Stephen observed Catwoman's stoic expression slowly emerging. Besides wanting to kill him, Talia al Ghul must also desire to reclaim what he had taken from her, right? So the question arises: who other than Catwoman in Gotham has the ability to both come into contact with him and steal things? Moreover, his only encounter with Catwoman was in Black Gate Prison when he first arrived in this DC Universe. There is definitely something suspicious about her showing up here and greeting me.
Through simple deduction of Talia's plan, I believe The China White of the triad was responsible for his murder, while Catwoman is responsible for theft.
One light and one dark, two different purposes.
Regardless of which objective they achieve, Talia al Ghul can rid herself of the predicament of being threatened by him.
Selina Kyle looked at Stephen, who had a peculiar smile on his face, and upon seeing this, she couldn't help but raise her eyebrows in a complaining tone. "Aren't you going to invite me in and offer me a seat? I've been standing outside for a while to prevent your little girlfriend from misconstruing my visit."
"Sure, come in." Stephen slightly turned to the side, allowing Selina Kyle to enter and survey the room's layout.
Boom!
Hearing the sound of the door closing behind her, she chuckled and turned around. "Who would have thought that you, the one who killed Bane, would be leading a mundane life with an ordinary girl in such a small... Ahem, what are you doing? Let go, release me..." Before she could finish speaking, Stephen suddenly lunged at her, pinching her neck. An immediate sense of suffocation overwhelmed her as her body dangled in the air.
Selina Kyle's expression displayed horror as she desperately tried to grab Stephen's wrists, which felt as if they were about to snap her neck. Her feet twitched weakly in the air. "Let go, release me..." Her once pristine neck gradually turned red, and she struggled to draw breath.
"Haha, find this amusing, Kitty?"
"What... What's amusing? I don't know what you're talking about. Let go, I can't breathe anymore." Selina Kyle gasped in pain.
"Do you think boys will follow you simply because you're beautiful? Do you believe that your beauty can absolve you of any wrongdoing? Do you think you'll be forgiven just because you're beautiful?" Stephen questioned Selina Kyle, who had a foreboding feeling about the situation. He wants to kill me, he truly wants to kill me.
This lunatic! I haven't done anything yet.
In a panic, Selina Kyle raised her leg, intending to kick Stephen, but he swiftly pulled her closer, preventing her from extending her leg at all. With their eyes locked, Stephen suddenly smiled.
"But let me tell you, those beliefs are true!"
"What?"
Selina Kyle was shocked, then felt herself falling and landing on the ground.
"Cough, cough." Instinctively, Selina Kyle pressed her neck, gasping for air, while sharply glaring at Stephen. "You're insane! You almost strangled me."
Stephen shrugged. "Just kidding."
"You call that a joke? You nearly strangled me!" Selina Kyle grew even angrier.
Stephen grinned. "You should feel embarrassed for trying to steal from me. So, to prevent you from doing so, I made a joke and strangled you. What's wrong with that?"
"..."
Selina Kyle, previously arrogant and furious, couldn't utter a sound as if she were being choked again. He actually knew why she was here.
Observing the stunned Selina Kyle, Stephen fetched a glass of water from the kitchen and handed it to her. "Seems like you can't handle a joke?"
"A joke? Who makes such a deadly joke? You're simply deranged. Who knows when you're joking and when you're not!" Selina Kyle cursed vehemently in her mind but remained silent, declining to respond to Stephen. He extended the water glass to her.
"Today has been boring until now." Stephen poured the water directly onto Selina Kyle's face.
Selina Kyle froze momentarily, consumed by anger and humiliation.
"You..."
"Care to guess whether I'm joking or not?" Stephen asked, narrowing his eyes.
Playing games like this, toying with Catwoman, how amusing!
Finally losing control, Selina Kyle snarled, "Stephen, you're insane. You knew I came here to steal something, yet you still let me in. Is this a joke? Are you intentionally mocking me?"
Facing Selina Kyle's enraged and distorted face, Stephen beamed brightly.
"Yeah, I was purposely fooling you!"
"I don't care anymore. I'm going to slap your face..." Selina Kyle completely lost her composure to anger and humiliation, charging at Stephen.
As expected, Stephen swiftly evaded her attack.
Selina Kyle flung herself to the ground and turned around, but she couldn't help but groan. Just as she was preparing to stand up, Stephen placed his foot on her chest and slightly bent over, squinting at her with a smile. "Can't handle a joke, Kitty? You want to escalate things? But you seem to have forgotten something important—you can't defeat me at all."
Selina Kyle's anger was instantly extinguished.
Seeing her calm down, Stephen appeared to lose interest in teasing her. He lifted his foot, turned, and walked over to the sofa, taking a seat.
"Now that everything is settled, let's talk. What conditions did she give you, Kitty?" Stephen asked lazily and casually, resting his hand on the sofa.
...
Marvel King: Real Author
Tranlator: Zatch[King]Rex