Godfather Owl: Guardian of Batman [125]

“The Dreamweaver’s Charm?”

Bruce frowned. “How is that different from the Hallucination Charm?”

“There’s a big difference,” Kathoom explained. “One involves you constructing an illusion, while the other traps the target in their own dream.”

“One depends on your imagination; the other uses theirs. See the gap?”

As Kathoom elaborated, Bruce quickly grasped the implications.

The Dreamweaver’s Charm was likely far more practical than the Hallucination Charm.

“Wow, my teacher is really looking out for me!”

Bruce grinned, clutching the diary as he prepared to unlock the first spell.

Rowena Ravenclaw clearly didn’t understand her new student very well.

She probably thought the requirement to shout “Long Live Ravenclaw” three times would make Bruce hesitate in embarrassment.

But she was mistaken.

If this were the Bruce Wayne fresh out of the DC Universe, he might have worried about looking foolish.

But now? The current Bruce was bursting with creativity—and shamelessness.

Holding the diary in one hand, Bruce raised three fingers dramatically with the other.

“I, Bruce Wayne, hereby declare!” he proclaimed. “Long Live Ravenclaw! Long Live Ravenclaw! Long Live Ravenclaw!”

As the third declaration echoed, the diary emitted a brilliant silver glow.

The first spell’s instructions materialized on the page.

Watching the scene unfold, Kathoom gave a feathery thumbs-up.

“Well played, kid. But now that you’ve dragged my name into this, don’t blame me when I use your reputation for whatever I want!”

Bruce ignored Kathoom’s jab, flipping through the diary to read the newly revealed text.

It didn’t take long to finish.

When he was done, his expression darkened, and he slammed the table in frustration.

“That old woman is mocking me!”

Curious, Kathoom fluttered over to peek at the diary.

The words gleamed mockingly:

Haha! You actually shouted it!

Little Bruce, it’s not that I don’t want to teach you, but the Dreamweaver’s Charm is too advanced. Reading the instructions won’t be enough!

Don’t worry, though. When term starts again, I’ll teach you properly.

Love you, darling!

Kathoom burst into laughter.

“That old woman’s a sly one—tricking two innocent, honest souls like us!” he cackled. “She’s definitely still holding a grudge for the things you said about her before. This is on you, Bruce!”

Bruce scowled, equally annoyed.

Ravenclaw was ancient. Couldn’t she just let bygones be bygones?

Why not move on? Be mature about it!

Nope. Instead, she held on to petty grievances like a child.

As Bruce and Kathoom muttered insults under their breath, new words began to appear in the diary.

Both Bruce and Kathoom leaned in closer to read:

Bruce! Are you cursing me right now?

Absolutely not!

Bruce shook his head furiously.

More text emerged:

Alright, alright. Even though the spell is hard to master, I’m worried you might face something urgent.

While I can’t teach you the charm immediately, I’ve enchanted this diary to allow you to create dreams as a substitute.

You’ll need one thing to activate it: a drop of blood from the dreamer.

That shouldn’t be a problem for you, right?

A tense silence fell over the room.

Bruce and Kathoom exchanged glances.

“Why were you badmouthing her?” Kathoom accused. “She’s clearly looking out for you!”

“You were the one badmouthing her,” Bruce countered, unfazed. “I tried to stop you.”

“Bruce, liars get struck by lightning.”

“You fly higher than me. If anyone’s getting struck, it’s you.”

After some bickering, the matter was laid to rest.

Ravenclaw had indeed left behind a solution. However, it came with a daunting challenge.

“Do you think Homelander can bleed?” Bruce asked, his tone serious.

“Of course. Even Superman and Thanos can bleed. Homelander’s no exception,” Kathoom replied. “But getting that blood will take some finesse.”

“There you go again, dropping names I don’t recognize. Who’s Thanos now?”

“A mathematician,” Kathoom said nonchalantly. “Specializes in population modeling. He’s in the same field as Darkseid.”

Bruce rolled his eyes. He didn’t believe a word of it.

Birds. Always full of nonsense.

Returning to the matter at hand, the problem was clear.

If they could get Homelander’s blood, everything else would fall into place.

The enchantment Ravenclaw had placed on the diary wasn’t a simple dream spell. It was more like a bridge, allowing Bruce to delve into the depths of Homelander’s mind—unearthing secrets and potentially influencing his psyche.

“Ravenclaw must believe in the inherent goodness of people,” Kathoom remarked. “Her original idea was probably for you to enter your enemy’s mind and turn them into a better person.”

Bruce nodded. That did sound like something Ravenclaw would intend.

Naive.

Someone with overwhelming power could never remain a good person. Even if their nature was pure, their environment would eventually corrupt them.

“What’s your plan, then? Are we still doing this?” Kathoom asked.

“Of course,” Bruce replied firmly. “But I won’t be turning Homelander into a saint. I have… other plans.”

Plans that aligned with the methods of Batman.

Kathoom raised a skeptical brow. He’s not planning to turn Homelander into a fool, is he? That could be even worse. An invincible idiot is a recipe for disaster.

But for now, the owl held his tongue. Best to let Bruce work through his ideas.

“That leaves us with one major issue,” Bruce said. “How do we make Homelander bleed?”

“Actually, two issues,” Kathoom corrected. “How do you make him bleed, and how do you survive long enough to use the diary afterward?”

“…Hmm.”

Bruce found himself at an impasse.

Reviewing his current arsenal of magic and combat skills, none seemed capable of making Homelander bleed.

“What about Sectumsempra?” Bruce recalled the spell from the Half-Blood Prince’s notes. It was designed to lacerate targets, causing severe bleeding.

“Thanks for believing in Snape so much,” Kathoom said dryly. “He’d be proud.”

“But Sectumsempra worked by magically slicing enemies, not by tearing them apart from within. At best, the spell might shred Homelander’s clothes.”

“Then we’re left with two options,” Bruce concluded. “Either we locate that dagger—the one made of Nth Metal, which should be able to pierce his skin.”

“Or, we follow your suggestion and find someone capable of fighting Homelander head-on.”

He fixed his gaze on Kathoom. “Now’s the time to spill. Who’s this person you’ve been hinting at?”

Kathoom decided it was time to stop teasing.

“That person is Soldier Boy. You’ve heard of him.”

“Soldier Boy? Isn’t he dead?”

Bruce frowned. It was common knowledge.

Or was there more to the story?

A strange thought crossed Bruce’s mind.

“Why is it that in every superhero world, the supposedly dead, incredibly powerful figures always find a way to make a dramatic comeback?”

Still, he had to admit that if anyone could take on Homelander, it was Soldier Boy.

America’s first and greatest superhero, Soldier Boy was the original leader of Payback, the precursor to The Seven.

During World War II, he had been a hero of mythic proportions, fighting for good and defeating evil.

Officially, he had died heroically in 1984, sacrificing himself during a nuclear meltdown to save the country.

At least, that was the official narrative.

“Soldier Boy isn’t dead,” Kathoom revealed. “He’s been alive this whole time.”

“And you’re suggesting we free him to fight Homelander, then swoop in and clean up afterward?”

“Exactly!”

“Absolutely not.”

Bruce rejected the idea outright.

Unleashing one monster to defeat another?

Even if Soldier Boy managed to kill Homelander, who would deal with Soldier Boy afterward?

It wasn’t worth the risk.

“Let’s stick to the dagger,” Bruce sighed. “I can’t believe we’re back to square one.”

For weeks, Bruce had been tracking unusual murders.

If the dagger was being used to control others to kill, it would surely leave a trail of unsolved cases—victims mysteriously killed with no apparent suspect.

But as Bruce dove deeper into his investigation, he quickly hit a wall.

There weren’t no cases—there were too many.

Most of the unsolved crimes Bruce uncovered ultimately led back to Vought.

The culprits behind these murders?

Vought’s superheroes.

Not just members of The Seven, but also their second-tier heroes. Many were just as ruthless, killing ordinary people without hesitation.

And Vought had a well-oiled system for covering up their tracks, disposing of bodies, and silencing witnesses.

Bruce had seen too much darkness in too little time.

The saying proved true:

If you only know a little about Vought’s superheroes, you might criticize them.
But the more you investigate, the more you’ll want to kill them.

Bruce had now witnessed firsthand the horrors of a world where superhumans ran rampant and unchecked.

Trying to track down the dagger through murder investigations alone was a fool’s errand.

No one had the patience or the mental capacity to sift through endless files, connect the dots in a sea of minor cases, and pinpoint the dagger’s whereabouts.

No one.

“We can’t find the dagger,” Kathoom said, “so we’ll have to let the dagger come to us.”

“I still think releasing Soldier Boy is the better option.”

Kathoom’s perspective was broader than Bruce’s.

He knew Soldier Boy was a monster—violent, selfish, and volatile. But he also knew Soldier Boy’s unique ability: he could nullify the powers of other superhumans.

And after overloading himself, Soldier Boy would collapse from exhaustion, making him easier to deal with than Homelander.

Moreover, Kathoom knew that if they didn’t release Soldier Boy, someone else eventually would.

In the chaotic world of The Boys, trouble was inevitable. Avoidance was futile.

Bruce, unaware of Kathoom’s broader reasoning, remained firm.

“That’s not an option,” he insisted. “When superhumans fight, it’s always the innocent who pay the price.”

With time still on his side, Bruce believed he could devise a way to obtain Homelander’s blood with minimal collateral damage.

“Suit yourself,” Kathoom muttered, dropping the issue.

Truthfully, Kathoom wasn’t advocating for Soldier Boy out of any moral conviction.

He just found the guy entertaining. Watching Soldier Boy’s antics, coupled with Homelander’s inevitable meltdown, would be a show worth seeing.

Plus, Soldier Boy had a famous line:

“Women are like fine wine—the older, the better.”

If the mysterious pursuer from the DC Universe truly was someone referred to as “Mother,” and potentially an older woman…

Then releasing Soldier Boy might result in some real fireworks.

—

This is a fan translation of 蝙蝠侠的猫头鹰教父 by 巴巴罗萨光年. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!