Traveling back thirty years to Conan, intercepting Princess Eri

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiuyi felt somewhat helpless.

He knew the staff were right; without official police clearance, the organizers indeed had no right to arbitrarily provide duty records.

However, if he waits until he contacts Takeshi Ikenami to complete the formalities before coming to retrieve the information, he will probably have already missed the best opportunity for investigation.

Just as Lin Xiuyi was pondering how to persuade the organizers to make an exception, he suddenly heard a familiar voice behind him, with a confident smile: "So you really found this place, Xiuyi."

Lin Xiuyi turned his head sharply and saw several people standing at the office door, with Hattori Heizo leading the way.

Standing beside him were the other members of the Kyoto University Mystery Club, each with a curious expression on their face.

"What are you doing here?" Lin Xiuyi looked surprised, then realized, "Are you here for that fake notice letter too?"

Hattori Heizo nodded and stepped into the office.

“That’s right. I heard that the Osaka Exhibition Hall received a notice from the Phantom Thief Lady, so I brought the members of the Deduction Department here to take a look.”

He paused, his gaze falling on Lin Xiuyi, somewhat puzzled.
"A fake notice? How are you sure?"

Lin Xiuyi repeated what he had just said to Inspector Takeuchi.

Compared to the headstrong Inspector Takeuchi, Hattori Heizo was not so jealous. In addition, having witnessed Hayashi Shuichi's abilities, he immediately believed him.

"Impersonating the Phantom Thief Lady, publicly issuing a notice..."

Hattori Heizo frowned, his fingers habitually stroking his chin.

"The other party may really intend to take action against the Terracotta Warriors, and then use this notice to perfectly frame the Phantom Thief Lady for the theft, so that they can get away with it themselves."

"...Or maybe it's just a rather excessive joke?"

Kawada Haeko couldn't wait to express her opinion.
“We’ve all seen the Terracotta Army. It’s no small object, and the security measures at the exhibition hall are so tight. How could it be so easy to steal?”

"Maybe it's just some bored guy who's playing a prank, imitating a scene from a detective novel or news story, to see how the police and the public will react?"

Her words represent the intuitive feelings of a considerable number of ordinary people.

Stealing the Terracotta Army? That sounds like a fantasy.

Yoshida Aoi nodded in agreement: "Hako is right. From the perspective of the cost of crime and the risk-reward ratio, choosing such a target is extremely unwise."

"The difficulty of stealing, transporting, and disposing of stolen goods is ridiculously high. Unless you're crazy or a pure idealist, it's hard to imagine any criminal choosing it."

“I also think it’s unlikely.” Konoe Taisho scratched his head. “If they really had the ability to sneak in here and leave a notice, why wouldn’t they just steal gold and silver jewelry or famous paintings that are easier to sell? Why go through all that trouble to steal a large terracotta figurine that can’t be sold and put it at home?”

For a time, apart from Hattori Heizo, most people seemed to favor the speculation that it was a "prank" or that "there was another reason but it was not theft".

This is understandable, given that the idea of ​​"stealing the Terracotta Warriors" is itself too bizarre and dramatic.

Amidst the murmurs of the crowd, only Ono Kayoko agreed with Hattori Heizo's idea.

"The other party managed to place the notice next to the Terracotta Warriors so quietly, precisely avoiding all surveillance cameras and security personnel, causing such a commotion. If it were just a prank, it would be making a mountain out of a molehill, and the cost would be far too high." Hattori Heizo's eyes flashed with approval upon hearing this.
"Didn't someone try to damage the Terracotta Army before?"

He deliberately emphasized his words, reminding his companions present.
"It was thanks to Lin Jun's timely intervention that the Terracotta Warriors were saved from damage."

"It's only been two days, and someone has already openly sent out a notice to steal the Terracotta Warriors. Do you really think this is just a simple prank?"

Hattori Heizo's words caused the initially dismissive group to gradually lose their smiles and show hesitation on their faces.

Maeda Yoto frowned, his tone still carrying a hint of disbelief: "You mean, someone has been eyeing the Terracotta Army for a long time?"

He turned to look at the towering terracotta warrior in the distance, his expression complex.

"That's a national treasure of China. Even if someone could steal it, they would never be able to sell it. Who would spend a lot of money to buy an ancient artifact that they dare not show their face?"

“It doesn’t necessarily mean they want to sell it,” Lin Xiuyi slowly shook his head. “The other party could very well be collecting it for personal enjoyment.”

"Some collectors who are obsessed with antiquities are willing to take risks in order to obtain their desired items."

"What they pursue is not profit, but the satisfaction of their possessiveness. They are willing to pay any price, even if they can only secretly enjoy it themselves."

Yoshida Aoi suddenly remembered something, and her eyes widened slightly.

"By the way, didn't the police say before that the person who tried to vandalize the Terracotta Army was a right-wing extremist?"

The girl's tone carried a hint of worry.

"Could it be the same people again? They don't want to steal, but rather to damage the Terracotta Warriors, and they're deliberately sending out notices to confuse people?"

"If the goal was simply to cause destruction, there would be no need to go to such lengths."

Hattori Heizo immediately denied this guess.
"Besides, if those right-wing elements want to cause trouble, what they're after is a sensational effect. Wouldn't it be more effective for them to directly damage the Terracotta Warriors in public to achieve their goals?"

Konoe Taisho stroked his chin, the hesitation on his face gradually fading, clearly convinced by Hattori Heizo and Hayashi Shuichi's words.

"That makes sense. There are many wealthy people in Japan who enjoy collecting antiques, especially in the Kansai region. There are quite a few people who are rich and obsessed with antiques. Isn't Mito Shinzo a typical example?"

“It’s too early to speculate on these things,” Hattori Heizo said thoughtfully. “The most urgent task is to find out how the other party placed the notice next to the Terracotta Warriors.”

"The exhibition hall is heavily guarded. Apart from the staff, only the volunteers in the morning can get close to the Terracotta Warriors. The other party may very well be hiding among the volunteers."

After he finished speaking, he turned to look at Lin Xiuyi, his eyes showing a hint of understanding.

"Shuichi, judging from your expression just now, it seems the exhibition staff wouldn't let us see the volunteer list?"

“Yes,” Lin Xiuyi nodded helplessly, “Now we can only go to Miss Chi Bo and trouble her uncle again…”

Before he could finish speaking, his gaze suddenly sharpened as he looked toward the entrance of the exhibition hall.

His change in expression did not escape Hattori Heizo's notice, who immediately followed his gaze and saw a police officer in uniform and wearing black-rimmed glasses walking briskly toward them... (End of Chapter)