Days as a Spiritual Mentor in American Comics

"For this assignment, I have to give a special mention to Mr. Robert. His argument on emotional dissection analysis strongly aligns with the theory I explained in class. Of course, Ms. Hoff wrote the most words. However, I must say, word count does not equate to the quality of work. I would be more pleased if you could concisely articulate your argument in 3000 words or less."

"And as expected, there is still one person who didn't turn in their assignment. Mr. Wayne, please come to my office after class. If you do not intend to complete your assignment, I don't think you need to take the final exam. After all, without any homework grades, even if you took the exam, you certainly wouldn't earn any credits for the semester."

Shiller closed the textbook in front of him and said, "Class dismissed."

Gotham University is located on the East Coast of the United States, where almost all renowned American universities like Harvard, MIT, Princeton, and others are situated.

Gotham University may not be a competitor of these schools. Although it is a state-recognized public university, it isn't an Ivy League institution. Plus, Gotham is infamous for its poor security. Barely any local American students would apply to this university. Even local Gothamites qualified for college would rather opt for better universities nearby.

Therefore, those who stay at Gotham University are either students who couldn't get into other universities or international students.

You can hardly expect them to have any impressive grades. Half of them are barely able to complete their assignments on time, given Shiller's notorious reputation.

However, that's not the main reason Gotham University doesn't rank high. After all, they have the strong financial support of the Wayne Family. Even if it's about splurging money, many top-notch professors could be hired. With the best professors and top-tier laboratory equipment, attracting high-end talent wouldn't be a problem. As for the security issue, as long as you don't leave Gotham University, it is relatively safe.

The problem lies with the principal of Gotham University, who always resists the excessive control of the Wayne Family. Don't presume him noble. Gotham University is his stepping stone in politics, and he isn't willing to hand over this fruit to the Wayne Family.

Thus, Gotham University has always been in a semi-dead state, which disappoints Shiller. He doesn't want his flawless track record stained by his teaching experience at a low-ranking school.

So no matter how chaotic Gotham gets, Shiller only wants to cultivate Gotham University. He's set himself a small target: to make Gotham University a member of the Ivy League.

All are universities in the northeast, and Gotham University's football team also has excellent performance. It wouldn't be too much to join the Ivy League, right?

Before that happens, it doesn't bother him if Batman and other criminals fight it out on the streets.

In the afternoon, when Bruce came to Shiller's office, he explained, "Professor, I did write the paper actually. I'll have my butler bring the flash drive over soon…"

"If you don't bring it, that means you didn't write it." Shiller said menacingly.

He knocked on the table, "If I can't do anything about Bruce not doing his homework, then others also won't be affected, right? After all, it's natural for someone from the Wayne Family to have certain privileges."

"But the billions of dollars you've donated to the school didn't land in my pocket. So if you don't finish your assignments, I'll deduct all your points, so you won't get your diploma."

Bruce said softly, "Actually, I already got my graduation certificate. The factory that prints the certificate is also owned by my family."

Shiller rubbed his forehead, saying, "Why am I even arguing with a goddamn rich kid like you… How's your investigation going?"

"Miss Christine did not leave Gotham University. She disappeared from within the school. But Jonathan had nothing to do with it because she disappeared after Jonathan got arrested."

"Do you have any suspects?" asked Shiller.

"Actually, the principal of Gotham University is a major suspect."

Before Shiller could question him, Bruce said, "I indeed don't have any proof that he kidnapped Christine. But the three jurors who actively advocated for Jonathan, and Jonathan's defense attorney, all belong to a notorious mob on the East Coast of Gotham, the Red Crow Gang."

"And the principal of Gotham University is friends with the boss of the gang. They once attended the mayor's banquet together. Most importantly, his daughter married the head of smuggling in the Red Crow Gang."

"But what role does Christine play in this story? As far as I know, she's just an ordinary girl, except for being pretty."

"I suspect Miss Christine might have overheard some of the principal's conspiracies concerning Jonathan."

Bruce put his arms on the table, frowning, "You know, the football league is about to start, and the cheerleading squad has a lot to handle. Their outfits for the new season have not been approved, and Christine was anxious about this. She decided to go to the principal. Maybe that's when she overheard something she shouldn't have."

"Do you have any proof?" Shiller asked.

"I think I'm no longer obsessed with evidence. Of course, I won't simply go to the principal because it might alert him."

Shiller said, "I suspect Miss Christine is still alive. You know, if the principal is the one who did it, it's unlikely he would directly kill Christine. The cheerleading squad can't replace the captain in such a short time. If there's a problem with the cheerleading squad, it would definitely affect the outcome of the football matches, and that's the only thing Gotham University can showcase, a part of the principle's personal record."

Bruce sighed, "Regardless, Miss Christine is innocent."

"Have you seen Gordon recently? How is his progress on this?"

"Not so good, I was hoping if I could find Miss Christine, have her testify and accuse them of trying to dodge their guilt, then perhaps Jonathan could end up in prison."

"Actually, have you ever thought about this? If Jonathan was sentenced to prison, it does not necessarily have to be Gotham Prison."

"You want me to build a private prison?"

Shiller didn't reply but stood up and said, "So, for each criminal that you capture, do you plan to follow the same process?"

"Or do you find it interesting to deal with them within this unfair judicial system?"

"If you had the time, not just the Morson district but the mob in the surrounding two or three districts could be dealt with."

"Which things Batman should do, you know better than me, Bruce."

Bruce left with his worries again.

Shiller still had a problem to solve, which was if Jonathan ended up in prison, no matter which one, the source of the fear gas would become unstable. The fear gas he had would run out one day, and he didn't have the formula, let alone know how to make it. It would be a shame if such a useful weapon disappeared.

Shiller was more cunning than the brash Batman. He knew that the best method now wasn't to find Jonathan and interrogate him for the fear gas formula or get him out of the prison and control him. It would be troublesome and dangerous.

What he needed to do was find a new boss for Jonathan, let them pressure him for the formula and control him to work for them. Then Shiller could continue to steal the ready-made fear gas.

These people wouldn't use the fear gas for any good things, so why not just stop them from getting it?

It basically amounts to wholesale theft, they produce it there and I steal it here, however much they produce I steal. With the gray mist ability, could they still catch me?

The current Jonathan is too naive, Shiller estimated, he probably would have handed over the fear gas formula long ago. Once the mob got the formula, they had countless ways to produce it.

Shiller knew, since this mob wanted to make a big move, the amount of fear gas wouldn't be small. To mass-produce this gas, a factory production line would be necessary.

There were many chemical plants in Gotham, but most of them weren't professional. If one wanted a high-end chemical production line, there was only one place. That is the Wayne Chemical Plant.

No matter how the mob tried to cover up and operate, they couldn't achieve their goal without getting near the production line of Wayne Chemical Plant.

With the gray mist ability, Shiller could venture further at night.

As he expected, on another rainy night, Shiller saw a car with plate number ending in 676 driving into the chemical plant from outside of the fence at Wayne Chemical Plant.

In the following days, trucks were shuttling back and forth at the Wayne Chemical Plant, seemingly transporting some large equipment. Shiller didn't plan to stop them, instead, he followed the trucks and found out where they were stealing the production line from the chemical plant.

Naturally, it was located in the east of Gotham City, the territory of the Red Crow Gang. There was also a chemical plant there, even if not as large in scale as the Wayne Chemical Plant. The manufacturing equipment stolen from Wayne's were transferred to this small chemical plant.

However, things didn't go as planned. As soon as the production line was in operation, problems arose. First, they were missing a few machines. After all, the production line of the Wayne Chemical Plant was not designed to produce fear gas. They needed to buy some machines.

Second, the chemists they brought in did not seem as good as Jonathan. The experiments conducted before the assembly line didn't go well, and the duplicated fear gas wasn't as effective as Jonathan's. It couldn't be as well concentrated either.

Therefore, all the problems brought them back to the issue of needing to help Jonathan get out of jail. Despite Jonathan being a rookie, his professional level was very high. The Red Crow Gang wouldn't be able to kill the goose that lays the golden egg, they had to find a way to absolve him.

Shiller didn't expect the mob to be so stupid. They got the formula but still couldn't produce it. He had already planned to wait by the production line and swallow everything they produced.

Shiller's zero-cost acquisition failed, but he did not plan to give up. If the Red Crow Gang couldn't make it happen, he needs to find a more competent boss for Jonathan, such as Sal Maroni.