The autumn evening carried a distinctive coolness. The leaves of the dense rows of French sycamore trees swayed gently in the breeze before falling, creating a thick carpet of leaves in the garden. Dew dampened the top layer, pressing down the rest of the leaves, turning the ground into a soft, golden pathway.
Shiller was at his manor desk, making a final confirmation of the replies to the party's invitations. These important documents, neatly arranged at the center of the table, determined the actual headcount of attendees.
The invitation replies that Shiller had already looked through were neatly placed on his left, and the five or six he was currently reading were spread out in front of him. He had to wear a monocle to switch between near and far sight, confirming the arrival times marked on the letters in his hand and those on the table.
Guests could not all arrive at the same time, otherwise, some would be left waiting, and the steps at the entrance needed to be swept clean between arrivals to avoid footprints.
For this reason, Shiller marked a suggested arrival time on each invitation, and the guests responded with whether they could arrive at this proposed time. If not, they would note whether they intended to arrive earlier or later, and Shiller would then adjust the order of arrivals accordingly.
Most guests had no objections to the time arrangements, while some had prior engagements which necessitated later arrivals. Others, arriving in pairs or looking to avoid certain guests, requested staggered arrival times.
Actually, all these arrangements had been made three days prior. This was just the final confirmation. There were indeed guests who would call off their trips in the last few hours before the party.
By the time Shiller finished reading the last few letters, the sun had started to set. Shiller sighed with some fatigue, walked over to the telephone, picked up the receiver and asked, "How is Lex doing with the preparations?"
"Everything is almost ready, Sir," Merkel's voice came from the other end of the telephone line. He was assisting Lex with his bowtie.
Lex was wearing a traditional British tailcoat tuxedo, adorned with dark grey-blue satin on the buttons, lapels, pocket outlines and trouser sides, a black silk bowtie, and a white boutonniere and pocket square.
He was currently adjusting his bowtie in front of a mirror, while Merkel was polishing his Oxfords.
Knock, knock, knock.
The heavy knocking at the door sounded. Lex turned his head, and Merkel also looked up as Shiller pushed the door and walked in.
"Professor," Lex nodded slightly as he fixed his bowtie. Merkel got up and walked over, saying, "Everything is ready, Sir. I'll clean the leaves from the parking lot one last time shortly, and then we'll be ready to welcome the guests."
"When will Cobblepot arrive?"
Merkel glanced at his watch and said, "He should arrive in half an hour according to the original plan, take about 20 minutes to prepare, and then the welcoming arrangements should be all set within an hour."
Shiller nodded, then looked at his own watch, saying, "I need about 40 minutes to change my clothes. If Cobblepot arrives early—which I suspect he might—let him wait in the parlor for a bit, or you can show him the welcoming route."
"Don't worry, Sir, everything will arrive on schedule."
Shiller sighed slightly, saying, "I know it's a bit of a hassle, but consider this a trial. Guests from various universes will be participating in Gotham's grand event. This banquet will allow them to get to know each other, which will enable them to communicate better, gradually fitting into the atmosphere."
Then he turned his gaze to Lex and said, "We should have celebrated your graduation in a more private manner. I'm sorry for this."
"Please don't feel obligated, Professor," Lex approached him and said, "For me personally, I would much prefer a warm family gathering. But for the Luther Group, a grand ceremony is just the tonic we need. It's my honor."
Shiller looked at Lex, reflecting on a recent conversation where he learned that Lex's graduation project was already complete and his degree was just a matter of time. Shiller and Victor had discussed Lex's academic issues during their lunch break.
He had to admit, Lex's strategy was entirely correct.
He wasn't like Bruce, who insisted on answering physics and chemistry questions on a psychology exam. Rather, when Shiller gave him a psychology test, he would turn to Victor with questions he didn't understand. Likewise, if Victor gave him a physics test, Lex would confront him with the difficulties he encountered during his solution attempts.
Specifically, when building a device to disperse clouds, he would discuss his research ideas with Shiller, and when the device turned out to be effective, he would discuss with Victor the impacts of Gotham regaining sunlight on city policies and individual citizens.
Both professors had opinions on these matters too, but Lex usually did not ask deeply professional questions, and instead would offer general discussions.
For instance, he would discuss with Shiller whether it was better to block or eliminate the clouds, whether to make structural changes on a macro level, or to carry out fine adjustments on a micro level. They could easily talk about this for two to three hours, without getting bored or running out of things to say.
He would chat with Victor about new policies introduced after sunlight returned to Gotham, express his evaluation of these policies, and often tell amusing anecdotes about Gothamites' various reactions to seeing the sun again. These conversations would often last an entire afternoon, with a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere.
This could not exactly be called academic discussion, as it had very little to do with professional knowledge. However, during these exchanges, the views that Lex put forward were completely indicative of his professional level to Shiller and Victor.
This led to a unanimous consensus between Shiller and Victor in their discussion after Lex was nearly finished with his project. They agreed that although the approach was somewhat clever, it also showed the strength of Lex's professional abilities.
Because he did not receive specialized guidance in the appropriate technical fields, did not learn any physics techniques from Victor, nor did he ask Shiller to guide his sociological papers, yet he still successfully completed his graduation project and graduation thesis. This indicates that he is not only outstanding but also very independent.
In Victor and Shiller's view, geniuses should be like this. They don't actually require a lot of guidance. With just some basic theory, they can establish towering buildings and even boldly innovate based on this foundation.
Most importantly, Lex's mind has been clear from beginning to end. He has faced difficulties, but he replenishes his energy in a normal manner when faced with frustration and joy of making a breakthrough, going out to relax, talking to friends, and then starting anew.
No teacher wouldn't appreciate such a student, including Shiller and Victor, especially Shiller and Victor, because the independent students of Gotham has left a profound impact on their short teaching career.
They then unanimously believe that it is necessary to increase the concentration of "normal people" in this city. They hope Lex Luthor would stay in Gotham.
But this is actually not easy, let alone establishing a long-term connection with the city is difficult. The foundation of the Luther Group is in Metropolis, and there can't be two mega-groups in a city; thus, Lex has to revert eventually.
However, it can be imagined that the recent years have been crucial for Gotham's transition, and the more assistance, the better.
After returning, Shiller seriously pondered the issue. Although motivated by self-interest, he indeed feels that the original Shiller owes Lex.
That night in Metropolis, Lex's father Lionel did not have to die. Though Shiller wished to manipulate Lionel's suicidal behavior, evidently, Lex might be fragile, but he doesn't need saving.
Or rather, individuals like them could inevitably save themselves sooner or later. Lionel could have lived a little longer, perhaps would have handed the Luther Group into Lex's hands in a more stable manner, as it should have been in the comics.
Shiller's interference, however, put a relatively young Lex under huge pressure, forcing him to just freshly recovering from drugs, doing everything to stabilize the company's shareholders, grabbing the biggest piece of meat among a group of hungry wolves. He could have done so with greater maturity and better preparation.
Shiller gave him a push, whether it was good or bad, but unquestionably, it changed his life trajectory. If it wasn't for the original Shiller's actions changing Lex's life trajectory, he wouldn't have chosen to apply to Gotham University and come here.
Although Shiller didn't actually do this, just like inheritance law, if you inherit the wealth, you also have to inherit the debts. Once you have accepted the borrowed power from others, naturally, you have to help clean up the mess.
The good news is Lex Luther is not such a mess; he's a lot more normal than Batman, except that he is somewhat extreme when it comes to human supremacy, everything else is fine.
But Shiller has seen even more extreme human supremacists. If Strange were on Earth, he would probably have replaced the whole Himalayas with Kryptonite.
It can be surmised that at that time, Shiller himself was facing some troubles. He was trying his best to break the situation. Such a strong person in full force would definitely create great shock to any bystanders who witnessed it all.
Therefore, Lex had always had a type of reverence for Shiller, founded on actual strength. Although he didn't say it explicitly, Shiller could of course analyze this, and he could analyze more. The only thing was, he was always hesitant about whether to be honest with Lex.
Eventually, he decided to have a talk with Lex, because evidently Lex was not a noncommunicative, mental patient. Communication helps any normal person to clarify his relationship with others.
It was a similar autumn afternoon. After Lex had submitted the last of his graduation project materials to Victor, Shiller, just finishing his first lecture of the afternoon, stopped him at the door to his office.
"Good afternoon, Lex. Are you free tonight?"
Lex looked back at Victor somewhat confusedly, but he said, "Yes, I'm free, Professor. Is there a problem with my thesis? If you point it out now, I can probably send the revised version to your mailbox before 3 pm."
Undoubtedly, the graduation season was also torturous for Shiller. This statement, among the incessant, intractable emails sent by the graduating underclassmen, was exceptionally pleasing to the ear, making Shiller feel much better.
"No, there's no problem with the paper at all. I'll sign your graduation records by tomorrow at the latest. Within the week, you'll get your degree certificate."
"What I want to talk about is something else, and I hope we can have enough time to discuss it. If it's okay with you, let's meet at the Rodriguez Manor at 7 pm tonight; I will arrange dinner."
"A banquet?"
"No, just a simple meal, just the two of us."
"All right, Professor, I will visit on time."