All of this was thanks to Victor. Even after receiving Zhang Yang's warning, he still had no intention of clearing Kaitō Kid's name.
Zhang Yang headed straight for the airport. Through the Enforcement Bureau's system, he could clearly see all the details of the escort mission.
"MT39!"
Once inside the airport, he began searching for the aircraft assigned to the escort.
The airport's security was practically useless. After faking an identity and some credentials, Zhang Yang easily boarded the plane.
"Enforcement Bureau agents sure have it easy in France. No resistance at all."
He chuckled. Just the ID of a regular Enforcement Bureau agent was enough to get in without a hitch.
It showed just how much authority their agents held.
The MT39 escort plane was completely empty. No passengers, no crew.
Zhang Yang glanced at the time. It was just past 2:00 p.m.
"Victor and his team should be on their way by now."
All that was left was for them to personally deliver the artifact.
Even though the world was still debating Kaitō Kid's identity and background, Zhang Yang hadn't released any new notice today. That alone had already shifted the focus of discussion.
"What's going on today? Kaitō Kid hasn't posted a new notice yet?"
"What the hell? Is the legendary thief scared of online hate now?"
"Damn it. Don't tell me Kaitō Kid ran away to escape punishment?"
"People need dignity. If you've lost all shame, are you even human anymore?"
"Kaitō Kid ran off out of guilt? Did you drink too much Ganges River water or what?"
Usually by this time, a new notice from Kaitō Kid would've already gone up.
But today was different. Zhang Yang had a specific plan. He wanted to teach Victor a lesson. So the notice couldn't be released too early.
If he did, they might alter their plan last minute. With Harrison in the lead, it was much easier to negotiate with the British Museum.
Zhang Yang intended to wait until the artifact was already on board before letting Victor see the notice—giving them no time to back out.
Meanwhile, Holmeska was keeping a close eye on news and public opinion from around the world. Based on his own investigation, he didn't believe the current narrative at all.
"Victor, that bastard, is just talking nonsense."
"He's such an arrogant fool. This won't anger Kaitō Kid—it'll just make things worse."
Kaitō Kid's silence meant he wouldn't be showing up.
And if Kaitō Kid didn't appear, Holmeska wouldn't get his chance to act either.
Even though he'd tried everything—every method, every trick—he still hadn't found any trace of Kaitō Kid.
"A meticulous, highly alert thief who never leaves a clue… Victor really thinks his childish tricks will work on someone like that?"
Afternoon passed quickly. At 4:00 p.m., Victor and Harrison followed the schedule and loaded the artifact onto the vehicle.
Zhang Yang's warning email from earlier left Harrison uneasy. He was anxious, convinced something would go wrong.
"Director Victor, Kaitō Kid always sends out a new notice in the afternoon. Something feels really off today."
"Are we sure the escort team is solid?"
Victor answered with full confidence.
"Don't worry, Director Harrison. If Kaitō Kid dares show up and try to steal the artifact, we'll catch him immediately!"
The escort only had five vehicles and two squads. Altogether, just a bit over ten people.
But hidden in the shadows were several times more people than those out in the open.
They drove ahead and behind the convoy, all in plain clothes.
That's why Victor was so confident. He wasn't worried about Kaitō Kid showing up to steal the artifact—in fact, he was more afraid that Kaitō Kid wouldn't show up.
They could set up a full encirclement in seconds. That was the source of Victor's confidence.
At that moment, Holmeska was stationed near the British Museum. The moment he saw the convoy depart, he turned his car around and followed.
"If Victor gets hit with retaliation, there's no way Kaitō Kid would miss this chance."
Holmeska had sharp instincts. Victor had flung mud wildly, smearing Kaitō Kid's name with baseless accusations.
Now, with the global media echoing his claims, Kaitō Kid was backed into a corner.
That meant there was a real chance Victor would get hit back—and this escort mission could be the perfect chance.
What Holmeska didn't know was that Zhang Yang had no plans to strike on the road. He was going to do it on the plane.
It wasn't just revenge. He wanted Victor to have zero chance of regret.
The transport went smoothly. Everything followed the plan perfectly. Not a single surprise.
So smooth, in fact, that both Victor and Harrison were taken aback. It was nothing like they had imagined.
"Fuck! Kaitō Kid really chickened out like a coward!"
Victor cursed under his breath, then handed over the required documents to the airport staff.
Across the street, Holmeska parked his car and stared as the convoy entered the airport.
"No sign of Kaitō Kid at all?"
"What the hell is going on?"
The whole trip had gone without a hitch. It completely wrecked Holmeska's earlier deduction. Now he had no clue what was happening.
Online, after two or three hours of speculation, still no notice from Kaitō Kid.
Even though it hadn't been twenty-four hours since his last appearance, a lot of fans were already growing impatient.
"Oh my god! Has the world's number one master thief taken his final bow?"
"Oh no! My Kaitō Kid! I didn't even get his autograph!"
"This really isn't his style. He's probably planning something massive behind the scenes!"
"Heh. You think this will scare Kaitō Kid? Victor's gonna pay for that nonsense he spouted!"
"Victor straight up slandered him. Wait till Kaitō Kid shows up again—those haters are getting slapped hard!"
Inside the airport, the artifact was secured inside the vault compartment of the plane. Victor watched as the cargo door slowly lifted and sealed shut.
In just twenty minutes, if everything stayed on schedule, MT39 would take off.
Outside, Holmeska watched MT39 lift off and let out a long, helpless sigh.
But right after takeoff, Kaitō Kid's account posted an update.
"MT39 light transport aircraft. Victor, can you catch me?"
Attached to the post was a photo of the notice letter, taken with the MT39 aircraft in the background.
The image said it all. As soon as the post went up, the internet exploded.
"Hahaha! I knew Victor would pay the price—here it comes!"
"Oh my god! Kaitō Kid sounds seriously pissed in this post. He's really mad!"
"MT39? Light transport plane? What's going on? What's he getting at?"
"Heard the museum artifact was put on a flight back to Britain. That must be the plane he's talking about!"
"Kaitō Kid got on the plane with them? Can he actually get away while they're in the air?"