American Comics: The Strongest Villain

"Another one who uses an apology as a bargaining chip." Su Sheng shook his head slightly, a smirk playing on his lips. "Why don't you people ever understand? When you don't have any leverage, you should apologize early and take advantage of the situation. And when you do have leverage, there's no need to apologize at all."

With those words, Su Sheng turned and walked towards Laurel, who was still unconscious.

"What a beautiful face," Su Sheng mused as he gazed at Laurel's slightly lowered head. With a light smile, he extended his fingers, sparks of electricity dancing on his fingertips as he gently caressed her cheek.

Zzzzt.

Laurel's face twitched slightly in response to the electric touch.

"What are you doing?!" Dinah Lance shouted, her voice tinged with panic and desperation.

"You think I don't know she's your daughter?" Su Sheng squinted at Dinah Lance, his tone laced with mockery. "Originally, she wasn't in any danger. I just wanted to give her a choice, satisfy my own interests. But now… that might not be the case."

"Sorry!"

Dinah Lance was momentarily stunned, but she quickly followed up with a firm and direct apology.

"Not enough," Su Sheng replied, shaking his head slightly.

Dinah Lance hesitated, then slowly stood up. She walked towards Su Sheng in silence, each step filled with the weight of her decision. Su Sheng watched her approach with keen interest.

Step by step, Dinah Lance advanced until she was just a few steps away from Su Sheng. Then, with a sudden motion, she dropped to her knees with a heavy thud. "I'm sorry that I chose the wrong way to approach you. If my actions have angered you, I hope you can take it out on me and spare my daughter. She's… she's all I have left."

"Now that's decisive and sincere." Su Sheng looked at Dinah Lance kneeling on the ground, a smile playing on his lips. "Given your age and your love for your daughter, I should probably forgive you. But… I don't feel like it. You said that what I've done in Gotham threatens the security and peace of human society, right? You've got the wrong person. My name is Su Sheng, not Bane."

"Even though it wasn't about justice, I killed Bane and saved Gotham. Yet, you say that I'm the one threatening society?"

Dinah Lance responded solemnly, "We conducted an extensive investigation on you. You're extremely egocentric, selfish, displaying typical antisocial personality disorder traits. While you may occasionally seem friendly and easygoing, that depends on your mood. Most of your actions are driven by instinct, making you highly unpredictable, and you're extremely aggressive and destructive."

"It sounds like a textbook villain profile," Su Sheng said with a bright smile. "But it's not that simple, is it? Who isn't selfish? If Laurel weren't your daughter, would you have kneeled and apologized? When you're in a good mood, you're friendly and easy to get along with. When you're in a bad mood, don't you also become indifferent or even quarrelsome? We all act on instinct—whether it's drinking, eating, having sex, or shopping. We do what we want when we want it."

"You labeled me a threat, a villain, based solely on a personality analysis, completely ignoring my actions in saving Gotham. Isn't that just typical extreme self-righteousness? Let me guess: If I cooperate and obey, you might control me, strip me of my freedom, or even my life, using me as your cannon fodder. If I don't cooperate, you'll see me as a threat to be eliminated."

"In reality, this has nothing to do with character or behavior, or even justice and evil. It's all about one simple fact: children can only distinguish between right and wrong, while adults only see the pros and cons. Isn't that right?"

Dinah Lance was silent for a moment before nodding slowly. "You're right."

"So, it's all about power and leverage," Su Sheng said with a grin. "I like your honesty. So, Miss Laurel, you should have heard everything by now. In this situation, what do you think I should do?"

Laurel had woken up?

Dinah Lance instinctively looked at her daughter, who was slowly raising her head, her eyes reflecting a complex mix of emotions—silence, confusion, and contemplation.

Laurel had spent all evening trying to decide whether or not to meet with Su Sheng. Then, out of the blue, her mother had shown up at her home, revealing her secret identity as an agent of A.R.G.U.S and asking why Su Sheng had approached her. After explaining the situation, her mother had warned her that Su Sheng was dangerous and needed to be controlled. She had also mentioned that Laurel might learn the truth about the real culprit behind the Queen's Gambit tragedy from Su Sheng. This revelation had prompted Laurel to finally seek out Su Sheng.

But she hadn't expected to be knocked unconscious by Su Sheng's bizarre and terrifying methods as soon as they met. Nor had she expected to overhear the conversation between her mother and Su Sheng when she regained consciousness. The 'righteous' mother and the 'evil' Su Sheng both turned out to be very different from what she had imagined.

"It seems you don't know what I should do," Su Sheng said with a chuckle. "So, I'll tell you what: one of you must die."

Dinah Lance and Laurel were both stunned by his words. Was he really asking them to choose between the mother and daughter?

"I!"

"I!"

They both shouted at the same time, their voices overlapping in their urgency.

Su Sheng chuckled. "The mother-daughter bond is indeed touching, but at least let me finish speaking, alright? The person who must die is either the one in charge of A.R.G.U.S or the mastermind behind the Queen's Gambit incident. You get to choose."

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