Chapter 4 Welcome to Gotham

When Schiller woke up, he didn't even need to turn over to know that he must have returned to the simple Gotham City, because the smell of kerosene in the air and the never-clear sky outside the window told him that he had traveled back again.

And time didn't move at all.

He turned off the alarm clock and looked at the calendar. It was the day after the night he traveled to Marvel, which means that the time in the DC world didn't move when he went to Marvel.

Schiller sighed, and for a moment he didn't know whether the simple Gotham City was more dangerous or the center of the universe, New York City, was more dangerous.

To be honest, although New York is more enjoyable, Gotham is his eternal home. At least the universe mode has not been turned on here for the time being. Schiller can't deal with the purple potato spirit now.

He turned over and put on his clothes. Gotham University requires professors to wear formal clothes to class, so Schiller wears a shirt, vest and suit every day, sometimes changing the suit style, or wearing a windbreaker.

The temperature in Gotham in September was not bad, not cold, probably because it was a coastal city, and the breeze was blowing in the city, so it was still warm.

As soon as Schiller went out, he saw someone he didn't want to see at all - Bruce Wayne.

Schiller turned around and walked back.

Bruce quickly caught up with him and shouted: "Professor! Professor! I have some questions about psychology to ask you! Can you wait for me?"

Schiller cursed inwardly. There were many teachers near the professor's apartment at this time, and Schiller couldn't just refuse. He could only say: "Okay, okay, I'm not deaf, Mr. Wayne, let's go to the psychological counseling room to talk."

So the two entered the psychological counseling room. Bruce didn't sit down, but took the initiative to make coffee. He brought the hot coffee and put it in front of Schiller.

He said: "Schiller Andel Rodriguez is a world-renowned criminal psychologist with four doctoral degrees in psychology. He has participated in the investigation and detection of the famous Fortress Blood Massacre, the Imperial City Red Gloves Serial Murders, and the Seaside City Underground Dismemberment Case. And, most importantly, he participated in the trial of the Deputy Mayor of Metropolis four months ago and resigned midway, and accepted the invitation of Gotham University..."

"Professor Schiller, can you tell me why you want to come to Gotham?"

Schiller's hair stood on end when he heard it. My goodness, the original owner's resume can be directly assigned to Arkham Asylum! The Joker can't do it better than you!

You have participated in more than one of these cases that sound extremely terrifying! You have participated in a series of them! Bruce should keep it to yourself, right!

Schiller cursed in his heart, but he didn't show any expression on the surface. He took a sip of coffee and said, "Gotham is a good place."

"Really? The city with the highest crime rate in the United States?"

"That's not important."

"Oh?"

"The crime rate in Metropolis is not high, kid, sit down. You think Metropolis is safer than Gotham, right?"

"No?"

"At least not for me." Schiller said.

Schiller came here to inherit the knowledge and abilities of the original owner, but the memory, he suspected that the original owner had lost some important memories before he crossed over. At least now Schiller can't remember any details about those horrific cases. It seems that there are some vague shadows, but it's not true at all.

Schiller knew that the original owner must have been involved in an indescribable and complicated case, and then was plotted against.

Schiller said: "The security you see is only an appearance, Mr. Wayne. Behind that, behind the glamorous metropolis, there is a darkness that you probably can't imagine."

"Then why come to Gotham City?"

"... I think you have checked my resume, but it is still not detailed enough. I have offended too many people. Only here is safe."

"Why?"

"Only criminals can deal with criminals." Schiller said.

Bruce Wayne seemed shocked by this sentence. He said: "Only criminals can deal with criminals, right? Professor, do you think so?"

"Bruce, let's change the subject." Schiller said.

Bruce looked at him, his eyes were gloomy like the sky of Gotham City. Schiller realized that he was no longer facing the cynical playboy Bruce, but Batman, the most complex superhero in history, a dark hero, an incomprehensible paranoid, and a genius who was only a thin line away from madness.

"If you want more from me, you have to pay a price." Schiller said.

"What do you want?" Bruce asked.

"You can't give me what I want now, you should understand what I mean." Schiller said.

"Then I can give it to you later, right?"

"I definitely can."

Bruce restrained his expression, and no one could tell what he was thinking. He said, "Professor Schiller, I'm sorry, there are some small gadgets I made in your coffee, a nanovirus..."

"Bruce, dishonesty won't get you more from me, kid, this is not a trick you use to get candy." Schiller said.

"It seems that I am destined to return empty-handed today." Bruce said.

"That may not be the case." Schiller said.

"I hope you can give me a good enough grade in the final test, Bruce, to prove that you want to learn this skill, and then come to me." Schiller said.

"I won't waste more time here." Bruce said.

"You are far from being a teacher, Bruce, you are still a student." Schiller said.

"I have learned all the knowledge and skills in the world, hundreds of fighting skills, detective, lock picking, counter-detection..."

"Except Gotham, you haven't learned Gotham yet." Schiller said.

Bruce was silent. Schiller had seen that Bruce was not the dark hero Batman in the later period. Indeed, the idea of ​​revenge and justice has always been in his heart, and there may be a darker side, but he has not yet understood what Gotham, the hell of humanity, is.

Bruce wants to use all the power he can, such as Professor Schiller.

Batman is a hero with almost no weaknesses. He is wise, cautious, and meticulous. He is as good as a god in his mortal body. But the premise is that he must first put on the bat suit and become a dark knight who spreads fear in the dark night, taking Gotham and all the evils here into his pocket, and making up his mind to face all the dirty human nature and fight against it. But now? Bruce is not Batman yet. He has weaknesses.

Schiller suddenly felt fortunate. If he really faced the dark knight standing in the shadow of Gotham directly, perhaps all his methods would be useless, because Batman is not Superman, he is not a righteous hero, he is a complete outlaw.

After Bruce left, Schiller stood in front of the window for a long time. Maybe Batman will come soon, and Bruce can't wait any longer.

The next day, Schiller went to class as usual, and it was the first class for freshmen. Unfortunately, his action to stop Bruce from choosing psychology did not succeed. This young Batman had to appear in Schiller's peaceful life to remind him that this place is about to become a mess.

But strangely, Schiller found that Bruce was limping, and his right foot seemed to be injured, but he still insisted on coming to class. Schiller was thinking while teaching, where did Bruce go?

He has a billionaire's fortune and is the Wayne family of Gotham City. Could he be beaten by gangsters?

After class, Schiller rejected Bruce's obvious hint of "let's talk". He quickly put away his books and courseware, and then left with the flow of students. He had to go out again at night.

If Gotham City is hell, then Gotham City at night is something that even Satan would be afraid of. This city of crime has never stopped the aftermath of sin. Schiller left the safe university and really walked into Gotham City.

He was following Jonathan the Scarecrow.

Jonathan is not a normal person. He has been committing murders since he was eighteen years old, so even if he is not a scarecrow now, he has already started his fear gas experiment.

Schiller was not here to enforce justice and stop him. He wanted to get some fear gas to protect himself.

In this dangerous city, a chemist's secret laboratory is the safest place for theft. At least Jonathan and Schiller are both civilians, not gangsters. They don't know how to fight or use guns, and can only rely on their brains.

That night, Gotham was raining again. The night was as dark as thick ink, and the rain had a strong smell of kerosene. No matter how warm it was here, the cold rain in September still made people shiver. Schiller wore a long windbreaker and held a black umbrella. He walked through a narrow street. He had gradually found the place where Jonathan hid the gas. It was the basement of an abandoned church in a block. As long as Jonathan was not there, Schiller could go in and get the fear gas.

Suddenly, Schiller's heart began to beat fast. A picture of him being hit by an unknown hidden weapon flashed before his eyes. He turned around instantly and opened his umbrella with a "bang".

The two hidden weapons didn't penetrate his umbrella and fell to the ground. The spider sense saved Schiller's life.

Schiller slowly put down his umbrella. His face was not as gentle as during the day. He almost died.

It would be difficult for anyone who had just been attacked by death to have a good face. At the end of the alley, Bruce, wearing a bat suit, saw his precisely guided and extremely fast darts being blocked by the mysterious man's umbrella in an instant. His reaction was as fast as if he had predicted it in advance.

The black umbrella with rain was put down, revealing a face that Bruce was very familiar with. It was his university professor, Schiller.

It was indeed him, but it seemed not to be him. Schiller's temperament was completely different from that of the day. At this time, Schiller was more like the person described in Bruce's resume, a madman obsessed with criminal psychology.

Schiller took a deep breath and said, "You should know what would happen if I didn't block it."

"The dart will stop when it is thirty centimeters away from you." Batman said.

Bruce's voice was also completely different from that of the day. Schiller knew that he used a voice changer.

Batman at this time is still far from perfect. His bat suit is not mature enough, he has no cape or belt, and his bat darts don't seem to be very useful. It can be seen that the fledgling Batman must have taken some detours. After all, upholding justice starts in Gotham, which is like a novice directly challenging the difficulty of hell.

Schiller said, "I want to remind you, Mr. Bat, unlike the rich area where you live, there are no guardrails on the roof of the Mossen block. If you accidentally fall down again, your internal organs may rupture."

The shadow opposite was silent, and he asked, "How did you see that?"

"You are too young, Mr. Hero. The medicine you use has almost no taste. It is a high-end chemical preparation. It is not affordable for these poor people in the slums, and..." Schiller's eyes fell on Bruce's only exposed chin, and he said, "No one here will shave so neatly and symmetrically."

"Who are you?" Batman asked.

Schiller opened the umbrella again, and he said, "Go home quickly, young master, no one will answer every question you have, I am not a novice mentor."

After that, he left in the rain. Batman stood in the alley for a long time. He limped out and turned into another street. He saw a beggar shivering in the rain.

He took out a wad of money and handed it to the beggar. Then he heard the sound of leather shoes stepping on the rain behind him, and a sentence that made his hair stand on end: "That's why I said you don't understand Gotham, Bruce."

Batman turned around and saw Schiller standing at the intersection. Schiller walked over and handed the umbrella to the beggar. The beggar took the umbrella and opened it to block the cold rain. Then she trembled and returned the wad of dollars to Batman.

"Why?" Batman took the dollars and asked.

"Because this is the territory of the Gutter Gang. If they knew she had such a large sum of dollars, her body would appear in the gutter the next day."

"A large sum of dollars?" Batman's voice revealed absurdity. He said: "Thirty-seven dollars?"

"Yes." Schiller looked at the end of the street and said: "This is Gotham..."

"Welcome to Gotham."