BWDC:SDDK Chapter 38: Low Danger Assessment? Is the Killer Using Tofu as a Weapon?
This time, the Tokusatsu Fan Club meeting was held in the basement of a villa.
Looking at the specifications alone, it didn't seem much different from the Nagatomo Group villa Ren Ichimonji had visited before. However, the villa's architecture wasn't what drew the eye; it was the sheer number of Tokusatsu enthusiasts entering the building.
Most of these fans were dressed in the uniforms of villainous organizations from Masked Rider.
Ren could safely say that if he threw a stone, he'd probably hit four or five Shocker grunts.
If he didn't know for a fact that the real world only had Batman and no Masked Rider, he would have thought he'd traveled into a Masked Rider world and was about to be kidnapped and modified into a new cyborg model.
"Wow! It's the Great Leader of Shocker from Masked Rider! That's so cool!"
The members of the Junior Detective League cheered and swarmed forward, completely forgetting about dinner.
Hearing the children's cheers, several "Great Leaders"—all dressed in completely different outfits from various series—pointed at themselves and then at each other. They were visibly dazed, unsure which one of them the kids were talking to.
Unlike in Batman comics, the big villains in Masked Rider were often one-offs.
However, for the sake of ratings, the villains were frequently resurrected to milk the franchise. The Great Leader of Shocker was a prime example: clearly the same character, yet appearing in a different suit every time he showed up.
Compared to American comic heroes, where the same costume is worn by countless different people, this gave off a rather subtle, contrasting feeling.
Standing by the basement staircase railing, Ren scanned the various poses and costumes of the enthusiasts before his gaze shifted back to his system screen.
[Detection: A violent incident threatening the public order of Gotham City has appeared nearby!]
[As Batman, you have a duty to maintain Gotham's security. Please proceed quickly to the incident point and apprehend the criminal before they flee the scene, or stop them during the commission of the crime!]
[Difficulty Assessment: Low. Completion of the current mission will reward 20 points!]
I get the gist of it, but what's with the "Low" difficulty?
A look of doubt appeared in Ren's eyes.
Following the system's usual pattern, it seemed that as long as a murderer had the potential to kill multiple people, the difficulty would be rated as "Medium."
Examples included the armed bank robber Tohru Saeki, or Hinaga Miyuki, who pulled out gasoline at the last moment ready to light a fire.
What's the deal with "Low" this time?
In the system's judgment, there's no possibility of them killing anyone else?
How does the killer manage that? Are they planning to commit the crime with a block of tofu?
"...This is the world-famous Great Detective, Mouri Kogoro. I'm his idol."
The voice of the Masked Rider who had been pushing the Grasshopper motorcycle earlier drifted over.
Ren turned his gaze back toward the sound and saw the Masked Rider leading a quite beautiful young woman over.
Upon seeing the girl, Mouri Kogoro's face turned inexplicably red.
---How should I put this? Doing that right in front of your daughter isn't exactly great, is it?
"Mr. Mouri Kogoro, this is the president of our Tokusatsu Fan Club, Madoka Saotome."
"The president decided on the main venue for this gathering. Without her, it would have been quite difficult to find such a perfect place to hold the meet," the Masked Rider said with a smile.
Even now, Mouri Kogoro hadn't realized that the Masked Rider kept saying, "I'm his idol," instead of "He's my idol." He was completely blinded by beauty.
He gave a silly grin and said, "Not at all, not at all. Is Miss Saotome also a university student?"
Unlike the other enthusiasts at the gathering, Madoka Saotome was only wearing a relatively common formal dress. She smiled, greeted Mouri Kogoro, and introduced herself.
"Yes, I am Madoka Saotome, a student at the Faculty of Literature at Shirakaba Women's University."
"Detective Mouri, I've heard so much about you!"
Just after greeting Mouri Kogoro, Madoka Saotome turned her gaze toward Ren, who had entered with the detective.
Unlike the elementary school students, Ren, as an adult, required a proper introduction.
Thus, Madoka Saotome looked at the Masked Rider beside her, who immediately introduced him:
"This is the Mr. Batman who came with Detective Mouri!"
Madoka Saotome nodded slightly and said subconsciously, "Mr. Batman, I've heard so much about you. I didn't expect to meet you here..."
She got halfway through her polite pleasantries before it was as if her mental program hit an error; she froze on the spot.
Her smile also began to crack.
Madoka Saotome: ?
Huh? Batman? Are you sure that's a person's name?
Where is there a Batman in the real world? Are you guys messing with me on purpose?
Madoka Saotome shot a "death stare" at the Masked Rider next to her.
She then asked seriously, "Sir, may I ask who you are?"
Ren replied instinctively, "I'm Batman!"
Madoka Saotome: ?
Is Batman actually descending upon me?
After a brief explanation, the atmosphere livened up again, and the man playing Masked Rider finally introduced himself and gave his name.
"My name is Yasuyuki Tsutsumi, a student at the Faculty of Law at Jonan University."
"Originally, someone else was supposed to play Masked Rider, but for some reason, he changed his mind and went to play the supporting character, the Mobile Cop. So, the role of Masked Rider fell to me."
Yasuyuki Tsutsumi took off his Masked Rider helmet and pointed at himself with his thumb, saying with a grin:
"But that's fine. After all, I am the Super Masked Rider!"
However, his words caused Conan's eyes to narrow.
The cosplayer they had encountered earlier at the Beika Shrine was playing the role of the Mobile Cop from Masked Rider.
Could it be...
That Mobile Cop would be arriving at the meeting soon?
If that were the case, he'd really have to keep a close eye on that Mobile Cop's situation later.
Especially that sidearm he wouldn't let anyone touch.
Conan had his doubts about whether that gun was real.
After all, as everyone knew, gun control in Beika Town was practically non-existent.
A criminal without a handgun couldn't even survive in Beika; it was hard to say if this guy had procured a real gun as a cosplay prop just to go on a killing spree at the Tokusatsu gathering.
"Ren, what do you think?"
Conan rubbed his chin and asked Ren beside him.
As Robin, he still felt that the Batman next to him was the most trustworthy person here. As for the Junior Detective League?
He'd sooner expect Professor Agasa to suddenly blink into the middle of a team fight than rely on them to be helpful.
"What are you saying? Humagears have dreams too!"
"There's no need to feel ashamed for once being Aguilera. If anything, feel proud!"
"Hate the crime, not the person! Just believe—belief doesn't need a reason!"
Conan: ?
He turned his head to look at Ren, who was chatting about some unknown topic with others.
For a moment, he felt a profound sense of loneliness.
Fortunately, Ren was soon back to being "lonely" with him.
The other Tokusatsu enthusiasts sighed, saying things like, "If this keeps up, what will happen to our Masked Rider?" and "At this rate, it feels like it would be faster if Toei just blew up," before walking away.
"What did you just say?"
Ren looked with some regret at the Showa Rider fans who were completely unable to accept the concepts of Reiwa Riders as they departed.
He casually asked Conan, "You said the criminal this time is very dangerous, right?"
"But I feel like the threat level to others is even lower than those East Tokyo Bank robbers from last time."
It wasn't like the system would just mess with him for no reason, right?
It wasn't a system developed by the Joker, so why would it pull his leg?
End of Chapter
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