Chapter 749: Theater Murder Case (Part 2) (Patreon)

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Gordon stared at Bruce for a moment before patting his shoulder. "Alright, I acknowledge that I was a bit too harsh in my advice earlier. I know you're a good person, always trying to help others. You shouldn't be on the run."

"Come on, Bruce, this is a matter of life and death," Gordon continued. "Angelica Troupe has only been in Gotham for a few days, and the most famous actress in the troupe has been murdered. She had many fans, and we owe the public an explanation."

"Besides..." Gordon sighed. "Vicky had an excellent reputation in the industry. Everyone said she was a beautiful and talented actress. If she had chosen to pursue a career in Hollywood, she would have achieved great success."

"We can't stand by while an innocent life is taken, Bruce. You should be able to analyze some clues, shouldn't you?"

"I..." Bruce's arm trembled slightly. He didn't feel the constriction of the sturdy armament or the resistance of his cape billowing in the wind. There was no mask on his face, no weapons at his waist, and, more importantly, no one here was expecting Batman to appear.

He was no longer Batman.

Many fragmented clues circled in his mind, but he couldn't connect them into a coherent logic. Something was hindering his thoughts, and Bruce realized it was his own memories as Bruce Wayne.

Lavish living, absurd chaos, and a lack of achievement—this was Bruce Wayne, an irredeemable fool and a rotten person. Ten years ago, he couldn't save his parents, and today, he couldn't save anyone.

Seeing Bruce's lack of response, Gordon stomped his foot. "Please, besides you, I really don't know who else to turn to... Oh, I really didn't want to go to him!"

Seeing Bruce lost in his daze, Gordon sighed in frustration. After a moment, he called over an officer and said, "Make a phone call and have Professor come over, you know who I'm talking about."

In Schiller's Manor, Schiller was having dinner with Aisha.

He pointed at the remaining broccoli on the plate with his fork, but Aisha shook her head. Schiller pointed again, and this time, Aisha made a sad expression but picked up the broccoli with her fork and put it in her mouth.

Just then, Merkel approached. "Gotham Police Department called. There's been a murder case, and Chief Gordon would like you to go over."

Schiller got up, and Aisha's gaze followed him as he walked away. As soon as he turned his back, she spat out the broccoli.

Schiller walked to the telephone and asked Merkel, "What's going on? Where has the murder occurred?"

"It's not clear yet, but I heard a lot of background noise on the phone, so it might be in a crowded place."

Schiller frowned and picked up the telephone receiver that was placed nearby. He said, "...What did you say? Gotham Grand Theater? Angelica Troupe's leading actress?... Bruce is there too?... Anyone else? Alright, I got it..."

After hanging up the phone, Schiller turned to Merkel and said, "Watch over Aisha. Make sure she finishes her vegetables. I might not be back for the entire night."

With that, he took an umbrella and left the manor.

When he arrived at Gotham Grand Theater, it was pouring rain, and the old theater looked even more weathered under the relentless downpour.

Schiller entered the theater, and the receptionist at the front desk came over to help him with his umbrella. Seeing that Schiller insisted on keeping his umbrella, the receptionist reluctantly wiped it dry.

On the third floor, the police had set up a perimeter. Gordon approached Schiller and gave him a hug. "I'm really sorry to always call you in so late, but I don't know what it is—every murder seems to happen only after dinner."

"Perhaps reasoning always takes place after dinner," Schiller shook his head. "But maybe this will be the most sorrowful murder case for me, as I had high expectations for their performance."

At that moment, the theater troupe's manager approached and shook hands with Schiller. Hearing Schiller's words, he explained, "No, Macbeth will go on as scheduled. Vicky was not part of the Macbeth cast. There wasn't a suitable role for her in this play, as the leading actress is older and will be played by a more mature actress."

Schiller furrowed his brow and asked, "Was this arrangement made in advance, or was it changed last minute due to Miss Vicky's unfortunate demise?"

"It was planned in advance," the manager replied. "In all the dozens of Macbeth performances we've done, Miss Vicky has never played the leading role."

Schiller nodded and turned to Gordon. "What about Bruce? Didn't you say someone identified him as the first person to discover the body?"

Gordon led Schiller forward and said, "I was just about to tell you about that. His mental state doesn't seem quite right. You should see him..."

As they entered a room, Bruce was sitting inside. His expression had returned to normal, no longer vacant, but Schiller could still see that his mental state was not good.

After Gordon helped Schiller open the door and left, he said, "Professor, are you going to give me a treatment?"

"No, I just wanted to say that if you feel like you're not in a good state right now, you should go and rest. I'll handle this case," Schiller replied.

Bruce hesitated for a moment, then turned his head to stare at Schiller. He noticed Schiller was writing something on a medical record. Bruce bit his lip and said, "That night... that night, I must have said something, whatever it was, it was just drunken rambling..."

Schiller continued to write while looking down. "I don't remember what you said."

After finishing writing, he put down the pen and looked at Bruce. "You look very unwell. You should go back and rest."

Schiller examined Bruce for a moment and said, "I know there must be some emotions driving you to do what you did. But if you're really feeling upset, you can take a few days off. Everything will get better."

With that, Schiller got up and left the room. Bruce sat in his chair, somewhat incredulous.

Bruce knew that Schiller was someone who disliked noise and had strict expectations for his students. If someone in his class got drunk, drove recklessly in the middle of the night, and got caught by him, the consequences would be terrifying.

But now, Schiller was merely advising him to go rest and even suggesting that he take a few days off. It was almost unimaginable.

Why was it like this? Bruce didn't understand.

Batman's reputation had already been tarnished, and Bruce hadn't done any better. He hadn't made any progress, hadn't become more perfect, and had even created a mess of rotten incidents. But this professor, who was known for his strictness, didn't give him a hard time.

Schiller didn't bring up a slew of questions that Batman couldn't answer, didn't disturb his thoughts, didn't pressure him for results, and didn't express dissatisfaction over the incident with Aisha, which happened without an appointment.

And even though Schiller knew he was the first eyewitness to this case, he directly ruled out his suspicion. Bruce was left baffled.

As Bruce sat in the chair, deep in thought, Gordon pushed the door open and said, "There's a call from Wayne Manor for you. Someone named Selena wants to speak to you."

Bruce looked up at Gordon, and Gordon spread his hands and said, "I'm not worried you'll go into hiding, so you can go back for now. Just make sure to come back before the interrogation."

"Did she... say anything specific?" Bruce asked.

Gordon shook his head, and Bruce left the room. Gordon assigned an officer to escort him back to Wayne Manor.

As soon as Bruce entered Wayne Manor, he saw Selena standing there, with Dick by her side.

Selena noticed Bruce's return and briskly approached, berating him, "Bruce, what were you thinking? Why did you leave Dick at school all by himself? Did you forget to pick him up after his classes?"

Bruce didn't respond, but Selena continued her scolding, "Around 3 o'clock this afternoon, I suddenly received a call from Dick's school. His teacher said he called home, but there was no answer. Thanks to you leaving my contact information, Dick didn't have to wait at school all night."

Bruce remembered that Alfred had gone to the hospital, and he had spent the whole afternoon there. It must have been at that time when Dick called Wayne Manor, and there was no answer.

At this point, Dick stepped forward and looked up at Bruce, asking, "Mr. Wayne, what's going on? And where's Alfred?"

Bruce lowered his head and said, "Why did you suddenly want to come back?"

"Because Wednesday is a day to come home too," Dick replied. "Um... Did I come back at the wrong time?"

"You..." Bruce paused and asked him, "Aren't you angry anymore?"

"Angry? Why would I be angry?" Dick looked at Bruce in confusion. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he said, "Oh, I should be asking you, Mr. Wayne, are you not angry anymore? I didn't mean to bother you back then. I knew you were upset, and I shouldn't have... um..."

Bruce bent down, resting his hand on Dick's shoulder, and asked, "Then why did you hide at school and not come back?"

"I didn't hide at school because I was afraid of making you angry. I had only planned to stay at school for one night, but then the teacher said that if I didn't come back on Monday, I couldn't come back until Tuesday at the earliest. So I stayed for two days and came back," Dick shrugged. "So, did I come back at the wrong time?"

Bruce looked at him and asked, "...Aren't you angry anymore?"

Dick paused for a moment and then showed a puzzled expression. Dick turned to Bruce and said, "Mr. Wayne, no matter what you mean, I think Aisha has probably forgotten it already. Her memory is really bad."

Bruce gently put Aisha down and stood in the center of Wayne Manor. He felt like he was caught in a whirlwind.

Everything seemed like a dream, but his previous alarms didn't go off, confirming that this was reality.

He had messed everything up, yet he hadn't received any blame for it.

Gordon had not doubted him at all and had even told him to go home first. Schiller had changed from his usual strict self and advised him to rest. Selena wasn't angry; she had even helped him bring Dick back. Dick didn't seem like he wanted to avoid him, and Aisha had completely forgotten about the incident.

To Batman, it seemed like a big deal, but to them, it was just a minor friction of everyday life that no one cared about or remembered.

And when he reverted to being the useless Bruce Wayne, unable to prevent the murder, unable to provide any useful clues, unable to solve the case with clever deductive reasoning, and unable to bring the murderer to justice, he still felt forgiven by everyone.

As Merkel lit the fireplace, standing in the center of the hall with the flickering flames, Bruce realized for the first time.

Apart from himself, no one cared if he was perfect.

No one was disappointed that they had lost the perfect Batman.

So, what was he disappointed about?

Bruce felt that as the lights in the hall were lit again, and the flames of the fireplace burned brightly, he was once again enveloped in warmth.

A string that had been stretched tightly and constantly plucked like a death knell had suddenly loosened.

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