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Chapter 34: A New Storm Is Coming
"Something's wrong. This is too wrong."
At the dinner table, Darren secretly observed Tim and the others, who were chatting and laughing while eating.
"So far, not a single sentence has carried the intent of probing me. It's as if... they really are just having a dinner party."
So, was I overthinking it? My disguise really is impeccable, Darren thought to himself.
"Hey, Darren, is your stomach bothering you?" Jack asked, looking at him. "You haven't eaten much since we started."
"Oh, no, I'm fine. I'm just managing my figure recently, so I'm eating slower." Darren made up an excuse.
The dialogue attracted the attention of the others at the table.
"Darren, your figure is already great. No need to deliberately manage it, right?" Barbara said with a hint of envy.
"Barbara's right. You look slimmer than a woman, especially those hands—white and tender as tofu. If you ask me, figure management for you should mean bulking up. You need to eat more meat," Dick agreed from the side.
"You don't need to take Darren's words too seriously. He's probably just joking," Tim interjected, swallowing a mouthful of steak.
"Then is it physical discomfort? Or does the food not suit your taste?" Jack continued to ask with concern.
"Neither. Actually... I've been thinking. With the daughter of the GCPD Commissioner and the eldest son of the Wayne family gathered here today, do you have important matters to discuss with the Waynes and the police? Am I intruding by staying here?" Darren answered, half-truthfully.
"Then you've clearly misunderstood. Barbara and Dick are Tim's friends too; they were invited by him. We have no official business to discuss." Jack smiled in realization and clarified.
"So that's how it is. I'm relieved. Tim, why didn't you tell me this earlier?" Darren accused Tim.
"Hey! Don't spit blood on people! I clearly told you I had friends coming." Tim immediately protested the injustice.
"Did you? How come I have no memory of it?"
"Of course I said it! Think harder; I don't believe you simply forgot!"
"Well, you definitely didn't say the friends coming were Barbara and Dick. Made me worry for nothing," Darren huffed.
"You... I..." Tim's face flushed red as he stammered.
The others looked at the two bickering, expressions of amusement on their faces.
"Alright, the steak is getting cold. Eat up."
After the meal, the group returned to the living room to chat.
"Darren, there's a question I've wanted to ask you since earlier," Dick asked suddenly.
"What is it?"
"Have you looked into Phantom Thief Kid?"
At these words, Darren's heart tightened instantly.
Finally here? The probe, late but inevitable.
"I've looked into him a bit, but mostly through the news and Tim's descriptions. I haven't seen him with my own eyes."
"That's enough. What I want to ask is, can the things Phantom Thief Kid does still be considered magic?" Dick asked with a curious expression.
"Tim asked this before. My answer remains the same: Phantom Thief Kid's methods are certainly miraculous, but they are still within the realm of what magic can achieve. It's just extremely difficult to pull off." Darren gave his standard answer.
"In your opinion, throughout Gotham—or even nationwide—how many magicians have skills comparable to Phantom Thief Kid?" Dick continued.
Swish. Tim and Barbara's gazes turned toward him in unison.
Right. With Kid's level of magical mastery, he couldn't be an amateur. Wouldn't investigating professional magicians yield clues?
Although they couldn't judge which magicians were on Kid's level, someone else could!
Darren Green!
With such a professional right next to them, having him identify suspects would drastically narrow the investigation range.
Why hadn't they thought of such a simple thing before?
It must be because I subconsciously didn't want Darren involved too deeply. I should have thought of this at the very beginning, Tim thought to himself.
"Well, that's hard to say..." Facing Dick's question, Darren pretended to ponder.
"Although I am a magician, I don't mix much in the circle. After all, I'm still a student. My knowledge of those old veterans isn't much better than you audience members. It's hard to see a magician's full strength from just a few performance records. However—"
He changed the subject at the end.
"Honestly speaking, in all of Gotham—no, even across the country—I think only one person can execute techniques equal to Phantom Thief Kid's. Perhaps even more exquisite!"
"Who?"
As soon as the words fell, Dick, Barbara, and Tim instantly showed excited expressions, speaking in unison.
If there was only one suspect, then that person was almost certainly Phantom Thief Kid!
They knew Kid's magic level was high, but they didn't expect it to be this high—so high that a magic genius would call it unique in all of America.
"Wait, this person you're talking about... it wouldn't be yourself, would it?" Tim asked, raising an eyelid and staring at Darren suspiciously as if realizing something.
"Hey, don't think of me as that narcissistic. I haven't become arrogant enough to think I'm number one in the world." Darren couldn't help but roll his eyes.
"I'm talking about Master Giovanni Zatara, the descendant of Da Vinci, the world's premier stage magician. He could perform any magic, no matter how miraculous. Although he has passed away, his daughter Zatanna and his nephew Zachary are both top-tier magic masters. They shouldn't be inferior to Phantom Thief Kid..."
As Darren introduced them, the looks in Tim and the others' eyes grew increasingly disappointed.
Because they knew these people. Intimately.
Especially Zatanna.
One of the most powerful sorceresses on Earth, the Justice League's chief magic user, and Batman's ex-girlfriend. Giovanni and Zachary were also genuine magicians—users of real magic.
But make no mistake, they rarely used real magic to deceive audiences during performances. Leaving actual magic aside, their skills as stage magicians were absolutely world-class.
These people definitely couldn't be Phantom Thief Kid.
"So, aside from Zatara, you don't think any magician can do what Kid does?" Dick asked, frowning.
"I wouldn't say that. If given enough time and full preparation at a specific location, I believe most famous magicians could do it. Myself included. But Phantom Thief Kid doesn't have those conditions." Darren shook his head.
"Also, I'm only talking about the magic aspect. Take Kid's miraculous disguise technique—very few magicians can achieve that."
"Hmm... alright. That's all I wanted to ask." Dick ended the topic.
"Dick, are you very concerned about Phantom Thief Kid?" Jack, who had watched the whole exchange, asked curiously.
"Sort of. I'm a police officer now, after all. Although Gotham's cases aren't my jurisdiction, I'm still quite curious about peculiar criminals like Phantom Thief Kid." Dick smiled and admitted.
Afterward, they chatted about inconsequential topics.
"It's getting late; I have to go home. Uncle Jack, thank you for the hospitality today. Everyone, let's meet again sometime." Darren checked the time and bid farewell to the group.
"Mm, we should be going too." Dick and Barbara also prepared to leave.
"You're welcome to come play anytime," Jack said happily.
Tim saw the three to the door. Darren headed home first.
Watching his back, Dick casually mentioned, "Do you guys think there's any possibility Darren is Phantom Thief Kid?"
"Darren?"
Tim and Barbara looked at each other.
"Impossible. Absolutely impossible."
Tim shook his head and denied it. "Any magician could be Kid, but Darren is the only one who can't be. Although Kid's motives for his strange behavior are unclear, it could be explained as seeking attention. Being noticed is his motive."
"But with Darren's identity, a single performance gets him massive applause. He has fans all over the world. The attention Kid gets might not even be a tenth of Darren's. Why would he want to be Kid?"
"Also, I don't think Darren could unload the bullets of dozens of police officers in under half an hour without being detected. I've known him for years; I have some understanding of his abilities. That point alone is enough to prove he can't be Kid."
"On that basis, I actually think those down-and-out magicians with great skill but no outlet are more likely to be Kid. They want to prove themselves more than anyone," Tim analyzed logically.
"My opinion is the same as Tim's. With Kid's skills, he can't be a high school student," Barbara agreed.
"Hey, why so serious? I just mentioned it casually. I didn't really suspect Darren. I'm not Batman, biting anyone I catch." Dick spread his hands helplessly.
Gotham, Burnley District. A jewelry store inside a mall welcomed a strange customer today.
He wore a gentleman's hat split down the middle into blue and black. The brim was long; since he kept his head down looking at the jewelry in the counter, the brim obscured his face, making his features unclear.
The customer's clothes were unusual. The fabric indicated an expensive custom suit, but like his hat, it was split into blue and black colors. It looked quite bizarre.
"Excuse me... may I help you?" the clerk asked first, seeing him staring at the counter without speaking.
"Shh—"
The customer in the bicolor suit extended a finger, making a hushing gesture.
Gulp.
The clerk couldn't help but swallow. The customer's aura was too eerie, triggering terrible associations.
He wanted to press the alarm button under the counter, but every time his hand started to move, he felt a sharp gaze staring at him. That bone-chilling terror froze the clerk in place.
"...Ah, chosen. I want all of these."
Finally, the customer finished selecting.
A thunderclap exploded in the clerk's heart. To his ears, that sentence was no different from hearing the words "I am robbing you."
Ping!
A crisp sound rang out.
A streak of silver light shot up from the customer's hand and fell back down a few seconds later.
The customer caught the silver light on the back of his hand, covering it with his other hand, then slowly revealed it.
It was a coin. Facing up was the head of Lady Liberty, representing the positive side.
"You are very lucky, Mr. Clerk. Tell me, how much for this entire cabinet of jewelry?" the customer looked up and asked gently.
"Ah! Y-Y-You, you are—"
The clerk collapsed to the floor, staring at that face in horror.
Half the face was normal. The other half was a bloody, mangled mess like burnt flesh. A terrifying appearance even in a horror movie, let alone in reality.
"Two-Face!"
The clerk screamed the customer's name in terror.
Two-Face, Harvey Dent. Former Gotham District Attorney, now a wanted criminal with a dual personality.
"Calm down, sir. Please tell me now, what is the total value of the jewelry in this cabinet?"
Ignoring the clerk's panic, Two-Face asked again.
"It... it... the total is... sorry, I haven't calculated it." The clerk said with his eyes closed.
"Alright. I think this should be enough."
Seeing this, Two-Face placed two heavy bags at his feet onto the counter.
Unzipping them revealed they were stuffed with green banknotes.
The clerk stared blankly at Two-Face's actions, completely misunderstanding what he was doing.
"They are yours."
Two-Face had no intention of explaining. Leaving a faint sentence behind, he turned and left the shop.
The money stayed on the counter, but he didn't take a single piece of jewelry.
"These... are all real money!"
The clerk pulled a few stacks of bills from the bag and stuffed them into the counterfeit detector, revealing a delighted expression.
"Although the money Two-Face gave is probably dirty, as long as I use it carefully and don't tell anyone..."
Just as a greedy smile hooked the corner of his mouth, Two-Face returned from outside.
"I quite like the jewelry in those counters over there, too."
He pointed to several display cases in the store and smiled.
Then, under the clerk's horrified gaze, Two-Face flipped the coin again.
And this time, facing up was the Eagle emblem, representing the reverse side.
In an instant, Two-Face's expression changed. He flashed a grotesque grin at the clerk.
"Regrettably, sir. It seems your luck ends here."
Bang!
A gunshot rang out, and the clerk fell in response.
The next day.
A notification swept through every street and alley of Gotham.
"Emergency Bulletin: At 10:49 PM last night, the wanted criminal Two-Face, Harvey Dent, appeared at a mall in the Burnley District. He robbed a jewelry store, four restaurants, and two supermarkets, resulting in a total of thirteen casualties!"
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T/Note: Hello everyone! Thank you so much for the positive reviews and support. Just a quick clarification: I wasn't aware that there was another version of this fanfict being translated. I originally thought you guys were referring to the Marvel x Kaito Kid. I only recently found out that a different version is also being translated.
For my part, I'm doing my best to keep my translation as faithful to the original source and delivery what the author intended to convey as possible, without adding new dialogue or making major changes to the plot. The only adjustments I make are minor edits such as MC's name,tone down exaggerated Chinese nationalistic or Chinese culturally superiority complex, which is very common in Chinese fanfiction.
Regarding the raw names, I don't provide them. I only stated that this is a translation. I feel that if I were to provide the raws, it would defeat the purpose of translating since readers will just influx to the original sources instead.
My translation is heavily rely on Patreon supported, and I don't have any intention of pursuing official contract since this isn't my original work. That said, the original story is also a fanfiction based on existing original work, so I think it's fair enough.
Overall, thank you guys again for reading, support, and understanding! I hope you're enjoying the story as much as I am!
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