This time, to train his apprentices, Liu A'dou made the heist much harder. There were no spectators or police—just a gang of ruthless killers as opponents.
Liu A'dou wanted his apprentices to learn that there was no absolute evil or absolute good. Kaitou Kid might be a thief, but compared to Kingpin's gangsters, he was the good guy. Ben and Kailan had to figure out who their primary enemy was and who was secondary, judging based on the situation.
Kingpin was a huge white guy, even bigger than a pro wrestler. The Ring of Faith was more than just a ring—it was a device storing all his criminal records. Hidden beneath the ruby was a memory card. Kaitou Kid had discovered this by accident. He'd had several targets in mind, but once he learned the secret of the Ring of Faith, he decided right away to steal Kingpin's ring as a good deed.
The showdown was set at a private dock in New York. Kingpin had deliberately picked this deserted spot so he could kill Kaitou Kid without any interruptions. He knew Kid would find him, but waiting for the thief were guns, traps, and mutant assassins.
The bright moon hung high.
Ben and Kailan arrived at the dock. The Force warned them it was a den of deadly danger.
"They're definitely bad guys. Do we really need to catch Kaitou Kid?" Kailan asked. She was a naive girl who had read too many stories of chivalrous thieves during her carefree princess days. She thought if a thief was stealing from villains, then he must be a good person.
"But what about Master's mission?" Ben replied.
"We should follow the guidance of the Force," Kailan said. "I think Master would understand. The Force will help us make the right choice."
Ben had no answer. He didn't feel the Force like Kailan did. To him, the Force was just a tool for revenge. He had never "communicated" with it.
Kailan was different. She loved meditating and sensing the Force. She could hear its whispers and sometimes even felt it showed her glimpses of the future—a prophecy meant for Force users like them to fulfill. So she wanted to trust it. "Master taught us to distinguish good from evil. I think we should watch first and then decide what to do. What do you think?"
That seemed reasonable. Ben nodded.
Moonlight spilled across the ground, and a shadow swept over it like a ghost.
He had arrived. Bullseye saw him through thermal goggles. If he killed Kaitou Kid, he'd earn a 200,000-dollar reward. Bullseye would do everything to get it.
But Bullseye wasn't the only one after the prize. Several of Kingpin's other men wanted the money too. They hid around the area with weapons ready.
Bullseye scoffed at his rivals. He knew they didn't stand a chance against Kaitou Kid. He'd studied the thief's tricks—those flashy illusions would leave these trigger-happy idiots completely clueless. Only he had the skill to kill Kaitou Kid. Bullseye was that confident.
Whoosh—
The warehouse had only one front door and a single exhaust fan. All the windows were sealed. Kaitou Kid would have to come through the front. Inside, Kingpin faced the door with a smirk. If Kid wanted the ring, he'd have to walk right into the kill zone. Dozens of automatic rifles were aimed straight at the entrance. Unless Kid was bulletproof, he'd be turned into Swiss cheese.
"Give our guest a warm welcome." Bullets were chambered. Barrels pointed at the door.
Standing outside the door, Kaitou Kid thought, 'With this many guns pointed at me, walking straight in would be insane.'
The iron door slowly creaked open, and the bright moonlight spilled through the gap into the warehouse.
Everyone stared wide-eyed, but besides the moonlight, there was no sign of Kaitou Kid.
"Huh? Did the thief chicken out at the last minute?" someone sneered. He'd always thought Kid didn't have the guts to challenge New York's crime boss.
But Bullseye narrowed his eyes. Kaitou Kid had definitely been there just a moment ago.
Ding dong, clatter—
A bunch of small round balls rolled inside. "Flashbangs!"
But the warning came too late. A brilliant light exploded. Everyone outside screamed, clutching their eyes shut. Only Bullseye, who had closed his eyes early, was completely unaffected.
Hearing his men screaming outside, Kingpin frowned deeply. Had dozens of his men failed to stop one thief? Now only two bodyguards were left by his side. "Go check it out."
The two bodyguards pressed themselves against the door, ears straining for sounds. They slowly cracked the door open and peeked outside. The scene was chaos—everyone outside was on the ground, covering their eyes, howling in pain.
"Sir, it's flashbangs…" One guard barely got the words out before clutching his neck and collapsing.
"Hey, hey—" The other guard checked on him, then saw the whole door starting to topple outward. The screws on the metal hinges had all been loosened, and the door was now useless.
Kaitou Kid stood sideways in the doorway, perfectly framed like a painting. "Kaitou Kid is here."
The remaining bodyguard panicked, pulling his gun and firing instantly with years of reflexive training. Bang bang bang—
"Idiot," Bullseye muttered, seeing clearly that the Kaitou Kid standing there was just a dummy.
Kingpin realized it too. "Enough! Can't you see that's a fake?!" He couldn't believe his personal bodyguards could be this stupid.
But it wasn't entirely their fault. Kid had dropped them so quickly it was like something Batman would do, sending them into a panic.
"I'm sorry, sir," the guard finally calmed himself. "Sir, we should retreat."
"No, it's time for our ace to step in," Kingpin said, knowing Bullseye hadn't moved yet.
Bullseye wore a tight, dark green suit with a hood marked by a bullseye on the forehead. He looked like a hero—but he was anything but. Villains needed to hide too, and costumes were perfect for that.
His rough jawline sported scruffy stubble, adding to his wild look. "You're good at hide-and-seek, thief. But you can't escape my eyes." He opened his palm, flicking a cigarette butt at lightning speed.
Anything became a deadly weapon in Bullseye's hands.
Liu A'dou sensed someone still hiding and didn't hesitate. His magic card gun shot a card straight out.
Whoosh!
The card sliced the cigarette butt and kept flying right toward Bullseye.
Too slow. Bullseye snatched the card from the air and sent it spinning back even faster. Clang! The card nailed the wall behind Kid.
Kaitou Kid narrowed his eyes. He'd spotted Bullseye. 'This one's not going to be easy,' he thought.
Outside, Liu A'dou's two apprentices exchanged a look. Their eyes asked the same question: should they step in? But this was nothing like a simple theft—it looked way more complicated.
Sensing the kids' hesitation, Kid thought, 'It's good they're thinking.' He decided to keep the act going. The main goal was to test the apprentices, so he needed to drag things out until they made up their minds.
After a pause, Bullseye flashed a grin and pulled out a fresh deck of cards. Coincidentally, he liked using cards as weapons too. But unlike Kid, he launched his cards in a relentless stream. "Kid, ready yet?"
Kid met Bullseye's gaze calmly. 'Looks like I'll have to warm up for real this time,' he thought. "Bring it on."