The Decoy Thieves
I stared blankly at the receding rear of the van as the thieves drove off. Should I memorize the license plate? But there wasn't one anywhere on the vehicle.
"My cabbage..."
Was I really sending off my cabbage like this? In my despair, I nearly collapsed right there.
But then, Han Yeoreum, who was standing beside me, shot off like a monster to chase the van.
"Stop the car!"
She overtook the vehicle in an instant and planted herself in front of the black van. Startled by her sudden appearance, the van kicked up a cloud of dust as it slammed on the brakes.
"Ah...!"
Han Yeoreum had caught the thieves for me. I ran after the van a step behind her. I wanted to fling open the door right away, but I decided to hang back behind her instead. There was no way thieves who would steal from private property were normal people. They might flip out and charge at us with murderous intent.
"You can't just steal stuff from private property like that!"
Thud!Thud!
Han Yeoreum pounded furiously on the van's hood, and a middle-aged woman I'd never seen before stepped out from the passenger seat. She acted with shameless nonchalance, as if she wasn't embarrassed at all to be caught red-handed.
"Oh dear, sorry about that. I thought it belonged to no one."
"You call that an excuse...?"
Han Yeoreum furrowed her brow at the woman's brazen attitude. Offended by that reaction, the woman snapped back instead.
"Hey, we'll just give it back, okay? We'll give it all b—"
"What the—"
Before Han Yeoreum could finish, the middle-aged woman yanked open the side door of the van with tremendous force—bang!
"My cabbage...!"
I hurriedly clambered over the high door sill into the van. It looked too tall for my small stature, so Han Yeoreum lifted me up. It wasn't strictly necessary, but I appreciated the help.
Inside the van, piles of my crops filled the space. I grabbed a radish from the front stack and hopped back out. The sill was still too high on the way down, forcing me to jump.
"My radish was in there."
As I approached Han Yeoreum with the radish, the atmosphere felt off—tense, like a fight could break out any second. I glanced nervously between the two women.
"Auntie, you take out everything you stole yourself. Stack it neatly in the kid's tent."
"Stole? Look at this brat talking!"
"So what, you just borrowed it?"
Han Yeoreum's voice was icy—colder even than when she'd dealt with me at the Beginner Hunting Ground. Was she that furious about the theft? I didn't want to poke the bear, so I stayed quiet.
"Gyeowol, wanna go watch them unload the veggies?"
Han Yeoreum approached with a suddenly gentle tone, completely different from how she'd spoken to the woman.
"Sh-shouldn't we help out a little...?"
"Nah, they're the thieves here."
Her cold glare turned back to the middle-aged woman, who flinched and whipped her head away.
"Ooh..."
Han Yeoreum was tougher than I thought. Too intimidated to say anything, I decided to inspect the recovered crops instead.
I sat by the campfire, watching the middle-aged man and woman haul the crops. They looked exhausted, and I wanted to help, but Han Yeoreum's firm hand on my shoulder kept me in place.
"I get how you feel, Gyeowol, but sit tight for now, okay?"
"Y-yes... sure..."
Fine, whatever. They'd tried to steal days of my hard work, after all. No sympathy from me.
"All done—check it out!"
The middle-aged woman wiped her sweat and approached us, her voice sharp with irritation from the labor.
I shot her a glare before dashing to the tent piled with crops.
"Uh..."
Cabbage, lettuce, radishes, carrots—they were stacked high. But compared to my records, a few of each were missing.
"Um, two or three of each crop are gone...?"
Two or three—not enough to notice at a glance, but gone nonetheless. At my words, the woman's body trembled ever so slightly—a quiver too subtle without my improved eyesight.
"Wh-what are you talking about? We put everything back there...!"
She brushed off her hands dismissively and strode out of the tent, hurrying away suspiciously fast, like she was fleeing.
"...?"
Had they siphoned off some of my crops separately? As I watched her go with puzzled eyes, Sophia, who had been silent, poked Han Yeoreum's back.
"It might be a decoy operation."
"Huh? A decoy?"
Han Yeoreum picked up a nearby dented bucket. Rubbing the dented part with her hand, she smoothed it back to perfect shape.
"...She's talking about a yangdong tactic."
Yangdong operation. At the term, the two middle-aged thieves quickened their pace toward the van. Sophia blocked them.
"You two got caught on purpose."
"What?"
"To buy time and distract us?"
"What nonsense is this kid spouting?"
Mistaking Sophia for a child, the woman spoke casually and rudely. Sophia's brow furrowed slightly at the condescension.
"She said two or three of each type are missing. The real theft is on your end."
"Why would we bother with something so troublesome...?!"
Troublesome. I agreed with the woman there. I couldn't fathom why they'd go to the effort of a distraction just for a few crops.
"Not because of the buffs the guild's been selling lately?"
"Buffs?"
"Yes. Since the tea you made has buff effects, Gyeowol, they must've figured the power originated from crops you grew yourself. Plants growing in a day would seem suspicious too."
"Ah..."
Stealing buff-infused plants to analyze them? If they could cultivate them themselves, they'd make a fortune. Sophia's unexpected insight was impressive.
"S-so the van was a decoy, and the real haul's hidden separately?"
"Exactly."
"W-wow..."
Han Yeoreum rolled her eyes side to side, dizzy from the twisted situation. She often seemed a bit slow, but honestly, I felt the same. I never imagined thieves using a decoy tactic for crops.
"Hey, even if you took my crops, it wouldn't help you..."
"What the hell are you kids babbling about?!"
Squawk!
Han Yeoreum advanced on the screeching woman, binding rope in hand.
"No idea about your babble, but I'll tie you up for now."
"You got proof we took anything?!"
"...No proof, but you did steal. Just precautions so you don't run."
True enough—they had stolen. The woman fell silent and accepted the ropes.
After handing the two thieves over to En Sia and Argo, we held a meeting in the container house—about how to catch the one who stole the seedlings.
"Slipped in while the guild's forces were away. Being planned, they probably dodged the CCTV."
"Maybe a stealth user."
"Yes, possible."
The middle-aged woman, who knew the answer, clamped her mouth shut. How were we supposed to catch the real culprit like this? I sighed in frustration.
Then Levi Nas trotted over excitedly.
"Pitiful fools! Levi Nas knows where the culprit is!"
"You do?"
"Yes! Mana from Levi Nas still lingers on the harvested plants!"
"Ah...!"
Han Yeoreum and I exchanged glances. Tracking seemed impossible, but this made it easy. Joyfully, I patted Levi Nas's shoulder.
"Levi Nas is amazing...!"
"A-amazing...?"
"Yeah. Only you can track from here."
Thrilled by the praise, a blush bloomed on Levi Nas's cheeks.
"More! Praise Levi Nas more!"
She struck a cocky pose, hand on hip. Seemed she loved being hyped up. Praise didn't cost anything, so I obliged.
"Great Horn Rabbit, tell us the thief's location."
"Sh-shall Levi Nas?!"
Uhaha! Levi Nas let out her weird laugh, closed her eyes, and concentrated. Mana stirred within her, and just as she seemed asleep, her eyes snapped open.
"Found them!"
"Where?"
"Right at the door!"
"The door?"
All eyes turned to the door. No presence, no sound—yet the culprit was there? Shocked, I looked up at Han Yeoreum, and then—a rustle right outside.
"Huh...?"
Han Yeoreum stared wide-eyed at the door. Even I, sharp at sensing presences despite weak combat, and the all-around superior Han Yeoreum hadn't detected it. A true master, right beyond the door.
Tension made me swallow hard. Only carefree Levi Nas bounced in place.