Disguised as Ran, Kaito knew he had fallen right into Lupin's trap.
But at this stage, he couldn't exactly impersonate someone else. Every one of his disguises required extensive preparation beforehand.
Carefully glancing at the tiny detective named Conan, Kaito leaned toward the red-haired gentleman beside him. Using his flawless voice imitation, he whispered,
"Aren't you worried I'll expose you, showing up here in your real identity?"
Ritsu raised an eyebrow.
Looking completely unconcerned, he silently mouthed each word,
"Who said this is my real identity? This is just another ordinary cover identity I've created."
Kaito couldn't help rolling his eyes internally.
'Ordinary cover identity? An antique collector recognized even by the Suzuki Financial Group counts as "ordinary"?
Seriously... just who the hell is this guy?'
For now, he had no choice but to stick with his original plan. As for whatever Lupin was plotting, he had absolutely no idea.
The fact that Lupin was willingly giving him the chance to steal the Black Star first only made him even more suspicious.
The real reason Ritsu had no intention of snatching the target item himself was simple.
Not only was Rei here, someone he knew all too well, but Hakuba had also shown up. The British detective who had met him only once in London had immediately declared him his lifelong rival.
On top of that, Shinichi, currently disguised as Conan, possessed astonishing deductive ability.
It would be much wiser for Ritsu to wait until the very end and clean everything up then.
Kaito reached up and touched the calling card hidden inside his collar.
'Time to create some panic.'
Waiting for the magician's audience participation segment would take too long. He might as well get started himself.
Without anyone noticing, he removed the specially-made imitation Black Star from his chest before casually pretending to browse the desserts.
Nearby, Sonoko suddenly noticed something missing.
"Wait, Ran! Where did the pearl on your chest go?"
"Huh? It can't be..."
To Kaito's delight, he found himself growing more and more convincing at acting like a girl.
Suppressing his excitement, he secretly flicked the fake Black Star from his fingers, letting it slowly roll across the floor.
Leaning casually against the buffet table with one hand resting on his cane, Ritsu watched Kaito's flawless performance with great interest.
He had to admit, when it came to playing female characters, Kaito was absolutely perfect.
"R-Ran-neechan, what's wrong?" Conan asked, looking up in confusion.
Kaito looked around anxiously, furrowing his brows exactly the way Ran would.
"My Black Star suddenly disappeared. Conan, could you help me look for it?"
'Disappeared?'
Conan froze for a moment before scanning the room.
Based on his deductions, Tomoko would never allow priceless family heirlooms to be worn by guests outside the family.
That meant the genuine Black Star had to be either on Tomoko herself or on Sonoko.
'So... Kaito Kid messed up? No, Ran left the ballroom earlier.'
"Ah! There it is!"
Seeing Conan suddenly stop moving, Kaito had no choice but to continue the act himself.
"I'm sorry," he said politely.
"Could someone pick up that pearl for me?"
Hearing a young lady ask for help, a man in a brown suit bent down to retrieve it.
But the moment his hand approached, the pearl suddenly emitted an eerie cloud of pink smoke.
Then—
Bang!
"What was that?!"
"What just broke?"
The man, whose hand had nearly been struck by the explosion, cried out in shock,
"It was the pearl! The pearl exploded!"
The moment those words were spoken, panic spread through the crowd.
Several more identical black pearls suddenly appeared across the red carpet, each producing a tiny explosion.
"Are you kidding me?! Who'd wear exploding pearls?!"
"What if Kaito Kid plans to blow us all up? Run!"
Ritsu raised an eyebrow.
'So that's the plan. Create chaos... then fish in troubled waters and approach Tomoko-san while everyone's distracted.'
It was certainly clever.
But...
'Something at this level isn't fooling Kudo.'
Lowering his gaze, he immediately noticed the confident grin spreading across Conan's face.
'Just as I thought. He's already figured out that 'Ran' is Kaito Kid in disguise.'
"Everyone, stay calm! Please stay calm! Damn it, don't run around like this or you'll—"
No matter how loudly Inspector Chaki shouted, his voice was completely drowned out by the frantic stampede of hundreds of fleeing guests.
No one paid him any attention.
After all, when your own life might be in danger, who still cares about catching a phantom thief?
Kaito had remained near Tomoko the entire time, patiently waiting for an opportunity.
But then, a large, heavily built man rushed toward the ballroom exit. Without noticing Tomoko standing nearby, he slammed straight into her, knocking her backward.
The waiting Kaito immediately stepped forward to catch her. In one smooth motion, he removed the genuine Black Star from her clothing.
Ever the consummate professional, he carefully wrapped the precious black pearl in a handkerchief.
"Mom!"
Seeing her mother fall, Sonoko hurried over.
"Auntie, are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
Tomoko smiled gratefully.
"Thank you, Ran."
Conan had kept his eyes fixed on "Ran" the entire time and witnessed the theft from beginning to end.
Walking over with a faint smile, he innocently remarked,
"Huh? Obaa-chan, where did your black pearl go?"
Conan's reminder made Tomoko instinctively look down. Only then did she realize the genuine Black Star was gone.
She immediately cried out,
"Ah! Kid! Kaito Kid stole my Black Star!"
Nakamori, who had been trying to stop the guests from leaving, spun around.
"What? Then the one Tomoko-san was wearing was the real one?!"
Meanwhile, the officers from the Second Investigative Division struggling to block the exits could no longer withstand the crowd pushing against them.
"Chief! We can't hold them back anymore! I'm sorry!"
Watching some of the guests pour out of the ballroom, Ritsu knew it was about time for him to change disguises.
Leaning close to Akemi, he whispered,
"I'll wait for you at the place we agreed on earlier. Be careful."
"Okay. You too..."
She hesitated before adding,
"...Don't get carried away."
Ritsu smiled.
"Don't worry. I won't."
His eyes drifted toward Rei, whose brow remained tightly furrowed.
'Just as expected... he stayed. That confirms it. His target really is me.
Too bad... You still don't know about my other identity. We'll have to meet another time, Zero.'
Hakuba, who had been enjoying the sea breeze on deck, rushed to the ballroom entrance as soon as he heard the commotion.
Watching the guests stream out of the hall, he calmly pulled out his pocket watch.
"7:07 and 21 seconds. Kaito Kid has appeared."
He then retrieved the silicone mask Kid had previously used to impersonate Chairman Suzuki. Holding it before his eagle with a smile, he said,
"Watson, I'm counting on you."
As Ritsu headed toward the exit with his cane, the corner of his mouth twitched.
'Is this kid seriously using an eagle like a police dog? Looks like I'll have to be a lot more careful from now on.
Can't leave anything carrying my scent anywhere he might find it.'
Resting a hand against his chin, he recalled the incident in England when Hakuba had nearly caught him.
'Come to think of it... Back then, he tracked me using the blood from my injured hand.
That really is one remarkable eagle.'
Unfortunately, neither Gingerbread nor Kurotan was any help whatsoever.
Sigh... When I get back... maybe I should cut Gingerbread's food budget. That shark is all looks and no substance and eats like a glutton.
Honestly... I should've just raised an eagle too instead.'
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