Chapter 520: Schiller is Probably Crazy (1)
Chapter 520: Schiller is Probably Crazy (1)
chapter 520: schiller is probably crazy (1)
schiller had become accustomed to this nesting doll-like plan and didn't think there was anything wrong with his strategy. however, the only problem was that from an outsider's perspective, it was unlikely that anyone could fully understand his series of twists and turns.
now, let's take another look at this plan from an observer's standpoint. it seems very much like schiller, for some reason, learned about the secret of the egyptian god system's ability to resurrect believers. he actively seized the identity of the moon god khonshu's pope from marc and, after making a deal with khonshu, used ammit's attack to commit suicide. he personally experimented to determine whether the secret of resurrecting believers was true or not.
upon discovering that it was indeed true, he violently interrupted the process, commandeered the ship, stormed into the heavens, and forced the truth about this secret from the lord of the underworld.
after obtaining the truth, he began trying to resurrect someone using various methods. when progress was not going well or when his desires ultimately remained unfulfilled, he descended into madness.
it had to be said that schiller's constant pressing of the balance and his shouting at the air were behaviors that resembled those of a mentally disturbed patient acting out due to stimulation.
looking at it from the perspective of an observer, isn't this obviously a manifestation of someone who has failed to achieve a deeply cherished wish, lost their emotional support, and consequently suffered an emotional breakdown, leading to delusional behaviors?
furthermore, stark and steve had just walked through schiller's mental sanctuary, witnessing memories from his childhood. this helped form a complete logical chain.
schiller, driven by the tragedy of his childhood, had been constantly seeking ways to resurrect his parents. learning about the egyptian god system's ability to resurrect believers, he risked his life to gamble on it, only to have his wish fall through and ultimately crumble into madness.
to be honest, once stark and steve pieced it all together, they even felt that schiller's death could be acceptable.
the moment they confirmed schiller's physical death, both of them felt a sense of absurdity. it was just too easy, lacking the expected display that schiller should have shown.
and when they realized that schiller hadn't actually died, that his soul hadn't dissipated, they had a feeling of "just as i suspected."
but when they deduced what schiller had truly experienced, they felt that their initial worst-case scenario had actually turned into a better choice for schiller.
death or the collapse of one's emotional support, which should one choose?
on this matter, steve and stark surprisingly held the same opinion: they would rather die than experience such disappointment and despair.
seeing schiller's act of suicide to probe the secret, they understood how deeply he desired to accomplish all of this. but after paying such a high price, no miracles occurred, and everything felt like a bizarre and absurd dream.
it was like a person who set the stage with bones, used blood as a backdrop, carved their heart into angles, and paid the price of their life to perform a play. however, in the end, it was all just self-deception before completely giving up hope, like that of a madman.
it had to be said that compared to schiller's incredibly convoluted plan, this perspective was much more reasonable...nôv(el)b\\jnn
one could even say that if you were to observe a normal mental hospital and analyze the conditions and causes of all the patients, you would find that many cases of acquired mental illness were rooted in excessive hope leading to despair.
schiller's attitude toward his own plan was "you don't need to understand; just enjoy the ready-made results." stark and steve's attitudes toward their own views were "we understand; we totally get it." neither side was willing to explain, resulting in a very subtle misunderstanding.
namely, schiller was originally profit-driven, while everyone believed he was driven by deep emotions.
schiller hadn't explained his entire plan to charles, so stark and steve got ahead of him. after a conversation outside the door, charles also felt that stark and steve's explanation made sense.
charles was a psychology expert and understood the principles of humanity's mental breakdown. schiller's condition was very typical, especially his current behavior: irritable, hyperactive, uncontrollable, and chasing after pointless delusions. wasn't this a classic case of delusional schizophrenia?
schiller looked at the balance helplessly and said, "alright, even if you won't let me in, shouldn't you at least give me a reason?"
"if you believe that being outside can provide you with more death, then i swear from today onwards, i won't even kill a mosquito until you appear and are willing to talk to me. i'll mend my ways! do you hear me, death?"
"i just don't understand..." schiller picked up the bottom of the balance and complained to it, "you're willing to make deals with gods as weak as osiris. why can't i? what am i lacking?"
"i've already said, if you find the contract approach too primitive, we can sign a contract. didn't you make a deal with mephisto? i can have him act as an intermediary; he's recently become well-versed in humanity's contract law."
"if you don't like that goat, you can find odin. i'm well-acquainted with him too. with so many acquaintances vouching for us, what's worrying you about this business deal?"
"if you think a profit-sharing system won't work, we can establish a membership system. we can even bypass the sanctum sanctorum's membership portal. if we conduct a solo partnership, you can handle business with me, and i can offer you an exclusive discount..."
"i sincerely hope you don't see me as a fraud. i've been in business for so many years; my integrity is evident to everyone."
"you should know setorak and chthon, right? setorak has been a long-standing client of mine. the business package i offered him isn't even as favorable as the one i'm offering you..."
schiller held the balance, and instead of performing a mysterious ritual, he seemed to be using it to pitch a telephone.
he decided to take a seat, propping his elbows on the table and his chin in his hands. he kept murmuring to the balance, endlessly reciting terms like flexible package deals, extra value without extra cost, exclusive discounts, and so on.
in truth, if death didn't respond at all, schiller wouldn't persist in this aggressive sales pitch. but since he had one end of the balance held down, it meant that someone was contesting him on the other side—death was actually present by his side the entire time, not gone.
schiller also realized that death didn't want him to enter the realm of death, but at the same time, she didn't want to forgo her dealings with the egyptian god system. thus, she had to adhere to the balance's principles of judgment.
in response, schiller devised a plan.
when he pressed down the end of the balance with a heart symbol, if he successfully managed to do so, he would die due to failing the judgment. if death didn't want him to die, she would have to appear and press down the end with a feather symbol. this also meant that death had to pay attention to him.
as a result, the balance transformed from a token of judgment into a telephone.
when schiller pressed one end, death had to respond by pressing the other end to avoid him passing away. and when he pressed the other end, it meant he could hear what schiller was saying.
so, while schiller kept pressing one end to engage in his pushy sales tactics, death was compelled to press the other end and endure this relentless sales pitch.
with this new functionality in place, schiller fully embraced the nature of a pyramid scheme leader, vowing not to let death off the hook.
however, the scene of schiller incessantly murmuring to the balance appeared even more terrifying to the three people outside the door.
wasn't this becoming an obsession, driving him completely insane?
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