Chapter 120
While I was playing Gekko Magical Girl (Uncle), the defender of justice, I had a sudden thought.
“No, what kind of mansion is so hard to burglarize?”
Of course, it’s true that rich houses are harder to burglarize.
But isn’t it weird that they have magic, traps, and people just to catch thieves?
After reaching out to the community to find out the truth about a fact that isn’t even listed on the Sprout wiki.
I could see why.
[Title: What the hell is the security at the Hanwol group mansion?]
[Author: backworldblackeye]
[I mean, I’ve been to all kinds of places, I’ve even been to Corleone Pharmacy with a clipboard, but what’s the deal with Hanwol Group’s mansion having more security than the Pentagon?
It’s not like there’s any legendary items hiding in there, it’s just that there’s a little more to rob than other houses. They made me a magical girl so I can’t get away with anything. (Character screenshot)]
[└BackworldBlackmembraneitis : Eh, who isn’t a magical girl?]
[ㅇㅇ : I’m afraid I’m afraid I’m afraid I’m afraid I’m afraid I’m afraid I’m afraid I’m afraid I’m afraid]
[HotDogBulldog : Is he really like that, he thinks he’s a monster and the heroes don’t catch him?]
[└ Backworld Uveitis : 2 forms, so she’s usually a pretty girl]
[└ : Oh, that’s the reason for entering the Hanwol group PMC, I think it came out ㄱㄷ]
Then, by [ㅇㅇ] who commented after a while, I was able to find out the truth.
[└ㅇ : Oh, I looked it up and found out that he was robbed once before, so I guess that’s why]
It was because the warehouse of Hanwol Group had been robbed in the past. By a single person.
“Vvvvvvvvvvv!”
Haru spreads soundproofing magic around the area, and Alessia ties her to a chair.
As she struggles, Alessia slaps the bag with her head inside.
“It’s harder to tie you up if you move, so stay still, and I’m sure you don’t want to be rummaged through.”
The creature’s movements cease violently at Alessia’s kindly warning, and when she finally succeeds in tying her up perfectly, she turns her attention to me.
“Do you mind if I untie her?”
“Uh, untie it.”
I lift the jet-black envelope upward, and the squinty-eyed creature looks around.
“Hey, what the hell do you think you’re doing, you’re messing with a employee of the Hanwol group, do you understand?!”
“Of course I know, I’m the grandson of the chairman of that Hanwol group.”
“What?”
She was dumbfounded and couldn’t say anything.
It was like a top secret that I was related to Hanwol Group, but I didn’t care, because I had no intention of letting it go.
“Okay, enough of this nonsense, let’s get to the point. The shotgun you stole. Where did you hide it?”
“……if that’s what you mean.”
I was expecting it, but she was too confident.
“I don’t know why people who know each other do that. I’m getting tired of your bullshit.”
I stood in front of her and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze, whispering, “I can’t spill blood in my grandfather’s house.”
No way was I going to spill blood in my grandfather’s house.
I showed her the papers Alessia had given me.
“Name, Yenika Motbrache. Age: twenty-four. No family ties. Russian immigrant here looking for work. Is that right?”
“Well, that’s……if you’ve seen it, you know, but what the hell──.”
“No, you can’t use that word, Yenika Motbrache. You’re twenty-four, and the only real information on here is that you’re a Russian immigrant.”
I ripped the paperwork right in front of her and smirked.
“So……. Really, that’s all I know?”
For the first time, her eyes began to flutter.
“How on earth do you know that…….?”
“Why, there’s something even more surprising: You’re known in the world as the ‘Grandmaster of the Poor’, aren’t you?”
A nickname given to her for stealing from the rich and giving to the poor but it was all viral.
“The problem is that the poor are a pirate cartel in a poor country.”
Robbing and giving some of it away to the slums. And even that, in turn, gets stolen by nearby pirates.
In fact, it’s very common in the third world, not just in Corleone.
When such an expensive item suddenly comes into the hands of the powerless and poor, they can’t sell it or keep it.
In short, she was using the poor and pirates to launder money.
In other words, she’s just a bad thief.
Now it was time for Haru to act.
“Can I ask a favor?”
“I’ll do my best.”
I step aside for a moment and Haru squats down in front of her.
“Whoa.”
She closes her eyes and catches her breath. Alessia is watching her with quite a bit of interest, not knowing what Haru is capable of.
Slowly, she opens her eyes, and a fiery magenta glow begins to form in them.
“There’s not much you need to do, just stare into my eyes.”
That’s the Inomiya clan’s bloodline ability, Izanami.
It’s the ability to instill fear in an opponent simply by looking at them.
Normally, it’s used to gain an advantage in a negotiation or to create an atmosphere, but……it’s a subtle way of controlling power, so it’s not obvious.
It would be quite exhilarating if it could change the color of her eyes like it was now.
“Off──! Hmph!”
Her body begins to tremble violently at Haru’s power and she closes her eyes in frustration but Alessia is behind her, forcing her eyelids open and forcing her to stare into Haru’s eyes.
Upon closer inspection, I see that Alessia’s hands are trembling slightly.
She, too, was being affected by Haru’s power.
Her fear of me had increased considerably so I walked back over to her and asked.
“Where is the shotgun? Give it to me right now and I won’t kill you.”
At the same time, a system window pops up in front of me.
[Your opponent is in great fear]
[Trait: [Heir to the Underworld]’s secondary effect “1. An offer you can’t refuse” is activated]
“Mo, the necklace……this, the necklace!”
She finally spoke up.
“The necklace, Alessia.”
“Yes Master.”
In one swift motion, Alessia removes the necklace from her neck and hands it to me.
[You found a new item!]
[Name: Dimensional Necklace]
[Rank: Rare]
[Type: Item]
[Description: A subspace necklace that can hold five different items. The state of everything is suspended inside subspace]
“A subspace artifact.”
I reach out to interfere with the necklace’s subspace as if I was using my cube.
My hand slips into the void and I grab something fuzzy and tangible at my fingertips and pull it out.
“Found it.”
The shotgun that should have belonged to my grandfather was in my hand.
[New item found!]
[Name: Billy the Kid’s Shotgun]]
[Class: Artifact]
[Type: Firearm]
[Description: A double-barreled shotgun, one of the guns used by Billy the Kid, the legendary gunslinger and villain of the Wild West]
[Skills]
[1. Global Artifact: The original owner of this artifact is a global celebrity. It grants three effects.
The efficiency of energizing bullets is greatly increased. You can fire your gun just by charging it with mana. The durability is increased by leaps and bounds]
[2. Double Barrel Shotgun: there is no hard line on this weapon.
Damage stacks when attacking at close range]
[3. Villain’s Weapon: This weapon has a damage modifier proportional to the user’s notoriety]
In real life, Billy the Kid’s lies and exaggerations made him the villain of the piece but in the history of CS, his notoriety was more than just a legend.
As such, it was one of the first artifacts to receive significant buffs in-game.
In particular, its damage output was so high that it was considered one of the game’s best short-range scam weapons.
“So this is the weapon you were looking for.”
“Yeah, because I can’t handle a lot of situations with just the Tommy.”
After confirming that the weapon was in good shape, I decided to dig through his necklace a bit more.
I found three items: a statue, a dagger, and a red gem.
Apparently, the old man hadn’t noticed them yet.
Was she going to steal everything by sneaking around like this?
“You really have a big liver, to think of stealing the property of the Hanwol group.”
Haru shook her head as if she didn’t understand and I found myself agreeing with her.
If she was even working here, she’d be vaguely aware of the Corleone connection, and yet he’d do something like this.
Of course, it wasn’t hard to guess why she would do this.
“That must be it.”
I said, pointing to the red jewelry.
“……It’s an ordinary gem, isn’t it?”
In response, Haru looked at the gem and scratched her head.
I shook my head and picked up the gem.
“This is a byproduct of one of the disasters that happened to Seoul in the past: Ifrit.”
“The Ifrit?”
“Yes. The remnants of these spirits are usually used to craft equipment, explosive artifacts, and the riches of great rituals.”
At my words, the woman tied to the chair flinches once more.
“At first I thought she was just a petty thief, but it’s suspicious to say the least. To go to the trouble of breaking into a Hanwol Group mansion and stealing its treasures, and then to do this? I can’t help but think she was paid by someone.”
The gun, meanwhile, was probably kept for emergencies, as it’s easy to use even if you don’t have any skills or talents.
The dagger would be for the same reason, and …… stealing a statue with no abilities would be to make it look like a simple theft.
“Okay, time for the second round of questions. Haru, can you do one more?”
“I’ll try …….”
As Haru prepared to demonstrate her abilities, the tied person jumped up and down in frustration.
“Now, wait a minute, you can do it with words, you can do it with words, okay, okay, so please──.”
“──Yes, you can talk.”
I smirk, interrupting her sobbing.
“Still, it’s more obvious this way, isn’t it?”
Do I really need to go back to the hard way?
* * *
Once she’s finished silencing her, Alessia leaves the room with her.
Since she was paralyzed with fear and unable to move on her own, Alessia would hand her over to the security team.
The two of us were left alone in the room and I handed Haru the necklace that kept rolling in my hand.
“Here. Payment.”
“Ah. So this is the commission you were talking about.”
Haru looked at the necklace in my hand and examined it.
“It’s a subspace artifact, and it’s supposed to stop time for the items inside. Even if it doesn’t, it’s worth tens of millions of won.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind if I take it? I haven’t done much…….”
“You used your powers, remember?”
It was true that her ability had made things easier for me.
I laughed lightly, indirectly conveying my determination not to back down and she finally cracked a smile.
“Yes. That certainly seems like a lot of money for a few uses of my ability.”
“Because it worked out so well.”
“…… I’ll take it with gratitude.”
Taking the necklace from me, Haru let it rest in her palm.
Then she looked away and handed it back to me.
“Huh?”
What? Wasn’t that the flow?
I shook my head, unsure of her intentions, and she ruffled her hair and spoke slowly again.
“If you could help me…”
That’s……?
