[Western Crossover] Surviving in Gotham Without a Superhero Filter

In short, just like the beginning of any cliched novel, I transmigrated, and landed in Gotham.

I had good news and bad news. The good news was that, unlike many transmigrators before me, I hadn't lost my memories or landed in an orphanage, and I didn't have to struggle to put food on the table. The bad news was that before I transmigrated, I was so busy I barely had time to read comics. I only knew a few famous names that everyone had heard of. And the even worse news was that after transmigrating, I found myself in a family of the ultra-rich old money variety.

A superhero comic universe, but with old money. How could I possibly be a good guy? Sure enough, once I was a little older, I learned that my family was high up in a secret society called the Court of Owls, which secretly controlled Gotham and committed every kind of evil.

Ha ha, I'm screwed now. The superheroes are bound to beat me around like a spinning top!

I had two plans for my life. I would do my best to stay out of the family business, so I wouldn't get tainted by its evil-doing buff, and then, when I got the chance, I would skip town and settle overseas. Deep-state secret societies, superheroes... none of that had anything to do with me! I was just an ordinary guy trying to get by! When my whole family ended up in prison, I'd burn paper money for them from overseas!

But neither of my plans worked out. I got tied to the family business, failed to get out of the country, and met a very beautiful (emphasis intended) young reporter. I was assigned to study medicine and now work at Gotham General Hospital, while also filling in as a coroner for the GCPD, all to help the family business thrive... And then, at long last, I got a powerful golden finger.

But it was called the Superhero Comic Filter Remover. As the name suggests, it removes the superhero filter. More precisely, this golden finger has one active ability and one passive ability.

The active ability lets me designate a living being and make it conform to the laws of physics in the world I came from, regardless of whether it has superpowers. The more powerful its abilities, the shorter the effect lasts.

The passive ability is that the world before my eyes also loses its so-called superhero comic filter.

Ha ha, I might as well not have a golden finger! Would Gotham without the superhero comic filter really be a nice place to live? I don't want to see giant robots all over the place!

Reader advisories:

1. The main story is in third person, with a male protagonist and Superman as the love interest. It's about being a doctor, forensic pathologist, and ultra-rich big shot in Gotham. But the author isn't a forensic pathologist, doctor, or rich person. All information is based on relevant literature, popular science sources, and Baidu Baike. I'll do my best to be academically rigorous and note sources in the author's notes, but naturally, the story can't be very realistic for the sake of the plot (sorry).

2. Lots of dark humor that you might not find funny, and plenty of stereotypes. There'll be some personal hearsay mixed in, which doesn't reflect the real situation in Gotham. I like making things up, so please don't take this entertainment product seriously.

3. The Court of Owls setting is a complete mash-up. If anything doesn't match what you know, just treat it as my own interpretation.

4. I'm not bashing the superheroes, but their characterization is also influenced by the classic trope of the editorial office pulling the strings. I will make sure that, for the most part, any criticism of superheroes is aimed squarely at the editorial department, and I respect their morality and abilities. As for the supervillains, keeping those guys around will only make rice more expensive.JPG

(I'm sure nobody actually thinks Joker is a saint, right?)

5. I'll mention more if I think of anything.

5. I thought of something: I'm a huge Superman fan, so what? Is Superman not allowed to be adored? Do you think only ABC and ABCD can be shipped?

6. I think most people can tell that having a filter or a perception barrier means the heroes will break through it with their own power, right? (.) So, here's a slight spoiler: in the end, everyone happily elbows the editorial department.

Theme: How should people live?