"Little brother, come and draw a card!"
Kazumi Sanada gestured toward Akashi.
Still nestled in Yukiko's arms, Akashi reached out and picked a card at random.
Just as he was about to flip it over—
"Wait a moment!" Sanada interrupted with a theatrical flourish.
"Let me read your mind and predict what card you've drawn!"
With a swift motion, he slid Akashi's chosen card to the top of the deck and closed the stack.
Then, turning dramatically in another direction, he pressed a finger to his temple as if deep in thought.
Bang!
A white dove suddenly burst from his palm, drawing gasps from the audience.
All eyes followed the bird as it fluttered above the stage.
Sanada seized the moment.
"I've got it!" He spun back toward Akashi.
"It's a red suit… the Ace of Hearts, correct?"
Akashi tilted his head, his sharp eyes flashing.
"Nope," he said bluntly. "You switched the card.
"When you released the dove, you took another card from the bottom of the deck and placed it on top of mine."
"...."
"..."
".."
A brief silence.
Then—
Laughter erupted from the audience.
Kazumi Sanada let out a stiff chuckle, his expression twitching.
"Hahaha, kids these days sure love to joke!"
But Akashi wasn't finished.
He narrowed his eyes and continued, his voice unwavering.
"I saw it with my own eyes."
The crowd murmured in surprise.
This wasn't just some ordinary child—he had actually seen through the trick.
Sanada's face paled.
How did this brat catch that?!
His sleight of hand had been flawless… or so he thought.
In the crowd, Kaito Kidd observed the scene, his expression unreadable.
(This is bad...)
Unbeknownst to Sanada, Kidd had switched the replacement card himself, slipping in his own notice letter.
Now, with this sharp-eyed kid disrupting the entire trick, the letter wouldn't appear as planned.
The whole setup was falling apart.
Sanada, now sweating, forced a polite smile.
"Ah, looks like this little one got confused by all the movement! No worries, let's pick another volunteer!"
Without missing a beat, he turned and pointed into the audience.
"How about you, young lady? Would you like to assist?"
The spotlight landed on Ran.
Dressed elegantly for the event, she stood out in the crowd.
She scoffed and crossed her arms.
"No thanks."
Her tone was firm.
"Akashi isn't lying.
If you're trying to cover up a failed trick, I'm not interested in playing along."
Gasps of approval rippled through the female audience members.
One woman stood up. "That's right! Why would such a cute little boy lie?"
Another chimed in. "It's obvious your trick didn't work!"
"So much for being a 'talented magician'—is this all you've got?"
"Pulling doves out of nowhere? How original."
Within seconds, an entire group of women had risen in support of Akashi, firing accusations at Sanada.
The magician's forehead dripped with sweat.
His so-called biggest show of the night had turned into a public roast session.
"..."
From the sidelines, Conan and Kaito Kidd watched in stunned silence.
(How is this happening...?)
This wasn't just admiration.
Women were outright defending this kid like he was some kind of idol!
Conan clenched his fists.
"This... this makes no sense!"
Even his own mother had been doting on Akashi all night.
But seeing the sheer number of women now flocking to Akashi's side, he was starting to understand.
(There are so many who want to hold him… but they don't even get the chance.)
(Mom… maybe I get it now.)
Akashi hadn't expected his casual remark to have such a bewitching effect on the crowd of women.
Seeing how excited they were, he decided to stay silent.
But with the audience in such an uproar, Kazumi Sanada's magic show was completely derailed!
It was Tomoko Suzuki who finally stepped forward to regain control. Raising her hands, she addressed the crowd with a pleasant smile:
"Haha, Mr. Sanada put so much effort into working with me earlier, it's only natural for him to make a small mistake now."
"Let's allow Mr. Sanada to take a well-deserved rest. Next, please welcome the performance of the Earth Lady Team!"
Though she was calming the situation, her words also delivered a final verdict—
Kazumi Sanada had made a mistake.
Not that Akashi had been mistaken or "dazzled" by the trick.
The magician had no way out.
For a performer, failing a trick in front of a live audience was a massive humiliation.
Sanada wanted to protest but had no excuse.
If a child had seen through his act, it was his own fault for not being skilled enough.
He had no choice but to step down.
Luckily, Tomoko spared no expense for the 60th anniversary celebration.
The event wasn't just limited to singers and magicians—even a popular girl group had been invited.
The music started playing, and four dazzling performers took the stage.
At the center of them was none other than the stunning Yoko Okino!
Akashi's eyes widened.
He hadn't expected Yoko Okino to be on board the cruise ship.
From the stage, Yoko quickly noticed him too.
Singing and dancing, she sent flirtatious winks in his direction, one after another.
Yukiko giggled.
"Akashi, you're really something! So many people adore you!"
Akashi rolled his eyes at her playful teasing.
But just then, he suddenly remembered—
He had only used his physical absorption skill once today.
Taking advantage of the moment, he reached back subtly and activated his ability.
[Ding! Skill successfully activated! Physical fitness increased by +2.5!]
His eyes flashed in surprise.
(Wow, this "『 Grasp of Immortality』" skill is getting stronger!)
Before, it had only absorbed 2 points per activation. Now, today alone, he had already surpassed his usual daily limit.
(This is insane… Just using it on Yukiko today gave me more than three days' worth of gains combined!)
But Yukiko, sensitive to the sudden energy drain, let out a soft noise.
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
Then—
She hugged Akashi even tighter.
On the sidelines, Conan wasn't paying attention to his mother or Akashi.
He was focused on something else entirely.
(Something's not right… I just made a discovery!)
Meanwhile, deep within the crowd, Kaito Kidd's expression darkened.
Kazumi Sanada was out.
And with him, all of the planned tricks Kidd had set up were ruined.
There was no other choice.
(I have to act personally!)
Suddenly, a white card fluttered through the air.
It spun gracefully, drawing everyone's attention.
All eyes followed its descent until it landed neatly in the hands of Ginzo Nakamori.
The inspector's face tensed as he read it aloud:
"Like Shesha who deceived the Queen of Egypt, I have come to you! — Kidd."
Gasps filled the room.
"Kidd! Kaito Kidd has appeared!"
"Where is he?!"
Excitement and panic rippled through the crowd.
On stage, the girl group's performance was instantly forgotten.
Tomoko quickly raised her voice.
"Calm down, everyone! There's no need to worry."
"This cruise ship is like a fortress on the sea. There is no way for Kidd to escape!"
But just as she finished speaking—
Several black pearls rolled onto the floor.
A split second later—
Boom!
Thick clouds of smoke erupted, engulfing the entire venue.
"Kyaaa!!!"
"This!?"
Screams filled the air.
"Ahhh! These things explode! I'm not wearing this anymore!"
One after another, the wealthy socialites and high-class ladies began ripping off their Dark Star replica necklaces.
Exactly as planned.
This was the moment the succubus shota had been waiting for.
Hidden within the rising smoke, Akashi slipped out of Yukiko's arms and darted into the chaos.
Lv1 『Retractable Bandage』—Activated!
White bandages instantly wrapped around his hands.
(I'm not touching anything directly—especially when using my『Steal』skill.)
He scanned his surroundings.
Within a fifteen-meter radius, he locked onto his preselected target.
Then—
Lv3 Theft Skill—『Steal』, 『Steal』, 『Steal』 !