74 Chapter-74 | Gotham, 1987... (2)

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....

As the afternoon approached, just as the newspaper's weather forecast had predicted, the rain began to fall in Gotham.

Schiller sat in the study of his estate, the sound of the rain outside acting as the perfect lullaby. On his cluttered desk, stacks of books cast wavy shadows under the wall lamp, and the inkwell and Schiller's glasses reflected brightly in the dim room as he wrote an invitation in elaborate cursive.

It's a tradition almost universal - when you move, you have to inform your relatives and friends to come visit, and Schiller planned to invite a few of his friends from Gotham over for dinner on the weekend.

The rain outside grew heavier, a damp air seeping through the window cracks and into the room. In the light, you could see tiny droplets slowly drifting down onto the desk, and soon enough, the parts of the desk closest to the window had formed many small beads of water, reflecting the firelight from the fireplace behind them like tiny red gems.

As the sky gradually grew darker, the colder mist of the evening caused a layer of frost to form on the glass, and Schiller put down his pen, rubbing his wrist. He looked up.

From this angle, Gotham looked no different, just a rain-soaked Gotham that was even more gloomy and quiet, almost giving off a sense of rare serenity.

Regardless, the cities of the 1980s always moved at a slower pace than the information society that followed, and Schiller had been writing letters all afternoon until his butler reminded him it was dinnertime.

After dinner, Schiller put on his clothes and grabbed an umbrella before leaving his house. The rain that had fallen all afternoon had stopped, leaving behind only the damp and chilly air that still lingered in the city.

The puddles on the ground were like mirrors of mercury in the darkness, reflecting the street lights into golden shards, like leaves from last fall that hadn't been swept away. As Schiller's heels splashed into them, the light disappeared in the slight ripples and splashes of water.

Just like in customs around the world, when you move, you should visit your neighbors. The neighborhood here is pretty good, as people who can afford and maintain a place like this are generally wealthy, although it's not as bustling as the wealthy neighborhoods in the south. There's still a slow-paced, old-fashioned atmosphere in the old city district.

There's an opera house a street away from Schiller's mansion, but it doesn't have many performances, so it's mostly used as a club for the residents. Schiller walked up to the front of the theater and the doormen were not very professional, they only came to open the door when Schiller stepped on the stairs. He took off his hat and went inside. Although it was a cold and rainy night outside, it was warm inside the theater. Schiller's glasses fogged up, so he took them off and walked to the front desk, lightly knocking on the table.

The doorman, who had been dozing off, woke up and saw Schiller. He sat up straight and asked, "Do you have a reservation?"

"I am the new owner of the Baronial estate and all alcohol consumption here will be on my account, may God bless everyone."

The doorman immediately became excited and said, "Oh, it's you! I just received the news yesterday that the biggest Baronial estate has a new owner. Your taste is truly unique, such a luxurious estate is truly worthy of a generous gentleman like yourself."

"Rest assured, when everyone comes out later, they will all know what a good companion you are."

Listening to the doorman's constant compliments, Schiller placed a roll of dollars under the bell without a word. The doorman immediately said, "Please don't mind the appearance of this building, after all, it's the oldest theater in Gotham and some wear and tear is normal, but our service will definitely be the best..."

As Schiller walked down the steps of the theater, he looked back at the possibly oldest theater in Gotham. It was now full of marks of vicissitudes and had welcomed many famous troupes and actors in the past. But now, it was completely deserted, the old facade looked like a historical monument, engraved with the marks of wind, frost, and rain, it may have been more interesting than the fabricated dramas, but not many people were willing to watch it anymore.

After Schiller returned to the estate, it was already late, but he still had something to finish from last night.

Thanks to the slower pace of this era, Schiller did not have to worry about any sudden messages or phone calls, he had enough time to read books and look for the knowledge he needed from paper materials, and then write them down with a pen.

Suddenly, there was a soft noise behind him, Schiller didn't even turn his head and said, "Gordon has come to visit, at least he brought a gift, what about you? Uninvited bat?"

The shadow of Batman was illuminated by the wall light, casting multiple shadows, and he said, "I'll give it to you during the day."

"Gordon is getting married soon, you don't want to give him a gift in this tight-suit, right? After all, he is your partner."

"I don't have any gifts to give." Batman's tone is always low and calm, in this late-night room, it makes people drowsy.

"So what are you here for?"

"To congratulate you on your new home."

"I think you've gone through every room in this estate more than I have and I'm sure you've already gotten hold of the architectural designs through some means."

Batman did not answer, he seemed to have admitted it, he never shied away from showing his excessively cautious, suspicious nature in front of Schiller.

"Did you read today's newspaper? Did you see the news about the Iron Curtain?"

"That has nothing to do with me."

"This is a matter of global importance."

"Gotham won't be any better or worse because of it."

The two men then fell silent, only the sound of Schiller's pen scratching on paper echoing in the quiet room in the middle of the night. After a while, Batman said, "Those men who came from Metropolis, they must be here to hunt you down."

"Let them come. Or do you think that Gotham's people will be afraid of Metropolis' people?"

Batman was silent again.

"I guess you had a fight with your butler, right?"

Batman didn't respond, but Schiller continued, "There was once a man like that too. He would go out for a joyride in the middle of the night because he had a fight with his beloved 'butler'."

"Why did they fight?"

"Because that man couldn't decide whether or not to marry his butler."

Batman was silent again.

"My guess is that your butler is upset that you were hurt, but he doesn't want to stop you from continuing the career you love, so he'll have to digest that emotion on his own."

"But you've noticed how he seems to be grieving, and you don't want to stop your career nor do you want to make him sad."

"None of your overwhelming intelligence and meticulous logic worked at this time, so you had to run out in the middle of the night and race your car."

"Let me guess, your newly built Batmobile should be parked in front of my house and the overheated engine shouldn't even have cooled down until now."

"Is it true that there is mind reading in this world?"

"Stop asking stupid questions like that."

"If there is, can you tell me what Alfred was thinking?"

"You're more straightforward than that person, but it's true, what's troubling him is not only family but also love," Batman's gaze fell on Schiller's ring finger, he asked "Are you married? Is your wife not with you in Gotham?"

"It seems like you don't really want that answer either." Batman said.

"Let's go, you might as well go find Gordon to take you in, staying here with me, you'll only get answers you don't want to hear." Batman said "This estate is nice, there are 36 rooms in total, you sleep in the main bedroom on the east side of the second floor, that leaves 35 rooms." "I'm not giving you a key," Sheldon said.

Batman was silent again.

"I'm guessing that your butler is upset about the fact that you're hurt, but he doesn't want to stop you from continuing the career you love, so he'll have to digest that emotion on his own."

"But you've noticed how he seems to be grieving, and you don't want to stop your career nor do you want to make him sad."

"None of your overwhelming intelligence and meticulous logic worked at this time, so you had to run out in the middle of the night and race your car."

"Let me guess, your newly built Batmobile should be parked in front of my house and the overheated engine should not even cool down until now."

"Is it true that there is mind reading in this world?"

"Stop asking stupid questions like that."

"If there is, can you tell me what Alfred was thinking?"

"You're more straightforward, but also right. He's troubled by both family and love."

"Love... the most difficult thing to understand. I offered to tell him the answer, but he refused."

Batman's gaze fell on Schiller's ring finger and he asked, "Are you married? Your wife didn't come to Gotham with you?"

"Looks like you're not too eager for that answer either," Schiller said.

"Then let's go. You might as well go find Gordon to take you in. If you stay here, you'll only get answers you don't want to hear."

Batman said, "This mansion is quite nice. There are 36 rooms in total. You sleep in the main bedroom on the east side of the upstairs. That leaves 35 rooms."

"I'm not giving you the key," Schiller replied.

"I don't need a key," Batman said, tapping his forehead with his finger.

"But what if you don't come home and your butler comes looking for me?" Schiller asked.

"Why are you more afraid of him than I am?" Batman asked.

"It's hard to explain, but I am genuinely worried about your butler showing up here," Schiller said.

Seeing that Batman wasn't going to give up, Schiller reluctantly said, "Fine, if you want to stay here, I need your parents' permission. You need to call them now and I need to hear them approve before you can stay here."

Batman was silent for a moment before Schiller added, "The phone is downstairs. Either call or leave."

In the end, Batman gave in and, when it came to issues related to his butler, he always acted like a child, much like Stark did when faced with Pepper.

Schiller didn't mind Batman staying in his home and didn't mind Batman checking out his new home either. Eventually it had to happen, and whether Batman did it at 18 or 28 or 38, Gotham couldn't escape Batman's eyes. Schiller wasn't the Joker and he didn't have time to play hide and seek with Batman all the time.

After the meeting, Schiller finished his thesis and it was already late at night. Outside, it was pitch black and the only light came from the reflections of distant lights in the puddles formed by the rain.

Soon, the butler informed him that the phone was ringing. Schiller picked up the receiver and Batman stood in the darkest corner of the living room, listening to the conversation.

"Yes, that's right... no problem, yes, I know, they're always like this, I've seen many of them before..."

"Really? That's quite serious... I have a professional first aid kit here... oh, is that so? You're a responsible butler..."

"I don't think it's a big deal..." Schiller looked up at Batman and for some reason, Batman felt his heart suddenly flutter, like a student nervously trying to infer their parents' anger level from a teacher's words after getting called home.

"Okay, please don't worry... no problem, then that's it... tomorrow morning?... I think so, okay... good bye."

Schiller saw Batman open his mouth, as if he wanted to ask something, but he didn't ask anything in the end.

"Your butler said you were injured, but he should have treated you already," Schiller said.

He then looked at the clock and said, "It's too late now. Your butler said you should be asleep by 9 o'clock, it's been over three hours past that now. Here's the key, go upstairs."

"I don't need a key," Batman said before disappearing, leaving Schiller shaking his head before heading upstairs himself.

Schiller already knew Batman's true identity, so Batman didn't sleep in his costume. When Schiller knocked on his door, Bruce was wearing pajamas.

Normally, Batman could only be seen with a serious jawline, but now, Bruce's demeanor was completely different from his usual self. This was a full-faced Batman.

But it was of no use, he still had a perplexed and complicated expression when he heard Schiller warn him that Alfred hoped he would be able to make it back for breakfast in the morning. "I advise you to go back, in case he comes looking for you, I won't help you, you have to know that the teacher will always stand on the same side as the parents."

Seeing that Bruce seemed unwilling, Schiller had to further threaten him saying: "If I see Alfred tomorrow, I will have to talk to him about your academic situation, this final exam, although you barely passed, your ranking is in the middle of the pack, and more importantly, you missed 6 assignments during the semester and most of the ones you did turn in were not long enough." "I kept all the assignments you turned in, if you don't want your steward to see your nonsensical articles and academic garbage that is only good for polluting other people's minds, it would be best if you go to sleep and leave for Wayne Manor early tomorrow morning."

Before Bruce could say anything, Schiller shut the door to his room with a bang. That night, Bruce lay in bed, thinking about recent events. Thanks to Schiller's genius industrial chain, the recent heat of the gangs has increased, and the Batman's job has also become difficult.

During the day, he was busy investigating various things in the hospital to unravel the complex relationships between gangs. At night, he had to keep an eye on various gang conflicts to prevent them from getting too out of hand and causing too much damage.

Now that the police have heavy weapons, they have become stronger, but this does not mean that the gangs have no means of counterattacking. The police use heavy firepower to suppress, and the gangs naturally think of using more ferocious firepower to resist. As a result, the scale of the war is constantly increasing, which also causes Batman to be caught up in more ferocious firepower conflicts before he has a chance to upgrade his equipment.

This also means that the Batman suit, which was only prepared for handguns and cold weapons, cannot defend against the damage caused by machine gun grenades in gang conflicts. A few nights ago, Batman was hit by a bullet from a machine gun, which is not comparable to a handgun bullet. The bullets from the machine gun are as long as a palm, and luckily Batman only had a graze on his shoulder. If it had hit him, it would have likely damaged his lung.

But this also caused him serious injuries, which can be said to be the most serious injuries he has sustained in his time as Batman. He returned to Wayne Manor in an unconscious state, and it was only his willpower that saved him from death.

Bruce knew for a long time that his body was not sensitive to certain painkillers and anesthesia, and he often wakes up during the process. This time was no different, he saw Alfred sitting alone on the side of the operating table while he was half-awake during the surgery.

He found it hard to describe the expression on Alfred's face at that time, but it made his heart that had not been beating strongly for years suddenly constrict.

He suddenly realized that Alfred had changed and looked different than he remembered. He appeared to have aged a lot and seemed much more somber than when his parents were still alive.

He realized that the death of the Wayne's was not only a damage to him. And maybe, when Alfred realized that he was about to suffer the same damage again, he aged even more.

Bruce lay in bed, unable to sleep, his mind filled with the image of Alfred that he saw in his hazy state. What made him even more sad was that when he woke up from the surgery, Alfred didn't say anything, he didn't stop him from doing anything, he just prepared breakfast as usual, just like the countless mornings when Bruce woke up from nightmares.

[ShaneFreak: If anyone confused, here is what Bruce did earlier...]

Bruce sat at the table, barely able to eat.

He was the Batman, but he was still a human and few people could maintain a calm attitude while facing such intense emotional turmoil. So, he only took a couple of bites and left the Wayne Manor like he was running away.

In fact, his first stop was Gordon's, but he just happened to catch Gordon leaving in his car to visit Schiller. He followed Gordon all the way and even saw their entire conversation in a restaurant from the window.

He also saw Schiller sitting alone in a chair, smoking a cigarette. The Professor looked strange to him, he had never seen Schiller like that before. He seemed relaxed but also cold and sharp. Although Schiller was often serious at school, it was different from this. It was like another person, a stranger.

He thought maybe the Professor he knew before was also just a disguise, just like him.

Two lunatics in this crazy city play their own roles, appearing in an ordinary social identity, playing the teachers and students who are troubled by the trivial daily life.

This may not be a "Pride and Prejudice", but a "Actor's Self-cultivation".

In Gotham, this decaying and decadent theater, on the stage of Gotham University, the first scene of this absurd play seems bizarre and ridiculous.

The first teacher that the Batman met on the first day of school, a teacher who looked strict and old-fashioned, and seemed to have no intention of causing trouble to himself, gave him the answer he wanted most in a motiveless psychological consultation.

And after these one and another plays fall, the two actors themselves finally met offstage.

Putting aside their social identities, the composition of these absurd plays is not a coincidence, lunatics always attract lunatics, strange people often meet strange people, it is just another way of clustering.

Bruce lay in bed, drowsy sleepiness came, he heard the dull sound of the clock in the mansion downstairs, and it was all over his dream.

Besides, in this cold night of Gotham in 1987, what can be heard is only almost imperceptible wind and the sound of the fireplace burning all night.

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