Nightfall A pink motorcycle sped through the streets, weaving swiftly through traffic. Behind it, several black sedans chased it down relent
Nightfall
A pink motorcycle sped through the streets, weaving swiftly through traffic. Behind it, several black sedans chased it down relentlessly.
From inside the sedans, someone even pulled out a submachine gun and began spraying bullets toward the motorcycle.
Ratatatatatat!
The bullets caught up with the pink motorcycle, but they were blocked by a sudden peacock-like spread of bulletproof shields that deployed from the rear of the bike.
"What the hell is going on!?"
Princess Mira screamed amid the blinding flashes and chaotic blur of the surroundings.
Fujiko Mine, however, laughed cheerfully.
"Because there's a tracking device hidden in your royal necklace."
"A tracker? Did Keith plant it!?"
"If only it were that simple."
"But I'm not even wearing the necklace anymore!"
"Maybe they spotted the switch in the park? Just like they did with me."
Amid the hail of bullets, Fujiko Mine kept a relaxed smile on her face.
In truth, her presence here was due to a commission from Keith: to give the poor princess one day of freedom—and to protect her.
Keith knew full well that Gerard wouldn't miss this chance to eliminate the princess, but he also hoped that she would grow stronger through this ordeal.
As they approached a fork in the road, Fujiko suddenly performed a sharp drift, turning the bike sideways without warning. In the same instant, she pulled out a custom mini submachine gun.
A barrage of bullets poured out like a curtain of fire.
The chasing sedans were shredded in less than a second, exploding moments later.
Just as Fujiko was about to say something sassy after dealing with the amateurs, her expression suddenly turned serious—
From the window of a nearby high-rise, a sniper rifle was already in position.
Almost a split second before the muzzle flashed, Fujiko twisted the throttle with perfect timing.
The bullet meant for Princess Mira only managed to graze Fujiko's hair.
"Hold on tight, little princess."
"Wha—?! W-Whaaaaat!?"
As Mira screamed in panic, Fujiko floored the throttle.
The bike shot forward at full speed. Without even glancing at the mirrors, Fujiko suddenly swerved—dodging another incoming bullet as if she had eyes in the back of her head.
Watching the motorcycle speed off with such style, Grappa clenched his teeth and aimed again in disbelief.
Bang!
Another bullet flew out, but Fujiko once again dodged with uncanny precision.
That woman…
Reluctantly, Grappa watched the target escape and hurried downstairs to report.
"Mission failed, Rum."
"What happened?"
He gave a brief report of the incident.
On the other end, Rum clicked his tongue in irritation.
The mineral resources of Vespania were extremely valuable to the Organization. But only the King of Vespania could authorize their extraction. That's why they had to help Gerard seize power.
However, Rum had no intention of involving Gin in this mission. Vodka and Korn were still recovering from injuries anyway.
Rum picked up the phone and made another call.
Grappa, broadly categorized as a type of brandy, is a distinct Italian liquor.
Unlike other brandies made from grape juice, Grappa is primarily distilled from grape skins and seeds—byproducts of winemaking.
Having confirmed that Grappa acted as expected and failed to kill his target, Hayashi Yoshiki couldn't help but admire Fujiko Mine—
Compared to Lupin III, she seemed average. More often than not, she found herself in trouble and needed Lupin to bail her out.
Yet even so, Fujiko could easily overpower ordinary operatives of the Black Organization.
Just as Yoshiki was about to return to his room, Keith appeared at his door.
"Mr. Hayashi. Would you be interested in a deal?"
"You mean the audio recording?" Yoshiki smiled.
"Don't worry about it. As long as Ran is safe when this ends, we'll delete it."
"It's not about that."
Keith continued,
"I did some research on your background. You're quite the remarkable detective. That's why I wanted to ask—would you be willing to take on the case of uncovering the true murderer of Queen Sakura and Prince Gill?"
"Let's talk inside."
This time, Keith had dropped his earlier arrogance.
He had just received word from Fujiko Mine that the assassin had appeared—and that they had even used a sniper rifle.
Feeling the situation was more serious than anticipated, Keith came to Yoshiki personally.
"We've actually had the princess's whereabouts under control this entire time."
"The reason we kept that girl, Ran Mouri, in the hotel was to protect her."
"Now that the assassins know the real princess isn't at the hotel..."
"If we let Ran return, they might mistake her for the real princess and target her."
"Here's the contract between Fujiko Mine and me. Take a look."
Yoshiki picked it up and scanned it briefly.
Unlike Lupin III, who followed his whims, Fujiko Mine often acted like a mercenary thief—taking on various contracts.
Yoshiki had once considered hiring Fujiko himself, hoping it would lead him to Lupin. But finding her contact information had been difficult.
"Alright, I'll take your word for it—for now," Yoshiki said with a grin.
He chose to believe Keith's claim about wanting to protect Ran—but saw no need to say so.
"If you can help us find the evidence behind Queen Sakura and Prince Gill murders, we're willing to pay you ten million dollars."
"Ten million… now that's quite the offer."
After all, this concerned the survival of the Vespania royal family.
Keith had always known about Gerard's ruthless ambitions. If he took over the kingdom, peace would be lost forever.
But Yoshiki wasn't so sure that ten million would come easy.
"Is simply identifying the killer really enough?"
"Of course, but there's a condition for the ten million: we need that girl, Ran Mouri, to cooperate with our plan."
"So you do want to use her as bait?"
"No, merely as a decoy."
Keith quickly clarified.
By now, Gerard probably knew there were two "Princess Mira." That confusion would limit his actions.