Shiller scanned the classroom full of students and began,
"I know that you were all sent here by certain individuals. Those individuals might have told you to study hard and come to work for them afterwards. They might have told you to be diligent, to master every morsel of knowledge and strive not to make mistakes in your work so as not to cause any losses for them...."
"Perhaps you have been working hard towards these goals, am I right?"
The room fell silent. Everyone looked at one another, knowing full well that they shared a common affirmative answer.
Most students in the room were rather young, with the oldest no older than their early twenties. The majority of them comprised the lower rungs of the mob due to their relative youth and flexibility both mentally and physically. They had been involved in technical work before and had been sent here because an opportunity presented itself.
The mob bosses were not inclined to offer motivation in the form of "chicken soup for the soul", nor did they provide the type of caring guidance that parents do. They would simply tell their young followers to learn well, and if they didn't, there would be hell to pay.
Yet, everyone was slightly bewildered and unsure of Shiller's point in raising these issues. Then they heard him say:
"No matter where you come from, what you've come here for, or how you've behaved since arriving, I must tell you that you are learning not for any others, but for yourselves, for your future, for your living conditions..."
"Some of you may have been sent here not of your own volition, and may carry various burdens and tasks with you..." When Shiller reached this point, he turned his gaze to Miss Goth. He continued, "But all of that is what others expect of you. Think about it, since your birth until now, have you really ever done anything for yourselves?"
"I know that the answer is no for many of you. Whatever your bosses tell you to do, you do. Whatever your superiors tell you to do, you do. If you're lucky, whatever your parents tell you to do, you do..."
"That's not your fault. Everyone's circumstances are different, and not everyone is able to break free from their current environment. However, now, an opportunity has arrived."
Shiller looked around and noticed everyone listening attentively. At that moment, Shiller declared:
"I can guarantee that no one will be able to influence what happens here, not even the renown Twelve Families."
"Maybe you've heard rumours that the renowned Bruce Wayne failed under my tuition. I guarantee you that once you enter this institution, even if your last name is Wayne, you must study diligently."
"No amount of underhanded tricks will work here. The only way to leave is through graduation. Your time here will be your only chance to truly do something for yourselves."
"Free yourselves from the commanding mob bosses, no longer living days without other choices, subjected to humiliation. Discard the foolish and superficial ideas of using your own life or marriage as bargaining chips and having it as the primary goal of your life."
Shiller rapped on the desk again, then said: "Of course. I understand that some habits are not easily changed, but from today onwards, I will supervise you personally when there are no classes."
"As for what happens if you do not study diligently..."
With a fake smile, Shiller continued, "you really don't want to know."
A chill went down everyone's spine. After all, Shiller was clearly different from other university professors, both in his appearance and aura.
For instance, take Victor next to him. While he emanates a soothing spring breeze, Shiller also gives the sense of a spring breeze, albeit the type gracing Gotham; a bone-chilling drizzle which could render one entirely cold in merely a few minutes.
As the students exited the large classroom discussions and conjecture swirled, many were still unsure of what Shiller was trying to say. However, it didn't take long before everyone realized through Shiller's actions exactly what he intended.
Classes began shortly after, starting particularly early. As on the previous day, Shiller sat in the back with his notebook. The only difference was that any student who started to doze off got conked on the head by a light ring.
At first, they yelled and complained as they held the back of their heads. But soon, they saw Shiller's death stare and decided to swallow their protests and shut up.
What happened next was even more terrifying.
Even though these students were young, they were mob members and had developed quick tempers from an early age. It was unsurprising that some took great offense to Shiller's actions. One tall and burly African-American student began cursing stormily in crass slang, intending to exit the classroom.
He planned to leave this place as he had never liked studying anyway. He wouldn't have been here if the mob boss hadn't been so desperately low on options.
Then, he was brought before his boss.
Shiller pointed his umbrella at this mob boss and asked, "The person you sent here refuses to study properly and even dares to challenge the teacher. What do you plan to do?"
Mobs were not isolated entities. As mentioned earlier, smaller mobs often sought protection from larger ones, most of which were beholden to the Twelve Families.
In this city, there were many who knew how to play their cards right. Hence, many people were keeping an eye on Shiller, knowing he was no ordinary professor. Consequently, news of Shiller personally visiting the territory of a certain mob boss reached the leaders of the Twelve Families.
Phone calls mounted in the North District as one dot after another lit up. Each call connected the dots into lines, illuminating the whole district.
"What's going on? Why did Professor Rodriguez go to Andy's territory? Did that kid mess up again?"
"Andy said he had no idea. He merely smuggled two extra crates of cigars. However, I heard that the professor is quite fond of cigars. Could he have taken an interest in those two crates?"
"Stop, stop! You're all mistaken. It's not Andy's turf. It was clearly Lady Quercus's. That woman must've stirred up some kind of mess again..."
"What? What is he saying? The professor didn't visit the four major mob families under her control, but a small street gang? ...Oh, I see, it must be the Sparkling Bar on Bellflower Street. Yes, I've seen the two security guards at their entrance. What happened to them?"
"Study? What does studying have to do with it?"
"What? Just because some students failed to study properly, he went straight to them? That's going too far! He's disregarding our rules..."
"I need to inform my father. He'll make the decision..."
And so, the news was relayed step by step until it reached Godfather Falcone's ears.
Falcone himself made a phone call to the mob, spoke with Shiller. Following that, a new rule was established by Gotham's mob.
Those people outside the school don't matter, but once you enter the school and start studying as a student, your social status boils down to one thing: a student of Gotham University.
Students in the school aren't subject to any mob control. During term time, if anyone tries to leave the school, the mob must ensure they are returned. Until they graduate, they must all stay in school.
Additionally, if gang members fail exams and Shiller personally steps in, leading to any accident or casualties, the Godfather will not seek justice for them.
With the announcement of this rule, surprisingly, the mob didn't show strong resistance. After all, it was merely about keeping their dispatched members disciplined in the school. Easy, right?
The mob didn't want these students running around either. They had spent a lot of money sending them for training. You'd think you can just run out and stop studying? Not so easy. If you want to stop, there are only two ways, either pay compensation, or pay with your life.
As a result, all students in the school understood that escape was impossible. The only way to leave was by graduation.
But one might ask, since they couldn't run, couldn't they gather together and fight back? Some tried to do just that, but then Shiller taught them a lesson with what he calls the 'Gotham Spring Breeze'.
The only difference was, it usually takes several minutes for the 'Gotham Spring Breeze' to freeze someone, but with Shiller, it only took two seconds.
Apart from Victor, who took issue with Shiller using this freezing technique as corporal punishment on students, everyone else expressed complete approval.
After establishing his prestige, Shiller became more intense. After all, he had plenty of experience with this. He came from a country with rigorous exam standards.
Begin classes at 7:30 in the morning? Why not sleep all day? The first class bell rings at 6:50, and the wakeup alarm is set for 5:30 sharp.
Theoretical classes are from 7:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., lunch is from 12:30 to 1:00 p.m., and practical classes start at 1:10 p.m. What? Naptime? Why not rest all day?
Of course, Shiller is somewhat humane. He's canceled the rather dull self-study in the evening, opting instead to teach some self-defense sports classes. After all, given Gotham's security situation, you must first survive in order to make money.
Night classes end at 8:00 p.m., lights out at 9:00 p.m. The technical college mainly focuses on military discipline – real military discipline, not metaphorical – especially as the heavy weaponry, "voluntarily" sponsored by the Wayne Family, is affixed to the fences on both sides of the school building.
However, what surprised Shiller was that the students were adapting quite well. The tardiness rate dropped significantly on the second day. Despite many of them still struggling with sleepiness, they were able to muster enough spirit to attend classes.
But it makes sense. After all, their original living conditions were not great. During the busiest times in the logistics industry, these young bucks, equipped with various skills, basically worked day and night without rest. Failing to answer the call meant facing consequences more severe than simply losing their jobs - they could get shot.
Though they studied from dawn till dusk in school, at least the quality of the meals was significantly better than before, and they were allowed plenty of sleep. Nobody disturbed their sleep, and they could sleep through the night, which contributed to better recovery.
Kids who've grown up in the slums and gangs have a stronger throttling capability compared to those spoiled by their parents. If they weren't strong, they would have been naturally eliminated by now.
But there was one exception - Theresa Goode. She was more delicate than the spoilt kids in big cities. Just the early bedtime and morning wakeup routine would almost kill her.
Not to mention, Shiller was constantly standing behind her group. If she dared to slack off, Shiller would use the ice cones fired from his umbrella to freeze her on the spot for an entire day.
For Miss Goode, becoming frozen was not physically harmful, but it was incredibly humiliating, and she could not stand losing face.
Under such pressure, she had no choice but to follow the teacher's instructions. She did her work, whether it was screwing in bolts or rolling tires, often crawling under cars for repairs that left her covered in dirt.
Theresa tried calling her mother to come back home, but Lady Goth was too busy for her own good.
Theresa had no choice but to continue with her studies with a sense of desperation. Study hard and aim high every day.