Stationing large numbers of agents on other floors would never compare to guarding the vault directly. While this strategy had never worked against Zhang Yang before, it was still the most efficient, most suitable, and most promising method they had for catching him.
"Mr. Bud, Kaitō Kid's target is the vault. We don't need to waste manpower and effort on the other areas," Bruce said, assuming that Bud and the Rensa Group were hiding something in the vault. To reassure him, he made a clear promise.
"Our only goal is to capture Kaitō Kid. We won't interfere with anything else."
But Bruce had no idea that there were two full-grown tigers on the vault floor.
When Bud revealed the real reason, Bruce and Harrison were stunned. They exchanged wide-eyed looks, speechless.
Harrison asked again in disbelief, "Mr. Bud, are you saying there are two tigers guarding the vault floor?"
"And they're completely unrestrained?"
Their reaction made Bud very pleased. Not only could he use this excuse to keep Bruce and Harrison away from the vault, but there was also a chance the tigers might take care of Kaitō Kid for them.
Against someone unarmed, especially without any firearms, those tigers were absolutely terrifying.
Before coming here, Bruce had imagined many excuses Bud might use to deflect, but he never expected this—that Bud would keep two tigers near the vault.
"Commander Harrison, Commander Bruce, apart from the vault floor, I'll fully cooperate with your operation in the rest of the building," Bud said.
Bruce could only respond helplessly, "Fine."
"In that case, we'll deploy agents to the other floors of Rensa Group and try to catch Kaitō Kid there."
Bruce knew for sure that Kaitō Kid never carried firearms or even a knife.
So the possibility that those two tigers might actually kill him wasn't out of the question. If that happened, it would be a win for Bruce either way.
Bud truly did intend to cooperate. After Bruce pointed out the excessive number of staff in the building, Bud immediately ordered all employees to go home and handed over full operational control of the building to Bruce.
This abnormal move by Rensa Group quickly made its way online. People all over the world praised Bud for knowing how to pick his battles.
[Now that's what I call smart—those who know when to yield are the true wise men. If Bud refused to cooperate, he wouldn't end up any better than Davis.]
[Didn't expect Bud to be so cooperative—props to him!]
[I'm seriously curious what Davis wanted Kaitō Kid to steal from the Rensa Group. Now that Bruce and Bud are teaming up, will Kaitō Kid still show up?]
[Come on, once a notice goes out, Kaitō Kid never misses an appointment!]
[Even with both of them working together, I still don't think they'll catch him. You'll see!]
After Rensa Group's employees had left, Bruce called in a huge team of FBI agents to secure all the entrances and exits.
"Mr. Bud, I assume there's surveillance near the vault?" Harrison asked. "Can you show it to us?"
He still wasn't at ease. Without being able to lie in wait by the vault, Harrison felt their chances were slim.
Bud readily agreed. "Of course."
He turned on the computer in his office. Because of how sensitive the vault area was, the 33rd floor surveillance feed could only be accessed through Bud's personal system. It wasn't linked to the central monitoring room.
Access to the 33rd floor was exclusively controlled by Bud.
Without his permission, no one could enter the 33rd floor.
On the surveillance feed, Bruce and Harrison saw the two full-grown tigers lying on the floor. Even though they had already been told about them, seeing them with their own eyes was still shocking.
Bud assured them confidently, "Gentlemen, the security system on the 33rd floor is flawless. No one but me can get in undetected."
"I can guarantee that even Kaitō Kid won't be able to access the 33rd floor!"
"And even if he does, my two pets will be waiting. Plus, the three concentric corridors with their security systems—there's no way he's getting through all that."
Seeing how confident Bud was, Bruce felt slightly reassured. The FBI had mobilized more than a hundred agents for this mission.
That alone already classified it as a major operation.
It was rare for FBI headquarters to deploy that many agents at once.
The Rensa Group building had 35 floors. Even with over a hundred agents, it was still impossible to cover every corner without missing a spot.
Half of the agents were stationed on the 32nd and 34th floors, because Zhang Yang's target was the 33rd floor vault.
Both Bruce and Harrison agreed that heavy surveillance on the 32nd and 33rd floors was the right move.
Time flew by. The sun soon set, and night fell.
Media crews began arriving at Rensa Group to start their live broadcasts.
Bud, Bruce, and Harrison stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window in the office, their gazes fixed on the media gathering below.
"Commander Bruce, would you like me to clear out the media for you?" Bud offered.
Since Davis had already gotten on Bruce's bad side, Bud had decided to take the opposite route—build a strong alliance with Bruce.
Kick a man while he's down.
In comparison, this would make Davis's situation even worse.
Bruce represented FBI headquarters, so it wouldn't be appropriate for him to drive away the media.
But Bud could. One phone call was all it would take to send them packing.
As for the public backlash? Bud didn't care at all.
Bruce shook his head solemnly. "No need, Mr. Bud."
Regardless of how this operation ended, the result would be reported.
As long as they failed to catch Kaitō Kid, the pressure from public opinion would persist.
Even if the media left now, it wouldn't change anything.
[So the only people left in the building are Bruce's agents?]
[Oh my god! That huge building—can Bruce really catch Kaitō Kid?]
[How would Kaitō Kid even get inside? FBI agents are right at the front door!]
[Those agents are just for show when it comes to Kaitō Kid. He'll definitely find a way in!]
[Shit! Bud actually agreed to help with the operation? That's wild! Weren't they supposed to be rivals?]
As the live stream kicked off, the chat exploded with curious and excited viewers spamming the feed.
"From now on, no one gets in!"
"Everyone stay alert—battle mode on!"
"The operation has officially begun!"
Once darkness completely fell, Bruce gave the first order.
Meanwhile, Zhang Yang drove a white sedan and parked it across the street from the Rensa Group building.
The crowd of onlookers and media staff completely blocked his view.
"Bud's actually cooperating with Bruce on this? Eagle Nation really is a fascinating place."
Zhang Yang chuckled softly and stepped out of the car.