Natasha widened her eyes and quickly ran out of the room. Shiller followed her. When Wonder Woman tried to run outside, that silver barrier blocked her. She angrily struck the barrier with force, but only managed to create ripples.
After realizing she couldn't break through the barrier, she could only pace anxiously in the room. For the first time, she even hoped someone would come to rescue her, but then she thought everyone should go and save Batman. So, even though she wanted to get out, she didn't make more noise, for fear of drawing attention to herself.
Medical Center. Watching Bruce Wayne being slowly pushed into the ward by doctors, Luther was so shocked that he sat up straight from his bed.
"I'm afraid you must accept my apology, Mr. Luthor," Shiller stood between their beds, glanced left and right, and said, "This might be the first and only time in your life that you'll have the opportunity to accept an apology from an FBI agent."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why are you apologizing?"
"So that when you see me accidentally bump into Mr. President's analgesic pump, you pretend not to see it."
Luther stared directly at him. He slowly shook his head and said, "No way. You wouldn't do that."
Shiller had already placed his hand on the Arkham Batman's analgesic pump. Luthor still seemed unbelieving, keeping his eyes fixed on Shiller's actions.
Then, he saw Shiller twist the analgesic pump to the maximum. The flow of painkillers completely ceased.
The Arkham Batman on the bed opened his eyes. Just as Luthor was wavering between shock and schadenfreude, the Arkham Batman slowly turned his head to look at Shiller and said, "Your way of waking someone is quite unique, Agent."
"Your way of getting assassinated is also quite unique, Mr. President," Shiller smiled, looking at the Arkham Batman's chest, "I assume you could explain to me what sort of assassin would use a medieval double-edged axe to chop straight into your chest?"
"An assassin with great taste in weapons," Arkham Batman said, "But to correct you, it's a halberd."
"Yes, about 6'2", not heavy but has very strong arm strength. Wearing robes unsuitable for arm movement and completely inexperienced with axe-type weapons. When swinging, you have at least 1.5 seconds to dodge."
"Surprising," Arkham Batman said, "Seems like you're quite the expert on such weapons. Once I recover, I'll have to get some pointers from you."
Shiller twisted the analgesic pump to the extreme in the other direction.
"Wonder Woman is very worried about you," he said, "Would you like her to come and see you?"
"In an hour," Arkham Batman said, "Right now I need to have a private conversation with this Mr. Luthor. I won't ask how you got him here."
The last sentence sounded more like a threat than a compliment. Shiller stood up, went outside, and closed the door. Before leaving, he heard Luthor say, "Really? I have no desire to talk to a high-as-a-kite president."
"This dose won't make me lose my mind," Arkham Batman's voice came, "I believe our agent has better stuff. Too bad he's not planning to lend me his car this time."
As soon as Shiller walked out, Natasha came up to him. She said, "What's going on? Why does he look like he's been axed by Thor?"
"He did it to himself," Shiller said, "You said something to Wonder Woman beyond your duties, right?"
"Don't come accusing me," Natasha said, "I was just gaining her trust."
"Too bad Batman expected it," Shiller shook his head, "As long as he's seriously injured, Wonder Woman feels guilty. Especially this time, his injuries look like they were caused by Ares. Wonder Woman likely won't mind what he did before."
"What an emotional manipulator," Natasha said, "Luckily, I don't talk feelings with him at all."
"I'm thinking of something," Shiller said, "The behind-the-scenes manipulator used such advanced methods to invade so many people's emails, and even though Batman was aware, he couldn't catch him. This proves he has quite advanced hacking techniques."
"We've mentioned this conclusion before."
"What I want to say is, I've been looking up a lot of information online these days. What do you think is the most useful information?"
Natasha thought carefully and said, "Perhaps something about the Amazon."
"Yes, it's the rescue incident in the Amazon River Basin with a severely imbalanced gender ratio. Was it really a coincidence that I found this information?"
Natasha was startled, but quickly regained her composure. She pondered and said, "Suppose it isn't. What does the manipulator want you to do?"
"The information itself may not be that important, but I found the timing of this information crucial. If I truly use this information to threaten Wonder Woman, what will happen?"
"Wonder Woman might very well prevent you from reopening the investigation from that year. But that's not up to you to decide; after all, you're just an agent. Whether or not to investigate is determined by your superiors. And your current superior is the President, who might try to persuade Batman."
"Exactly. They will discuss this issue. Maybe Batman will inquire about the truth from back then, or maybe Wonder Woman, due to her past misunderstandings about Batman and his current dire situation, will reveal the truth to him."
"And then?"
"What if the truth gets exposed?" Shiller said, "What would Wonder Woman think? She might believe that Batman is investigating the matter privately and isn't ready to let go of the Amazon; or she might think I've taken matters into my own hands and come to find trouble with me."
"Either way, it's not favorable for Batman." Natasha shook her head and said, "The former would severely increase distrust between the two, while the latter would require choosing between you and Wonder Woman."
"Yes. All of this assumes the case genuinely represents Amazon's dark past, with reasons it absolutely cannot be disclosed. And once known by the public, the Amazon's reputation might suffer a devastating blow."
"Are you saying the manipulator already knows the truth?"
"His investigative methods surely aren't few. Think about it, your first appearance in this cosmos was at Wayne Enterprises, yet the manipulator still knew of your existence. This proves that even Batman's old turf isn't safe. Even the Amazon might not escape his surveillance."
"Do you think he might use this to blackmail Wonder Woman?"
"The question is whether Wonder Woman would succumb to his threats. If Batman returned unharmed, there might be a slight chance she'd waver. But now that he's so badly injured, Wonder Woman knows someone might be scheming behind the scenes, reducing the likelihood of her doing something due to threats."
"So intentionally getting himself hurt is one of Batman's tactics against the manipulator?"
"Yes, I can see that. If it weren't to counter the manipulator, Batman wouldn't use such tough measures to manipulate Wonder Woman. He's not an emotional deceiver."
"I didn't expect you to make excuses for him." The two arrived at the break room. Natasha went for a coffee cup first. While making coffee, she said, "The question returns to the original point; who do you think this incredibly capable manipulator is?"
"The issue still lies with that photograph." Shiller gently tapped his brow as if recalling something. He said, "The photo was well taken but has a major flaw."
"What?"
"It wasn't taken by Abidonis."
"What?!" Natasha couldn't help but turn to look at him.
"That wasn't taken by Abidonis. Remember, Abidonis, the head of information security at Wayne Enterprises, has a lover who resembles you. Tall, beautiful, with fiery long hair."
"So what?"
"I can't say he loves her, but at least he likes her. He likes her figure and appearance, often gazing at such a beautiful woman from a male's perspective."
Natasha's hand paused. She immediately realized the problem and said, "No, there's no gazing. That photo lacks a gaze."
"Precisely." Shiller said, "Even though he might not develop inappropriate thoughts of you because of slight similarities to his lover, he certainly appreciates the allure of a woman like you from his relationship with his lover. He would unconsciously gaze at you, even if not instinctively. If someone asked him to capture a certain ambiguous atmosphere, he would rather showcase your allure to solidify an unusual relationship between you and the President. But no, that photo is as bland as a glass of water."
Natasha took out her phone and brought up the photo again. The more she looked, the more she agreed with Shiller's assessment. The photo wasn't ugly, but the issue was it wasn't beautiful enough.
Natasha stood with her back to the camera, habitually straightening her back, standing tall with legs slightly apart, hands naturally hanging down, head slightly turned—her beautiful profile seen through the red strands of hair. But the profile was the only beautiful thing. The overly upright posture severely weakened her figure's curves; her gaze didn't meet the President's but looked elsewhere.
If it weren't for Arkham Batman's gaze falling on her, with one hand reaching towards her waist, the photo would have virtually no ambiguous atmosphere. Natasha's stance, resembling that of standing guard, didn't seem like she was flirting with someone.
If the one who took this photo was a young person who was unmarried, with no romantic experiences, and without an ideal type, there wouldn't be much issue. However, Abidonis had been married for years and had a lover resembling Natasha. Such a person has a viewing perspective on the opposite sex completely different from the former.
They'd naturally be induced to have sexual fantasies by a certain kind of subject. Under the guidance of such fantasies, their viewing angle includes an instinctive gaze toward the opposite sex. When they use a camera to capture these things, it wouldn't be so bland and straight-laced. In circumstances where the camera is all his, he could capture far more suggestive, even tantamount to erotic, photos.
"This wasn't taken by the head?" Natasha frowned and said, "Then who? Could it be his subordinate?"
"Inferring the personality of someone through a photo isn't my expertise." Shiller shook his head and said, "You should see a psychiatrist."