Chapter 58 Two Victims ( ) One is Thomas, and the other is...
"So... a ghost has come to claim your life?"
Jason had to exert all his strength to extract this theme from Thomas's abstract narrative.
"No, I can confirm that he is absolutely alive, with absolutely no ghosts or zombies involved... and why should I be afraid of ghosts?"
“You, me,” Jason tried to think, but this nonsense really didn’t seem to make any sense, “So how did this person treat you?”
“He’s alright with me,” Thomas replied, “but he always sabotages my plans. The worst time was when he directly caused a major project that I had painstakingly built up over many years to fail.”
Killing them all would only ruin your project, wouldn't it?
This is so bizarre!
"Does he...do he know you killed him?"
"I don't know, I'm sure he doesn't know."
"Then I think you can...he...I don't know."
Jason gave up.
This task is really too difficult.
“I told you this was a complicated issue,” Thomas sighed. “I was thinking about killing him again a while ago, but then I realized it was pointless.”
Jason was starting to feel extremely uneasy.
Why do these things sound so familiar the more I hear them...?
“Then let it stay like this,” Thomas muttered to himself. “He’s not in my way, so I’ll just pretend I didn’t see anything. And…”
He turned to look out the window: "Can you keep this a secret for me?"
-
"So you figured it out?" Dick asked, peering over.
Thanks to Alfred for generously sponsoring the kitchen.
“It’s very simple,” Bruce replied confidently. “Just use an electronic scale to determine the exact weight of each ingredient, and the taste will be exactly the same.”
“That being said,” Dick poked the scale, “this scale isn’t broken, is it?”
“It’s not broken,” Bruce answered confidently. “I tested it with my hand, and the weight is about right.”
"Isn't this a bit too much sugar? We already have strawberry jam and ice cream, do we really need to add extra sugar?"
“That makes sense, then let’s add a little less?” Bruce hesitated as he removed some sugar from the electronic scale.
“No, forget it.” Dick picked up the sugar jar and added the sugar back in. “We’re eating junk food anyway, why bother with health?”
According to Thomas himself, health issues, which might only become life-threatening years later, are all long-term problems for him, and sugary drinks might even help him live a little longer.
Now, the numbers on the electronic scale perfectly match the recipe Alfred gave.
“Would you like some more?” This time it was Bruce. “Alfred has always been critical of Thomas’s diet… I suspect his milkshakes are a reduced-sugar version.”
Dick poured some more sugar onto the electronic scale.
-
That evening, Thomas brought Jason, who seemed to have suffered a severe psychological attack, back to Wayne Manor.
“Good evening,” Thomas said, walking to the dining table. “Why is everyone looking at me?”
“It’s nothing, Thomas,” Dick said casually, glancing down at his plate.
“Thanks, Dick.” Thomas sat down in his chair. “So what is it?”
“It’s really okay, Thomas, you can trust me.”
Thomas looked at him suspiciously.
Are you sure?
"Sure."
“I really want to believe you, Dick.” Thomas picked up the milkshake cup next to him with a puzzled look, then carefully put it down again.
Because Dick's expression was really strange.
Is there something wrong with the milkshake?
Thomas reached out and grabbed the milkshake cup again, then let go.
...
Fun.
“No, never mind, Thomas,” Bruce tried to salvage the situation. “Don’t drink it.”
Don't drink it?
Perhaps Alfred was right about Thomas; his belated rebellious phase had arrived.
"Has it been poisoned? Or is there something sinister inside?"
"No, but..."
Before Bruce could even finish speaking, Thomas had already taken a sip.
"So what's wrong?" Thomas didn't think anything was wrong, and even took another sip. "It's fine, it's just that there was too much sugar."
It's more than just adding too much.
Bruce and Dick hesitated for a long time after tasting it.
It wasn't exactly bad, but I just couldn't bring myself to drink it.
"...How much sugar do you usually eat?"
“Who would bother to remember that?” Thomas replied with a laugh. “I don’t think there are many, but Alfred doesn’t seem to think so.”
It seems the strawberry milkshake really worked; Thomas's mood visibly improved considerably.
Bruce glanced at Dick, then finally took a deep breath:
"Thomas, I have something to say..."
"Did you make the milkshakes?"
“Yes.” Bruce wasn’t surprised that Thomas could see through this, after all, Dick still hadn’t mastered the art of dealing with Thomas. “We want to apologize to you…”
"About what happened yesterday?"
"Yes, I'm sorry..."
“Okay, but you have to promise me one thing.” Thomas interrupted him thoughtfully.
Actually, this wasn't the most upsetting thing for him lately (after all, there was the Joker Man incident as a precedent), but Thomas could have used this opportunity to get some promises in return...
"What is it?" Bruce took a breath and added, "No one can die."
“Of course no one will die,” Thomas said, taking another sip of his milkshake. “I hope that if I ever make you angry, you will forgive me.”
"...Did you do something that would definitely make us angry?" Bruce asked astutely.
“No,” Thomas waved his hand at him. “How could that be?”
Since you don't know, then I have no way of knowing whether you will be angry or not. It's like I didn't do anything to make you angry. What a perfect logical chain.
Jason muttered something, but the others didn't notice.
Bruce nodded, somewhat skeptical.
This matter seems to have ended in the most perfect way.
But it actually triggered two subsequent events.
The first subsequent victim was Thomas. After Alfred, who was watching from the sidelines, realized that Thomas was becoming insensitive to sweetness, he actually began to cut Thomas's sugar intake.
The second follow-up—
"So what do you want to know about Thomas?" Dick asked, leaning on the table. "I may not know for sure, but I'll try my best to tell you."
That's right, this was the request Jason made to Dick.
Considering that they are now a family, he would have told Jason even if Jason hadn't made the request, especially since their relationship had improved considerably after a group adventure.
Does Thomas have any close friends or family?
“They’re all staying at Wayne Manor,” the question was too easy. “At least that’s what I know. Thomas has always hated social activities.”
Really? I feel like Batman and Night Owl are quite familiar with him.
They knew Thomas better than Dick; one exposed the fake Thomas with a riddle-like question, while the other was even more outrageous, able to tell the fake one at a glance and even answer the riddle.
So what exactly does "the future is blue" mean?
"Thomas found a new energy source that emits blue light. He believes that this thing has great potential for development, although it can only be used as a lamp wick for now."
"Is it the lamp by his bedside?"
"Bingo!" Dick clapped. "By the way, that thing is worth hundreds of millions. It's the most expensive thing in Thomas's room besides himself."
Jason spent quite a while calculating this price.
After all, he is still an out-of-school child, and his schooling has been delayed due to Thomas's absence.
Bruce and Alfred hired a private tutor for him in case he couldn't keep up (Thomas questioned why such simple elementary school material needed extra help, but his questioning was completely ineffective; Bruce's reasoning was that Thomas's experience in this area was of no use), but he hadn't learned multiplication and division yet and could only do it little by little.
“Thomas had a fever that day, he was acting like a child,” Dick said regretfully. “I should have recorded it. He picked Bruce’s car lock and said the battery he had was transmission fluid…”
The two chatted for a while, but Jason's expression seemed a little off.
"What's wrong?" Dick stopped his "Thomas Storytelling".
Jason took a deep breath:
"I have doubts about Bruce's identity."
Dick sat up straight immediately.
Is it coming? Is it coming?
Should we mistake Bruce for Night Owl?
"I suspect he's Batman!"
"No! Wait!" Dick exclaimed. "How could you think that! How could Bruce be Batman?"
“Look, a strong, adult male who knows Thomas very well…”
“The owl also perfectly fits this standard,” Dick retorted eagerly.
His rebuttal was, of course, to protect Bruce's true identity... and definitely not to drag anyone else down with him.
Absolutely not, he can swear on Thomas's low-sugar milkshakes!
“Batman said he was going to pick up Bruce, and then he never showed up again,” Jason continued. “Yesterday morning, Bruce said he recognized Thomas too… but he didn’t need to recognize him at all, the fake Thomas was tied up like a worm.”
“Bruce did recognize Thomas from the Elliott family immediately,” Dick countered. “Without a rigorous chain of evidence, this case is dismissed.”
“That couldn’t be Night Owl, could it?” Jason shook his head. “I’ve heard that Night Owl and Thomas fought fiercely in the East District, but from what I’ve observed, Bruce is clearly not that kind of person.”
“No, actually Thomas’s relationship with the Night Owl isn’t as bad as his relationship with the Penguin,” Dick retorted firmly. “I have a ton of evidence!”
He pulled out his notebook again and handed it to Jason.
Jason flipped through it briefly and was amazed by what was inside.
“I’ve heard these rumors before, though I never took them seriously,” Jason said quietly, “but I never expected…”
"What rumor?" Dick asked curiously as he leaned closer.
Jason muttered something very quietly.
"Louder?"
Jason took a deep breath and raised his voice slightly:
"Some people say that Thomas and Night Owl have that kind of relationship."
-----------------------
Author's note: This week feels like nothing but good things! Wednesday was the Victory Day parade, Thursday was the release of "Song of Silk," Friday was visiting my friend in Harbin, Saturday was the long-awaited buffet, and most importantly...
School doesn't start until next week! Yay!
Actually, I'm thinking of getting my dorm room decorations and plush toys back, but I really don't dare bring them home because of my two cats.
In short, to share happiness, I'm doing a giveaway today. It's not a lot of money, but it's all about sharing the joy.
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