Several days had passed since the insurance fraud murder case involving Toyo Abe had been resolved.
Masaki Negishi, the man who had nearly been murdered, even came personally to thank Jiang Hang. As a gesture of gratitude, he offered a reward of one million yen, which Jiang Hang politely refused once before "reluctantly" accepting.
Japan wasn't exactly known for giving commemorative banners as thanks, otherwise Negishi might have even delivered one to the detective agency.
Thinking about how the walls of his office could have been filled with such banners, Jiang Hang felt a small sense of regret.
Still, the agency hadn't been idle during these few days.
One morning, Jiang Hang completed a missing dog commission from a local socialite. Although the payment was only one hundred thousand yen, completing the one-star commission also triggered the system reward.
He received an additional three million yen from the system.
However, Jiang Hang's greatest gain during these past few days wasn't money.
It was his reputation within the neighborhood.
Even in such a short time, word of mouth had spread quickly among the residents of Beika Town.
Everyone now knew that a new detective agency had opened nearby, run by a young Chinese detective with a remarkably kind heart.
People said he spent his days helping elderly residents cross the street, carrying heavy packages upstairs for neighbors, and taking injured children to clinics.
Sometimes he even paid the medical expenses himself.
If someone lost an item and Jiang Hang heard about it, he would always find the owner in the shortest time possible.
When people asked him to search for lost belongings, he usually managed to locate them as long as the item hadn't been missing for too long.
And for these kinds of small commissions, Jiang Hang often charged only a few hundred to one thousand yen.
Although this reputation hadn't yet brought him any major cases, the benefits were still obvious.
Once he established good relationships with the neighborhood aunties—those masters of local gossip—he gained access to all kinds of interesting rumors.
And just moments ago, he had heard a particularly valuable one.
Apparently, strange events had been occurring at the Beika Museum of Art.
Rumor said that every night, a medieval suit of armor could be seen walking inside the exhibition hall.
Two night guards had already been frightened so badly that they refused to work the late shift anymore.
Whether the rumor was true or not was another matter.
But as soon as Jiang Hang heard it, something about the story felt strangely familiar.
When he was younger, he vaguely remembered a Detective Conan case involving a murderous suit of armor.
Although he wasn't completely certain, he mentally noted the rumor.
Back inside the agency, Jiang Hang glanced around.
Shizuka Sakaki was standing near the window practicing her vocal exercises.
Meanwhile, Yoshino Koharu was sitting in a chair with a detective novel in her hands, her eyes half-closed as she struggled not to fall asleep.
Good.
It seemed everyone had fully adapted to the relaxed atmosphere of the agency.
Jiang Hang clapped his hands.
"I'm heading to the museum. Does anyone want to come along?"
"The museum?" Yoshino Koharu instantly woke up from the edge of sleep.
"I'm going!"
Shizuka Sakaki hesitated.
Jiang Hang didn't mind that she practiced voice training inside the agency. In fact, he had been the one who suggested it in the first place.
"The office is too quiet," he had said earlier.
"Since you're a voice actress, why not practice here when there are no clients? I'd like to see how your training works."
Shizuka had originally wanted to ask Jiang Hang for advice on vocal techniques, but she had been too shy to bring it up.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Hang encouraged her to practice openly and even gave helpful feedback afterward.
She was grateful for the opportunity.
Naturally, she also wanted to visit the museum.
Spending all day in the office—even if it was easy work—could become boring.
But Yoshino Koharu had already said she would go.
If Shizuka left as well, the agency would be empty.
What if a client showed up?
After spending several days with Jiang Hang, she knew he was a very easygoing person. The local rumors about his personality had already reached them.
Even if both assistants left with him, Jiang Hang probably wouldn't mind.
He might simply close the agency for the day.
That seemed like something someone as unconcerned about money as Jiang Hang would do.
But Shizuka felt she needed to respect the opportunity Jiang Hang had given her—and respect the job itself.
"In that case, I'll stay here," she said.
"If a client comes, I'll record their request and contact you immediately."
Jiang Hang didn't think much about it. He assumed she simply wanted to continue practicing.
Inwardly, he admired the hardworking girl.
"Keep it up, Sakaki. I believe you'll debut successfully."
Jiang Hang gave her an encouraging gesture.
Although Shizuka didn't quite understand why he suddenly cheered for her, she nodded firmly.
"I'll do my best!"
"Alright then, we're off," Jiang Hang said with a wave.
"If nothing happens, just close up and go home when it's time."
Soon afterward, Jiang Hang and Yoshino Koharu left the agency and got into the car Jiang Hang had purchased two days earlier.
Yes.
It was that legendary AE86.
For some reason, in this world the AE86 had never been discontinued. Despite being somewhat outdated, it was still sold normally.
As an anime fan, Jiang Hang didn't really understand the so-called romance of automobiles.
Studying engine specifications and comparing performance statistics sounded exhausting.
He would rather stay in the office watching two more episodes of anime.
His original plan had been simple.
Find a car that looked decent and buy it immediately to solve his transportation problem.
But then he saw the AE86.
Without hesitation, he bought it.
Inspired by a certain street racing series, he even painted the words "Pioneer Detective Agency" across the car's body in bold black letters.
Unfortunately, the anime that made the AE86 famous didn't exist in this world.
As a result, Yoshino Koharu completely failed to understand why her boss—who clearly had enough money to buy a luxury sports car—had chosen an old-fashioned AE86 instead.
And the lettering on the car looked extremely cheap.
Did Jiang Hang not feel embarrassed about that?
Sometimes she really felt that Jiang Hang's tastes were… unusual.
Perhaps the car had some special meaning to him.
Unable to figure it out, Yoshino Koharu simply assumed it was one of Jiang Hang's eccentric preferences.
Before long, Yoshino Koharu drove them to the Beika Museum of Art.
Her driving skills were surprisingly good.
There was none of the chaotic energy often associated with inexperienced drivers.
Watching her drive, Jiang Hang briefly considered something.
Maybe he didn't even need to bother getting a driver's license.
He could just let Yoshino Koharu drive him everywhere.
But then another thought occurred to him.
He still hadn't experienced the legendary drifting through mountain drainage gutters.
No, he definitely needed to get his license soon.
Maybe the system would even reward him with a driving skill.
If he couldn't become the King of Akina Mountain, becoming the King of Beika Town's roads wouldn't be bad either.
Stepping out of the car, Jiang Hang stretched lazily.
Then he casually glanced toward the other side of the parking lot.
Just one look was enough.
He immediately knew that coming to the museum today had been the right decision.
Because standing over there—
Conan Edogawa had arrived.
And wherever Conan appeared…
A case was never far behind.