Chapter 1013: Scarecrow Falls into Misfortune (Middle)_2

At that time, Batman's mental stability had improved somewhat, but he still hadn't learned to face the difficult realities of life. He had never been to the slums, nor had he ever participated in the war of Hell.

At that point, Batman had been mentally tormented by his investigations and eventually asked Shiller a question he considered to be crucial: what were serial killers afraid of?

Shiller, seemingly oblivious to the implications of Batman's question, gave him a straightforward reply. If you want to criticize a serial killer in the most effective manner, there is one word that works best: "typical".

As long as you point out that his crimes are typical, he'll become defensive. Batman doubted this advice and asked Shiller what if his accusation didn't affect the killer?

Shiller replied that if you overtly state that the crimes are typical and yet, the person in question doesn't react, then it implies that they are not a true serial killer, at least not naturally born to kill.

Afterwards, Shiller revealed a shocking secret to Batman: the mentally unstable in the world do keep in touch with each other. In simpler terms, they had formed a specific community.

Even though communication was not as advanced as it is now, they kept an eye on each other's moves by collecting newspapers from all over, keeping track of major crimes, studying different MOs, following up on apprehended criminals and comparing their own crimes to those of others in order to rank themselves within the group.

At that moment, Batman was eager to ask Shiller about his ranking in this group, but his sharp instincts and survival instinct made him hold back, in order to avoid becoming a target himself.

Later, Shiller told Batman that in order to provoke these criminals, he could mention how low their status is within the group. He could claim that their crimes fail to impress their peers, or if the serial killer had a major grudge against Batman, he could use the ultimate insult: "You are mediocre".

There is another weapon that exists, a wild card. However, Shiller advised Batman to only use it when dealing with an enemy that is unbearable to him.

Unfortunately for them, Batman viewed every criminal with unforgiving hostility.

"Batman, don't forget who you are! Aren't you the so-called executor of justice? You wouldn't catch a murderer standing in front of you?!" Jonathan mounted another attack.

Batman took his hands off the table and clasped them together on his lap. He straightened his back against the backrest of the chair.

His posture reminded Jonathan of an uninteresting person, Godfather Falcone.

Jonathan did not understand why he saw Godfather Falcone in Batman. After all, they did not interact much and Batman stood as Falcone's enemy; Godfather Falcone, in Batman's eyes, was a detestable criminal.

However, he saw the very aura and calmness that had once captivated Gotham in Batman. Looking at Jonathan, Batman asked:

"Why are you focusing so much on me?"

As this, Jonathan was shocked when Batman put this forward. But Batman pushed further with this line of questioning:

"Why, since I walked in, your attention has been on me. Why are you eager to follow my reactions? Why are you now urging me to arrest you? Am I significant to you?"

Looking at Jonathan, Batman's expression was sincerely confounded, as though he did not understand why. In response, Jonathan jumped to his feet in outrage: "Why would I care about you?! What's so special about you?! You're just as ordinary and foolish as the rest of them, even worse!!"

"Then shall I call Chief Gordon, allow him to cuff you, and hand you over to the police? They can then let professional doctors conduct your psychiatric evaluation. If you really are suffering from mental illness, they will be responsible for bringing you to the psychiatric hospital."

Batman stood up, looking like a customer who had finished eating and was preparing to leave. Yet Jonathan, looking furious, shouted:

"Batman!! What are you doing?!! Aren't you a vigilante?! Aren't you the embodiment of justice? Why won't you arrest me?!!"

"I see...I understand now..." Suddenly, Jonathan started pacing the room, ranting: "You're belittling me! You're looking down on me! You think I'm just an ordinary criminal, not worth your time! God, are you blind?!!"

Jonathan stopped suddenly, pointing at the door as he declared, "Those ordinary murderers and gangsters, how many people can they kill? Ten? Twenty? I have killed at least more than two hundred persons!!!"

As calm as ever, Batman replied, "Well, you seem perfectly suited for work on a slaughterhouse assembly line."

Breathing deeply as if to suck up all the oxygen in the room, Jonathan began to shake uncontrollably. Clutching his chest, he protested, "Batman, how can you judge me so narrowly?! You don't even know the details of my crimes! Do you know how much effort it took me to plan and execute them?!"

"My teacher used to say that if the end result is wrong, it doesn't matter how it was arrived at," Batman retorted.

"But... do you know what I've achieved?!!" Jonathan began to lose control, clutching his hair, banging his elbow on the nearby wall and screaming: "I discovered the problem with Gotham's rainwater early on. So, I solved this issue over the course of four years!!!"

"You're after me just because I've poisoned Gotham's water supply, aren't you? But let me tell you, it was not a poison, it was an antidote!"

"The hallucinogens, derived from the fear gas, have a different effect. They can pull out the toxins infiltrated by rainwater into the human body!"

"The process of their madness is actually the battle between the hallucinogen and these toxins inside their bodies. Finally, my antidote will overcome these toxins, completely eliminating them!"

"I am a hero, just like you, Batman, I've done even more for this city!!!" Screaming hysterically, Jonathan claimed, "I am the true savior of Gotham, while you categorise me as a criminal, wanting to kill me and arrest me!!"

Batman paused for a moment, then responded, "But I didn't intend to kill you or arrest you."

"Uh..."