Chapter 229: The Storm Roused by Tiny Pawns

Thieves are a profession.

Just like Adventurers in the United Kingdom, Priests of the Holy Empire and the Church of the Goddess, Holy Knights, and the mercenaries that roam the world, thieves are also recognized as a special profession—a job.

What they excel at isn’t really about stealing things in the literal sense… uh, even though it does cover many aspects, and sometimes they do take on jobs of a similar nature, their main focus is on infiltration, investigation, and selling information, somewhat like an outsourced intelligence organization, and akin to private detectives back on the Blue Star.

Just as Adventurers are generally dispatched by the Adventurers’ Guild, clergy members follow the management and training of the Temple, and mercenaries are assessed and given tasks by a dedicated guild, so the thieves, regarded as another special profession, are no different.

The organization of thieves is called the “Thieves’ Alliance.”

While it has garnered a degree of recognition, thieves are by no means mainstream occupations, and the Thieves’ Alliance can’t do as the first three do by setting up guild branches in cities all over the world.

It’s simply a second-rate guild organization.

In reality, places where the “Thieves’ Alliance” has a foothold are generally at least major provincial cities in a country; in small countries, you might only find such facilities in the capital.

Moreover, the Thieves’ Alliance does not openly provide services like most professional guilds; if you want to submit a request or join, some internal “connections” are required.

In short, thieves are that kind of rare profession straddling the line between good and evil, flitting on the edges of shadows. Even Miss Vilyric has come to understand this a bit, after frequenting various places over the past two years and witnessing many people and things.

The outfits of these people are standard thief attire.

The flasks and jars hanging from their waists should contain various magical potions and powders prepared for different situations, serving myriad purposes but not particularly lethal, mainly aimed at decryption and escape.

The guiding principle of thieves is—“Never kill unless absolutely necessary.”

The earlier threat from their leader seemed fierce, but it was likely just a habitual scare tactic to alleviate the tension among teammates; these people were clearly part of a well-coordinated and experienced thief gang.

With a gang of this size operating, could the City of Saint Sanos… possibly hide a base of the “Thieves’ Alliance”?

Just as Miss Vilyric pondered the origins and intentions of these intruders and planned to observe further, the thieves lurking in the night did not engage in more chatter.

After ensuring it was momentarily safe, the tall human male known as the leader took out what looked like a compass from his pocket and began searching rapidly in the ruins on the edge of this temple, following its guidance.

Since the direction they moved in was exactly opposite to where the Little Dragon Daughter and the others were hiding, Vilyric didn’t rush to act; she simply followed silently behind.

Soon, the target they locked onto was an area not far from their starting point.

“This must be it! Be quick and search, then let’s scram!”

“Oh!”

As he spoke, the leader, who appeared to be the only thief without the usual flasks and jars hanging from him but instead possessing a spatial storage tool, began handing out shovels and other instruments to his subordinates, directing them to dig earnestly in the ruins.

To avoid drawing attention, the thieves made an effort to keep the sound of their digging very low.

However, the spot they were working at was one of the densest areas of debris on the temple’s edge, filled with heaps of rubble, and it even contained broken swords and fragments of Temple Knight armor.

To avoid the loud clatter of metal on metal, the thieves had to be as cautious as possible; they first moved the armor pieces by hand when encountering such situations, before continuing to dig through the variously sized rubble with tools, rendering their efficiency hardly impressive.

How odd… what are these guys really searching for?

From what the succubus named Clisia described during the day, near the temple in the City of Saint Sanos, there must have been a fierce battle between both sides during the urban warfare when the city fell.

Based on the timeline, it was likely that the forces involved were not just the local defenders of this city; the first wave of reinforcements led by the Judging Saintess—the “Hands of Judgment” Holy Knight Order—probably participated in the vital battle to protect the central temple of the City of Saint Sanos.

Is it… certain treasures that were lost nearby at that time?

But if there were really any treasures buried here, how could she or the Little Dragon Daughter…

Pondering this, Miss White Fox redirected her gaze into the distance.

Speaking of which, where are those guys from the Grim Reaper’s Scythe? Why haven’t they appeared yet? Did they really run into some trouble?

Time passed second by second under the deliberately subdued sounds of intense digging.

Fifteen minutes had slipped by.

The mound of rubble, akin to a little mountain, had nearly been excavated to the bottom by the thieves, yet to this point, Vilyric still hadn’t sensed any strong aura worth paying attention to.

Strange… could it be that what they’re after isn’t treasure, but something of special significance?

Just as this thought crossed her mind, the concealed girl suddenly frowned.

Because in her perception, a particularly strong aura of light elements erupted forth, like a grenade that had its pin pulled, suddenly spouting from nothingness!

A beam of golden light shot up from beneath the ruins, soaring toward the sky!

“L-leader!”

One of the thieves couldn’t help but exclaim in shock.

The dazzling golden light, reminiscent of a treasure being unearthed, was far too conspicuous in the already dark night, so much so that it was blinding.

Even though the thief dubbed the leader reacted immediately and rushed over to cover it with black cloth, that fleeting flash of brilliance was more than enough to attract far too many entities… even the entire city.

“Oh no! Quick! Quick! Don’t hold back; clear the surrounding stones as fast as possible and grab what you can before retreating!”

Under the leader’s constant urgings, the thieves kicked it into high gear, working frantically to dig away the last stones and debris surrounding the brilliant light at a speed two or three times faster than before. In less than ten seconds, what had already begun to show itself was finally completely exposed to the air.

Even though the leader immediately wrapped it up in black cloth and stowed it away into his spatial tool, just that momentary glimpse allowed Vilyric to instantly deduce the shape of that object.

It was a long sword stored within a sheath.

Moreover, the shape of this sword was markedly different from the common types favored by Souls and others, looking longer and thinner, somewhat resembling a Western sword from the Blue Star.

With such a similar silhouette and some contextual connections, it was incredibly astonishing, but after witnessing this scene, four characters representing special significance surged into Vilyric’s mind.

But how could this be…?

Just as the Priestess was inundated with surprise and disbelief, the thieves who unearthed that treasure didn’t dare to linger even a moment longer; without needing the leader’s commands, they hurriedly fled with a speed several times faster than they had come, vanishing swiftly into the night along the temple’s edge.

Simultaneously, a heavy and dense sound of footsteps gradually began to fill the girl’s ears from afar.

After hiding behind the ruins and witnessing the entire process, Xiao Guang and the others finally showed themselves, merging with Miss White Fox, who was taking off her “Chameleon Cloak.”

Tilysha’s eyes widened in shock, equally filled with disbelief.

“Miss Xī! Just now, could that have been…?”

From their vantage point, they must have had a clearer view of that object’s shape, and any intelligent person, especially one who had prior knowledge, could figure it out easily.

“The Demon Guardians are coming; let’s leave here first. This is really… an unexpected turn of events.”

   

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