”Batman, I didn’t expect you’d come back.”

After a long confrontation, Mathison smiled softly and asked as if he were a good friend he had known for a long time.

”It’s not … for a certain gem I stole earlier, is it?”

Phantom Kid’s voice was soft enough that only he and Batman could hear it.

He was implying that he knew Batman’s true identity.

Batman looked unchanged as if he did not hear Mathison’s words.

”Phantom Kid, you have stolen the Adam Star, the Cat’s Eye Emerald, and the Tamil Ruby in succession; they are worth at least billions of dollars combined.”

Batman stared at Mathison and said in a rough voice.

”Although, in the end, you returned the Emerald and the Ruby to their owners, and most of the funds from the sale of the Adam’s Star were donated to countless people, this doesn’t make your actions acceptable. Stealing was never the right way to show off your magical talents!”

At those words, Mathison froze, so that was actually how he was portrayed in Batman’s eyes.

”You are young and have really not done anything unforgivable so far, so if you stop there, I can leave you alone.”

Batman didn’t seem to show much hostility towards Phantom Kid, he was like an elder who couldn’t bear to see his junior go astray.

”Batman, before you persuade me to stop, don’t you think what you did is even more unacceptable than me?”

Phantom Kid asked rhetorically in the face of Batman’s persuasion.

”You ignore the law, ask for no evidence, and wantonly cross over the judiciary to punish sinners just to carry out what you believe to be justice.”

”You don’t care as long as the criminals are sent to the Blackgate Penitentiary by you. You don’t regard the severity of the crime they committed, or if you have broken their hands, their legs, or caused them hemiplegia. Do you think that these heavy punishments are nobler than my behavior?”

”It is not destined for a man who never obeys the law to make another of the same kind obey it.”

Phantom Kid threw back his cape, his gaze was clear and cold.

”Batman, what position exactly are you in to persuade me to stop?”

At the sound of his voice, Batman fell silent for a moment. He noticed the determination deep in Mathison’s eyes and instantly understood that such a man cannot be easily persuaded.

Since communication doesn’t work, he’d have to rely on his fists!

«That sentence from before… Was he suspecting my identity…»

Batman’s gaze grew colder, and his entire figure was covered with an icy aura of slaughter.

Invisibly, a heavy aura was affecting Mathison.

If he hadn’t known that Batman had taken an oath “to never kill”, Mathison would have thought that the man in front of him was a butcher who had walked out of a mountain of blood.

”Maybe you’ll learn what’s right and what’s wrong when you’re taught a lesson.”

As soon as Batman’s emotionless voice dropped, he launched an attack!

The multi-functional belt was activated and Batman threw his unique symbol at Phantom Kid.

The Bat Dart!

The black blade spun mid-air, reflecting a cold light.

”Clang!”

As the bat dart flew between the two, a playing card collided with it, making the sound of steel on steel!

The impact was so great that the bat dart and the playing card flew backwards and fell to the ground.

Batman couldn’t help but stare at Kid’s skill at flying cards.

”I have as many playing cards on me as I want, I don’t think you have as many bat darts though.”

Mathison fetched a playing card and flung it towards Batman once more.

This time it was the bat dart that stopped the playing card.

Batman knew that what Kid had said was true and that he did not have many bat darts on him.

Looking at Mathison’s thin body, Batman concluded that he had no formal training in martial arts.

Batman instantly exploded to the limits of human speed, crossing the ten-metre distance between him and Kid in less than a second.

In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Mathison!

A punch was thrown squarely at the chest of Phantom Kid.

”Thud!”

In a flash of lightning, Mathison only had time to block with his arms across and brace himself for a hard blow.

«That was fast and heavy!»

This punch was a complete manifestation of Batman’s strength, perhaps not as strong as those with superpowers, but still definitely at the peak of human strength.

After receiving this blow, Mathison felt that his forearm had become numb.

In the next moment, alarm bells went off in Mathison’s mind.

Without thinking, he rolled to the side reflexively, forcing himself to hold back the pain.

He was able to avoid Batman’s next punch.

«Quick movement and quick reaction, but unfortunately not properly trained for combat.»

Batman re-closed on Phantom Kid while still having room to observe Mathison’s movements.

Batman is a master of all martial arts on the planet. His skill is almost superhuman. He targeted Mathison’s vital organs with every kick or punch.

They were fast, accurate, and hard.

Any blow could cause severe pain or break a bone.

Mathison could only rely on his superior motor nerves and light body to constantly dodge Batman’s attacks.

«What the hell? I clearly remember that in the movie, Batman’s body was decaying. He did not train for eight years, so he should not be able to maintain such a high level of fighting strength.»

Faced with another swing from Batman, Mathison leapt forward, reached out and pressed his hand on Batman’s swinging arm to burrow strength again, then directly leaped over his head.

«Could it be my appearance that caused Batman to start his training early? But… that was only a month ago at most!»

«Can a person who has a crippled body become a super martial arts master at the pinnacle of mankind in a month?»

«How is it possible?»

A drop of sweat was left on Mathison’s forehead.

Although he was planning to cast some offensive Red Magic spells, these spells have one very fatal weakness.

Using offensive Red Magic requires the construction of a magic formation in advance, a long preparation time, and must not be interrupted in the middle.

In his battle with Batman, Mathison did not dare to be careless for even a split second.

Luckily, his own physical condition was not bad, so he gradually adapted to Batman’s speed.

As he dodged his attacks, he quietly built magic formations under his feet.

And despite Batman having a vague premonition that Phantom Kid seemed to be planning something, he could not see through it, because he had never been exposed to magic before.

It was a mismatch of information, and as unfair as it seemed, battles are not meant to be fair…

Only to an outsider’s eye, Phantom Kid was at an overwhelming disadvantage.

”Look, Batman and Phantom Kid are fighting!”

”Oh my god, is this a fantasy showdown?”

”This is the fight to live for! Batman had never lost a battle, as long as he strikes, that white thief is destined to be imprisoned.”

”What?! Batman is the crazy murderer from eight years ago. Keep in mind that Harvey Dent died at his hands. What right does he have to catch Phantom Kid?”

”Wow, Phantom Kid is so getting beaten by Batman… he can’t even fight back!”

As soon as the fight on the watchtower started, it caused a heated debate among the people below.