R Batman Incident (12)

In S.H.I.E.L.D.’s office, it was the same dimly lit room, the same flickering bulb overhead. Schiller and Nick sat on opposite sides of the table.

"I didn’t expect things to reach this point so quickly." Nick spoke with some emotion. He took out a sheet of paper, tore off a corner, crumpled it into a ball, and tossed it into the middle of the table. "Since Stark Industries’ weapons performed so brilliantly in this full-scale invasion war, the Security Council has approved a bill allowing private armed forces in New York to retain firepower…"

Schiller also took the sheet of paper, tore off a piece, crumpled it into a ball, and tossed it into the center of the table. "Three hundred Blizzard Devices, plus subsequent maintenance costs."

"There are no longer any members of Congress vehemently opposing the commercialization of the Immortality Factor." Nick tossed another paper ball over.

"A diluted version of the healing serum can achieve a certain degree of injury repair in a short period without obvious side effects. At most, it can provide fifteen hundred doses." Schiller tossed over another paper ball.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. is willing to fully support dismantling the vampires’ social structure and conduct real-time regulation and monitoring." Another paper ball landed in the middle of the table.

"Not enough," Schiller said.

Nick crumpled up another paper ball and tossed it over. "S.H.I.E.L.D. is willing to give up certain claims regarding Stark."

"Thirty percent of the Immortality Factor’s profits."

"That’s too low. What cut do you want?"

"The share that Stark and Osborn Pharmaceuticals are supposed to pay me."

"The lowest S.H.I.E.L.D. can accept is forty-five percent."

"You want nearly half? Impossible. Even if I agreed, Pepper wouldn’t. And you’d better think it through. Obadiah still hasn’t woken up, but Connors’ brain-activity drug has been making tremendous progress. Once Obadiah wakes up, you might not even get thirty percent."

"Forty percent. No lower. Like you said, Obadiah hasn’t woken up yet."

"My bottom line is thirty percent."

"S.H.I.E.L.D. will separately give you another two percent."

"Thirty-five percent. Final offer."

"Deal."

Before long, as the two continued talking, more and more paper balls piled up on the table until they nearly formed a small mountain.

After settling certain issues of profit distribution, Nick sat back in his chair, interlaced his fingers beneath his chin, and said, "I have to admit, your bloodline theory plan is brilliant. But I always feel like you have something bigger in mind."

Schiller smiled. "I just want to live peacefully and enjoy a little entertainment while I’m at it."

"So if someone disturbs your peace, you take a shovel and cut off every one of their roots?"

"Let’s not talk about such heavy subjects. Let’s discuss something happier."

Schiller placed both hands on the table and clasped them together. "Do you have any thoughts about how the Immortality Factor should be produced?"

"Hasn’t that already been handed over to the professionals at those two major groups?"

"Yes, but are you really satisfied with just thirty-five percent of the profits?"

Nick narrowed his eye. He was all too familiar with that tone. "What, do you have some extra business to discuss?"

"Of course. You can’t really be willing to let everyone else take the biggest share, can you?"

Nick stared at Schiller with his one eye. Schiller said, "Let me ask you something. What do you think about drug safety?"

"No particular thoughts. What are you getting at?" Nick threw the question back at him.

"If vampires are used to make medicine, how do we guarantee the safety of the raw materials? How do we prevent inferior goods from being passed off as genuine? How do we ensure blood extraction is compliant? How do we make sure the precious Immortality Factor isn’t consumed during manufacturing? How do we guarantee the finished medicine works? What are the monitoring standards?"

"Raw material safety…" Nick paused, sharply sensing that there was plenty to be made of this.

"Yes, exactly." Schiller waved a hand over the table. "Surely you don’t think you can just catch any random bat and turn it into a medicine that prolongs life?"

"According to our research—namely, the bat bloodline theory—the purer a vampire’s bloodline, the more effective its blood is. Ordinary vampires have very poor medicinal effects, not to mention vampires transformed from humans. Bats transformed from humans have no medicinal value at all. It’s like the difference between truffles and ordinary mushrooms in cooking."

"These rare and precious high-ranking vampires are something we all know are extremely dangerous to capture. Therefore, the costs are high, and the profits from counterfeiting are enormous."

"Of course there will be unscrupulous merchants passing off inferior goods as genuine, catching a few ordinary vampires and claiming their blood contains this precious factor too."

"To ensure that our customers can purchase the purest Immortality Factor medicine, we naturally need to establish an inspection system to make sure every dose is made from the rarest pure-blood bats."

"And we must distinguish between wild-caught and farmed ones. Out of humanitarian concerns, we absolutely do not support farming—that is, locking up a high-ranking vampire and repeatedly drawing its blood. That would be utterly inhumane!"

"So the most valuable raw materials are naturally pure-blood bats captured and killed right on the battlefield."

"Besides, I’m an extreme animal protectionist. We must end the bats’ lives painlessly. After all, bats are animals too…"

"Of course, that means using our most advanced freeze guns. At extremely low temperatures, living creatures cannot feel pain. Is there any better form of euthanasia?"

"Therefore, bats not killed with freeze guns cannot be used to produce the highest-end Immortality Factor medicine."

"Of course, drawing the blood after killing the bats is also highly particular. It must be done through delicate and complex procedures by the most professional S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Personnel must undergo at least three rounds of training…"

"The containers must naturally be specially made as well, so that the factor can be preserved to the greatest possible extent."

"The warehouses for storing these medicines—yes, that is of utmost importance. Preservation technology determines the freshness of most food and pharmaceuticals. As it happens, I have a very mature design for a cold-chain transportation system that can meet the transport and storage needs of the Immortality Factor…"

As Schiller spoke, Nick took notes. When Schiller stopped, Nick did not even look up. "Keep going. My autumn accounts are taken care of now."

"You haven’t grasped the essence." Schiller smiled.

Nick put down his pen and looked at him. Schiller took the sheet Nick had been writing on and wrote a word at the top. When Nick took it back, he saw that it read: "monopoly."

Schiller’s voice followed. "When only we possess the right to define ‘industry standards,’ we achieve a monopoly in the truest sense."

"The uncrackable nature of this mysterious factor means that only giants in the technology industry—Stark and the Osborn Group—hold the final authority to interpret everything."

"Under those circumstances, we can turn any company attempting to imitate it into a seller of counterfeit and inferior goods."

"Antitrust laws? Yes, they may still have some use against traditional industries. But now, if we say a company’s product is fake and that is the result of Stark’s research, would you still buy it?"

"We have no evidence; words alone prove nothing. But if you can buy Stark Industries’ products, why would you buy from those small companies?"

"In that situation, everyone will only trust companies they believe are capable of cracking this factor, and most people will only think Stark and Osborn have that capability."

"Stark and the Osborn Group cannot crack the true secret of this factor, but as long as no other company can crack it either, Stark and Osborn will remain permanently ahead."

"That is a natural monopoly."

"And I probably don’t need to explain the benefits that complete monopoly over an industry can bring, do I?"

Nick pursed his lips. "What I can tell you is that I have a bigger plan, a personal one. So whatever capabilities you have, feel free to show them. I guarantee there will be a place for you in it later."

"At least personally, I can ensure your life remains as peaceful as ever."

Schiller smiled. Under the flickering cold light, his smile looked somewhat unhinged. He said:

"Then we’ve reached the most important step."

"Our distinguished customers paid a fortune for genuine Immortality Factor medicine. We can’t let them inject it in some rundown place, can we?"

"The method and procedure for using the medicine, customized treatment plans, post-treatment recuperation and care—all of that also requires an industry standard."

"So, might they need a psychiatric sanatorium with official accreditation, capable of perfectly carrying out all the above procedures and providing attentive service?"

In Nick’s eyes, Schiller bared fangs sharper than those of the bats.

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