Even though Jason had deciphered some things from Shiller's implications, this answer was still enough to surprise him.
This isn't right. Jason would rather believe that the Batman in front of him had been replaced by someone else. How could he be someone who self-harms out of guilt?
Maintaining his posture, Jason looked up at Batman, seeking some hint from his face. He must have been hypnotized by that Doctor Shiller. It must be so.
But reason was telling Jason that this was impossible. It was even less believable that Batman could be easily manipulated to hurt himself, compared to the answer Batman had just given him.
Either Batman was a coward, or Batman was weak. Jason didn't know what he should choose, but Batman has never been good at explanation.
So, they both fell silent.
At the moment, Bruce could not stand the silence, unsure if Jason was once again disappointed.
Batman couldn't remember the last time he had lost control like this. When Doctor Shiller proposed that he needed Batman's current blood for research, Batman's first response was to pull out a bat-dart and cut himself on the arm.
Batman was sure that Shiller was shocked at that instant.
Firstly, it was completely unprofessional. Blood meant for medical research had to be drawn using professional blood-draw devices.
This way of cutting oneself to draw blood made it seem like some crude method a mad scientist would imagine, no different in essence from the descriptions in vampire novel.
After he had performed this action, Batman himself was stunned too. He and Shiller had just exchanged gazes, both so taken aback that they missed the optimal time to stop the bleeding.
In the end, the blood used was still drawn. In other words, Batman hurt himself, but achieved nothing; it didn't even seem like a sudden impulse, more like premeditated.
Afterwards, Shiller conducted a mental analysis based on his professional expertise, which Batman dismissed as nonsense.
But if he were to reflect on and summarize it now, it was the same as what he had just said.
On his return, he would invent a device to shield against mind-reading.
Batman found himself becoming irritable, even a little like he was in a sulky mood, as if roles were reversed.
He had to do something to change the current situation, so he picked up the information Shiller had sent over, pretending to read it attentively. Meanwhile, Jason went back to painting iodine on his face.
For the first time, Batman found himself unable to concentrate on professional materials. In a way, it was akin to a college student procrastinating before final exams. Indeed, even how much colored medicine Jason was applying to his face seemed more interesting than these dry, dull professional terms.
After all, it really was about his snack-exemption right. If Jason, with his large injury, were to encounter Alfred, his cookies in the afternoon tea for the next year would all be replaced by muffins.
Dingling...
No matter who made this call, Batman decided to listen to them with the utmost patience he'd ever mustered in his half-life, as a way of saying thanks.
"Hello, Batman, it's Shiller…"
Batman immediately withdrew his decision.
"Have you looked at the information I gave you?" Shiller's tone was purely professional, but Batman knew he was doing it on purpose. He suspected that the doctor even knew at what stage he was in the conversation with Jason, and that he needed a phone call to intervene. He thus deliberately made the call.
"No, don't bother to go to the securecomm room for me. It'd be too bothersome for you. Just say it briefly."
See, he guessed it right.
Bruce switched hands in holding the phone, casually flipping through the material as he said, "This virus does have very extraordinary characteristics, but I am more interested in its transmission route, and what you wrote in your analysis that those who kill it will infect it, I don't know what the basis for this is..."
"No, my situation is a unique case. Did all previous Joker virus victims..."
"That makes sense too, I am not sure what the Joker did to them. It is also possible that the Joker who died was not the Joker I first knew. The virus has at least changed two hosts…"
"I guess that's possible." Bruce felt his thoughts were a bit muddled.
He felt like he was talking nonsense, but he had never been as reluctant as now to take responsibility for what he said. After all, Shiller was on the other end of the line. Nonsense should be returned with nonsense.
Damn, he was acting out again.
But Bruce still chose to talk nonsense, because Peter Parker had once talked nonsense in front of him, so it was just returning the favor.
"Maybe the Joker kidnapped them and kept torturing them one by one, offering them a chance to escape, then ambushed them on their way out, forcing them to kill him. As a result, they would get infected with the Joker virus, become the new Joker and carry on his plan."
"But perhaps there were people who couldn't fully kill the Joker or get fully transformed, so they became carriers of the Joker virus…"
It was simply illogical. Bruce didn't know what he was saying, then he just continued based on his own words.
"The Joker virus infected me most likely because although I did not kill the Joker personally, the Joker died because of me. I don't know if you can understand, but that's what I meant."
"Those who were infected with the Joker virus are probably like me, indirectly causing the Joker's death, thus becoming infected…"
Of course, Shiller could sense the breakdown in Batman's logical language, losing the original concise style, rambling without knowing what he was saying.
But indeed, it was Batman who was talking nonsense, and quite accurately too.
Shiller had only thought that the injection held by the original Shiller might have been the Joker virus. But isn't the most classic way to spread the Joker virus by killing the Joker?
Of course, this rule is a result of DC's patchwork, mainly to explain why Batman doesn't kill the Joker. It's far-fetched, but the rule is the rule and probably applies to everyone.
Shiller is sure he hasn't killed the Joker, at least not physically. So, if he was infected with the Joker virus before returning to DC, could his original body have killed the Joker?
Shiller thought again about the Laughing Egg deep in Bruce's subconscious.
If his original body had killed Bruce of this universe, becoming a laughing entity, could that be considered killing the Joker?
So, it might have happened that, after his original body self-destructed with tremendous power to clear Gotham's dark rules, he was judged to have killed the Joker and infected with the Joker virus. Then, upon the arrival of Shiller's soul, he coincided with Batman's gaze, thereby becoming the Joker himself.
What about that mysterious injection?
"Batman, do you think it's possible for the Joker virus to exist outside the body in the form of a drug?" Shiller asked.
Bruce frowned, answering almost instinctively, "Impossible. If I could extract it, I wouldn't be plagued by it."
He looked down at the documents and said, "The organ tissue test report you gave me also shows that the impact this mysterious virus has on the human body is unobservable. My conclusions were the same."
"What if there is another factor present inside the Joker's body, could the two potentially combine, or could this factor become a carrier for the Joker virus?"
"If you can provide me with some of this factor, I can help analyze it. But if you want to continue experimenting with the Joker, you'll have to pay extra rent..."
"No problem," Shiller agreed immediately. "I see your other Robins are not exactly mentally healthy either, I can…"
"No need," Bruce immediately cut him off. "Keep away from them, the farther the better. That's my condition. The Joker is yours."
Having received the satisfactory answer, Shiller hung up the phone. Indeed, he needed to try to put the Dionysus Factor into the Joker and see if he could use it to extract the Joker virus from his body.
But the experimental method required would be innovative, so Shiller called Peter, hoping to get his help.
"Hey, Peter? What's going on over there..."
"Oh, Doctor Shiller, I'm kind of busy, um... you probably want to know what I'm busy with. Actually, I'm trying to fix a mistake, a massive mistake."
"You see, the group of reporters I lured to the bridge found out that the awakened Gothamites are somewhat sluggish and not very aggressive. They think it's a good opportunity to explore the secrets of this dark city."
"That's brave, then what happened?"
"Remember when Wayne Manor was flattened by missiles and nobody cleaned up? The reporters rushed to the ruins and found a family photo of the Batman family there."
"It seems they were having afternoon tea in their costumes, without masks, exposing their identities. The news will probably be published by tomorrow morning. I'm trying to figure out a way..."
Boom, boom, boom!
Bruce and Jason both looked towards the door being knocked violently. Bruce stood up to open the door, and Amanda was standing outside.
Through the gap between Bruce and the door, Amanda saw Jason. She closed her eyes in pain, slammed the door frame and said:
"What the fuck are you doing?! Bruce Wayne?! Do you have to be inseparable from your weird hobbies?! You're in trouble!"
Amanda held a tablet in one hand and placed it in front of Bruce. Upon seeing the image on the screen, Bruce's pupils contracted.
It was a scene of him having afternoon tea with the Batman family.
Bruce remembered at that time they had just gone through a lot of chaos. Nightwing had come back to help, and Robin was Jason, with Barbara also lending a hand.
After the event, they were supposed to disperse, but Alfred suggested they have afternoon tea before leaving.
They were all too tired and relaxed at that time. Batman sat on the sofa without his mask or cloak. Nightwing's suit was damaged, so he was wearing only a pair of drawstring pajama pants. Jason had his mask off and bare feet, his mouth stuffed full of cookies. Barbara was scalded by the first sip of hot tea.
Alfred took a picture of this, and of course, for safety reasons, Bruce put this picture in his bedroom. Breaking into Gotham was already difficult, never mind breaking into Wayne Manor.
But ironically, the city anesthetic removed most of the threat to Gotham, Wayne Manor was just bombed, Batman had to deal with the Power Field incident urgently, and the reporters took the opportunity to hit back.
Bruce's breath quickened almost instantly, but not because his identity was exposed.
"This will become the most powerful leverage they have to attack you, Bruce," Amanda tried to add fuel to the fire. "A weirdo in a tight suit leading several kids in the same attire, people would laugh it off. But if this weird guy is Bruce Wayne, then these kids... "
"Enough, get out."
Bang!
The door was slammed shut.
Jason, who had just stood up, noticed a different kind of terror in Batman.
"Jason, do me a favor." Bruce looked at him and said.
Jason stared back, then nodded seriously. Right now, what he saw in Batman made him understand that something was about to happen.
"Stop me a second before I kill."
Jason was stunned.