Chapter 15: Terai Kōnosuke: Life Is Just Too Hard for Me...

“I know that even if you’re caught by the Metropolitan Police Department, your assistant, Terai Kōnosuke, could perform a successful theft under the name ‘Kaito Kid,’ clearing your name.” Ikeno Hichika cast a glance at Kuroba Kaito.

This was an international thief with a bounty higher than Numazawa Kijirō’s. Even without murder, the repeated provocations against the police and his international notoriety were enough for some wealthy individuals to add rewards to his wanted status.

Someone this valuable naturally made him consider the possibility of capturing Kaito to sell him for profit...

Kaito felt a little uneasy under Ikeno’s scrutinizing gaze—it was the same look a merchant uses when selecting goods. It must be a delusion. “Ahem, since you know threats won’t work...”

“But even if you can clear your suspicion, being suspected and investigated is always troublesome,” Ikeno said calmly, weighing the pros and cons. “As long as you cooperate with me, if you ever run into trouble, I can help you out. Consider it a form of payment.”

Kaito thought seriously for a moment. On one hand, there were multiple friends and many paths, while on the other, trouble seemed unavoidable. The choice was clear. “Alright, then let’s keep this between us. By the way, why do you want to learn disguise techniques?”

“Because I need to use them,” Ikeno replied.

Kaito was momentarily stunned.

Why want to learn? Because he needs to use it...

That question and answer seemed reasonable.

If he didn’t need it, he wouldn’t be going to such lengths to learn...

Wait!

He had meant to ask what he intended to do with the disguise skills after learning them, damn it!

“You...” Kaito stared at Ikeno for three seconds. “By the way, what’s your name?”

“Ikeno Hichika,” he answered.

Kaito took a deep breath, feeling all his earlier emotions had been worn down, and weakly said, “When meeting someone for the first time, isn’t it proper to introduce yourself first?”

“Sorry, I’ll try to do so from now on,” Ikeno replied.

Kaito: “...”

Try to do so from now on?

Had this guy never introduced himself before? And might not in the future either?

What a weirdo!

Ikeno thought back and realized he hadn’t introduced himself much.

In his previous life, he spent most of his time at the military academy. Everyone knew him, and for many years at that.

Then he became a bounty hunter. His employers knew him as “July.” Once the bounty was claimed, that was enough. For targets, there was no need to say, “I’m July, here to capture you for money.” It saved time to just catch and sell, right?

Introducing oneself, or saying one’s real name, was unfamiliar to him.

...

After leaving school, Ikeno had Mamiya Mitsuru drive them to Kaito’s home.

Kaito went home alone, noticing that Ikeno did not follow him in. He had originally thought of using a few small tricks to counterattack but lost the urge.

Though Ikeno threatened him, he didn’t seem to restrict his movements; he just wanted to learn disguise skills.

Of course, Kaito still brought his props, along with the disguise tools and some notes left by his father, just in case something happened and he needed to protect himself.

Counterattacking was unnecessary, but being suppressed by that guy felt unpleasant. He had to find a way to regain some face...

Terai Kōnosuke followed along. “Young master, is there an important mission? Why did you rush back from school? Did you discover a hard-to-handle gem and need to prepare in advance?”

Kaito snapped out of his thoughts, remembering he had promised not to tell anyone about learning disguise skills, so he decided to keep that promise. “Nothing much, just have to go out for a while.”

“Need my help?” Terai asked.

“No, if the teacher calls home, just help me handle it,” Kaito waved him off and walked out with his backpack.

* * *

Bang!

The door was shut.

“Ah...”

Terai swallowed the rest of his words and sat back on the sofa, deep in thought.

Young master Kaito rushed back from school and packed so many things; it must be something important.

Could it be that Kaito thought Terai wasn’t strong enough to bring along?

His skills weren’t weak; bringing him should be an asset.

Also, why did Kaito bring the notes left by the first Kaito Kid?

Had Kaito found an important clue about the first Kaito Kid’s disappearance in those notes?

If he wasn’t brought along, maybe Kaito thought he couldn’t help much...

As Terai doubted himself and grew more serious, the phone rang.

It was Kaito’s teacher calling.

“Hello... What? An older brother?” Terai was caught off guard.

“Yes,” the voice on the other end hesitated. “I asked the guard at the gate; a young man came to look for Kuroba-san, claiming to be his older brother. I told Kuroba-san, and he went with him. Later, Koizumi Akako said Kuroba-san would be out with his brother and asked for help to excuse his absence for a while. I’d never heard of an older brother before, so I’m calling to check…”

Terai’s mind raced.

Kaito’s older brother?

He had been with the first Kaito Kid and then cared for young master Kaito for many years. He was sure the first Kaito Kid had only one son. But did he really know everything?

It seemed Kaito willingly met and left with the man. If he were coerced, he would have fought back by now.

So, Kaito must have accepted this relationship.

Plus, he took the first Kaito Kid’s notes and kept this secret from Terai...

Hiss... It seemed like he had uncovered something significant.

Thinking carefully, the first Kaito Kid had roamed around in his early years. It wasn’t impossible he had an unacknowledged son.

That would explain Kaito’s mysterious departure this time.

Kaito probably learned the truth and intended to show his older brother the things left by the first Kaito Kid. It was about an important inheritance...

“Hello? Are you still there?” the teacher’s voice pulled Terai back from his thoughts.

“Ah, yes, I’m listening. They do have something important to attend to.”

“So, about Kuroba-san’s older brother...”

“Well... officially, Kaito-san has no siblings, but... this is complicated. I hope you can keep this confidential for now.”

“Uh... I understand. Don’t worry, I just wanted to confirm if Kuroba-san really has something important. Looks like it’s serious. I won’t say a word.”

After hanging up, Terai’s expression was complex.

If the lady of the house heard this, she would be heartbroken. Kaito probably concealed it for her sake...

Though it felt a bit unfair to her, Terai had to stand with the first Kaito Kid and young master Kaito.

How to resolve this in the future? He had no clue.

Sigh, life was tough...

* * *

“Ah-choo!”

Kaito sneezed in the car, feeling something was off.

He shook off the strange feeling and looked out at the forested mountains.

“People actually live this deep in the mountains?”

Silence filled the car.

Ikeno didn’t feel any urge to respond.

Mamiya Mitsuru was thinking about something else. Ikeno Shinnosuke had called, asking him to pick up a distant relative he had never met. Since the man was a wealthy businessman, Mitsuru had agreed. Taking care of someone for a while wasn’t troublesome.

Besides, he heard mental patients had peculiar ways of thinking. Maybe he could find clues to the mystery the father-in-law left in the castle from a different perspective.

But bringing back an extra person—good or bad, he wasn’t sure...

Kaito, seeing no one respond, felt a bit speechless. He glanced at the silent Ikeno but gave up on provoking him.

Well, he had heard that this guy had just been released from a psychiatric hospital, with schizophrenia and time perception disorders among other illnesses. Being a little strange was understandable...

“Uncle Mamiya, are we going to stay in some cabin now?”

“No...” Mitsuru began to explain, but then spotted the castle in the distance. “We’ve arrived. You won’t be disappointed!”

As the car approached, Kaito could see the castle standing amidst the forest. As Kaito Kid, he had seen many things, but the sight of this old-fashioned castle still made his eyes light up. “A castle, huh...”

Ikeno looked through the wrought-iron gates at the courtyard with grass trimmed like a chessboard and huge chess sculptures standing on the lawn. His enthusiasm instantly faded.

Having only seen Mitsuru before, he hadn’t realized the other was a character from a story. Seeing the castle, he recalled the Blue Castle Incident from Conan’s storyline...

The gardener opened the gate, and the car drove inside.

“Such strange sculptures!” Kaito said, noticing the imposing chess pieces as he got out and walked toward them.

“Ah, that’s...” Mitsuru began, but Kaito suddenly collapsed onto the ground: “...”

Ikeno was stunned, crouched down, and checked Kaito’s breath calmly. “He’s fine, still alive.”

Mitsuru: “...”

The gardener rushing over: “...”

Kaito, just opening his eyes faintly: “...”

No need to make it sound so terrifying; he just felt weak all over!

Since Kaito had trouble moving, the gardener and Mitsuru helped him to his room.

“I’ll go find a doctor. Should be here in about half an hour!” Mitsuru said with a righteous face but felt helpless inside. He had been driving all morning and wanted a break...

But the castle’s location was so remote that to find a doctor, he had to drive out.

Lying on the bed, Kaito felt the path ahead was full of hardships. “Half an hour... living in such a remote place without a doctor—how do you people manage when someone gets sick?”

The gardener scratched his head. “Sorry, we rarely have emergencies. Though the lady is old, except for dementia, she’s in good health. Usually, we just take some cold medicine kept here in the castle.”

Kaito looked at the ceiling, speechless. So, his health was worse than theirs, huh...

“Do you have a stethoscope or thermometer?” Ikeno asked Mitsuru, who was about to leave. “If so, I can check him out.”