Slacker Assassin's Multiverse Daily

Of course, he had almost forgotten about it. In truth, when he used Eagle Eye to observe his surroundings earlier, he had already spotted that conspicuous flash of red, and he deliberately walked toward them just now.

Kids naturally don't watch where they're going, and combined with Jiang Hang's Assassin's Footwork, everything went smoothly.

He looked at the chubby little boy still clutching his head and couldn't help muttering to himself.

Had it only been a week, and the members of the Detective Boys were already together?

"Sorry about that," the little fat boy who bumped into him was naturally Genta, but the one apologizing on his behalf was Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya, who was walking behind. "Genta, you need to watch where you're going! You bumped into someone. Apologize!"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to," Genta said without any sincerity, then quickly shifted the blame onto Conan. "It's Conan's fault. He suddenly ran so fast. I was trying to catch up and didn't notice..."

Jiang Hang, who had deliberately caused the collision, reached out and helped Genta up.

"Don't look around when you're walking. It could be dangerous if something happens." He crouched down and brushed off the boy's pants, then noticed that Conan was also staring at him.

"You... you look familiar somehow?" Jiang Hang put on a thoughtful expression when he saw Conan, as if trying to recall something.

After all, a week ago, he had met Conan at the kid's doorstep. This brat might still remember him, so pretending a little could dispel any suspicion.

"Have I seen you somewhere before?" he asked Conan.

As for Conan, although he was a bit confused at first, as a famous detective, he quickly remembered that last week, when his body had shrunk and he couldn't get into his house, this person had found him and asked if he needed help. But Conan, newly shrunk and full of vigilance, had run away.

He hadn't expected this person to still remember him after just one meeting.

Conan was a little surprised, but he still pretended not to know anything and looked at Jiang Hang.

"I don't know, big brother. Have you seen me before?"

"Maybe I remembered wrong," Jiang Hang shook his head, letting it go. His focus wasn't here anyway.

At that moment, Jiang Hang also noticed the piece of paper in Conan's hand.

For an ordinary person, holding a piece of paper wouldn't be strange. But if it was Conan, combined with the Detective Boys' group activity, Jiang Hang quickly recalled a gold coin hijacking case from Conan's early days.

It seemed a Mafia gang had stolen a lot of gold coins, and before the boss was caught, he left behind a so-called coded Treasure Map. The boss's underlings wanted to find the treasure, but somehow the map ended up in Conan's hands. Then Conan used his reasoning ability to successfully find the gold coins the boss had hidden.

That was roughly the gist of it. Although Jiang Hang couldn't understand why, in the 21st century, a Mafia boss would bother making a coded Treasure Map, since he had run into it, he had to get involved.

"Speaking of which, are you guys playing some kind of treasure hunt game? Elementary school kids sure have rich extracurricular activities these days."

After he said that, Genta snorted in dissatisfaction.

"The Treasure Map we have isn't some game! If we solve the riddle and find the treasure, I can eat the world's best eel rice! Ahahaha!"

"The world's best eel rice, huh? That sounds like a pretty good treasure. Need my help? It might sound unbelievable, but big brother here is actually a detective!"

Jiang Hang didn't really care about the treasure. With a tycoon system backing him up, he could earn Ten Million Yen in an afternoon just by promoting positive energy. With a system like that, why bother with anything else?

Compared to the so-called treasure, what Genta said about the world's best eel rice appealed to him more.

"Eh, big brother, you're a detective like Uncle Mori? And you look so young too! That's amazing!" Ayumi, standing nearby, exclaimed in admiration after hearing Jiang Hang's introduction.

Saying that, Ayumi looked at Conan. "Conan, how about showing the Treasure Map to this big brother? Maybe he can figure out where the treasure is right away!"

He says he's a detective, and you just believe him? I haven't heard of any famous detective around here. And a detective who gets lured by eel rice? No way he's any good.

Conan couldn't help complaining in his mind.

As the one hailed as Heisei Holmes, he still hadn't cracked the code on this Treasure Map. If some random guy on the street who claimed to be a detective could solve it, where would his pride be?

But even though he thought that, he was just a kid now. Facing the other kids who had already agreed, he had no choice.

Reluctantly, he handed the so-called "Treasure Map" to Jiang Hang. Conan also asked in a childish tone.

"Big brother, how long have you been a detective? Have you solved any big cases?"

"Ahaha, my detective agency actually just opened today. You guys are probably my first client." Jiang Hang answered Conan casually, instantly dropping Jiang Hang's reliability in Conan's mind to the same level as Kogoro Mouri.

He looked at the paper. At the top was an iron tower, with a moon beside it.

Below were a few simple shapes that seemed unrelated. Only at the bottom of the shapes were the three letters "oro" marked.

"Oro..." Jiang Hang blinked. In Italian, that meant gold.

As for why he knew Italian, he had to thank the system that was originally going to take him to Florence. The initial reward included Italian proficiency.

"A treasure marked in Italian? Does that mean the person who buried it was Italian?" Jiang Hang didn't remember the details of this plot clearly, but when he muttered this, Conan was a bit surprised.

He had only found that out after searching in a bookstore for a long time. This ordinary-looking young man actually knew Italian?

It seemed this guy was at least more reliable than Kogoro Mouri.

But Jiang Hang's ability stopped there. If it were a murder case, his Eagle Eye could find plenty of clues. But a Treasure Map that relied purely on reasoning? Who the hell knew what these drawings meant?

He only knew that a Mafia gang had hidden gold coins, but he couldn't remember the middle process. He had to make something up.

"Hmm... this iron tower should be Tokyo Tower. The shapes below probably mean you have to go to Tokyo Tower first to proceed. I can't deduce much from here, but since they drew a moon to the right of Tokyo Tower instead of below it, doesn't that mean you can only find the treasure using this map at night?"

To his surprise, after he finished his random guess, Conan seemed to have an epiphany. He clapped his hands hard and said he got it.

Jiang Hang's body trembled. As expected of Conan, he could easily find the key to the case from his nonsense.

Watching Conan suddenly put on a deep expression, Jiang Hang's OCD was about to kick in.

So what the hell did you figure out? Just say it already!

Chapter 7: Maple Gold Coin Case — Conclusion

Jiang Hang himself had no intention of trailing after a bunch of first-graders on their little adventure. When he saw that Conan had likely hit upon the key to the case, he simply stroked his chin.

After all, he had Eagle Eye. Conan couldn't possibly escape his surveillance, so all he had to do was wait for Conan to find the real treasure location.

"Anyway, it's almost evening now. Nighttime is dangerous, so you kids should head home. Here's your treasure map back."

"Huh? Big brother isn't coming treasure hunting with us anymore?" Ayumi said with some regret. In her eyes, this big brother Jiang Hang had only glanced at the treasure map for a moment and already figured out so much. If he agreed to join them, he'd probably dig up the treasure in no time.

"I think your little friend here has some ideas too. You guys should do your best."

Jiang Hang handed the treasure map back to the Detective Boys while secretly activating Eagle Eye.

Sure enough, less than a hundred meters away, three shady figures were watching them. These were probably the remnants of that Mafia gang.

Couldn't find the location on the treasure map themselves, so they pinned their hopes on a bunch of elementary school kids—what a disgrace to the Italian Mafia.

After encouraging the little detectives and reminding them again that it was dangerous at night and they'd better go home, Jiang Hang parted ways with the Detective Boys.

It was easy to guess that these thrill-seeking kids wouldn't just give up on a treasure so close at hand.

From his Eagle Eye, he could see that those Mafia thugs were carrying guns. In the anime, Conan and his group always came out fine, but in reality, if something went wrong, there was no guarantee those kids would be safe.

Even if it was just a possibility, Jiang Hang felt it was best to nip the danger in the bud.

Of course, that didn't mean he was going to charge over and take out the three thugs himself—no way. He hadn't gotten a single combat or assassination skill from the system yet. Aside from being a bit tougher than the average person, trying to take on three armed Mafia members was pure daydreaming.

So Jiang Hang chose the most fitting course of action for his identity: he called the police and let them handle it.

Sure, the cops in this world seemed a bit unreliable, but the descriptions Jiang Hang gave of the three suspicious figures matched the remaining three Mafia members on the wanted list. The police responded pretty quickly.

As dusk fell, Jiang Hang kept in touch with the police while using Eagle Eye to keep tabs on the three thugs from a distance.

With Jiang Hang's almost cheat-like field of vision, the police successfully set up an encirclement. When the three thugs followed Conan's group past an intersection and were suddenly tackled to the ground by plainclothes officers, they were still daydreaming about the lavish life they'd live once those brats found the gold coins.

Meanwhile, Jiang Hang was chatting with a portly police officer.

In Conan's world, the one who showed up now was naturally the famous Inspector Megure.

He was thanking Jiang Hang for his tip-off. After all, this gang had stolen Maple Leaf Gold Coins worth 600 million yen. Though the boss had been caught, the coins and his three underlings were still missing.

When Inspector Megure learned that Jiang Hang was a detective who had just opened his own agency, his attitude toward him warmed considerably.

After all, the police in this world... really relied on capable detectives for a lot of things. Most talented detectives were arrogant, solving everything on their own without ever considering the police's feelings.

Facing those detectives, the police basically just showed up to clean up after the case was over—a huge embarrassment for the police system.

But Jiang Hang was different. He provided the suspects' location but stayed on the sidelines the whole time, never interfering with police operations. After the case, he heaped praise on the police, showing no sign of trying to take credit.

They chatted by the police car for a while, and Inspector Megure was already casually calling Jiang Hang "Brother Jiang."

Jiang Hang knew he'd be dealing with Inspector Megure a lot in the future, so he made sure to build a good relationship now.

After the three thugs were taken away in police cars, he figured Conan was probably close to finding the hiding spot for the Maple Leaf Gold Coins. So he reported to Inspector Megure that the thugs had been tailing Conan's group.

Then he used Eagle Eye to easily locate Conan's position and, pretending he'd deduced it, got Inspector Megure and a few officers to follow him to the gold's hiding place.

When Jiang Hang led Inspector Megure to the spot, the expressions on the Detective Boys' faces—from the surprise of finding the gold to shock, then disbelief after learning the truth, and finally to pity and disappointment—were absolutely hilarious.

Seeing the Detective Boys staring at him like he was a con artist, Jiang Hang couldn't help but feel a bit helpless.

In kids' eyes, treasure they found was theirs. Jiang Hang wanting a share as someone who helped was one thing, but calling the police was a total foul. Even knowing he'd dealt with the three thugs for them, the kids weren't grateful.

"Alright, alright, don't be mad. How about I take you all out for some delicious eel rice to make up for losing your treasure?"

At the mention of eel rice, the foodie Genta immediately switched sides. They were just kids after all; a few words from Jiang Hang cheered them right up, and they'd forget about it in a couple of days.

Conan, though, after learning the whole story from the police, seemed pretty down.

He'd been puzzling over that treasure map all afternoon, but Jiang Hang had just glanced at it and found the key, then led the police here, only a step behind him.

More importantly, he'd noticed the three thugs tailing him and dealt with them effortlessly.

And Conan himself hadn't sensed a thing. If those thugs had followed him all the way here, his group would have been in serious danger.

The thought sent a chill down his spine.

When he looked at Jiang Hang again—a man who had seemed so ordinary—he now appeared unfathomable.

Who knew he'd run into such a formidable detective just by chance on the street? It seemed he'd been a bit too arrogant before.

Jiang Hang, of course, had no idea what was going through Conan's head. He just rubbed his stomach.

He'd been busy all day and hadn't even had dinner yet. Time to wrap up the case report with Inspector Megure and find a good restaurant for a feast.

Chapter 8: And It's Still a Crossover World

"Congratulations, host, on completing your first criminal case. You've taken the most critical first step on the path to becoming a legendary detective. Initial case-solving reward has been issued. Please check your inbox."

"Congratulations, host, on solving a three-star case. Case-solving reward has been issued. Keep up the good work and strive to become a legendary detective."

After the police confiscated the bag of gold coins, the system notification appeared in Jiang Hang's mind.

One case, two rewards. This system was pretty generous in that regard.

Jiang Hang checked the reward. Besides ten million yen, the three-star case reward included a Basic Combat Training Permit. According to the description, he could use it to enter a training room once, where training would grant him basic combat skills.

It didn't just implant the skills directly into his head—he had to train himself. Direct implantation would have been more convenient, but skills gained through training might feel more reassuring to use.

Jiang Hang silently grumbled about his rigid system but didn't dwell on it.

He had no idea how this so-called Basic Combat Skills would translate to the real world, but considering the power level of Conan's universe, Jiang Hang pessimistically figured that even after completing the training, he probably wouldn't be a match for Ran Mori—after all, she was someone who could punch a concrete utility pole to pieces with one blow.

Having watched a certain Conan movie, Jiang Hang also knew that in the future, a monster would appear who could punch away a soccer ball kicked by Conan with his bare hands.

And in another movie, Conan's soccer ball had forcibly altered the trajectory of a falling satellite—Jiang Hang felt that even if he mastered the Ultimate Ancient Fist Technique, the "Invincible Wind Fire Wheels," he might not be able to beat someone like that.

But regardless, Jiang Hang finally had some means of self-defense.

As for the initial case-solving reward, aside from the twenty million yen, it also unlocked a branch ability of Eagle Eye.

Eagle Eye - Revelation (Beginner): When activated, it can perform a comprehensive analysis of everything within a 10-meter radius, directly uncovering hidden secrets to a certain extent.

Compared to the original Eagle Eye, which only had an investigation function, this new ability actually leaned more toward detective-style deduction. From now on, at a crime scene, using this Eagle Eye wouldn't necessarily point out the killer directly, but at least it could gather all the clues at the scene in an instant.

"Finally, a skill I can actually use..." Jiang Hang muttered to himself. Compared to Meditation, which let him sleep more soundly, and Assassin's Footwork, which let him walk without making a sound, he finally had an ability befitting a detective.

Overall, Jiang Hang's gains from this case were quite substantial. The only pity was that, in the end, Genta still didn't get to eat his beloved Eel Rice.

But there was nothing to be done about it. It wasn't that Jiang Hang was unwilling to spend the money—this case had netted him thirty million yen, so he could certainly afford one meal.

However, when the Detective Boys' guardians came to pick them up after being notified by the police, Genta's parents, upon learning that their son had been involved in a Mafia robbery case, repeatedly thanked Jiang Hang on the spot and immediately took their son home. It seemed the Eel Rice would have to wait for another time.

This couple's reaction was perfectly normal, but thinking about how Genta would still face countless more cases alongside the Detective Boys in the future, Jiang Hang silently mourned for these kids' parents.

Stuck with that unlucky Conan, your children are probably doomed to be entangled with all kinds of cases for the rest of their lives.

After finishing the case statements, Jiang Hang thought about inviting Inspector Megure out for a big meal, but the inspector was still busy handling the case and would probably have to work late into the night. In the end, the only person left to enjoy a feast was Jiang Hang himself.

He really needed to find an assistant. Eating a big meal alone just felt off.

With that thought, Jiang Hang opened his phone. Now that money was no object, the agency's efficiency was as fast as ever—they had already sent a file over in the evening. But at that time, Jiang Hang had still been in contact with the police and hadn't noticed.

Or maybe it was because the requirements Jiang Hang had put forward were too simple. After all, he had only made two requests to the agency: no criminal record, and good looks.

As for skills, a front desk assistant really didn't need much—just being able to pour tea and greet guests was enough, as long as she wasn't the kind of sharp-tongued girl who would drive clients away the moment she opened her mouth.