Batman realized that the Schiller standing before him seemed quite different from most of the other Schillers.
He had known for a long time that this doctor from another universe existed in a highly unusual form, possessing many distinct personality traits whose differences exceeded even those between ordinary people.
Yet this new personality trait appearing before him still overturned his expectations once again.
Those seemingly very different personality traits from before had always shared some common ground, and they invariably carried a particular mysterious undertone that made them impossible to fully grasp. So no matter how differently they behaved, one could still sense that they were the same person.
But the Schiller before him seemed not to possess that mysterious quality. Perhaps he had hidden it and deliberately acted this way, or perhaps he truly differed from the other Schillers.
Batman did not know which answer was correct, but he realized he might be in trouble, because Schiller was now very interested in him.
Although Batman considered Schiller his friend and usually enjoyed working with him, he had to admit that attracting Schiller's interest was not a good thing.
A madman's love and hatred were both dangerous, but the most dangerous things were curiosity and the desire to explore. Batman understood that more clearly than anyone.
Batman knew that during the process of getting acquainted with Pride, he had almost never truly aroused Pride's interest, because Pride always seemed to know things about him beyond the facts, as though he had long been certain Batman would hold nothing new.
And that was indeed the case. Batman had never displayed anything remotely resembling a mystery before Pride. He remained as he always was, never acting out of character. His logic and style of doing things did not change depending on whether