, as you said?” Falcone still held onto a sliver of hope for Fish.
Among the bosses in Falcone’s mob family, Fish Mooney was the most useful to him.
Even when he needed to keep her in check, Falcone would target her underlings rather than her directly.
“Of course.
This also aligns with Fish’s interests.
Only by starting a war will she and Nikolai have the opportunity to make their move,” Rex affirmed firmly.
“But once Nikolai is dead, I imagine Fish will settle down quite a bit.” Sensing that Falcone was reluctant to deal with Fish, Rex gave him an out.
“Yes, Nikolai must die.” Nikolai’s faction was even larger than Fish’s, and Falcone had never considered showing mercy to this particular boss.
Rex smiled faintly.
It just so happened that the original owner of his current body had a grudge against Nikolai; now, they could settle both scores at once.
“Mr.
Rex, what is your subsequent plan?”
Rex had only told Falcone about starting a war with Maroni and then calling a truce after eliminating the traitors; he hadn’t shared anything beyond that.
“Our goal will have been achieved.
After the truce, the Penguin will already be Maroni’s right-hand man and can continuously provide us with intel.”
“If there’s a chance to take out Maroni, that’s great.
If not, maintaining the status quo is fine too.”
“After all, our goal is simply to ensure Gotham’s underground order doesn’t collapse, isn’t it?”
Rex smoothly bluffed, throwing Falcone off the scent.
The next step of the plan was to plot against Falcone himself; naturally, he wasn’t going to tell him the truth.
“Of course,” Falcone understood, then sighed with emotion.
“Mr.
Rex’s plan is exceptionally brilliant.”
“With an ally like you, I am at ease.”
_____
T/N: