"Professor Rodriguez? What are you doing here?" Shivan stood on a library ladder and turned toward the door.
"I came to collect the record of today's board notes, and there are some things I wanted to discuss with you." Schiller stood in the doorway, took off his coat, and hung it on the nearby rack. He walked over to the desk and sat down, while Shivan came over as well.
"You can ask Brainiac directly for the photos of the board notes. Did something happen?"
"Have you been at the magic academy lately?"
"Yes. Christmas is coming, and the school is holding a dance. We want to make it lively, so there's a lot to take care of."
"A student at Gotham University is threatening suicide." After a pause, Schiller briefly explained the whole situation.
"That isn't a suicide threat," Shivan said. "Someone who truly wants to die wouldn't make such a fuss. He's just trying to force you into compromising this way."
"That's true. We can all tell he doesn't want to die, and he probably can't die either. But the matter still has to be resolved, doesn't it?"
"So Professor Freeze is unwilling to compromise?"
"Mr. Principal," Schiller said, looking Shivan in the eyes, "Victor Fries may seem mild-tempered, but that doesn't mean he's easy to push around. He's a principled scientist. You can't ask him to compromise in professional matters. Besides, the cryogenic controller Chick burned out through operational error was worth seventy thousand dollars..."
"Fine, I'll have someone sue him right now." Shivan gritted his teeth slightly. Gotham University's finances had never been particularly healthy. Nearly all the investments and research projects had been brought in by him. He could not allow anyone to burn through his money like this.
"I'm afraid you can't. This involves