Chapter 42

Jirokichi Suzuki hurriedly reached out and felt around the layer of specially made bulletproof glass in front of the display case.

Before long, he found something like a thin film along the top of the glass.

"Found it! There really is something here!" As he spoke, he tore off the film, and the Suzuki family heirloom, Dark Star, soon appeared before him.

"I didn't expect Kaito Kid to claim he'd already stolen the gem when he hadn't even gotten his hands on it. What a despicable thief." Jirokichi Suzuki couldn't help cursing. "I just sent all the security personnel out to chase Kaito Kid."

"Good thing you noticed it, Jiang Hang. Otherwise, after we foolishly ran out after him, Kaito Kid probably would've returned to this room and actually stolen Dark Star!"

His gaze fell on Jiang Hang, his eyes full of relief. "But since you've noticed this, the two of us need to guard the gem properly. Kaito Kid should be here soon. Be careful not to get ambushed by his tear gas or anesthetic gas."

He pointed at the doors on either side of the exhibition hall. "Kaito Kid will definitely come in from one of those sides. We'll stand back-to-back, with each person watching one direction. Don't let him succeed."

Jiang Hang looked at Jirokichi Suzuki, then gently shook his head. "I think that if Kaito Kid is rational enough, he won't come back to steal it at a time like this."

Jirokichi Suzuki was a little surprised. "Why do you think that?"

"Because..." Jiang Hang glanced at the security guards lying unconscious on the floor. "Kaito Kid should understand one thing: no matter what disguise he puts on, it's useless before my 'eyes.'"

As he spoke, Jiang Hang walked over and turned over an unconscious security guard lying face down on the floor.

Jirokichi Suzuki still had no idea what Jiang Hang was trying to say. He merely took a few steps back and waited for Jiang Hang to finish.

"Using pigeons to eavesdrop, disguising yourself as a deliveryman to install miniature cameras in my home, changing faces every day to follow me around and watch me take on commissions... To be honest, there were several times these past few days when I almost went up to him and told him, 'Your tracking skills are absolutely terrible.'" As Jiang Hang spoke, he tore the disguise off the sleeping guard's face, revealing his true appearance.

This unconscious security guard was actually the real Jirokichi Suzuki!

"A man in his seventies... lucky he's in good health. Tear gas and anesthetic together would've been too much for an ordinary old man."

Jiang Hang looked at the "Jirokichi Suzuki" standing not far away, whose expression had turned extremely strange. "I think you ought to be a little more careful next time. Don't you agree, Kaito Kid?"

"..."

The "Jirokichi Suzuki" standing nearby seemed to fall silent for a moment.

But he spoke again soon after.

"What a terrifying power of observation. I'm starting to wonder whether you possess some kind of X-ray vision."

Even after being exposed, Kaito Kid, who had been disguised as Jirokichi Suzuki, showed no change in expression.

Right in front of Jiang Hang, he removed his disguise and revealed his original appearance.

A white formal suit, a cape, and a white top hat.

Along with the faint smile on his face.

Such an eye-catching outfit seemed like a provocation toward everyone who wanted to capture him.

"How did you see through my disguise?" he asked Jiang Hang.

Jiang Hang answered indifferently, "Your disguise skills are very good, but completely imitating someone isn't something you can achieve after observing them for just a few days. You couldn't have made your disguise flawless in such a short time."

"Of course, that kind of disguise is enough to fool most ordinary people. Unfortunately for you, I just happen to be slightly more observant than the average person. So, in my eyes, every disguise you made was full of flaws."

"Looks like this time really was my mistake." Kaito Kid lowered the brim of his top hat slightly, his gaze falling on the black pearl. "It seems this operation has ended in my failure."

Relying on his disguise skills, he had escaped capture countless times. He had never expected his foolproof disguises to become completely ineffective before this detective with astonishing powers of observation.

He didn't fully believe Jiang Hang's words, but Jiang Hang had indeed described every disguise he had used over the past few days. No wonder he had been caught by that old man Jirokichi Suzuki during this operation.

If he hadn't prepared another plan in advance, he might have really been in danger this time.

"But since you already knew I was the one following you, why didn't you catch me back then?" He looked at Jiang Hang and asked, "And there was no need for you to tell me that you could see through my disguises, was there? It doesn't do you any good."

"Catching you is the police's job. I just found you interesting, so I wanted to see how far you could go." Jiang Hang looked at Kaito Kid, who seemed ready to leave, without any intention of stepping forward to stop him.

"There won't be just one precious gem displayed here in the future. Either admit your failure and never come here again, or create a disguise that even I can't see through, or use a more ingenious method to steal my gems..."

After saying that, he fixed his gaze on Kaito Kid. "So, which path will you choose, Kaito Kid?"

Jirokichi Suzuki Makes the Headlines ### The next morning, the headlines of all the major newspapers came out.

"Suzuki Conglomerate Consultant Joins Forces with Detective Eagle Eye, Kaito Kid Returns Empty-Handed." Beneath that headline was a large close-up photo of Jirokichi Suzuki, while Jiang Hang appeared in the background only from behind.

The internet immediately began discussing Kaito Kid's failure. At the same time, spectators everywhere speculated about the connection between Jirokichi Suzuki and the Suzuki Conglomerate, as well as the identity of this mysterious Detective Eagle Eye.

At Suzuki Manor, Jirokichi Suzuki was in high spirits.

Although he hadn't managed to catch Kaito Kid this time and had even been tricked by that brat, the sight of his heroic image on the front page of the newspaper—and the fact that television reporters would be coming to interview him later—still had the old man grinning from ear to ear.

By his own account, although he hadn't caught Kaito Kid this time, he hadn't lost either. Dark Star was still safely on display at the Beika Art Museum.

At most, the two of them had ended in a draw.

He had even specially commissioned a placard stating that he had stopped Kaito Kid's operation there last night, so that every visitor to the Beika Art Museum would know about it.

Besides, merely stopping Kaito Kid's operation had been enough to put him on the front page of the newspaper. Thinking of that, Jirokichi Suzuki's fighting spirit rose once more.

"Kaito Kid got lucky this time, but next time, the winner will definitely be me!"

As he spoke, he looked at Jiang Hang seated across from him with an eager expression. "Brother Jiang Hang, when do you think we should challenge Kaito Kid again?"

Although Jirokichi Suzuki was a full fifty years older than Jiang Hang—old enough to be his grandfather—he didn't care about such seniority at all. He now warmly called Jiang Hang "brother."

After all, during Kaito Kid's operation, Jiang Hang had predicted nearly every move in advance. Even Jiang Hang's absence from the exhibition hall at the time had been part of his plan—he had told Jirokichi Suzuki beforehand to deliberately give Kaito Kid an opportunity to "disguise himself as him."

The facts proved that Kaito Kid had indeed fallen for it.

Up to that point, their plan had been perfect. Unfortunately, Kaito Kid's cunning had ruined everything afterward, and Jirokichi Suzuki himself had even been knocked unconscious by Kaito Kid.

The rest of what happened had been told to him by the security personnel on duty and Jiang Hang.

In the end, Kaito Kid had disguised himself as Jirokichi Suzuki amid the smoke and fooled everyone into leaving the exhibition hall. Dark Star had nearly been taken by him as well.

However, at the critical moment, Jiang Hang arrived in time and saw through Kaito Kid's scheme once again, forcing him to abandon the theft and leave.

After learning the whole "truth," Jirokichi Suzuki now completely regarded Jiang Hang as the backbone of the operation to capture Kaito Kid.

He would never have imagined that Jiang Hang, the undisputed MVP of this operation against Kaito Kid, had also been the biggest mole in the entire affair.

What seeing through Kaito Kid's scheme? Jiang Hang had simply been slacking off and letting things slide from the sidelines. In the end, he had even allowed Kaito Kid to swagger out of Beika Art Museum.

If Jirokichi Suzuki knew about that, he probably would not be calling him "Brother Jiang Hang" so warmly right now.

Jiang Hang, meanwhile, was extremely satisfied with the outcome.

Kaito Kid had neither been caught nor exposed in front of others. Jirokichi Suzuki had made the headlines by stopping Kaito Kid, while Jiang Hang's industry level was about to rise to Level 2, and he had earned a three-star case through the incident as well.

By that calculation, this was practically a classic case where all three sides benefited!

Facing Jirokichi Suzuki's question, Jiang Hang put on a thoughtful expression.

"There's no need to rush into capturing Kaito Kid for now," he told Jirokichi Suzuki.

"Judging from Kaito Kid's previous frequency of operations, he acts roughly once every ten days to half a month. We've just held a jewelry exhibition, so even if we hold another one soon, Kaito Kid probably won't come and try again so easily. At the very least, we shouldn't consider him for the next month."

"Let's patiently watch Kaito Kid make a few more moves first. Let that guy enjoy the spotlight for a while longer, then we'll plan things properly and choose the right moment for our next move."

Jiang Hang's thoughts were very clear as he said this.

Why did Kaito Kid have so many fans? Aside from being handsome and mysterious, the more important reason was his arrogant habit of sending advance notices, then easily breaking through every line of defense once the announced time arrived, stealing the treasure he wanted, and departing in style.

Those breathtaking feats, combined with his handsome moves and mysterious image, were the main reasons for Kaito Kid's immense popularity.

For someone like Kaito Kid, slipping up once in a while would not hurt his image much. But if he failed again and again within a single month, he probably would not have so many fans anymore.

After all, no matter how handsome a phantom thief was, it was useless if he could not steal anything.

Before his industry level reached the maximum, Jiang Hang did not want to see Kaito Kid's popularity decline too sharply.

He even encouraged Jirokichi Suzuki to spend money building hype for Kaito Kid and keep pushing his popularity higher.

At the same time, they could spread the rumor online that "only Jirokichi Suzuki can stop Kaito Kid." Then everyone's attention would be focused on his next showdown with Kaito Kid. No matter the outcome, it would generate massive exposure and discussion.

After all, when someone was too strong, people instead found them unreal. Only by creating an equally powerful opponent for that person to "love and kill each other" with could they draw even more attention.

As he listened to Jiang Hang, the old man in his seventies, Jirokichi Suzuki, practically had stars in his eyes.

He was an old man and did not understand much about online public opinion, but he loved the awestruck looks people gave him. Jiang Hang's words had completely scratched his itch, leaving him unable to refuse.

But the old man was also an honest sort. He immediately said to Jiang Hang, "How can I be the only one in the spotlight? Brother Jiang Hang, we have to include you too."

"As long as the two of us join forces, even Kaito Kid can forget about gaining the slightest advantage against us! That's how we'll publicize it. When we challenge Kaito Kid next time, we'll let everyone see just how miserably Kaito Kid is defeated by us!" Jirokichi Suzuki passionately held out his hand toward Jiang Hang.

Jiang Hang looked back at Jirokichi Suzuki with a determined expression and tightly gripped his hand.

"I'll do everything I can!"

The news of Kaito Kid's failure gave Beika Art Museum a burst of liveliness it had not seen in a long time during the days of the jewelry exhibition.

Besides the rare jewels, the sign Jirokichi Suzuki had put up reading "Kaito Kid Failed Here" had also become a unique attraction.

It had to be said that Jirokichi Suzuki's move had brought the museum considerable attention, and Jiang Hang planned to leave the sign right where it was.

He had even rushed through overnight training for several museum employees, specifically assigning them to stand near the sign and explain to curious passing visitors how Kaito Kid had failed there.

Who knew what Kaito Kid would think if he saw that sign?

A television detective program even planned to use the opportunity to produce a special episode on Kaito Kid and sent invitations to Jiang Hang and Jirokichi Suzuki.

Jiang Hang found that sort of public attention too troublesome and politely declined, but Jirokichi Suzuki eagerly accepted. Apparently, the program would also invite another police officer who had been responsible for pursuing Kaito Kid for years. It was hard to say what sparks those two would create after appearing on the show together.

In any case, amid that atmosphere, on the final day of the jewelry exhibition, the museum's industry level successfully rose to Level 2.

What surprised Jiang Hang was that he had originally thought upgrading the industry would only increase the money earned from the museum and, at most, speed up the training of its employees. He had not expected it to have any effect on the museum itself.

But unexpectedly, his system seemed to think that now the museum had reached Level 2, its exhibits needed an update as well.

So, on the day after the industry level upgrade was completed, the system delivered a batch of valuable artworks and antiques to Beika Art Museum, whose exhibits had not been updated for a long time, under the name of The Pioneer Foundation.

Professional appraisal found that there were no especially priceless cultural relics among the artworks, but they were still far more valuable than the pieces originally displayed in the museum. Their combined value exceeded one billion yen.

Unfortunately, the system description stated that these artworks were a "benefit" for the museum reaching Level 2. Jiang Hang could display them, but if he wanted to sell them, he would no longer receive such benefits in the future.

Simply put, these artworks were essentially set dressing for the museum.

Jiang Hang thought that once the museum's level rose further, the artworks sent by the system would likely only become more valuable. After raising the industry level to the maximum, the system might even send him a collection of world-class artworks.

The thought of gradually turning this small museum into a world-class museum did not seem bad to Jiang Hang.

Besides, he was not in urgent need of money right now. Using these new exhibits to stabilize Beika Art Museum's popularity was just fine.

With these new exhibits drawing in visitors, even after Kaito Kid's hype faded some time later, Beika Art Museum's foot traffic would not fall back to the half-dead state it had been in before Jiang Hang acquired it.

Of course, thinking about the future now was still a little too far off.

After settling the museum's affairs, Jiang Hang became busy again.

Thanks to the Kaito Kid incident, his name had made the headlines. Combined with the reputation he had built up over this period, the office phones had practically been ringing off the hook these past few days with calls from all across Japan.

Most people, however, called to ask how he had discovered Kaito Kid's plan. There were even quite a few Kaito Kid fans questioning whether Kaito Kid had ever sent Beika Art Museum a warning letter at all, claiming that the museum had staged the whole thing themselves. They also said that once the real Kaito Kid learned about this, he would definitely teach Jiang Hang and those "frauds" a lesson.

Jiang Hang had indeed heard of something like that before. Not long ago, someone had tried to capitalize on Kaito Kid's popularity by sending themselves a forged warning letter. On the day of the supposed heist, the real Kaito Kid had exposed their little scheme.

Apparently, in these people's eyes, Jiang Hang and the others were also using Kaito Kid's popularity to draw more visitors to their jewelry exhibition.

Some of them even said, "If it had been the real Kaito Kid, your Dark Star would've been stolen already."

In response, Jiang Hang simply said that he also hoped the "real Kaito Kid" they spoke of would appear before him and teach him a lesson.

However, Jiang Hang felt that after suffering a loss at his hands, Kid probably would not dare show himself before him again anytime soon.

Ignoring the keyboard warriors, Jiang Hang spent several busy days handling commissions before preparing to slack off as usual.

More precisely, he was not slacking off this time. He was training an eagle.

After he stopped Kaito Kid, perhaps his system had noticed that Kaito Kid was always surrounded by a flock of white doves and decided Jiang Hang needed a pet too. So, among the mission rewards, it directly gave him an eagle, along with a guide to "eagle training."

After being an assassin for so long, he finally had an eagle of his own.

In Japan, eagles were naturally not something one could keep casually, but the system had taken care of all the paperwork.

Moreover, from the moment it appeared, the eagle displayed an extraordinary fondness for Jiang Hang. They could skip the most troublesome stage of taming it through sleepless endurance and proceed directly to the next phase of training.

These past few days, because he had been busy dealing with various commissions, Jiang Hang could only properly train the eagle he had named "Altair" at night. Still, the system's rewards were indeed impressive. The eagle was exceptionally intelligent.

Although it had only been training for a few days, it had already begun to develop a rapport with Jiang Hang.

Before long, Jiang Hang believed that with just a gesture or a whistle, it would understand what he wanted.