Bustling New York was quietly becoming the stage for a duel between magicians.
Countless people rushed in, hoping to witness this epic showdown—who would win in the end, Kaitou Kid or The Four Horsemen?
Kid's notice declared he would "steal" The Four Horsemen, but they weren't shaken at all. They stuck to their original plan, just waiting for Kid to come steal them. As long as they didn't get stolen, then after tonight, they would officially become the world's number one The Four Horsemen.
"They really think we're nothing, huh? This time we're not just taking down The Four Horsemen—we're bringing down Kaitou Kid too," an FBI agent said, fired up. With this level of disrespect and provocation, how could they not be? It was outrageous.
But the FBI was completely helpless. They could only watch The Four Horsemen post updates online, being led around by the nose.
"Sir, are we really not going to help the FBI?" someone asked.
"No need," Commissioner Stonberg replied. "Do any of you even know the address for Kaitou Kid's website?"
Silence.
"Hurry up! Whoever knows it, log in!" Stonberg remembered Kid had told him to keep an eye on his website.
A nervous officer opened the site. Kid's previous challenge letter was still pinned at the top—until suddenly, a new message appeared: "The Four Horsemen' next target is the two hundred million rebuilding fund held at New York Bank."
Wasn't that the same fund meant for post-crisis reconstruction? Stonberg remembered hearing rumors that the fund's handler, Senate Speaker Bona, was under suspicion for embezzlement and using substandard materials during rebuilding efforts. But no proof had ever surfaced.
"Wait, isn't that money all wired electronically?" one officer questioned. "A few million or even twenty or thirty million in cash, maybe—but two hundred million? Who moves that in physical bills?"
"It's possible," Stonberg said. "If it's newly printed bills. I remember New York Bank recently requested a huge batch of old cash to be exchanged with the Federal Reserve. The swap should be happening around these few days. Contact the bank president."
And sure enough, The Four Horsemen had set their sights on those two hundred million new bills being transferred from Washington. That money was meant to go directly into the rebuilding fund. Since the fund was handling a large-scale transaction, the bank decided to simplify the process and handed over all the cash in one go.
The fund had agreed, so the bank was preparing to deliver the whole thing, vault and all. The money was now sitting in a bank warehouse under security guard.
That was two hundred million. If they dumped it all out… how much could a person grab? Fans were thrilled. They wished it was night already so they could rush over and scoop up the bills.
"Sir, don't you think something's off?"
"What?" The commissioner was already getting nervous after confirming with the bank. This was two hundred million, and he'd ordered no interference. If Kid failed, he was going to be in deep trouble. He silently prayed for Kid's success.
"Why was this news released by Kid? Shouldn't The Four Horsemen have posted it first?"
That made everyone pause.
Another officer checked The Four Horsemen' site. Sure enough, they had just released a matching post—the same target, the same amount: two hundred million in new cash being delivered to New York Bank.
"That's odd… something doesn't add up."
"What now?" Stonberg snapped. His subordinates kept jumping at shadows.
"Kid's notice came five seconds before The Four Horsemen' did."
Everyone looked around at each other. Could Kid see the future? Otherwise, how did he post the target before the thieves themselves did?
"Maybe their site just had lag," someone guessed.
Maybe it was a coincidence, or maybe not—but if it wasn't, then Kid was terrifying. But Stonberg understood—this might be the signal of Kid's victory, proof that he had already seen through The Four Horsemen' trick. The Four Horsemen would never expect that their so-called perfect magic had already been cracked by Kid.
Just then, a call came in from the bank president. "The vault's gone."
The Four Horsemen had posted their message only minutes earlier, and now the vault was already missing? Stonberg was stunned. 'That's fast.' "Does the FBI know?"
"They do."
"Then let them deal with it," Stonberg replied. He was fully committed to trusting Kid now.
The commissioner felt awkward, but the cops couldn't do anything except watch the FBI strut around.
But the vault was really gone. "What the hell is going on?" the bank president yelled, standing with the FBI agents.
"But… but sir, you called us yourself—from your office," one of the guards said, confused.
"What did the call say?"
"It was about moving the vault to another spot, so we followed the order and loaded it into the truck."
"Where's the truck now?"
"It's already left—but just a little while ago."
"Send someone to intercept it immediately!"
The president relaxed slightly when he saw the FBI move quickly. If they caught up in time, it would be fine. "I swear, I never gave that order."
The guard looked helpless. "But I have your call in my phone's records. It came from your office."
The president was about to deny it again, but an agent stopped him.
"Hold on, sir—no need to rush."
Everyone turned in shock as the bank president suddenly raised his hands and began playing an invisible violin, like he was a member of an orchestra.
The FBI instantly knew what happened. He had been hypnotized. "Damn it. The Four Horsemen again. Hypnosis."
Luckily, there was good news: they'd located the truck. Agents rushed off to catch it, hoping the vault was still inside.
But after they left, in the now empty warehouse, The Four Horsemen returned.
Because the real vault hadn't been stolen at all—it had just been hidden behind a mirror.
It worked just like the classic magician's trick of hiding a rabbit in a box. The mirror split the box in half, with the rabbit hidden behind it. From the front, the audience only saw an empty box. The rabbit had seemingly vanished.
Pulling off a mirror trick in such a big space wasn't easy. If someone got too close, they might see their own reflection and realize the trick.
So The Four Horsemen placed props in front of the mirror. The props weren't fully complete, but when combined with their reflection, they looked whole.
Everything had been precisely calculated. It was all basic magician's craft. Daniel tossed a hammer, shattering the mirror. The hidden vault appeared, completely intact.
"Henley, we're short on time. Open the gift box."
"Just give me a few minutes."
Jack and hypnosis master Merritt went to get the car ready. They were about to pull off the biggest prank yet. They still hadn't noticed that Kid's notice had gone up a few seconds before theirs. They were too confident in their perfect plan.
Meanwhile, Kid's website updated again, this time revealing the exact location of the heist: "Old Customs Building, Queens District."
Queens was a low-income area, one of New York's underdeveloped zones. This time, the so-called Robin Hoods were planning to hand out money there. The locals went wild. With outside fans already swarming in, the surrounding streets were jam-packed.
And just five seconds after Kid posted, The Four Horsemen announced the same target—the exact same location.
Prediction. Kaitou Kid had predicted The Four Horsemen' move.
Fans who noticed this went wild. Of course Kid was better. Their idol was the real deal. Kid was the strongest.