Chapter 17: Chapter 17: Thieves Must Be Good at Hide and Seek (1)

༺ Thieves Must Be Good at Hide and Seek (1) ༻

After drawing various pictures with crayons for a while, Naru fell asleep around 10 p.m.

The sight of her sleeping, making cute sounds, was quite endearing.

“Looks like she was tired.”

After all, Naru had a lot going on today.

It’s no wonder she fell asleep quickly.

“Hey, Brigitte. Now that Naru’s asleep, let’s talk.”

I called Brigitte to discuss our plans for the future.

However, I didn’t hear a response, and when I looked, I saw Brigitte lying asleep on the table.

“Hey, are you asleep?”

Swoosh─ Swish─

No matter how much I shook her ear or pinched her cheek, she didn’t wake up.

No wonder, considering what’s been happening these past few days.

Brigitte had been struggling with Naru’s enrollment and had put a lot of effort into research, so it seemed that her tension had finally eased.

Maybe that’s why she was sleeping so deeply.

Snore─

She was snoring.

She must be really tired.

Usually, if I told Brigitte she was snoring, she’d raise her voice and say, “Me? Snoring? Don’t lie.” But she’d always snore like this whenever she was really tired.

“Hey. If you’re going to sleep well, then go to your bed.”

Swoosh─ Swish─

No matter how much I shook her, Brigitte didn’t wake up.

Just like Naru, once she fell into a deep sleep, there was no waking her up.

“Brigitte doesn’t wake up no matter how much I shake her…?”

“……”

“Are you really asleep? Won’t you wake up no matter what I do?”

“……”

“Hehe, I will finish all the beer. I’ll drink it all by myself.”

With joy in my heart, I opened the fridge.

When I bought crayons earlier, I had also picked up ice and beer from a beer shop.

It’s all for me since Brigitte is asleep.

“What are you doing?”

“Wowow, you scared me.”

In front of me, as I closed the magical engineering fridge door, a new woman appeared out of nowhere. What kind of person just appears without giving any hint of presence?

“Oh, Cariote?”

It was Cariote.

All dressed in black.

Did she come here because she thought I was looking forward to enjoying this delicious draft beer all by myself?

Do I have to share now?

Indeed, she had good intuition.

As expected of an outstanding demon hunter.

“Well, I guess I’ll share.”

“Good timing, I was getting thirsty.”

Glug─ Glug─

Putting ice in a wooden cup, Cariote gulped down about a liter of beer in a single, uninterrupted swig.

I wonder where all that alcohol went.

To her chest?

I couldn’t think of anything besides that.

Swoosh-

After wiping away the foam from her lips with her palm, Cariote sat down on the sofa. She looked around and asked,

“They said there was an entrance exam today. Did she pass?”

“Sort of. What about you? Weren’t you investigating this city? Did you find any traces of imps? Like, did meters become yards or something?”

I had heard that exceptional demon hunters never miss even the smallest of clues.

So, I was slightly looking forward to her findings, but Cariote shook her head.

“No, I didn’t find any. I can feel faint traces of imps in this city of Freesia, but they’re cautious. A careful imp. Maybe, at least a ‘Prime Imp.'”

Prime Imp.

It sounded kind of cute.

And didn’t exude an aura of danger at all.

Swoosh─

At that moment, Cariote placed her hand between her breasts.

Bounce─ Bounce─

Now that, was quite prime.

What is she trying to do? As I looked on with curiosity, she took something out and placed it on the table.

“Instead, I found this mark in a small village outside the central city. It’s a strange mark, so I drew it. Do you happen to know anything about it?”

It was a square piece of paper.

On it, a mark was drawn, created by crossing two daggers to make an X.

“……”

“You seem to know something.”

Cariote scrutinized my face.

She was reading me from my expressions.

Indeed, a level 40, Platinum-ranked demon hunter.

How long has it been since someone read my expressions?

Her sneaking up on me as I searched through the fridge earlier, too.

Cariote’s skills were truly something.

Honmono. 1Appeared before, it’s ‘real-deal’ in japanese.

I couldn’t mess with someone like her for no reason.

I honestly inquired.

“Was this mark left on a house door or a pillar beside it?”

“Yes, you seem well aware. I thought it might be related to demons, so I wrote it down. But I’ve never seen such a mark among the devil worshippers I know of. What is this? You seem familiar with it.”

“This. Is the symbol of bandits”

Crossing two daggers to form an X.

It was a mark that once caused a great stir in this world.

“Oh, Cariote’s here?”

Someone suddenly woke up, rubbing their sleepy eyes.

It was Brigitte.

I thought she was asleep, but it seems she was awakened by our conversation.

“What were you two talking about?”

Brigitte stared at us, her sleepy eyes somewhat furrowed, then noticed the piece of paper on the table and the mark written on it. She looked slightly surprised.

“This mark, isn’t it the symbol of the Alubaba Thieves?”

As expected.

Brigitte, probably because she knew a lot, recognized the mark at once.

The Alubaba Thieves.

A group of thieves consisting of illegal adventurers, defected soldiers, and all sorts of villains gathered for profitable services.

If it was a lucrative job, they wouldn’t hesitate to do it, whether it was human trafficking, robbery, murder, and so on.

Then Cariote said.

“Recently, this symbol has been found at the scenes of crimes in Freesia. But the Alubaba thieves? Weren’t they annihilated?”

Brigitte responded.

“I heard they were completely wiped out by the Ordor Kingdom’s army. So why would these symbols of theirs appear here in Freesia?”

Everyone wore a perplexed expression.

Were they seeking answers from me?

It seemed so since I was the only thief expert here.

Swoosh─

I raised two fingers.

“In my opinion, there are two types of thieves. The first hide their actions thoroughly, erasing their existence. The second spread their evil deeds widely, raising their reputation.”

The Alubaba thieves were clearly the latter.

Their motto was to expand their influence and try to take over the world.

Leaving marks behind at a crime scene that wasn’t fully erased─that’s their style, just as Cariote said.

According to Cariote, both the markings and the methods used in these crimes were just like what the Alubaba thieves, rumored to have been eradicated a year ago, would employ.

Were these mere impersonators?

There was a solid chance that the maker of this mark could be a notorious Alubaba impersonator, just like there were many impersonators claiming to be me, Judas.

But something felt odd.

I had a bad feeling about this.

Should I investigate this personally?

It’s the weekend, and I have some time to spare, so maybe I should make a move.

* * *

The weekend.

For ordinary fathers, it’s usually a time to rest at home after a week of work.

However, if you have young children, weekends are the time when fathers should play with their kids, which I thought was appropriate.

“Naru! Bored!”

“Naru, I’m working for a bit, so draw and play with your crayons. I gave you some, remember?”

“I’ve drawn all the pictures! Now I don’t have any paper left!”

“Already?”

“Play with Naru!”

Naru tugged on my pants incessantly.

She seemed bored.

Well, it wouldn’t be strange for a kid to complain on a sunny spring Sunday, because of having to spend a few hours at home without video games or phones.

The problem was that I was in Brigitte’s research room, investigating various data about the Alubaba thieves.

And with Naru whining like this, I couldn’t focus at all.

This can’t be helped.

I might as well try to think a little.

Zing─

At that moment, an idea struck me like lightning.

I had a great idea.

“Naru, how about playing hide and seek with Dad?”

“Hide and seek! Naru loves hide and seek!”

“Okay, then close your eyes and count to 100. I’ll hide first, and after you count to 100, you can open your eyes and find me. Got it?”

“Uuung! Naru will close her eyes! One, two-, three-.”

Naru started counting the numbers.

Counting with a cheerful voice like that was quite clever.

“Fifty-six, seventy, seventy-five, eighty-nine-.”

…Wait, isn’t her counting a bit strange?

It seems Naru, like me, isn’t quite attuned to scientific sensibilities.

As the number 100 approached.

I held my breath involuntarily.

“Huff.”

Barbaroi Style─.

─”Conceal Presence.”

I held my breath and suppressed my presence as much as possible.

Then as if my body blended into the surroundings, my presence vanished.

That was “Conceal Presence.”

For the record, it was a B mastery rank skill.

Similar to “Heart Steal,” this was a high-level skill as well.

“Ninety-, one hundred! Naru counted to one hundred! Seeking now!”

Whoosh, Naru raised her hand excitedly.

Then she looked in the direction where I was standing.

“Huung?”

Naru tilted her head in confusion.

Could it be that she sensed my “Conceal Presence”?

It’s quite a difficult technique to notice unless you’re someone like Cariote with an incredible sense or had “Perception” magic like Brigitte.

“Huuung….”

As I felt a slight tension, Naru walked right past where I was standing.

Then she started rummaging around Brigitte’s office.

Whoosh─

Naru opened Brigitte’s closet.

“Dad, are you here?”

Of course, I wasn’t there.

Naru didn’t give up, though, and she opened Brigitte’s closet once again.

When she opened a drawer, neatly organized underwear came into view.

“Dad, are you here?”

Naru continued to rummage through Brigitte’s underwear.

I don’t know why she thought I’d be there.

It would’ve been a good hiding spot though.

“Here? No. Here! Not here. Dad, reveal yourself to Naru quickly!”

Quite adorable.

While Naru was diligently searching for me, I was busy reading through the data.

“Alubaba Thieves Annihilated!”

“Ordor Kingdom’s Successful Campaign!”

“No Traces of Demons Found!”

“Ordor Kingdom’s Investigative Agencies Focusing on Cult Relations…”

The information wasn’t significantly different from what I already knew.

Even the newspapers I found were all the same.

“Dad, where are you?! Can’t find you, squirrel!”

At that moment, Naru yelled.

Tears were welling up in her eyes as if they could burst out at any moment.

There was nothing I could do.

I released the breath that I had been holding and revealed myself in front of Naru.

“I’m here.”

“Dad!”

Wrap─

Whoosh, Naru hugged me.

“I thought Dad had left me! In the past, even when Dad told me to play hide and seek, he’d leave me alone to eat something delicious…! At that time, Naru’s strawberry cake was all eaten by Dad!”

“……”

Did I really do that?

Slightly taken aback, when I was feeling bewildered, Naru chuckled.

“But you’re really good at hiding, Dad! You’re just like a master thief! Teach Naru how to hide too! Thieves must be able to evade guards!”

The intent behind the request seemed impure.

But she was right.

Learning to conceal one’s presence can be useful in many ways.

Should I teach Naru right now?

“Imagine holding your breath and turning your body into a light, airy blanket. An invisible blanket. Then you can do it.”

“Huuuuung….”

Naru tilted her head, seemingly not understanding.

“Huuub! How about it, Dad, can you see Naru?”

“I can see you just fine.”

“Huh, difficult!”

Even though Naru has inherited many of my talents as my daughter, acquiring a B-rank skill all at once would be quite a stretch.

So, her failure was not unexpected.

Naru said,

“There’s no other way. Anyway, now Dad has to find Naru! Naru’s hiding!”

“Sure, sure. Now, one, two-.”

I turned the pages vigorously, counting to 100.

From one to ten.

From ten to a hundred.

I had the leisure to count deliberately.

“One hundred.”

Before I knew it, I was finally able to read all the data.

And I roughly grasped what was happening now.

“Well then, let’s try to find Naru.”

Swoosh─

A closet where a child would likely hide.

Under the sofa.

I’ll search everywhere.

Kids’ thoughts were quite predictable.

“…?”

Where is she?

She’s not here?

“Naru, are you here?”

I opened the refrigerator.

But Naru wasn’t there.

Druuk─

I searched through Brigitte’s underwear drawer.

I looked carefully, but there was nothing.

“All I’ve learned is Brigitte’s cup size. D cup. Somehow, it seems she’s grown a bit more than before, but it’s not really meaningful information right now.”

After searching everywhere, all that remained was the large ‘bag’ that Cariote had brought with her.

It was like a suitcase for travel.

It was large enough to hold a lot of things.

And it seemed big enough to hide a six-year-old brat or so.

I was curious about what was inside, but Cariote acted as if she wanted to keep it hidden, saying, “Don’t touch it carelessly.”

However.

There was nothing else left.

Maybe Naru felt the longing for her ‘Mother’ from Cariote and slipped into that luggage and hid there.

Opening someone else’s luggage is a bad thing to do, but I’m a thief by trade.

Stealing, and peeking at others’ things─ those were my specialties.

“Naru, are you here?”

Thud─

Then when I opened that bag.

Fall─

Something rustled in the bag and fell to the ground.

“A photograph?”

It was an old photograph.

Extremely old, taken with an old magical technology camera, and the image quality wasn’t good.

However, the woman standing in the photo was incredibly beautiful, despite the lack of quality.

She appeared to be around 20 years old.

Wearing a dress, she looked like a remarkable princess.

I evaluated her ‘Princess Score’ to be at least a B+ or even an A rank.

With this level, she could make a living off her looks alone.

“What’s this?”

It was a photo that didn’t match Cariote at all, who was a pragmatic demon hunter.

Could it be a picture of a client or a target?

“Wait… I feel like I’ve seen someone who looks like this somewhere before…”

Slink─

A cold object touched the back of my neck.

It was probably a blade.

“I’ll give you time to think of an excuse.”

“Cariote. There’s a reason for this.”

“If you’re talking about a reason, are you referring to something white and sticky? Did you do something to my belongings?”

“…No.”

I don’t know why the conversation turned out this way.

Even the demon hunters don’t seem to be in their right minds.

I explained the situation thoroughly.

Then, Cariote removed the blade from my neck.

“Don’t ever touch my stuff again. There are dangerous items among them.”

“Yeah, I thought Naru might be in there and opened it. I didn’t have any ill intentions. And don’t worry, I didn’t steal anything from it.”

Well, even if I say I didn’t steal anything, would she believe me?

At that moment, Cariote said,

“Naru was heading towards the park a while ago. She was playing with kids her age.”

“Really?”

When did she go out?

I had no idea.

Did she use Conceal Presence?

Thunk─

Soon, Cariote snatched the photo from my hand.

And then, she placed the photo carefully between her breasts, concealed beneath her black tank top.

It seemed to be something incredibly precious.

I asked,

“Who is that in the photo?”

Of course, Cariote didn’t answer my question.

She’s even more taciturn than I thought.

Quite different from Naru or Brigitte, who loved to chat.

It was right when I thought that.

Thud─

Someone knocked on the door.

“Who’s there?”

━I am Cecily von Ragdoll. I’ve brought something to deliver to Young Lady Naru, who couldn’t take the practical exam. Please open the door quickly!

It was an annoying voice.

Come to think of it, wasn’t there a girl whimpering like a cat in cold water in the classroom where the kids fought yesterday?

Slide─

When I opened the door, a girl in a straw hat and a white dress appeared.

“Cecily.”

“You remembered my name, Judas the Bandit! You should be grateful to me for coming all the way here! Where’s Naru? I have to hand over the gym clothes and sneakers she received for the practical exam!”

Cecily looked around.

Coming into a thief’s lair alone.

She seemed like the perfect kidnapping target.

Swoosh─

Cecily took off her straw hat.

Beyond her glistening blonde hair, something caught my attention between her white porcelain-like neck and the strap of her dress.

“…What the fuck!”

“Hah? Suddenly swearing! You really are a vulgar villain just like the rumors say!”

I couldn’t help but swear, even though there was a kid around!

I could hardly keep my cool.

It was because there was a clear, clover-shaped birthmark between Cecily’s as white as porcelain neck and shoulder.

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Appeared before, it’s ‘real-deal’ in japanese.