Chapter 375 - 375: Never Planned to Leave

Everyone in the room stared at Karl with varying degrees of disbelief.

Let viewers request programs by telephone, then split the phone charges with the telephone company?

None of them had ever heard of anything like it.

As far as they were concerned, the proper approach was to contact advertisers and secure annual sponsorship deals. That was how television stations normally made their money.

Unfortunately, their station was currently off the air.

It would be difficult to find any fool willing to hand them advertising money under those circumstances.

"Exactly. As long as we have popular programs available on demand, along with clips from animated movies, even if only one percent of Gotham City's millions of residents watch our channel, that'll still generate a considerable amount of revenue."

Karl nodded.

"And while we're at it, we can establish a good relationship with the telephone company."

"I'll have Ed handle the negotiations with them later. I'll take care of assembling and maintaining the technical side myself."

As he spoke, Karl casually waved the report lying on the table.

Truthfully, he had never seriously thought much about this company.

Only a few days had passed between his decision to acquire it and the actual purchase.

The main reason he had bought it was because he wanted to reorganize some of his assets as quickly as possible—especially the enormous cache of old gold Black Mask had left sitting in the bank.

The recent cash-flow problem had made Karl realize something important.

If his finances were disrupted at the wrong moment in the future, the consequences could become genuinely dangerous.

"Since the company has a new owner, there's no reason to keep using the old name."

Karl pointed casually at the words Panessa Studios.

"Since the company is based in the Arkham District, we might as well name it after the area from now on."

The original company had been named after its founder.

Karl had always found the name somewhat awkward anyway.

Since the company was located in the Arkham District, he simply decided to borrow the district's name instead.

Unexpectedly, one of the employees below immediately brightened and began flattering him.

"That's a great name! Arkham Broadcasting Company—ABC for short! Everyone will remember it immediately. It rolls right off the tongue. It sounds perfect!"

Karl froze.

Then his expression became rather strange.

ABC?

Was this name somehow destined to happen?

He couldn't decide whether it was incredibly unlucky or simply an absurd coincidence.

Just then, the television in Karl's office was interrupted by a breaking-news bulletin.

"According to the latest information received by this station, Batman, who has been missing for some time, has reappeared in Gotham City and brutally taken down a group of thugs in a downtown park!"

"This marks Batman's first confirmed appearance since the incident involving Bane…"

Seeing the report, Karl suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

Naturally, he could already guess what that old bat was doing.

Karl immediately clapped his hands.

"All right! That's enough for today's meeting. Everyone head home and get some rest before midnight."

"These days, you can't rely on the police alone to keep the streets safe."

With that, he sent his employees away one after another.

Once everyone was gone, Karl turned on his computer and connected to the police department's internal information network.

A map appeared on the screen, displaying every reported Batman sighting that night.

Starting from the park in the city center, the sightings formed a line that stretched directly toward Karl's location.

There was another report almost every few hundred yards.

It was as though Batman were drawing a perfectly straight line with his own footsteps, advancing relentlessly toward him.

"Huh?"

Karl rubbed his chin.

"That guy must be using the usual street thugs as practice targets to see whether he's recovered enough to fight at full strength."

Karl grinned.

"That's actually pretty interesting."

"I'll wait for you right here."

…

At that moment, Batman stood at the edge of a dark rooftop, his eyes fixed on the rain-soaked streets below.

Compared with his healthy body in the past, the armor he now wore offered advantages he had never possessed before.

Its powerful energy system gave him physical strength far beyond his previous limits.

Combined with the bionic legs and feet supporting his damaged body, he could walk once again.

He could fight once again.

He could continue his war against evil.

"Good."

Batman slowly clenched his fist.

"Looks like I can fight."

He felt the warm breath leaving his lungs.

For a moment, it almost seemed as though he had never truly breathed before.

Compared with those endless days confined to a bed, this sensation was like being given a second life.

It was as though he were finally drawing his first real breath after being suffocated for far too long.

…

At the same time, Karl, who was still sitting in his office waiting for Batman, received a call from Norton.

"Boss, about a minute ago, a suspicious man wearing a pizza-delivery uniform showed up at the building."

"But nobody here ordered pizza!"

Karl immediately became interested.

Instead of showing the slightest concern, he leisurely replied,

"Do we have surveillance footage? Send it to my computer."

A moment later, the security feed appeared.

Karl glanced at the screen.

"You don't even need to investigate."

"Someone showing up at a time like this is either a ghost or an enemy."

Karl narrowed his eyes at the image.

"And lucky us."

"The man standing outside is the Joker."

His voice remained remarkably calm.

"So, do you want me to take him out?"

Norton spoke seriously over the phone.

"I'm up in the tower right now. I can keep track of the Joker from the glass corridor. Give me the order and I can take him down."

Karl nodded unconsciously as he listened.

Then he looked back at the CCTV footage displayed across his computer screen.

It seemed tonight was going to be very lively.

Batman was coming to settle accounts with him.

The Joker was coming to settle accounts with him.

And somehow, both of them had chosen the same night.

If I'd known this would happen, maybe I wouldn't have talked so much crap on television.

At least I wouldn't have made both of them hate me this much.

Suddenly, a thought flashed through Karl's mind.

Batman and the Joker arriving at the same place at the same time was a rare opportunity.

If he handled this properly…

This could become one hell of a stunt.

"Norton, how many security cameras are there in this building?"

"Huh?"

Norton sounded confused.

"Why are you suddenly asking me that?"

"This is a television station. Obviously, it has a lot more cameras than that crappy apartment building we were using before. There should be a few hundred of them, I think."

Karl's eyes immediately lit up.

He suddenly sounded full of energy.

"I've got a great idea."

"Get everyone out of the building immediately."

"And no matter what happens next, nobody is allowed to come inside and interfere!"

"Oh, right. Since you're already up there, get your own camera ready too."

"You're going to need it in a minute!"

Norton was completely baffled by Karl's seemingly arbitrary orders.

He had no idea what Karl was planning.

Still, he remembered Karl's strength.

Even the monstrous Bane hadn't been able to defeat him.

If Karl was this confident despite knowing that Batman and the Joker were both closing in on him, then he almost certainly had another card hidden up his sleeve.

With that thought in mind, Norton followed Karl's instructions and began making preparations.

…

Meanwhile, Batman had arrived at the television studio.

According to the location of Karl's phone signal, this was where he was.

Batman's own information also confirmed that Karl had come here for a meeting earlier in the evening.

More importantly, he had shown no sign of intending to leave.

Batman casually pushed open the battered doors of the office building.

Only the lights on the top floor were still on.

The instant he stepped into the old television station, the atmosphere seemed to change.

Then a cold synthetic voice sounded from the computerized system built into his Bat-Mech armor.

"Warning. Joker gas compounds detected in the air. Exercise caution."

The system had clearly detected something wrong before Batman himself had noticed anything.

(End of Chapter)

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