As Bruce's familiar face appeared on the screen, Alfred calmly stated, "You might want to tune in to Gotham's evening news channel. Master Bruce is currently on the live broadcast, and the kidnappers are threatening to reveal Batman's true identity."
Avery: "…"
Avery was at a loss for words. Not only had his adoptive father somehow ended up on live television, but Avery, who rarely ever watched TV, had not expected this turn of events.
Holding his phone, Avery continued to tap away at his keyboard with intense focus while simultaneously speaking to Alfred. "That's definitely breaking news. No need to worry, I'll handle it."
Alfred, in reality, wasn't too worried. He didn't believe the situation was all that dire, but he wasn't about to contradict his son's determination.
Knowing how heavy the responsibility was on Avery at this moment, Alfred hung up the phone, then rather amusedly turned his attention to the TV screen.
On the other side, Avery quickly found what he was looking for. Just as he clicked, a pop-up window appeared.
The scene on the screen revealed an old, abandoned factory filled with dust and debris. Bruce was shown with his hands tied behind his back, and Dick, as an unfortunate bonus, appeared in the corner of the camera frame.
Avery's fingers moved slightly as he clicked to enlarge the image. His eyes traveled upward to see a particularly eye-catching headline.
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Great.
He thought calmly. Somehow, a leak must have occurred, leading someone to connect Batman with Bruce Wayne. Worse still, it could be enough evidence to allow people to draw the inevitable conclusion that Bruce Wayne and Batman were one and the same.
Honestly, while there was little concrete evidence, it wasn't particularly difficult to guess the truth. After all, Bruce Wayne had returned to Gotham after many years, and shortly after, Batman had made his debut.
Furthermore, Batman's equipment was all developed by Wayne Enterprises' R&D department. Avery recalled Lucius Fox always working hard to pressure and incentivize the researchers to stay quiet, but it was impossible to guarantee that every single person could keep their mouth shut.
Sometimes, Avery had even considered placing magical restraints on their minds to ensure the secret could never be leaked. However, he had to abandon that idea, as his persona in front of Bruce was Wizard who are more focused on healing with limited magical prowess, and it would be suspicious if he took such drastic actions. Besides, Bruce seemed to be handling things well enough, and it didn't seem like the secret would come out any time soon.
But who could have predicted that this day would arrive so suddenly?
No! He couldn't be certain yet that the kidnappers had evidence that Bruce Wayne was Batman. For all he knew, they might just suspect that Bruce and Batman were close associates.
The sudden live broadcast had whipped Gotham's atmosphere into a frenzy.
In fact, many citizens weren't even sure if Batman was real. Some treated him as little more than an urban legend. No one had expected that someone would kidnap Bruce Wayne and claim to reveal Batman's identity.
Online discussions exploded, with countless posts piling up as people debated the situation.
Avery, however, ignored the online chatter and glanced behind him.
In the center of the basement sat Batman's equipment: the batsuit, utility belt, batarangs, and the countless iterations of the Batmobile, some of which were now out of commission.
There had been times in the past when Avery had stood in for Bruce, though he disliked wearing such heavy gear. The equipment didn't offer him any particular advantage, and when necessary, he would simply use his magic to cast a phantom of the batsuit over himself for patrols.
It wasn't all that busy—thanks to his magical abilities, Avery often managed to slack off during patrols. Besides, Bruce rarely pushed him too hard.
But all that was beside the point. The problem now was that he might actually need to put on the suit to prove that Bruce Wayne couldn't possibly be Batman. After all, nearly all of Gotham would be watching, and he couldn't guarantee that his Phantom would deceive every single person...
On the other side of the screen.
After being brought to the abandoned factory, Bruce had been forcefully placed in front of the camera by the leader of the kidnappers, surrounded by a group of thugs.
Staring at the camera set up before him, Bruce immediately felt an ominous foreboding but couldn't quite figure out what they were planning. He had no choice but to stick to his usual act.
Bruce: "What are you trying to do?"
The leader, with a pair of fierce eyes locked on him, casually propped his leg on a nearby chair. After a pause, he finally spoke slowly, "What am I doing? I'm here to reveal Batman's true identity. And I know you—you must be familiar with that damn guy."
Remaining ever the professional, Batman played his part perfectly, his expression full of confusion and bewilderment. "But I don't know any Batman! You've got the wrong person!"
The leader wasn't convinced in the slightest. He refused to believe Bruce and was certain that he was lying.
"You don't know Batman? Then how do you explain the equipment he uses? I've collected the debris left behind after his fights, and it's clearly Wayne Tech. How do you explain that?"
This was a point that couldn't be argued. Batman himself hadn't yet come up with a plausible excuse. Before he could respond, the leader turned around and brought someone out from the right-hand side door.
The person was wearing a white lab coat, his hair a tangled mess, with thick glasses perched on his nose. He appeared to be around thirty, his face marked by unshaven stubble and a weary expression. Bruce recognized him immediately and blurted out, "Abner?!"
As a boss, Bruce wasn't always the most engaged, but during the few times he had shown up at Wayne Enterprises, he had crossed paths with this employee, who had worked on developing Batman's equipment. It was enough for him to remember the man's face.