Chapter 8 - Bruce Wayne: What is money power?

The weather in Gotham was always so gloomy. Rune rubbed his eyes and helplessly glanced at the gray sky outside the window. A monkey came over, carrying a plate of food.The plate contained baked beans, fried bread, bacon, eggs, and sausages. With Rune's will, the bread automatically sandwiched the bacon and eggs, floating to his mouth. He took a big bite; the bread was rich in wheat flavor, and the combination of bacon and fried egg tasted quite good. He tore off a small piece of bread, dipped it in the baked beans sauce, and put it into his mouth, immediately feeling the sweet and sour appetite stimulant.After a simple meal, Rune tidied his clothes, casually cast a Shield Charm on himself, and then pushed the door open. Today, he was going to buy some brown sugar, ginger, and daily food.Casually hanging a few clueless idiots on lampposts, Rune walked into the supermarket. The supermarket was dazzling, with everything imaginable. Rune immediately saw Zatanna, whom he had met a few days ago, and Bruce was also there, though he looked a bit tired."Hello!" Today, Zatanna's hair was tied up in a high bun, with a few stray strands softly framing her forehead, adding a touch of liveliness and playfulness. Her clothes had changed styles, but they still looked expensive. Bruce, on the other hand, was dressed more simply, resting his head on his left hand, seemingly deep in thought."Hello." Rune nodded, "Do you have brown sugar and ginger here?""Uh, let me see." Zatanna was about to get up but was interrupted by Rune."Never mind." Rune shook his head, "Ginger, come here! Brown sugar, come here!" However, there was no reaction. Rune turned to leave, but Zatanna reacted and hurried over."Don't go! You haven't told me where you learned your magic; it looks really interesting." Zatanna said with a smile, "I've never seen this kind of spellcasting, and I feel like you're missing something…"Rune immediately stopped in his tracks and turned to size up Zatanna. As expected of the future leader of the Justice League Dark, it was a pity she fell in love with John Constantine."If I were you, I'd be scared." Although Rune was speaking to Zatanna, his eyes involuntarily looked at Bruce, "The more you use, the more you owe…"Bruce looked at Zatanna with concern; "debt" was not a good word.Rune, however, breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed Bruce had not learned magic and was not the Batman Wizard from the Dark Multiverse.He knew that the strongest Batman was always the pure mortal; apart from the laughing Batman, all other Batmen who gained various villainous or heroic abilities were weaklings."What do you mean?" Zatanna frowned. Her father had also told her similar things."Everything has a price, including magic, my fellow practitioner." Rune smiled, "Let's make a deal, a friendly price: one question, one magic wand. Do you accept?""But…" Zatanna hesitated; how could she afford a magic wand? But Bruce walked over at that moment."Just ask your question." Bruce turned to Rune, "Do you accept payment after the transaction?""Of course." Rune nodded, looking at Zatanna with envy. He also wished he could speak so confidently and capriciously, "What question do you want to ask? Remember to be careful, even if you want to ask what your father is doing, I can answer.""I want to ask what the price of magic is, and… what my father is doing." Zatanna said, but she didn't think Rune could give a clear answer."Could I trouble the two of you to ask the customers in the store to leave?" Rune asked."Of course." Bruce nodded, then shouted loudly to the customers who were still browsing: "You don't need to pay; you can just leave."Bruce really bought this supermarket!After the last customer left, laden with goods, the store door instantly closed, then transformed into a wall under Rune's gaze, blocking the view from outside.Zatanna looked at Rune, inexplicably feeling that the other party was by no means a Young Wizard, but perhaps a magic master who had been immersed for many years, only transformed into a child for some unknown reason."I'll answer your first question first…" Rune began to narrate.At the dawn of time, magic appeared. It was gentle, primal, and full of potential. magic surrounded the as-yet-unformed Multiverse. It created a form for itself, which was Hecate—the first life in the universe. Eventually, the magic surrounding the Multiverse formed the current realm of the Gods. Hecate sensed another version of herself in the Dark Multiverse, and out of fear, she created a barrier, separating the Multiverse from the Dark Multiverse to prevent the Multiverse from being tainted by darkness.Later, Hecate came to the center of the Multiverse—Earth. It was she who gave humans power, transforming them into Gods. To incorporate this powerful magic Goddess into their pantheon, the Gods began to pursue Hecate, and eventually, Hecate accepted Hades's pursuit.However, another group of Wizards discovered Hecate's true power and hoped to steal her strength, so they imprisoned her. When Hecate sought help from Hades, Hades instead married Persephone and told Hecate that the Greek Gods had decided they no longer welcomed her.Thus, in her rage, Hecate removed the barrier separating the Dark Universe, introducing Dark magic into the Multiverse and bestowing it upon the Wizards who had imprisoned her."What happened next?" Zatanna listened intently, but Rune stopped narrating."That's for another price, Miss." Rune smiled, "So now all the magic in the entire universe belongs to Hecate and the other Hecate in the Dark Multiverse. And believe me, the other Hecate isn't easy to deal with; you owe him a lot of debt, and one day he will come to collect.""What about my father? What is he doing?" Zatanna pressed."Him? He's busy fighting the Giant Beast." Rune said, "Don't ask me what the Giant Beast is, but currently your father isn't in any danger."While Rune and Zatanna were talking, Bruce Wayne, who was nearby, was also deep in thought. After hearing the origin of magic, he sympathized with Hecate and detested the greedy Wizards and Gods. Even Bruce himself didn't realize that his desire to learn magic had completely vanished.Under Zatanna's resentful gaze, the deal was successfully concluded. Although Rune steadfastly refused to reveal what the Giant Beast was, he did answer Zatanna's father's whereabouts."Thank you very much, Rune." Bruce smiled and shook hands with Rune, "I hope we have another opportunity to cooperate next time.""Mm." Rune nodded, thought for a moment, and finally added: "Oh, a reminder, Zatanna, a child of Trigon is hunting you. This information isn't included in your price."After he finished speaking, the supermarket door returned to its original state. Rune pushed the door open and left, leaving Zatanna and Bruce looking at each other in bewilderment.