Taming the Protagonist

Chapter 46: In Anselm’s Palm

Having successfully climbed through a window into the mansion’s main building, Hitana let out a sigh of relief.

The girl squeezed her slightly sweaty palms, muttering in the darkness: “Why do the patrols seem unusually skilled… Is there really a lot of good stuff hidden here?”

She had come with a try-her-luck mindset, but the security was far stricter than expected.

As a monstrous hunter who could stalk through jungles at age ten, Hitana’s stealth skills were unquestionable, yet she nearly got caught several times.

A deserted mansion with such tight security—didn’t that scream there was treasure inside?

Miss Young Wolf rubbed her hands excitedly: “In that case, I’ll grab some extra stuff to take back. Hmph, that bastard’s money was all plundered from us anyway.”

“But…”

Gazing down the pitch-black corridor, Hitana thought: “In such a huge mansion, how do I find where the treasure’s hidden?”

Muttering to herself, Hitana followed her instincts, heading straight forward.

The Chishuang family’s lavish mansion was like a maze to Hitana.

Having thought Anselm’s residence was already absurdly large, she once again had her perception of noble extravagance redefined.

The girl moved through the darkness, still suppressing her breathing since she wasn’t sure if there were guards inside the sprawling mansion. Her powerful body was as light as a cat’s.

“Count Chishuang probably has a treasury or something,” Hitana thought. “It’s probably hidden in some super secret place… Ugh, guess I’ll have to trust my instincts.”

As she pondered, she suddenly heard undisguised footsteps from one end of the corridor.

There are actually guards patrolling?!

Hitana was startled.

Looking around with no place to hide, she took a deep breath, swiftly scaled the wall using its decorations, and nimbly flipped onto a massive chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

Curled up in the chandelier, Hitana listened as the footsteps grew closer, her heart steady.

Evading and hiding from powerful prey during a hunt was second nature to her.

“Wanderer, how much time do we have?”

…Huh? What does that mean?

The speaker’s tone didn’t sound like a guard, yet they made no effort to lower their voice.

“The ether-shielding scroll the Professor gave us can last at most half an hour, but with all the restrictions in Chishuang mansion, it can probably only block… fifteen minutes.”

Huh?Shielding? Restrictions? What are restrictions again?

Hitana’s mind stirred with confusion.

Though she barely paid attention at Tianlu Tower, she knew some basic sorcerer concepts.

Oh! I remember, it’s like a trap or something!

Realizing this, Miss Young Wolf was shocked—there weren’t just guards here!

So… I got in because I piggybacked on their shielding scroll thing?

That’s a thing?!

“If the Professor hadn’t sent this scroll at the critical moment, we might’ve had to leave empty-handed.”

The one called “Wanderer” sighed: “Even with Count Chishuang dead, Gray Fox hasn’t given up. He preserved much of the Chishuang family’s assets to keep vying for Chishuang Territory with Ironblade, so he’s prioritizing their protection.”

“Plus, that Hydra must’ve lost his mind, letting Ironstone’s private troops in,” another voice, female, complained. “Even time’s not on our side.”

“This was always a tough mission. We came prepared to fail, didn’t we, Stinger?”

As the footsteps and voices faded, Hitana grew anxious.

Though she didn’t fully understand who they were, even a fool could tell they were after the same thing: the treasures hidden in this mansion!

Instead of wandering aimlessly, she could quietly tail them and likely find the treasury.

Meanwhile, Wanderer and Stinger, moving further away, communicated telepathically.

“Is she following?” Wanderer asked.

“Yes, she’s exceptionally skilled. If not for a brief flicker in her psychic presence, I wouldn’t have noticed her,” Stinger’s tone was heavy in their mental link.

“Certainly she’s not an enemy?”

Stinger closed her eyes, sensing for a moment, then shook her head: “No hostility. Wanderer, who else would sneak into the Chishuang family’s mansion? For what purpose?”

“Purpose? What else could you want sneaking in here?” Wanderer sneered. “As for who… I think I know.”

“What?”

“Those after the Chishuang family’s assets can only be their rivals or enemies and in Chishuang Territory… the Chishuang family’s true enemy is only one.”

Stinger paused: “You mean… the Ironstone family? But Count Ironstone doesn’t seem that reckless. He shouldn’t need—”

At that moment, a third voice cut into their mental link:

“Bad news,” the third person said. “That other person you’re talking about—I checked. There’s no trace of her infiltration outside. Not a single hint. It’s disturbingly clean.”

“…What does that mean, Snowhawk?”

“It means she either has a powerful backup covering her tracks, or her own strength is unfathomable. Either way, we’re already caught in a net, you two.”

Snowhawk, monitoring the guards’ movements outside, whispered.

“I don’t think this is a coincidence,” he said. “On the very night we’re forced to act, with Ironstone’s troops about to enter Chishuang City, another skilled figure with a strong backing sneaks into the mansion.”

Wanderer’s eyes narrowed: “If that ‘friend’ gets into trouble or grabs a haul and then alerts the guards, all the blame falls on us, and they walk away clean.”

“No wonder there’s no hostility. Hah… the so-called virtuous Count Ironstone isn’t such a good guy either.”

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend—though a friend who can be discarded anytime.”

His eyes gleamed with cold loathing: “Too bad, the tables have turned.”

“…What are you planning, Wanderer?” Snowhawk asked.

In the mental link, Wanderer grinned confidently: “If they plan to pin all the blame on us after grabbing their share…”

“Let’s see who gets discarded first.”

He turned, speaking loudly into the empty darkness:

“Won’t you come out and meet, friend?”