Beneath the Museum
The sewer groundwork turned out better than expected. Aside from the musty stench and gloomy atmosphere, that is.
"Luckily, no one's around."
[Ordinary people don't live in places like this, after all.]
True enough. Even the maintenance workers probably only popped in briefly at set times. Still, there was always a chance of getting caught, so I had to wrap this up as quickly as possible.
Surprisingly, the sewers were spacious. The paths weren't too complicated either, so I reached my target spot without much trouble.
"Let's see..."
I stopped and unrolled the map. This wasn't an ordinary map—it had a spell cast on it, marking the exact coordinates of the Angel's Stayed Sea.
My plan was to drill through the floor of the display case from below and snag the necklace. The most crucial part was pinpointing its precise location.
"Who knew this spell would come in so handy."
A basic general magic spell from the Academy, meant for recording exact coordinates. It wasn't bad, but its real-world utility was debatable. Most folks could just eyeball it with decent accuracy anyway.
I kept following the coordinates when—
"Dead end."
I'd reached the end of the sewer line. Pushing further would only take me away from the museum. I'd anticipated this since the sewers didn't run directly underneath, but seeing it confirmed still sucked.
[You're really going through with this?]
I nodded at the Goddess's somewhat dubious question.
"No other way."
At least, I didn't have the confidence to come up with anything better in three days.
I pulled out the tool I'd brought in my bag for this moment: a pickaxe.
No path ahead? Make one. That was romance.
But this wasn't just any tool—it was a magical pickaxe I'd rented from the Witch. Enhanced durability and noise suppression made it less insane than it sounded. Magical artifacts were pricey, though, which was why I'd rented it instead of buying. I had to return it in one piece.
"Hup!"
Ting! Ting! Ting!
No time to waste. I hefted the pickaxe and started carving a path through the underground.
"Hoo... This is tough."
Only now did I truly appreciate miners. Pickaxing was no joke. Sweat poured down like a waterfall after just a short while. I ditched my hat and cloak entirely, setting them aside, and got back to serious digging.
How many grueling hours later, I finally broke through to right beneath the display case.
Now all that remained was tunneling straight up to it. Not easy, of course. One slip, and with the museum right above, I could get busted before even sending the notice.
I proceeded with utmost caution, keeping things as stealthy as possible.
And finally...
"Done...!"
Perfect underground prep, just as planned. Send the notice, slip in from below at the appointed time, and snatch the necklace. Flawless.
[Good work. Sending the notice right away?]
"Gotta. Delay too long, and they might spot the tunnel."
Finally escaping this godforsaken sewer. Hours of that stench had numbed my nose.
Just as I turned to leave...
"...Hm?"
[What's wrong?]
I paused and glanced back. The pitch-black darkness stretched along the path I'd taken, leading to a still, bottomless waterway.
Hallucination? I swear something just...
But nothing happened no matter how long I waited.
"Nah, must've been my imagination."
I shrugged it off and climbed out of the manhole. What could possibly be lurking in a sewer like this anyway? Time to send the notice. The Phantom Thief Raven was making his comeback after a week.
Tomorrow night, I shall take the Angel's Stayed Sea.
— Phantom Thief Raven
Phantom Thief Raven Returns After a Week!
Museum as the Next Target?
Angel's Stayed Sea – The Sapphire Necklace Chosen by the Phantom Thief
Flipping through the newspaper, I was genuinely impressed. I'd left the notice last night, and it was already front-page news by morning. No worries about public interest fading now.
The museum heist was clearly no small feat. Way different from sending a notice to some rich guy's private mansion.
The paper said the museum had called in the police and vowed to capture the thief with full force.
"They won't figure it out before we even start, right?"
[That could be fun in its own way.]
"Not funny at all."
If they sniffed out the sewer tunnel linking to the display case, this mission was toast. And with the notice already sent, no turning back.
What could I do? Worrying wouldn't change a thing. I'd hidden it meticulously, so it should stay undiscovered until showtime.
For now, off to the Academy. The Phantom Thief Raven only stirred under the moonlit night. Until then, I was just an ordinary extra.
I donned my uniform, left home, and arrived at the Academy after a ten-minute walk.
Entering the classroom, kids were chatting in clusters.
'Huh?'
Weirdly, Rachel was already there, slumped asleep on her desk as usual. Why was she always like this? Worse than my night thief gigs. Or did she have secret nighttime escapades too?
I shook off the silly thought, sat quietly, and settled in. No class yet, so no waking her. That'd just invite hassle.
'Bored...'
Nothing to do before lessons. Propping my chin, I zoned out, when familiar chatter drifted over. This time, not from beside me, but the seat ahead.
Yulia Grace—one of the original heroines—talking with her desk mate.
"Yulia! Did you see the paper today?"
"The paper?"
"Yeah! Phantom Thief Raven sent another notice!"
About me again. I tried not to listen, but my ears perked up anyway. Hard not to when it's your own dirt.
I knew Yulia's reaction would be predictable. Same as last time: theft is wrong, textbook stuff. It fit her character perfectly.
"I just don't get why! Guys like that make everyone hate on mages as a whole! Right?"
Her desk mate apparently wasn't a fan. Hard for me to defend openly given my line of work, but the criticism still soured my mood.
[Don't take it to heart. They don't know you yet.]
'I'm fine. Not entirely wrong anyway.'
Getting mad at chit-chat they didn't know I could hear would just tire me out. As her mate ranted, Yulia smiled awkwardly and took it all in stride. As kind as in the original. No wonder they called her saintess.
"Whoops, I've been yapping. What do you think, Yulia?"
"Well..."
She hesitated a beat.
"Maybe he's not a bad person?"
"...Huh?"
'What?'
Totally not what I expected. Just days ago, she'd called theft wrong no matter the reason.
[Head over heels for you already.]
'You think that makes sense?'
Couldn't wrap my head around it. The model student, polar opposite of Rachel—moral, prim saintess Yulia—suddenly switching views?
"You really think that? That Raven's a good guy?"
"I haven't met him, so I can't be sure... but donating to the orphanage? That's not something a bad person does."
The donation changed her mind? Not convincing. It came up before, and she'd still condemned theft.
"That's just smoke and mirrors! To fool pure souls like you!"
"Hehe. Maybe? I dunno."
"Seriously! You're too nice for your own good."
There had to be some trigger. No way she flipped without reason.
[So curious? Just ask her.]
'Out of nowhere? We're not that close.'
Unless a perfect excuse dropped from the sky. Fat chance, so I let it go.
And minutes later...
"Today's duty... Yulia and Kro."
The excuse dropped from the sky.