The dust settled slowly in the moonlight-drenched warehouse.
The silence that followed the tiger's roar was heavy, broken only by the rhythmic sound of Dazai's footsteps. He stood over the unconscious boy, his expression shifting from calm authority back to his usual theatrical distaste.
"I should mention," Dazai sighed, looking down at the snoring youth in his arms, "I'm not into hugging men."
With a blunt, effortless shove, he pushed Atsushi aside. The boy tumbled onto the cold concrete like a sack of grain, still dead to the world.
Just then, the heavy warehouse doors slammed open. Kunikida came sprinting in, breathless and clutching his notebook.
"Dazai! You suicidal blockhead!" Kunikida bellowed.
"Oh, you're late, Kunikida-kun," Dazai sang out, waving a bandaged hand dismissively. "I've captured the tiger."
Kunikida skidded to a halt, staring at the scrawny, unconscious teenager on the floor. "What? It's this boy?"
Dazai, stepped forward slightly. "He has the ability to turn into a tiger," he confirmed, his voice steady.
Kunikida looked back and forth between the boy and a crumpled piece of paper in his hand. "Jeez. What was with this note?"
Dazai snatched the paper and read it aloud with mock pride: "A tiger will appear in the warehouse in the fifteenth district. Secure the perimeter so that it can't escape."
He nodded to himself. "It's an excellent, concise note."
"You've left out the most important detail!" Kunikida's temple throbbed as he shouted. "Next time, explain in advance! Thanks to you, I had to bring in guys who weren't even on duty."
From the shadows of the doorway, Akiko Yosano stepped forward, her hand resting on her hip. "What, no casualties?" she asked, her eyes darting toward the wreckage with a disappointed glint. "How boring."
"You've come a long way, Dazai," a new voice chirped. Edogawa Ranpo strolled into the moonlight, touching the brim of his newsboy cap with his index finger. "Though you still have a long way to go before you can even compare to me."
Kenji Miyazawa, ever the optimist, tilted his head at Atsushi. "But what should we do with him? He didn't know he was doing it, right?" He turned his bright eyes toward the group. "Yeah, you're right. What do you think, Dazai?"
Kunikida crossed his arms, staring expectantly at his partner. "Well?"
"I've already made a decision," Dazai said, his tone shifting back to that unreadable, sharp clarity. "We'll make him one of us."
"Nice!" Kenji cheered.
"Are you serious?" Yosano asked, raised eyebrows.
Ranpo let out a huff, adjusting his glasses. "You're a real idiot, Dazai."
"Huuuh? What gives you the right to decide that?" Kunikida yelled, comically while flipping his "IDEAL" notebook.
While the Agency members dissolved into their usual chaotic bickering, Ryu deactivated his ability. A shimmering, cyan light of [Almost Transparent Blue] flickered and died then his original figure came back to normal, and he stepped out from the darkness of the corner.
"So that's your decision, Dazai-san," Ryu said, his voice cutting through the noise.
The Agency members froze. Their heads snapped toward the corner, eyes widening as they wondered where this second stranger had come from.
Dazai, however, didn't look surprised. He didn't even turn around. "So you've finally come out, Ryu-kun," he purred, a small smirk playing on his lips. He turned to face the group, gesturing toward Ryu with a flourish. "Well, since we've come to this, why don't you come along too and introduce your true identity?"
Ryu walked into the center of the light, the last of the cyan sparks fading from his fingertips. "My name is Ryu Murakami. And as Dazai-san hinted, I'm not exactly an ordinary passerby."
He raised a hand, and for a brief second, it turned into a ghostly, semitransparent blue, allowing the moonlight to pass right through his palm before snapping back to solid form.
"My ability is [Almost Transparent Blue],"
Ryu explained. "I can become intangible and invisible. In that state, nothing can touch me—not even a tiger's claws. I can walk through walls, though it's a bit of a drain."
He looked at the group, his gaze lingering on Kunikida and Ranpo.
"I'm a man with no home and no money," Ryu continued. "Since I've already exposed my ability to you, would you let me tag along? To this... Armed Detective Agency."
The warehouse fell quiet. Dazai leaned back against a crate, looking like a cat that had successfully caught two canaries.
"Two for the price of one!" Dazai chirped. "Think of the efficiency, Kunikida-kun! One boy to break the doors down, and one boy to walk right through them."
Kunikida looked at the unconscious Atsushi, then at the steady, unblinking Ryu. He let out an exasperated groan. "I'll have to check with the President. My schedule is already ruined... adding two new recruits on the same night is a logistical nightmare!"
"But you're not saying no," Ranpo pointed out, grinning. "He's interesting. I say let him come."
"Welcome to the Agency, then," Yosano said with a predatory glint. "Just try not to get injured. I've been looking for an excuse to see if my ability works on a 'ghost'."
"Well then!" Dazai clapped his hands. "Kenji-kun, carry the tiger boy. Ryu-kun, walk with me. We have a lot to discuss."
As the group exited the warehouse, Ryu looked at the moon. He's no longer alone.