Chapter 2964

"I really like riddles, because when I answer a riddle, it distinguishes me significantly from others; they can't answer them, only I can, and that feeling is truly wonderful. You'll like it too."

"I've discovered that people are always looking for an answer to every question, just like a riddle, but many times they don't get that answer, or they don't believe in it. It's not like a riddle, which is certain, and I feel sad for them."

"If I see a riddle, I know it must have an answer, so I don't have to look at those other questions that might not have answers, which makes me feel relaxed and happy."

"But they say I can't always be like this, and one day I'll have to face those questions that don't have answers. Maybe that's true, but at least for now, I can provide a perfect answer for every riddle."

Shiler felt no surprise at these words, nor at the artistry and philosophical concepts contained within them. The madmen of Cat Getan were always like this; they were the group of people in this world whose madness made the most sense.

Although Shiler didn't want to do it, he still said.

"What if the questions you don't want to face all have the same answer?"

Edward turned his head to look at him and said, "Impossible. Different riddles have different answers. Those questions couldn't possibly have only one answer."

"Because riddles are designed with the purpose of presenting different answers. But life and this society are different; they evolve naturally, like a river, ultimately flowing in one direction."

"What is that?"

"Death."

Shiler's profile, amidst the flowing light of the film, appeared somewhat melancholy. He continued, "The questions you see in the Cobblepot mother and son are actually all the same question—how to face death."

"Is death a question or an answer?" Edward appeared somewhat lost. He said, "You say it's the answer to all questions, but you also say it is a question itself."

"When you view it as a question, you don't want it to be the answer, but when you understand that it is the answer, you create even more questions from it, wanting to explore, wanting to trace it back."

"Is Cobblepot's death a question or an answer?"

"Before, it was a question; perhaps now..."

"What will they explore?"

"I don't know. You can go ask them."

"Hasn't he been reading to me all along?"

Shiler thought for a moment before he understood the meaning of this question. He said, "No, you are just like him. Before coming to this asylum, you both had your own pasts."

"Then why can't I remember?"

"It's just that you don't want to remember. That might be a painful memory for you, so you instinctively forgot it."

"I forgot the answer."

"You just need it to be a question, because if you don't remember what made you become like this, then it remains forever unresolved, and you don't have to find an answer within yourself."

"You are truly interesting. Do you know how to guess riddles?"

"Where is your riddle book? Is it in the room?"

"In Sisi's room."

"Who is Sisi?"

"She is Cobblepot's mother. She came here to watch a movie called 'Princess Sisi', and she said she is Princess Sisi."

"Then who are you?"

"Me? I am the monster underground. The writing and drawings in the underground tomb were all drawn by me. If I were locked in there for thousands of years, I would do the same."

Shiler had to raise his eyes to look at the movie being screened. Very good, the male lead is dead, and the female lead is holding a torch alone, looking for clues on the wall.

"She is really stupid," Edward said. "That's just scribbling; it's not a riddle at all. She won't find the answer."

"This is a movie, Edward. The director will let her find it."

"But she can't, because there is no pattern." Edward's tone became hurried. He said, "I've seen it all, I've memorized it all. The drawings and text on the wall are just scribbles; she won't find anything!"

Shiler didn't speak, just stared quietly at the screen. Sure enough, not long after, the female lead used her own intelligence to find the password to the secret room door and successfully opened it.

"It's not like that! It's not like that!" Edward stood up and stomped his feet on the spot, gritting his teeth and saying, "She's wrong, she's an idiot! This is all a scam! They are all liars!"

"Yes, Edward, this is a movie, these are all fake."

"They are unreasonably stupid!"

"Everything depends on the director's arrangement. The director says the password is correct, so naturally, it is correct. Because he needs the female lead to get out, the password is of course correct."

Edward stood on the spot, looking extremely frustrated. He sat back in his seat and sulked. Shiler smiled and said, "You want to find a correct answer for every riddle, but sometimes it's just like this: people don't want the correct answer, they only want what they want."

"They want me to shut up," Edward said. "Because only I know the correct answer, which highlights their stupidity, so they want to kill me, that way no one will know they are stupid."

"No, that only highlights their stupidity even more," Shiler said. "They can kill you, but they can't kill the true answer. It exists there, forever unchanged, just like the sun."

"But no one knows. They will believe those liars, just like this guy." Edward pointed at the screen and said, "The patterns on the wall are scribbles, and her answer is baseless, but she ran out."

"Yes, but the director also has to bear the consequences of doing so."

The movie ended. Edward saw the people around him leaving their seats one after another, rolling their eyes and sighing, saying that this rotten movie wasted another hour of their time.

Edward sat in his seat, tilting his head as if he had understood something. Then he turned around, stared intently at Shiler, and said, "It's dead."

"What?"

"This movie is dead."

"In a way, yes. The box office is bad, the word of mouth isn't great, and the people who bought tickets feel they wasted their money, so it can be considered dead."

"So I didn't die, but they will die, because they didn't go look for the correct answer," Edward said.

"Yes, I said, all things return to death."

Edward fell silent, his hands gripping the armrests tightly, his chest rising and falling slightly, as if for him, breathing had finally become something he could do without thinking.

"Will all such people die?"

"No, some people live perfectly well, even better than you. This is not a mistake, Edward, just a choice."

"But they should go look! They should pay the price for not looking! They all deserve to die!"

"Do you think Cobblepot deserves to die?"

Edward looked at Shiler angrily.

"His mother is sick, but to know exactly what the illness is, a biopsy would be required, but he chose not to do it. He didn't go look for that answer. Do you think he deserves to die?"

Shiler turned his head to look at him, looked into Edward's eyes, and said, "Sisi doesn't want to look for this answer either. Does she deserve to die?"

Edward's chest rose and fell violently. He used his hand to hit the armrest next to him. Brand had arrived behind the two of them at some point, seemingly ready to subdue Edward at any moment should he lash out and hurt someone.

"Guessing the answer, knowing the answer, and making the answer public are three different things. The first two represent wisdom, the latter is just a choice. You choose to make it public, some choose to hide it; there is no right or wrong in that."

Edward seemed to suddenly deflate. He hung his head and muttered, "So actually, I'm not the only one who knows about that guy's business. They just don't say it. Why?"

"You said it, so you are here now."

Edward suddenly started to tremble. He gritted his teeth, as if speaking in the middle of a snowy wasteland.

"I discovered a secret hidden by an idiot. I told him I discovered it because it was the truth, but he wanted to kill me. I thought they were just jealous of my intelligence, jealous that only I found the answer to this riddle..."

"Not only you, Edward, it must not be only you."

"Then who else?"

"I know too."

"Impossible, how could you..."

"It's about 'death', right?"

Edward became somewhat lost, as if he had no way to answer, as if Shiler's performance had overturned everything from before.

"Answer me, is the answer death?"

Edward's lips trembled, his eyes darted left and right, his shoulders locked tighter inward, swallowing constantly. Then, like a thief, he lowered his voice and said.

"You are right, you are right... I am not the only one who knows this answer. They probably all guessed it, it's just that they don't say it, so they live perfectly well..."

Edward began to shed tears, his jaw trembling constantly, causing his teeth to collide and make a faint sound. He curled up in the chair and said, "The answer is death, the answer to the riddle is death..."

"What riddle?"

"His riddle, the principal's riddle. He said if I could answer it, I would be the smartest student. I thought for a long time..."

"You answered it."

"Yes."

"What is the answer?"

"Don't you already know?"

"I want to know how you answered it."

"Bones," Edward stared at Shiler with bloodshot eyes and said, "I saw bones."

"What bones?!" Brand's voice suddenly appeared. Edward was so frightened he shrank into the chair, not daring to make another sound.

Shiler glared at Brand with some dissatisfaction and said, "If this were a TV show, you would be the prime suspect."

"Stop messing around, I'm a magician, killing people wouldn't leave bones behind."

"Maybe you have some perverted habit."

"That doesn't count as perverted in Cat Getan," Brand also rolled his eyes and said. He originally wanted to press for more, but seeing that Edward's condition was not good, he had to call the nursing staff and have them take Edward away first.

"This poor little unlucky guy must have discovered a serial killer's crime scene, which is why he was almost silenced," Brand said, looking at Edward's retreating back.

"He just mentioned a principal... If there is a principal who is a serial killer, then the victims would mostly be students. This probably needs to be told to Gordon."

"But you also know that apart from you, no one can get clues out of the mouths of such madmen," Brand shook his head and said, "Edward is almost recovered, don't stimulate him anymore."

"It's not that I have to ask him to get the answer," Shiler said, rubbing his fingers, "I will have Gordon check which school Edward attended. There won't be many suspects."

"It seems this serial killer is about to become the unlucky one," Brand said with schadenfreude, "If he knew you cared so much about the student source of Cat Getan University, he might not have chosen to target students."

"People like this won't change their targets easily, and I'm not doing it entirely for the student source. If this matter isn't resolved, Edward won't truly recover."

"I know," Brand said, "The best way to let yourself go is to not let others go. Do you want him to solve it himself?"

"He has the ability, doesn't he?"

"I don't know, I'm just a pathologist who is always forgotten by you."

"Believe me, being forgotten by me is a good thing."

"Then am I in big trouble now?"

"Yes, get ready, Mr. Brand, you..."

Shiler's movements suddenly stiffened. At this moment, he recalled where he had seen the logo on the bottle of red wine Brand had brought—it had once been placed on the bedside table of a certain hotel.

"I take back that statement. The one who should get ready... is me."