Jenna couldn't hold back her laughter, but seeing the hostile looks around her, she struggled to compose herself and said, "Cough, I've never mentioned anything about monkeys."
"My point is, it's very likely that a decision he has made will prevent him from committing crimes for a long time to come—he's aware of this. So, even though the timing isn't ripe and he can't create the perfect work, he still wants to get his fix."
"That's why he's feeling both satisfied and frustrated. Various conditions are limiting him, preventing the creation of a perfect work, yet knowing he won't be able to act later, he decides to just do it regardless of perfection—this is what he's thinking."
"Then why do you think he won't be able to act later?" Shiller asked.
Jenna stroked her chin, understanding that the true challenge had begun, because if she could figure out this part, they could essentially lock down the murderer.
Jenna stared at the photo for several seconds and said, "It's peculiar, I can sense a bizarre sense of dark humor in these works—it's as if he's reflecting something. Professor, have you heard of any other cases related to this one?"
"Do you think there should be?"
"He must be resonating with something, possibly other cases, perhaps a location, or even a name."
"Why do you feel that way?"
"Placing something tall and vertical in the middle of a flat field carries a strong exhibitionist motive, even a sort of provocation."
"Totem?"
"Yes, akin to a totem in primitive societies, attracting attention is the mission of such structures." Jenna's speed of speech slowed down, clearly reaching her limit.
"This means he is provoking something. Considering the victims' identities, he's likely challenging the law enforcement agencies."
"The best way to provoke law enforcers is to mock their incompetence—as if to say, 'I've placed the answer right before your eyes, and yet you can't figure out who I am.'"
"So I believe this is not his first crime. He definitely has engaged with the law before, then he echoes something from his past with this current crime, telling the answer to the law enforcers in another way, taunting them, saying that even when I give you the answer, you still can't understand."
Shiller laughed, gently placing the lecture notes down, and looking around said, "I believe some people here may have heard that there's a super villain named Scarecrow in Gotham."
The classroom erupted into noise.
Jenna's eyes also lit up; this meant that her deduction must be correct, but she hadn't expected Shiller to still be testing her.
"From a case long ago, I've had dealings with him. So tell me, Miss, what kind of person is Scarecrow?"
Jenna felt sweat forming on her forehead, knowing Shiller's relationship with Scarecrow was probably not just a simple interaction, which meant any slight deviation in her judgment could lead to a great disappointment from the Professor.
Jenna could even feel the wind whipped up by her rapidly working brain, and she had to breathe through the narrow gaps between these air currents.
The high tension made her focus sharper, as if she had jumped straight into the sea from a very high place. She felt herself surrounded by a multitude of emotional information.
"Scarecrow is a rather arrogant person, supremely arrogant, but he is also cowardly, filled with a spirit of escapism, he believes he can defeat anyone, but does not believe he can triumph over anyone face-to-face; he is a... very contradictory person."
"This kind of contradiction leads to a tearing within himself. When he succeeds behind someone's back through sneaky attacks, he takes pride in his wisdom, yet realizes he is but a pitiful coward who dares not confront others directly. He loves and hates himself, this almost tears him apart."
"And this inner conflict has the greatest impact on his psyche, turning him into an extreme person. To avoid the various issues of his self-contradiction, he would throw himself into something, attempting to forget his mental agony."
"That pursuit is very likely to be something he excels at; he has mastered a certain skill and has reached the pinnacle in that area, which makes him more arrogant but also more cowardly, causing him more pain."
"He is like this in almost every aspect: fully committed, then achieving success through his exceptional talents, but not entirely content, more likely to fall into more intense conflict. A strong sense of contradiction is his unique psychological trait."
Shiller finally smiled, then he said, "Good, now let's put this reasoning into practice. How do you think we should find him?"
"I don't know what he used to be good at." Jenna said, "It might be mathematics or literature. These are too broad and impossible to start with. But at least we know from this Scarecrow case that what he's most interested in recently is murder."
"Without a doubt, he has been completely absorbed in this work for the past year. Of course, this does not mean he has been killing for a year; he might also be studying various murder cases, learning various ways to commit murder."
"At the same time, he is very proud of his own modus operandi. This is the arrogant side of his personality. He will definitely look at all those reports that lambast him, and this will satisfy his vanity."
"So, I think that if someone recklessly judges this murder case, I mean if they make a messy analysis or outright lump it together with unrelated murder cases, saying someone else did it, he will definitely be very angry."
"To clear his name, he will certainly take some measures. But considering the cowardly part of his personality, he won't confront directly, won't engage in a verbal battle in reports or public opinion, but will avoid the sharp edge and take other actions."
"What do you think that is?"
"He will commit another crime," Jenna said with certainty. "But since he himself believes he cannot commit crimes again for the time being, it proves that his current environment is not at all suitable for him to do so. If he acts rashly, he will definitely endanger himself."
"In that case, if he is provoked by public opinion and risks making a move, he will certainly expose flaws or might even walk right into our trap without us having to actively search or apprehend him."
"Well said, miss." Shiller led the applause, and the classroom also erupted in applause, yet at that moment, Jenna saw the fangs revealed by Shiller.
"So for today's homework, write a scattered analysis of the Scarecrow serial killings aimed at forcing Scarecrow to expose a flaw. I will publish these reports through the Gotham police and other law enforcement agencies."
"If Scarecrow does reveal a flaw because of these articles, it is naturally the same as you catching the murderer—a great victory."
The students cheered and then all turned to look at Jenna because if this method really succeeded, it would mean Jenna's analysis was completely accurate. Could the murderer really be caught through such an arcane method?
And yet Jenna felt that it was far from being that simple.