DC: I am Bruce Wayne

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"A hero is someone who understands the responsibility that comes with their freedom."

– Bob Dylan, (Interview with Edna Gundersen)

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<{Bat Cave, Wayne Manor, Gotham}>

<(Bruce Wayne POV)> @@novelbin@@

"Local crime boss Tony Zucco goes into a permanent coma due to brain injury after falling off the roof of his house. Wife agrees to pull the plug on his life support on the very first day." Selina read aloud from the newspaper before taking a quick glance at my face with a questioning look. 

"What? Haven't you heard? Karma is a bitch. He should have been prepared to be able to fly before messing with the trapeze ropes of the Flying Graysons. Fortunately for the performing couple, I was able to save them from death but unfortunately for Tony, it was too late for Batman to stop his fall... I guess anyone can make a mistake when it comes to calculating the right time to lock a grappling hook gun." I chuckled. "However, I have to say it was quite a surprise how quickly his wife decided to stop his life support. I guess she really wanted him dead." I shrugged as if the entire thing had nothing to do with me.

"Hmm Hm." She hummed with a knowing smile before moving on to a different newspaper article. "Bruce Wayne, the enigmatic billionaire of Gotham, emerges as a real-life superhero after a daring rescue of a circus troupe from a near-fatal accident, before generously donating a significant sum to the struggling circus." She read with a smile on her face. "I admit there is no one better than Vicki when it comes to painting you in a good light." She chuckled. 

"She does what she can do best. That girl is a master at controlling public opinion. She has even learned how to manipulate other news agencies to follow her lead on her articles, thereby giving her the seal of genuineness she needs even when she doesn't have any solid basis for some particular news. In fact, I am more than confident that she will be able to beat Lois Lane this year and win the Pulitzer Prize." I nodded, agreeing to Selina's words. 

Vicki was already one of the most famous prime-time news anchors in the country. However, her recent articles on Gotham were only solidifying her place as a brilliant editor and writer as well. A few more years and she could even start influencing the country's politics as well like the bigger news media giants. 

"Hey tiger, since all these articles are more or less worshipping the very Earth you walk on, there has to be an article that criticizes you, right? I mean you should definitely have hidden enemies that want to see your public image destroyed or some hater who hates the stupid amount of money you have in your bank account." The cat lover continued, picking up a couple of other newspapers from the pile beside her, "What about articles like that? Why don't they appear in the news that much?" She asked while glancing over the thing with a searching gaze as if she was looking for something particular. 

"Oh, without a doubt, I have haters and enemies who want nothing but to see me go broke. But except for wishing it with all their might, they can't exactly make it into a reality. Say, do you know the type of organization no news media company ever wants to antagonize unless they have no other choice?" I threw a question at her in response to her original inquiry.

"The government?" She asked while slightly tilting her head in curiosity.

"No, in a democracy, governments are the easiest targets for the news media because they wield a huge amount of influence when it comes to showing the common people the "true" face of the government." I corrected her. "Instead, what they are really afraid of are big businesses and multinational companies," I revealed. "News companies make money purely by endorsements and advertisements. If big businesses, especially conglomerates that dabble in all sorts of sectors stop using them to advertise, they would have no revenue left to themselves and as a result, no matter how many readers or viewers they have, they will crumble away due to a lack of money. 

So, the news companies antagonize business giants and their ultra-rich owners only when they either have no other choice or if they simply stand to gain more money upon the downfall of the company." I patiently explained. "And since Wayne International is too big for them to topple by a few negative news stories, no news media company wants to take a stab at me unless there is some really big controversy or scandal about me that they have to cover for appearances' sake."

"I see. So, that's why no news media has tried to paint a negative picture about you yet in front of the public. Also, now that I think about it, it almost seems common sense for news companies not to target their primary source of income." Selina hummed as if she had finally understood some dark secret.

"However, that does not mean there is no negative news article about me. Look at this online news article Yahoo released on me a few days ago." I said as a realistic hologram of a web page opened in front of Selina's face, waiting for her to read. 

"Arrogant Gotham billionaire wastes hard-earned family fortune to buy all items from an auction in an ultimate desperate attempt to show off his wealth." Selina's eyebrows furrowed in silent anger as she stared at the article after she was finished reading it. "Written and published by Yahoo News, huh? Well, that's why they are Yahoo, and nobody knows them." She snorted in annoyance. 

"... I feel like I have heard that before somewhere." I mumbled to myself before shaking my head, "Well anyway, occasionally, certain "smaller" news outlets do publish disparaging articles about me or my company. Most of the time, this is due to their financial ties with some competing customer who contributes more to their revenue than Wayne International does. In this case, for example, it is Lexcorp since Luthor owns about 30 percent of Yahoo. It was a really bad investment, but I guess he is still making use of it however he can." I revealed with a helpless shrug. 

"But we cannot afford to let demeaning news articles or negative comments discourage us. For a single negative article like this, Vicki always makes sure to pump half a dozen positive articles about me, Wayne International, and Batman. I mean just look at the newest interview she did with the actress Mary Louise Dahl after the woman received an experimental treatment from Wayne Pharma for her physical condition. That interview broke the internet with how many times it has been viewed. Either people are really awed by what our cure can achieve, or they have a serious crush on Mary because of her new looks." I joked knowing that it was definitely the second reason why her interview had so many views. After all, her new adult form was certainly a treat for the eyes with her being just as hot as she was previously cute.

And yes, I had "healed" Mary by treating her condition. Initially, I was indecisive if I should take her to Arkham Asylum or the Blackgate Penitentiary for her crime of attempted murder of her entire cast, however, I realized something while trying to stop her. Mary, aka, Baby Doll wasn't a villain, she was just a victim much like the majority of DC villains. She was not a psycho who wanted the world to burn but simply a person who had nothing left in her life. She was the quiet kid in class who returned to her school with a gun after being bullied by others all her life, only in this case, her school was over a long time ago even though "her childhood" was not. 

The girl was suffering from such a severe case of depression that if I were to force her into a facility, she would either probably kill herself or permanently become a real villain with mental issues. So, I did what I thought was right at that time. I gave her a second chance. I gave her the "cure" for her physical condition before erasing everyone else's memories there with the help of my Neuralyzer, making them believe that they were just camping out in the warehouse to research their next film project.

Of course, I only helped Baby Doll with the strict and non-negotiable condition that she would have to regularly visit a certified, reputed psychiatrist at least once every week, take whatever meds she was prescribed, and would never even think about doing anything illegal. Also, she would have to continue to pursue her career through her own talent and hard work, no matter how much time it would take for her to do so. Giving up on her dreams, blackmailing people, or threatening others for work, were out of the question.

After listening to my condition, Mary had instantly agreed with all of them while thanking me with tears in her eyes for stopping her from making a mistake and giving her a second chance. In her own words, she didn't mean to do what she had done. Her actions were just a mistake in a moment of utter desperation and weakness.

Oh, and obviously, Mary Louise Dahl had no idea about the connection between Bruce Wayne and the Dark Knight. What I as The Dark Knight had informed her was that Batman pulled a favor with a couple of people and got her into a list for experimental treatments in Wayne Pharma who was already developing a cure for people with Systemic Hypoplasia. In fact, not only did she not know about the connection between Bruce Wayne and Batman, but she was also under strict instructions from me to never mention to anyone that Batman was the one who "got her into the list". She was told that this was to make sure that no one could ever find out about the crime she had tried to commit but the truth was that this was just to make sure no one could connect the dots between Bruce Wayne and the Dark Knight. After all, I wasn't ready to have my identity leaked yet.

"However, even though there are not a lot of negative articles about me yet, there will be very soon. A single misstep and I think even the current government might come after me." I chuckled mysteriously.

"What do you mean?" Seina asked curiously while neatly arranging the newspapers in a row, ready to cut the articles she wanted which were mostly about me with a sharp pair of scissors she had in her hands. 

"Well kitty, let's just say, I am going to become richer than a LOT of countries tomorrow." A wide smirk slowly made its way to my lips on its own as the words left my mouth. "The world economy will never be the same and we will never have money problems again." 

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(A/N: This was supposed to be published two days ago but the Webnovel server crash erased my latest chapter, so I had to work on that and complete it again before publishing this

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