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Chapter 294: "Preaching and Teaching" (1)

Gotham City, the largest city on the East Coast of the United States, is located on the East Coast line with a pleasant climate and beautiful scenery. It is adjacent to Brooklyn in the south and faces the Imperial City in the north. It belongs to the subtropical monsoon humid climate.

From an aerial view, Gotham resembles a rectangular shape tilted to the right, with the central commercial street Roundabout as the focal point, dividing the city into four districts: southeast, north, west, and east.

As previously mentioned, the East District is home to piers and slums, making it the most chaotic yet vibrant district in Gotham. The southern part serves as Gotham's financial center and the new affluent area. Many photographs of Gotham City feature high-rise buildings and brightly illuminated scenes captured in this district.

The West District, on the other hand, is Gotham's old town and was among the first areas to be developed. It boasts European-style manors, castles, and a sizable park. Gotham University is located on the border between the West District and the South District, making it the greenest part of Gotham.

The North District, rarely mentioned in Gotham, is a completely independent region. It is separated from the rest of the city by the Gotham River, which splits Gotham into two parts: north and south. The northern part of the Gotham River forms the North District.

Situated on the west side of the Gotham River, in the southwest corner of the North District, lies the renowned Arkham Asylum. In the southeast corner of the North District, you'll find Gotham's largest lighthouse.

The North District is seldom mentioned mainly because it serves as the birthplace of the Falcone family and the Twelve Families.

To understand the origins, we must go back to the era when European immigrants ruled over Gotham. When people think of the rise of the Italian Mafia, they might recall The Godfather film with its soothing music, old-fashioned ambiance, the elegant voice of the Godfather, the red poppy on the black suit, cigars, and handguns.

However, Italians in the United States faced significant discrimination during that period. Most Italian immigrants who arrived in the United States for work hailed from the southern regions of Italy, which were economically disadvantaged.

The noble European immigrants, manor owners, and factory owners looked down upon these "barbaric" Italians from Sicily, so they prohibited them from settling near their own residences.

When Falcone and his group arrived in Gotham, many Italians already lived there. However, they resided in the desolate and remote North District since the other three districts, including the tumultuous East District, were rife with discrimination against Italians.

Falcone's rise to power began in the North District. As he gradually established himself in Gotham, he transformed the isolated North District into his stronghold, constructing a series of manors and security systems.

Although the North District, divided by the Gotham River, was an ideal location for a base camp, the early European immigrants did not choose it due to its unfavorable terrain.

Gotham as a whole exhibits a higher elevation in the north and lower elevation in the south. The southern West District consists of plains, while the North District is hilly. Although the altitude is not considerable, building in the North District posed greater challenges compared to other areas. Only the unwelcome Italian immigrants chose to live there.

In the present day, the North District of Gotham has been developed into a well-established residence for gangs. The Falcone family's castle sits halfway up the tallest mountain in Gotham, making it an easily defensible location for all Gotham residents except Batman.

The other Twelve Families' locations are centered around the Falcone family's castle, with the remaining areas of the North District serving as an industry chain supporting these gang families' residences.

Gotham North District, inside Rich Manor, a lady with brown curly hair and a rosy nose, wearing a white apron, hurriedly walked up the staircase, heading towards a room on the second floor. Two young police officers were standing at the door, but she didn't show any surprise and instead forced a smile, saying to them, "Gentlemen, would you like a glass of water?"

"Oh, no, thank you, but you can't go in now. There's an ongoing investigation inside."

"I know, I know..." The lady nodded, but still seemed to want to peek inside. She reached out her hand beneath the tray and handed a roll of dollars to the policeman. The young officer coughed twice and lowered his voice, saying, "I know you're worried..."

The lady wiped her eye corner, revealing a sad expression as she said, "Yes, the entire Manor is in a state of panic. No one knows if they could be the next target..."

The police officer waved his hand and continued speaking in a low voice, "It's quite evident now that this serial killer is specifically targeting the bosses of gangs. Alright, ma'am, you should go downstairs first..."

Glancing back at the door he was guarding, the police officer pinched the roll of dollars in his hand and said, "I heard Chief Gordon has brought in a very skilled detective. Perhaps it won't take long to find out who's behind this. Once they find out, The Godfather won't let them get away."

The lady sighed and handed the tray to the young officer, saying, "In that case, I won't disturb you. Please ask the gentlemen inside if they'd like some water. If they need anything, let me know."

The police officer initially wanted to refuse, but his colleague looked at his watch and said, "They've been inside for over two hours. They might be thirsty. I'll stay here and watch, you bring the water in."

The police officer nodded, turned around, and knocked on the door. A voice came from inside, saying, "Please come in."

As the officer walked in with the tray, there were two individuals inside: Gordon and Batman. However, the young officer didn't find it strange. He simply placed the tray on the table and said, "Boss, if you're thirsty, there's water here."

Gordon nodded and gestured for him to leave. The officer placed the water down and exited. Clearly, he didn't want to stay in the room any longer because, aside from the two living individuals, there was a dead body—a gruesome sight that filled the room with the scent of blood.

The body had been sawed in half, vertically.

Batman said to Gordon, "In the past few days, I've read all the materials about the twelve disciples of Jesus. If I remember correctly, this method of killing resembles the execution of one of the disciples named 'Simon the Zealot.' He was sawed in half along the middle of his leg..."

Batman circled around to the other side of the corpse while Gordon stood behind the table, keeping a distance from the corpse. Even he had rarely encountered such a brutal crime scene. The left side of the body on the ground was still connected to the majority of the head, while the right side was connected to a smaller portion. There was a gap between the two parts, and bloodstains covered the entire room. Gordon covered his nose and asked, "Do you see anything?"

Batman furrowed his brow and expressed his confusion, "To be honest, I can't quite comprehend it. The method used is completely different..."

"What do you mean?"

"The killer's technique for killing Rich is completely distinct from the one used to kill

Lawrence and Hawke..."

"What do you mean? Can you explain in detail?"

Batman squatted down, paying no attention to the strong and somewhat suffocating smell of blood. He stared at the gruesomely shaped body of Richie and said, "If the deaths of the first two individuals had a sense of execution, a 'ritualistic' aspect often admired by sadistic killers, Richie's death was too crude. It is evident that he did not die peacefully..."

Gordon whispered, "Anyone can see that, right?"

Batman pointed to a mark on the body and said, "Look here, look at his neck. There is a footprint here..."

Then he stood up and pointed to the back of the corpse, saying, "One of his feet was wearing a shoe, while the other one wasn't. One shoe was discarded nearby, over there..."

Following Batman's gaze, Gordon looked at a shoe beside the corpse. Batman walked to the rear of the corpse's feet and then pointed at one of the feet, saying, "This foot without a shoe has a slight ankle fracture. The swelling is severe."

"We can infer from this how the killer carried out the murder."

"The entire process is quite simple. The killer pushed Richie down to the ground, used one foot to pin down Richie's neck, then bent down and grabbed his ankle, lifting one of his legs. With a saw in hand, he started sawing between his legs..."

"Obviously, at that moment, Richie was still alive and capable of struggling. Due to the excruciating pain, he began to fight desperately. Yet, the person didn't stop their actions. To restrain Richie's struggling, they had to exert greater force, resulting in the fracture of Richie's ankle and the removal of his shoe..."

"What does that imply?" Gordon crossed his arms.

"It indicates that this is an extremely vicious serial killer. They sawed a person in half while they were still alive. Throughout the process, they paid no attention to Richie's agonized screams and struggles. They simply sawed him from head to toe."

"Moreover, they must possess considerable strength. Richie stands at 1.86 meters and weighs 80 kilograms. It would already be challenging to completely subdue him, let alone saw him in half when he still had the ability to resist."

"What confuses me, however, is that the method used this time is completely different from the previous two cases. I even question whether my deduction is incorrect. Is this truly a serial murder case?"

"Logically speaking, the first victim, Lawrence, died from crucifixion, with wedges driven into his limbs, heart, and head..."

"The second victim, Hawke, died from beheading, and the third victim was sawn in half. These are the methods of death reminiscent of the twelve disciples of Jesus, especially the method of sawing a person in half. No one would resort to such a time-consuming and laborious means of killing unless it was to replicate the execution style of fervent Simon..."

"However, this case is completely distinct from the previous two. In the prior incidents, Lawrence's body tested positive for an anesthetic drug. This suggests that he was first anesthetized and then crucified, rendering him incapable of any resistance during crucifixion."

"The same applies to Hawke. He was first bound and subsequently beheaded with a knife."

"But according to common sense, if a person has the power to kill Rich in such a brutal way, then there is no need for him to anesthetize Lawrence, and there is no need to tie Hawk up."

"Lawrence is also considered strong, but he is an old man after all. Hawke is tall, but relatively thin. Neither of them is as strong as Rich, who is in his prime. The killer has the strength to subdue Rich and saw him open. But it is very strange to have to subdue those two people first and then kill them by adding superfluous things..."

"Perhaps Rich's death was caused by the cooperation of two people?"

Batman shook his head slightly. He said, "In the criminal psychology courses I have learned, in most serial murder cases, the murderer is alone, and there is no other person to cooperate with the crime."

"Besides the fact that the probability of two psychopaths who coincidentally match each other is very low, most murderers who commit serial murders have a special obsession with committing crimes and killing. They have their own unique understanding of murder cases."

"They care not only about the outcome of the crime but also about the process of committing the crime. They even enjoy the process of misleading the police, witnessing experts' suspicions and confusion without receiving answers."

"Moreover, they are unwilling to share this happiness with others. They believe that no one can fully understand them. They may use innocent bystanders to achieve their own murderous goals, but they will never sincerely cooperate with anyone."

"They enjoy the pleasure of manipulating the world alone and won't let the second person know all their plans or assist them, let alone do it so crudely..."

Gordon pursed his lips and looked at Batman. "That doesn't sound like something you could learn in a psychology textbook," he said.

"It's really not something you learn from a textbook."

"Your tone reminds me of someone," Gordon sighed.

"Then why didn't you invite him over?"

"Because I'm not sure whether he is analyzing the situation based on the crime scene or... revealing his modus operandi."

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