Batman lost control.
Perhaps because, in a sense, he had just come to believe that he had truly killed someone. Or perhaps because the answer he had given himself to Schiller's question contained something he wanted to avoid.
Or perhaps forcibly stopping in the middle of controlling the black tide had dealt an even greater shock to his mind, leaving him unable to control himself.
In any case, Batman and the black tide outside the Mayor's Mansion had completely lost control.
Clark, lying on the ground, had already closed his eyes. Schiller's question had deeply shaken him as well. His thoughts were in chaos, and perhaps he, too, was trying to escape, unwilling to look at the scene of limbs flying everywhere.
But at that moment, the black tide that was about to destroy the manor was suddenly blocked outside. A curtain of light descended, freezing the black tide once more.
A figure appeared beside the railing of the second-floor atrium. It was Schiller, dressed in a black suit.
Oddly enough, he was carrying a paintbrush, as though he had just finished working. He tossed it aside, clapped his hands, and said, "The testing in this room is more or less complete. We—"
Before Schiller could finish, a shadow suddenly jumped down along the second-floor atrium. He had originally been squeezed in among the crying people, but now he nimbly rolled past Joker Jack and reached Clark's side.
With a flash of his blade, he cut the ropes on Clark's body. He grabbed the Kryptonite on Clark's chest and threw it away. When it hit the ground with a clang, Schiller, standing in the second-floor atrium, narrowed his eyes.
"Merkel." Schiller spoke in a low voice as he looked at the man beside Clark. It was Merkel, his former butler.