Do You Know What a Night Like This Is Called?
A night as pitch-black as ink. A night where neither the moon in the sky, nor the stars, nor anything else in the heavens can gaze upon the earth.
"They said they were preparing, but damn, they've really gone all out."
The Pendragon family's villa in Seoul. Built solely for Ray Pendragon's stay in Korea, it sat at the edge of the neighborhood where embassies clustered. Of course, that made it perfect for overlooking the place from the mountain peak above.
"Hmm, fewer numbers than expected. Has Pendragon's backup force not arrived yet?"
No proper elite troops in sight. Just local cops patrolling the area, agents from the Awakener-dedicated police bureau, and a handful of family members.
"Alright then, time to dispense some justice tonight?"
God. Please grant me permission to become a righteous thief.
Of course, compared to the chairman's place last time, this one had way more people, so I'd prepared some alternative methods. It'd be worth the wait.
Right now, thanks to Clown-Style Makeup, my entire body was shrouded in darkness, pitch-black as the void.
"Time to get started."
I raced down the mountainside paths, picking up speed toward the Pendragon villa. With a mindset for swift action, I charged straight at it. If things looked the same up close as they did from above, then in moments...
Rustle.
"Huh? An animal? Eek—?!"
I ran into a patrolling cop. I fired a tranquilizer dart right at his arm. He crumpled to the ground before he could even radio in.
Without slowing, I infused aura into my legs to boost my physical abilities and blended my body into the shadows as I leaped forward. In an instant, I soared into the air, vaulting over the Pendragon villa's wall.
——!
Something grazed my body, sending chills exploding across my skin.
"As expected. Ray Pendragon wouldn't make it that easy to sneak in."
Unlike the superintendent's house, which only had basic runes near the wall and some guards, this place had a full dome-shaped rune etched around it.
Beep—! Beep—! Beep—! Beep—!
A eardrum-shattering alarm blared as the villa lit up blood-red.
"Ugh, do security companies have to make everything so damn loud and flashy? Total nuisance to the neighbors."
I grimaced and sprinted toward the entrance when footsteps pounded around the corner—multiple people charging my way.
The runes must have had a tracking function. Simple enough solution, then.
"Black Flame."
I activated Black Flame, feeding it the surrounding light as pitch-black fire erupted around me. The ambient glow began to fade bit by bit.
The Pendragon villa slowly plunged into darkness. The lights snapping on from that direction actually worked in my favor. Slipping through the gap, I dashed straight for the secret vault.
They were already losing it to the combo of darkness and black flame. Not that I was much better off... but I had another set of eyes.
Ever since that first outing, my partner had been assisting from start to finish. Yeah, the best desk jockey was solidly backing me up.
"Got it."
With precise intel, I moved cautiously. An unavoidable section? Easy fix. I brought my left hand to my right cheek.
"Magic. Character Change."
I scanned it like a quick read. Clown-Style Makeup activated in sync, morphing my face into that of the cop I'd met on the mountain.
Before anyone spotted me, I grabbed clothes from the break room rack and threw them on. A phantom thief's gig starts with disguise and infiltration.
"Ready, Haru?"
Yu. Now, the greatest show on earth was about to begin—for the whole nation.
* * *
Before long, the area around the Pendragon villa was swarming with people due to the incident from minutes ago.
"Stay back!"
"Don't cross the police line!"
Cops blocking access. And then...
"What was that siren just now?!"
"I hear the young master of the Podish family, who was Magical Log's target last night, and Pendragon's heir are both student council members at the same academy. Is Magical Log behind this too?!"
A barrage of reporters. Even rubberneckers drawn by the commotion.
Stepping forward amid the onslaught was a calm-headed man.
"I'm Sergeant Kang Cheol-sang of the Awakener Police Bureau, in charge of security support for the Pendragon villa."
Cameras and mics swung toward him as he addressed the press.
"Is it true Magical Log showed up?!"
"Has Magical Log broken in?!"
"What's happening inside?!"
Kang recalled the update from his aide amid the frenzy.
'The area went pitch-black, and his trace vanished completely. They've searched inside and out, but no sign of him.'
He'd devoted his life to the force, building pride hunting thief villains. Heroes might downplay cops, but his unit's 97% arrest rate proved otherwise.
So he was certain: the guy had retreated from their ironclad security. Or at least ducked out for now.
He stared down the flashing cameras, raised a fist, pumped it in the air, and bellowed,
"Everyone! Rest assured! The Pendragon villa is safe——."
KABOOOM────!!
"——...Huh?"
A massive explosion rocked the villa's center, flames blooming skyward.
"Tr, scoop!"
"Snap photos!!"
"Star-shaped! A star in the sky!"
A pink star flared over the Pendragon villa.
Inside an ice cream truck not far off...
"Reporters spotted the star. How was the timing?"
Haru glanced skyward at Eugene's words.
"Yes, it's quite enormous."
"...I don't follow."
Undeterred by Eugene's nonsense, she checked the feed from the tiny camera around his neck. The villa was chaos post-explosion...
"Put out that fire! It's spreading!"
"Mages! Get the mages!"
Exactly as Eugene intended. And there he was, in staff uniform, dashing through it all.
Target: the vault room. With the place lit up now, navigation was a breeze. Countless "raids" had etched the layout in his mind.
"You think?"
'Yeah, to an outsider, it'd look suspiciously familiar.'
But he had excuses ready. alibis and explanations were key to this game.
"It's the destiny of a magical girl."
"Anyway, the vault's in the basement storage, right?"
He lightened his footsteps. Things were about to get trickier. Unlike guards scrambling to douse fires or scouts roaming the halls, these were pros—unmoved by any ruckus, holding position like they were born to block intruders.
What they needed was a smile.
"You've all been working hard."
A fresh, innocent grin that screamed anything but "bad guy."
"...What do you want? That uniform looks like outer perimeter security."
"Nothing major."
The guard eyed Eugene's clothes, frowning at the man before him. But as if expecting it, Eugene casually looked up, doffed his cap, and replied,
"——I'm from headquarters."
* * *
"Y-You...?"
"Hello."
Shock rippled across their faces at the sight.
"...Gallahead? You're already in Korea?"
I shrugged at them, patting their shoulders reassuringly.
"Top secret. Keep your mouths shut. OK?"
"Y-Yes!"
"This way down!"
His face really was a golden ticket. Doubting it didn't even compute. Gallahead was obscure even among family insiders—a knight handling VIP protection, rarely seen. To relations, his mug was as good as a blank check.
"They'd never imagine I'd mimic Gallahead's face. Too out there."
From my informed view, it was a killer free pass.
"Alright, let's head in."
The toughest hurdle cleared easy—light steps ahead.
Descending fully revealed a vast steel chamber. Every door a massive vault needing a 4-digit code, built with rune-etched materials no normal method could breach. Miss twice, and alarms blared—brutal difficulty.
But.
"Well then... 9999."
Knowing the answer? Pointless obstacle. The door clunked open, revealing stacks of bullion.
"The young British lord brought quite the pocket change, huh?"
Each bar stamped with official certification.
"Haru. Can you handle the gold too?"
"No issue. I dumped every bar into the cube. They filled the space in seconds.
"Next vault it is."
9998 for the next. Clunk—open. Walls lined with paintings evoking a gallery.
"Art, huh? Pricey?"
"All mine then."
Clean sweep again. Methodically looting before reinforcements.
The cube now half-stuffed.
"What's the tally so far?"
"Jackpot?"
"Wouldn't dream of it."
Her intel was gold for this heist.
She eyed my casual vault-cracking, curious about the secret.
"Trade secret."
"One-man corporation."
Corporate-level profits this run too.
"Last vault left?"
"Oh, that?"
Duh, obvious.
"——With magic."
Magical Log style. Straight-up.