"The operation went pretty smoothly, but my fingers are still a bit sore."
Darren flexed his hands.
This was the aftereffect of removing the bullets from Gordon and the others earlier.
About half an hour ago, he had still been disguised as a banquet waiter, quietly approaching the plainclothes officers who believed they were perfectly concealed and swiping their bullets one by one.
Fortunately, the last operation involving the Tear of the Goddess had earned him the Golden Finger reward, which greatly enhanced the flexibility of his hands. Otherwise, completing this task would have been impossible.
Even so, he had not yet fully adapted to the Golden Finger. Forcing his fingers into extreme flexibility to achieve inhuman hand speed came at the cost of frequent strain.
Even without cramps, soreness was inevitable.
"Now, everyone's attention in the banquet hall is focused on the podium. Step one of the plan is complete."
Darren glanced down at Gordon and the others, a satisfied smile crossing his face.
"Now it's time for step two."
Below, the dozen plainclothes officers checked each other again and again, finally confirming that Kaitou Kid was not among them.
Although Gordon had confirmed that the headcount was correct, he could not rule out the possibility that Kaitou Kid had already incapacitated someone and taken his place among the plainclothes officers.
When dealing with a criminal who could change his appearance at will, constant identity checks were necessary.
"Calling all units, this is Commissioner Gordon. Kaitou Kid has been spotted in the banquet hall. Everyone, assemble here immediately!"
At that moment, the walkie-talkies of every GCPD officer in the estate crackled to life.
All except one.
The plainclothes officers looked at Gordon in surprise. His face had darkened so much it seemed as if ink might drip from it.
"Commissioner, did we just hear your voice…?"
"It's gone. My walkie-talkie is missing."
Gordon searched his entire body but could not find it.
He did not even need to think to know it must have been stolen by Kaitou Kid.
After all, the man had managed to take the bullets from so many people without missing a single one. Swiping a walkie-talkie would have been effortless.
"The second time… this is the second time Kaitou Kid has taken my walkie-talkie…"
Thinking of how he had been led around by the nose with a fake walkie-talkie last time, Gordon trembled with anger, veins standing out on his face.
"All units, this is the real Jim Gordon. That order just now was sent by Kaitou Kid. Do not leave your posts!"
He angrily snatched a walkie-talkie from the person beside him, desperate to set things straight.
But the moment Gordon finished speaking, another voice identical to his rang out again.
"Don't listen to him. He's the real Kaitou Kid. His target, Ms. Samantha, is in the banquet hall, which is why he's trying so hard to stop you from assembling here."
The words nearly made Gordon spit blood in rage.
What made it even worse was that Kaitou Kid's logic was sound. For a brief moment, Gordon did not even know how to refute it.
And just as Gordon was about to turn the situation into a farce of a mimic spotting game—
"Ah!"
A scream suddenly rang out from the guest seating area.
"It's Kaitou Kid!"
Hearing that cry, Gordon's expression changed instantly as he snapped his head toward the source.
Sure enough, on the left side of the guest section, he saw a white figure moving toward Samantha, seemingly about to reach his target.
Seeing this, Gordon no longer cared about using the walkie-talkie to clarify things with his subordinates outside the hall. He immediately sprinted toward Kaitou Kid at full speed.
"Wait, Commissioner. There's another Kaitou Kid over there too!"
Halfway through his sprint, Gordon heard his subordinates shout that they had spotted Kaitou Kid again.
Startled, he turned in the direction they were pointing and was shocked to see another Kaitou Kid on the right side of the guest seating, directly opposite the first.
This one was also moving quickly toward Samantha.
"What in the world is going on?"
Gordon was stunned by the sight of two Kaitou Kids.
"Can Kaitou Kid clone himself? Or is he actually a group of criminals?"
No matter what the truth was, the priority was clear. They had to stop Kaitou Kid from getting close to Samantha.
Gordon and a dozen plainclothes officers split into two teams and charged after the two Kaitou Kids.
"Miss, please step back."
On Samantha's side, the bodyguard William stepped forward, placing himself in front of her to shield her.
"These two Kaitou Kids… why do they feel a little strange?"
Samantha frowned as she watched the two white figures rushing toward her and murmured to herself.
Although the hall was dim without the lights, there was still some illumination from the candles on the dining tables and the flashlights carried by a few waiters.
If not for the white outfits standing out in the darkness, it would have been hard to make out the two Kaitou Kids at all, so feeling unsettled by what she saw was only natural.
But the strangeness Samantha sensed had nothing to do with the lighting.
If she had to put it into words, those two Kaitou Kids felt a little… off.
Uncoordinated.
"Oh my God! Why is there another Kaitou Kid over there!"
Suddenly, a voice from the guest seating announced the discovery of a third Kaitou Kid.
No, not just a third.
A fourth, a fifth, and a sixth appeared in quick succession, with more and more showing up by the second.
"Ah! I see a Kaitou Kid here too!"
"Holy crap! Kaitou Kid is less than two meters away from me!"
"Good heavens! They're everywhere!"
Bang!
At that very moment, the doors to the banquet hall burst open, and a large number of people rushed in from outside.
They were GCPD officers who had assembled after hearing "Gordon's" command.
Generally speaking, when the surroundings change suddenly, people instinctively look for the source of that change.
Just like when someone walks into a house without saying hello, very few people would remain so indifferent as to not glance over.
And now, a large group of people had burst through the doors of the banquet hall. Naturally, everyone inside turned to look at them.
Even the Kaitou Kids running around stopped in their tracks.
The only ones who did not pause were the source of the disturbance themselves, the assembled GCPD officers.
Unlike Gordon and the others earlier, Kaitou Kid had not had a chance to steal their bullets, so they were now fully armed and loaded.
At this moment, they were here to arrest Kaitou Kid, and Kaitou Kid was right in front of them, frozen in place.
Although the number of Kaitou Kids was unexpected, it did not matter. The officers had the advantage in numbers.
The all-white Kaitou Kids were practically living targets in the current environment.
No, the Kaitou Kids had stopped moving. They were sitting ducks.
And so, the officers who had just entered took the most natural action.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
In an instant, gunfire erupted everywhere.
Dozens of Kaitou Kids were struck by bullets, without exception.
Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!
Strangely, the sound of the bullets hitting them did not resemble flesh and blood at all.
It sounded more like… balloons popping.
"Wait. Something's wrong with these Kaitou Kids. Cease fire!"
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