Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: Off to Steal Again Today
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Spying on someone else's inventory.
In Agas, that was something no one could even dream of.
Even if such a skill existed, the best you could hope for was peeking at part of their status window.
But a skill that let you steal a look at someone else's possessions?
'That's way too overpowered.'
A bug.
No, it was cheat-level ability.
And now, that power was in his hands.
'Whoa.'
He'd always thought he had the worst luck.
That he'd never find a hidden piece in his lifetime.
But that wasn't true at all.
'No, stay calm. Yoo Seokwoo. You haven't checked everything yet. You can freak out after you're done.'
He couldn't get too excited.
There was still the Steal skill left to test.
Times like this called for calm precision.
And to do that, he needed to start with Scout.
He had to fully understand this skill first.
'The longer you use Scout, the more items you can steal a look at?'
That seemed to be the gist of it.
But the problem was the time it took for items to appear.
Based on his data so far, it took about 10 seconds per item.
Of course, if he made eye contact with the target or moved too far away mid-cast, the timer would reset.
'So the key is staying close without drawing attention?'
Or hiding completely out of sight.
As Luke organized his thoughts, he turned his gaze.
The user's inventory window floated before his eyes.
Being in the Starting Village, most of it was junk, but that didn't matter.
What caught his attention was the parentheses after the item names.
Specifically, the numbers inside them.
'As I thought...'
Steal success probability.
That was the most likely explanation.
Why?
Because he still had the Steal skill.
Sure enough.
His guess was spot on.
Scout was for Steal.
And Steal relied on Scout.
'Plus, you don't get caught right away on a fail.'
The probability just drops.
'As long as it doesn't hit 0%.'
If it did, it'd count as a crime, alerting the guards.
'And if it escalates, I'd end up wanted.'
Luke, the Worst Criminal in History.
He knew exactly what came after a report.
Having to start over like this made him even more cautious.
'I've only got one life.'
At least his Infamy was hidden for now.
'Alright then...'
Time to test Steal.
Luke scanned for the highest-probability item, but for some reason, the rates had dropped overall since earlier.
'What's going on? Why are the probabilities so low... Ah?'
Realizing something, Luke looked around.
'Is it the people's gazes?'
Not just that—the location itself.
The target's position, posture, situation... multiple factors.
To confirm, he switched spots several times and tried Scout in various scenarios.
The results proved his hunch right.
'More eyes watching means lower probability.'
And not just that.
The target's position mattered too.
The more advantageous the situation for stealing, the higher the probability.
'Steal stealthily without them knowing.'
Movements.
Presence.
Footsteps.
Lots to watch out for.
'In that case...'
Into a deserted alley.
"Ugh..."
A heavily drunk middle-aged man lay half-collapsed.
Probably had one too many at the nearby tavern.
He was out cold on the ground.
"Mister, sleeping here is dangerous. Get up."
"Ughhh."
"If you don't wanna die."
"One more drink..."
"Jeez."
Poor guy.
Luke quickly checked the alley's entrances.
Just him and the drunken NPC villager.
No footsteps nearby.
"Ahem."
No time like the present.
Here it came.
A solid mark.
It popped up again before his eyes.
'My theory checks out.'
Probability depends on onlookers, location, and situation.
Proven.
Now, just Steal left.
Luke looked down at the scroll window.
Willum's items kept appearing after the Rusty Dagger.
True to a drunk, mostly junk and empty bottles.
'Not much to choose from.'
He selected the freshly appeared Rusty Dagger.
Then, a hand cursor appeared on the scroll window.
Like it was urging him to reach out and grab.
Luke glanced around once more.
No one coming.
No footsteps or presence nearby.
'Good.'
Now he could comfortably reach for the text in the scroll.
A tense moment.
Soon, messages flooded in.
Twitch!
His pupils trembled.
Rusty Dagger.
EXP.
Proficiency too.
The moment he saw it, unfamiliar ecstasy surged from deep within.
'Th-this...'
Luke's hand shook.
'Is friggin' awesome!'
The Starting Village was on the continent's edge.
The southernmost tip.
Where players went first after getting their tutorial jobs.
You couldn't leave the area until level 10.
Basic jobs: six in total.
Warrior.
Mage.
Archer.
Thief.
Brawler.
Priest.
Players picked one and met conditions to advance to higher jobs.
Simple leveling: hunt animals in nearby plains and forests.
Instructor training and repetition.
Or village quests.
Luke had done the same at first: hunted, quested to 10.
Once he left the village and shed newbie status, he started killing people for real.
'But no need anymore.'
Why?
A better way had appeared.
Less risky.
No penalties if you didn't get caught.
'Steal gives EXP too.'
Items.
EXP.
Proficiency.
All three from one steal.
'No need to hunt people one by one.'
The EXP from Steal was substantial.
Might be better than PK time-wise.
Had to be.
PK drops were random items, random count—sometimes just junk if unlucky.
But Great Thief skills?
Pick and steal exactly what you scouted.
'Losing levels and items hurt...'
But this could be an opportunity.
Easier money, faster growth—perfect for a gamer.
No way dark gamer Luke would miss it.
Gu Hwi?
Ruin Empire?
They caused this, sure, but revenge? Nah.
No value in it.
Better spend time growing.
Waste time and money on pointless emotions? No.
So, time to dig deeper into Great Thief.
Agas developer Yong Ho-seop once said:
'Why the Starting Village? Eh, boring reason. Wanted to see everyone start the same. Life's outcome is set from birth, right?'
Same progression.
Same place.
Same status.
Only jobs differ.
All start as broke adventurers.
'Sure, it diverges after leaving, but starting line should be equal. Right?'
That interview stuck with him.
But now?
'Ho-seop, buddy, that was BS.'
Total nonsense.
Same my ass.
A few steals, and this haul.
How's the starting line equal?
'Just from a handful of marks.'
Luke grinned, swapping into the Training Robe.
Training Robe: basic gear from instructors after tutorial.
Luke got it via Steal, no training needed.
Basic armor sorted.
Weapon fixed clean with the whetstone.
Basic gear complete, Luke munched Barley Bread while checking his status.
Just some light skill tests, and he was already level 2.
'Tests are good enough.'
Results:
Scout works on players and NPCs.
Probability based on onlookers, location, situation.
Once set, probability fixed—but recasting after interruption readjusts it.
'Steal failure drop isn't much.'
Too low, actually.
Drops 1% per fail.
Permanent; no recovery.
So fewer chances as it drops.
'Just avoid under 1%.'
Won't touch those anyway.
'Left are job skills...'
Problem: how to acquire them?
Level-based?
Job quest?
Plans change based on that.
'Something about heirs and legacy... hope no weird job quests pop later.'
Like Ten Emperors.
Or revenge on the continent.
'Nah, no way. Thousands of years ago, and those Emperors are long dead.'
Continent revenge? Too far-fetched.
Luke shrugged it off and got to business.
'Okay, what's next.'
So far, easy marks for testing.
Now, growth plan time.
'No big scores here.'
No grand hopes.
Level 10 and under players swarm the Starting Village.
Villagers stash valuables; merchants use untouchable displays. No Scout steals there.
'Or just loot casually and bail fast?'
Viable.
'Ha, how to loot without rumors...'
Then.
A line caught his eye.
Players staring ahead, waiting their turn.
'Ah, quest rewards.'
Yeah, lines everywhere.
Blacksmith.
Clothing shop.
General store.
All queues for NPC rewards.
One NPC per reward.
'I remember those days.'
Briefly.
As he looked away from the line.
'...Huh?'
Something flashed in his mind.