Slacker Assassin's Multiverse Daily

On Jiang Hang's side, with Eagle Eye activated, he indeed saw a faint red glow beside Shizuka Sakaki—even thinner than the red glow on Koharu Yoshino, let alone compared to those kids from the Detective Boys.

Major characters from the anime showed up as red in Eagle Eye... Was it determined by their importance or screentime in the story?

Jiang Hang pondered this, while Shizuka Sakaki, in that oddly quiet atmosphere, began her self-introduction.

But this girl seemed even more nervous than Koharu Yoshino, and from the way she spoke, it felt like she was treating this as an audition site.

To ease her tension, Jiang Hang kept his tone calm: "I saw on your resume that you want to become a voice actress."

"Y-yes, that's my dream!"

Maybe remembering she was still in an interview, Shizuka quickly added, "Of course, during work hours, I'll take my job seriously. Personal matters can wait until after work."

Jiang Hang waved his hand dismissively. He didn't really care anyway—he'd probably spend most of his time away from the agency. When he wasn't there, as long as no clients showed up, Shizuka could practice all she wanted.

Even when he was at the agency, if she wanted to practice things like... breathy moans, he wouldn't mind either...

Ahem, no need to say that out loud. Straightening his thoughts, he continued questioning her: "I've heard that voice actors are all monsters. A real voice actor should be able to freely control their vocal range, right?"

"Ah...?" Shizuka felt this interview wasn't going how she'd imagined, but she still answered quickly, "I can't do that yet myself. I've heard skilled voice actors can, but generally, the basic requirement is having a distinctive voice..."

Jiang Hang nodded. If a voice actor had a memorable voice, they could probably make a living in the industry. Voice actors who could switch between dozens of voices probably weren't that common.

Something seemed to occur to him, and he suddenly asked, "By the way, do you know Kaito Kid?"

"Kaito... Kid? Ah, that urban legend going around lately? The thief who sends theft notices to the owners before stealing. Sounds pretty impressive." In Shizuka's mind, Kaito Kid was basically an urban legend—someone like her wouldn't normally encounter a phantom thief.

"Kaito Kid isn't just an urban legend. He really is impressive. If I get the chance, I might take you to see him in action," Jiang Hang said. "Using magic to steal all kinds of gems, combined with masterful disguise skills, and a voice-changing technique that mimics any voice without any tools... I thought that was something voice actors could do. If you could reach that level, you'd be a pretty amazing voice actress."

"Mimicking any voice... Kaito Kid..." Though still half-doubting Jiang Hang's words, she noted the name. Such an ability was a dream for someone wanting to be a voice actress. She started looking forward to Jiang Hang's promise of watching Kaito Kid's heists.

But that was still far off for a rookie like Jiang Hang. He snapped Shizuka out of her daydream and brought the topic back to the detective assistant role.

He repeated what he'd told Koharu Yoshino about the dangers of being his assistant, giving her a heads-up. If she wasn't willing or couldn't handle it, he wouldn't force her.

And unsurprisingly, though Shizuka was startled by what Jiang Hang said, she ultimately agreed to take on the challenge.

So that day, Jiang Hang successfully recruited two anime characters he'd liked before his transmigration as his assistant and aide.

At that moment, Jiang Hang felt like he'd reached the peak of life.

Chapter 12: What Kind of Detective Is Jiang Hang

The next day, when Shizuka Sakaki and Koharu Yoshino arrived at his agency one after another and each signed a one-month probation contract, both the girls and Jiang Hang breathed a sigh of relief.

"From today, you two are members of the Pathfinder Detective Agency. Shizuka Sakaki, since you're part-time, you'll handle front desk reception. When I'm not at the agency and a client comes in, you'll receive them and figure out their needs before I get back."

He turned to Koharu Yoshino: "You'll be my assistant. When Shizuka isn't here, you'll also handle reception. Normally, just keep the agency running smoothly."

Running the agency smoothly basically meant cleaning up and ordering takeout at mealtimes. If anything, it also included promoting the agency. Since Koharu had revived a declining tourist town, promoting a detective agency shouldn't be a problem for her.

Honestly, one person could handle both jobs, but since Jiang Hang had hired two, he needed to give each something to do.

After assigning their duties, Jiang Hang said to both, "Of course, besides reception and assistant roles, you're also my aides now. If a case comes up, I'll take you to the crime scene for investigation. If you can't handle the scene, just tell me."

Naturally, neither girl said they couldn't handle it. Whether they really could would only be known after experiencing a real murder scene.

After assigning their work and exchanging contact info, Jiang Hang glanced at the system board constantly refreshing with new commissions and didn't waste any more time.

"Get familiar with the agency first. I'll go out and see if I can pick up any commissions. If you get hungry at noon, order takeout and put it on the agency's tab. You can also buy groceries and cook in the agency kitchen—just keep it clean. If you think the agency's missing anything, just text me."

With that, Jiang Hang left the two bewildered girls at the agency and headed to the commercial district.

Watching Jiang Hang's carefree retreating figure, Koharu Yoshino and Shizuka Sakaki exchanged glances.

Clearly, both were deeply confused about this job.

They weren't stupid—they could tell whether a job was easy or hard.

According to Jiang Hang, they had almost nothing to do all day except sit at the agency and wait for clients.

Wasn't that way too easy? Both girls had the same thought.

Thinking about the surprisingly high salary Jiang Hang had offered, if he hadn't left right after giving instructions, they might have suspected he wanted them for something shady.

The two girls were baffled, until Shizuka broke the silence.

"Um... hello, I'm Shizuka Sakaki. Looks like we'll be working together..."

Koharu Yoshino quickly responded.

"Hello, hello! I'm Koharu Yoshino. Please take care of me."

Two girls of similar age easily found common ground. With their boss gone, they quickly started chatting.

Naturally, they mainly talked about how easily they'd gotten this job.

One was a fresh graduate who'd failed thirty job applications in a row; the other was a future voice actress who'd just tried out for a part-time gig. Even after learning each other's situations, they still couldn't figure out why Jiang Hang had hired them.

Their conclusions ranged wildly—maybe Jiang Hang's detective instincts had spotted hidden potential in them, maybe he'd just hired two pretty girls to spruce up the place, or more cynically, he was after their bodies and just hadn't shown his hand yet.

But one thing they could agree on—Jiang Hang was definitely rich.

The agency's luxurious decor and Jiang Hang's generous attitude both proved it.

"I heard the annual rent for this agency is over ten million yen... And I found out from the real estate agent that our boss plans to buy this whole floor soon. That's several hundred million yen. I'll never earn that much in my life," Koharu whispered to Shizuka, sharing what she'd learned from the agent yesterday.

No matter who Jiang Hang really was, as long as he paid her salary and let her keep living in Tokyo, he'd be her benefactor from now on. That was Koharu's simple way of thinking.

Shizuka Sakaki didn't think much of it—no matter how rich Jiang Hang was, it had nothing to do with her. Her dream remained debuting as a voice actress and, in the future, creating an anime of her own together with her friends.

After chatting for a while and gradually becoming more familiar with each other, Koharu Yoshino began to consider her work.

After all, Jiang Hang had said she would also be responsible for the agency's promotion and advertising. While placing ads in newspapers and handing out flyers on the streets were the simplest and most effective methods, Koharu Yoshino felt that besides these channels, she should also look for other ways to promote.

"But no matter how you promote a detective agency, what really matters is the detective's actual skill, right?" While Koharu Yoshino was still racking her brains over how to spread the word about the agency, Shizuka Sakaki hit the nail on the head.

Koharu Yoshino immediately deflated like a punctured balloon.

What Shizuka Sakaki said was the truth. No matter how well an agency was run externally, if the detective's own abilities were lacking and they couldn't solve any cases, it was still useless.

"But how are we supposed to know if Jiang Hang-kun is really a skilled detective? I asked around—this detective agency just opened a few days ago, and Jiang Hang-kun only started working as a detective recently... I did hear Jiang Hang-kun mention yesterday that he helped the police solve a gang robbery case involving several hundred million yen the day before."

Koharu Yoshino seemed to think of something and quickly pulled out her phone to search for any related news from the past few days.

Soon, she found a relevant article: "Found it... the Maple Gold Coin Robbery. The gang members involved were arrested by the police the day before yesterday, but the police didn't release specific details about the case. It only says that with the help of a concerned citizen, three fleeing gang members were successfully apprehended..."

"If that concerned citizen is Jiang Hang-kun, then maybe he really is a very capable detective," Koharu Yoshino said.

Meanwhile, Shizuka Sakaki recalled her first meeting with Jiang Hang the day before—the sharp, eagle-like look in his eyes. Someone with eyes like that probably wasn't a second-rate detective.

But until Jiang Hang actually took them to a crime scene, they could only keep guessing.

Chapter 13: A Client with Ulterior Motives

While the two girls were discussing what kind of person Jiang Hang really was inside the agency, Jiang Hang continued his activities of promoting positive energy.

Upgrading the agency wasn't actually that troublesome—one requirement was completing enough cases, and the other was accumulating enough reputation.

Upgrading a Level 1 agency required him to participate in solving a case of two stars or higher and earn 1,000 reputation points. The Maple Gold Coin Case was a three-star case and had provided Jiang Hang with 800 reputation points, so the agency was now on the verge of upgrading.

As for the trivial requests on the bulletin board, they were more like daily quests in a game.

New requests constantly refreshed at almost every moment, while old ones that weren't completed in time quickly disappeared from the board. Completing one such request would earn Jiang Hang anywhere from 5 to 20 reputation points.

It wasn't much, but many a little made a mickle—without any major cases, these reputation points still added up.

After helping an elderly woman who had accidentally fallen to a nearby hospital and receiving thanks from her children who rushed over upon hearing the news, Jiang Hang's detective agency successfully upgraded to Level 2.

Jiang Hang checked the requirements for Level 3.

Five cases of two stars or higher and 5,000 reputation points—basically five times the requirements for Level 1.

"Congratulations, Host, on the agency's level-up. The upgrade reward has been issued. Please check it yourself."

This time, the system's rewards were also substantial. First, the exploration range for requests on the agency's bulletin board expanded to within two kilometers. Additionally, a notification function was unlocked for when a case occurred within fifty meters of the Host. In other words, as long as the system sent an alert, it meant a case had happened within fifty meters of Jiang Hang—a fairly useful feature. Combined with Jiang Hang's daily exploration tasks, there was always a chance of encountering a case during his patrols.

As for personal rewards, besides the hefty yen reward Jiang Hang had grown accustomed to, there was also a "Disguise (Basic)" ability.

As new knowledge flooded into his mind, he realized he had learned another skill.

Disguise—a common ability among assassins. When an assassin needed to stalk a target, gather intelligence, or carry out an assassination, this skill was quite useful.

The basic disguise skill allowed Jiang Hang to make simple alterations to his appearance when prepared, and it also included some rudimentary knowledge of makeup and disguise—though it was still quite crude.

This level of disguise could be seen through by an ordinary person at close range, and he could only disguise himself as a man of similar build. His voice disguise was also rough. Compared to Kaito Kid's godlike mastery of disguise and voice-changing techniques, Jiang Hang's disguise was far from impressive.

But since the skill was still at the basic level, perhaps once it reached the advanced level, he could achieve perfect disguise like Kaito Kid.

For now, though, this was another skill that wasn't very useful to Jiang Hang—unless someone came to him with a stalking request, in which case it could come in handy to avoid being discovered.

But his agency had only been open for two days. Even though he had placed ads in the newspaper, no clients had come to request his services yet.

Of course, Jiang Hang wasn't relying on client requests to make a living. For now, he just needed to keep an eye on the bulletin board for any names like Conan or Ran Mori.

This was something he had just thought of on a whim today.

Although his detective agency wasn't close to the Mouri Detective Agency, the straight-line distance was less than a kilometer—within the exploration range of the request bulletin board. If a client went to the Mouri Agency to request a case, he could see it from home. If the case was suitable, he could try to solve it before Conan made a move.

Of course, this wasn't exactly ethical. For Jiang Hang, the best method would be to intercept the client before they even reached the Mouri Agency, so Kogoro Mouri and Conan wouldn't know anything about it.

Just as Jiang Hang was thinking this, his phone rang.

It was a call from Shizuka Sakaki. Jiang Hang answered.

"Jiang Hang-kun, a client has come to the agency. Can you come back now?"

Jiang Hang was a bit surprised. He had just been wondering when his agency would finally get its first official client, and now one had arrived so quickly.

He didn't know if it was because his reputation had reached 1,000 or if the client had seen the newspaper ad.

"Got it. Shizuka, please entertain the guest and note down what kind of request they have. I'll be back at the agency in ten minutes."

After hanging up, Jiang Hang opened the bulletin board. If it was a genuine request, the client's information should appear there.

The requests on the bulletin board were arranged by rank from highest to lowest. Surely a normal request would be ranked higher than helping an old lady cross the street.

Sure enough, a one-star request had appeared on the board.

"For personal reasons, Abe Yutaka needs to find a detective to help him create an alibi. One-star request. Completing it will earn 50 reputation points."

The location where this request originated was inside his own agency, so it had to be this guy.

But what caught his attention was the client's motive.

The information displayed on the system's bulletin board reflected people's true inner desires. In this regard, Jiang Hang trusted the system.

He hadn't realized the bulletin board could be used this way. From now on, any client with ulterior motives who came to him would just be reputation points delivered to his doorstep.

At that thought, Jiang Hang's spirits lifted. In Conan's world, clients who deliberately withheld information to set people up were far from rare.

And if the request on the bulletin board was accurate, this client seemed to be hiding some unspeakable secret behind the scenes?

He wanted Jiang Hang to help him create an alibi? He never expected his first official commission to be a trap. Was it because he stood too close to Conan and caught his bad luck, or had his agency simply lured away a client who should have gone to Conan's?

Interesting. He'd better head back and figure out what was really going on.

With that thought, Jiang Hang hurried back to his office.

The client, named Abe Yutaka, was forty-two years old. He wore a pair of black-rimmed glasses and had a refined, gentle appearance. According to his own account, he was the president of a company—by most people's standards, a successful man.

Shizuka Sakaki had done a good job; she'd recorded the client's request in detail.

In short, Abe Yutaka wanted Jiang Hang to tail someone for the next three days. As long as he wasn't discovered and recorded everywhere that person went during that time, he would be paid 500,000 yen.

Sure, the system threw around rewards in the tens of millions, so 500,000 might not seem like much. But in Japan, an average office worker's monthly salary was about that much. Earning 500,000 yen for three days of tailing someone—most people would jump at that job.

"Tailing, huh..." Jiang Hang calculated in his mind.

If Abe Yutaka wanted him to provide an alibi, that meant Abe planned to kill the person Jiang Hang was tailing within those three days, and then use Jiang Hang to prove his innocence?

Chapter 14: Turning the Tables

"Mr. Abe, if you don't mind, could you tell me why you want me to tail this man, Negishi Masaki?"

Jiang Hang looked at the photo in the file. It showed a middle-aged man with a rather fierce appearance.

If Jiang Hang had to go by first impressions, that man looked more like a murderer.

But as it turned out, the mild-mannered middle-aged man sitting before him was far more likely to become a killer. Truly, you can't judge a book by its cover.

"Of course, that's no problem," Abe Yutaka said, his expression unchanged, as if he'd already prepared his explanation.