OBS Chapter 3867 The Nameless Bat (37)
Chapter 3867 The Nameless Bat (37)
Chapter 3867 The Nameless Bat (Thirty-Seven)
“Skip those daunting technical terms and just tell me your findings,” Schiller said, staring intently at Barbara’s face.
“You must find this incredible,” Barbara said. “I have absolutely no reason to cover for the killer, especially since he might have kidnapped me. But I really have my reasons for doing this. I…”
“Relax, Miss.” Schiller instructed a servant to pour Barbara a glass of water. But this clearly did not reassure Barbara. Her fingers tapped incessantly on the glass, revealing her deep anxiety.
"In fact, during that time, my worldview was completely shattered. I didn't even know that there were people in this world who possessed such technology. It was simply unbelievable..."
Barbara's logic was somewhat fragmented, but Schiller still understood what she meant, so he pressed on, "You mean you investigated the emails and found a very skilled hacker?"
“Maybe,” Barbara said uncertainly. “I don’t even know if he really exists, because I haven’t found any real evidence. Even if you lock me up for another year, I still won’t be able to produce anything. But I just have a gut feeling. I haven’t told you because it’s too absurd…”
"It's alright, Miss. You just need to tell me how you feel. I'll make my own judgment as to whether that's the case or not."
“Okay. As you know, not long ago, to be precise, shortly after the scandalous photos of the President and Mrs. Romanov were exposed, I wanted to find out who had leaked them. That's when I received an email in my inbox asking me to stop investigating the matter.”
“I’ve received many of these threatening emails before, so I didn’t pay much attention to them. However, considering that following this email might lead me directly to the mastermind, I tried to check the source of the email, but I couldn’t find anything.”
"That's normal. After all, someone who dares to expose the president must have some skills. But it was precisely because I found this person to be quite skilled that my competitive spirit was aroused. I thought to myself, I have to see just how capable this guy is, so I started to do extensive research."
"Did you find anything?"
“It would be strange if I couldn’t find it,” Barbara said. “Although the internet is relatively young, it contains a vast amount of information, covering an extremely wide range of topics and extending to all electronic communication devices. There are very few things that I can’t find at all, and this guy who emailed me is one of them.”
"That's what I'm telling you. I can't even be sure if he really exists, because there's no trace of him on the internet. He's like a ghost; you can't find a trace of him in the real world."
“I understand,” Schiller nodded. “So why did you hide this from me?”
Barbara pursed her lips, her expression somewhat unnatural, then looked at Schiller and said, "You have to promise you won't take what I'm about to say as testimony."
“You know that’s unlikely, miss. I hope you consider your situation. Everyone still out there can do far more than you. Worry about yourself instead of them.”
“Okay.” Barbara sighed. “If you really want me to name someone who could do this, I’d say Batman.”
Schiller raised an eyebrow. Barbara continued, "Some of my computer skills came from Batman. He said I was more talented in that area than him, but obviously, his knowledge of mechanical engineering was far superior to mine, as were electronic communications, signal processing, and so on, all of which are related to network technology engineering. So I think his hacking skills are better than mine."
"It may sound absurd, but the ultimate goal of cyber intrusion is physical intrusion. Batman is obviously very good at this, while I am not. So if anyone can do something as completely seamless as the email sender, it can only be Batman."
Have you ever considered 'non-human'?
"Non-human? You mean people like Superman or Wonder Woman? But there's a problem with that. Most non-humans don't understand human networks either. They might be able to erase some traces with magic, but they'll always leave others behind. They might not even be as meticulous as ordinary hackers, because the network, being purely logical, is inherently in conflict with magic. I don't think they can do it."
Are you familiar with electronic life?
“Artificial intelligence?” Barbara frowned slightly and said, “Excuse me for being blunt, all the hype about artificial intelligence that you saw in the Diamond Street financial report is a scam. Given the current level of human artificial intelligence, it is impossible for true strong artificial intelligence to emerge within the next 200 years.”
"What if it wasn't invented by humans, but came from outer space?"
"Then he should go to Metropolis, not Gotham."
Schiller looked at her without speaking. Barbara seemed to realize that what she said was somewhat absurd, so she had to explain, "Although I don't know why, aliens don't favor Gotham. To be precise, Gotham is their black box, or you could say Pandora's box, which won't be opened easily. And because of Superman's existence, Metropolis is more likely to provoke aliens."
Do you know what role the Luther siblings played in this whole affair?
“I can probably imagine,” Barbara said, “because Superman came to Gotham, so they came too. And the aliens chasing them might have come as well.”
Do you think Batman or an alien is more likely?
"Honestly, I don't see the necessity for Batman and the aliens to do this. They have this kind of technology, why choose to expose the president's affair? Couldn't they just invade Earth directly?"
“Because Superman can’t handle this type of alien,” Schiller said, shaking his head. “If it really is an alien electronic life form, then his ultimate opponent will definitely be Batman. Isn’t it logical for him to weaken Batman first?”
“No wonder,” Barbara said. “It seems this guy is cunning. He knows the principle of capturing the king first, and he will keep himself hidden until he weakens Batman to a certain extent.”
“That’s not necessarily true,” Schiller chuckled. “Just now, I forced him to give himself away. I sniped Lex Luthor, and he saved his life by honking the horn of Luthor’s car. That should make Luthor aware of its presence.”
Barbara's eyes widened, and she raised her voice, "You shot Luther?! Aren't you afraid you'll actually kill him?!"
“If I really kill him, I’ll get another six months of administrative leave plus a special bonus from the president,” Schiller said.
"Oh my god, what I can't stand the most is how you agents don't care about human lives!" Barbara grabbed her hair and scratched it hard. But she knew she was in a bad situation and didn't want to argue about these issues anymore. Instead, she thought for a moment and said, "You said the car horn saved him. Did you find anything in the car?"
“This is exactly what I wanted to show you.” Schiller had his subordinate give Barbara the same document he had shown Luther earlier, and then said, “With our technology, we really can’t find anything. Luther’s side may not have a solution either, so I’m afraid we’ll need your help.”
Barbara took the documents and looked at them carefully, then shook her head and said, "Just looking at this isn't enough. I need to go to the site to check it out. Ideally, we should be able to connect to the local cameras or the store's network."
“We will meet all your needs, miss. However, for your safety, you will have to stay here until this is over.”
“No,” Barbara said. “I have to go back to Clock Tower Base, and I also have to say hello to James. My dad will be very worried about me!”
"You can rest assured about that. Everything from your clock tower base has been moved here. And I will tell Chief Gordon that you have been found, but you are participating in the witness protection program and cannot appear in public for the time being. You can make a phone call to your father under the supervision of the agents."
"Can I say that you're one of the more humane agents out there?" Barbara said with a hint of helplessness.
“Thank you for the compliment.” Schiller smiled at her and said, “But I must correct you, miss. It’s not about being empathetic, but rather my experience tells me that forcing your helpers usually backfires; it’s about genuinely helping you that’s efficient.”
As Schiller spoke, he walked over and personally unlocked Barbara's handcuffs, pulled out the safety chair, and gently helped her out of the interrogation room. Barbara shook her head and said, "If you hadn't told me beforehand that you shot Luther directly, perhaps I would have believed you."
“Different people require different approaches; flexibility is a fundamental quality of an agent.” Schiller handed Barbara over to his subordinates waiting outside and instructed them, “Ensure Miss Gordon’s safety and high quality of life, but don’t put too much pressure on her.”
Standing in the corridor, Schiller looked at Barbara and said, "Of course, the mastermind hasn't made a move for a few days. It won't be long before they strike again, and they probably won't resort to mild methods like undermining diplomacy or releasing photos. How long it takes to find the clues is entirely up to you, my dear."
Barbara even walked ahead of the agents when she left, practically sprinting all the way to the technical department. Schiller took out his phone again, dialed a number, and said, "How's it going with the Justice League? Is the base ready? Okay, I got it."
Schiller strode into the office and waved his hand, saying, "All field personnel, follow me."
They took the elevator downstairs as fast as they could, got into five cars, and drove towards the Justice League's new Gotham base, then dispersed about 1 to 2 miles away from the League.
Sitting in the car, Schiller picked up the walkie-talkie and said, "Keep an eye on all the restaurants nearby that offer takeout. Find the one that delivers meals to 6-7 people, targeting the rider at the Justice League's new base. Knock him out, lock him in the car, and then notify me."
A few minutes later, a slightly static voice came through the walkie-talkie: "Boss, found it, Morgan Time Pizza. I've marked it for you."
Schiller turned the steering wheel and drove out of the parking space, heading towards the red dot marked on his phone. It was a pizzeria about a mile southwest of the new base. The agent's car was parked in the shade.
Schiller pulled over and stopped the car. After getting out, he switched to another car and looked back to see the deliveryman who had already fainted.
“The small dose of anesthetic will not have any effect on his health, but it will take about 5 hours for him to fully wake up,” the female agent driving the car said. “If necessary, the time can be extended.”
“Not for now.” Schiller turned around and looked at the deliveryman. The deliverymen here didn’t wear uniforms, and most of them delivered by car, so there wouldn’t be any special marks from the wind and sun on their bodies. Also, because the new base was built next to a beach resort, far away from black and Mexican communities, most of the deliverymen were white. The one lying in the back seat was an ordinary white male.
“What about pizza?” Schiller asked.
"It's in the trunk of his car; he hasn't had time to take it out yet," the female agent said, pointing to another car next to her.
"Car keys?"
"Also in the car."
Schiller nodded, got out of the car, took out a half-length brown curly wig from his car, put a baseball cap on the wig, then put on a mask with graffiti decorations, took off his original windbreaker and put on a jacket, zipping the jacket all the way up.
Then, he got into the delivery driver's car and turned the key to start it. The car quickly arrived at the gate of the new base.