Chapter 2797

Jeremiah felt a bit puzzled; this kind of counterattack was actually not powerful enough at all. If you were to say that Schiller could now conjure up a super-bomb and blow up the restaurant along with the entire hotel, Jeremiah would believe it—this guy's power far exceeded the imagination of an ordinary person.

But he didn't do that. He produced a small, seemingly ordinary flame, without any grand, earth-shattering disaster, and it was far from a painful blow to the enemy. However, Cobblepot, who had been listening to Schiller's entire analysis from the back kitchen without showing his face, just appeared like that.

"Long time no see, Jeremiah." That face on the ceiling remained very gloomy, eyes drooping, corners of the mouth turned downward, and the aquiline nose was particularly striking.

"How do you two know each other?" Schiller asked.

"You could say we met through conflict," Jeremiah said somewhat vaguely. "We just happened to know each other."

"His younger brother has caused me quite a bit of trouble." Cobblepot didn't care about Jeremiah's attempt to cover things up and directly exposed his background. He said, "Your brother is much smarter than you. Tell me, if I killed you here, what would he do?"

Jeremiah raised his head and looked at the ceiling with a vicious gaze, but said nothing. Cobblepot turned his gaze toward Schiller.

"Put out the fire," he said. It didn't sound like a very heavy threat, but it had a sinister and cunning flavor to it.

"I have a way to reconnect the snake now; would you like to try it?" Schiller changed the subject, seemingly unable to understand human speech at all. Cobblepot stared at him coldly, but Schiller had never lost in any standoff.

"Who are they?" Schiller asked, and then he added, "If you don't tell me, I'll just have to guess."

Jeremiah immediately used his eyes to frantically signal Cobblepot to speak quickly. Letting Schiller guess usually didn't end well, just like with himself. Although he also wanted to get a handle on this damn aquiline-nosed guy, if it was Schiller who would be satisfied, he would rather stand in solidarity with Cobblepot.

Cobblepot didn't answer, so Schiller began to speak on his own, looking as though he had already thought of the answer.

"Your childhood wasn't very fortunate; there were too many unfortunate factors. A fish living in water won't feel stifled. The harsh conditions of your birthplace didn't actually make you very miserable, not even your abnormal father and mother..."

When Schiller mentioned the word 'mother', the nerves on the entire ceiling contracted, then quickly relaxed again. Cobblepot's face became even more prominent, as if it were about to break free from the ceiling at any moment. He opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to swallow Schiller just like that.

But it was obvious that he couldn't do it for the time being. The restaurant's resistance was very strong; even though it was closed for business now, he couldn't completely devour the restaurant that quickly. At least for now, he couldn't break the restaurant's rules. Schiller was still dining, and he couldn't make a move on him at this time.

"I have no intention of insulting you or your family. By 'abnormal', I mean in comparison to textbooks; if it's relative to Cat Getan, then it's still acceptable," Schiller evaluated quite objectively. "You had a house and weren't constantly displaced. You had the concept of going home and hiding. Although this is the cause of a part of the cowardice in your personality, it also proves that you were sheltered, whether mentally or physically."

"You had a house, and when you were young, you might have had a somewhat responsible mother, so if you encountered trouble you couldn't solve, you could dive into your nest and at least enjoy a moment of peace. You often did this, and it's still the same even now."

"I believe your situation now is not good. If you had the chance to go home, you would definitely do so. Is your mother still alive?"

Cobblepot's expression was clearly somewhat stiff. He wanted to control himself, but couldn't help looking at Jeremiah. Jeremiah shook his head and said, "I didn't enter much later than you. If you run into Jerome, perhaps you can ask him."

"Back to the point," Schiller said. Cobblepot's attitude changed somewhat because he seemed to feel that Schiller could leave this place. If that were the case, he might be able to go and protect his mother. For those who were beneficial to him, Cobblepot had always been patient and humble.

"During this period, your systems of external recognition and self-recognition were normal because, at this time, the vast majority of the emotions you received were relatively pure. Some people scolded you, some people hit you; they denied your value because of your lowliness."

"At the same time, there must have been people who praised you, and the kind that came from the heart. Some people thought you were capable, some people thought you had value, and you indeed did. External recognition and self-recognition, half and half, constituted a stable recognition system."

"But one day, something changed. Someone made you doubt others' recognition for the first time. You were completely immersed in the recognition he provided you, but he made you suffer harm. Who is this person?"

The face on the ceiling seemed to regain its color in an instant, even becoming somewhat flushed. He lifted his lips to reveal his teeth and spat out a name almost viciously, "Colin!!!!!!"

"A... nobody?" Schiller wasn't just going along with the Penguin; he flipped through his own memory, and there really wasn't such a person in Cat Getan. This meant he had very likely already died in some corner.

Cobblepot, however, seemed very satisfied. He gritted his teeth and said, "Yes, he was just a nobody. No one knew him. Without me, he died quickly. That's what he deserved!"

"You're not as carefree as you appear," Schiller smiled and said. "It seems he didn't die by your hand. A lifelong regret, eh?"

Cobblepot fell silent again. His gaze was still as vicious as before, his lips trembled slightly, his nose stood up, and his eyes rolled upward, clearly recalling something. But now was not a good time for memories. The more he recalled, the angrier he became, and the entire restaurant trembled along with him.

"Calm down," Schiller knocked on the service bell nearby. The moment that familiar elevator sound rang out, all three of them paused for a moment.

It wasn't that there was any real magical effect; it was just that all three of them had clearly suffered because of this bell. Everyone was a smart person and immediately realized that now was definitely not the time to vent emotions.

"I guess you must have trusted him very much," Schiller said. "Before you met him, you didn't have a good life. I don't mean that no one recognized you at all. It was precisely because someone recognized you that what you needed at that time was understanding, not recognition."

"Just like a starving ghost only wants food and doesn't care if it tastes good or not; only those who aren't very hungry will be picky. You in your childhood were clearly not as hungry as you are now."

"You were different, so you were always out of place. I don't mean that you had a disability, but that you always thought further ahead. This is very rare in the bottom layer of Cat Getan. Most people only worry about tomorrow. If you talk to them about the future, they treat you like a freak."

"You were a freak in everyone's eyes. Even if you could provide convenience to some people with your wisdom and ruthlessness, letting them acknowledge you, they never understood you."

"That person named Colin expressed understanding to you. Combined with your hatred for the upper class, he might not have been a bottom-layer person in Cat Getan, at least a few levels higher than you. Perhaps he came from a family with no worries about food and clothing, and maybe even had the opportunity to go to school."

"... He went to a private elementary school," Cobblepot finally spoke. He said, "My mother was in poor health and couldn't do heavy work. She cooked for a distant relative who opened a shop to make a living. I was responsible for delivering food to her. Every day I passed by the front of that elementary school. One day, because it was raining, I was a bit late and bumped right into him."

"At that time, I knew it was over. Not because of the food, but because I dirtied his clothes. Those clothes were very expensive, and I couldn't afford to pay for them at all. His parents must have been on their way, and I was scared to death."

"And then he must have said he didn't mind, right?" Schiller said. "He would tell his parents that he dirtied them himself while eating, and if possible, he would bring his breakfast over tomorrow to compensate you. And he really did bring it, and even ate with you."

"Then you felt he wasn't that kind of hypocritical rich person. He was willing to eat with you, proving he wasn't doing it out of kindness, but really didn't look down on you. You couldn't believe it and started probing, but the result you got was that he was really simple, almost like a ray of light in your life."

Cobblepot's mouth was already open, clearly wanting to continue, but he was interrupted by Schiller. He didn't even know what to say, so he had to stare at Schiller and say, "How did you know?"

Jeremiah couldn't even listen anymore. He let out a long sigh, leaned his body against the armrest, and said, "A born bad seed, with premeditation."

Cobblepot opened his mouth to refute, but Jeremiah also learned Schiller's method of interruption. The moment Cobblepot inhaled, he said, "Don't ask me why I know, because I'm also a bad seed."

Cobblepot was indeed choked and began to cough violently. Jeremiah didn't want to pretend anymore and revealed a wicked smile.

"I bet he had been eyeing you in school for a long time. You delivered food at that time rain or shine; he had plenty of time to arrange accidents and rehearse his expressions. Do you believe that the timing and force of him bumping into you were rehearsed countless times?"

Cobblepot wanted to speak again, but Jeremiah interrupted him again. He said, "And don't ask me why I know; I've done that before."

Cobblepot was choked again, almost suffocating himself. Jeremiah began to enjoy all of this. When one realizes the pleasure that words are more powerful than fists, no one can refuse.

"I remember I haven't introduced myself yet. Although in this universe, you probably haven't heard my name, perhaps you will hear it soon. My name is Schiller Rodriguez, a psychologist, and also a psychology professor at Cat Getan University in another universe."

"From a professional perspective, I can tell you very responsibly that this person named Colin approached you with a purpose from the beginning. You must have suspected this, but denied the thought because you felt it was meaningless."

"But there is a kind of person in this world, like me and him, who doesn't necessarily do things for profit, but just wants to watch the world burn."

"This boy named Colin was likely the same. He was just a born bad seed. Approaching you was to bully you, no different from anyone else who bullied you, except he was born into a good family, had the opportunity to receive an education, so he could disguise himself better than others."

"And he also had more need to disguise himself than bottom-layer people, which means he was suppressed for a longer time. And for these born bad seeds, the more suppressed they are, the crazier they become when they erupt."

Cobblepot's lips began to tremble, clearly thinking of something. Jeremiah, however, suddenly revealed a big smile and asked out of the blue.

"Does your leg hurt?"

The entire restaurant shivered.

Cobblepot's face disappeared instantly, and the cold air permeated from the back kitchen again. Schiller looked at Jeremiah with a disapproving expression and said, "You can't provoke him like this. If there's another time, I absolutely won't help you clean up the mess."

"That means you will this time, my good professor," Jeremiah said with a smile. "Call that coward back. I swear I won't scare him anymore."

"Cobblepot," Schiller raised his voice and said, "If you still want to keep listening, come out. If you don't, the two of us are leaving."

The other party was clearly struggling, mainly struggling with whether he had the certainty to forcibly keep these two people here. But the Penguin had always been a man who knew the times. A few seconds later, that face appeared again.

But the look Cobblepot gave Jeremiah was somewhat complex.