Chapter 467: Is Shiller Sick? (Middle)_1

At breakfast, Merkel watched Schiller clumsily folding his newspaper. He hesitated, then spoke:

"Sir, do you need any help?"

Schiller didn't answer. He was trying to prop up the newspaper so he could read it while holding the fork to eat. But he soon found out it was much more difficult than he anticipated, nowhere near as convenient as perusing his phone. He sighed, casting the newspaper aside.

With a muttered criticism for 20th-century technology, Schiller focused his attention on the food in his plate.

Reheated toast, served with sausage, fried eggs, and stewed peas, alongside just the right temperature of warm milk. He didn't have to cook or do the dishes, a satisfied Schiller leaned back in his chair, savoring the decadence of aristocratic life.

But Merkel, who was preparing to clear the plates, paused again. He glanced down at his watch, astonished that Schiller's meal only lasted 20 minutes, barely even seven o'clock.

The plate was essentially empty, except for a slightly burnt crust of bread, a trickle of stew pea sauce. The knife was tossed carelessly aside, and the fork was resting on the plate with the milk cup in front...

Merkel thought, maybe Schiller really was sick.

Disregarding the unordered eating process, the lack of set dining etiquette, as well as the askew placement of the knife and fork. The cup of milk alone, placed somewhat in the middle but not precisely centered, would have been enough to irk Schiller for an entire day in the past.

If such a situation arose previously, Merkel could only silently pray for the students in class for the day.

This overly routine dining session left him astonished, he was too surprised to find an opportunity to voice out the words held up inside him.

Just as he was trying to find an opportune point to speak, Schiller stood up, saying, "I'll go back to sleep for a bit, wake me up around 9:30, thank you."

Merkel's eyes widened, he signaled his hesitation, Schiller saw his expression and asked, "What is it?"

"Did you mean, you plan to go upstairs for more sleep after your meal?"

"Uh, is that wrong?" checking his watch, Schiller said, "My class doesn't start until 10, right? It's only seven now, what's the point of going so early?"

"Uh … alright, if that's what you plan to do, I'll wake you on time. Oh wait, you mentioned 9:30, this …"

"Gotham University isn't that far from here," Schiller retorted while heading upstairs, "Even if I cycle, it'll take me just half an hour."

With that, he retired to his bedroom, leaving behind a stunned Merkel.

With just two minutes to ten, sitting behind the wheel, Schiller firstly took a look at the never-ending traffic ahead, then he turned back to look at his home, still clearly in view. He sighed deeply, regretting his decision to stand in for DC Schiller.

At 10:10, Gotham University's lecture hall was filled to the brim, most were muttering quietly.

Just then, footsteps could be heard from outside the door, everyone immediately straightened. The whispering died down, silence filled the room as if frozen solid.

The footsteps quickened. Suddenly, Evans burst through the door, he rushed in without looking at the stage, hastily saying,

"I'm really sorry, professor, first day of commute today, the road was really congested. I got up as early as six and left the house at seven, yet I just got here. I apologize …"

Realizing that no one was responding, Evans looked towards the stage and saw that there was no one there.

He stared with wide eyes, viewing the room in surprise before he slowly went to his seat. He saw Bruce sitting beside him, his gaze fixated on the stage as if deep in thought.

"What happened? Bruce, where's the professor?"

Bruce slowly shook his head, Evans widened his eyes even more. He scanned the room to see that all eyes were on him, thus he could only stand up and say:

"Don't worry, everyone, I'll make a call to find out where the professor is."

Approximately 20 minutes later, Schiller who was still stuck in the estate district, saw a helicopter bearing the Wayne Enterprises logo descending gently onto the grounds of an estate.

Bruce stepped out of it, Schiller extended his arm out of the car window and waved at him.

Bruce walked up, looked at Schiller in the driver's seat, and asked, "How did you get here?"

"Isn't that what I should be asking you? How did you get here? And you're even in a helicopter?"

"Evans called your house, your butler told him you left an hour ago. Based on Gotham's traffic patterns, I guessed you might be stuck here."

"What on earth happened to you?" A puzzled Bruce questioned.

"What happened to me?" Schiller, too, was confused, misinterpreting Bruce's question, he waved his hand and said, "Alright, I just had some bad luck, ran into a major traffic jam. I'll make sure to start earlier next time. Tell the students to have a self-study session for this period..."

Bruce walked around the car, opened the passenger door, and climbed into the seat beside Shiller. Then he turned and glanced at him, eyes squinted.

"Is there a problem?" Shiller also turned to look at him, asking.

But Bruce just kept staring at him without uttering a word. Eventually, Shiller could only say, "Alright, you little devils, free time. Is that alright?"

Bruce's eyes squinted even more, turning into a very typical expression of doubt. When Shiller caught sight of this from the corner of his eye, he couldn't help but turn and take a closer look at Bruce, saying, "Don't tell me you want me to ask for leave from the other teachers. That's a bit too much, isn't it?"

"What in the world is wrong with you? This looks like more than just a panic attack. Have you had a mental health checkup recently?"

"I'm mentally healthy."

Shiller gripped the steering wheel with one hand and moved forward with the flow of the traffic, saying: "Don't forget, you have a bill to pay. If there's nothing wrong, then hurry up and get your company in order, earn more money."

Bruce stared at Shiller for a long time, and since Shiller won't reply anymore, he had no choice but to open the car door and get out.

When he returned to the classroom at Gotham University and informed all the students of the switch to free time, not a single one of them showed excitement. The room was filled with whispers.

"Damn it! If we have free time this class, then there's bound to be a big test next class. The professor must be testing our self-learning capabilities. If we mess up the test…"

"Free time? To hell with free time! How could that devil possibly let us have free time? This must be a trap!"

"We've had classes suspended for so long, and he's not giving a test?? Bruce, did you get something wrong?"

"Quick, don't speak anymore. Hurry to the library, don't forget, those freshmen will also fight us for seats!"

"Quick, let's go! Bruce, are you coming? I can save a seat for you…"

When he heard this question, Bruce really hesitated for a while, because he really wasn't sure if this was really a trap by Shiller.

Although there's not much room for Bruce's grades to drop further, if he creates a new low, and Shiller calls Alfred, he certainly won't be going on any night outings for a while.

After less than a second of hesitation, he said,

"Save a seat for me, thanks."

By the time Shiller arrived at Gotham University, it was already lunchtime. When he walked into the office, all eyes turned to him. Anna, who taught advanced math, was the first to walk over. She took a good look at Shiller up and down, then said,

"Just now, your student, Evans, found me after math class. He asked me to check on your mental state because he heard from Bruce that today's 10 o'clock class started when you only left home at 9:30."

"Of course, being late in Gotham isn't anything new, but being late because of traffic? It's your first day in Gotham, is it?"

Shiller sighed, "Why do you all think three hours of average traffic is normal?"

"An average of three hours of traffic is of course not normal, because the previous average was five hours."

"There are only 24 hours in a day!" Shiller raised his voice.

"A day does have a full 24 hours!" Anna also raised her voice.

Just then, Victor came in. He was holding books and documents, apparently just having finished a class. Seeing Shiller sitting at the desk, he walked over, put his stuff down next to Shiller, and then tapped on the partition, saying, "Let's go, time for lunch."

He then turned to Anna and said, "Anna, don't be like this. Being late is completely normal. Especially since they suddenly announced the resumption of regular traffic last night. Everyone must have been anxious, so there would naturally be more cars."

"Shiller and I are both from out of town. It's normal if we're not accustomed to the traffic here."

Afterward, he turned to Shiller and said, "Don't fret about this. It's good for your students to have a break. If you ask me, you've been pushing them a little too hard. Education isn't something you can rush."

With that, Victor came over, dragged Shiller up, and went to the cafeteria for lunch.

For Shiller, Victor can be regarded as his best friend in Gotham. And for Victor, the same is true for Shiller.

Because they're very close, Victor is well aware of Shiller's quirks. When he chose to delay his departure and ended up being late due to traffic, Victor was not at all concerned. What's the big deal? Could it be more outrageous than the Gotham freeze plan?

And this relaxed mood only lasted until he and Shiller sat down to eat lunch together.

Because he saw Shiller pick up a piece of broccoli with his fork and put it into his mouth.