< Chapter 56 - The Thief #3 >
&
Kallium, the capital of the Kingdom of Cailun, boasted the largest population of any small country and the greatest wealth in the kingdom, as befitting the second largest city in the world.
Tens of thousands of people traveled the royal capital every day, and a huge amount of money, enough to fill a hundred carts, was traded every day.
City of light.
The brightest shining land of glory in the Holy Kingdom of Seilun.
But the brighter the light, the darker the shadows tend to be.
The underworld of the capital was larger and more threatening than that of any other city within the kingdom.
‘There are only a few thieves’ guilds in one city.’
In fact, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the Thieves’ Guild was actually a comprehensive criminal organization, although it was called the Thieves’ Guild.
Not only did he commit theft, but he also got involved in all sorts of other negative acts.
Entertainment businesses including gambling and prostitution were the norm, and some guilds even went so far as to engage in violent crimes such as contract killings or kidnappings.
‘Among them, the black moon is the most evil.’
The Black Moon, which controlled more than half of the capital, had its hands in all aspects of the capital’s darkness, from pickpocketing in back alleys to human trafficking and drug dealing.
There were two reasons why the Black Moon could come out so boldly – no, the reason why it got involved in such dangerous things in the first place.
‘One, the guild leader Karma is the embodiment of desire.’
There was no good or evil for him.
All that existed was gain and loss.
Is it profitable? If so, kill your parents.
Is it harmful? If so, then cut off the child.
He was a ruthless and cruel tyrant, and that was why he was able to engulf the capital in darkness.
“I don’t hesitate.”
It was karma’s habit, and it was true.
He was an iron-blooded ruler who did not hesitate even when it came to killing his own father.
‘The second reason is the protection of the Guardian King.’
The Black Moon received full support from the political forces centered around the Guardian King.
The Black Moon’s cargo, whatever it was, could pass through the gates quickly and accurately, and all the criminal acts that took place every day were hidden in the darkness and not revealed.
Reasons why this might be the case.
Why it has to be that way.
Karma and the Black Moon were the hunting dogs of the Guardian King.
A good, obedient hunting dog who does all the dirty work for you and earns you a lot of money.
‘But even that black moon couldn’t take control of the entire royal road.’
The royal road was too wide for that.
Because so many people were living there.
Moreover, the Duke of Hoguk was not the only royal figure with strong power. There were clearly political forces opposing him as well.
‘So the remaining forces.’
Those who cannot operate in the center of the royal capital, which can be called the yolk land, but occupy the outskirts as if they were its substitutes.
Among those many forces, there was an organization called Blue Moon.
The so-called Thieves’ Guild, which boasts history and tradition, was the largest force in the capital before the rise of the Black Moon.
“Are you really coming?”
In response to the question from Jennifer, the blonde beauty and loyal right-hand man and second-in-command of the guild, Jupe, the guild leader and first-in-command, a middle-aged man with a rather mature appearance, nodded.
“She’ll really come. She’s a real log master.”
He spoke with a voice that was slightly filled with joy as he took out the white card again.
A preview of the Log Master Pink Bomb that has been causing a stir in the world.
The card, which was about the size of the palm of your hand, had the following words written in a pretty font:
I’ll come visit you tonight.
– Phantom Thief Pink Bomb.
Behind the short but powerful sentence is engraved the lips of a beautiful woman.
“It’s pink.”
Jennifer narrowed her eyes as Jupe stroked the lip print on the card with a look of rapture on his face.
“I’m saying this out of concern, but… you haven’t kissed, have you?”
“Oh, no? I just looked at it? No, I just touched it?! I, I didn’t even touch it with my lips or anything?!”
Jupe, who had answered hastily, glanced at Jennifer as if to check her mood, and Jennifer narrowed her eyes a little more and spoke in a cold tone.
“If you’re going to do it, do it secretly. Secretly. Without anyone knowing.”
“Oh, I told you not to do it?”
“I believe you.”
“Ahem.”
Jupé coughed, put the card back in the drawer, and straightened his posture.
Jupe and Jennifer.
The first and second in command of the Blue Moon Guild.
The Blue Moon’s headquarters, located near the Wangdo East Gate, was a large bar that appeared to be operating normally and paying its taxes well, and Juppe and Jennifer were the bar owner and top bartender.
The place where the two people met was the bar owner’s office.
“Anyway, why is the Log Master looking for us?”
“Because you need information to steal?”
“Not going to the black moon?”
“Jennifer, you’re a member of our guild, right? And why are you so short-spoken?”
“Suspicious. Why is it that they contact our blue moon instead of the black moon? No, maybe it’s not just us. They may have already visited the black moon.”
As Jennifer, dressed as a bartender, narrowed her eyes again, Jupe, dressed in a tux, frowned.
“Well, you’ll know when you meet her. She’s a true Rogue Master. That fact alone makes her worth meeting.”
“But boss.”
“When I’m at the store, I’m the boss.”
“A meticulous boss who worries about little things.”
“Why do I keep putting you in second place?”
“Because she’s talented and pretty?”
“It’s sad that both are true.”
“First of all, it’s because I’m the boss’s mistress.”
“No, I’m single according to my family register. We’re not having an affair or anything. Why don’t you give me a ring soon?”
“I tend to avoid office romances.”
When Jennifer cut her off, Jupe pouted his lips a few times and leaned back in his chair.
“Why anyway?”
“How come you’re so sure that Pink Bomb is the Rogue Master? Honestly, I don’t know. Her predicted crimes, even if they were successful, were only one.”
“Hehehe, that’s probably how it looks to amateurs.”
“What are you talking about, without even trying?”
“What did you say?”
“The boss said last night was really awesome.”
“Ahem, I guess I was a bit impressive last night, huh?”
“Yes, but I would like you to tell me in what sense you mean by amateur.”
As Jennifer changed the subject again, Jupe stroked his well-groomed beard and said:
“You’re talking about an amateur Log Master. On the other hand, I can be called a master of Log Master.”
“Are you talking about a madman?”
“Just be a big fan.”
Jupé smiled brightly, opened a drawer, took out a few well-made cards, and laid them out on the desk.
“Trading cards?”
“It’s my collection. The Log Master is the eternal idol of thieves.”
The five cards each depicted a different tool, and Jennifer could immediately understand what each card meant.
“These are the secrets of the Log Master.”
“Yes, the most important of them all is the last secret, the Moon Crystal.”
Jupe picked up a card with a beautiful crystal design on it and snapped his fingers as he continued speaking.
“Jennifer, do you know anything about the past Rogue Masters?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then, remember this time. I’ll explain it to you.”
Jupe smiled again and looked at the remaining four cards.
“There have been five Log Masters so far. However, only the first one had all five treasures.”
“Wasn’t it a secret that was passed down to the next generation?”
“The invitation wasn’t handed down right away. I hid the five treasures in different places, hoping the next Log Master would find them.”
“Why?”
“I’m testing the next Log Master. To see if he’s truly worthy of being a Log Master.”
Juppe smiled brightly as if to say, “Isn’t that cool?” but there was still no smile on Jennifer’s face.
“In context, it seems like the story is that from the second generation onwards, they were unable to collect all the secrets.”
“That’s right, the second generation was only able to collect four treasures. They never found the last one. But… this is where the tragedy began.”
“Is it a tragedy?”
“Oh, a tragedy. The second generation hid all the treasures back in their original places before they retired in order to continue the legacy of the first generation. They even repaired traps and such. But the third generation didn’t do that. The third generation, who found three out of five, just passed his secret treasures on to the fourth generation… that is, to his children.”
“I see. Normally, you would have to find each treasure one by one in order, but since you didn’t even return it to its original location and just passed it on… does that mean that you can’t find the rest of the treasures even if you want to?”
As Jennifer spoke in a calm tone, Jupe blinked in surprise.
“No, how about that?”
“Because it’s a natural flow in the context.”
Jupe frowned at Jennifer’s answer, but soon nodded.
In the first place, it was Jennifer who was put in the number two position because she was so capable.
“Anyway, because of this, the 4th generation was only able to collect three treasures… and by the 5th generation, the location where the original Rogue Master’s treasures were hidden was no longer known.”
And the 5th generation disappeared without creating the 6th Log Master.
No one knows where the three treasures he had disappeared to as well.
“But then the Pink Bomb appeared. And it had the Moon Crystal, a fantastical treasure!”
Jennifer nodded as Jupe held up a card with a picture of a moon crystal on it with an excited look on his face.
“So, is it true?”
“Yes, because she has the last piece of information. She is the true… different from the Rogue Masters from the 2nd to the 5th generation, the new Rogue Master who has truly inherited everything from the first generation.”
The moon crystal was real.
The production and effects were so good that you couldn’t even imagine they were fake.
“She’s real. Pink Bomb is the real Rogue Master!”
“I see. It looks like you’ve arrived.”
“huh?”
“Uh… hello?”
In that order, Jupe, Jennifer, Jupe again, and the pink-haired woman standing in front of the window.
“Blood, pink bomb?!”
As Jupe stood up from his desk in surprise, Jennifer reached for the dagger hidden behind her waist.
And at that moment, another person appeared with the black wind.
A man with black hair, wearing a black mask, and a black cloak, all in black clothing.
Tension spread across Jennifer’s face, and Jupe looked tensely at the new man who had appeared – Yuder.
“Oh, don’t be so cautious. This is my assistant.”
Cordelia, the pink bombshell with a bright smile, continued speaking while twirling her tied-up hair with one hand.
“Greetings, my assistant Black Cloak.”
At Cordelia’s introduction, Jennifer narrowed her eyes, and Jupe frowned again.
“Black…cloak?”
“Yeah, Black Cloak. It’s a black cloak, right?”
When Cordelia spoke with a bright smile, Uther looked at her with urgent eyes.
‘Hey, Black Cloak?’
‘Oh, Black Cloak.’
You should try it too.
It’s exciting.
As Cordelia smiled mischievously and got excited, Uder snickered and bowed to Jupe, saying:
“It is an honor to meet you. I am Black Cloak, who serves Pink Bomb. Since Pink Bomb herself gave me this name, I always live with pride in the four letters Black Cloak.”
At Uder’s self-introduction, Jupe and Jennifer’s gaze turned back to Cordelia.
Those subtle gazes.
‘Well, I originally named myself Pink Bomb.’
‘If it’s a black cloak, it’s still pretty good.’
Even though the two of them were not even friends, it felt like I could hear their hearts just from their eyes.
‘Oh, no! No! I didn’t make it?! That’s not what I did! So don’t look at me like that!’
Cordelia screamed in her heart and gave him desperate looks, but only Uther could understand.
Because of that, Uther smiled happily at Cordelia, whose face and ears were red.
‘Haha, who are you going to hit?’
‘I hate you. I hate you.’
Cordelia glared at him, pursed her lips, and then let out a moan before focusing on Jupe again.
“Are you Jupe, the Blue Moon Guild Master?”
“Yes, I am Jupe, the guild master of the Blue Moon. This is Jennifer, the number two in our guild.”
“This is Jennifer.”
After Juppe’s introduction, Cordelia nodded with a proud face as Jennifer gave her greeting.
“I think the conversation will go well.”
“The Log Master is the object of desire of all thieves in Sairun- no, all thieves in the continent.”
Cordelia’s smile grew wider as Jupe spoke with a soft smile.
I was worried about what would happen if I doubted him, but he seemed to completely trust me.
‘But don’t let your guard down.’
‘I know, too.’
Cordelia shrugged her shoulders and greeted Jupe again.
“Anyway, nice to meet you. I’m the Rogue Master, the Phantom Thief Pink···Bomb···Tan.”
When Cordelia, who had been speaking with difficulty, suddenly reached out her hand, Jupe, who was momentarily flustered, quickly grabbed Cordelia’s hand.
“It is an honor.”
“Yeah, yeah, but don’t say you won’t wash your hands from now on.”
As I spoke with a wink, Jupe staggered, clutching his chest. It was too good.
“Boss, even if she is your lover, I don’t think it would be good if you showed this kind of behavior in front of your lover.”
As Jennifer spoke quickly and quietly with sharper eyes than usual, Jupe, who had barely managed to come to his senses, straightened his posture.
“By the way, Log Master, what are you doing here?”
In fact, the appearance of the Log Master was not all that welcomed by the guilds.
He was a giant who could sufficiently shake up the existing order.
At Jupe’s question, Cordelia smiled again and took a step closer to Jupe as she spoke.
“I am a newcomer who has just entered the capital. Wouldn’t it be natural for me to pay my respects to the Blue Moon Guild, which has supported the darkness of the capital for a long time?”
“Even if the black moon is strong now… it is just a temporary phenomenon. The blue moon is the true master of the traditional underworld.”
When Uder added appropriately to Cordelia’s words, Jupe immediately looked at Cordelia instead of smiling.
And Cordelia looked into Jupe’s eyes and said:
“We don’t go to the Black Moon. They’ve crossed the line. Don’t thieves have lines they must keep?”
Cordelia brought her face closer to Jupe, provocatively but with a hint of anxiety, and instead of flustering, Jupe smiled slightly. She asked in a soft voice.
“Do you intend to stir up the darkness of the royal capital?”
“We’ll have to wait and see.”
As Cordelia stepped back again after speaking sharply, Jupe smiled as if he found it amusing and pointed to the sofa in the middle of the office.
“Let’s listen to the story a bit more. You’re not just going to say hello and leave, are you?”
The position of Blue Moon Guild Master was not something that was taken for granted.
Cordelia nodded immediately and sat down on the sofa. Uther sat down next to Cordelia and leaned forward slightly as if he was going to take the lead from now on, and opened his mouth.
“I want to buy information.”
For future activities.
And to make you believe that we will behave in a certain way.
Because information didn’t just flow one way.
Because the mere act of wanting some information could actually leak information to the other person.
“It sounds like a good deal.”
Jupe, who was smiling only with his lips, faced Yuder.
&
The conversation didn’t last very long.
Literally short and sweet.
After finishing the transaction, Jupe asked Cordelia, who had been standing back while the transaction was taking place.
“Pink Bomb.”
“You can call me Log Master.”
No, call me that. Please.
“Then, Log Master.”
“Yes, Guild Master.”
“I can have all the information you want ready by tomorrow. But… is that okay? The National Foundation Day is coming up soon.”
The event commemorating the 300th anniversary of the founding of the nation was just around the corner.
As many guests came from abroad, the royal family’s interest in the security of the capital city inevitably increased.
Is it really okay to be active at a time like this?
But shouldn’t we think about it a little bit?
Cordelia smiled slightly at Jupe’s question. She looked Jupe in the eye and said.
“Jupe, I am the Log Master.”
A declaration that could be said to be childish, even immature.
But that foolishness captured Jupe’s heart.
For in his heart there still lived a young boy who regarded the Log Master as a hero.
“I look forward to it.”
“I’ll also look forward to Jupe.”
May tomorrow’s information be perfect.
Cordelia winked and stood up from her seat, and Uther opened the window wide for her.
“See you tomorrow.”
Cordelia waved her hand lightly and leaped out the window. Uther also saluted her theatrically and leaped out the window.
And a few minutes later.
After leaving the area where the blue moon was, Uther and Cordelia hid in a back alley and quickly changed into their original clothes.
Because I had to return to Adelia’s mansion before it was too late.
“Get carried.”
“Yeah, but Yuder, before that, there’s something I’m curious about.”
“What is it?”
“Do you really not have to buy it?”
Can the Log Master just run wild?
The royal family must be very concerned about the security of the capital city?
In response to Cordelia’s question, Uther answered with a face that seemed so obvious.
“Of course I should buy it.”
If the capital city is in an uproar right before the National Foundation Day because of Log Master, Nabal, and thieves, it will be an international embarrassment.
“I guess I’ll have to try a lot and only do it once or twice.”
“barely?”
“Oh, so you have to pick those two out and shake them off.”
As effectively as possible.
In a way that would make the Log Master’s name widely known while also dealing a blow to the Guardians and the Black Moon.
“Uh …
Instead of answering Cordelia’s question with a no, Uther brought up a different story.
“Cordelia, do you know what I mean?”
“what?”
“Absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
How foolish would they be if they were allied with the devil’s followers?
“Are you saying the back is very dirty?”
“There are many things that should not be revealed.”
That’s why there were so many places to poke.
So much so that I was having trouble deciding what to stab.
“Well, okay. We should leave this kind of thing to our Yuder. Birds of a feather flock together.”
“Wait, what did you say?”
“I don’t know about Cordelia. Anyway, let’s go quickly, Black Cloak.”
“Okay, Pink Bomb.”
Cordelia and Uther, who had each given each other a room, shared a rotten smile before heading to Adelia’s mansion.
&
< Chapter 56 - Thief #3 > End
