Outside, Victor had returned with his team. The crowd out there—eighty percent of them were Zhang Yang's fans—obviously wouldn't cooperate with him.
Not to mention, the party had been prepared by Zhang Yang himself. Sure, there weren't any snacks or drinks, but the lights and music were definitely on point.
Victor came back to the Dragon Nation Gallery fuming, while outside, the flashing rainbow lights and thumping music continued.
"Damn it! Those people know the speakers were set up by Kaitō Kid, and they refuse to let us shut them off!"
Harrison didn't care about the sound system.
"Director Victor, did you spot Kaitō Kid?"
Victor shook his head, clearly annoyed.
He had just gone out to shut off the speakers and lights, without even thinking to look for Kaitō Kid.
Bruce and Harrison exchanged a helpless glance. They both understood exactly how far things had progressed by now.
"Director Victor, unless something unexpected happened, Kaitō Kid is already inside the Musée Guimet."
"You better get your agents moving and searching."
Harrison shared his conclusion. Besides, they weren't entirely sure the Dragon Nation Gallery was Zhang Yang's true target.
If they could just locate Kaitō Kid, it wouldn't matter which part of the museum he was in.
Victor quickly nodded and grabbed his radio, repeating Harrison's instructions.
"Everyone, move! Damn Kaitō Kid is probably already inside! Search your surroundings!"
Outside, more and more people gathered, wrapping the entire museum in layer after layer of spectators.
Jeff and Davika were squeezed tightly in the crowd, visibly irritated.
"Damn it, with so many people here, if Kaitō Kid shows up, we might not even get close enough to touch his coat!"
Jeff stood on his tiptoes, trying to see through the sea of heads packed together so tightly there was barely room to move.
Meanwhile, Zhang Yang had returned to the second floor and noticed that the Enforcement Bureau agents were now actively patrolling in alert formation.
After slipping past three groups of agents, he casually tossed a smoke bomb at the entrance of the Ancient Civilizations Gallery.
As thick smoke erupted, Zhang Yang's white silhouette flashed into it like lightning.
"Freeze! Don't move!"
"Shit! It's Kaitō Kid!"
"Reporting! Kaitō Kid spotted in the Ancient Civilizations Gallery on the second floor!"
The nearby agents gave immediate chase.
The smoke bomb quickly filled the hallway and then the entire gallery, reducing visibility to zero.
Zhang Yang smashed open a glass display case and grabbed an oddly-shaped sapphire.
Victor heard the radio chatter and instantly panicked.
Harrison and Bruce didn't look good either. They were the ones who had guessed Zhang Yang's target was the Dragon Nation Gallery.
But now it was obvious they were wrong.
Victor picked up his radio and gave immediate orders for the agents in the museum to surround the Ancient Civilizations Gallery.
"Don't let Kaitō Kid escape! Keep a close watch on the perimeter!"
Every available agent rushed toward the gallery the moment they got the call.
The thick smoke made it impossible to see anything. Once inside, everyone instinctively slowed down.
But Zhang Yang, wearing his monocle, moved without the slightest issue. He could clearly hear the approaching footsteps.
"Suckers."
"Enjoy your little game. I'm outta here."
Zhang Yang quickly flipped through the window and slipped into the night, dodging the incoming Enforcement Bureau agents as he made his way toward the Dragon Nation Gallery step by step.
Bang—
Just as he was about to reach the Dragon Nation Gallery, a gunshot rang out from the second floor.
But the shot clearly wasn't aimed at him. After a brief pause, Zhang Yang continued moving forward.
Inside the smoke, Victor roared in frustration.
"Who was it? Who fired that shot?"
"Every single exhibit here is priceless. No one is allowed to shoot recklessly!"
A voice came from the smoke—it was one of the agents reporting.
"Director Victor, I think I saw Kaitō Kid's silhouette!"
"He just stole an exhibit and ran!"
Bruce and Harrison quickly followed the voice, pushing through the smoke. Soon, they spotted a shattered glass case and the empty display beneath it.
Victor saw the scene and immediately started cursing.
"Shit! Dammit!"
"Director Harrison, what now?"
"Kaitō Kid must've already escaped. Should we lock down the Musée Guimet?"
At that moment, Harrison and Bruce were both stunned.
They'd come in without a plan. Their only lead had been a guess—and it turned out wrong.
They were already struggling to keep up with Zhang Yang's pace. Now, faced with an unexpected turn, they were at a complete loss.
Seeing that neither man gave a clear response, Victor made the call himself.
He ordered two teams to keep searching the second floor and sent the rest to sweep the rest of the museum.
At the same time, he gave the command to completely lock down the Musée Guimet.
Gunshots had already startled the visitors inside. Now, a flood of Enforcement Bureau agents swarmed out to seal off the perimeter.
The crowd outside was in an uproar.
"They already found Kaitō Kid? Oh my god, when did he even get in there?"
"What were the agents doing? Why are they rushing out? Did he already make the steal?"
"Shit! They're locking the museum down to stop him from escaping!"
"Oh my god! So that means they've already let him get the goods and are just trying to stop him now?"
"WTF? Kaitō Kid is unreal! I'm dying to know what happened in there!"
At that moment, Zhang Yang had already entered the Dragon Nation Gallery and picked up the Bronze Gilded Buddha Pagoda.
But Victor had made a surprisingly smart call—locking down the museum right away.
Now, with agents sweeping every corner, it was much harder for Zhang Yang to escape unnoticed.
And with the dense crowd still gathered outside, his only real exit was to reach the rooftop of the Musée Guimet silently.
Only from that height could he use the Silver-Winged Cape to get away.
But the crowd still included two A-class fugitives, and every Enforcement Bureau agent was armed.
'No good. Way too risky.'
After weighing his options, Zhang Yang made a bold decision.
Since they wouldn't let him leave… then he just wouldn't.
'This building's style might actually make a good hiding place.'
He looked up at the beam above his head.
The Musée Guimet had once been a royal palace. Its architecture was tall and ornate.
Zhang Yang took out a rope and tossed it up to a beam over five meters high, then quickly climbed up.
The beam was mostly decorative, carved from a natural stone.
Once he got up, he reeled the rope back in.
A second later, several agents walked in, carefully sweeping every corner of the Dragon Nation Gallery.