In the end, Shiller proposed a labor dispatch plan that amazed Batman.
First of all, if one wants to hire Spider Man, they must use the Spider App, and the contract must be uploaded to the backend of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Labor Dispatch and Employment Department. Any contracts not certified by the official are invalid, so Batman also has to proceed in this manner.
However, the Spider App only serves the Marvel Multiverse currently, and its servers are hosted at the headquarters of the Spider Legion. On the DC side, neither have servers been established nor signal bases built; there's no cross-compatibility between the networks of both sides.
Therefore, it is impossible for Batman to successfully upload the contract and complete the transaction, with verbal agreements being ineffective.
In order to ensure a standard procedure, Batman needs to first set up a temporary server locally. Then, signal bases would be set up by the Marvel side.
Given the necessity for friendly exchanges between the two realms, the setup of the servers will be executed on a technology-for-investment basis. That is, Batman offers the technology to build servers and provides a location. S.H.I.E.L.D. funds the construction. Once completed, S.H.I.E.L.D. permanently holds the technical intellectual property rights of the server, whereas Batman gains the perpetual use rights of the server.
The signal bases are jointly funded by both sides, with Batman covering the DC section and S.H.I.E.L.D., the Marvel part. After the transmission process is sealed, each side is responsible for the maintenance and operation of its own section, and based on upload and download quantities, an annual settlement of charges for renting each other's lines is conducted.
Once the network is established, S.H.I.E.L.D. will once again foot the bill and Batman will provide the technical expertise to localize the Spider App. Due to the indefiniteness of time and cost required for remodeling, a dedicated Spider Fund must be established for periodic disbursement of funds.
And to ensure that this non-officially audited labor dispatch contract for Spider Man remains in effect before all construction is completed, both parties need to deposit a guarantee into a designated account, supervised by the Transcendent - the builder of the entire Battleworld.
Simultaneously, five percent of the funds will be used to pay wages to legal and financial personnel hired during this process, with the amount being transferred to the assigned salary card account within three working days after Spider Man's salary is paid.
After hearing this plan, Batman had only one thought – how many years of fraudulent accounts does this organization called S.H.I.E.L.D. have to report?
As a result, he saw Shiller on the screen snap his fingers joyfully, saying to Stark beside him, "Nick would be ecstatic. He has a solution for his accounts for the next quarter."
Batman felt like backing out again.
As widely known, the larger the stall, the more the benefits, and if it's not too outrageous, it might not convince people. Private enterprises on Earth initiated projects on wandering the Earth ten years ago.
People freshly out of school always think that the company they work for must be very standard, and its employees must be very professional if it could develop to such a size, right?
However, with many years of work experience comes the realization that every organization in the world is essentially a makeshift crew.
A bunch of talkative but incompetent people leading a gang of inarticulate and barely competent fellows, leveraging the tailwind of the times, set up an organization that appears to be a skyscraper but is still essentially a makeshift crew inside. They earn money by fooling laymen, while simultaneously tricking more newcomers into the industry to work without pay.
Batman felt like he was the one who had been tricked into the industry.
The majority of Batmen who came to the Battleworld had never experienced the Multiverse. In fact, many of them had never even seen counterparts from other universes, meeting them for the first time during a game.
Wisdom can be innate, but experience can't be fabricated. Most Batmen, upon finding out that there are higher realms, would pull out all stops to obtain intelligence on other universes.
Who wouldn't pay some tuition when they're new to the scene? Batman thought there must be something distinct about these peculiar individuals from the other universe as their technological development level was not low, right?
The result was that they still adhered to the traditional human arts. It can't be said that they were shedding the dross; rather, they were replicating the classics.
Similar to the "since we've come all the way here" idea is that since the money has been spent, and the business talked, what is meant to be led away still has to be. Therefore, Batman just took away Peter, leaving behind the Robins still immersed in the shock of macroeconomics.
"No wonder Barbara always mentioned 'systemic macro loans' and often visited the Federal Reserve's website. I think she must have been influenced by someone." Red hood said.
"I just hope it's not Professor Shearer." Nightwing made a cross on his chest.
"Who else could it be?"
The other two turned to look at Red Robin, who spoke before all three of them realized something.
"Bruce!"
Back to Shiller's side, they had just played two games in a row and were a bit tired. After eating around the fireplace, they all lay on the sofa, dozing off.
Matt found some tea leaves in the cabinet. He made hot tea for everyone and sat in a circle, reviewing the game process as if chatting leisurely.
The highlights, of course, were the two games that Shiller had participated in. Although the spectators in the screening room had roughly understood what was going on, when they heard Shiller recount the events, his teammates who had been in their own games were confused.
"Due to personal interest, I enjoy healing Batmen. You can consider this academic research; this was the most important thing I did during the Decamerone game." Shiller sipped his scalding hot tea and continued, "That type of Batman is rather rare, so I had my eyes on him from the start."
"Didn't you once call me a stamp collector?" Natasha sipped her tea and teased, "Now who is it?"
Shiller shrugged off the accusation without responding. He then continued, "Like I said, Batman isn't really sick. He doesn't need treatment. What he needs is an outlet, to anchor his existence as Bruce Wayne. That's the only way to preserve his humanity in the long run without turning into an emotionless justice machine."
"Even though it may not be bad for society, it's painful for him. The primary objective of a therapist's treatment is to free the patient from suffering."
"Sounds like quite a fascinating treatment session," Steve retorted. "If I were there, I'd probably even applaud. By the way, did you charge him a consulting fee?"
"No rush, I am not the kind of psychologist who sends invoices every month." Shiller said in a relaxed manner, but everyone felt he was only able to be so calm because he had just made a fortune.
"Now you must be thrilled," Stark snorted before saying: "With countless universes come countless rich folks who are not only feckless but also defenseless against you. Seriously, Shiller, isn't this game you supposedly set up a scam to swindle money?"
"You're really overestimating me," Shiller shrugged. "Where would I get the power to set up such a big game?"
"Whenever we think that way, we always end up underestimating you. We all know too well how adaptable you are when it comes to tricking people," Natasha added in a mocking tone.
Shiller casually shrugged as he sipped his tea, "No matter, only you guys know."
Stark and Natasha both scoffed, got up with their teacups, and climbed up the stairs.
Shiller yawned, got up with his teacup, glanced at the time, and found it was still early. He waved at Matt and headed towards the portal, obviously planning to have another round before dinner.
Stark and Natasha watched from the railing, and Stark shook his head, saying, "Your guess was spot on. He's not satisfied just going fishing anymore. He's using this opportunity to cast a wider net, extending his reach to the lambs in the multiverse."
Natasha shrugged, "Well, there's nothing we can do about it. Can you stop him?"
Stark let out a sigh. If they could stop him, they wouldn't be here in the first place.
"I think you guys are overthinking it," Steve said lazily from the couch. "An old war buddy of mine always said, 'what one is about to eat and drink is predestined.' Going too far is not good. When one goes too far, God will intervene."
Stark and Natasha exchanged glances.
"Who's the real old-timer here?" Stark teased, and Natasha stuck her tongue out at him.
As the saying goes, 'he who will not be counseled cannot be helped,' and the fact that these sayings have been passed down through generations means that they reflect scenarios that have been repeated often throughout history.
Less than two hours later, Shiller came rushing out of the portal, and yes, it was a rush, not a confident walk. His face had the look of someone who had just seen a ghost.
The folks dealing with their haul of game and berries in the kitchen saw Shiller's expression. Before they could ask what happened, Shiller spun on his heels, darting back towards the portal.
It was evident that he had opened another game. He was in such a hurry that he hadn't even spared a word for his teammates before running out.
The others exchanged glances, not understanding what Shiller was up to now. Still, they had learned the best way to handle Shiller's antics was to turn a blind eye- as long as there was no imminent danger.
This did little to hinder Shiller but was greatly beneficial for their heart rates, blood pressures, and brain cells. It allowed them to avoid the frequent surprises and the stress of overthinking that came with Shiller's grand plans.
However, about an hour and a half later, just as dinner was about to be served, Shiller emerged from the portal again with the same startled look on his face, and he stood there, looking somewhat lost.
This time the others really had to ask. What kind of game could give Shiller that look? Did he meet his match?
Stark glanced at Shiller while serving the soup, "What happened? Game not going well?"
"No, the game is simple, but..." Shiller stood in place, blinking as if he was questioning his existence.
Natasha and Steve were also curious at this point. Usually, they were indifferent to Shiller's schemes, but they wanted to know what could leave him in this state.
"Is the game simple, but your teammates are dumb?" Natasha guessed, "Either they can't understand instructions, can't follow through, or they add their own interpretations. Did you encounter such teammates?"
Shiller shook his head, paused, and then nodded. The others didn't quite catch what he was trying to say. After a moment of hesitation, he regained his composure and clarified, "Indeed it's a teammate issue, but it's not that they're dumb. They are..."
Shiller paused for a moment, then continued, looking utterly perplexed, "How come they all recognize me???"