What? Robbing the Thief Guild?
"What? You're going to rob the Thief Guild?"
After that, several days passed. I managed to finish course registration without any issues. Of course, the results weren't exactly ideal. If possible, I would've preferred to fill my schedule entirely with combat-related classes. But surprisingly, quite a few people shared the same idea. That made the competition fierce. On top of that, there were mandatory major courses I had to take. In the end, I had no choice but to add a few theory classes.
Still, it wasn't the worst-case scenario. This was about as good as it was going to get.
'More importantly, this sword is the real problem...'
Right now, I was examining a single sword. It was the one the king had bestowed upon me last time.
'The more I look at it, the less I understand.'
When I first received it, I thought it was just an ordinary decorative sword. That was why I'd asked for money instead. But after hearing the prince's reaction, it seemed that wasn't the case.
'He spoke as if it was something extraordinary...'
The prince wouldn't have been jealous for no reason. If it had truly been a plain decorative blade, he wouldn't have reacted so strongly.
'But I still can't figure it out.'
Outwardly, it looked exactly like a flashy ornamental sword. Shing. Yet when I drew it, the story changed. The blade carried the unmistakable marks of long years of use, and its edge was sharp. It wasn't a mere decoration.
'I don't get it. If it's just a normal sword, why go through all the trouble of decorating it like this?'
Anyway, I couldn't make sense of it. To understand what it really was, I'd probably have to ask the prince or the king directly.
'That feels a bit awkward, though...'
While I was pondering over the sword, I sensed someone approaching my house. Step. Step. They were moving very cautiously, but they couldn't hide their presence from me.
'Hmm?'
It was a presence I'd never felt inside the academy before. Yet it wasn't unfamiliar. It was the kind I'd encountered countless times during my mercenary days.
'This is the presence of thieves.'
That was right. Thieves and assassins often carried this kind of aura. My expression hardened. It seemed someone was already trying to pull something shady.
'Who could it be? The hero? Or maybe the prince or the duke?'
Those three were the most suspicious. None of them seemed the type to hesitate when it came to underhanded tactics. But my guess was wrong.
Knock! Knock!
Surprisingly, the thief knocked directly on the door. I raised an eyebrow.
'What the...?'
An assassin who knocks on the door? This was a first. Still, there was no reason to hesitate. I walked over and opened the door boldly. Even if they tried to ambush me, it wouldn't matter. There was only one assassin in the world capable of wounding me.
'Surely that one person isn't here.'
Creak.
The firmly shut door opened, and from beyond it...
"A thief?"
I saw a man dressed in thief's garb. He looked similar to an assassin, but his appearance screamed thief.
"Ah, no! I'm not a thief... Wait, actually, I am...?"
His personality seemed a bit off too. More precisely, he looked somewhat dim-witted.
"Yeah, you're definitely a thief."
"Ah, no, that's not what I meant..."
He really did seem like an incompetent thief. I immediately considered cutting him down. There was no reason to let a thief live. I slowly reached for my sword. Seeing that, his face turned pale. It seemed he knew who I was.
He quickly blurted out his affiliation.
"I-I'm from the Mercenary Guild!"
"Hmm...? The Mercenary Guild...?"
Only then did I realize his true identity.
"Ah...!"
Unexpectedly, the Mercenary Guild had sent someone right on time.
***
I walked along the road with a slightly embarrassed expression. Beside me was the thief I'd seen earlier. More accurately, he was the thief the Mercenary Guild had introduced.
"So... you were sneaking around like that because you had to enter the academy covertly?"
"Yes... It wasn't easy to get in."
"Ahem, that makes sense."
Come to think of it, I'd forgotten about that. The Royal Academy boasted incredible security. Naturally, not just anyone could enter. Yet this thief had slipped through that security and reached my doorstep. He wasn't an ordinary thief.
Well, it was fortunate he was a thief. If he'd been a normal person, he wouldn't have made it inside the academy at all.
"And you used to be part of the Thief Guild?"
"Yes. That's correct."
"Interesting..."
I nodded with satisfaction. The Mercenary Guild had brought me someone better than expected. The place where thieves gathered was called the Thief Guild. Of course, ordinary pickpockets weren't allowed in. The Thief Guild was where the truly skilled thieves congregated.
'And if it's the Thief Guild...'
Moreover, the Thief Guild had plenty worth stealing. It practically screamed that it was filled with expensive things. Of course, there was one problem. I was about to suggest robbing the Thief Guild to a former member. He was bound to find the idea distasteful. But I didn't care about that.
"Perfect. Lead the way to the Thief Guild."
"Ah, the Thief Guild... Yes? Why there...?"
"Why else? Because I'm going to rob it."
"Y-You're going to rob that place...?"
His face filled with bewilderment at my words. He clearly hadn't expected to hear something like this.
"Don't want to? Got some attachment to your old workplace?"
"N-No, sir. I was just surprised..."
As I'd mentioned before, Trier's underworld was quite large. Naturally, the Thief Guild wasn't ordinary either. It wasn't just a gathering of thieves. They possessed considerable military strength as well. That was why he was making that face.
"Why? Is there some law saying you can't rob thieves?"
"N-No, sir! Mercenary... Ack! I mean, if it's you, Lord Marco, then of course it's possible!"
He'd almost said "Mercenary King" but stopped himself. His face twisted in pain instead. Then he quickly shouted the alias I'd given him. It wasn't exactly a normal reaction.
There was a reason for that. I'd cast a spell on him beforehand. Since I was hiding my identity, it would've been awkward to rob the place as the Mercenary King. But there was someone who knew who I really was—the thief named Robin standing right in front of me.
So I'd used the Restriction spell on him. It was a spell that limited certain words. Now he couldn't say "Mercenary King." Of course, it wasn't a particularly powerful spell. It just caused an intense headache if he tried to speak the restricted word.
"You know what happens if you reveal my identity, right? Your head will explode."
"Y-Yes, I understand!"
Still, he trembled like a leaf in the wind. I'd given him false information. This spell was one my master had created herself. Naturally, no one else knew about it except her and me. That was why I could deceive him so easily.
After scaring him for a moment, I started walking again.
"What are you doing, Robin? Lead the way."
"Ah, yes, sir!"
He looked like he already regretted accompanying me. But we couldn't stop here. I already knew his name, where he lived, and even his family connections. In short, he could never betray me.
"I'll release the spell once I leave for Earth. So don't worry too much."
"Th-Thank you!"
I planned to release him on the day I returned to Earth. Until then, there was no chance. 'If I fail to become the top student at the academy... then there's nothing I can do.'
Anyway, it was a good thing I'd scared him. He walked quickly toward the Thief Guild, all unnecessary thoughts wiped from his mind.
***
The Thief Guild. Wherever people lived, thieves existed. That was true on both Earth and Newpan. Naturally, a massive city like Trier had even more thieves running rampant. From what I knew, they were enjoying quite a prosperous era.
But a great calamity was now approaching them.
"Oh? So this is how they hid it."
I descended beneath a sealed dry well. Robin had already gone down ahead of me. Unlike him, I didn't need to struggle with ropes.
"Fly."
I floated in the air and slowly descended. Magic really was the best. Soon, the scene at the bottom of the well came into view. It looked like an ordinary well. In one corner, there was a narrow opening. It was small enough that I'd have to duck to pass through.
"This way, sir."
"Got it."
I followed him into the hole. It had been a while since I'd moved around by crawling like this.
'They wouldn't go through all this trouble for nothing.'
Fortunately, the narrow passage ended quickly. A wide space welcomed us. I slowly straightened up and looked ahead.
Then the sight unfolded before me.
"Oh...!"
A maze-like network of alleys stretched out in front of me. Torches lined each path, so it wasn't dark. But finding the destination didn't look easy either. The paths were far too complicated. It really was like a labyrinth.
"No wonder the Thief Guild hasn't been discovered all this time."
"Y-Yes, that's right."
Of course, a disaster would soon befall them.
"Lead the way."
"Ah, yes, sir!"
He quickly prepared to move at my command. Then a thought occurred to me. I stopped him for a moment.
"Wait. How long does it take to reach the Thief Guild from here?"
"At least thirty minutes."
"Damn..."
It took longer than expected. Unfortunately, I had a curfew. It wasn't like I was Cinderella, but I had to return before midnight.
"No choice, then."
"Yes?"
There wasn't enough time to rob the thieves either. I had to make every second count.
"Where is it?"
"Yes?"
"The direction where the Thief Guild Headquarters is located."
"Ah. It's roughly that way."
He pointed somewhere without thinking. It was roughly northeast from here. I nodded at the direction.
"I'll go on my own from here."
"Yes?"
I ignored his reply and extended my palm forward. It was the same posture I'd used when killing the mercenaries who had impersonated the Steel Mercenary Group.
'Shockwave.'
A massive shockwave erupted from my hand. Then...
BOOOOOOM—!!
With a thunderous roar, the wall in front of us collapsed.
Rumble.
"Wh-What the..."
Robin's shocked face was visible. It was understandable, given that a wall had suddenly crumbled. I casually walked through the collapsed wall.
"What are you doing? Come on."
"J-Just a moment..."
Behind me, I repeated the process and destroyed another wall.
BOOOOOOM—!!
His mouth fell open at the sight. He seemed to have roughly figured out what I was planning.
That was right. If I knew the direction, there was no need to navigate the maze-like paths one by one. I could just blast straight through everything in a direct line.