#60 The Phantom Thief Dauphin (4) – Cops and Robbers

「To the lecherous, debauched Baron Cassiba de Mollet, consumed by lust.

I know of your crime of forcibly taking numerous women, leaving indelible scars, and silencing those who protest with violence and threats.

Before the rooster crows three times, confess your crimes in the plaza and beg forgiveness from your victims.

If you ignore this, the Mollet Baron lineage will end with you.

-Dauphin, the Phantom Thief-」

“Speaking of Baron Cassiba, I hear he got clipped.”

“Clipped? What?”

“Come on, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Apparently, an incredibly mournful wail echoed from the mansion where the Baron resides?”

“That’s terrifying, but also incredibly satisfying. A man whose tongue would grow thorns if he didn’t swing his hips for even a day, living would be hell for him now.”

「To Fernus Finn, the self-proclaimed knight who cannot control his anger.

“Said the food tasted like shit, caused a ruckus at the restaurant and bolted without paying, smashed up the shop’s display while drunk and assaulted the owner when he tried to stop him, and spewed abuse at an old man for not getting out of the way fast enough, saying old folks should just drop dead already. Found out a lot more too, but not enough room to list it all.

Can’t understand the logic of claiming to be a knight just because his dad’s the commander when he can barely swing a sword, but even a dumbass deserves a chance to repent.

My recommendation, make sure he begs forgiveness from his victims before the short hand of the clock goes around three times.

-The Phantom Dophin”

“That piece of shit Pernus got executed, huh.”

“Huh? He still had two days left until his sentence, didn’t he?”

“Apparently, he got drunk and went looking for his old victims, trying to start shit, accusing them of ratting him out to the thief. But a shadow came outta nowhere and whisked him away, and they found him turned into calamari the next day.”

“Calamari? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Like, every long bone in his body had been shattered into little pieces, so his body just flops around like a goddamn invertebrate? They’re saying it’s a miracle he’s still alive looking like that.”

「To Grunia Lafero, a corrupt official who’s slacking off.

Those who have nothing get enslaved for stealing a loaf of bread, while those who have everything can stab someone to death in the street and call it self-defense.

I wouldn’t go so far as to say the law should be applied equally to everyone, but I can’t stand to see such laziness, not even bothering to pretend.

I will give you a chance to correct your mistakes before the fields visible from the city gate are filled with yellow flowers.

If there is even a sliver of conscience in your heart, do not ignore it.

-The Phantom Dophin”

“Grunia resigned from his position and apologized to the victims he had judged.”

“Huh, guess something like that actually happens. So he’s going to get away with this one, then?”

“Well, apparently Grunia confessing that his verdicts were based on bribes made some people uncomfortable, and they tried to shut him up.”

“‘Tried’ meaning it didn’t actually work, right?”

“There’s a new trend in the wealthy district. Apparently, homeowners are decorating their houses with themselves hanging upside down by ropes.”

“Figures! You just can’t keep up with the high-class culture when you are one of us peasants! Hahaha!”

*

“ARE YOU ALL A BUNCH OF FUCKING MORONS?!”

*SLAM!!*

Guard Headquarters conference room.

The Company Commander slammed his fist on the table, screaming.

Similar things had happened before Dophin first revealed himself, but the atmosphere back then was completely different from now.

Back then, the Company Commander had a warm smile on his face, cheering on the platoon leaders with, “Let’s all do our best!” Now, he was glaring at the incompetent sons of b*tches in front of him, radiating murderous intent as if he wanted to kill them all right then and there.

Despite this drastic change in treatment, the platoon leaders didn’t dare to protest.

Partly because rank was a weapon, but also because, even more than that, the guards had been displaying such incompetence and disgrace lately that it was embarrassing to even try and make excuses.

“The entire city’s laughing at us right now! The nobles, the officials, they’re all calling us freeloaders who strut around normally, but do jack shit when it actually matters!!”

Though he was the company commander in charge of public order for the entire city of Levreuk, there were plenty of people within the city who held higher social, economic, and political positions.

They were terrified that they might become Dophin’s next target, and they channeled that anxiety into relentlessly pecking at the company commander.

This wasn’t the time to dream about achieving great feats and getting ahead of others.

If they failed to catch Dophin and allowed him to continue rampaging, the company commander himself would soon be losing his head.

The company commander’s gaze fell upon an empty seat in the meeting room.

It was the seat of a certain squad leader he’d chased away, telling him, ‘You must be busy, you don’t need to attend the meeting,’ because he was sick of being lectured constantly.

“Bring Squad Leader Dahlia here. The next Dophin case goes to Squad 8.”

At the company commander’s declaration, the squad leaders, who had been just cautiously observing, finally spoke up.

“W-wait a moment, Commander. Squad 8 is currently fulfilling their duties in another sector. Removing them would disrupt existing operations.”

“What difference will it make to deploy a new squad now? You should let us, who already have experience confronting him, continue to handle it instead.”

“If you didn’t want that, you should’ve done better in the first place!! If you can’t catch Dophin, shut up!!”

Squad 8 Leader Dahlia was well-known as an outsider within the guard.

There were various reasons.

Some were put off by her stubborn personality, as she didn’t know anything about playing politics and just silently did her job. Others felt unpleasant being compared to her, who was extremely diligent in her work, and there were many who spoke ill of her behind her back, accusing her of acting holier-than-thou.

As the saying goes, “The water at the top must be clear for the water below to be clear,” and the company commander wasn’t much different from those subordinates, but right now, the imminent threat to his neck was more urgent than his personal likes or dislikes.

Not long after, Dahlia, who had been conducting patrol operations, returned to the meeting room, and the company commander declared to her.

“Squad 8, all existing operations are suspended, and you will now devote yourselves solely to pursuing Dophin. The area that Squad 8 was responsible for will be divided up by pulling personnel from other squads.”

The squad leaders’ faces twisted as if they’d bitten into something sour, but the company commander didn’t care and spoke to Dahlia.

“I’ll provide you with as much support as you need. But, you have to catch that b*stard Dophin no matter what!”

“…I’ll do my best.”

If it had been anyone else, the company commander would have pressed them, saying, “Don’t do your best, just get results,” but he didn’t this time.

There was no need to.

The reason why Dahlia, who was constantly drifting around within the guard, still maintained her position as squad leader.

It was none other than the fact that her abilities were overwhelming.

*

The person Dophin declared as his next target was the tax officer of Levreuk.

The tax officer, who had just entered his twenties, was, frankly speaking, almost completely useless when it came to practical work, and was more like a troublemaker who just caused problems around the city, but even so, few could criticize him.

Even though he was the son of a concubine, the tax officer was undeniably one of Count Sarnos’s children.

The tax officer, who usually strutted around the city with all kinds of airs, was locked in his room today, shivering.

“Goddamn it, what the hell did I do wrong…!”

Getting drunk and making some commoner cripple? Humiliating the daughter who was begging to save her father, right there in front of him?

That’s just the kind of stuff everyone my age does! It’s not like I was roughing up another noble, so why should someone with my noble blood be so afraid?

Watching the tax collector put on this whole pathetic act, like he was the one who’d been wronged, the 8th Squad guards couldn’t help but mutter curses to each other.

“Shit, good to be off patrol duty, but why does the next job have to be helping this scumbag?”

“Ugh, if it wasn’t a job, I’d beat the crap out of him myself.”

Even if it was a big place, it was still risky to be talking shit like that in the same room as the client, but they didn’t give a damn.

Truth was, the 8th Squad was basically a bunch of rebels who couldn’t stand the Guard’s corruption, so the members all had pretty thick skin to begin with.

That was the moment.

– It’s Dauphin!! Dauphin is here, urgh!!

Sounds of something exploding, shattering, and flying through the air mixed with screams and shouts.

Most thieves value stealth and surprise above all else, but Dauphin, as if the same old tricks weren’t fun anymore, changed his methods every time.

Lately, victims were often holed up in what was practically a human fortress, surrounded by guards and escorts, so it was common for him to clear a path to his target by spectacularly blowing away any obstacles, like he was doing now.

BOOM!

“Uuurgh?!”

With an explosion of unknown origin, a huge hole opened up in the wall of the room where the tax collector was staying.

They chose a building with no windows and a corridor to the only entrance packed with guards, as a Dauphin countermeasure, but it was meaningless against a thief who could just blow a hole through the wall.

“Greetings, gentlemen! Just as promised, Dauphin has arrived!”

Out of the smoke of the explosion, Dauphin confidently stepped into the room.

Dressed head to toe in an elegant, burgundy suit.

He wore a round, wide-brimmed hat, and a long cloth, like a cape, hung from his right shoulder, obscuring the right side of his upper body.

His thick beard made it difficult to guess his exact age, but judging by first impressions, he looked to be somewhere between 30 and 40.

With a mischievous glint in his eyes and a deep smile playing on his lips, he was nothing like the ‘thief’ that people of this era imagined.

“Even after my repeated and ‘friendly suggestions,’ you stubbornly chose to remain silent. That must mean you really wanted to see my face. How could I ignore such a request! So, unwelcome sinner, the time has come to pay for your sins!”

“H-Hiiiiiek!”

The tax collector trembled and tried to flee from Dauphin, but his guards stepped forward to block his path and attacked.

Some were even knights in full plate armor, their swords emitting a faint aura, but Dauphin’s response was simple.

Thwack, thwack, thwack!

The cards that flew from Dauphin’s hand like darts, pierced into the guards’ armor, and then the cards seemed to glow with a yellow light, before unleashing a terrifying electrical shock that paralyzed them.

He even added a touch of finesse, giving one card to common soldiers, and spreading them evenly on the knight’s joints.

The guards who’d charged in all high and mighty were now twitching, convulsing messes on the floor, leaving just the thuggish tax collector.

Just as Dauphin reached out for the tax collector,

*Whoosh!*

A heavy gust, like something massive bearing down.

Acting on instinct, Dauphin leapt back, and in that instant, a spear shaft swept through where he’d been standing.

Even avoiding a direct hit, Dauphin’s hair and the cloak over one shoulder whipped in the wind created by the spear.

Dauphin’s eyes flashed, spotting the new intruder.

It wasn’t just the power of the attack, but the fact that it was meant to ‘subdue,’ not ‘kill.’

“Not a knight… Aha, one of those fellows who actually runs around the city, unlike the other guards.”

Armor not as pathetic as a common grunt, but lacking the flash of a knight.

A visor covering the face, as if trying to hide any individuality.

Aside from slight differences based on gender, she looked much like the countless guards Dauphin had toyed with.

But there was something fundamentally different about her presence, and Dauphin asked,

“Come to arrest me, officer? Or should I say, guard?”

“Smart. Your little rampage ends here, thief.”

“I’d prefer phantom thief! Though ‘righteous thief’ makes me cringe, I do like the sound of that!”

“Either way, you’re a criminal!!”

Under the crescent moon, a game of cat and mouse between cop and robber began.