After all, these records contained compromising evidence on practically every police officer in the city who had committed wrongdoing over the years.
Whoever possessed them could effectively force all those officers to work for him.
Burning everything was certainly a waste.
But Karl had already given the order, and with the situation becoming increasingly urgent, Captain Boomerang had no choice but to obey.
Once everything was ready, the noise outside grew louder and louder.
The police inspectors were about to force their way inside.
Seeing that, Captain Boomerang hurried forward, hoping to buy his men a few more minutes.
"Who the hell are you people?!"
"Stop interfering with official police business!"
"Move aside, or we'll take every last one of you into custody!"
The inspector leading the group shouted as he tried to shove aside the men blocking his path.
Captain Boomerang immediately rushed forward.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!"
"Who are you supposed to be?"
"We're working too. We don't need you doing our job for us!"
"Come on, there's an order to these things. We got here first!"
The inspector glanced suspiciously at Captain Boomerang.
"You're a cop?"
"You certainly don't look like one."
"What unit are you with?"
"Intelligence officer, Arkham District Prohibition Unit."
Captain Boomerang answered without hesitation.
"We suspected something illegal was being stored here, so we came to investigate."
To make it easier for his people to operate, Karl had arranged official law-enforcement credentials for most of his subordinates who had no criminal records.
So this time, Captain Boomerang wasn't even technically lying.
The inspector's expression immediately twisted with contempt.
He gave a cold snort.
"You're nothing more than a subordinate from a special operations unit."
"You're barely qualified to call yourself police, and you think you can block our way?"
"The Police Inspectorate exists specifically to supervise officers like you."
"Get out of the way!"
"And this isn't Arkham. Don't try throwing your weight around here!"
That was exactly the reaction Captain Boomerang had wanted.
He deliberately had his men pull out their official credentials and argue with the inspectors, all for the sake of delaying them.
While the inspectors were busy berating Captain Boomerang's group, a massive plume of black smoke suddenly rose from the farmhouse.
The smell of burning paper filled the air.
"Damn it!"
The lead inspector shouted.
He shoved Captain Boomerang aside and sprinted into the farmhouse.
All he found inside was a raging fire.
The evidence had already been reduced to ash and scattered across the floor.
Meanwhile, back at the Gotham City Police Department, the tense atmosphere hadn't eased in the slightest.
If anything, when Karl said the word "burn" right in front of Harvey Dent, the temperature inside the office seemed to drop below freezing.
Bullock, still sitting nearby with his newspaper, couldn't help wondering what exactly had happened between these two men.
The instant Harvey heard Karl's order, his expression stiffened.
He maintained his smile, but there was no hiding the discomfort in his eyes.
Then Harvey's phone rang.
After listening for only a few seconds, the smile finally disappeared from his face.
His expression turned extremely ugly.
"What's wrong?"
Karl pretended not to notice Harvey's reaction.
"Weren't you just telling me I needed to go onstage?"
"I suppose it's finally time for my speech."
Karl deliberately adjusted his tie, turned around, and walked out of the office, leaving Harvey behind.
Loeb's farewell ceremony was still underway.
He sat there expressionlessly, looking more like a condemned man than the supposed guest of honor.
Several so-called prominent citizens continued rambling on about Loeb's achievements over the years.
It was obvious Harvey had put considerable effort into preparing the morning's ceremony.
Karl, however, completely ignored the planned order of events.
With both hands arrogantly tucked into his pockets, he walked straight toward the stage.
Then, under everyone's astonished gaze, he took the microphone.
"Right…"
"You should all know who I am by now, so I think we can skip the introductions."
Karl's bold declaration instantly drew everyone's attention.
"Now that I'm standing up here, there's only one thing I want to tell all of you!"
Ignoring the surprised stares from below—and Loeb's expression, which looked as though he wanted to tear Karl apart—Karl continued loudly.
"When I was a kid, I heard a story about a legendary pirate."
"Before his execution, he told everyone, 'You want my treasure? Then go find it. Everything I owned is waiting out there somewhere.'"
"Well, the GCPD had a legendary treasure of its own."
"And until a few minutes ago, it was in my hands."
"But unlike that pirate, I have absolutely no interest in sending all of you on some grand treasure hunt."
"So five minutes ago, I burned it."
"From this moment forward, every single one of you is free."
"That's the end of my speech."
"Goodbye!"
The moment Karl finished speaking, all the color drained from Loeb's face.
He slipped straight off his chair and landed heavily on the floor.
His face was frighteningly pale.
The entire hall fell silent.
It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.
Karl paid no attention.
He casually tossed the microphone toward one of the stunned dignitaries nearby and walked straight across the stage.
Freedom.
Freedom from the secrets that had controlled their thoughts, careers, and lives.
Just a few minutes earlier, none of them had possessed it.
Now they did.
At first, only a few scattered claps sounded.
Then more people joined in.
The applause grew louder and louder until nearly everyone in the hall was applauding Karl.
They watched silently as he walked down the long aisle, almost as though he—not Loeb—had become the true centerpiece of the entire ceremony.
Harvey Dent sat in his seat watching everything.
His face had turned red.
He was clearly extremely dissatisfied with the outcome.
But he said nothing.
He could only silently accept what had happened.
Outside Gotham City, near the farmhouse, the column of black smoke could be seen even from a considerable distance.
Hugo Strange stood on a small hill, staring at the smoke with a troubled expression.
He was clearly dissatisfied with the result.
"Your plan failed."
A tall, beautiful woman with long black hair stood beside him, watching the farmhouse through binoculars.
Her voice was cold.
"Relying on Loeb and Falcone to deal with them was useless."
"And instead, you ended up being forced out of your own position."
Hugo Strange sighed.
For the first time, genuine disappointment appeared on his face.
"I was too careless."
"I never expected Karl and the others to unleash so much strength once they were pushed into a desperate situation…"
"But fortunately, their alliance is fragile."
"It won't take much to tear them apart."
"Our offensive may have slowed for now, but with the external threats disappearing, conflicts will inevitably begin to emerge within their own ranks."
"In the end, who survives and who destroys whom is still far from certain."
(End of Chapter)
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