Rubio's fake version of Kaitō Kid had clearly put effort into the costume. He nearly replicated Zhang Yang's white tux down to the last detail.
Even the blue ribbon on the top hat hadn't been overlooked—there was barely anything to nitpick.
But his way of showing up was just too ridiculous.
The fans at the scene had already picked up on it.
Kaitō Kid arriving by an Enforcement Bureau helicopter? That was outrageous!
With Leo and Holmeska watching from the command vehicle, there was no way they missed Rubio landing among the crowd.
They also spotted the Enforcement Bureau chopper hovering in the night sky.
"WTF? Where did that helicopter come from? Why is it dropping off Kaitō Kid?"
"Fuck! Track it now! Find out which bureau it belongs to!"
Leo's chest heaved with rage. The last thing he wanted was to see Kaitō Kid arriving at the venue… delivered by helicopter!
BND agents on the ground were left helpless. The dense crowd made it impossible to move, let alone get close.
As soon as Rubio was dropped off, the helicopter quickly flew away.
Of the four-person crew from earlier, two had already been taken down by Zhang Yang.
Now only Rubio and the pilot, Casey, were left.
"Rubio, move fast! Stop showing off in the crowd!"
Rubio glanced up at the helicopter flying off, flashed a wicked grin, and turned toward the stage.
Even though the BND agents were completely stuck in the crush of people, once Rubio turned, the crowd unexpectedly parted to let him through.
Inside the command vehicle, Leo screamed into the radio, barking at the BND agents to act immediately.
"Damn it! Don't let him get close to Tyron!"
"These people are insane! They're actually clearing the way for Kaitō Kid!"
But no matter how much Leo roared, the agents still couldn't move. They couldn't even turn, much less arrest anyone.
From a rooftop in the distance, Zhang Yang sat watching the scene unfold through a pair of binoculars.
"That fake Kaitō Kid again."
"Heh, things are about to get interesting."
He stood up, unfolded the silver-winged cape behind him, and leapt off the rooftop, cutting through the night sky like a white meteor.
Just as Rubio neared the stage, a thunderous wave of gasps burst from the crowd.
Everyone turned and looked up. There, suspended mid-air, stood Kaitō Kid. His cloak fluttered in the wind, illuminated by the spotlights.
"Oh my god! Kaitō Kid? There are two of them?"
"WTF? One on the ground, one in the sky? Am I dreaming?"
"This is the real Kaitō Kid entrance! The guy below has to be a fake!"
"Damn! Someone's actually gutsy enough to impersonate Kaitō Kid? He's got a death wish!"
"Shit! I knew something was off! No way the real Kaitō Kid would show up in an Enforcement Bureau chopper. Total fake!"
As soon as Zhang Yang appeared, the place erupted.
The comparison between the two made it obvious—Rubio's fake was instantly exposed.
The real Kaitō Kid was the one standing mid-air. That was how Kaitō Kid made an entrance.
Even Tyron on stage was stunned speechless.
Not just him—every single person at the venue stared, jaws dropped. That included Leo and Holmeska in the command vehicle.
"Oh shit! What is Kaitō Kid doing? He's actually standing in mid-air?!"
Leo forgot to give orders entirely.
Holmeska stared at the drone feed, completely frozen. His brain blanked out, totally lost for words or theories.
"This monster... how is he even doing that!"
The crowd's energy exploded. Zhang Yang didn't need to prove his identity or argue with Rubio on the ground over who was real.
Standing mid-air in the night sky was the only proof he needed.
"So they are working together. Rubio, a wanted criminal!"
"If he'd only put some effort into the way he showed up, maybe he could've actually pulled it off."
Rubio's biggest mistake tonight was his method of entrance. Everything else—the costume, the look—was nearly flawless.
"Oh my god! Kaitō Kid's literally standing in mid-air! Newton's coffin lid can't hold down any longer!"
"Kaitō Kid is the king of surprises. Is he actually a magician?"
"This defies all logic. Who is he, seriously?"
"Damn! I don't have the words. All I can say is: damn, this kid!"
"This kind of entrance would blow people's minds no matter when or where it happens!"
Zhang Yang didn't just float. He even took elegant steps forward, walking upward through the air.
But in truth, he wasn't really suspended in mid-air. That would be way too disrespectful to Newton.
There was an ultra-thin silk wire under his feet—he was essentially tightrope walking.
But the wire was so fine, nearly like spider silk, it was almost invisible to the naked eye. Especially at night, it looked like he was walking on air.
Tyron stared from the stage, jaw practically unhinged.
"Oh shit… this is unreal!"
"Kaitō Kid's entrance is something else!"
Zhang Yang didn't get carried away by the gasps and cheers. He flipped out a dozen playing cards and swept his arms with smooth precision.
Like heat-seeking darts, the cards flew out and knocked down over a dozen nearby drones.
His entrance tonight had to be flawless. If one of those drones hit the wire, it would give everything away.
Zhang Yang wanted to keep a little mystery alive.
In a flash, over a dozen drones dropped out of the sky, crashing into the crowd below.
They hadn't been flying too high. All of them had been aimed directly at Zhang Yang, so when they fell, people below were able to catch them.
The lucky ones who caught them found a red playing card tucked into the drone's frame—each marked with a cartoon image of Kaitō Kid. A total collector's item.
"Fuck! Casey, get over here and pick me up!"
Rubio finally snapped out of his long daze and realized things were going sideways. He called Casey for pickup.
Now that the real Kaitō Kid had shown up, there was no way he could keep up the act.
Calling him a sidekick to a master would be giving him too much credit.
Casey, meanwhile, had already flown quite a distance away. There was no place to land near Botan Square.
"WTF? Did you already grab Tyron?"
Their plan had nothing to do with Zhang Yang's goals. They were trying to kidnap Tyron and use him to negotiate with the French Enforcement Bureau, to exchange for their two captured teammates.
With Tyron's global fame, that kind of move wasn't impossible.
Last time, when they impersonated Kaitō Kid, it ended up helping Zhang Yang's mission a bit, so he didn't expose them.
But this time, Zhang Yang didn't just plan to blow their cover—he was going to hand Leo a gift.
Catching a world-class wanted criminal? That'd definitely count as a major win.