Chapter 831: The Charms of Education (Part 2) (Patreon)

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As night fell, a long-absent figure emerged atop a towering building, accompanied by a smaller, more slender silhouette.

These two figures leaped between the buildings. The first figure wore a cape and had a powerful, agile physique, resembling a cheetah in motion. The second figure, although shorter and leaner, moved with graceful elegance, akin to a bird soaring through the skies.

"This is so cool!!!" Dick exclaimed as he ran and jumped. "I never knew running and leaping could be this much fun!"

"You can go even faster!" Batman shouted back. He then fired his grappling hook from his wrist, swinging to another rooftop. Dick followed suit, landing gracefully on the rooftop. He took a deep breath and looked down at the bustling city below.

He wasn't wearing a uniform, just regular sportswear and sweatpants, with a Robin mask covering his face. His eyes behind the mask shone brightly.

"This is amazing! I feel like there's an engine in my lungs, revving up and working at full throttle. It's a bit painful, but it's incredibly exhilarating!" Dick panted. "I thought I wasn't good at sports..."

Batman stood beside him, his dark suit turning him into a silhouette against the city lights. He said, "You have to move to understand how satisfying it is to deplete your energy."

"Yes, I can feel it!" Dick's mask glistened with excitement. "I want a uniform too, a black one like yours. That would be so cool!"

Batman fell silent for a moment before saying, "If you want that, you'd better start learning about how to make one and what you really want and need."

Dick seemed to want to change the subject. "So, what are we doing next? Are we going to fight criminals?"

"Yes, but in a more fundamental way."

Half an hour later, the two of them arrived at the top of the Living Hell building. Batman retrieved a notebook from his suit and handed it to Dick, saying, "Now, go around this area and count how many overpasses there are. Then report back to me."

Dick looked a bit puzzled as he held the notebook and pen. "Do we need to keep records when fighting criminals?"

"I mean, I'm asking you to go around here, make a circle, count the overpasses, and note down their structures and lengths if possible. Take a look at the traffic flow too if you can," Batman patiently reiterated. "You go south, I'll go north, and we'll meet back here in half an hour."

With that, Batman jumped off with another notebook, leaving Dick standing there, still baffled.

Count overpasses? What kind of strange task was this? Dick couldn't understand at all. He had imagined that his first mission with Batman would involve thrilling battles, clever schemes, and epic stories.

But this... circling Living Hell and counting bridges? Dick was completely puzzled.

However, he was still happy today. He had sneakily played with gymnastics equipment while Bruce wasn't at home, expecting Bruce to be angry and give him a lecture, maybe even make him do homework.

But to his surprise, Bruce not only let him play but also joined in and even helped him perform a perfect nine-roll. Now, they were out together, enjoying a ride. It was a dream-like life beyond his imagination.

So, even though he didn't understand, Dick did as he was told. He circled the southern half of Living Hell, counted all the overpasses, drew a diagram, and when he returned to the meeting point, he handed over his findings.

Batman opened the notebook and was somewhat surprised. Dick's notes were incredibly detailed. In addition to what he had requested, Dick had even calculated the minute-by-minute traffic flow and recorded both the common and current names of each overpass.

Closing the notebook, Batman coincidentally met Dick's eager gaze. His eyes were always so bright, containing a sense of anticipation. In that moment, Batman felt an inexplicable emotion growing within him.

Perhaps, he thought, this was the charm of education.

"This is the charm of education," Schiller's voice echoed. Jason lifted the side of his shirt, allowing Schiller to examine his wounds. As Schiller inspected him, he said, "Not only does theoretical knowledge teach you a lot, but practical experience does too. Practical experience guides you to think more deeply. And if you find yourself unable to understand, it means you lack some theoretical knowledge."

"The wound has completely healed, not even a scar remains. But I have to ask, how did you get this specific injury?" Schiller removed the cotton swab and led Jason to the office's guest area. They both sat on the sofa, and Jason picked up a glass of water and took a sip.

"Well," Jason began, "it's like this. Initially, my infiltration of the plan went smoothly. I managed to sneak into the hotel using a transport truck, but since I'd never used a carpet before, I didn't know which type would leave footprints. I accidentally left a footprint on the edge of the corridor carpet while walking."

Jason sighed and continued, "I was being cautious, but I still left a slight trace. Because my shoe size is completely different from that of an adult, it attracted the attention of the security personnel."

"They thought it was a child guest who had run out. They were worried about the hotel being held responsible if a child got injured, so they were extremely nervous."

"One of the security guards found me in the utility room. I had originally planned to hide there, waiting for Savage to come out through the door crack. But unexpectedly, he directly opened the door, startling me."

"My attire was different from the hotel guests' children, and I was wet from the rain. The security guard was very cautious and tried to escort me out. I noticed the gun at his waist, so I had to run."

"I darted out from his side, but he managed to grab my arm. Before he heard any noise from the utility room, he had a dagger in his hand. When he swung it back, I got cut..."

Jason shook his head and said, "The difference in size between us was just too great. He was probably twice my weight, and I couldn't face him head-on, so I had to run."

"But it was also because I acted too hastily without careful reconnaissance. If I had discovered it earlier, maybe things wouldn't have turned out this way."

Schiller also took a sip of water and said, "Did I ever tell you how to subdue someone when there's a significant size difference?"

Jason turned his head with interest and said, "Professor, you know about this too? Well, you don't really look like someone who fights..."

"That's true. I don't prefer to solve problems with violence, but when it comes to self-defense, there are techniques."

Jason stared at him with eager eyes and said, "That's great! Professor, if you can teach me, I can go back and teach the other children in my gang. They're fine with street fights against other kids, but if they encounter adults, they can't escape..."

Schiller smiled again and brought his umbrella closer. Then Jason saw Schiller undo the straps of the umbrella. The strap seemed to be alive, fastened to the umbrella's canopy with buttons, and could be detached as a separate piece.

Schiller took both ends of the umbrella strap and pulled it straight. He said, "I once saw a case..."

"A little girl who had been abused by her father for a long time, malnourished and with very little strength, managed to kill her father with a shoelace..."

"Jason, do you know? When a person is sitting on the backrest of a sofa, if their neck aligns at the correct angle with the top of the backrest, it's absolutely impossible for them to break free if a rope is looped around them from behind."

Just as Jason was about to say something, Schiller handed him the umbrella strap. "If you ever need to tie something with an umbrella, it's a good choice. Just remember not to lose it."

Jason took the strap, looked at its silky sheen, and his throat moved. But in the end, he didn't say anything. Schiller asked, "You mentioned earlier that you were contemplating something. What's on your mind?"

"I... When I heard Bruce say that 'the old order needs to step aside,' I was deeply shaken."

"I've thought about this countless times, but I didn't know who to say it to. I wanted to say that these damn orders that exploit us should die, they should have been overthrown long ago, but I never said it..."

"Why?" Schiller asked.

"Because I didn't know how to express it, this thing about the old order. I didn't know how to put it into words, maybe because my grammar isn't good enough. I couldn't think of all the right words..." Jason frowned. "I always felt that there must be a word in this world that could express what I wanted to say, but I didn't know what it was."

"In that case, you should definitely read more books," Schiller said. "You can tell me in simpler terms what you want to express, and I can help you find books."

With that, he stood up and walked over to the bookshelf, using his finger to search along the spines of the books. "Philosophy... sociology... maybe you need this one?" Schiller suggested.

Jason sat on the sofa, lost in thought, and said, "Ever since I took over the Red Hood Gang, there was a gang member who broke a child's leg just because the kid got too close to him while picking up cigarette butts."

"From that moment on, I felt angry, but others just said it had nothing to do with us and that staying alive was already good enough. He shouldn't have picked up cigarette butts, they said, but I was really furious."

"This anger drove me to want to shout, but I didn't have the words to express my feelings. When I heard that kid scream, all I wanted was for those who bullied us to disappear."

"But I understand. Things aren't that simple. If I were to take some extreme actions, others would be affected as well. All the children would suffer. I can lead the Red Hood Gang to move from one place to another, but elsewhere, we'd still be bullied. We could keep moving, but we'd always be wandering. Can't we find a stable place where everyone has enough to eat and no one gets bullied?"

"I expressed my thoughts, but no one agreed with me. They all said it was already good enough, that everyone had gone through the same thing. Some even said that I should never let others hear me say these things, or we'd all be in trouble..."

Schiller's hand stopped searching for books, and he stood still. He glanced at his watch, then said, "Afternoon classes are about to start. I may have to go ahead. You can continue searching here."

With that, he left without looking back. Jason keenly caught certain keywords in Schiller's tone. After Schiller left, he got up and walked to the bookshelf.

He noticed that one book had been slightly pulled out, wedged at an angle between other books. Jason looked left and right, then reached out and pulled that book out.

He opened the book, and on the first page, it read:

"A specter is haunting Europe..."

[Read at www.patreon.com/shanefreak, and thanks for the invaluable support!]

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Next Chapter>>Chapter 832: Red Hood (Part 1)