Chapter 75: Will Be Back tomorrow

The first step was to get rid of the lights in the area.

This was something Chu Cheng had learned from playing Batman for a long time. Darkness is an advantage for certain heroes like Batman, who often opt for steath takedowns. So, he controlled Green Arrow to take out the lights before making his move.

In the past, people might have just thought it was a power outage and grumbled about unreliable electricity. But ever since Batman and his dramatic, light-cutting entrances became infamous, a blackout meant something much scarier to criminals.

These days, even tough guys were learning to protect themselves at night. The streets weren't safe for anyone, and the slightest flicker of a streetlight could send a gang of grown men running. Seeing a cat knock over a trash can could make them scream, thinking Batman was after them. The fear of Batman was very real.

But this time, it wasn't Batman they encountered.

Whoosh!

An arrow flew through the air, silently finding its mark in one of the gangsters who was cautiously looking around. The man screamed in pain, sending panic through the rest of the gang.

"Is it the bat?"

"Where is he!?"

Everyone started freaking out, turning on their phone flashlights, the beams darting frantically around the room.

Whoosh!

Another arrow flew, this time taking down a second criminal. The sight of the green arrow left everyone even more terrified.

Some tried to escape, rushing to the door, but no matter how hard they tried, it wouldn't budge. They were locked in their own club.

With a ghostly archer hunting them down.

He was everywhere and nowhere. Every person in that room was his target.

Despite not expecting much from Green Arrow at first, Chu Cheng found himself enjoying this gameplay. He usually played melee characters who got up close to their enemies, but this time, he was a long-range shooter.

His strategy shifted from sneaking up on opponents to finding the best angles to shoot from, always moving to keep the upper hand.

But an archer who can't fight up close isn't a real fighter. So, after taking down the key targets with his bow, Chu Cheng made Green Arrow jump into the middle of the remaining gangsters.

"Here he is... ugh!"

One criminal tried to shout, but before he could finish, Green Arrow's bow smacked him across the face.

The rest of the gang, armed with knives and makeshift weapons, rushed in to attack, but they were no match for Green Arrow.

With his bow as a melee weapon, he took them down one by one, leaving them moaning and rolling on the floor.

Their leader, who had been hiding behind a desk, praying not to be noticed, was soon dragged out by Green Arrow.

"You failed this city."

Green Arrow's voice was cold as he delivered his signature line.

The gang leader trembled, begging for mercy. "Wait, it's a misunderstanding! I'm just a businessman! I haven't done anything wrong. You must have the wrong guy... Ahhh!!"

Without a word, Green Arrow shot an arrow into the man's knee, making him scream in pain.

"Calm down, please," the leader pleaded, sweating. "Whatever you've heard, it's just rumors! There's no proof, no evidence. You can't just..."

"Evidence is for the police."

Green Arrow's altered and menacing voice cut him off. 

"Do I look like an officer to you?"

The leader froze, fear gripping him. 

That's what terrified these criminals the most.

Cops and courts followed rules, and these guys knew how to exploit those rules, bribing witnesses, hiding evidence, and finding loopholes to avoid punishment.

But these vigilantes in masks? They didn't follow rules.

Like Green Arrow here—maybe he had no proof, maybe he didn't even know what the club was up to.

Maybe he just decided to use them for target practice. They were completely at his mercy.

"Your gang's other hideouts," Green Arrow demanded. "I want locations."

After so many nights of vigilante work, Chu Cheng had picked up on how the city's underground worked.

He knew which gangs controlled which areas and how they avoided stepping on each other's toes. These were things that most ordinary people would never know.

If Chu Cheng saw a hideout like that on the street, he could easily guess which group it belonged to.

Beating up a bunch of these guys was fun, but Chu Cheng still wasn't fully satisfied. These thugs looked tough, but they broke down like wet paper when the fight started. It wasn't challenging enough for him.

He'd already tested out Green Arrow, but there were two new heroes that still needed testing, so he had to find more opponents to fight.

But waiting for targets to show up on the street was too slow. So, he figured it'd be better to get a few more locations from someone and go straight there.

The gang leader turned pale when he heard this and quickly said, "Our group operates independently; I don't know the location of the other hideouts... Ugh!!"

Green Arrow pulled the arrow out of his wound and then reinserted it.

"Wrong answer," Green Arrow said. "Try again."

The leader, in too much pain to keep up his tough act, finally broke down. He gave up the locations, knowing that this maniac was definitely going to attack them next.

After tonight, the rest of the gang would find out he'd given up their locations, and they'd probably deal with him next.

But when Green Arrow finally let him go and seemed ready to leave, the leader sighed in relief. At least tonight's nightmare was almost over...

But just as he was catching his breath, he saw Green Arrow stop suddenly and turn back around.

"Oh, right," Green Arrow said as if he'd just remembered something. "Make sure you gather more guys tomorrow. I'll be back."

The leader's face froze instantly.