No matter how much Victor didn't want to believe it, the fact that Harrison was lying unconscious on the floor couldn't be denied.
"Who hit Harrison with a tranquilizer gun?"
The Enforcement Bureau agent gave Victor a strange look. That question sounded like something no competent officer should be asking.
Kaitō Kid had broken into the museum. Then Harrison got hit with a tranquilizer and passed out. Obviously, the culprit had to be Kaitō Kid.
What the others didn't know was that after leaving, Victor had been chasing another "Kaitō Kid" the whole time and never lost sight of him.
"Director Victor, shortly after you left, Kaitō Kid came back!"
"I think it was definitely him who did it!"
Victor threw the tranquilizer gun to the ground in frustration and stormed upstairs toward the director's office.
When he pushed the door open, he saw the director lying on the ground too, with a tranquilizer dart stuck in his chest.
The vault hidden behind the bookshelf was now completely exposed.
Everything checked out. Victor drew his sidearm, flipped off the safety, and slowly approached the vault.
Kaitō Kid had mentioned a "gift" in the vault in his latest post.
Victor didn't know exactly what the gift was. But judging by how Kaitō Kid had been handing over international fugitives lately, there was a good chance that whatever was inside now was another A-rank wanted criminal.
He reached the vault and pressed his ear against the heavy door, listening carefully.
But the vault door was thick. The sound insulation was excellent. He couldn't hear a thing.
Victor tried tapping on the mechanical dial a few times but got nothing out of it.
"Damn it. Only the director knows the vault code!"
"Could there really be two Kaitō Kids? Or was it an accomplice?"
At this point, Victor had no choice but to admit it—he'd been chasing the wrong Kaitō Kid all along.
While he was gone, the real Kaitō Kid had entered the museum and stolen the artifact from the British Museum—the Eastern Zhou Golden Sword Hilt.
With no way to open the vault, Victor sat down in the director's chair, lost in thought.
Meanwhile, the two men locked inside the vault were on the verge of a meltdown. Being shut inside felt like serving an early prison sentence.
Once the Enforcement Bureau opened the vault, their fate was sealed—they'd be arrested.
"Damn that Kaitō Kid! He screwed us over!"
"He's a thief too. Why would a master thief mess with a few small-time crooks?"
Stubbled Man was furious. In his mind, he and Zhang Yang were both in the same business.
Sure, they didn't have the global reputation Kaitō Kid did, but they had stolen plenty of priceless artifacts.
To him, there was no real difference between them and Kaitō Kid.
They screamed and shouted inside the vault, but Victor didn't move. He couldn't hear a thing.
One hour…
Two hours…
Time flew by. The museum stayed dead quiet.
Harrison and the director had been moved onto couches, still unconscious, waiting to wake up.
Outside, fans and reporters were still crowding the entrance, waiting for answers. Waiting for Victor and the others to make a statement.
"It's been hours—what the hell are Victor and Harrison doing inside? What kind of gift did Kaitō Kid leave in the vault?"
"Oh my god! How long do we have to wait? People are getting seriously fed up with Victor!"
"They're acting like cowards, hiding inside!"
"Victor can dodge the crowd, but he won't be able to dodge the British Museum!"
"Victor and Harrison are in deep trouble. The stolen artifact belonged to the British Museum—they're definitely coming for answers!"
The crowd outside wasn't just waiting for answers. They were also there to watch the drama unfold and see Victor humiliated.
Around midnight, other museum officials finally arrived.
News that Kaitō Kid had stolen an artifact from the British Museum was already spreading like wildfire. Everyone also knew he had left a "gift" in the vault.
As soon as the officials got there, Victor had them go open the vault.
Right now, the only thing Victor cared about was the so-called "gift" Kaitō Kid had left inside.
But just as they were about to open it, Victor held them back.
"Everyone, be on alert. Get ready for anything!"
Then, with a nod from Victor, the vault door was slowly opened—and there they were, Stubbled Man and his partner, standing in plain view.
"Shit! I knew it'd be something like this!" Victor cursed under his breath, then ordered his men to cuff them and bring them out.
Before they even got taken back to the Bureau, Victor started questioning them on the spot.
"Why were you inside the vault? What's your relationship with Kaitō Kid?"
"Are you his accomplices?"
Even though the two of them were wearing tactical uniforms from the Enforcement Bureau, Victor wasn't stupid.
Kaitō Kid might be a master thief, but his character was solid. Victor didn't believe he'd lie about something like this.
Besides, both Harrison and the museum director had been taken out with tranquilizer darts—darts still found on these guys.
"Director Victor, we're with the Enforcement Bureau! Kaitō Kid tricked us into entering the vault and then locked us inside!"
Stubbled Man reacted quickly, lying with a fake identity.
This group clearly had some skills.
Their tactical gear and even the helicopter they used had all been "properly" issued from the Bureau.
"Enforcement Bureau, huh?"
Victor narrowed his eyes, staring at their uniforms and chest badges. He looked skeptical.
But after having Bureau personnel verify their credentials, it turned out their identities and mission logs were legit.
"Fuck! What kind of stunt is Kaitō Kid pulling?"
At first glance, Victor had assumed they were fugitives—maybe players in some dark web contest.
But now, seeing the verified records, Victor couldn't even tell who was who anymore.
"Take them back to the Bureau first."
Victor waved irritably. Tonight's operation had turned into a complete mess.
Everything was tangled beyond belief. His head was pounding. He couldn't think straight.
When the crowd outside saw Enforcement Bureau agents loading Stubbled Man and his partner into a vehicle, gasps erupted.
"What the hell? The Enforcement Bureau just arrested its own people? What's going on?"
"Holy shit! Has Kaitō Kid taken this to Mission: Impossible levels now?"
"Shit! Were these two moles? Is that how Kaitō Kid pulled it off—an inside job!"
"Oh my god! Maybe the Bureau's not the only one that needs to self-audit. The Enforcement Bureau better take a long look at itself!"
"This is insane. What the hell is even happening anymore?"
With cameras flashing and all eyes watching, the Bureau van drove off with the two men inside.
Meanwhile, Victor stayed hidden inside the museum. He didn't dare show his face.
Tonight's operation had sparked massive controversy. If he stepped out now, it'd be like throwing himself to the wolves.