"How do you plan to set the trap?"
"Dress well-trained officers in plain clothes and position them to quickly access the rooftop in advance. Then, when the time comes, I'll go up to the rooftop alone. You may not know this, but if I wield a sword, no one on Earth can defeat me."
"I've heard you're skilled in swordsmanship. But can you handle it alone?"
"I can. However, since he might escape, police support is essential to block his retreat in advance."
Chairman Jiro thought for a moment and eventually agreed, personally requesting support from the police.
"Cassian, the police want to see your swordsmanship skills. Is that possible?"
"Yes, it is."
We went with the chairman to Inspector Chaki of the Police Investigation Division 2.
"You must be the onmyoji Cassian. But we can't leave an international criminal to a civilian. However, you've contributed by deciphering the heist notice, and since the chairman requested it, I'll give you a chance."
The police had set up helmets, riot gear, and riot shields used by the special forces, standing them up like mannequins.
"Show us a skill level that we can accept."
"Understood."
I walked up to the standing riot gear. The people around stepped back and watched silently.
I could have taken out my cane sword and turned the riot gear into dust, but for some reason, that didn't seem impressive, so I first assumed a stance and slowly placed my hand lightly on the cane sword. Then, tension filled the air, and I heard swallowing sounds.
"Hah!"
Swish swish swish~!
Thud!
With a shout, I swiftly cut the riot gear and sheathed my sword, then calmly turned and walked back to where our group was.
"You, what did you just do? The riot gear has no damage..."
Tap tuduk duduk!
"No!! How can this be!!"
The intact riot gear began to slowly split into numerous pieces and fall to the floor with a time delay. The pieces were cut so cleanly into square shapes.
Murmur murmur
"Gasp! Is that even possible?"
"I only saw a flash."
"I thought something like that was only possible in cartoons..."
I looked at Inspector Chaki and spoke.
"Do you believe me now? If I wield a sword, no one on Earth can oppose me."
"Th-that's right... I acknowledge it."
Our group was equally surprised.
"Wow~ I knew Cassian was good at swordsmanship, but to this extent... Amazing!"
"Are you falling for me? Miss?"
At my teasing words, Ran blushed.
"Aish~ Cassian, really..."
Sonoko and Chairman Jiro also came over with surprised faces and praised me.
"Cool! Cassian~! I had no idea it was to this level."
"In my lifetime, I've never seen such swordsmanship; it's close to miraculous. I'll trust you alone."
"Understood."
Thus, with the police's cooperation, it was decided to have officers in plain clothes wait around the hotel and on the top floor just below the rooftop, and three helicopters were also provided in case he tried to escape by air. The remaining forces guarded the gems at the museum.
The Conan group also followed, and since Sonoko insisted on wanting to see the phantom thief's face, everyone waited together on the top floor until the time came.
Yawn~
Conan kept yawning, perhaps because he didn't sleep last night while solving the heist notice. Seeing this, Ran spoke to Conan.
"Conan, if you're tired, rest in the room the police prepared; I'll come get you when it's over."
"That's right, Ran is correct. At that age, if you stay up late, you won't grow tall."
At those words, Conan got upset.
"I'll handle it myself! And I want to see the phantom thief too."
"Sure, sure."
Looking aside, I saw Kogoro and Sonoko sitting on chairs, sleeping and even drooling. Why did they even come...
We passed the time playing card games, and when midnight struck, Inspector Chaki came to us.
"Cassian, it's time. And this is..."
Inspector Chaki handed me a small machine with a large button.
"Press that button when Phantom Thief 1412 appears. Then, the waiting police force will come up to the rooftop to support. And by the way, if combat occurs, aim to capture him alive. If the phantom thief dies, it could become troublesome."
Inspector Chaki seemed worried that I might kill someone, having seen my swordsmanship. It was understandable since entrusting such a case to a civilian was unusual, and if a minor committed murder, it might be hard to handle.
"Understood."
I went up to the rooftop immediately. Since there were still 20 minutes left, I waited leisurely, enjoying the night view.
When the time came, I sensed something flying from afar with [Observation Haki]. It seemed like Kaitou Kid was flying in on a small hang glider. I didn't take any particular action and continued waiting while looking at the night view. Then, I heard the sound of Kaitou Kid landing on the rooftop.
"Meeting for the second time today?"
"You knew?"
"Yes, I saw you disguised as a police officer at the museum. Disguises don't work on me, Kaitou Kid!"
Since I have [Eyes of Truth], even transformations that alter the body might or might not work, but disguises like that had no chance.
"Whoa~ Looks like I've met a formidable opponent. Onmyoji Cassian!"
"Why don't you stop stealing now?"
Hearing my words, Kaitou Kid laughed and said.
"No way? Why should I?"
I decided to tell Kaitou Kid the reality.
"You're trying to steal gems from the Suzuki Group for fun, but if you steal them, the Suzuki Group's stock price will plummet because they couldn't protect their valuable assets. Moreover, the Suzuki Group helps various people in need and even operates scholarship funds, so if you steal the gems, many people will lose their jobs, and poor people won't receive support, leading to starvation and inability to attend school. Have you ever thought about that?"
It was true. The Suzuki Group was a good company that made a lot of money but also contributed significantly to society.
"..."
It seemed this guy really hadn't thought about such things. He probably just learned tricks and magic from his father and intended to follow in the phantom thief's footsteps.
"Since you can't answer, you're just trash. You're merely a simple criminal."
"I..."
"You what?"
"..."
Once again, he couldn't answer.
"You seem around my age, but I'll say it again: I'll give you a chance. Will you give up stealing?"
Kaitou Kid seemed to ponder. Not about giving up stealing, but about the people who would suffer due to his actions.
"Sorry, but I can't give up being a phantom thief."
"I see... Then!"
I pretended to use onmyoji arts. Then, the phantom thief fell face down on the rooftop floor and couldn't get up.
Thud!
"Argh!"
I slowly approached and looked down at Kaitou Kid.
"Ugh... What did you do?"
"I cast a curse using onmyoji arts to increase your body weight. I could increase it more, but you might die, you see. I cast it in advance when you were disguised as a police officer and wandering around."
I pretended it was onmyoji arts, but this was just using the ability of the [Gura Gura no Mi] to press Kaitou Kid down with gravity.
"Th-that's..."
Then, Kaitou Kid tried to take something out of his wrist with difficulty, but I immediately kicked to stop it. Then, I took out a red rope and quickly tied him in a tortoise shell bind so he couldn't escape. Actually, I wanted to try tying someone like this once. It's a pity it's not a girl, but next time...
"Easy, you really are just a petty thief."
"Ugh damn! What kind of perverted binding is this!"
"Sorry. I wanted to try tying someone like this once, but there was no subject... I practiced well."
"You bastard!!!"
Kaitou Kid wriggled on the floor with an angry face.
'If you move like that, your butt will tighten and hurt...'
I immediately pressed the button Inspector Chaki gave. Then, helicopters rose, and people rushed up like crazy.
"Oh~ You caught Phantom Thief 1412! Good work, Cassian. But the way the phantom thief is tied, isn't that a tortoise shell bind?"
"Ahaha, yes. To shame him a bit."
"Ah! I see. Well done! This is just right for such guys. Hahaha"
I made a rough excuse, but Inspector Chaki just laughed and let it pass. Ran and Conan also came up, but seeing Kaitou Kid tied in a tortoise shell bind and flailing, they went back down with expressions like they saw something they shouldn't have.
"I'll go rest now too. I leave the aftermath to you."
"On behalf of the police, I express our gratitude. Rest well."
I went down to where Ran and Conan were.
"My word... To think the phantom thief was such a guy..."
"Conan, are you disappointed?"
"Yeah, I was really looking forward to it since the heist notice was so tricky. I'll just go home and sleep."
We were about to go back and tried to wake Kogoro and Sonoko, but they wouldn't wake up, so Conan and Ran decided to stay at the hotel for the night since it was late, and we asked the hotel for two rooms to rest separately by gender.
The next morning, while having breakfast at the hotel restaurant, Sonoko came to us with a sad face and complained.
"Sniff... You should have woken me up. How much I wanted to see Phantom Thief 1412!"
"Well... We tried waking you up for a long time, but you wouldn't get up..."
"I was a fan, you know."
"You... might have been disappointed if you saw..."
"Huh? What do you mean by that?"
Sonoko kept asking Ran curiously, but Ran didn't tell her.
We finished our meal and were about to head home when suddenly the police came and informed us about yesterday's events.
"Cassian! Detective Mouri! Phantom Thief 1412 has escaped."
"What? How?"
"Well..."
Listening to the police's story, when they untied the tortoise shell bind to put him in the police car yesterday, he immediately took out a flash grenade and set it off, then disappeared.
"Did you identify the phantom thief?"
"We were going to check at the police station... Sorry."
The police in the Conan worldview were really incompetent. No wonder crime organizations thrive.
"Inspector Chaki said to apologize. So, we'll cover the hotel bills..."
"I see... Understood."
At the news of the phantom thief's escape, Sonoko was happy. Seeing Sonoko happy that the phantom thief who tried to steal her family's heirloom escaped, I really can't understand women's hearts.
About two days later, at school, Sonoko came to me with a happy face and showed me a heist notice from Kaitou Kid. This time, Chairman Jiro hadn't torn it up, so it was intact.
"Cassian! Look, another heist notice came!"
"Really?"
I will come to take the real Black Star on the Queen Elizabeth ship departing from Yokohama port. Kaitou Kid
"No quiz this time."
"Yeah, and this time, Dad also requested Cassian and Detective Mouri."
"I see."
Even after I said that, since he's still trying to steal the Black Star, I couldn't tell if this guy has no thoughts or if he's angry about being defeated by me and using the Black Star as an excuse to seek revenge.
"And there's a shipboard party, so you need to prepare and come."
In other words, dress well. Seeing Ran looking worried, I carefully brought it up, thinking she might be hurt.
"Ran, about the dress..."
Ran guessed what I was trying to say and spoke quietly.
"Well... I have one my mom bought, but it's a bit old... I'm not sure if it fits my size now."
As expected, Kogoro probably didn't pay attention to such things. So, in the original, what she wore must have been borrowed from Sonoko.
"Really? Then I'll buy you one. Let's go look after school today."
"Eh... It's okay, really..."
Ran seemed burdened.
"Don't worry. I was planning to give you a gift anyway. Chairman Jiro paid me generously from the last commission. Let's go shopping, eat something delicious, and come back."
"But that's money Cassian earned..."
Sonoko also stepped in to help.
"Aish~ You're not strangers anymore, so what's the big deal? I'll come along and help pick out a dress."
Ran was embarrassed, and since I'm a celebrity, we kept our relationship secret, but the only one who knew was Sonoko. Sonoko also knew our situation well and agreed to keep it a secret.
After class, we went to buy a dress.
"Wow... This is a famous luxury store even in Europe..."
"It's fine, you have a rich boyfriend, so why worry so much? Let's go in."
Sonoko grabbed Ran's hesitating arm and entered the dress store. Somehow, it seemed good that I brought Sonoko along. I was thinking about how to persuade her, but now it wasn't necessary.
'Somehow... Sonoko seems to be enjoying it more. Is that an illusion?'
Anyway, when we entered the store, since Sonoko's family frequents this place, the staff and owner very kindly helped pick out dresses.
"Ran is still a student, so please choose something modest, not too bold."
"Wow~ Now Sonoko looks like a chaebol heiress."
"Right. With such a straightforward personality, I'd believe she's a carpenter's daughter."
Hearing that, Sonoko got angry.
"What!!! Hey!"
"Ah! That's the usual Sonoko."
"Oh~ She's back."
At our words, Sonoko slumped and said.
"How did my image at school become like that? Sniff..."
After waiting a bit, the staff brought a few dresses. Ran tried on each dress she liked and came out. We decided to have fun by giving scores out of 10.
"How about this?"
"Hmm... 7 points."
"Cassian keeps giving high scores, but I give 5 points."
"Really? I'll try on the next one."
Ran came out in the next dress.
"Oh~ 9 points!"
"This one is nice too. 8 points!"
Ran seemed tired from trying on many dresses.
"Guys, can't I just buy this one?"
Then Sonoko said firmly.
"No! There are still many. Hurry up and change!"
Ran sighed at Sonoko's words and went back into the fitting room.
"This one?"
"Ah... It's微妙. 3 points."
"0 points! Next!"
Sonoko really seemed to be enjoying it. Ran tried on a few more dresses.
"Wow~ 10 points!"
"Oh~ This is 9 points!"
This dress was based on deep blue with white accents. It wasn't a revealing design and seemed like a dress少女 would enjoy wearing without burden.
"Hmm, I don't think there's anything more suitable than this. Ran, how about it? Do you like it?"
Ran checked the dress in the full-length mirror and smiled, seeming to like it.
"I like it too."
"Then, let's go with that."
After choosing the dress, the staff took Ran to measure for alterations and decided to send it home later. In the meantime, I quickly paid. It was a measure considering Ran might feel burdened by the price. The price was expensive, but much cheaper than the Natasha dress bought in Manhattan.
After buying the dress and leaving the store, it was already getting late in the evening, so we were heading home while eating ice cream cones that Ran bought.
"Ah~ Today was fun."
Sonoko said with a satisfied expression.
"Ugh... I was tired though..."
"But you found a dress that suits you, right?"
"Well, that's true."
Today, everyone seemed tired, so after seeing Ran home, I went to our house to get the bike and decided to give Sonoko a ride home.
"See you all tomorrow. Cassian, thanks for the dress gift~"
After seeing Ran home, I put Sonoko on the bike and went to Sonoko's house. But laughter was heard from inside.
"Huh? Is something going on?"
"I wonder. Since laughter is heard, there must be something good."
"Is that so? Is there something to be happy about?"
"Then, I'll go in. See you tomorrow."
"Cassian, it's getting dark, so why not eat dinner and go. The family all knows, so it should be fine."
"Really? Then I'll take you up on that."
By now, the housekeepers would have left, and I didn't want to cook alone, so I decided to get a meal at Sonoko's house. When we entered Sonoko's house, Sonoko's older sister Ayako had brought someone she introduced as her lover.
"Oh~ Isn't that Cassian. Come on in."
"Nice to meet you. Chairman."
"You were right. Truly amazing. You see, Ayako brought her lover."
"I see. That's why laughter was heard."
Ayako's lover, Yujo, came over and greeted me first.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Yujo Tomizawa. I've heard a lot about you."
"Nice to meet you. I'm the onmyoji Cassian."
We chatted about various things, and when the topic of onmyoji arts came up, I talked about it.
"So, do spiritual entities really exist?"
"Of course."
Sonoko also chimed in.
"Cassian is already famous. His fortunes are never wrong."
"Well, that's true."
"Since we're on the topic, why not read Yujo Tomizawa's fortune for the first time?"
"Oh~ That sounds interesting."
Chairman Jiro was very interested in the fortune-telling. I pretended to divine while reading Yujo's memories.
"Hmm... You use your hands a lot and see various colors, so you must be a painter."
"How did you..."
"And you're a simple and kind person. You and Ayako are a match made in heaven. Clearly, you two are connected by marital ties."
At my words, Sonoko's family brightened up. Ayako covered her face with both hands, embarrassed.
"Hahaha~ What a pleasant day. Since you read the fortune for a bit..."
Chairman Jiro tried to give money for the fortune, but I declined.
"Let's call it even with dinner tonight."
"Are you sure that's okay?"
"Of course."
Then, Sonoko's mother, Tomoko Suzuki, said with a smile.
"Then, I'll have to show my skills after a long time."
That day, I ate until I was full and returned home. Certainly, Sonoko's family members were kind and good people.