I'm in Detective Conan, and the system has appointed Batman.

At this moment, Shiro Suzuki finished speaking, and the person on the stage changed from Shiro Suzuki to Tomoko Suzuki.

The de facto head of the Suzuki Group picked up the gift box and said ostentatiously,

"When everyone entered, each of you received a gift box like this, right? Please open it. Inside is the Suzuki Group's heirloom, the Black Star."

"Of course, not all of these Dark Stars are genuine. There is only one genuine one, and as for who has it..."

"Hehe, that means I won't reveal it to anyone. Anyway, please wear these Black Stars on your bodies. I don't believe that Phantom Thief Kid can distinguish between real and fake Black Stars and steal the Black Star from your chest right under your noses!"

As Tomoko Suzuki spoke on stage, many guests took out the Black Star from their gift boxes and exclaimed in admiration.

Whether this is genuine or counterfeit, since it's the 60th anniversary celebration of the Suzuki Group, it must at least offer some emotional value. They also plan to continue their cooperation with the Suzuki Group, the leading company in the Kanto region.

Among the many people, there was only one exception: Sonoko Suzuki.

As the actual heir to the Suzuki Group, Sonoko Suzuki wasn't particularly interested in treasures like the Black Star; her attention was entirely focused on her older sister, Ayako Suzuki.

"Honestly, why hasn't my sister arrived yet? The ship has already left... There's a limit to how late you can be!"

She muttered to herself, took out her phone, and dialed Ayako Suzuki's number.

Conan looked up at Sonoko Suzuki, sensing that something was slightly off.

While Ayako Suzuki might indeed be a bit slow on time, if I remember correctly, isn't she currently living with her Uncle Suzuki? Why did Uncle Suzuki come, but Ayako Suzuki didn't?

The Grim Reaper Elementary School Student pushed up his glasses.

Suddenly, he felt someone watching him from behind. He immediately turned around to look in the direction the gaze came from, but saw nothing. Just as he was about to go and take a look, Sonoko Suzuki's exclamation interrupted his thoughts.

"What! You and Dad are still at home? But Dad just gave a speech on stage!"

So, Uncle Suzuki really didn't board the ship, and that Uncle Suzuki we just saw was actually Kaito Kid in disguise?

Conan's heart sank.

He didn't even notice that Uncle Suzuki's disguise was flawed. That thief's ability to disguise himself was truly beyond his expectations. Could it be that on April 1st, Kaito Kid also used his ability to disguise himself to escape?

The elementary school student, known as the Grim Reaper, ran quickly towards the bar area and asked the staff about the whereabouts of Suzuki Shiro.

Then, he rushed to the toilet to see if he could catch Suzuki Shiro inside.

Meanwhile, Ran Mouri noticed that Conan had left sometime earlier. After mentioning it to Kogoro Mouri, she left the crowd to search for Conan.

Tap tap, tap tap, tap tap.

Ran Mouri, holding up her red dress, looked around, searching for Conan.

The next moment, a pungent smell suddenly appeared.

Before she could do anything, her body went limp, and her consciousness began to fade. She only saw the phantom thief in his conspicuous white uniform clasp his hands apologetically before her and whisper...

"Excuse me, miss..."

In just a few seconds, Ran Mouri returned to the crowd once again.

As she passed by Inspector Nakamori Ginzo, she smiled and greeted him, which puzzled Nakamori Ginzo, because he didn't seem to remember seeing this little girl in the red dress before.

Just as Ran Mouri was about to return to Kogoro Mouri's side, the entire banquet hall suddenly went dark.

Suddenly, a look of surprise flashed in her eyes.

Almost simultaneously, she heard a stranger's voice behind her.

"Miss Mori, would you like to hear how to solve the riddle of the Riddler?"

Chapter 3 I haven't even sent out the notice yet, how did you know?

Really? Why are you telling me this?

Ran Mouri narrowed her eyes slightly and turned to look behind her.

The figure speaking was almost completely hidden in the darkness, with only bright and dangerous eyes visible. It seemed to be holding something in its hand, and a white glimpse could be seen, which appeared to be a coffee cup.

"You mean the Riddler...who are you referring to? Kaito Kid?"

She asked.

Just then, a few lights suddenly shone in the dark banquet hall, like spotlights falling on the beams of the banquet hall not far away. The phantom thief Kid, dressed in a white uniform, was standing on the beams, looking quite dashing.

That's not Kaito Kid, it's the White Magician, Kazumi Sanada.

Chen En didn't look at the fake Phantom Thief Kid that Suzuki Tomoko had hired for the sake of the show, but simply said in a low voice,

"Perhaps, but what does it matter?"

What do you mean by "what relationship"? It's a big relationship! Why do you call me the riddle teller? Is saying this a bit too hurtful?

Kaito Kuroba, disguised as Ran Mouri, twitched the corner of his mouth, unsure of what expression to make at this moment.

He stared at the mysterious coffee shop man of unknown origin before him, and suddenly remembered the prophecy that Koizumi Akako had mentioned to him during class break: he might be hit hard by Batman in this operation.

That "Batman" probably doesn't refer to this mysterious coffee man... He doesn't recall any Batman liking to carry a coffee cup.

Kaito Kuroba's gaze swept over the figures near the spotlight.

Kogoro Mouri, Sonoko Suzuki, and the little brother who gave him a big surprise on April 1st—they had all arrived and were watching the magic show by the fake Kaito Kid.

Before he could say anything, the mysterious coffee man continued,

"First, on April Fool's Day, when the moon separates the two, I will transform into a dark star and ride the waves to come, Phantom Thief."

"This prophecy means that Phantom Thief Kid will travel from the rooftop of Beika Hotel to the Beika Museum between midnight and 4 a.m. on April 1st to steal the Black Star."

"Afterwards, on April 19th, I will board the Queen Cerissa, departing from Yokohama Port, to meet the true Dark Star, Phantom Thief Kid. Literally, Phantom Thief Kid will board the Queen Cerissa to retrieve the treasure on April 19th."

What's the point of bringing this up now?

Kaito Kuroba was somewhat helpless. He glanced at the fake Kaito Kid's performance over there and was about to ask the man to move aside so that he could return to Kogoro Mouri's side before Ichizo Sanada's performance ended and ensure that Ran Mouri's identity was not exposed.

Then he heard something that shocked him so much that he almost lost his composure.

"Finally, the notice, 'I am like Xisha, bewitched by the Queen of Egypt, and have come to your side, Phantom Thief Kid,' literally means that Phantom Thief Kid has infiltrated the Dark Star's side."

what did you say?

Kaito Kuroba looked at the mysterious coffee man in disbelief.

He already knew about Suzuki Tomoko's arrangements for the banquet and was familiar with Sanada Ichizo's entire performance, so he prepared a new notice to stick on the playing cards in advance.

But how did this person already know before he even sent it out?

Does this mean his plan has been completely exposed?

boom!

Gunshots rang out inside the banquet hall.

Sanada Ichizo's magic show has reached its climax. Suzuki Tomoko raises a fake pistol and fires at the fake Phantom Thief Kid, just as shocking as the words this unidentified person says to the real Phantom Thief Kid.

The lights in the banquet hall suddenly turned on at that moment.

Chen En had already taken a step back and disappeared into the crowd, leaving only Ran Mouri, whose expression looked a little off, behind.

His mission has just been 50% complete. All he needs to do now is ensure that Phantom Thief Kid's plan to steal the Dark Star fails, then he can complete the mission and receive the system item reward.

In addition, Kaito Kid had prepared a hang glider for escape during this operation.

That hang glider was never used by Phantom Thief Kid in the end.

He figured no one wanted it anyway, so he might as well take it back and study it. After all, it was a product of Professor Agasa's scientific black technology, so its quality was unquestionable.

"Ahem, everyone, listen to me!"

"To prevent Phantom Thief Kid from infiltrating our ranks and stealing the Dark Star, I suggest that all guests pair up and establish a secret code known only to each other, ensuring that Phantom Thief Kid cannot profit from it!"

Seeing that all the attention was drawn to the fake Phantom Thief Kid, Chaki Shintaro quickly picked up the microphone and spoke.

Hearing his voice, Conan glanced around and noticed that Ran Mouri hadn't returned yet. He frowned, realizing that something seemed amiss. He then heard footsteps approaching from a distance and turned around abruptly.

This time, it was just an ordinary waiter from the Queen Cerissa.

The waiter seemed somewhat surprised by Conan's behavior, but still handed him the note and said,

"Little friend, a gentleman just asked me to give you this note."

Someone asked me to deliver this note? Who would do that?

Conan took the note, pulled it open, and a look of surprise flashed in his eyes.

The note stated that the real Black Star had been with Tomoko Suzuki from the beginning, and that Kaito Kid had known about Tomoko Suzuki's plan in advance, hiding many smoke bombs that would explode among the numerous replicas of the Black Star.

Is this information true or false?

The Grim Reaper Elementary School student was somewhat uncertain.

He glanced at the information on the note again, then focused his attention on the signature in the lower right corner.

...Why is it Batman?

"No matter what, we'll find out by trying."

Conan muttered to himself.

He put the note back in his pocket, his attention instantly falling on the black star hanging on Suzuki Tomoko's chest. Almost at the same time, several black stars quietly rolled across the ground.

Suspecting that his identity had been exposed, Kaito Kid abandoned his previous plan to disguise himself and approach Tomoko Suzuki.

He chose to launch a direct and forceful attack!

The jet-black star exploded in full view of everyone, turning into smoke.

Chaos erupted in the banquet hall.

Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department officers immediately blocked the entrance to prevent others from leaving, but the flow of people was too large, and they were about to be overwhelmed. The panicked crowd even knocked Suzuki Tomoko to the ground.

Kaito Kuroba, disguised as Ran Mouri, appeared just in time behind Tomoko Suzuki, helped her up, and asked her with concern.

"Aunt Suzuki, are you alright?"

His hand quietly brushed across the black star on Tomoko Suzuki's chest and took it away.

However, Conan, who remained standing still and was not swept away by the chaotic crowd, saw everything clearly and knew that the contents of the note were true.