Eternal Thief

In the dark alleyway of the Black Hermit City, the space suddenly wrapped, and two cloaked figures appeared like shadowy phantoms.

One of the cloaked figures was holding a dark pentagon coin with dark blue luster, and there was a devilish owl's engraving on the smooth surface of the pentagon coin, giving off a mysterious vibe.

"Just what kind of talismans are these? I can't see through them at all. Just the marksmanship is enough to call these talismans work of a Rune Crafter above Ascension State, not to mention the runic symbols seemed infinitely profound and cryptic without any flaw. It's as if…"

"They are perfect!"

Ace couldn't help but chuckle as he somewhat liked Zaria's reaction and felt proud about the Primordial Talismans he had made through the system, not to mention he was fully capable of crafting them if he had sufficient materials.

Zaria felt annoyed, but she couldn't retort because, as a rune crafter and alchemist herself, she couldn't deny the mysterious talisman in her hand, and it was something she had never seen before.

"Now that we are far away from the lord castle, I don't think there's any need to waste these powerful space talismans that can even teleport us without leaving any traces behind under the law sense of a Half-Ascension…oh, Half-Abyssal King!

"Yet you said they are just Ascension Grade-4? Do you mind if I use it for studying? Consider it my reward for this failed theft, and also for using my noble name on a failed expedition!" Zaria impassively stated that she had already stowed the remaining talisman into her storage ring without any intention of handing it over.

However, Ace didn't mind since he could get as many as he wanted, but he still had to be frugal about them because his main body wasn't here to refill his supplies.

Nonetheless, for now, Ace still has enough trump cards at his disposal to protect Zaria and himself under similar situations.

But this situation was quite special because he was sure that they wouldn't encounter a Half-Abyssal King at every theft, so they might not even use those primordial Space Escape Talismans.

At that moment, a strange smile tugged on Ace's face as he couldn't help but comment that he was holding back because of the Dread Duchess's emergency.

"Umm…I don't mind really. But are you sure you want your thief's name to be 'Unlucky Boss'?" Ace questioned as he looked at Zaria weirdly because he couldn't figure out why Zaria would use such a strange yet amusing name.

Furthermore, he was more curious about the 'Unlucky' part since it would be more understandable if she had chosen the 'Lucky' title, just like her Thief Genre.

"Do you have a problem with that?" Zaria was displeased by Ace's question as she retorted, "It's my title, and I liked it. Furthermore, calling myself 'Unlucky' can have different psychological effects on others. Not to mention, I seemed to be getting unlucky ever since I met you, so I guess it's pretty accurate to call this Boss now the Unlucky Boss, humph!"

Ace was rendered speechless by Zaria's answer, as he hadn't expected her to be still resentful about the 'recruitment', and he smiled wryly, no longer bringing up that topic.

"Anyway, do you think the Dread Duchess will be foolish enough to spread the name of 'Unlucky Boss' who had, in the end, humiliated her by exposing something that she should've been the one to notice," Zaria asked solemnly as she still couldn't under why Ace even bothered to expose their existence and alert the Dread Duchess.

After all, it would've been fine if they had emptied the entire treasury of the lord's castle, but they didn't, and instead they stumbled upon something they weren't supposed to.

That's why leaving behind a 'trace' of their existence will not only put the Dread Duchess on high alert, but also the 'mastermind' who might've been scheming against the Obsidian Myriad Kingdom or directly against the Dread Duchess on their heels.

This was the reason Zaria wasn't entirely satisfied with Ace's decision to leave behind her thief name, which should've been revealed in a more glorious manner, more suitable for someone of her status.

"There is nothing wrong with your thinking, and I know the Dread Duchess won't announce this kind of event to the public since she would be indirectly admitting that she's an incompetent ruler and requires some vigilante's help to do her job.

"But this doesn't mean we won't benefit from exposing your name to the Dread Duchess." Ace's eyes flickered with cunningness as he sharply stated, "Just who is the Dread Duchess? She's not only the ruler of a vast territory like the Obsidian Myriad King, but she's also one of the leaders of the Abyssal Devil Clan, and above all, she's a member of the Evernight Council's King Circle.

"Which means, she'll have to record all of this because if she doesn't, it'll be akin to hiding a crucial piece of information from the Evernight Council.

"If she had gotten rid of the 'Unlucky Boss,' it would've been fine. But she hasn't, and there's a chance that this mysterious Unlucky Boss, who had the capability of sneaking into the lord's castle of the Black Hermit City and then escaping her detection, might reveal itself again.

"Not to mention, she didn't know what the Unlucky Boss's true motives were for 'exposing' the sealed vault. That's why I make it even more complex.

"Anyhow, once Dread Duchess revealed the name of the 'Unlucky Boss', it might not spread publicly, but it will spread among the people of high status within the Evernight Council and many secret information networks!"

At that moment, realization dawned on Zaria, and her eyes shimmered with a peculiar light as she glanced towards hooded Ace.

'He thought all of this within such a short time?' Zaria again marveled at Ace's thievish abilities and mind.

Even though she hadn't considered all of this in such a short time, Ace had, and there were more than ninety percent chances that the Dread Duchess would do exactly as Ace had predicted, making the results also predictable.

At that moment, Ace's eyes shimmered coldly, "However, it still won't make up for the House Points you were supposed to get. That's why we'll have to take a small detour from the Black Hermit Market!"