It was frustrating to work so hard, for so long, to still have the majority of his work with the police be relegated to the third division – theft. Hakuba wanted to be with the first, as homicide cases always offered something far more interesting than the greed and shortsightedness of most thieves. But, no. He was good at solving cases involving theft of all sorts, and his antics chasing Kaitou Kid had left a permanent scar on his curriculum vitae – he’d been type cast, and no amount of resolved murders would ever let him get past it.

This was why the young detective was hesitant when one of his contacts sent him a lead on the one and only Lupin; a thief far more menacing and experienced than Kaitou Kid. Not because it was a challenge, but because it would cement his fate with absolute certainty should he succeed. Was any accolade worth separating himself from where his interests truly lay? He doubted it, but took the lead, anyway.

After all, what kind of detective would he be if he just chose to ignore an international criminal simply because he was a thief? 

So he leaned against a column in the museum’s lobby, sipping coffee that had far too much sugar and cream to be healthy, and waited. How his contact had come across the information, he’d never know, but in theory, Lupin’s associates had been seen investigating an embezzlement coverup using imported artifacts, which meant that there was quite a bit of difficult-to-trace capital just waiting to be stolen. 

Yet it was all speculation. Would Lupin be coming? And, if so, were the alleged artifacts even the target? Was he just wasting his time?

It was a very high possibility. But at least he had his coffee.