44 Chapter 44: Suspicion

"Even if we forget the faces of our friends, we will never forget the bonds that were carved into our souls."

- Yuzuru Otonashi (Angel Beats!)

...

In the back row near the window, Dean listened to the faint voice coming through his earphones and thought to himself.

'Dick sent someone to the museum...'

How could Dean hear Dick's conversation?

In fact, The method was quite simple.

All Dean had to do was crack the electromagnetic frequency that matched Dick and Barbara's phone call, and with a set of techniques, he could easily listen in on conversations.

Of course, Dean didn't have that level of hacking expertise yet, and he didn't have the important tools at the moment.

In fact, Dean had installed a small bug that looked like a piece of gum on the opposite side of Dick's desk.

It was not the first day for Dean to eavesdrop on Dick.

As early as the day he appeared as the Phantom Thief, Dean had already started to keep a close eye on Dick.

He would come to school early in the morning to install the bug and bring it back after school.

It was a very bold and risky move.

Once Dick finds out about the bug, or if Dick has some strange habit of touching under the desk, the situation will be very bad for Dean.

But on the other hand, Dean knew that so far Dick had still trusted him up to this point, and over the years of knowing each other, Dean had never seen Dick check under the desk.

Even if Dick accidentally found the bug, Dean could come up with a prank with sticky gum to gamble his way out, although it would be difficult.

In short, Dean thought it was worth the risk to learn about Dick's secret life as Robin, even if there was only a small chance that he could learn something useful.

As it turned out, Dean was more right in his bet.

'Who was Dick talking to, Alfred? Unfortunately, the bug only picked up Dick's voice and not the voices in his earpiece.'

Dean stayed quiet and seemed to pay attention in class, but he was really focusing on Dick.

On the other side, Barbara casually walked around the exhibition as an ordinary visitor.

"Did you figure out the riddle already that you were so eager for me to come to the museum and investigate?"

Barbara quietly asked Dick.

"... I've only deciphered one part."

Dick paused for a moment, then answered.

"When Mars has passed its tenth day, it means that Phantom Thief will move on March 11th."

"Mars, the god of war in Roman mythology, is the origin of the word 'March.' After 'passed its tenth day,' it means exactly ten days, which is March 11th."

Barbara wasn't surprised that Dick had deciphered this line, as she had also deciphered it and even more than what Dick had solved.

"You know that Phantom Thief won't move until the 11th, so why did you ask me to come on the first day? Don't you know how busy I am with work every day?"

Dick twitched the corners of his mouth as if he had never been to the library. He pretended not to hear and continued.

"I've fought with Phantom Thief twice before. Although he waits until the set time, it doesn't mean that he will only come to the scene at that time."

"Phantom Thief's every move is fast and accurate, with a strong purpose, and his escape routes are all planned, which shows that he is very familiar with the location. This much information can't be learned in just a few hours."

Dick said earnestly, "I'm sure Phantom Thief starts observing the target location several days or even weeks before he takes action."

"Today is the first day of the exhibition and also the first day that GCPD has settled in a large area. The Phantom Thief is likely to observe the police positions from this point. You might be able to find some clues."

"I still have three days of classes before I can have a two-day break. So it's difficult for me to leave and go to the museum."

"So you want me to come? It seems like you've learned some lessons from dealing with Phantom Thief."

After hearing Dick's words, Barbara finally understood why this kid asked her to come to the museum early in the morning.

"There's actually a more important reason."

At this moment, Dick suddenly spoke with a serious tone, "During the auction at Gotham International Hotel, Phantom Thief sent me a challenge card to Robin, but at that time, I was Dick Grayson, not Robin!"

Upon hearing this, Barbara's expression changed suddenly.

"Are you saying that the Phantom Thief knows who you are? Why didn't you tell me this important information earlier? You should have told me that day!"

"What about Bruce and Alfred? What about me? Have we all been exposed?"

Dick said in a deep voice, "Honestly, I'm not sure. At least Phantom Thief hasn't used our identities to threaten us or shown any signs of revealing this information to others. I don't think he's a completely bad person."

Listening to Dick's words, Barbara couldn't help but think of Dean.

She suddenly asked, "Dick, do you know Dean Sutton?"

"Dean? He's my classmate. Why do you bring him up?"

Dick asked in confusion.

"I ran into him at the library a few days ago, and he was reading works on Greek and Roman religions. Now the new notice letter from Phantom Thief clearly has Roman parts. In addition, he's a young and famous magician. Don't you think it's too much of a coincidence?"

Barbara whispered.

"You suspect Dean is the Phantom Thief?"

Dick raised an eyebrow and chuckled, "I know Dean, and he couldn't possibly do those things."

At that moment, sitting at the table in front of Dick, Dean suddenly felt a sense of guilt for some reason.

Hmm...

I guess it's because I've been eating too many carbs and fats lately.

I need to maintain a low body fat percentage.

After making a decision in his heart, Dean continued eavesdropping on Dick's conversation.

"I know you're friends with Dean, and honestly, I don't have a bad impression of him. I don't want to suspect him, but it's just too coincidental."

Barbara suggested to Dick, "We both don't want Dean to be the Phantom Thief, so I've decided to give you an important task. It's not because I suspect him, but to prove Dean's innocence."

After hearing Barbara's suggestion, Dick hesitated a bit on his face, but in the end, Barbara's suspicion was reasonable.

"Alright, I agree with your idea."

Dick wasn't a hesitant person, so once he figured things out, he immediately agreed.

"Don't worry, we won't wrongly accuse anyone who's innocent. By the way-"

At this moment, Barbara asked with a playful look in her eyes, "Do you want to know the real meaning behind '20 multiplied by 3 equals 4'?"

...

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