"Nygma!"
Jim Gordon stormed into the Riddler's cell at Arkham Asylum with imposing momentum. "I know what you're up to. Tell me your plan to steal the Goddess's Tear right now!"
The sudden interrogation stunned the Riddler behind the iron bars.
"Goddess's Tear? I don't know what you're talking about... Oh, Jim, my dear old friend. Have you finally cracked under the pressure of working in this godforsaken city and started having delusions?"
The Riddler looked Gordon up and down, sneering. "Looks like we'll be neighbors soon."
"Look at this. Besides you, who else in Gotham uses riddles to forecast their crimes?" Gordon slammed the Phantom Thief Kid's notice onto the table in front of him.
"Wait, what did you say? Using riddles to forecast crimes?" The Riddler's expression shifted instantly.
He grabbed the card, scrutinized it, and then exploded in rage.
"You call this garbage a riddle? It's no different from a children's puzzle! Don't insult the word 'riddle,' Jim Gordon! You actually think I would write such a third-rate puzzle?"
"Who is Phantom Thief Kid? I'm going to kill him!"
Seeing this reaction, Gordon pressed, "So you already know what it means?"
"Nonsense! Even a three-year-old could understand it. How could I not know? It says—wait, don't tell me you haven't solved this clumsy riddle yet?" The Riddler's sneer returned. "Want to know the meaning of the notice? Let me out, and I'll tell you."
"I don't trust you."
Gordon bluntly rejected the Riddler's insincere trade offer. "Behave yourself, Nygma. I'll be watching you."
He stood up, glared a warning at the villain, and left Arkham Asylum. Although he hadn't unlocked the secret of the notice, he had at least confirmed that Phantom Thief Kid wasn't the Riddler. He wasn't sure if that was good news or bad news.
Late that night, Gordon returned home after work, his mind still churning over the contents of the card.
"'On the third day Europa learns her true name'... Does that mean the third day after Europe was born? God knows what day that is. And even if we knew, what does it signify?"
So far, the only part he fully understood was the final line: "And kiss the Goddess's Tear." This undoubtedly referred to the "Goddess's Tear," the priceless gem recently acquired by the Gotham Art Museum.
Starting from this clue, the meaning of the second-to-last line, "I shall pass through the invisible prison," could be roughly guessed. "Invisible" meant unseen or transparent. "Prison" combined with the Goddess implied the gem was trapped, losing its freedom and thus shedding a tear. Taken together, the "invisible prison" likely referred to the glass display case protecting the gem.
So, Phantom Thief Kid would bypass the glass case to steal the Goddess's Tear.
It seemed like a perfect explanation. Yet, Gordon felt something was off.
To steal the gem, breaking the glass case was a prerequisite. There was no need to emphasize it; the last line alone conveyed the intent. Wasn't the line about the prison superfluous? Or was it just to make the note look more poetic?
Gordon refused to believe that.
"Hey, Dad, what are you looking at?"
A quiet voice interrupted Gordon's contemplation. Unnoticed, a red-haired woman in a wheelchair had entered the room.
"Barbara, when did you come in?"
Barbara Gordon, Jim Gordon's daughter. She was once an able-bodied young woman with athletic ability far above average, a graduate from a prestigious university, and held a well-paid, relaxed job at the city library. Her future had been bright.
That was the side Gordon knew. He didn't know his daughter had a secret identity: she was one of Batman's aides—Batgirl.
Regardless of identity, Barbara was outstanding. However, two years ago, a brutal incident occurred. Gordon himself was kidnapped and tortured, and Barbara was paralyzed from the waist down. She had been confined to a wheelchair ever since, and Batgirl had vanished.
"I've been watching you for a while. You were so focused you didn't even hear me enter." Barbara glanced at the card in Gordon's hand. "What is that? Mind if I take a look?"
"No. It's important evidence related to a case." Gordon refused immediately.
Barbara wasn't surprised by her father's attitude. In the past, he might have allowed her to look at some case files, but since she lost the use of her legs, that possibility had vanished.
"Alright. I just came to remind you it's late. get some rest soon." Barbara turned her wheelchair to leave.
"Barbara—" Gordon suddenly called out.
"What?"
"'On the third day Europa learns her true name,
A burning chariot shall fall from the sky.
Under the watchful gaze of Clytie,
I shall pass through the invisible prison,
And kiss the Goddess's Tear.'
Any thoughts on this?"
He didn't show her the card or mention Phantom Thief Kid, simply reciting the poem.
"Is this... some kind of modern poem?" Barbara asked uncertainly.
"Let's assume it is. Do you have any leads on what these lines mean?"
A nearly imperceptible light flashed in Barbara's eyes. Rather than poetry, this sounded more like a code. The Riddler? No, the style was different.
"Hmm... In Greek mythology, the name Europe comes from the Phoenician princess Europa. Zeus transformed into a white bull to abduct her. Later, they had three children, and the continent beneath her feet was named Europa," Barbara explained after a moment of thought.
"Literally, it refers to the third day after Europe was named, but that specific date is impossible to verify and holds no practical meaning. So, we should consider the catalyst for Europa learning her 'true name'—Zeus. The bull he transformed into is the symbol of Taurus. The day Europe got its name can be seen as the first day of Taurus. So, the first line likely refers to the third day of Taurus—April 22nd!"
"The 'burning chariot' in Greek mythology is the Sun God's vehicle, representing the cycle of sunrise and sunset. If the sun chariot falls from the sky, the earth loses its light. It means the sky turns dark before sunset..."
"A total solar eclipse!" Gordon suddenly remembered the weather bureau's announcement months ago. Gotham would experience a total solar eclipse on April 22nd.
Barbara nodded and continued her deconstruction. "'Clytie' is the symbol of the sunflower. Her gaze always follows the sun. So, 'under her watch' points to the direction of the sunrise—the East."
With that, the meaning of the entire notice became clear.
Phantom Thief Kid would arrive at the Gotham Art Museum on April 22nd, during the solar eclipse, entering from the East. He would then bypass layers of protection to steal the Goddess's Tear.