144 Chapter 144: Winnable

"Whatever you do in this life, it's not legendary unless your friends are there to see it."

-Barney Stinson (HIMYM)

...

This Matches must be a complete idiot!

As they watched Matches and Penguin gamble, all the other gamblers in the room gave Matches sympathetic looks.

With the Penguin's gang and the Matches gang working together, it wasn't hard to temporarily calm down all of Gotham's underworld for a day.

There was no hope if it lasted too long, but if it lasted just one day, it was possible.

After all, if anyone dared to make a big scene on that day, they would face an attack from both the Penguin's gang and the Matches gang.

Even though the Matches Gang wasn't as powerful as the Penguin Gang, there was still a big difference between the two.

But in Gotham City, Matches' gang was considered a medium-sized crime organization, and with the Penguin's gang by their side, they could walk around Gotham without being stopped.

No one in their right mind would offend both of these forces at the same time.

This also meant that on the day the Phantom Thief acted, Batman would definitely go to Gotham City Stadium to stop the Phantom Thief.

With the major gangs in Gotham controlling their henchmen, the night's crime rate would be much lower.

This would let Batman focus on the Phantom Thief without worrying about other important things.

So, this gamble returns to its original situation, Phantom Thief vs. Batman.

Can the Phantom Thief get away from Batman?

There's no need to think twice about it!

As long as someone knows something about Batman, they won't have any doubts that there is anything in the world that he cannot do.

Except for having a baby.

Wait, Batman has never taken off his mask.

The Phantom Thief tells the people of Gotham that voices can be changed and that no one can be sure that Batman is a man, even though his voice has always been male.

What? They say the physique doesn't match?

Who said a woman couldn't reach six feet?

Who said a woman couldn't develop a muscular physique?

That's just the surface.

Just look at Batman's chest.

Can a normal man have such big chest muscles?

On the surface, it's chest muscles, but maybe it's actually boobies.

In short, gamblers believed that there was no one Batman could deal with, especially not someone as bold as the Phantom Thief.

What is the Phantom Thief capable of?

There's plenty of complete video footage, so surely Batman can come up with a way to deal with him, right?

There is no doubt that it is impossible to bet on whether the Phantom Thief can escape smoothly.

Penguin made the right choice by betting that Batman would catch the Phantom Thief.

Then, Matches bet thirty million dollars that the Phantom Thief would escape from Batman.

That's just intentionally throwing money away!

Who in their right mind would make a bet that is so sure to lose?

At first, it seemed like Matches planned to bet that the Phantom Thief wouldn't be able to escape so that the Penguin would lose money.

However, it turned out to be the opposite...

Wait a minute!

Is Matches actually trying to give money to Penguin?

Is it bribery? Or is he planning to build some new business with the Penguin's gang?

Suddenly, some clever gamblers began to ponder Matches' true intentions.

Hiss—

The more they thought about it, the more it seemed to be the case.

Matches, who had built the Matches gang from scratch, was definitely not stupid.

Also, the amount bet was thirty million dollars, which is a lot of money.

What benefit did Matches gain from losing to the Penguin? It could only be a gift to show goodwill to the Penguin!

Otherwise, there's no way to explain why Matches would knowingly bet on the Phantom Thief's success against Batman.

It's possible that Matches was too proud to give money to Penguin directly, so he set up this plan to send money to Penguin in a strange way.

It's really surprising. Matches looks so bold, but he is actually very sneaky.

It seemed that not only the gamblers but also the Penguin himself shared this idea.

The dangerous gaze in his eyes had now completely disappeared, and he turned his gaze toward Matches with a curious expression.

"Matches, are you not worried about losing this bet? Three million is not a small amount; even for someone like you, it wouldn't be easy to come up with that kind of money, right?"

"Mr. Cobblepot, If you're worried that I won't have thirty million dollars to put down as a bet, don't be. I'm willing to bet and accept the results. If Phantom Thief gets caught, I will definitely pay the thirty million without hesitation."

Matches replied confidently.

"Then I wish you good luck."

Penguin smiled faintly and then addressed all the gamblers present.

"Ladies and gentlemen, if I stay here any longer, it might ruin the mood for everyone. So I'll leave for now. Enjoy yourselves."

After saying that, Penguin's bodyguards walked him out of the Iceberg Casino.

Once he left, everyone in the casino let out a sigh of relief. The gamblers, dealers, and receptionists softened their stiff faces.

"Everyone, I've put all my money on that bet just now, and I can't afford to buy more chips to play. I won't disturb your fun any longer."

At this moment, Matches also sighed and spoke.

"You can just go away, Matches. If it weren't for you insisting on talking about how easy it is to manipulate Batman, this wouldn't have happened at all. Mr. Cobblepot would not have known!"

"Yeah, don't think we don't know what you're up to. I thought you were direct, but when it came to the crucial moment, you turned out to be a guy who is a coward!"

Ignoring the insults from the gamblers, Matches turned away and left.

After leaving the Iceberg Casino, Matches' behavior instantly changed. He discreetly glanced around before entering a nearby alley.

As soon as he stepped in, two figures followed closely behind him into the alley.

However, when the two of them reached the entrance alley, they found it completely empty.

"What the hell! Where is Matches Malone?"

One of the trackers exclaimed in frustration.

Thud!

Suddenly, his partner collapsed to the ground.

"Mikey! What's happened to you?"

Thud!

As he was surprised by his partner's collapse, he suddenly felt a heavy blow to the back of his head. His vision instantly went black, and he uncontrollably fell forward.

"As expected, someone was following me."

Matches stood behind the two people on the ground and held a piece of wood in his hand.

He discreetly observed his surroundings and those behind him to ensure nobody else was tailing him before quickly leaving the spot.

As for the two unconscious trackers, they could wait for their boss to find them.

After some time, Matches arrived at a secluded and quiet alley.

There were no people or surveillance cameras around.

After confirming it was safe, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and gently reached for the back of his neck. Then he pulled something out lightly.

A highly realistic mask was revealed as he took off the Matches Malone disguise.

It turns out he wasn't the real Matches Malone!

And after removing the Matches Malone mask, a handsome face with a hint of youthful charm was revealed.

It was none other than Dean Thurston, who hadn't been seen in a long time!

...

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