Chapter 208 – Thieves Guild

000

Depending on which direction the passage of the intricately entangled alleys were bent at some point and in which direction, whether the end was a dead end, a trap, or a thieves’ guild’s stronghold was like a kind of password known only to members of the organization.

Therefore, outsiders did not approach first, and on the day they entered by mistake, they did not set foot even because it was obvious that they would go through a lot of hardship until they returned home.

If you think about that part, it looked similar to the back alley now occupied by Astarothe.

Since ancient times, back alleys and thieves’ guilds have competed for the rights of the dark part of the capital, so they existed in a somewhat distant location.

There would be no excuse for the fact that both are dens of criminals, but if there is a difference between a thief’s guild and a back alley.

It was that its existence was tolerated to some extent by the state.

When a theft occurred, if you were arrested on the spot or arrested while on the run, it was natural to return the goods and receive various punishments.

There was an unspoken rule that once they entered the realm of the thief guild, even the guards and knights of the royal capital would give up their pursuit.

The reason is simple. Among the good customers of the thieves guild, nobles as well as royalty were mixed, so it was because a lot of lobbying was done.

I don’t know why aristocrats and royalty would borrow the help of thieves, but the more they were, the more they coveted things that they couldn’t get their hands on through official routes.

Beautiful but cursed magic tools, holy relics kept in the countryside, important documents owned by other nobles…

Requests for personal hobbies, of course, were using the guild as a means to gain an edge in political battles.

Of course, from the point of view of the common people, this only looks like a complete masterpiece.

It was the adventurer’s guild that suppressed it.

Since adventurers basically had nothing to do with such unspoken rules, an elderly adventurer with only outstanding skills or a good reputation among other commoners could protest against the thieves’ guild and demand that stolen items be returned.

Of course, not all of them returned, but it is said that there have been cases where such items were miraculously returned several times in the past.

In addition, there were those who performed self-purification in the thieves’ guild, and those who committed unnecessary livelihood stealing were often dealt with internally.

Even as a thief guild, it would have been something they wanted to escape from the reputation of being a den of shoplifters.

However, the recent thieves’ guild seems to have problems like the adventurer’s guild.

It is also a problem that the occurrence of missing persons continues in the adventurer’s guild, but it is possible that such a thing is also happening inside the thief’s guild, and rumors are circulating that the control over the ends is weakened.

As a result, men like shoplifters from earlier have recently been causing trouble by pickingpockets and robberies.

Since the damage petitions were sent to the church as well as the kingdom’s guards, sooner or later the nobles might cut off the deal and wipe out them.

Verastol, walking in front of Cleon, was explaining to Cleon.

Cleon was sticking his tongue out inwardly at the knowledge coming out of his mouth without interruption.

“This is one of the internal affairs of the royal capital. You may not have known.”

And this was added.

Cleon shrugs his shoulders, sighs, and nods his head.

“Yes, yes…”

She boastfully ignores her Cleon her and spreads her knowledge her, but when she hears the story, she doesn’t seem to have any information about the `female victims’ in the church.

Those who seemed to be treated as mere missing people.

It was possible because the flow of information was intentionally blocked by the Tromeia family to some extent.

“So. Did the church intend to respond to the thieves’ guild?”

“If there was a clearing operation, it would have been possible to lend a hand. Although it is impossible for us to take the initiative, but it is common sense.”

“…Why? I thought it was the Church’s job to stick my head in and meddle all over the continent.”

When Cleon spoke with a bit of sarcasm, Vera Stoll turned her head away for a moment and glared at Cleon.

“The current church’s main purpose is not to punish the wicked, but to ‘rehabilitate’ and ‘rehabilitate. That’s what the guards are supposed to do.”

“Huh…”

I could see what you were saying. Opponent is a thief. That is, it is ‘human’.

From the beginning, the only ones that the Church treats hostilely are cultists, devil worshipers, and the devil himself and the undead.

Regarding them, the crusaders and heretic inquisitors would accompany them and thoroughly exterminate them, but putting the same standard on the same person would cause various problems.

“Doesn’t the person known to Esca-sama know that?”

When Vera Stoll said that, Cleon shrugged his shoulders as if he did n’t like Cleon’s reaction to her.

“I’m sorry. This is the first time I’ve met Mr. Esca since he became the Pope. In the first place, the church said to reform and accept our clan of dark demons, but there are still quite a few people who think of them as devil worshipers, right? It’s just that, knowingly or unknowingly, he notices all of that.”

“Huh…”

I didn’t deny the reformation policy that Esca had talked about before, but since it’s a huge organization, it was natural that the individual’s thoughts weren’t unified.

Verastol also sneered as if he did not deny Cleon’s words, but rather as if he had the same thoughts as Cleon said.

However, Cleon thought that ignoring such a gaze was the most correct answer, and he knew better than anyone else that the Dark Demon clan was not a descendant of the ‘devil’ through the truth of the past he had met with Mercury.

Of course, even if I conveyed such a thing to her, it would be natural for her to respond by asking what it is, regardless of whether she would believe it.

Suddenly, Cleon notices something about her and asks her a question.

“…But is it okay?”

“What do you mean?”

When Cleon looked at Verastol, she was always in plain clothes, not even the thick armor or helmet that usually covered her body her, nor her her ‘shield’ that could be called her weapon or defense her.

“In that unarmed state.”

“That’s the same for you. You can do it, but there’s no reason I can’t.”

As Berastol answered, Cleon was now in a state where even Galatea was not on his back.

It was because it was rude to go armed when visiting the Tromeia mansion, but it was because Cleon had a Caliburn that could make a space jump if necessary.

“For catching a thief, there’s no problem with this fist.”

When Vera Stoll said that, he raised his black-gloved fist her, and Cleon nodded in agreement.

“More important than that is choosing the right path in the alley ahead.”

“You get that part right. Yes, that’s right. Like you said, it’s a maze inside. If you go wrong, there’s a trap that could take hours or days to escape.”

When Cleon finished speaking, a fork in the road appeared in front of him.

Both left and right had the same scenery, so it was hard to know which way to go was the correct answer.

‘Here… I’d better borrow Sasha’s power.’

With that thought in mind, I pulled up the imprint on my eye and tried to look for the thief’s traces, but Verastol silently walked to the left.

“Hey! Wait…!”

Cleon’s sudden action her on her own stops her attention her and calls her back, but she disappears from Cleon’s sight her without stopping her.

“That guy… Has no intention of cooperating.”

She thought so, and she thought for a moment whether she should follow her too…

There comes the sound of something like a lump of iron falling to the ground tearing at her ears.

“Ah, really!”

Apparently, Vera Stoll’s choice of hers was the wrong direction.

No matter how much she dislikes her, it is difficult for her her, the crusader who escorted Esca, to be locked up for days.

Thinking so, the moment Cleon tries to go to her left her with her thoughts her to save her-

“That side was the wrong way. Dark Horse Clan.”

When Cleon suddenly heard a voice behind him, he turned his head and saw Verastol standing there.

“What… No, is it transfer magic… ?”

Verastol did not show any response to Cleon’s question of her, but the next question that she came to mind was whether it was possible to transfer without any warning, without causing any reverberation or sound, even with transfer magic.

Even Layla, who has the level of a great wizard, is accompanied by simple chanting, space-opening motions, and luminescence by magical operation when performing short-distance transfers.

If it was the crusader Vera Stoll, she would be able to use divine magic, but I had never heard that she could use transfer magic with divine magic, and above all, I couldn’t believe that she could cast magic more sophisticated than Lyla .

Leaving behind her questioning and doubting Cleon, Vera Stall walked in the direction of what was left of her to the right.

“… Wait, are you really going to check all the roads ahead like this?”

“Yes. Is there something wrong?”

“…Because I can follow his trail his. Stop it. If there is a trap that cannot be escaped even with teleportation magic, you will be in danger.”

After hearing Cleon’s words, when Verastol meets his eyes her, he narrows his eyes when he sees the hunter’s imprint on his eyes her.

“Isn’t that… The mark of a pagan?”

“No… Ha.”

Of course, since there is no such thing as a god that the denomination beliefs in accurately, opinions that are open to other religions are the mainstream.

But even so, some fanatics feel repulsive toward nature gods and barbaric gods that deviate from the trinity of faith.

Verastol seemed to fall into that category.

“Anyway. I can’t agree with the way you push yourself like that. If you get hurt, Esca-san will be sad too.”

“…”

Vera Stoll, hearing Cleon’s words, shut his mouth for a moment and then turned around.

“Then… If you say that. You should take the lead.”

Cleon, who looked at Vera Stoll talking like that for a while without showing her face her, once again followed the trail of the person who fled with the imprint and walked forward.

After that, similar scenes were repeated over and over again.

It’s dark and dirty, but in fact, it’s a carefully calculated place that seems to paralyze the human senses.

The forks didn’t happen that often, but there were hidden buttons and wire traps that could get caught if you didn’t look carefully, which made me feel like I was getting sucked into a secret base.

“There. There’s a hole under your feet. Be careful.”

“…”

When Cleon spurred the wall and pointed to the floor, Vera Stoll narrowed her eyes, then disappeared on the spot the next moment and—

It had moved right behind Cleon.

She sighs, ha, then shakes her head and takes her steps first with her leisurely steps.

“You’re a guy who worries about everything… Don’t worry, even if you fall into such a hole-trap-clothes!?”

And- the moment when that composure disappeared, three steps, the moment I walked forward.

As the floor suddenly turns off, her body loses balance and slides, dragged by gravity.

Booung! Her long pink hair she shoots up with a feeling of her doing her.

“Kuu…!?”

Her sudden fall her caused her concentration to be disturbed, her transfer her misfiring, and when her iron skewer her, visible beneath her, tried to greet her-

Chop from above! Her body her hangs precariously as she grabs her hand her and grabs her her.

“As soon as you… You said… !”

As if throwing her her body her hastily, Cleon’s outstretched arm her grabbed her wrist her.

“~~!!”

Vera Stall, who looked up at Cleon and blushed at her shame her. The next moment she thought that her and Cleon’s eyes met as she looked up without being able to say anything.

“…Papa, put it up quickly…”

At her words her, her Cleon sighs and pulls her up to the ground.

It was a malicious arrangement aimed at those who did not expect that there would be traps falling in succession.

Caught in it, Vera Stoll came up to her ground level and clenched her fists, unable to get anything out of her.

“…There is teleportation magic, but don’t move too carelessly.”

Vera Stall quietly watched as Cleon said that and did good deeds.

001

The man who threw the mask over his face his roughly threw it on the ground, drank a cup of cold water in it, and sat down on his old chair his.

Even though it is indoors, there is no window, and the amount of light is controlled only by the light source inside. It is dirty, messy and unsanitary, just like the outside.

Presumably, they were careful not to accumulate dust on the stolen goods scattered around, and all of them were carefully stored in wrapping cloths or boxes.

“Big-!”

After running nonstop, his body his, which had been elevated in body temperature, cooled down in an instant, and proudly placed the achievement he was holding in his hand his on the desk.

“Now! What did you say? You said you could do it?”

At the man’s words around him, his colleagues around him also said, ‘Ohh… I look at the box wrapped in a cloth with a voice like’.’

“You really did it. I thought it was impossible to say that Rampart was hanging around the store…”

“Ha! What could an old man like that be?”

Saying that, he twisted the corner of his mouth as if mocking the adventurer who couldn’t stop him.

In fact, the success of stealing things right in front of Rampart’s eyes was purely his thievery skills.

It was because he was momentarily delayed in his reaction to prevent the box he had knocked down as he snatched things from almost hitting passers-by.

You could say it was luck. In fact, the bald macho in his 50s running at almost the same speed behind him, a confident thief who could not be beaten by anyone in terms of running skills, was terror itself.

“So? What’s inside?”

When one of his co-workers asks that, the man also taps the box wrapped in cloth.

“It seems to be a paper box. I don’t think it’s that valuable…”

“Let’s open it up and check it out.”

When his colleague giggles and puts his hand on him, the man taps it and gets nervous.

“That’s a breach of contract. Do you intend to damage the thieves’ guild’s trust?”

“Even so, the opponent is a merchant, Nabu Rang, right? What could be possible for those guys?”

“Under.”

The man dismissed his colleague’s words with a snort, then got up to move the items to the storage room for stolen goods.

“The client is due to come in an hour. Anyone who gets in here by then will have his finger cut off.”

When he bluffed like that, the colleagues around him nodded their heads while wrinkling their faces, as if they knew that he had such a personality.

When the man puts his stuff inside and comes out, loosening his shoulders, he sees all his comrades who were there a moment ago lying on the ground.

“What? Did you have a daytime drink? You bastards…”

No matter how easy it is to do business, a man who thinks that he has fallen too much even if he is out of discipline tries to approach him with his knuckles ringing.

I suddenly felt a movement from behind, and I quickly bent my body to avoid the swinging fist.

“Kuh!?”

A swift fist passed right next to his face his, and the man, unable to hide his bewilderment his, backed away from him.

`Woman…!?`

The moment she recognized the pink-haired woman in front of her, she disappeared as if she had never been there from the beginning.

However, the presence was once again felt behind him.

“What!?”

The woman frowns when she manages to narrowly dodge her fists this time while letting out her nervous voice her.

“… You’re good at avoiding the subject of thieves.”

This time, the man breaks into a cold sweat as he sees Verastol, who did not disappear immediately.

“You… What are you? Judging by your outfit, you don’t seem to be a guard or a knight… Are you an adventurer!?”

“You don’t have to answer. It has nothing to do with you.”

At Verastol’s words, the man said, ‘Rotten…’ “!” He cursed, and quickly took out the dagger hidden in his waistband.

And just when he thought Vera Stoll’s figure had disappeared once more, the man spun his body around and swung the dagger behind him.

It must have been learned from the previous attack, but unfortunately, that thought seemed to have been read by Verastol as well.

Fuck! There was a sound, and a shock echoed as if a large rock had hit the man’s back.

He moved through space, but this time he just moved forward, not behind the man.

A blow that was so heavy that it was hard to imagine with that slender body.

I’m glad I didn’t break any bones, but gasp as the air escapes from my lungs! And a man’s voice rings out.

“Bitch!!”

Saying that, the man uses the heel of his boot to kick Vera Stoll’s chin up, who is standing behind him, but…

Berastol moves through space once again, evading the man’s attack.

“Dog… Bitch…!”

The man glared at Verastol while enduring the pain while holding the dagger.

Verastol only sighed as he returned the man’s gaze as if he was pitiful.

“Looking at the fact that he didn’t get knocked down by a single blow or avoided attacks a few times… He seems to be a bit more skilled than the other small puppies, but it’s pathetic.”

“Don’t fuck!!”

Saying that, the moment the man tried to attack her again-

Rattle. A sound is heard from behind.

Just now, it was the sound of the door he came out of being closed again.

And, until just now, I thought there was no one there, but when the scenery around me changed as if melting, a man from the Dark Demon clan appeared with a ‘stole object’in his hand.

It was something the man had stolen in front of Rampart earlier.

“Verastor. Found the item.”

When Cleon says so, the men finally realize that their purpose is that object.

“You bastards! Are you a member of the Adventurer’s Guild?”

As the man said that, he threw the dagger he was holding to get rid of the annoying Verasthol first.

It was only for a moment, but in Cleon’s eyes, the blade of the dagger he threw seemed to sparkle.

“He’s a guy who doesn’t learn. Throwing something that’s hard to hit even when he’s swinging it from close up makes him something.”

However, Verastol disappears again as if he thinks that his attempt itself is meaningless.

And the next place to appear was not from the man’s back, but from above.

I clenched my fist and hit the man’s head with gravity.

Quaang! A sound was heard and the man fell to the ground as it was, but mysteriously, he passed out without any trauma.

It was a fist filled with divine magic that shocked and healed at the same time, so that it would not die from a painful attack to the point of death.

Cleon stuck out his tongue at that ferocious attack power.

“This is the end-… What?”

It was the moment after she landed on her land and looked at Cleon, shaking her hands.

Verastol, who suddenly saw Cleon running towards him, frowned and tried to question what he was doing.

If he doesn’t stop, he thinks he’s going to fight him and gets into a fighting stance-

Cleon just passed by her, reached out her hand to her and grabbed something from her.

“Kuh…!”

It was the dagger that the former man threw at Verastol.

The blade was enchanted with tracking magic, and even if the target it was aiming at evaded, it could fly through the air for a certain period of time and pursue the target.

It would not have been strange for a person of the level of a thief’s guild executive to have such a trump card, but he must have noticed that Verastol was overconfident in his abilities and was careless, and threw it.

The blade, which he grabbed with his bare hands, was barely within reach of Verastol’s back his, and thanks to this, blood was pouring from Cleon’s hand his.

Vera Stoll naturally looked back at Cleon, who had passed her by, checked his hand her and opened his eyes wide.

“You…”

After a while, when Cleon raised dark magic and broke the magic engraved on the dagger, the dagger did not move any further and lost its power and fell to the ground.

“Haa…Don’t be too careless…”

Cleon muttered as he covered his tattered hand her with the other.

“…If you tell me to avoid-“

“I still follow the tracking magic. And I’m not around. I didn’t have time to properly deliver it. This is the surest way.”

At Cleon’s words, Vera Stoll remained silent for a moment and then nodded.

“Now then, let’s pack our things and go back… With this hand, even with a cloth to stop the bleeding-“

Saying that, Cleon glanced at the cloth covering the stolen goods around him and tried to tear it—

“Hey.”

Turning her head at the voice of Vera Stoll calling her name her, she reached out and grabbed the wrist of Cleon’s injured hand her, which had been swiftly approached by her metastasis of her.

“…”

Then, with the other hand, reach out to the injured part to generate divine magic—

Healing techniques, similar to those used by Quon, were activated, and Cleon’s wounds gradually healed.

“…That’s right. Are you a priest, too?”

“‘For now’ is a useless modifier.”

After dealing with Cleon’s words like that, and when his wounds were all healed, Cleon opened and closed his fists to show that there was no problem.

“Thank you.”

Perhaps not expecting such a reply, Vera Stall blinked her eyes two or three times before turning her body away.

“…That, too, is useless.”

002

After recovering as much stolen goods as possible, the two of them escaped the alley and succeeded in joining Rampart, who was waiting for the guards.

“It’s good that both of you are safe. Things…”

Rampart seemed to be glad that the box was not dented by unwrapping the returned item.

“So? What the hell is this?”

When even Cleon asked if he was curious about the contents, Rampart turned his head for a moment and opened the box away from the guards.

And then – what’s inside are neatly arranged inside a luxurious interior decoration – a small chocolate the size of a woman’s thumb.

There were 10 in a box, and two such boxes were wrapped in one bundle.

“…Ha?”

Seeing this, Cleon unknowingly let out a voice like that, but Rampart smiled bitterly and looked like he knew it.

“It’s a special chocolate that doesn’t come easily. It’s my wife’s birthday soon, so I ordered it in advance.”

“I see… It’s quite a public wife.”

At Rampart’s words, Cleon smiled bitterly.

“…”

And, Berastol staring at the chocolate.

“Hmm? Miss, are you interested in this chocolate?”

I don’t know if he’s aware or not, but Verastol nods at his question her.

Then, Rampart raised the corner of his mouth and took out one of the chocolates in the box, took out Berastol, and took out another and handed it to Cleon.

“After a lot of hard work, it’s always sweet. A box of gifts for my wife is enough, so you guys should try this too.”

“That, yes…”

Vera Stoll does n’t show her expression her, but she quickly moves his hand her to take the item from him and hold it up.

Because it was hard to refuse due to the flow, and because it was so rare, Cleon, who wondered if the thief’s guild was targeting it, also receives favor from Rampart.

When two people put it in their mouths almost at the same time, what spreads in their mouths is the unique bittersweet yet sweet taste of chocolate.

And-

“…This-“

The moment you bite into the chocolate, the whiskey explodes inside.

“Haha! Yes. This one has alcohol inside. It’s a flavor that adults can enjoy.”

Rampart, who likes alcohol, smiles as if he really liked it.

“…I see. The taste you and your wife will like. It’s not bad.”

“Isn’t it? Hey lady, you think so-“

Rampart looked back at Verastol with a smile, and the moment he said that—

Dump! With a groan, Verastol’s body collapsed.

Cleon and Rampart also slowed down for a while due to the sudden incident, but if Cleon got closer, maybe there was something wrong with his health her-

A gurgling … Purring …, Her low snoring came from her.

“…”

When the two of them looked at her face her together, they saw her asleep in her bed with her face flushed red.

Rampart shook his head as if he was dumbfounded, and he had no choice but to laugh.

“How weak you are to drink… At best, it’s less than a glass of whiskey.”

“Oh… Ha… “

Cleon let out a sigh of hers, wondering if he should wake her up somehow, then shook her head.

Then, with the help of her Ramparts her, he tied her onto her back her.

“I’ll take this guy to Daejeon.”

“Oh, oh oh. Yes. Please take care of me.”

Saying that, she looked behind Cleon as she walked down the street with her Vera stole on her back, and muttered with her arms crossed.

“It’s a woman’s injury. Tsutsu…”