First Contact with A.R.G.U.S.

As a former infamous hacker, Felicity had only recently turned over a new leaf and didn't yet have the strong sense of justice she would develop later. Though she knew Selina's actions were definitely not just "borrowing" and were likely illegal, were hackers known for following rules?

"Why didn't you ask Thea about this?" Felicity couldn't help but ask. "Why come to me? We aren't that close, are we? You two seem to have a better relationship."

Selina's admiration for the Starling City duo was evident. She felt they could effortlessly produce some amazing things, which was different from Bruce's research direction. In comparison to the planes and cannons of Batman, the research of the two women was more suitable for her.

She looked at the two with a sense of envy mixed with anticipation, much like how Nobita looked at Doraemon.

As for Felicity's question, Selina was also pondering why she didn't approach Thea instead, with whom she had a closer relationship.

After a moment of thought, she said, "It might be because of her status as a wealthy heiress. I feel she might not approve of my actions. I feel like we're alike, and I believe you can help me."

"What do you mean?" Felicity was a bit speechless after hearing Selina's words. Does this mean that Selina thinks that she is a bad person, or a poor person? Did she think Thea was a good person? Had she been deceived by her naive appearance?

In fact, Selina's judgment was quite accurate. Due to her family background, Thea had many concerns and wouldn't easily disregard laws and regulations, at least not unless it was a matter of life or death. According to the alignment in games, she was at least of a lawful alignment, but whether she was lawful good or lawful neutral couldn't be determined yet.

This wasn't a problem for Felicity. She wasn't bound by such concerns and was extremely adventurous, which was why she volunteered to come to Gotham in the first place.

"Alright, here you go. I don't know anything else." Felicity opened a tablet and connected it to a phone, swiftly operated it, and then handed the phone to Selina before walking away briskly.

Selina took the phone and found only one app on it named "Art Identification 2.2." Opening the application, she found it to be a simple program that could determine the age and production process of an item just by scanning it. The software's database was extensive, even including collections from Malaysia. Although it couldn't directly determine authenticity, it was sufficient for her needs. Selina didn't have high standards for art pieces; as long as the age matched, it was good enough for her.

"Haha," Selina chuckled, feeling that Felicity wasn't being entirely honest. "If you're a good person, why would you prepare this software? It looks like it was written a long time ago and was just never used."

This would be a huge help for her.

Later that evening, Robin and Barbara, the dynamic duo, rested for a while before heading out again to apprehend a notorious criminal called Electrocutioner, rumored to have inherited the craft from his ancestors, though it was unclear which generation of Electrocutioner he was.

But Thea, looking at this serious-faced middle-aged man, just thought he was a joker hired by someone. He looked ridiculous, carrying a battery from an electric bicycle on his back, with wires connected to gloves. He could electrocute anyone within a two-meter radius, which seemed impressive, but it was only effective against ordinary people.

However, clever Commissioner Gordon had discovered a fatal flaw in their craft thirty years ago: it was vulnerable to water. One didn't even need to prepare; just walk up to them within three meters, open a bottle of water, and splash it on their face, and they would be rendered useless.

What a ridiculous technique! Clinging to tradition without seeking innovation, they've been doing the same thing for thirty years, passing down such foolishness from generation to generation, and repeatedly failing yet continuing to fight against the Gotham Police Department. It can only be said that this family has a few screws loose.

Thea shook her head and stopped looking at the serious Electrocutioner. She didn't want to laugh and ruin her ladylike demeanor, so she lowered her head to finish off the black sea bass and cheeseburger on her plate.

Just when she thought life would go on like this until Batman returned home and she could retire to the background completely, taking the opportunity to make a fortune when no one was paying attention, someone came to talk to her.

"Miss Queen, Commissioner Gordon requests your presence in the conference room," a police officer, whose name Thea couldn't recall, said to her.

"Oh, okay." What could they want with her? Thea was a bit puzzled. Could it be that Batman had returned? But she quickly shook her head; he wouldn't be back so soon. His spine was broken, and even if he came out, he wouldn't recover that quickly.

Entering the conference room, Thea found that not everyone had arrived yet. Felicity, Robin, and Selina were not present; only Commissioner Gordon and Barbara were talking to a woman dressed in black.

"Thea, let me introduce you. This is Lyla Michaels, a senior investigator from Advanced Research Group Uniting Super-Humans. She's here about the Killer Croc case." Commissioner Gordon briefly introduced her.

Oh, isn't this the A.R.G.U.S? And this woman is Lyla? John Diggle's future wife. She glanced at the absence of a wedding ring on her hand, does that mean they're not together yet? Thea examined her face; she was a character from Arrow, wasn't she? She hadn't expected their first meeting to be in Gotham.

"Pleased to meet you." Thea said.

"Pleasure's mine," Lyla replied.

The two women shook hands lightly, and it was evident that Lyla was still a bit inexperienced at this moment, unlike the future image of a frustrated middle-aged woman. Now she could barely be considered a young mature woman.

Lyla also observed the young woman before her. She was tasked with retrieving Killer Croc, and encountering Thea was an unexpected coincidence. But after learning more about her past, she made a decision to initiate contact.

"Miss Queen, I just saw Killer Croc's frozen body. May I ask, under natural conditions, how many days would it take for him to thaw?" Lyla inquired.

Why is she asking this? Thea turned to Commissioner Gordon and asked, "I was going to sleep. Didn't Felicity tell you guys?"

Commissioner Gordon shook his head helplessly. He really forgot to ask, and when he remembered, he couldn't find her. Just now, Lyla asked him a few questions which left him clueless. Hearing that Thea was having dinner, he quickly called her over after Lyla agreed.

Thea slapped her forehead. This absent-minded guy was really tarnishing Starling City's reputation. She coughed a couple of times and said, "Uh, theoretically speaking, under normal temperature conditions, it would take three days to thaw. This is unrelated to the creature's species; whether it's a giant or a dwarf, it still takes three days. If one needs to regain consciousness, a normal person would need fifteen to thirty days to restore neural activity. But I haven't extracted his blood or studied him, so I can't say for sure, but it would definitely take more than five days."

Upon hearing that Killer Croc wouldn't immediately jump out of the ice block, Commissioner Gordon and Barbara visibly relaxed. Lyla, on the other hand, nodded with the demeanor of a general.