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Chapter 47: It Was a Magnet! I Put a Magnet In It!
"It's a magnet. Judging by the direction my handcuffs were pulled, that magnet must be my cufflink."
Harvey thought to himself.
"That coin is made of pure silver, so logically it shouldn't be affected by magnets. Phantom Thief Kid likely coated the reverse side of the coin with some magnetic material invisible to the naked eye. No matter how many times I try, the coin is guaranteed to land face up."
"He definitely used a very small dosage of this material, because if the magnetism were too obvious, the old me would have noticed. But he didn't need much anyway; his goal was to influence the result of the toss, not to make the coin stick to the magnet."
As for the few times Two-Face let the coin fall onto the jury's table where the cufflink magnet wouldn't work, that was even simpler. Kid just needed to place a magnet under the table beforehand.
Doing that might have been even stealthier than the cufflink magnet.
"No wonder Kid said I would understand soon. He foresaw early on that I would notice the anomaly with the handcuffs."
The secret of the coin toss was solved. The principle behind the key link that caused Two-Face's emotional collapse was unexpectedly simple.
Then a new question arose.
When did Phantom Thief Kid replace Two-Face's cufflink with a magnet?
In Harvey's memory, before the coin landed heads seven times in a row, he hadn't been in close contact with Kid.
In fact, it was quite the opposite; Kid only truly appeared after Two-Face finished flipping the coin.
Before that, Catwoman had merely brought the captured Kid and placed him on the ground.
At the time, although Two-Face didn't examine the unconscious Kid on the ground very carefully, for Kid to switch the button on Two-Face's cuff with a magnet while lying there in a coma, and simultaneously tamper with the coin unbeknownst to anyone...
Thinking about it, it seemed impossible.
Unless Kid was the Flash, such large movements couldn't go unnoticed by Two-Face.
"Wait, speaking of Catwoman, I remember she seemed to..."
Just then, Harvey grasped a spark of inspiration in his mind.
He recalled that when Two-Face looked down to check on Kid, Catwoman had patted him on the shoulder while asking for her payment.
Patting the shoulder—this action was very natural. He had known Catwoman for many years, and their history of cooperation was extensive, so a simple touch wasn't suspicious at all.
But in this moment, Harvey suddenly realized a fact.
That is, the only person who had been in close contact with Two-Face today and had the opportunity to make all the preparations—was Catwoman!
"Did Selina collude with Phantom Thief Kid?"
Harvey denied this thought as soon as it arose because he knew what kind of person Catwoman was.
"No. Although Selina isn't exactly a loyal collaborator who strictly adheres to the spirit of a contract, she wouldn't go so far as to team up with a stranger against her employer. Even if the opponent were Batman, Selina wouldn't defect so easily."
"...Is it possible that the Selina who brought Kid in wasn't actually her?"
Meanwhile, at ACE Chemicals.
A curvaceous, mature woman dressed in night clothes stood on the roof, twisting her neck as she looked into the distance.
"Seems I'm really getting old, actually suffering such a big loss at the hands of a greenhorn who just debuted."
Catwoman sighed slightly.
Not far behind her lay a pile of white clothing.
Gloves, suit, trousers, cape, leather shoes, and a top hat.
These clothes were scattered over a considerable distance, appearing as if they were taken off one by one while walking.
"This broken suit is so hard to take off. How on earth did he manage to change his whole outfit with a whoosh? He should teach that ability to every lady who wears complicated clothes and likes to change outfits."
It turned out Catwoman hadn't knocked out Phantom Thief Kid. On the contrary, she was the one who had been knocked out.
Kid put his clothes on Catwoman, then changed into her clothes to impersonate her, creating the illusion that Kid had been captured by Catwoman.
He approached Two-Face as Catwoman, swapped the cufflink for a magnet, and unknowingly swiped the coin to coat the reverse side with a special layer.
After finishing the job, he left the scene with the perfect excuse of collecting his payment, waiting for the right moment to officially appear.
As for the outfit originally belonging to Catwoman that Kid had worn, he folded it neatly and hid it on the roof, deliberately leaving clues to guide Catwoman here...
"Speaking of which, for Kid to fit into my catsuit, isn't his figure a bit too slender? If Kid's true face isn't a woman, then he must be a skinny beanpole."
Catwoman speculated.
However, the fact that Kid could disguise Catwoman so perfectly as himself—fooling even Robin, who had fought Kid face-to-face multiple times—was impressive.
One could say Kid's skill was stronger than most shapeshifters. Most shapeshifters could only change themselves; he could change others, and in such a short time!
Not becoming a movie makeup artist was simply a waste of his talent.
Or perhaps he was saving the jobs of countless makeup artists...
"So the captured Kid on the ground really was you, Selina Kyle."
Just then, a voice suddenly rang out from behind Catwoman.
"Oh, it's you, the Bat's little bird. Shouldn't you be following Harvey to the police station or chasing that Kid who ran off to god knows where?"
Catwoman turned around to see Robin, who had appeared on the roof at some point.
"I didn't do anything bad today."
"That's the reason you're standing here talking to me instead of in an interrogation room," Robin said expressionlessly. "But regardless, it's a fact that you accepted Two-Face's commission. You promised not to go back to your old trade, and Batman chose to trust you."
"And you failed him."
"Is that so? Maybe that's exactly what Batman likes about me," Catwoman smiled nonchalantly.
"Why go back to the old business? I don't believe you need money. You accumulated enough wealth years ago to last a lifetime," Robin asked probingly.
"Good question, but you wouldn't understand. Just like you won't understand why Phantom Thief Kid commits those seemingly meaningless thefts, while I know what he really wants."
Catwoman said meaningfully.
"We aren't Cobblepot, nor Sionis, nor Crane. We don't enjoy the joy of acquisition, but the thrill of the process."
"Of course, compared to Kid who views money as complete dirt, I am a bit more pragmatic."
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