I welcome you to the great gathering of private eyes

As the East's esteemed Heisei Holmes

You shall be greeted at the doors of the Little Citadel

At the next new moon

I look forward to your brilliant deductions,

Kudo Shinichi of the East

...What the hell?

Along with the strange letter, Kuroba Kaito had received 10,000 dollars inside the thick, cream-colored envelope in the mail that morning.

Kaito chuckled, reading over the poetic words. "Kudo Shinichi, huh?" I see. Since he's "missing" at the moment, the sender must've hired someone or came themselves to look for him. Then that person must've mixed up Kudo with me because of our similar looks.

How ironic. A phantom thief invited to a detective gathering. I'll have to return the letter and money in secret and leave a note saying that "Kudo Shinichi" can't come because of personal reasons.

After all... Kaito shuddered. There's no doubt that Mouri Kogoro will be invited, meaning that HE'LL be there too. And that Hattori Heiji will probably be there as well, not to mention a bunch of other famous detectives...

And for me to go there as him? No way. Tantei-kun, his girlfriend, or Tantei-han would definitely tip the others off into suspecting me. Besides, I'm a magician- and a thief. Not a detective.

Kaito sighed and walked out of the bathroom stall, sliding the money back into the letter. He'd been late to school that morning, so when he'd seen a random fancy-looking letter addressed to Kudo Shinichi on the ground in front of the door on his way out, he'd quickly grabbed it and ran off.

And during the first break, he'd excused himself and went into the school bathroom to read the mysterious letter in private. I wonder when I should return it... before or after they all gather? Not that it really matters anyway.

"What's so funny, Kid?" an annoyingly familiar voice asked. Ugh... "How many times do I have to tell you that I'm not Kid, Hakuba?" he asked. The British detective was leaning against the bathroom exit, arms crossed.

Suddenly, the blond blinked, noticing the letter in Kaito's hand. He narrowed his eyes. "That letter..." Kaito raised an eyebrow, confused, then quickly folded the paper and hid it behind his back. "It's just a letter from my mom."

Hakuba began to walk towards him. "Liar. The envelope in your hand and the font of the writing, as well as the unique thick, creamy color and texture of the paper..." He firmly grabbed Kaito's wrist, staring at the envelope as the magician narrowed his eyes.

"For Kudo... Shinichi?" Hakuba muttered incredulously, reading the outside of the envelope. "It's really not what it looks like. If you've ever seen Kudo before, he actually looks pretty similar to me, so the sender must've just mixed me up with him." Well... it's more like carbon copy rather than "pretty similar..."

"Nakamori-san also told me that your mother checked in with you from time to time through the internet and video chat, not by letter. I found that to be a bit strange," he added. Kaito frowned. "Damn stalker."

Hakuba let go of his wrist and smirked, ignoring the remark. "I see. I received the exact same letter addressed to me- which is how I identified it. In fact, why don't you come with me to the "Little Citadel" to return the letter? Or is there perhaps some reason you can't? Because I was quite sure Nakamori-san said you were free this weekend, and the next new moon is this Saturday."

Aoko, you and your big mouth... Kaito huffed haughtily, not letting the blond see that he was bothered. "I'm fine with that. Well, I'm not a detective, so I'll be leaving right after anyway."

"I wouldn't be so sure. Maybe the host won't let you leave, or the other detectives. Besides, even I have to admit that you're not completely stupid. After all, you're always finding some miraculous way to escape your heists when they go wrong."

"I told you, I'm not Kid."

Hakuba turned around, crossing his arms. "Well, it's no matter. I'll unmask you in due time. I'll tell the driver to stop by your house on the way there this Saturday. Don't be late."

"Yeah yeah, I've got it."

Hakuba left the bathroom, leaving Kaito. I have to be in the same car as him all the way there? I might seriously die... And I'll have to leave as soon as the letter is returned. If I'm lucky, none of those three will be there when I do. Geez, this is so troublesome.

After school, Kaito's house

Kaito stared at the envelope in deep thought, sitting at his desk. The Little Citadel... also known officially as Treasure Gates Castle, named after some treasure-related case that happened quite a long time ago. Nicknamed the "Little Citadel" because despite being a castle, it's rather small... bigger than a large mansion, but definitely smaller than an actual full-scale castle. Located in Niigata, Japan.

Does the sender own the place or something? And he wants a bunch of famous detectives, or "private eyes" to gather there at the next full moon, which is on Saturday. He must want some seriously major case to be solved. And it sounds like he respects Tantei-kun too, based on the way he wrote to him.

Kaito sighed, leaning back in his chair. "WHAT'S WITH THAT MISERABLE, PATHETIC LOOK, BAKAITO?" an annoying and very loud voice shouted from the room across from his. "NOTHING, AHOKO!" he replied, placing the letter in a desk drawer. "LIAR! ANYWAY, DINNER'S READY!"

"GIVE ME A MINUTE!"

His childhood friend, Nakamori Aoko, closed the window, heading downstairs. "Geez, she's as loud as usual," he mumbled, sliding the drawer shut.

A few minutes later

"Seriously, what's wrong with you tonight? You look on edge," Aoko asked, stabbing her steak. "Hakuba asked me to come along with him to Niigata for one of his detective things. He refused to let me stay. So I won't be here on Saturday."

"Ehhh? Hakuba invited you? Willingly?" Aoko asked incredulously, pausing from cutting her meal. "Mhmm."

"So you'll be back by Sunday at the least?" her father asked, pointing at him with his fork. "Probably, yeah."

"That's suspicious. What do you mean, probably?" Aoko asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well- uh, the people there might want me to stay longer, or the trains might close because of an accident, you never know."

"Oh, I see," Inspector Nakamori said, nodding.

Later that night

Kaito placed an arm over his eyes. I'll have to wear a hat or dark sunglasses or something so that they can't see my features as easily. Those three already know that I can pass as Kudo Shinichi without a disguise, after all. And Tantei-kun must vaguely know what I look like since he's somehow always around me when chaos is going on.

That damned Hakuba might be a little suspicious of it though.