"We have a bit of a new situation here, you might want to come take a look."
Shiller put down the fork in his other hand and, with an apologetic gesture to Xi Wana across the table, took his phone to the restroom.
"What happened, Chief?"
Shiller asked this because he heard panic in Gordon's tone.
About an hour earlier, during a plea bargaining session, Officer Clay had inexplicably gone mad and even attacked other police officers maintaining order, and Gordon had shot him dead on the spot.
In Gotham, let alone in other American cities, if someone dared to openly attack another person in court, the police would certainly empty their magazines, especially since Clay had exhibited an extremely unstable mental state with a very strong desire to attack, and all this had been captured by the court's surveillance cameras.
So even though Gordon had shot a man dead, his report didn't need to be more than three pages long, and Clay's body, after being rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment, should have been directly sent to the hospital morgue.
Having mixed in this city for so many years, Gordon was not the kind of person who felt scared from shooting someone dead, even if it was a former comrade. So what was going on now?
Shiller calmed Gordon down and, after a long silence on the other end of the phone, Gordon said, "Clay has come back."
"What?"
"He's back at work."
"You mean the Gotham Police Department is haunted?"
"No, he's not a ghost. He's a person. He just came back and seemed surprised that I was still at the Gotham Police Department instead of attending classes at the Metropolitan Police Academy, behaving like a normal person."
Shiller furrowed his brow deeply and after a brief contemplation said, "Don't tell him what happened recently, just find a normal excuse to fob him off, and I'll come take a look later."
"No problem, we haven't had time to issue the obituary yet, and the vast majority of the police don't know what happened. Those who do know have already been placated by me."
"Okay, then that's the plan, I'll come over after I finish eating."
With a thoughtful expression, Shiller walked back to the dining table. Xi Wana noticed something was off with Shiller at first glance. Setting his utensils down and leaning forward, he looked at Shiller and asked, "What's going on, is there a problem?"
"There is indeed a bit of a problem," Shiller said with a smile: "Do you have some time later, Mr. Principal? Would you like to join me and take a look at a supernatural incident?"
"A supernatural incident?" Xi Wana's eyes widened in surprise, but he quickly composed himself and said with a smile, "Is this my entry exam?"
"Not exactly, though I think it's very likely not a haunting. If every anomaly in this city were treated as a supernatural phenomenon, then there wouldn't be many living people left."
Xi Wana nodded and said, "Indeed, when I first arrived, I also perceived the distinctiveness of this city as the warping of reality under some mysterious power influence, but after a thorough investigation, I realized it might have been an illusion."
"Actually, it wasn't. There was indeed an influence of mysterious powers before, but now it has gotten much better." Shiller picked up his utensils again, nodded at the waiter coming to serve the dishes, and moved his plate aside so that the waiter could place down the cream salmon.
"Let's talk about the Magic Academy instead," said Shiller, looking at Xi Wana through the gap under the waiter's arm and wiping his mouth with a napkin: "As I've said before, since your enemies are from the Magic realm, although gaining a status in the ordinary society can keep you safe, if you really want to gain a say, you'll have to start with the Magic realm."
"Forgive me for being blunt, but I have never heard of any Magic Academy," Xi Wana said with a slight frown: "After I acquired the power of the Seven Deadly Sins, I also investigated the Magic realm, and what I learned is that the educational form in the Magic realm is apprenticeship, where Grand Mages have Mage Towers, and apprentices study and work there…"
"That's ancient history," Shiller said: "I think you haven't paid attention to the Magic realm recently. The number of Human magicians has decreased considerably, and Grand Mages are almost completely extinct."
"Did some sort of terrible disaster happen?"
"You could say it was their own fault," said Shiller, not mentioning that his own banquet had virtually wiped out the remaining living forces of the Magic realm.
Shiller gave Xi Wana a brief explanation of the principles of magic and the vampire invasion incident, saying, "The Rock of Eternity is remote, but just like other isolated spaces, it's cut off from the world, so it wasn't affected by this turmoil. Your enemy should still be alive."
"Of course, he's alive," Xi Wana said with a somber expression: "And he's not content with his powers slipping away. He even found himself a successor."
Shiller knew that the successor Xi Wana mentioned was Shazam, but as of now, there was no trace of Shazam on Earth; probably there was still some time before he made his debut.
"So after that catastrophe, your organization established a new Magic Academy to train real magicians?" Xi Wana asked tentatively: "Are you sure it won't repeat the same mistakes?"
"It's more like establishing new industry standards," Shiller explained: "Although the essence of magic is still about making deals, it's like evolving from the barter system of ancient society to modern currency transactions. Each piece of power has a clear price, everything is open and transparent."
"Smart people can use their wisdom for negotiation, trying to secure more benefits for themselves, and mean people can tamper with the terms to swindle more energy, but without going overboard, and overall, it's still fair."
"How is that accomplished?" asked Xi Wana, showing keen interest: "The trading partners for power should be Devils, right?"
"Yes, and Angels. Some of them are tired of the incessant deception and strife and decided to change the game, to see if order could bring them more benefits."
"Who ensures fairness?"
"Some beings are absolutely beyond provocation," Shiller said, "such as the Archangels and Satan."
Xi Wana clicked his tongue, not expecting the hierarchy of power to be mentioned at such a high level. After pondering for a moment, he said, "Do angels really exist in this world? Can I meet them?"
"I know you want to ask why the angels, who are portrayed as saviors in myths, completely ignored your suffering, but I can only tell you that myths heavily idealize them."
Shiller shook his head and said, "They are not the saviors of the human race but administrators of the cosmos. Their only responsibility is to ensure the cosmos operates smoothly, and they don't concern themselves with anything else."
Xi Wana found this explanation more acceptable. He nodded and said, "Then what about the devils? Is their purpose to disrupt the stability of the cosmos?"
"They are one family," Shiller said. "You could think of them as two departments in the same company, and their good or bad image is purely the speculation of humans. Devils are not necessarily cunning, and angels are not necessarily kind, and neither will offer help to humans without reason."
Xi Wana sighed and remarked, "It's a harsh reality."
"Indeed, it is. So, what do you say? Will you accept my invitation?" Shiller also leaned slightly forward, fixing his eyes on Xi Wana. "Become the headmaster of the Magic Academy, or rather, the only and certainly the best one."
"From then on, the vast majority of human magicians will be your apprentices. They will think of you as an excellent and wise headmaster, a guide in their lives, and you indeed have the ability to fulfill this role."
"On the day of the Magic realm's revival, you will have an infinite number of apprentices. Regardless of how many heirs your enemies have found in the Rock of Eternity, only you will have the power to define the discourse of the Magic realm."
Xi Wana felt his heart pounding.
"But you know, the magic I use is actually..."
"Actually the seven deadly sins? Who told you that it was the seven deadly sins?"
This question confused Xi Wana. He looked at Shiller and said, "Haven't you already taken it? Could it be that you..."
"Compared to the real seven deadly sins, the thing now inside my umbrella isn't even worth mentioning," Shiller shook his head. "Who, in mythological stories, represents the Original Sin of Pride?"
"Uh, Lucifer?"
"And do you know what role Lucifer is?"
"Isn't he a fallen angel?"
"That's outdated news. He is God's most beloved eldest son, now the only Archangel in Heaven, and in the grand scheme of the cosmos, his status is second only to God, truly one step beneath."
Xi Wana swallowed hard.
"And Beelzebub, who represents gluttony, is now a notable Demon King in Hell, commanding endless demon armies. It's not just him, but even one of his demon generals wouldn't be trapped in the tiny Rock of Eternity."
"Of course, I'm referring to the origins of the seven deadly sins. The power inside my umbrella is also a form of the seven deadly sins, but it is more like a physical representation of power derived from them. It's strong to the ordinary person, but for a magician, it's nothing special."
"If I choose to become the headmaster of Gotham Magic Academy, will you give me back that power?"
Shiller rubbed his forehead and said, "I took away that power precisely to have you become the headmaster of Gotham Magic Academy… No, what I mean is not that I did it just to threaten you."
Shiller sighed and continued, "Your family owns a company, right? You don't really need the money, but did you use your company's money when you were managing Gotham University?"
"Of course not," Xi Wana said somewhat indignantly. "The company I own is involved in biotechnology and pharmaceutical research, and it's not even on the East Coast, completely unrelated to Gotham University."
"That's exactly the point. You're there to be a headmaster, not to box with demons. You don't need to be a magician. Or, if you're always thinking about being a magician and fighting with others, how can you be a good headmaster?"
"But it is a Magic Academy, after all," Xi Wana said. "Don't we need to use magic in everyday teaching and work?"
"Absolutely not. I've never needed to," Shiller replied.
Xi Wana appeared hesitant. He wasn't so much worried that Shiller would covet that bit of power, because when he opened the freezer compartment, he understood that not just Shiller, but even the ingredients stuffed in the freezer weren't on the same level of power as him; he was far inferior to them.
"Besides, you can't control that power properly." Shiller had to make himself clearer, "Not just that one, but also the powers you desire. You simply don't have a talent for magic."
Xi Wana's face turned unpleasant. Shiller sighed again and said, "Why do you believe you have a talent for magic? Why do you think it's a given?"
"Of course, it's because back then..."
"Back then your enemy chose you, but doesn't his subsequent rejection and belittlement of you prove that he was blind?"
Xi Wana had no reply.