Above the vast museum square, thousands of people stood frozen in shock.
Rain—something so ordinary that no one ever questioned it—was behaving in a way that shattered common sense.
The raindrops that should have been falling from the sky were rising upward instead.
From the audience's point of view, it looked as though the world itself had glitched.
Gravity had failed.
Reality had been rewritten.
At the center of it all, standing calmly beneath the glowing lights, was Kaito Kid.
At that moment, he no longer looked like a simple thief or a flashy showman. He looked like someone who had broken the most basic laws of nature.
Just as he had promised earlier, he had shown everyone present a miracle.
Even in an era where masked vigilantes leaped across rooftops and superhumans battled in the skies, scenes like this were almost unheard of. People had seen explosions, rescues, and superpowers—but this felt different.
This wasn't brute force.
This was elegance.
This was defiance of reality itself.
Gasps rippled through the square.
People who had earlier scoffed at the idea of Kaito Kid being anything special were now staring upward, mouths open, eyes wide.
"A miracle… this really is a miracle!"
"I've never seen anything like this in my entire life!"
"If someone told me right now that Kaito Kid was a real magician, I'd believe it without hesitation!"
"No—no way. This isn't magic!"
"I heard there's someone in Gotham who uses real magic while pretending it's stage tricks. Could Kaito Kid be the same kind of person?"
The crowd buzzed with speculation, excitement, and fear.
---
Behind the Scenes
Inside the Cultural Relics Pavilion, near one of the upper windows, a lone figure watched the chaos unfold with quiet interest.
Firefly.
He leaned casually against the window frame, eyes fixed on the square below, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
Unlike the rest of the audience, he wasn't confused.
He understood the trick instantly.
Before becoming Firefly, Garfield Lynns had been a professional special-effects artist—one of the best. Explosions, firestorms, controlled burns—those had been his specialties. From a young age, he'd been obsessed with fire, heat, and how light interacted with matter.
But that didn't mean his knowledge stopped there.
On the contrary, his pursuit of realism had forced him to study all kinds of physical phenomena. Smoke, reflections, light refraction, motion perception—he had dissected them all.
At first glance, special effects and stage magic seemed like two completely different worlds.
But Firefly knew better.
The secret behind the "backward rain" wasn't magic at all.
It was hidden in the lights.
Thirteen pavilions.
Thirteen synchronized light sources.
And a carefully timed broadcast signal.
Kaito Kid had manipulated the lights to flash at a specific frequency, illuminating the rain at precise intervals. To the naked eye, the droplets appeared to freeze in mid-air—or even reverse direction.
It was a visual illusion created by exploiting the limits of human perception.
A physics trick.
Simple in theory.
Almost impossible in execution.
Especially on this scale.
Firefly let out a low chuckle.
"Brilliant," he muttered. "If this technique were used in film… the results would be breathtaking."
His smile twisted slightly.
"I'm getting more and more interested in you, Kaito Kid."
Then his expression darkened, eyes burning with a familiar obsession.
"Watching you burn… that would be the most beautiful scene of all."
---
Magic vs Reality
Among the crowd below, a handful of people had also grasped the principle behind the illusion.
They noticed the light patterns.
The timing.
The way shadows behaved.
But none of them spoke up.
Because understanding the idea was meaningless compared to actually making it work.
The difference between theory and reality was a chasm most people couldn't cross.
And Kaito Kid had crossed it effortlessly.
The audience didn't care how it was done.
They cared about how it made them feel.
That, more than anything else, was the essence of magic.
---
The Mood Shifts
Bang!
A gunshot cracked through the air, sharp and jarring.
The crowd screamed and instinctively backed away.
"All unrelated personnel, disperse immediately!" a commanding voice shouted.
"Stay away from Kaito Kid!"
Police lights flooded the square.
Commissioner Gordon emerged from the direction of the Jungle Pavilion, flanked by dozens of officers. Guards from the other pavilions quickly joined them, forming a tightening ring around the square.
The atmosphere shifted instantly—from awe to tension.
The only pavilion whose guards hadn't moved was the Cultural Relics Pavilion. Someone had to stay behind to protect the priceless Dragon Egg Ruby Necklace.
Barbara Gordon was also absent.
The commissioner had personally ordered her to stay behind. Tonight was too dangerous.
As Gordon stepped forward, rain still rising unnaturally behind Kaito Kid, the thief turned toward him with a bright smile.
"Still working this late, Commissioner?" Kaito Kid called out cheerfully.
"You really are Gotham's beacon of justice! But even you need proper rest."
Gordon's eye twitched.
Why do you think I'm here at midnight, you menace?
If you'd just retire like Catwoman, I might actually get a vacation.
"Citizens!" Gordon shouted, ignoring the taunt.
"Please retreat immediately! There is a high risk of hostage situations!"
Then he turned his full attention to the man in white.
"Kaito Kid! The rain is heavier now. You won't be able to hide with smoke tricks, and your decoys won't fool anyone tonight!"
His voice hardened.
"You might believe that returning stolen items excuses your crimes. Or that exposing corruption through illegal means makes you righteous."
"It doesn't."
"Your actions inspire imitation. If this continues, the order of the entire city will collapse!"
The square fell silent.
"If you still have a conscience," Gordon continued,
"surrender now. I promise—your sentence will not be severe."
---
A Thief's Answer
Kaito Kid listened quietly.
Then he shook his head.
"Inspiring crime was never my goal, Commissioner," he said calmly.
"I've never called myself a hero. Or a vigilante."
"I'm just a magician."
"I perform for the audience. Nothing more."
---
A New Player Enters
Before Gordon could respond, a sudden gust of wind surged from behind Kaito Kid.
A clear, confident female voice rang out.
"Wow. Has anyone ever told you that you're really good with words?"
Kaito Kid reacted instantly.
He twisted sideways just as a dark figure flew past him in a powerful kick.
The attacker sailed through the air, one hand gripping a rope connected to the top of a nearby utility pole. She had clearly swung in with perfect timing.
Realizing her strike had missed, she released the rope and landed smoothly on the ground.
The crowd stared.
Then recognition hit.
A young woman stood there in a Bat-suit.
Long red hair spilled from beneath her Bat-cowl, whipping in the rain-filled wind. Her black suit hugged her athletic, graceful frame, and the Bat emblem on her chest was unmistakable.
The square erupted.
"Oh my god—it's Batgirl!"
"First Robin, now Batgirl?! They're really going all out for Kaito Kid!"
"Wait—where's Robin? Why isn't he here?"
Batgirl straightened, eyes locked onto Kaito Kid.
The question hung in the air.
Is it him?
Her?
Or something else entirely?
And somewhere in the shadows, unseen forces began to move.
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