"Thanks, thanks! Hahaha, Bruce... thank you! My frie—"
Joker's signature, hoarse, and maniacal laughter got stuck in his throat.
He froze.
He looked down.
He stared in disbelief at the fist-sized blood-hole in his chest, its edges clean, as if something had pierced him instantly.
Blood, mixed with fragments of internal organs, gurgled out of the hole.
"Uh...?"
Joker raised his hand, wanting to touch the hole to confirm if this was another hallucination.
But he couldn't reach it.
A large amount of blood gushed from his mouth and nose, blocking all the words he wanted to say.
The light in his eyes quickly faded.
He slumped softly to the ground, twitching a few times.
Then he stopped moving, dead.
He died cleanly and decisively, without even leaving a complete last word.
The tense atmosphere, which had been on the verge of eruption, instantly stagnated.
Everyone was stunned.
"What the heck? He's just... gone?"
Barry Allen stammered, breaking the eerie silence.
Aquaman Arthur whistled, shouldering his trident and moving closer.
"Well, well, what a twist! Who wrote this script? They deserve a raise!"
Diana covered her mouth, her beautiful face filled with shock.
Cyborg's red electronic eyes flickered, scanning the corpse on the ground.
"Life signs... completely gone. Death confirmed."
Bruce was the first to react.
He lunged to Joker's side, squatted down, and with his tactical-gloved hand, felt the other's neck.
No pulse.
He then lifted Joker's eyelids and looked.
His pupils had already dilated.
He was thoroughly dead, beyond any doubt.
Bruce suddenly stood up, his entire body trembling with extreme rage.
He spun around abruptly, staring intently at the man who had one hand in his pocket, the other pointing in Joker's direction, looking completely unconcerned.
"Tel-Rol!"
Bruce's roar came from behind his mask.
"Do you have any idea what you've done?!"
Tel-Rol slowly withdrew the index finger he had just extended.
A wisp of faint smoke was dissipating from his fingertip.
He blew on his finger, a lighthearted gesture.
"Done what?"
He looked up, flashing a brilliant smile at Bruce.
"Eliminating a menace for the people, purifying Gotham's air."
"See, now that he's dead, doesn't everyone feel like they can breathe easier?"
"You should be thanking me, Batman."
"You!"
Bruce was shaking with anger; if kryptonite didn't affect Tel, Bruce would have pulled it out and smashed it into his face right then.
"He's guilty! But he should be judged by the law! Not executed by your private vengeance!"
"We are not executioners!"
Tel-Rol scoffed directly upon hearing this, shaking his head.
He took a step, slowly walking in front of Bruce.
Tel-Rol's fearless arrogance gave him the upper hand.
"Law? Brucie baby, the law you're talking about, is that the Arkham VIP annual pass that lets him in and out seventeen times?"
"Or are you just catching him to satisfy your pathetic 'no-kill' moral superiority?"
Tel-Rol reached out and, with a "smack," patted Bruce's heavily armored shoulder.
"Creak—"
A sound of metal twisting rang out.
Batman's special battle suit, capable of withstanding armor-piercing rounds, had a clear indentation on the shoulder.
Aquaman Arthur's eyes narrowed.
This guy's strength is no joke.
Tel-Rol's hand was still on Bruce's shoulder, his smile growing more audacious.
"Bruce, I'm a very easy-going person."
"My cousin and his wife are kind; they won't hold it against you, so this matter can be considered over."
"But."
His tone suddenly turned cold.
"I need to hold it against you."
"Your childish 'rules' don't work with me."
The smile on his face became dangerous as he leaned close to Bruce's ear, speaking in a voice only the two of them could hear.
"My strength tells me that my rules are the only rules."
"Solving one problem now saves countless problems later; even a primary school student can do that math."
"You wouldn't be unable to understand, would you?"
After speaking, he withdrew his hand, as if he had done something insignificant.
Bruce stood still, unmoving.
No one knew the expression beneath his mask.
But the eyes visible through the cowl burned with an unprecedented fury.
Tel-Rol couldn't be bothered with him anymore; he turned and waved at Kara, who was still in a daze.
"Come on, Little Kara, let's go get something good to eat."
He flashed next to Kara, grabbing her small hand without explanation.
"Hey! Let go of me! You just killed someone!"
Kara was both embarrassed and angry, trying hard to pull her hand back.
But Tel-Rol's hand was like an iron clamp, holding her tightly.
"Killed someone? No, no, that was pest control."
Tel-Rol dragged her away without looking back, his voice drifting over.
"As for that guy..."
He pointed at Joker's corpse on the ground.
"Good Samaritan Bruce, I'll leave the cleanup here to you."
"After all, you're the professional, right?"
Before his words finished, their figures had transformed into a streak of light, disappearing into the sky.
Only a sentence floated on the wind.
"Remember to pick a good burial spot for him, one that's theft-proof, so he doesn't crawl out again ~"
"Bastard!"
Bruce roared at the sky, punching the broken wall beside him!
"Boom!"
Half the wall was instantly pulverized by his punch.
He spun around fiercely, his angry gaze turning to the only remaining "principal" on the scene.
"Clark!"
"Aren't you going to do something?!"
"He's your cousin! He just broke the bottom line that all of us abide by, right in front of you!"
Clark hadn't spoken a word the entire time.
He just stood there quietly.
When Lois shouted, "Don't do it," the anger in his heart extinguished.
But endless fear and confusion plagued him.
He had almost, almost, personally destroyed everything he had.
And Tel-Rol had done what he wanted to do but couldn't.
Right or wrong?
He didn't know.
Hearing Bruce's accusation, Clark slowly looked up.
He didn't look at Bruce, but rather at the cooling corpse on the ground.
Then, his gaze swept over everyone present.
Arthur's expression, enjoying the show without caring about the consequences.
Barry's conflicted and troubled look.
The struggle in Diana's eyes.
Victor's silent analysis.
Finally, his gaze fell on Lois.
She was the center of his world, and he didn't answer Bruce a single word.
He took a step, walking in front of Lois.
Under everyone's complex gazes, he bent down and gently scooped Lois into his arms.
Lois leaned against his firm chest, feeling his familiar heartbeat, also silent.
Clark, holding his world, turned.
He took one last look at Bruce.
In his eyes, there was no approval, nor opposition.
Only a deep weariness.
He held Lois, soared into the sky, and flew towards home.
In the blink of an eye, he too disappeared.
Only the other members of the Justice League remained, along with Joker's corpse.
And a Batman so angry he was about to explode.
The atmosphere was extremely awkward.
Aquaman Arthur, shouldering his trident, scratched his messy beard, breaking the silence.
"Uh... so what's... the situation now?"
"Do we wait for the police, or... just call a cleaning company?"