Days as a Spiritual Mentor in American Comics

"Joker? Isn't his goal quite clear?"

Batman shook his head, "What he wants is just what he thinks he wants, he has deceived himself in the constant pursuit."

"That's a bit confusing to me," Shiller said, "Isn't what he thinks he wants what he actually wants?"

"Do you like eating apples?"

"Honestly, not really."

Batman seemed surprised by his straightforward answer, but he continued, "Thinking you like eating apples, and actually liking eating apples are not the same. Before you have tasted an apple, you sincerely think you like them, but does that mean you really do?"

"That's how Joker is. Before he truly sees me collapse, he genuinely believes that his motivation to live is to make me collapse, but in reality, it's not."

"How do you know it's not?"

Batman gave him another odd look, then said, "Should a psychiatrist think it's healthy for a person to live entirely for someone else?"

"I'm not a psychiatrist."

Batman showed a look of realization, then Shiller caught on — Batman was trying to trap him in his words again!

How did we get onto this topic?

Fortunately, Batman didn't stop there, he continued, "Darkseid wanting to conquer the cosmos seems evil because we are on the side being conquered. The instinct to survive makes us resist, but from his position, such an ambition is perfectly normal, almost alarmingly healthy."

Shiller gaped, finding some sense in Batman's words, but wondering, wasn't this too empathetic?

"What I'm saying is, it's normal for interest conflicts to arise from personal gains, Greed wants to earn money, I want to save people; if these two can't coexist, we naturally become opponents."

"But for Joker, there's no interest conflict between us, it's abnormal for him to be my opponent, no one can understand it from his perspective, but he insists on doing so."

"So, you think he doesn't genuinely want to oppose you?"

"He is genuine, no one is more sincere than him."

Shiller was a bit befuddled; had Batman not just said Joker didn't genuinely want to oppose him, but now he claims Joker is sincere?

"What I mean is, his sincerity is morbid, like you crazily wanting an apple, not because you love apples, but because you have never tried one. It's an obsession, not a preference."

Shiller suddenly understood.

He grasped what Batman meant. Batman judged Shiller as not a threat because what Shiller wanted was his preference, even if it was manipulation, he had experienced it and found it genuinely interesting, hence his desire.

He judged Joker as dangerous because Joker's desires were mere obsessions. He had never truly defeated Batman, which made him fixated on defeating Batman, but in reality, he had never experienced truly defeating Batman, his desire stemmed from never having succeeded.

Joker felt empty, so he picked a target, and always failing to achieve it made him want it more, leading him to believe he genuinely wanted it, but maybe not necessarily so.

It was also the first time Shiller knew Batman thought this way about Joker, very different from the godlike perspectives Shiller had previously encountered that assessed Batman and Joker's relationship; it was profoundly subjective.

"Why do you think he couldn't be just interested in you?"

"He simply has no other choice," Batman said, "Among all potentially evil interests he could perceive and touch, the only one that might possibly shake is me."

Shiller suddenly sensed a sad undertone in these words. It was always said Joker was playing a game with Batman, but wasn't Batman also playing a game with Joker?

Among the things that drove Joker's madness, Batman was indeed the most accessible, and what was truly tragic was that this was because Batman lowered himself to combat crime on the streets; otherwise, there wouldn't even be this one.

"So you still harbor a savior complex," Shiller somewhat hesitantly said, "You think Joker should let go of his obsession and find what he truly enjoys, rather than clinging to you."

"I hope so, but realistically, it's unlikely," Batman said. "Things have progressed to this point, he won't stop until he achieves his goal. As long as he hasn't truly defeated me, he will persist endlessly, but I won't let him defeat me."

"Great, a perfect deadlock," Shiller said, "Why bring this up suddenly?"

"I'm distinguishing between you and those truly dangerous criminals I need to deal with," Batman said.

"So you don't consider me a dangerous criminal?" Shiller was almost flattered, "Are you sure this isn't because your vigilance has weakened?"

Batman shook his head, "I can clearly discern the difference between you, even if I don't yet know what causes it."

"What difference?"

"You have options," Batman said, "You chose a path after finding satisfaction, feeling good about it, not when you were desperately grasping for a lifeline in emptiness."

"If I were to make a comparison, you are a satiated lion, not a starving hyena, which inherently makes you less dangerous."

Shiller didn't respond, just stared at him for a while before saying, "Don't you think Greed is always very hungry? He wants everything and is always energetically hunting, isn't that dangerous?"

"I can see that he hasn't experienced true emptiness and hunger," Batman said.

"How did you figure that out?" Shiller asked, somewhat curiously.

"I don't mean to discriminate, but those who have truly experienced hunger have a fear of scarcity etched into their bones; they tend to show a greater desire to hold onto the food they have."

"You mean..."

"People like that rarely take big risks for fear of losing even the little they have. Many criminals in Arkham are like this; they choose crime because for them, crime has virtually no cost. It is easier to destroy than to build. Fighting crime, on the other hand, requires a significant amount of money and effort. They are getting something for nothing."

"They know that committing petty crimes doesn't cause enough harm. If they wanted to destroy the city thoroughly, moving up the ladder would be a better method. I believe Greed would do just that."

"I'm beginning to understand." Shiller nodded and said, "Infiltrating the upper echelons has prerequisites; aside from externals, one must also devote considerable time to learn and truly blend in, enough to deceive."

"Exactly, but not everyone has the confidence to take time off for such learning; confidence needs resources to back it up. That's why I say Greed probably hasn't experienced real deprivation. His desire for everything precisely shows he has the courage to try anything. What sort of person do you think such courage commonly belongs to?"

"Of course, the wealthy," Shiller sighed. "Because besides greed, he also makes me think of Bruce."

"Today's Bruce is known as the 'Idea King' of Gotham. His stream of unique ideas and the courage to implement them definitely could not stem from an environment where the city is perpetually on the brink of destruction and the world is always about to end."

"The greater the lack, the more fragile it becomes, and naturally, the lower the margin for error. Survival instincts make one tread carefully and act cautiously; it's a natural law, hard to avoid."

"What about arrogance?" Shiller couldn't help but ask.

"PhD is on another level," Batman leaned back in his chair. "Who do you think would study theology?"

"Well-fed and idle... Okay."

"These views are quite novel," Shiller commented very fairly. "I never knew you saw criminals this way, almost like..."

"Almost like what?"

"Almost like dealing with them is effortless for you. Not that I'm saying it's difficult for you to handle them, but you don't seem to regard them as your opponents mentally."

"In a way, yes. I consider those who I would act like if we were in each other's shoes as opponents, because we just have different positions and conflicting interests. If one day the conflicts are gone, we could even be friends."

"What about the others? Those who you can't understand even if you put yourself in their shoes and would never act like them?"

"As you said, a savior complex."

"You actually admit it?!" Shiller said, somewhat surprised. "I thought you would find that perspective arrogant, treating yourself like a Shepherd."

"I would think that those who absolutely cannot become like me even with a complete swap are the ones who need to be saved by me."

"Jesus should come down from the Cross, you go up," Shiller sincerely exclaimed.

"Including Jesus," Batman said.

Shiller sighed, "I guess that's why you and Arrogance are friends."

Then he added with some confusion, "How did we get to this topic? What does this imply?"

"I was just explaining why I help Greed." Batman's tone remained calm. "If I had to make a list of danger levels for everyone in this game, Greed would be at the bottom because he isn't hungry at all; eating is just a hobby for him."

"And what about me?"

"All the Shillers aren't ranked very high," Batman said. "As I mentioned, you aren't hungry; it's just for fun."

"Then who is?"

"Though I don't really want to admit it, Bruce's rank isn't high," Batman's tone grew slightly somber. "The difference between you and him is that he is better at smashing the bowl once he's done eating."

"I'll take that as a compliment. So, Joker ranks first then?"

"Of course."

"Who ranks higher, Evil Batman or Good Joker?"

"They are neck and neck, but if I had to say who ranks higher, it would be Evil Batman," Batman thought aloud. "His sense of deprivation is stronger than Joker's."

"Just because he focuses too much on Bruce? I think you are biased."

Batman shook his head, "I don't mean to boast that I am completely objective, but Night Owl has lost more than Pale Knight and gained much less through what he has lost."

"Yeah, if you knew how carefree the Pale Knight is in his cosmos, you might even be envious."

"It's not easy to fulfill Joker's sense of deprivation; sometimes I doubt if only God can do it. What Joker lacks isn't just material things, it isn't a deprived upbringing that made him a madman; he even lacks love."

Shiller followed this train of thought and was deep in thought when suddenly he heard Batman ask,

"What puzzles me more is you, Shiller, from the way you exist, you shouldn't be so well-fed... so who is feeding you?"