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—26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrjbzYB9mmW
Was it a mission? Emergency backup?26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLeD79VhByK
A covert operation arranged by Batman?26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFbuu49cbyQ
But none of these scenarios had anything to do with… a casual dinner date.
Claire didn’t bother checking his expression,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSzLvvSQImf
nor did she turn to confirm if he was still following along.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVvnaMcMxpQ
She simply raised her right hand, forming a circle with her thumb and index finger,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ywciCplZS
then brought it to her lips—
FWEEEEEEEET—!
A loud, piercing whistle cut through the quiet evening.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ08czLpJlJn
Fortunately, there weren’t many people around.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsT62u5zxie
The few passersby only glanced over before quickly averting their eyes.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfLKjy4k22i
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.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwV6v0vhcY4
He turned immediately.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡABuoSRyOSQ
From where the whistle came, he spotted a familiar silhouette standing next to a woman he didn’t recognize.
He didn’t hesitate.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhyEDaxAXSN
His grappling line shot out again.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEI4t9BH2zi
He twisted mid-air, soared across the gap, and landed with precision—26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS45gjWESxF
as if he’d practiced that exact landing a hundred times.
And when he landed in front of Claire and Dick—26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3HYR8aiY7i
there was a pause.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJMzI2PjnO7
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.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFjrpvDrfIf
Robin didn’t know what to say first either.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqCqTMlHyny
Claire simply stood there watching the two of them, curious to see if either would break the silence.
This wasn’t some random encounter.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv5a6hettVp
This was Claire’s doing.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Y4C1OigtP
She wanted to see exactly what kind of relationship this “informant” had with the Bat family.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ70UcTRd1et
She needed a controlled experiment.
The three of them looked at one another—eye contact full of signals,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZpJOyT1sHJ
but still not a single word.
Dick’s gaze shifted first.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuaXJF7mt1H
He quickly flashed a look at Robin, trying to convey:26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4O4sbr73mI
“Why the hell are you here?”
Then he immediately followed up with a second, more urgent expression:26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBC6pn5Gymy
“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.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx9OR6Ru9lz
The girl was clearly dressed up.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtoHD1wttJK
The guy looked relaxed but well put-together.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB1EO0LT677
They were walking together down the street—
Wait… is this a date?26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvULadIk9pM
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,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrn8gOrhVIf
and then shrugged—like she’d already seen through everything,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6s3rKT6QMZ
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.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4YlMPyNMZR
So fake it was almost insulting.
Claire raised an eyebrow, giving them a subtle “you expect me to believe that?” smile.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnIHA87MHdK
But her tone remained utterly composed:
“Is that so?”
Without waiting for their answer,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrQRpoVqI0D
she calmly lifted her hand and pointed to Dick:26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAL6vLVQp1w
“This is Officer Dick Grayson.”
Then she pointed at Robin:26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYlzZ7l09WS
“This is Robin.”
Finally, she pointed at herself:26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBHCxa37SRL
“I’m Claire.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8cyvKnfFan
Nice to meet you both.”
Her tone was pleasant, her smile faint,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGWHSewzTv6
as if she were hosting the most polite and bizarre matchmaking event in Blüdhaven history.
26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0JqsDwiyc3
Three people—familiar yet unfamiliar—stood together on the streets of Blüdhaven.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpy7BhRoMjd
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,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv8AF49VXoI
“Alright, let’s go eat.”26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgwrKkXzPTx
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.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPE93BltbYE
Seriously.
Even if this woman was suspicious,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKkafPvsaal
even if she somehow knew his name,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTj81qUHr61
he could’ve come up with a hundred reasons to walk away.
But the problem was—he had too many questions.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgM16NswtVS
And the source of those questions was standing right in front of him.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm7zAeGbZ5z
His name: Dick Grayson.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFhiEREP8xv
Current status: “normal police officer,”26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe9emoWeYGY
currently on a date with this mysterious woman.
Now he had to pretend not to know Dick…26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdJRGJg1itE
and join Dick’s date.
What the hell kind of scenario is this?
He glanced sideways at Dick, his expression crystal clear:26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3I4phTncr6
“Bro. What are you doing?”
Dick was already looking at him—his face pale as chalk.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwqZKoMF3v3
“I don’t know. I really don’t know.”
Walking beside Claire, Dick had completely lost his grasp on logic.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡloEZzy9zLO
His brain felt like it had been stuffed with bagels—twelve of them—26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMLDgRhlc9n
jammed in all at once, and not a single one swallowed.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ72oc6UeHvm
Too many questions, too many contradictions, too many puzzle pieces with no edges.
And now he had to pretend he didn’t know Robin.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ2PQzs0KQU
And the three of them were going to dinner.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL6AVsXiTti
Together.
What kind of bizarre combination is this?
If Batman found out, he might just blow up the kitchen in the Batcave.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡya5GZsQbau
Was this a leak in their intel network… or some kind of multiverse misalignment?
So—did Robin know Claire?26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsgkBCM17Fz
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,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVQeMhL2BOb
then subtly pointed a finger at Claire, silently asking,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTzEwNM9qdK
“Do you know her?”
Robin shook his head.26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqBOr078Jab
Clean, crisp, and absolute.
Dick let out a small breath of relief.
Great. He doesn’t know her.
Which meant—now the questions became:26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK0yHzvCTz1
How did she contact Robin?26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡinchq9oi8Z
Why did she invite him to dinner?26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6zmk73exnG
And why drag Dick into it too?
Even more absurd—26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSOH2JRSzyZ
two out of the three people here knew each other,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡatuUaVHBpw
but had to pretend they didn’t,26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1YrChEZldR
all while being herded together by the third person…26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkkhDpSDBHp
for dinner.
The two brothers silently watched the woman walking steadily ahead of them—Claire.
One thought passed between them:26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrQEBAISWsf
This dinner... there are going to be questions.
26Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB9jsMm0Ny3
