The next day was one of Gotham's rare sunny days.
The afterglow of the setting sun, like a golden veil, spilled across Wayne Manor, adorning the ancient building with a dreamy hue.
Brucey returned from school, humming a cheerful tune, skipping back to her room. After washing up, she changed into new everyday clothes.
Just as she was checking if her attire was proper, a knock came from the door.
"Miss Brucey," Alfred's classic British accent drifted from the doorway.
Brucey heard the call and quickly ran to the door.
Seeing Brucey open the door, Alfred bowed slightly and said, "The Master and Madam are waiting for you downstairs."
Brucey's eyes lit up instantly upon hearing this: "Okay, I'm coming right down!"
However, when she eagerly followed Alfred to the living room, she couldn't help but be stunned, her eyes filled with surprise.
Her father, Thomas, was in a crisp black suit, his exquisite tie making him look even more spirited and perfectly gentlemanly.
Her mother wore a fur coat with flowing lines, luxurious yet elegant, and the pearls on her necklace were round and full, shimmering with a soft luster under the lights.
Looking at her parents, little Brucey was a bit confused.
Weren't they going to see a movie today? Why did it feel like they were attending a banquet?
She looked them up and down, asking with confusion, "Mom and Dad, you're dressed so formally. Do I need to dress up prettily too?"
Brucey had only changed into ordinary everyday clothes upstairs.
Now, standing between Thomas and Martha, her attire seemed out of place.
Martha and Thomas walked over, smiling as they stroked Brucey's head, their tone gentle: "Darling, no need to dress up specially, casual is fine. We're just going out to have fun today."
Thomas had briefly discussed it with his wife yesterday, and both felt a little uneasy.
But the problem was they couldn't do anything, nor did they know what would happen. They just subconsciously took this outing more seriously, putting on clothes they usually only wore for formal occasions.
Brucey, on the other hand, heard that they were just going out to play today, confirming that Thomas and Martha didn't have any impromptu banquet invitations that would cancel the movie. Her little face turned red with excitement.
Although Thomas said casual was fine, she couldn't suppress her inner excitement and darted upstairs.
A moment later, Brucey reappeared before everyone, wearing a small dress.
The dress was adorned with delicate lace and small bows, swaying gently with her steps, like a dancing butterfly.
This time, the family of three stood together, and the aesthetic finally matched.
Normally, Gwen dressed completely neutrally, rarely wearing skirts.
It was a habit she brought from her previous life, but Brucey didn't know that.
How her sister dressed, she dressed.
Although it wasn't the same style of small suit, she hadn't worn skirts much either.
But deep down, she still loved pretty little dresses.
Since her parents were dressed so beautifully this time, Brucey naturally wanted to look nice too.
Thomas's eyes lit up, and he praised genuinely, "Darling, you look absolutely beautiful today!"
Martha also walked over, gently stroking Brucey's hair.
The family of three walked towards the Manor entrance. Passing by Alfred, Thomas paused and smiled, saying, "Alfred, we're heading out."
Brucey also skipped over to Alfred, waving and saying, "Alfred, I'm off!"
Alfred bowed slightly, his face maintaining its usual serious expression, and replied, "Master, Madam, Miss Brucey, I wish you a pleasant time. I will look after the Manor."
"And my sister."
"Yes, and Miss Gwen."
The luxury car was already waiting at the entrance. This time, no driver was accompanying them; Thomas still wanted to go out with his family without a third wheel.
Thomas and his wife got into the car first. Brucey, like a joyful fawn, lightly bounced into the car.
The car slowly started, heading towards the center of Gotham City.
Standing at the Manor entrance, Alfred watched the receding car, pondered for a moment, then quickly returned inside and made a call.
The moment the call connected, he said with his usual expression, "The Master, Madam, and young Miss have left, young Miss."
...The black luxury car slowly drove along the neon-lit streets of Gotham City, finally stopping steadily beside the small park where they often parked.
The car door opened, and The Wayne Family exited one by one. Brucey, like a cheerful little rabbit, skipped ahead, the lace and bows on her small dress swaying gently with her steps.
Martha's lips held a gentle smile, her eyes full of doting as she watched her daughter.
But after walking for a while, when she caught sight of her husband Thomas's grim expression beside her, her smile instantly faltered, and she asked with concern, "Thomas, what's wrong? Has something happened?"
Thomas heard this, forced a smile, and gently shook his head: "Nothing, maybe I'm just tired from work."
In reality, ever since they got out of the car, he felt a pair of eyes watching him closely from the shadows.
On the surrounding streets, crowds bustled.
Each time he felt someone watching him, Thomas would feign casualness and look back, his gaze repeatedly searching the bustling crowds and dim corners.
But after searching for a long time, he didn't find any suspicious figures.
Meanwhile, on a nearby rooftop, Arcana was fully equipped, wearing a baseball cap and a mask, completely covered except for a pair of focused eyes.
She held binoculars, intently watching The Wayne Family's every move.
Watching the three enter the theater, Arcana quickly picked up her walkie-talkie and whispered, "Target has entered the theater."
Gwen's voice came from the other end of the walkie-talkie: "Observe and wait. If you see the three targets exit, or if any suspicious individuals appear, report immediately."
"Received."
The walkie-talkie went silent. Gwen put down the walkie-talkie in her hand and turned her gaze to Giovanni and Zatanna nearby.
Giovanni sat at a paper-strewn desk, his quill rapidly writing and drawing on the paper.
His brows were furrowed, his expression focused, as if he was meticulously preparing something.
Zatanna stood nearby, holding a stack of blank papers, diligently replicating and copying Giovanni's work, trying to mass-produce these prepared items.
After a while, as Zatanna placed down the last paper with runes drawn on it, the replication work was finally complete.
Giovanni looked at the small stack of finished products on the table, carefully compared them one by one, picked out a few flawed pieces, and then breathed a sigh of relief, nodding with satisfaction.
Gwen saw him nod and quickly walked forward. Giovanni carefully handed the stack of finished products to Gwen.
Gwen took the papers, observed them for a moment, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes, and asked, "How do I use this thing?"
"If you need to show someone certain things, such as documents, reports, or even... a corpse, you just need to show these to the person. At the same time, using Backwards Magic, the person will firmly believe they have seen what you want them to see."
"For example, relevant documents, a certain report, or... your parents' corpses."