Ranpo Edogawa serves as a detective and founding member of the Armed Detective Agency. Messy black hair frames his face, typically closed brown eyes, and a fair complexion. His signature attire features a brown cape, matching hat and pants, a dark grey blazer, a white button-up shirt, and a blue-striped tie, frequently completed with long white socks and black shoes. He sometimes dons black glasses, convinced they "activate" his ability. Orphaned at fourteen, Ranpo relocated to Yokohama on his father's advice. Expulsion from the police academy followed after exposing a dorm master's misconduct. He cycled through transient jobs—military post, construction site, postal delivery—losing them repeatedly for uncovering corruption or flouting rules. His path shifted dramatically upon encountering Yukichi Fukuzawa during a corporate assassination case, where Ranpo identified the secretary as the true killer. Fukuzawa later provided Ranpo with glasses, persuading him his deductive skills were a supernatural ability to alleviate his fear of alienation from "ordinary" people. Ranpo exhibits a childish, boastful personality, frequently proclaiming himself the "world's greatest detective" and shunning mundane tasks like navigating public transit. This demeanor masks trauma from witnessing violent cases and acts as a coping mechanism for his fear of failure. However, he shifts to intense seriousness during crises, especially when the Agency faces threats. Despite his bravado, he acknowledges limitations after failing to prevent tragedies like Doppo Kunikida's arrest or a child's death in the Decay of Angels conflict. His deductive prowess, termed "Super Deduction," enables instant crime scene analysis and event prediction through observation and logical reasoning. Though Ranpo initially believed it a supernatural ability triggered by his glasses, he later accepted it stemmed from innate intelligence honed by his genius parents. This realization did not erase his dependency on the glasses ritual. Ranpo deeply values the Armed Detective Agency, considering its members his only friends. He risks his life to protect them, exemplified when infiltrating the Decay of Angels by recruiting ability-nullifier Mushitaro Oguri. He leverages former adversaries like Edgar Allan Poe (his self-proclaimed rival) and police officer Minoura, converting them into allies through persuasion or mutual interest. His influence even inspired 30% of Yokohama's police force to defect during the Agency's framing. Key contributions include solving the theater declaration case with Fukuzawa, leading to the Agency's founding; rescuing Akiko Yosano from wartime trauma by offering her an Agency position; devising strategies during the Guild's attack and the Cannibalism incident; and exposing Fukuchi Ouchi as the Decay of Angels leader. He also implemented contingency plans, such as blackmailing Mushitaro into aiding the Agency by threatening to expose his friend's legacy.