Take the Falcone family, for example. They had once received help from Thomas Wayne, and even though Reed hadn't approached them, they had still been working in the shadows to suppress outside forces, trying to keep Gotham's crumbling Wayne Enterprises from falling apart.
"System, all these people already have their own lives. Then what exactly is my purpose here? Can't you at least make the villains and criminals in Gotham listen to me?"
Growing more frustrated by the minute, Reed finally vented to his unreliable system.
"Host, the system has already pushed its limits by successfully integrating Gotham City from the DC Universe into the Marvel Universe. If we handed over complete control of all the characters to you as well, would you really want to wake up tomorrow facing the five Cosmic Entities and the Living Tribunal?"
"But…"
Reed was momentarily choked by the system's answer. He wasn't sure whether to call this system honest—or just useless.
On one hand, it at least admitted its own shortcomings. On the other hand, those shortcomings were… incredibly underwhelming.
If the system had at least started him off with a Superman card, he would have gladly taken back everything he said.
Still, after hearing the system's explanation, Reed dropped the idea. After all, Gotham was uniquely insane. No other environment card would be this ridiculous. Probably.
"For now, I'll have to see whether that executive is willing to compromise."
In just one day, Reed had received multiple summons from Lucius Earl, one of Wayne Enterprises' top executives. The message was clear: he was being invited, as the steward of the largest shareholding block in the company, to attend a board meeting.
"If it's war they want, then we'll play it as it comes…"
Driving a backup car from Wayne Manor, Reed arrived at Wayne Tower, where Earl and the other board members were already gathered in the conference room.
According to the system's intel, these were the people pushing hardest for Wayne Enterprises to go public. As long as Bruce Wayne—the rightful heir—remained absent, they believed they could use their combined shares to force the decision through.
"Alfred, loyal butler of the Wayne family. You've finally arrived."
Earl greeted Reed with a wide smile. Though they had the numbers to proceed even without Alfred's support, convincing him to hand over the Wayne family's shares would make things far smoother—and far more profitable once the company went public.
"Mr. Earl, if you have something to say, please speak directly. Wayne Manor hasn't finished being cleaned yet. I still have work to do."
Reed moved with every inch the poise and bearing of Alfred Pennyworth: calm, composed, and impeccably refined. A noble gentleman, polished and courteous—but ice-cold when dealing with people who threatened the Wayne legacy.
His impersonation level began to rise again. Within moments, it reached 25%, though the rate of increase had noticeably slowed.
It was becoming clear that simply mimicking Alfred's behaviors wouldn't be enough to continue leveling up. To progress further, he would need to act in a way that truly aligned with Alfred's core values.
"Haha!"
Though Earl's brow twitched at the cold reply, he kept up his cheerful facade and gestured for Reed to take a seat.
"Alfred, loyal as always. But there are things we need to face, aren't there?"
Seeing no reaction from Reed, he pressed on.
"Master Wayne has been missing for quite some time. It's painful to say, but we have to acknowledge the possibility that—"
"You said it yourself," Reed interrupted calmly, "it's only a possibility. There is no concrete proof of the young master's death. There's no need for speculation."
Cut off again, Earl's patience was clearly wearing thin. This time, he dropped the cordial tone altogether.
"True, perhaps Master Wayne isn't dead—he's just missing. But what about the company? Should thousands of employees be left in limbo? Wayne Enterprises is vital to Gotham. You, more than anyone, should understand that. If you truly care about the Wayne family, then you shouldn't let the company collapse."
Reed had to admit—Earl had a point.
Even though Wayne Enterprises wasn't publicly traded, and Bruce's disappearance hadn't tanked its value, the loss of leadership alone was enough to drag it down.
And Reed couldn't allow that.
Wayne Enterprises was his base of operations now. Even without Alfred's identity, he needed it to survive.
As Reed remained silent, Earl grew bolder, his words shedding the last of their civility.
"Alfred, I hope you recognize the situation we're in. Taking the company public is best for everyone. Even if it means reducing the Wayne family's control, at least when your young master returns, he'll come back to a more powerful Wayne Enterprises. You can't stop this. I hope you'll consider handing over the family's shares and help us grow the company."
With that, Earl and his supporters stood up and walked out, leaving Reed alone in the conference room.
It was a long time before Reed finally left, driving back toward Wayne Manor.
As he passed over Thomas Bridge, he let out a long sigh.
"Mixed results…"
The good news was that his impersonation of Alfred had reached 30% during the boardroom standoff. The bad news? He still had no viable solution to preserve Wayne Enterprises' current status.
If he were playing Bruce Wayne, he might not oppose the idea of going public. Earl was right—listing the company had its advantages.
But he wasn't Bruce. He was Alfred.
And if Wayne Enterprises went public, the mission to preserve it would automatically fail.
If that happened, he wouldn't earn any new persona cards. Was he really supposed to try and survive in the Marvel Universe with nothing but this N-rank Alfred card?
He wouldn't even know if he got replaced by a Skrull.
The thought made Reed clench the steering wheel.
No—he couldn't give up yet.
He turned the car around and headed toward the tower that housed Gotham's old underworld allies—the Falcone family.