"How about we talk about your forr foster father instead?"
At the ntion of Stanley, Theodore couldn't help but let a sarcastic sneer grace his lips.
Such a clear change in expression naturally couldn't escape Batman's eyes.
"My forr foster father? He's a scumbag, there's nothing good to say about him," Theodore said in a tone colder than ever before, his eyes glinting with a startling killing intent.
"However, in terms of addressing habits, he was the exact opposite of Mr. Wayne—he didn't allow us to call him by his first na."
In daily life, Stanley was a very finicky person, with many strange demands on those around him.
One of the most representative was that he disliked, even abhorred, people calling him by his first na—"Stanley."
So, before every scheduled eting, the butler Fred would remind guests in advance:
"You may address Mr. Manor as 'SW,' but please do not directly call him by his na 'Stanley.' If you accidentally make a mistake midway, then everything Mr. Manor does to you afterward is what you deserve."
Timothy had always scrupulously adhered to this rule. Even in private conversations with Theodore, Timothy would habitually refer to Stanley as "SW."
But Theodore was different. What Stanley forbade, he insisted on doing.
He wasn't foolish enough to violate this taboo in front of Stanley.
But except when in front of Stanley, whether talking to Timothy or in Theodore's own mind, he would repeatedly call Stanley by his na—just as he now did with Wayne.
Using a na the other party disliked as a substitute. This was a small, subtle act of defiance, belonging to Theodore, in adversity.
Its power seed so ager, yet it was enough to clearly express Theodore's attitude.
—Faced with violence and threats, Theodore could bow his head for a ti.
—But no one could make him submit forever.
As a silent listener, Batman was quietly sifting through new information.
eting Dwarf Falcon as Batman was a very correct decision.
If Theodore hadn't spoken up himself, they didn't know how long they would have had to investigate to discover Theodore's past adoption experience.
Before entering Green Orphanage, Theodore's records were a mysterious blank.
Batman had observed Theodore's behavior. The information displayed by the boy was fragnted and contradictory.
Theodore's wariness far exceeded that of his peers, indicating a very complex interpersonal history.
However, Theodore clearly lacked so common sense and was not good at processing multi-threaded information. This ant that he had been in a rigid, singular environnt for a long ti, and his brain lacked relevant experience.
Theodore's emotional expression ability was relatively sluggish, likely due to a lack of social training during childhood.
Yet, his empathy in certain matters was more pronounced than that of ordinary people.
In helping his classmate Tim report his wealthy foster father, Theodore displayed a sense of morality and initiative that at least surpassed eighty percent of Gotham citizens.
These contradictory pieces of information, like Theodore himself, collectively ford a complex enigma. And now, the enigma itself opened up to him, revealing a corner hidden beneath the iceberg.
Theodore was sowhat lost in thought, clearly imrsed in past mories. Batman seized the opportunity to throw out the next question. He had too many experiences of extracting information, even confessions, from others.
Therefore, Batman knew that at such a ti, he couldn't directly ask a question like "What was your forr foster father's na?" which would alert him. Batman rely probed indirectly. "Bruce Wayne, does he make you feel similar to your forr foster father?"
"Ha—similar?"
As if he had heard sothing funny, Theodore raised his eyebrows high: "You say they're similar? They're clearly… You might as well say they're…"
You might as well say they were pressed from the sa mold!
Even if soone told him that Bruce Wayne and Stanley W. Manor were actually twin brothers with a twenty-year age difference, Theodore would believe it!
Batman was thoughtful.
At the orphanage, the first ti he t Bruce, Theodore displayed an extrely intense aggression, far beyond what was normal.
Now it seed that the ill will did not co out of nowhere; it had a cause.
Family background, appearance, identity, temperant, or even way of handling things. There was sothing about Bruce that he himself hadn't noticed. It was this that triggered Theodore's stress response.
Batman continued to repeat Theodore's words. "You might as well say they're…?"
"You might as well say they're… Wait, are you trying to trick ?!"
At the ntion of the similarities between Stanley and Bruce, Theodore suddenly sat upright. He suddenly realized that he had said too much.
Looking seriously at Batman, Theodore reined himself in, choosing to stop talking in ti.
He couldn't reveal Stanley's information.
This wasn't to keep secrets for that pervert Stanley, but to prevent his own ti-traveling from being exposed.
During these few months residing in Gotham, Theodore had read extensively about the various eccentricities of Gotham's people.
He had no doubt that once soone discovered he had traveled from twenty years ago, that very night, ill-intentioned visitors would smash his window and tie him to an experintal table for slicing.
Facing Theodore's clearly wary reaction, Batman casually turned his head away. Sotis, the information a person reveals by not speaking can be even more than what they say.
Theodore proactively brought up his forr foster father, indicating that he was confident in the secrecy of this relationship and didn't think the other party would be easily discovered. However, when he was about to reveal personal information about his forr foster father, Theodore suddenly caught himself.
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