Star, Please Let Me Be a Righteous Thief Again Today

A secret plan that seemed perfect becomes utterly meaningless the moment someone catches the scent of it.

It makes no difference if the one who laid it is a genius strategist. An operation is a sandcastle raised where the wind blows. If you mean to win a war, you have to keep shoring that castle up as time wears it down, bracing it with whatever resources you have and the thin stick called improvisation, and simply endure.

So when one troublesome old man latched onto Klein's trail, Klein made a hard decision of her own.

Ten precious test subjects were assigned to him. It was infuriating enough to turn her stomach, but what else could she do? If she failed to pin down that speed-mad old man for good, everything that followed would come apart. Those ten subjects, then, were not a waste. They were an investment that could never be recovered. The resources she had left were more than enough to see the backup plans through.

In the end, the last two test subjects rose to the surface to slaughter the Rostov nobility, while Klein—who by rights should have met the enemy's main force—took the prime minister and flew for the sky.

Buying time with the prime minister and the Holy Ark, and throwing the enemy into confusion, was already eight-tenths of a victory. If she could snare Lupin on top of that, it would be nothing short of perfect. But with the operation already off the rails, Klein did not let herself hope for that much.

…Or was the goddess of fortune smiling on Klein after all?

The instant she burst from the waterway into the sky, a swordswoman shot up from the ground like a flash of light.

"You blocked that?!"

The half-naked woman who had looked like someone desperate to join the cult was Lupin.

"What? It's Big Sis!"

Klein hooked the tip of her Serpent-Belly Sword around a spire. The body that had been driving straight for the river rose in a half-circle and landed—thud—on the roof of the nearest building. Lupin, flung high into the sky, was already tracing a wide arc of her own, gliding down in a graceful sweep to set down in front of her.

—Clang!

A sword stroke came flying in a heartbeat later. But the Serpent-Belly Sword was already coiled around Klein like a living snake, and the incoming blow struck the whirling blade and ricocheted away.

"It's been so long, Big Sis! Klein knew you missed her too!"

Lupin, frantic over the Holy Ark, shouted back.

"Big Sis, Big Sis—who the hell is your big sister? I've never had a little sister like you, and I don't even like being called that!"

"Then what should Klein call you? Lupin?"

"Call me whatever you want. Just—hurry up and hand over the Holy Ark… His Excellency the Prime Minister!"

Huh?

Their interests didn't overlap nearly as much as she'd thought. Klein tugged at the corner of her mouth.

"What do you need this old man for?"

"Because I have to go inside the Holy Ark."

"The Holy Ark? And what are you planning to do in there?"

"The star—no. You don't need to know. Just give him here. I'm in a hurry."

"Hmmm? You're after the Fragment of the Stars?"

Lupin couldn't hide her face. She was a painfully honest person.

"Could Klein be misunderstanding something? As far as Klein knows, only Royal Blood can witness the Fragment of the Stars, and only Royal Blood can speak with it. What exactly do you think you'll do by going in?"

"That's why I'm telling you to hand over His Excellency. I'm going in, and I'm getting the Fragment ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of the Stars."

Klein couldn't help a short laugh.

"Impossible. Klein doesn't know what you're expecting, but even if you drag Royal Blood into the Holy Ark with you, anyone who isn't Royal Blood themselves can't meet the Fragment of the Stars."

"If you're going to lie, at least make it convincing. You think I'd fall for that?"

"Klein only tells the truth, you know? If you're curious, she'll lend you this man. Want to go in and see for yourself?"

At that, half the fury clouding Lupin's eyes drained away.

"You'll lend me His Excellency?"

"Sure. As much as you like. But if you get trapped in there and can't come out, Klein isn't taking the blame."

Lupin scratched under her chin, looking cornered.

"Then… waking His Excellency for just a second to ask him how…"

"He took a hard blow to the head when he was kidnapped. Even if he wakes up, thinking straight and talking properly is going to be difficult."

Lupin launched another swift lunge. This time, too, the blade barely advanced before ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the coiled Serpent-Belly Sword knocked it aside.

"Argh, why'd you have to knock the man out? You've made this so much more annoying!"

Said the very person who had just slammed Emelin into a wall. Klein burst out laughing.

"Klein didn't have a choice! If he fought back, it would've been a hassle."

"Anyway, you're saying even if I go in, I still can't get the Fragment of the Stars? What even is Royal Blood?"

Saying it aloud, Lupin remembered that an explanation of Royal Blood had scrolled past before the choices appeared on her status window. She should have read it then. For the first time, she regretted a line of text she'd let slip by. But regret was useless now. All she could do was badger the girl in front of her, who clearly knew something and was dragging it out on purpose.

"…Hey. Can you even hear me?"

Klein was under no obligation to explain anything in a situation like this. But she was curious. This little cutie didn't even know what Royal Blood was, so why was she so desperate for the Fragment of the Stars? She was acting as if someone had drilled it into her: the Fragment of the Stars is good, you absolutely have to obtain it.

What suspicious villain would have ordered a thing like that? Or did she simply want to touch the secrets of the world all on her own? Either way, it was interesting. A seed of evil, through and through. A darling of chaos. A fascinating toy Klein wanted to keep at her side.

Just look at her. Pull the cloak on those shoulders up over her head, and she would be indistinguishable from a shrine maiden of the cult. Klein was already delighted at the thought of roaming the world with her someday.

So—how should she answer? Played right, it even looked possible to lure Lupin into the cult on the spot, and Klein sank briefly into thought.

"Fine. Klein will explain! We both want the Holy Ark, so we look like comrades!"

"Who's your comrade? Shoo. I don't do comrades or comrades-in-arms. Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong-il, Kim Jong-un—those bastards!"

Ignoring the incomprehensible mutter, Klein explained.

"The custodian of the Holy Ark is Royal Blood. Humans like to call it a noble bloodline, but either way they're just lucky bastards! Anyway, only those Royal Bloods can reach the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Fragment of the Stars. The Fragment is the will a star left behind on the earth. Something like that. Well? Did you follow Klein this far?"

"Uh. Um. Uh…"

"Oh dear… Was that too high-concept for Lupin? So… where should Klein start explaining again?"

"All of it."

She couldn't even understand this? Klein had thought her single-celled, but to this extent? For a moment even Klein couldn't shake the feeling that her own brain had been gutted for renovations. Recruitment really did require knowing how much ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the other person actually knew. Still, it was a shame to take the conversation back now.

As one of the cult's highest combat assets, she preferred winning people over with a silver tongue rather than a fight. A human, rational, silent war—Klein considered that the method most befitting the cult's doctrine. And the simpler someone's thinking, the easier they were to manage once brought into the fold. Compared with Parmenia, clever enough to scurry off in every direction, a Lupin who barked when she wanted dinner would be far easier to handle, wouldn't she?

"All right. Klein will explain from the basics. Klein really is too kind for her own good!"

Lupin shot a glance at the prime minister, forehead split open, and thought that this was hardly something Klein got to say.

Klein's explanation went on for a full ten minutes and more. When she had heard it all, Lupin clapped with all her might.

"Great. I understand perfectly."

Her face said otherwise. Klein noticed, but since Lupin insisted, she decided to let it pass. In any case, full of confidence and armed with what she took for sturdy background knowledge, Lupin asked:

"Anyway, I need the Fragment of the Stars. So I just have to ask the Royal Blood to take it out for me, right?"

"…You did listen properly, didn't you?"

"I said I completely understood."

"Well, fine. Maybe it's Klein's fault for not spelling it out! To cut to the conclusion, what you're saying is absolutely impossible. The Fragment of the Stars isn't the sort of thing that can be taken outside the Holy Ark."

"It's not?"

Then what the hell was this?

Something was wrong. Unless everyone but Lupin was putting on The Truman Show, this meant—

By this world's common sense, it's impossible?

Once, Lupin had gone with a treasure hunter and opened an Abandoned Safe. Unlike Lupin, who walked away with every resource she needed to grow, the treasure hunter had lamented that the thing was nothing but trash. So the Fragment of the Stars, too, had to be some mystery that existed only as a concept Lupin alone could claim. There was no reason at all to hesitate just because the people around her tried to stop her.

The key to the Holy Ark—no. Get the prime minister back, and she could open it on the spot. Lupin took one step further.

"Why does the cult need the Holy Ark?"

It was not an effort to take a little more interest in the world, the way Tasili had asked. It was nothing but a ploy to pry out the cult's logic. She had no idea when another nuisance like Klein might turn up, so she meant to read their intentions in advance and be ready for them. Above all, hadn't Lupin already been burned by a scam cult once before? Her grudge against that sort ran deep. She had even prepared a concrete plan for revenge.

Pretend to tag along. Pretend to be interested. Take the offered cup of coffee and pretend to think it over. Eat one more expensive meal and pretend to listen with shining attention. If they still wouldn't let go, drag them out drinking, assassinate them with alcohol, and have them hauled off to the police station. How many had she taken down that way? She'd saved a fair amount of money, and eaten all sorts of food besides. Cults had their uses.

Lupin let her eyes shine with open, eager brightness. Sparkling. I'm so curious. Please tell me.

"To explain that… you'd need to know a little about the cult too, wouldn't you?"

Of course, a hardworking recruitment officer like Klein saw through a trick of that level with ease. Catching a prospective initiate who meant to run, then persuading, inciting, and winning them over—that was the very virtue of a shrine maiden. How many people had come over to the cult after only meaning to feel things out, just like Lupin?

"Hmmm. Fine! Klein never turns away a passionate newcomer!"

But if you failed to understand the twisted way of thinking hidden behind all that purity and transparency, then no matter how seasoned Klein was, in the end she was only one ordinary person.