In Dick’s mind, only one sentence was now echoing in absolute chaos:
Robin is actually in Blüdhaven?! Why?!
He tried to stay calm, racking his brain for any reasonable explanation—55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNSgpLTfhmh
Was it a mission? Emergency backup?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIZD0gh1xgK
A covert operation arranged by Batman?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAL2vyWP8D2
But none of these scenarios had anything to do with… a casual dinner date.
Claire didn’t bother checking his expression,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡghRxNkN7VN
nor did she turn to confirm if he was still following along.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWb2O20xDc6
She simply raised her right hand, forming a circle with her thumb and index finger,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0N55izGYJI
then brought it to her lips—
FWEEEEEEEET—!
A loud, piercing whistle cut through the quiet evening.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡco4EeU9efy
Fortunately, there weren’t many people around.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPwNSikNrk3
The few passersby only glanced over before quickly averting their eyes.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSpEeYXKLmc
This was Blüdhaven—minding your own business was the only way to survive.
But—Robin heard it.
He was just swinging across the rooftop on the opposite side of the street when the sound reached him.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRv5NBlmWM3
He turned immediately.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBoZEkw2aUX
From where the whistle came, he spotted a familiar silhouette standing next to a woman he didn’t recognize.
He didn’t hesitate.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOXU3ldsYOO
His grappling line shot out again.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTk1HCNRpcy
He twisted mid-air, soared across the gap, and landed with precision—55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpQYTorXLoN
as if he’d practiced that exact landing a hundred times.
And when he landed in front of Claire and Dick—55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf2XV3ZIES1
there was a pause.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzgYA7DGWfc
The three of them stood there, wrapped in a silence so heavy, it felt like someone had hit the pause button on reality.
Dick didn’t know what to say first.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGZlJWZmaYV
Robin didn’t know what to say first either.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnrwXL670zJ
Claire simply stood there watching the two of them, curious to see if either would break the silence.
This wasn’t some random encounter.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsdBV1nposT
This was Claire’s doing.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxSX0Cz5nBR
She wanted to see exactly what kind of relationship this “informant” had with the Bat family.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1PdDHDED0D
She needed a controlled experiment.
The three of them looked at one another—eye contact full of signals,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsQpiQe8aFX
but still not a single word.
Dick’s gaze shifted first.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnX7XwVtalJ
He quickly flashed a look at Robin, trying to convey:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJGF7qCTpAN
“Why the hell are you here?”
Then he immediately followed up with a second, more urgent expression:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjIxIWl5ztV
“I’m just plain ol’ Dick Grayson right now. Don’t blow my cover.”
Robin, on the other hand, eyed the pair with mild suspicion.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhjhtpnEkRx
The girl was clearly dressed up.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCwP6uqgG9K
The guy looked relaxed but well put-together.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZXK5yDMdf6
They were walking together down the street—
Wait… is this a date?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgB9Q5djVvm
Did I just interrupt a date?
But if it’s a date, why did the girl call him here?
Claire watched them continue their silent exchange,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY3ulawGAzz
and then shrugged—like she’d already seen through everything,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqgfrjleSPE
and had no intention of letting this awkward silence drag on.
She stepped forward, her voice clear and calm, instantly snapping both men’s attention back to her.
“Do you two know each other?”
Both of them shook their heads at the same time.
Identical motions.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvcSXHkDAwr
So fake it was almost insulting.
Claire raised an eyebrow, giving them a subtle “you expect me to believe that?” smile.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDR1KygPAge
But her tone remained utterly composed:
“Is that so?”
Without waiting for their answer,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsXiiVZH6Fo
she calmly lifted her hand and pointed to Dick:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ01v8mT3SOl
“This is Officer Dick Grayson.”
Then she pointed at Robin:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDNoDdEPhZL
“This is Robin.”
Finally, she pointed at herself:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWoH0IM5yFE
“I’m Claire.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKr0hi1VqNz
Nice to meet you both.”
Her tone was pleasant, her smile faint,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt7JCO2fUBZ
as if she were hosting the most polite and bizarre matchmaking event in Blüdhaven history.
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSA0SGV7FF6
Three people—familiar yet unfamiliar—stood together on the streets of Blüdhaven.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ52MmHwKMS2
A cold wind blew past, lifting the corner of a newspaper by a trash can, sending it fluttering briefly before it dropped back down in the dark.
Claire’s introductions had ended like a sterile handoff in a lab—cold, but undeniably effective.
After introducing herself, she promptly announced,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeBfpUpE9ln
“Alright, let’s go eat.”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGXzoHJRzFI
Then she turned around as if this gathering was nothing more than a dinner reservation she'd made in advance.
If Dick hadn’t been here—Robin swore—he definitely would’ve declined.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVGAMEiFrhd
Seriously.
Even if this woman was suspicious,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXUJOZPQpxW
even if she somehow knew his name,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKOB8VSOXjZ
he could’ve come up with a hundred reasons to walk away.
But the problem was—he had too many questions.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOnQThKnYQ
And the source of those questions was standing right in front of him.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk3MQQCpLua
His name: Dick Grayson.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtkaaOKWsIg
Current status: “normal police officer,”55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCM6XykI4R6
currently on a date with this mysterious woman.
Now he had to pretend not to know Dick…55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpqnyqHegdq
and join Dick’s date.
What the hell kind of scenario is this?
He glanced sideways at Dick, his expression crystal clear:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPF8mbREgm
“Bro. What are you doing?”
Dick was already looking at him—his face pale as chalk.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoWh21DovNe
“I don’t know. I really don’t know.”
Walking beside Claire, Dick had completely lost his grasp on logic.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9MfWbpmwpt
His brain felt like it had been stuffed with bagels—twelve of them—55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnqWjrOMLbO
jammed in all at once, and not a single one swallowed.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnuh5ubnGKy
Too many questions, too many contradictions, too many puzzle pieces with no edges.
And now he had to pretend he didn’t know Robin.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw8kH0ahrMB
And the three of them were going to dinner.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc9WjpaJZax
Together.
What kind of bizarre combination is this?
If Batman found out, he might just blow up the kitchen in the Batcave.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKHVtY8q0y7
Was this a leak in their intel network… or some kind of multiverse misalignment?
So—did Robin know Claire?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAGaioEtFdr
The thought suddenly popped into Dick’s head.
He deliberately let his arm fall to his side, slowed his pace slightly to trail behind a step,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ttoiTO0jy
then subtly pointed a finger at Claire, silently asking,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV6cerNieLM
“Do you know her?”
Robin shook his head.55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbehmTQ2lna
Clean, crisp, and absolute.
Dick let out a small breath of relief.
Great. He doesn’t know her.
Which meant—now the questions became:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRHDFzZpq6M
How did she contact Robin?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkWZnLKxlkn
Why did she invite him to dinner?55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ykU1rhdPC
And why drag Dick into it too?
Even more absurd—55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgZuyf3zkan
two out of the three people here knew each other,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡePIUPvuEZT
but had to pretend they didn’t,55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuUoBXt97yV
all while being herded together by the third person…55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRG5z37YDHN
for dinner.
The two brothers silently watched the woman walking steadily ahead of them—Claire.
One thought passed between them:55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhMjQleiewu
This dinner... there are going to be questions.
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9CO3416yoD
