As Akechi Goro approached the café, he glanced at Heiji Hattori, who was lying back in his chair pretending to be dead. The formulaic smile on his face did not change in the slightest. He walked straight past him and entered the café, perfectly demonstrating that he was the one too lazy to communicate.
Thoroughly ignored, Heiji could only watch him walk inside, exchange practiced greetings with Tooru Amuro and Tangze, then approach Tangze and say something.
Tangze nodded and led him up to the loft.
Before long, Akechi Goro finally sat down in front of Heiji, having changed clothes and pulled up the hood of a hoodie to hide his face.
Heiji watched this whole operation with a strange expression, looking back and forth between Tangze, who had returned to his seat at the bar, and Akechi Goro, seated before him. He felt an indescribably subtle discomfort.
How should he put it? If this had happened at a crime scene, a detective ought to suspect something like swapped identities or mutual false testimony...
"I wasn't deliberately ignoring you." Tangze, having completed the identity swap, crossed his hands and covered the lower half of his face visible beneath the hood. "I've taken on a few too many shows lately. If I don't disguise myself a little, this conversation might not be able to continue."
What was that supposed to be, showing off his popularity?
Looking at Akechi Goro's face obscured by the hood's shadow, Heiji instinctively began interpreting his words in the worst possible light.
Still, he had to admit that after changing clothes and putting away that expression, despite having the exact same face, it was difficult to recognize him at a glance as that hugely popular Great Detective.
...So was that why he always wore that suit that