“Dazai, how about narrowing down our choices? We have been stuck on step one for too long already. If we don’t decide on something now, we’ll be here all night. I’m not saying we have to choose one of the ideas on the board, but at least give us some basic direction.”
“Huh? But arguing over such trifles together is fun. Let’s keep this going all night!”
“Whether you’re enjoying yourself or not is beside the point. We came here today for a reason,” Kunikida said, sternly furrowing his brow. “Plus, we’ve got minors here, too. Hurry it up. All that’s left for us to do is decide on an idea and delegate roles, right?”
“But we’re still missing someone.” Dazai scratched his head. “Ranpo’s not here, and we need everyone present before we can decide on the test. I wonder what he’s doing this late at night? Maybe he’s working on a tough case, and it’s taking longer than he thought…”
“Oh!” Naomi placed a hand on her cheek. “Actually, Ranpo’s in the office right now.”
“Huh?”
“I saw him when I was walking by a few moments ago. He was wrapped up in one of those puzzles that comes with the candy boxes.”
“That’s Ranpo for ya. Nothing fazes him.” Dazai proceeded to compliment Ranpo for whatever reason.
Ranpo Edogawa, twenty-six years old, was the Armed Detective Agency’s top detective and the brains of the operation. He possessed outstanding powers of observation and deduction for someone so ingenuous and simple in nature. Even then, he was impossible to figure out, and he yielded to no one. Ranpo was only willing to go out on a case so long as he alone solved it. Although he didn’t mean any harm, he would tell anyone they were stupid even if it was their first time meeting, and he never hesitated to give someone a pat on the head—victim, perpetrator, you name it. And there wasn’t a single case he couldn’t solve. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he was the center pillar of the agency.
“I’ll go get him,” Naomi said before trotting out of the conference room. After watching her leave, Dazai said, “Everything should be okay now. There is nothing he can’t solve.”
“I agree, but is this really something worth bothering him over?” Kunikida asked reluctantly. “His brain should only be used for solving cases. There are plenty of difficult cases he could be cracking instead of spending his time on something as trivial as this.”
There wasn’t a single soul in the neighborhood who didn’t know Ranpo’s skill. Even the big shots from government organizations like the city police would beg him for help.
Skill User: Ranpo EdogawaSkill: Super Deduction
While most skills were supernatural events that bent the laws of physics, Ranpo’s stood out as extraordinary even among the best detectives—the ability to see the truth.
No matter the case or event, he could see the truth after nothing more than a single glance. His skill almost seemed like cheating, even. The existence of such an ability would render any and all investigative organizations utterly meaningless. And yet, Ranpo possessed such a skill and used it to solve mysteries. The truth never escaped his discerning eye.
And that was precisely why no one could oppose him, which consequently made Ranpo even more arrogant. It allowed him to solve cases however he liked, even if that meant dragging other relevant parties down with it. After he departed the scene of a crime, he always left everyone involved mentally exhausted, despite having solved the case. No one could control the infallible genius…except for the president, whom Ranpo still earnestly listened to for some reason. He would get depressed if the boss got mad at him, and it brought him so much joy when he was praised. Nobody knew exactly why he was so obedient, but according to the other agents, “Well, you know how the president is. Guess it’s no real surprise.”
Tmp. Tmp. Tmp. Ranpo walked up to the conference room door with force in his step.
“Hey, folks! I see everyone’s racking their brain over another pointless meeting,” Ranpo quipped with a grin. “Sigh. What would you guys do without me?”
“We’ve been waiting for you, Ranpo,” said Dazai, smiling back. “We’re having a meeting about the entrance exam I mentioned to you earlier. Got any ideas?”
“
I hate using my head for boring stuff,” Ranpo complained. “And anyway, I honestly couldn’t care less if this newcomer’s got what it takes. There are two kinds of people in the world: those who cry tears of joy when I solve a case, and those who cry out of frustration!”
“You raise a fine point.” Dazai nodded in agreement.
“But of course, my skill always leads me to the truth, be it a murder or even something as trivial as this. Besides, I’ll be away on a business trip tomorrow, so I won’t be able to take part in the test anyway. There was a string of killings in the Hokuriku region that I’ve been dying to investigate. But as a parting gift, I suppose I wouldn’t be against using my Super Deduction to predict the course of this meeting, if you wanted.”
Ranpo produced a pair of black-framed glasses from his pocket—old spectacles that triggered his skill, Super Deduction, whenever he put them on. Not a soul knew where he got them, but according to Ranpo, they had a long and distinguished history of working miracles. They looked like nothing more than a pair of worn-out spectacles to any ordinary person, though.
“Are you sure, Ranpo?” Kunikida asked, slightly flustered. After all, Ranpo never used his skill for anything unrelated to a case.
“Of course—”
Ranpo abruptly paused and took in a deep breath.
“—not. Did you really think I’d do that?”
The group nodded in unison. You’re not wrong there.
“You guys are out here busting every little brain cell you’ve got; it’d be a darn shame if I just solved the problem for you in a snap. Besides, you all ate meat buns without me, and that is unacceptable!” He pointed at the empty plates lined up on the table.