Batman didn't even look at what he was holding. The moment he heard it was just something as basic as literacy, he really didn't have the courage to refute it. Extremely ashamed, he nodded hurriedly.
"No problem, no problem. Leave it to me…"
"I don't need Damian to be some all-round prodigy, but basic math, general science, and Latin—those he still needs to master. My standards have dropped again and again; I'm really not trying to make things difficult for you…"
Thea was still going on, so Batman quickly cut her off.
"Rest assured, I'll drill him hard these next few days. I'll definitely teach him. Guaranteed."
It wasn't until Thea flew off that Batman finally let out a long breath. He took off his cowl, his face as dark as the bottom of a pot.
He hesitated for three seconds before deciding to let Gotham's criminals live comfortably for a few days. He needed to go back and thoroughly assess his son's knowledge base.
After casually testing him with a few questions, he immediately understood why Thea had been angry. This kid didn't just have a weak foundation—he had no foundation.
This was way over the line. Although Damian was only a bit over six and not yet seven, at that age, Batman had already self-studied a great deal. Damian, on the other hand, looked extremely serious and shrewd, but in reality he was a pure illiterate.
With all the knowledge he had crammed into his head, Batman couldn't tolerate this. He ordered Alfred to prepare a late-night snack. There would be no sleeping tonight; he absolutely had to force this kid to master the basics first.
As for Thea's requirements—basic reading and writing, and knowing addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division… his son, the son of the magnificent Bruce Wayne, only knew addition and subtraction up to ten? He couldn't afford to lose face like that.
Rummaging through boxes and cabinets, he finally found a textbook roughly at a junior-high level and told Damian he had to understand it tonight, or else there'd be no sleep.
Damian had inherited his competitive streak. He didn't hesitate at all, picking up the book and starting to read.
Thea dumped the task of eradicating illiteracy onto Batman and returned to Star City alone.
After several consecutive days of absorption, the Isis Amulet finally shattered completely and turned into drifting ash. However, its destruction was worth it. Thea had absorbed over thirty years' worth of pure mana from the amulet. Combined with her original mana, she was now at a level of over forty years but less than fifty.
There was still a gap compared to the day she went head-to-head with Horus, but at least she had regained the ability to protect herself.
Over the weekend, she dragged Diana into another big spar. Her overall stats still couldn't beat Diana, but it was no longer such a struggle.
The matter regarding S.T.A.R. Labs in Central City was still in the planning stages. In the original plot, Grodd would awaken and wreak havoc in the lab, drawing Reverse-Flash's attention. To cover up Grodd's existence, Reverse-Flash would break with the military. That incident was exactly what Thea was currently waiting for. Only by luring Reverse-Flash away and dispersing the lab's attention could she slip into the secret room and get the artificial intelligence source code.
While various matters were proceeding in an orderly fashion, Thea saw off a so-called "famous" architect in the reception room.
Holding the blueprints the expert had left, she rubbed her temples.
The land in Metropolis had already been bought. As for the design plan, several subordinates had unanimously recommended this designer who had just left. It was said he'd created many landmark buildings.
"This looks kind of ridiculous…" Thea studied the architectural blueprint in her hand, a bit speechless. Is this logo trying to hypnotize people into recharging their accounts or something…?
The drawing was extremely complex. Thea wasn't Batman; she didn't understand architecture and didn't have that much miscellaneous knowledge. But she could still make out the external silhouette. Once built, the entire building would form a giant letter "Q" on the ground, representing the surname Queen.
On its own, that wasn't such a big deal. The problem was that Metropolis already had another tower shaped like an "L"—Lex Luthor's corporate headquarters.
One "Q" and one "L". Barring any accidents, these would be the future landmark buildings of Metropolis.
If she didn't want "Q" and used the first letter of her other surname, Merlyn—"M"… that was something Thea didn't even want to picture. This wasn't McDonald's headquarters. Building a giant "M" would be truly inappropriate.
She made a snap decision: "Q" Tower it was.
Just as Thea had finished sorting out the group's various affairs and was ready to rest for a couple of days, trouble found her.
Her assistant handed her a phone. "Call from the Pentagon."
"What is it?"
The voice on the other end was none other than Superman's future father-in-law, General Lane. The old man didn't waste words, urgently demanding she come to the Department of Defense immediately.
Flying over in broad daylight would've been inappropriate. Fortunately, the military helicopter arrived extremely fast. Almost as soon as she put down the phone, it was there. Several soldiers, clearly well-trained, didn't question her office attire at all; they just pulled her aboard and flew straight to the Department of Defense.
The Department of Defense now had increasingly close ties with her new group. On average, she had to come here several times a month. Flashing her consultant ID, Thea entered the building smoothly.
"What's going on?"
Entering the conference room, Thea found the atmosphere extremely grim. Almost all the generals she'd met were present, and Amanda Waller of A.R.G.U.S. was sitting in a corner as well.
Amanda's expression was very strange, hovering between a smile and a non-smile. "Take a look." Saying that, she turned on the display screen in the room.
The figure on the screen was extremely blurry, likely partially restored using high-tech methods after the scene had been damaged.
"This thing isn't dead…" Thea frowned as she looked at the pitch-black shape that resembled a malevolent ghost. Wasn't that Enchantress, whom she'd frozen a while ago? Without a host, she should've lost the ability to move.
"We suspect that during cryostasis, she and Dr. June Moone completed a deep fusion at some critical point. In other words, Dr. June Moone has already betrayed us." Amanda's tone was calm, as if she were talking not about her subordinate, but about some irrelevant passerby.
"You want me to take her down? Where is she?"
With ample mana in reserve now, Thea no longer feared Enchantress. Although this was just a hurried glimpse on camera, she could still tell that fusing with June Moone had been a last resort. That female doctor had zero mana and would only drag Enchantress's power level down drastically.
"Don't be in such a rush; there's more. She has an accomplice." Amanda said, clicking on another video.
Appearing in the video was a handsome young officer. He opened the cryostasis chamber door and released Enchantress.
"This man is Rick Flag. He's proficient with all kinds of modern weaponry and equipment. He's an elite soldier of A.R.G.U.S., and also Dr. June Moone's lover. It's unclear whether he did this out of love or under magical control. Watch what comes next—that's the real trouble."
The young man named Rick Flag led Enchantress through the A.R.G.U.S. prison. They carefully avoided the guards all the way and stopped in front of an ordinary cell. Enchantress walked in calmly. Less than three minutes later, a bald man covered in tattoos walked out of the cell with her.