Hiss—
Harlene's wrist was caught in Jin's grip. His hand was so strong that it inevitably caused her some pain.
But after thinking about it, Jin could be considered her lifesaver no matter how she looked at it, so she decided to ignore the disrespectful action from earlier.
Harlene extended her white hand and smiled at Jin.
"My name is Harlene Quezel. Nice to meet you."
"Jin." Jin shook her hand briefly.
"So your name is Jin… from Amreca Country?" Harlene said with curiosity in her eyes. "You fought so well just now. Is that because you practice martial arts from your country?"
Jin simply raised two fingers, indicating that he only knew a little.
Naturally, Jin had no reason to refuse the conversation. If he became friends with Harlene now, it would be convenient in the future when she eventually became Harley Quinn. It would make things easier when interacting with her later.
The two continued chatting as they walked.
"So, Jin, what do you do for a living?" Harlene asked.
Seeing this, Jin smiled and joked, "If it's only an eight-percent discount, isn't that too little? Can you give me a better one?"
Harlene immediately realized he was teasing her. She put her hands on her hips and glared at him with her beautiful eyes.
"You wish! If anything, I should be the one breaking your bones," she replied angrily.
The two talked and laughed like real friends, even though they had only just met.
To be honest, Harley Quinn's life was rather miserable. The Joker had never truly loved her. In fact, he was quite disgusted with the nicknames "Puddin'" or "Mr. J" that she used for him.
To the Joker, Harley was nothing more than a toy—a tool for his crazy and bloody games.
However, in the next second, the iron gates of the mall suddenly slammed down.
Clang!
The entire shopping mall was instantly sealed shut. No one could escape.
Except for Jin, who remained calm, the surrounding pedestrians immediately began to panic. Deep down, everyone knew that something like this rarely meant anything good.
"What happened?" Harlene asked, starting to feel frightened by the panic around her.
Jin frowned and looked around. A bad premonition rose in his heart. He had a strong feeling that something terrible was about to happen.
Hiss—
A faint sound, like gas leaking, reached Jin's ears. His expression immediately changed.
Bang!
Jin smashed the glass cabinet with his elbow, grabbed a gas mask, and handed it to Harlene while putting another one on himself.
Although Harlene was confused by Jin's sudden actions, she trusted him. Without hesitation, she quickly put on the gas mask.
After putting on the masks, the two walked out of the store together.
Soon, they witnessed a horrifying scene unfolding inside the mall.
A cloudy mist began to spread through the air. After some of the nearby pedestrians inhaled it, the veins on their faces gradually turned dark brown.
Their eyes became bloodshot and frighteningly red.
People who had not yet been affected looked at their friends in confusion.
"Hey, man… are you alright?"
But when the question reached the affected person's ears, the only response was a strange, hoarse growl—like the sound of a zombie from a movie.
The infected man slowly raised his red eyes and looked at his companion.
The companion's face instantly turned pale with terror.
Because what he saw… was the thing he feared the most.
A zombie.
"Aaaaah! Don't come near me!" the man screamed as his legs gave out and he collapsed onto the ground.
His hands frantically searched for something nearby to defend himself with. Acting out of fear was only natural.
"Man, what's wrong with you—Aaaah!!"
Before he could finish speaking, a baseball bat suddenly smashed into his head.
The steel bat struck with full force, instantly caving in the skull of the questioning passerby. Blood splattered everywhere.
The attacker had no idea that he had just killed his own friend. Holding the baseball bat with trembling hands, he looked around in horror.
"Why are they all zombies?!"
In his eyes, every single person around him had turned into terrifying, grotesque zombies straight out of a horror movie.
And he wasn't the only one.
Many of the people who had inhaled the gas began seeing others as the things they feared the most.
Knives, guns, clubs—anything that could be used as a weapon was picked up.
Because the best way to eliminate fear… was to eliminate the source of that fear.
The scene quickly descended into chaos.
In the eyes of those who were still normal, the crowd had begun slaughtering each other like madmen, turning the mall into a bloody and cruel Asura battlefield.
he also had no intention of staying here waiting for rescue.
Waiting for the Gotham police? The city barely had a decent officer besides Gordon.
Or Batman—Bruce Wayne—who was always overwhelmed with crime and might not arrive in time?
It was better to rely on himself.
He had to find the Scarecrow!
_________
[A picture of Harley Quinn in the comments]