Chapter 31 Emotional Intelligence: A Rare Numerical Monster
Dick and Thomas sat facing each other, while Bruce made an excuse and left, leaving only the three of them in the large manor.
Because the person sitting opposite him was Thomas Wayne, who had left a psychological scar on the entire circus, he was somewhat nervous and quietly asked the seemingly amiable Alfred, "Bruce, do you have to work this late?"
Bruce is busy investigating the case, trying to find the killer of the Graysons, and he can't stop his night patrols. He still hasn't found the person who planted the bomb at Wayne Manor a few days ago... In short, he's nowhere to be found.
“Yes, young master Bruce is currently starting a business, so he’ll be very busy.” Alfred covered for Bruce, a statement they had agreed upon a few days prior.
Otherwise, how can we explain it... In other people's eyes, Bruce doesn't even have a proper job. The idea of extreme sports might fool others, but can it fool Thomas?
"Does being so rich mean you still have to work hard?"
Dick glanced at Thomas furtively. He was still young then and only remembered those gloomy eyes in the audience and the enormous sum of money that shocked even Mr. Harry.
Although it is said that most of Wayne's assets are in Thomas's hands, Bruce shouldn't be that poor, right?
“That’s how startup teams are,” Thomas said gently, sitting across from Dick. “In the beginning, there are always a shortage of people and a lot of work. Even after you have a team, you still need to work things out.”
This is entirely based on experience. He was also very busy when he first became Night Owl. He had to run to several places in one night, threatening several groups of people in succession. During the day, he also had to work at Wayne Enterprises. He even had to debug the equipment in the workshop that repaired and produced props himself...
So why does he value Claw so much, spare the Penguins, and keep anyone who can work for him, regardless of betrayal or loyalty? Do people who have lived on Earth-3 really care about such things? Guess why Night Owl wears power armor and has a helmet with a built-in automatic gas mask?
"Do you like sweets?" Thomas pushed the vanilla milkshake next to him towards her. "Would you like some?"
Alfred coughed.
“Sweets can stimulate the brain to release dopamine, which relieves stress,” Thomas explained to Alfred.
This is not a reason for you to consume large amounts of sugar every day, and this unhealthy eating habit should not be passed on to other family members.
However, considering that Thomas rarely showed positive emotions towards humans (in fact, Thomas didn't have any positive emotions towards non-humans either, he just disliked humans more), Alfred did not stop him.
"Thank you." Dick politely took a sip; he did seem to relax a bit.
Thomas seems to be different from what was rumored.
Even though Dick had only been in Gotham for a few days, he had heard many urban legends about Thomas, such as the true evil of Gotham, a legal gang, a born devil, and a deep government... but now these things seemed to fall apart on their own.
Someone who can speak to children so gently can't be a bad person, right?
Dick looked at Thomas, whose disguise was flawless. He slightly averted his gaze, making himself appear friendly and depressed.
Alfred looked away, unable to bear the sight.
...You're overdoing it, young master Thomas.
Thomas's acting was a bit over the top in front of Alfred, who was familiar with his abstract nature (actually, he didn't seem that familiar, but the tip of the iceberg that Thomas revealed in his life was frightening enough), but it was just right in front of Dick.
In addition, the Wayne brothers had been busy helping him with his funeral, dealing with reporters, and bringing him to live at Wayne Estate these past few days... Dick began to feel ashamed of his inappropriate vigilance and tension.
That's how society is; kind children can be easily fooled by evil adults. In just a few minutes, Thomas successfully reversed his image in Dick's eyes.
Thomas could easily deceive others if he wanted to, and a large part of his current poor reputation is because he's too lazy to pretend. Most people aren't worth Thomas wasting his brainpower and energy creating a persona and putting on an act, while the small minority who are deceived by him will imagine that what they see is Thomas's true nature... so no one sees through his true self.
Clearly, Dick was also starting to have dangerous overthinking things, and he tried to break the awkward atmosphere at the table: "This table is huge, it looks bigger than a circus trailer."
“Yes,” Thomas chimed in, “These long tables are very useful. If someone you dislike comes to eat, you can seat them at the other end of the table and avoid having to socialize with them.”
This behavior sounds somewhat childish.
"Have you ever done that?" Dick asked curiously.
“No, I won’t stoop to letting unimportant people into Wayne Manor.” Thomas looked at him. “You certainly don’t need them either, but we still need to find a use for this long table.”
It's really rare to see Thomas raise his emotional intelligence to such a high level.
Even Alfred was surprised, as he had thought it would take a long time for young Thomas and young Dick to get along. After all, Thomas had never shown any patience with any teenager other than Bruce, let alone spend a second longer at school.
Alfred recalled that when young Thomas was in school, he was isolated from his classmates. He completed all the group assignments by himself and avoided all the activities that should have been done collectively. This made the teacher very worried about his mental state, and he even spoke with his guardian (yes, Alfred).
But no matter what Alfred thought, Dick was completely bewildered by Thomas. He was now convinced that the natives of Gotham had a huge misunderstanding of Thomas. His tension didn't even last for the duration of a meal. He even went so far as to ask Alfred about the Wayne brothers' likes and dislikes and their habits.
Things were going so smoothly that Alfred even suspected that Thomas was compromising himself to accommodate the new member of the family, and he even had a special talk with Thomas before going to bed.
“Alfred, you know my nature. I’m not the kind of person who would compromise myself.”
Indeed, the guests Thomas deliberately drove away and the invitations found in the trash can both testify to this.
“And I’ve liked that kid for years. He’s very energetic and enthusiastic, and seems completely different from me,” Thomas added.
Okay, now Alfred has also remembered the third person mentioned in that will.
No wonder Bruce wasn't worried at all about whether there would be any conflicts between the two of them.
“Besides, I’ve always wanted a younger brother, and I’ll treat Dick like my own brother.” Thomas lowered his head somewhat forlornly.
This statement is sincere and genuine; no one could see any flaw in it.
Because it's true.
Alfred imagined something and finally sighed.
See, it's not Dick's fault for being fooled by villains; even the excellent agent Alfred couldn't see through the evil owl's disguise.
He thought Thomas wanted a lively home, but what Thomas wanted even more was a partner to destroy the world together.
-
"What's wrong?" Thomas put down the controller and looked at Dick, who seemed to be in a bad mood.
“It’s nothing.” Dick didn’t want to show any negative emotions in front of Thomas. Alfred had told him yesterday that Thomas had some tendency toward depression and autism. “Let’s keep playing.”
Thomas put down the controller completely, stared at Dick for a while, and then said seriously, "I'm having my men do everything they can to find that gangster named Zucker. The GCPD is also looking for him. That bastard will be caught soon."
Batman was certainly doing his best to find him, but why did he have to hide his identity from Thomas? That's why Thomas didn't give him credit.
“Thank you,” Dick said. “I will make him pay for what he has done.”
Thomas patted Dick on the shoulder.
That evening, something happened.
Alfred knocked anxiously on Thomas's door.
Thomas opened the door for him, still half asleep, wearing a loosely draped nightgown.
"Thank goodness you're alright." Alfred breathed a sigh of relief and then quickly explained the situation to Thomas.
Dick and Bruce mysteriously disappeared from Wayne Manor, leaving only him and Thomas alive in the house.
This is Alfred's version of events. In reality, only Dick has mysteriously disappeared. Bruce is out there investigating Zuckerberg, but to cover his tracks, he has to temporarily act as a missing person.
Thomas pursed his lips into a straight line and immediately called Wayne Group's security, also waking up poor Kelvin.
He quickly put on his clothes and rushed to the garage.
"wait……"
“Don’t worry, Alfred,” Thomas interrupted him. “I guess Dick and Bruce went to find the criminal behind our backs. It’s probably not a serious case like kidnapping. Besides, the GCPD isn’t as reliable as Wayne Enterprises’ security. It’ll be faster if I go to Wayne Enterprises and have my subordinates look for him.”
What he said made a lot of sense. The Wayne Group's experienced security guards were indeed not to be underestimated. In the end, Alfred let Thomas go to Wayne Tower.
-
Thomas's words do make a lot of sense, but what makes sense is not necessarily entirely correct.
For example, Dick didn't leave Wayne Manor voluntarily; he was kidnapped.
He had just entered the room when he smelled a fragrance and thought it was newly added aromatherapy. Then his legs went weak and he fainted.
When he woke up, his eyes were covered and his mouth was covered, and judging from the position, he was most likely being held.
They move very fast.
Dick struggled for a long time, but the guy had amazing arm strength. Not only did he not break free, but he also annoyed his kidnappers, who simply grabbed him under their armpits and held him firmly in place.
This forced Dick to open his mouth: "Who are you? What do you want?"
The kidnappers ignored him and kept on their way.
The kidnapper was like a deaf man, not saying a word, and didn't react no matter how much Dick yelled and cursed.
After an unknown amount of time, the kidnappers gently laid him down and pulled off the blindfold covering his eyes.
After being in darkness for a long time, he was suddenly exposed to a bright light and it took him a while to figure out where he was.
He was in a magnificent, golden hall.
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