"It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not."
― Andre Gide
...
"Do you know about Tarot cards?"
Riddler asked Ignatius.
"I've heard of them, they're just a bunch of nonsense astrology."
Ignatius replied.
"As long as you have a bit of knowledge about tarot cards, deciphering this so-called riddle letter is simple."
Riddler didn't care about what Ignatius said and kept talking, ignoring any questions Ignatius had for him.
"The Emperor, Wheel of Fortune, Magician, and High Priestess are all tarot cards, with the numbers 4, 10, 1, and 2, respectively."
"The Emperor's number is four, and the first day he wields his scepter can be understood as the first day of April, which is April 1st."
"The Wheel of Fortune represents Jupiter, and 'turning two cycles' refers to the time it takes for Jupiter to rotate twice in two weeks. Jupiter completes one rotation in 9 hours, 55 minutes, and 30 seconds. Two weeks would be 19 hours and 51 minutes. This means that Phantom Thief will make his move on April 1st at 19:51."
"The High Priestess represents the Moon, and the' silver winged magician' refers to the Phantom Thief himself. This line is the simplest, which means that Phantom Thief will appear in the northwest at 19:51, according to the position of the moon."
"The line 'upon the peak' refers to the Tower, which matches Tarot card number 16. In Gotham City, the tallest building is Wayne Tower."
"Combining the height of Wayne Tower and the distance between the Orpheus Jewelry Exhibition Center and the rooftop of the exhibition at an angle of 33 degrees, we will be able to see the top of Wayne Tower. And 4+10+1+2+16 is equal to 33."
In short, Phantom Thief will descend onto Wayne Tower from the southeast on April 1st at 19:51.
"As expected of Mr. Nygma, you were able to decipher Phantom Thief's notice letter at a glance."
Ignatius said it with admiration.
"Don't worry, the boss will help you get out of here soon--"
"No need!"
The Riddler interrupted bluntly.
"If I want to, I can leave this place anytime without anyone's help!"
"And, tell Cobblepot that he should never come looking for me again!"
Seeing the Riddler's stubborn attitude, Ignatius bid farewell and left the visiting room.
Before leaving, he discreetly handed two stacks of money to the two prison guards at the entrance.
As Ignatius walked out of the gates of Arkham Asylum, a smile appeared on his face.
Couldn't understand Phantom Thief's notice letter?
What a joke.
Maybe he couldn't reach the level of understanding it with just one glance, like Riddler, but if he focused and carefully thought about it, deciphering the tricky letter was actually quite easy.
Why did Ignatius come all the way here to find the Riddler?
The reason wasn't about the Phantom Thief but about the Riddler himself.
Ignatius didn't completely lie to the Riddler.
Penguin couldn't be distracted and didn't focus on the Phantom Thief. He entrusted Ignatius with full control over dealing with the Phantom Thief.
However, Penguin didn't give Ignatius the task of finding the Riddler to decipher the notice.
For Ignatius, it wasn't a problem at all.
He could easily say that deciphering it would take time and that finding Riddler was the best option.
He knew very well that the Riddler had a serious mental illness, an obsessive-compulsive disorder, and an obsession with riddles.
A little insult and the Riddler would hate the Phantom Thief, who enjoyed leaving riddles in his notice letters.
Although Ignatius had prepared the 'Stone of Misfortune' to deal with the Phantom Thief, he couldn't be too sure.
If the Phantom Thief noticed the problem with the 'Stone of Misfortune' and didn't touch it directly, then Ignatius would have to use his backup plan.
That backup plan is Riddler.
At the same time, Ignatius's seemingly casual remarks would also make Riddler resent the Penguin.
The Riddler was to deal with the Phantom Thief, and Penguin was to set up future plans...
These hidden schemes beneath the surface were unknown to Dean, and he was completely unaffected.
He just went on with his normal life, going to school and exploring his target locations as usual.
The ten-day spring break at Gotham Academy quickly came to an end, and Dean resumed going to school as part of his regular routine, which didn't change much.
There were only three days left until the start of the 'Hope Diamond' exhibition.
When Dean walked into the school, discussions about the Phantom Thief flooded his ears.
During this time, the discussions about the Phantom Thief had been steadily increasing, and everyone was talking about the riddles on his notice.
It's worth mentioning that although the superheroes, including Dick and Barbara, and the villains, including the Riddler and Ignatius, had already deciphered the contents of the notice letter, no one leaked the information.
To the outside world, the Phantom Thief's notice was still an unsolved mystery.
Even the GCPD police were clueless.
For some reason, Barbara did not choose to tell his father the riddle of the notice letter this time.
"Hey, Dean."
As soon as Dean walked into the classroom, he heard Dick calling him from the corner seat.
"What's up?"
Dean sat down in his back window seat and turned to look at Dick.
"Do you have time in three days?"
Dick asked mysteriously.
"What is it? Do you want to learn magic again?"
Dean raised an eyebrow.
"No, don't you know there's a 'Hope Diamond' exhibition in three days?"
Dick said.
Hearing this, Dean's heart skipped a beat.
'Why was Dick suddenly bringing up the exhibition?'
'Hopefully, he's not up to something again.'
Dean remained calm and said, "Yeah, I know, but I'm not interested in these kinds of events."
"I'm not interested in the exhibition either, but when it comes to Phantom Thief, it's a different story."
Dick agreed with Dean's thoughts on the exhibition and suddenly changed the subject.
"Oh? Are you saying you've already deciphered the Phantom Thief's notice?"
Dean asked curiously.
"Well, I won't tell you for now."
Dick chuckled and said, "Unless you promise to come with me to the exhibition in three days."
"Whatever! It's not like I'm dying to know anyway, and I don't need to go to the exhibition with you. I can use that time for something else.
Dean shrugged.
"Don't say that. You're not curious about Phantom Thief's magic skills?"
Dick persuaded.
"Think about it, Phantom Thief is good at magic, and you're also highly skilled in magic. It is said that the Phantom Thief loves using magic in his crimes. With a professional magician like you, maybe you could expose his tricks on the spot!"
As he spoke, Dick looked at Dean expectantly.
"..."
For a moment, Dean didn't know what to say.
After a long silence, he finally said, "Dick, you seem oddly obsessed with the Phantom Thief."
Dean looked at Dick suspiciously.
"You, the son of a wealthy family, are not obsessed with food, drink, and play but instead become obsessed with figuring out the Phantom Thief's tricks... are you a detective or a police officer?"
As soon as Dean finished speaking, Dick's face suddenly became serious.
"Dean, I have to come clean with you..."
...
A/N: If we reach 900 power stones today, I will release an additional chapter tomorrow.
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