Chapter 28

Ah... One day of power...

(*_*)

This is a work of fiction.

The characters, organizations, and names appearing in this work are fictitious and not based on any real persons or entities.

■■■■■■■■■■

028 - Various Schemes

■■■■■■■■■■

While interrogating the mass murderer, he stopped moving. I still wanted to ask more, but he died before I could finish. I intended to keep my promise and give him the antidote, but there were too many things I wanted to ask, and he died before I could get to them all. Since he died from his own poison, I guess it was his own doing.

A thief who had lunged at me was also dead, having crawled about five meters before dying. He must have bled out, causing his HP to drop to zero. I thought he should have had a potion, but it seems my attack shattered the bottle. When you do bad things, even luck turns against you.

Record Cards emerged from the chests of the dead, so I collected five of them. In the dungeon, the bodies are disposed of by the dungeon itself, but here, I had to collect the bodies in my Item Box. Using five slots is quite a hassle.

"But when I killed the thieves who attacked Gorteo's caravan, I threw up, but I didn't this time... I haven't killed anyone since then, but maybe I've gotten used to it from fighting monsters? Am I getting used to this world?"

I don't want to get used to killing, but it's better not to hesitate in battle. In a world where hesitation can get you killed, I can't afford to hesitate.

I used my Assassin job to search for any presence around me, but there was no one else. I had intentionally lured them to a place where no one would be, and it seems they had no other accomplices. They might be scattered throughout the town, searching for me.

Next, I headed to the town hall. I kept my job as an Assassin.

Instead of entering through the front, I used the Skill "Wall Pass" to enter through the back. I could have gone through the front, but I felt like it.

According to the mass murderer, whose name was Upas, there were thieves among the officials. It's a common story, so I wasn't surprised, but I was disappointed.

When I brought the Record Cards of the thieves who attacked Gorteo's caravan to the town hall, my Record Card was checked, and that's how my name and job were leaked to the thieves.

I activated Stealth and moved through the town hall, discovering a thief's accomplice. Since there were other officials working with the thieves, I noted down all their names. Next, I searched for evidence. Checking their Record Cards would reveal their crimes, but since they held significant positions, it would be troublesome to have their Record Cards checked. So, I gathered evidence.

I thought I might have to break into their homes, but thanks to Wall Pass, I found various ledgers. They were not only involved with thieves but also engaged in various other crimes, so I found several ledgers of embezzlement. With this, their crimes would be confirmed through their Record Cards. Once that happened, their connection to the thieves would also be revealed. I collected the evidence in my Item Box and left the town hall.

Next, I headed to the lord's castle.

I searched for the lord's room in the castle. It was a spacious room with luxurious and grand furniture. There was even a canopy bed—impressive indeed.

A middle-aged man was drinking alone. This calm and composed person must be the lord of this castle.

Alcaine, Duke of Gardland. Surprisingly, his job is Duke.

Nobles are apparently born as Villagers, but they can change their job to Noble based on their life choices. From Noble, they can evolve to Duke, but it's not easy to become a Duke. This person, according to Detailed Appraisal, is a well-rounded ruler in both civil and military affairs.

Even a well-rounded person isn't necessarily incorruptible, but I think this Duke is a decent noble. He would likely deal with the officials connected to the thieves.

But how should I approach him? Should I just show him the evidence? No, I need to be more careful.

As I tried to get closer, the Duke's eyebrows twitched, and his gaze slowly moved. His eyes were sharp, as if he knew I was there and was searching for me.

I broke out in a cold sweat and took a step back. This man is terrifying.

"Am I imagining things..."

His voice was deep. Even the way he brought the wine to his lips was deep. I think he ages well.

I stepped out of the room, took a deep breath, and prepared myself.

Then, I entered the Duke's room again. I didn't go in from that distance but placed the evidence ledger and my notes on the bed and moved to a corner of the room. Just doing this made me sweat profusely from nervousness.

The Duke finished his wine and looked at the bed. There were ledgers and notes he didn't know about. Normally, he would be quite flustered, but the Duke picked up the ledger without a word.

He flipped through the ledger quickly and then picked up the note I had written.

For some reason, I can write in this world's language. It's surprising enough that I can speak and read, but I can also write.

The Duke pulled a rope hanging from the wall. It seems he was calling a servant.

I sensed the movement of people nearby, and someone from the next room came to the Duke. It was an old butler.

"Call Zeigen and Balkan. I'll change clothes. Bring me a chair."

"Understood."

The old butler left.

"Are you still here?"

"!?"

He can't see me, but he seems to sense my presence. A Duke job at level 35 is no joke.

"I won't ask you to show yourself. But come back here at this time tomorrow."

"..."

What's his purpose in saying this? Is he trying to trap me and capture me? I don't know, but I couldn't just ignore it. It might be dangerous, but I decided to come back tomorrow.

Next, I headed to the Chardina Thieves' Guild's mansion.

It was late at night, but I infiltrated the mansion. I've been breaking into people's homes all day.

There were still thieves standing guard in front of Chardina's room, and there were guards inside. Sensing their presence, I entered the room next to Chardina's. Wall Pass is really convenient.

There were shelves with several leather bags.

There was no door, but the wall seemed to open. It must be a hidden room. Moreover, it only led to Chardina's room and had no windows.

I was surprised to find such a room.

There were also items that seemed to be magical. It was easy to imagine they were stolen.

When I looked inside the leather bags... they were filled with 100,000 black gold coins. There were about 100 of them in each bag. The other bags were also filled with 100,000 black gold coins.

"10 million grils per bag. No wonder they're so well-guarded."

There were 20 bags in total. A total of 200 million grils, equivalent to 2 billion yen. With that much, you could live a life of leisure.

Of course, I didn't touch it. I want money, but taking it would make me no different from a thief.

But I wanted the magical items. I almost reached for them but pulled back.

I didn't earn this money through hard work, and eliminating Chardina is for my peace of mind.

Everything here was stolen from someone by the Chardina Thieves' Guild. Taking it would make me no different from a thief.

If I want something, I'll work honestly and buy it with my own money. I won't take things from thieves. That's my pride.

Besides, in this world, there are Record Cards. If you steal from someone, it goes on your criminal record. If you're not careful, your job might even change to Thief. It's too risky to touch this money or magical items.

I thought about checking other rooms but noticed something unusual in this room.

"Documents?"

I picked up the documents and checked them. It was a list of the Thieves' Guild members. With this, it would be clear who the thieves are.

"Oh, this is..."

Moreover, it included the names of officials, merchants, and nobles who were working with them. I'll take this.

This is evidence of a crime. Killing thieves isn't a crime, and the same goes for taking evidence. Detailed Appraisal told me this.

But taking things that aren't evidence is a crime. It would be recorded in your criminal record, even if it belongs to a thief.

However, there is a way to avoid a crime. That is to collect this money and magical items and turn them over to the appropriate authorities. But that would give me no benefit. I don't want to draw the attention of the Duke's family.

So, I'll only take the evidence.

By the way, this list also contains information about other hideouts. Is it even allowed to create such a list? It might be saying, "If the officials find out, you'll be dragged down too." They would try their best to protect this information, which would help protect this mansion.

I think it's cunning, but to lead such a large thieves' guild, you need that level of thoroughness.

I searched other rooms and gathered information about the Thieves' Guild. There wasn't much useful information besides the list, but I found a safe. It was a large safe, about my height. I don't have the skill to open safes, so I don't know what's inside.

I'll stop here for today. Tomorrow, I'll give the list to the Duke. I don't know if he'll act, but I think he will.

The question is how quickly he will act. If he takes his time, Chardina will notice the list is missing and flee.

If that happens, I'll have to think of another way. A way that doesn't rely on the Duke.

Since the rental house isn't ready yet, I returned to the inn to relax.

"Welcome back, Master."

"Welcome back, Master."

Even though it was late, Annelise and Rosalina were waiting for me.

Seeing their faces made me feel relieved and relaxed.

Today was busy, going from the dungeon to the town hall, the Duke's castle, and the thieves' hideout.

I sweated a lot, so Annelise wiped me down. It was too late to ask for hot water, so it was cold.

Rosalina turned her face away.

The old Annelise used to be an old woman, so I used to wipe her body, and she would return the favor. There was nothing inappropriate about it.

Now, it's a remnant of that, and... while it's partly my wishful thinking, I'm trying to resist.

Rosalina isn't looking, but she's right there. Wiping Annelise's body in such a situation is half sinful.

Maybe I should have separate rooms? But we'll be moving to a rental house soon, so I'll endure it here.

Thank you for reading.

I hope you continue to enjoy this work.

Please bookmark and like it if you enjoyed it.

You can rate it using the stars below: ☆☆☆☆☆ → ★★★★★. The minimum is ★1, and the maximum is ★5.

★★★★★ would make me very happy (＾◇＾)

We are entering the climax of the first chapter.

Your support will help me update more frequently. Please support me.