Chapter 159: EPISODE 149 – PHANTOM THIEF (1)

Terms used in this chapter:

Seokguram – the Seokguram Grotto is a Buddhist cave temple constructed during the Unified Silla Period (668-935 CE) of ancient Korea.

EPISODE 149 – PHANTOM THIEF (1)

Cordelia blinked her eyes at first.

Jude blinked his eyes at the same time as her before he took a step back to view Cordelia’s face with a butterfly mask more broadly.

“Hmm, it looks good on you.”

A black butterfly mask made of leather that had the appearance of a butterfly spreading its wings open.

Cordelia unconsciously reacted to the words ‘it looks good on you,’ and furrowed her brows before she spoke as if she had finally come to her senses.

“What did you just say?”

“It looks good on you?”

“Before that.”

[You are the new Rogue Master.]

As he said it again with <Message> magic, Cordelia narrowed her eyes again and crossed her arms.

[What’s the reason?]

[Huh?]

[I mean, why should I be the Rogue Master?]

Since either Cordelia or Jude had to be the Rogue Master, she wondered why she herself and not Jude was chosen from the two options from the very start.

‘Why does it smell suspicious?’

Cordelia’s instinct that was equal to- no, better than that of wild beasts, was telling her that.

There is something.

There must be some underhanded scheme here.

‘Because he’s Jude!’

Before he became my scammer, he’s the guy who risks everything for achievement scores because of his obsession with taking 1^st place.

He’s not someone who’ll just let go of the opportunity to become the Rogue Master.

When Cordelia sniffed with her nose in front of him because of her suspicion, Jude shrugged once before he gently opened his mouth as he had expected this to happen.

[It’s simple. Do you remember Scarlet’s sex?]

[She’s a woman.]

The contemporary Rogue Master was the only woman among the Four Great Swordsmen. No, in the game, she was the person who would become the contemporary Rogue Master.

[You’re right. Then, what is the sex of the first Rogue Master?]

That person did not directly appear in the game because they were a character that lived hundreds of years ago, but that person was a Rogue Master who left behind many stories about their deeds.

If Cordelia had done any of the quests related to Scarlet, she would have no choice but to know that the first Rogue Master’s sex was ‘female.’

[Woman…?]

[Yes, she’s a woman. So it’s better for the new Rogue Master to be a woman. There’s already a preconceived notion that the Rogue Master is a ‘woman.’]

[Hmmm.]

She felt like she was being dragged into this, but what he said was true to begin with.

‘Of course, the second generation was a man, and the Rogue Master just before Scarlet was also a man.’

Jude thought to himself as he faced the troubled looking Cordelia before he spoke again.

[And because we need to properly act the role of Rogue Master. The Rogue Master left five treasures, and the only one we can get among those is the Moon Crystal, the last treasure.]

[Umm…because Scarlet already has two?]

[Yes, the third and fourth treasures are in the empire.]

It was the reason why Scarlet, who was originally from the Sälen Kingdom, went to the empire in order to find the treasures of the Rogue Master.

[The Rogue Master’s treasures are like the symbols of the Rogue Master. The biggest symbol is the Moon Crystal, but that alone isn’t enough. In order to call yourself a Rogue Master and be recognized by the people, you have to pretend that you also have the other treasures.]

At this point, Cordelia could roughly understand what Jude was trying to say.

[In short, you’re saying that we’ll use magic, is that it?]

[Bingo.]

The Rogue Master’s treasures were magic tools that gave its user various mysterious powers.

But Cordelia was a real wizard, so she just had to use her magic.

[I can’t tear a scroll every time I need to do something.]

[Hmmm.]

What he said made sense so far.

[Is there anything else?]

[Isn’t this enough?]

[That’s true, but…]

Why? Why do I still feel uncomfortable?

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As Cordelia showed signs of hesitation, Jude pulled out his trump card.

[Anyway, let’s not waste our time in worries. There are many places we have to stop by before our dinner with sister-in-law. Our schedule is tight, okay?]

[I know, we only have one month. But where are we going to stop by? The Rogue Master’s tomb?]

[There’s that, but this is more important.]

Something so important that would make Cordelia forget about everything else.

[Where?]

[Alchemy Guild.]

[Why there?]

[You asked me to make dynamite.]

[Eh?]

[Dynamite.]

Jude spoke again, and Cordelia opened her mouth first before she joyfully smiled.

Her blue eyes seemed to sparkle in excitement.

[Will you really make it? Really?]

[Yes, so let’s go now. We don’t have much time.]

[Yes, yes! Let’s go quickly!]

[Before that, what about the Rogue Master?]

[I’ll do it.]

[Really?]

“Yes, yes, really!”

Cordelia spoke in a childish voice before she grabbed Jude’s arm as if she wanted to go quickly, and Jude left the room with Cordelia while pretending that he couldn’t win against her.

***

The structure of dynamite was simpler than one would think.

Dynamite was made by simply having nitroglycerin, one of the substances typically used for explosives, be absorbed by a small amount of diatomaceous earth.

“Diatomaceous earth is a type of sand made from the remains of single-celled algae, and is frequently used for many things because of its high absorption capabilities.”

Because diatomaceous earth itself was a non-flammable material, pure nitroglycerin was actually better than dynamite in terms of its simple explosive power.

Nevertheless, diatomaceous earth was used because nitroglycerin, a highly sensitive substance, could then be stored and transported relatively safely.

“We’ll need nitric acid and sulfuric acid to make nitroglycerin.”

Both were substances that were difficult to immediately obtain unless they were in an alchemy guild.

“And?”

When Cordelia asked with an interested face, Jude resolutely turned her down.

“A more detailed description will be omitted.”

“How mean.”

“It doesn’t matter since I’ll be making it for you anyway. And it’s dangerous. It’s not an easy challenge for beginners.”

Moreover, if he told her how to make it, he wouldn’t be able to use dynamite as bait in the future.

He should only give her fish but not teach her how to fish.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk.”

“So you don’t like it?”

“No, Milord. Milord’s words are absolutely correct.”

Satisfied with her quick change of attitude, Jude quickly finished his shopping and they headed to the east gate.

“Aren’t you making dynamite?”

“We have to get the Rogue Master’s treasure first.”

It was still in the afternoon, so they still had some time left until their dinner with Adelia.

“The gates are closed when the sun goes down, so it will be less suspicious for us to go now and come back by that time.”

“Eueu, it can’t be helped.”

She had no choice but to postpone what excited her for a while.

“Then, let’s go quickly.”

“Yes, Madam. I’ll take you there very fast.”

It was Jude’s first time in the royal capital, but JudeWiki had completely recorded not only the small side roads of the royal capital but also the underground roads.

So he led Cordelia to a shortcut that even the locals didn’t know, and as soon as they left the east gate, he turned his back on her and Cordelia very naturally got on Jude’s back.

‘I feel like I’ve become too comfortable with this.’

She had become too comfortable with being carried on Jude’s back.

She felt like she was really merging with him when she was carried on his back these days.

“What are you thinking about?”

“I think it would be nice to go quickly.”

“Hold on tight.”

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Jude smiled and soon became a gale as he ran east, or to be exact, towards a small mountain in the northeast of the royal capital.

“We’re here.”

“It seems like you left out a lot of explanation, but I guess it’s fine.”

Cordelia muttered quietly as she got off Jude’s back and looked behind her.

“Wow.”

The mountain was small, but it was still a mountain.

A panoramic view of the royal capital surrounded by large and magnificent walls came to her eyes, and she was left amazed.

“Amazing.”

“Yes, it’s amazing. The capital is beautiful.”

The walls were very high so the inside of the capital couldn’t be seen, but he had seen it hundreds to thousands of times in the game, so he could think of its shape in his head.

“Anyway, let’s hurry.”

Jude turned around and squatted in front of a long rock that looked like a tombstone on top of the hill, and he squinted his eyes.

“If I touch it like this…”

When Jude touched the side of the rock, a sudden click was heard, and the entire rock soared to about 30 cm.

“It’s a password board. It’s the same as the original.”

Cordelia squatted next to Jude, and just like she said, there was a password board with a rather complex pattern at the bottom of the newly revealed rock. The board was only solved by pressing it in a set order, but Jude began to move his hand without any hesitation.

‘Originally, the password can only be known when one collected all four of the treasures.’

“Fufufu, this is the power of my JudeWiki.”

Cordelia proudly spoke and Jude spontaneously smiled and continued to move his hand.

The Rogue Master was still a much better person than Arkeman because she didn’t do anything mischievous like hiding the last treasure next to the first clue.

“I’ve unlocked it.”

After he pressed the last button on the board, a click was heard again and the ground near the rock soon soared with a rumbling sound.

“It’s the entrance.”

There was a metal door at the bottom of the slope, and it was clean as new perhaps because of some magic spell.

“Okay, let’s go in.”

Jude opened the metal door with his strength and Cordelia created a magic sphere of light.

“Gentleman first.”

“Yes, Madam.”

Jude promptly answered and headed down the stairs beyond the metal door.

“It’s like Seokguram.”

“Have you been there?”

“Yes, for a school trip.”

Cordelia quietly responded as she raised the sphere of light and looked around them.

It was a small stone chamber with a door leading to the next stone chamber on the opposite side of the stairs.

“You do know that we have to be careful from here on, right?”

“I know.”

Cordelia gave a short answer and then quickly cast several types of magic in succession even though Jude didn’t tell her to.

She cast <Levitation>, a flying magic that was the higher rank to the floating magic <Fly>. She also activated the <Shield> magic in Count Chase’s ring, cast the <Heart of Dragon> to strengthen their minds, and the <Eagle Eye> so that they would not be fooled by illusions.

Each magic spell she cast was like a substitute to the Rogue Master’s treasures.

A floor installed with traps that activates when stepped on.

An illusion magic that makes one go round and round a small cabin.

A banshee’s voice that disturbs the minds of those who entered.

Even a hydrochloric acid trap that poured overhead and couldn’t be avoided.

Jude and Cordelia blocked everything since they were prepared, and stopped in front of a tombstone at the end of the stone chamber.

[If you have reached this point, you are well qualified to succeed me. My entire legacy is yours from now on.]

Cordelia smiled at the nicely-sounding sentence written in the tombstone before she injected her mana into it. And Jude quickly moved his hand and grabbed the arrow that was fired from the front.

It was the last trap that triggered when the person was reassured that it was all over.

“She has a bad personality.”

“That’s typical of a Rogue Master, right?”

They had known all about it anyway.

Cordelia smiled after she finished injecting her mana, and the tombstone rose as it revealed the real tombstone hidden on the floor.

[Desire]

Only that word was engraved on the first Rouge Master’s tombstone.

A word that she loved the most, and one that she had pursued throughout her life.

“As expected of the Ruler of Thieves.”

“It’s good to be honest.”

And she left her own treasure in this manner.

A jewelry box was revealed with the tombstone.

Jude and Cordelia opened it at the same time, and they obtained the Moon Crystal, the last treasure of the Rogue Master.

***

Night came.

After having finished a fantastic meal at the fine dining restaurant Adelia had made a reservation with, the group ate a 3-tiered chocolate parfait for dessert that was famous in the royal capital. They then looked around the streets of the night market which was a tourist attraction before they returned to the mansion.

“You have to properly sleep in your rooms, okay? Do you two understand?”

“Yes, we understand.”

“This is my house. So I can see everything here like the palm of my hand, okay?”

“Yes, yes. We understand.”

After their conversation was finished, all of them headed to their bedrooms and slept for a few hours.

When Adelia was deeply sleeping, Jude and Cordelia met with each other in Cordelia’s room.

And after ten minutes.

Cordelia said with a chilly gaze as she crossed her arms.

“Milord, what is this?”

“It’s the Rogue Master’s costume.”

When Jude answered, Cordelia looked back at herself and had a chilling smile.

“This?”

A short and pink miniskirt was on top of tight-fitting black leather pants complete with boots, and her top consisted of a black leather clothes with her shoulders exposed.

The white collar on the neckline resembled that of a tuxedo, and long black leather gloves that reached up to her upper arm were added, making her cute outfit seem like a female magician.

Up to that point, Cordelia wasn’t that much displeased.

She wore a miniskirt but also had pants underneath, so she had nothing to be particularly ashamed of.

The problem was the next part.

She had a large black ribbon that tied her long hair together into a ponytail, a black butterfly mask that covered her face, and a large bow tie with the Moon Crystal in the middle – she could tolerate it all up to that point.

“Milord, what is this?”

“Rabbit ears and rabbit tail. It’s a good item set that increases agility and jumping power.”

Cordelia was very familiar with the equipment set that was on top of her head or attached near her butt.

Jude had thought that it was so unfortunate that he couldn’t see it again after their time in the wild lands.

“Hey, did you bring this all the way here?”

“There’s the cat set. Would you like to change into that?”

“You asked me to become the Rogue Master because of this?”

“No, it’s not because of this.”

“Then remove the rabbit set, okay?”

“Aww, my Princess. Do you really want to say that? Here’s the improved detonating cord.”

As Jude smiled and handed her the detonating cord bundle, Cordelia snorted in her excitement and no longer questioned the rabbit set.

‘Because it’s cute.’

She was not ashamed because she was wearing a mask anyway.

Cordelia giggled as her tail slightly shook, and Jude looked at Cordelia as he took a deep breath.

Because the real hard part would begin now.

“Okay, then Cordelia. There is one last thing to do. No, in fact, it’s already been done.”

“What is it?”

“That is…”

Jude awkwardly smiled and held out a well-made card, and Cordelia finally understood.

Only

The fact that there was something more shameful even if she wore a mask.

***

“Hey! Is this the reason you made me do this?!”

“Yes, that is correct.”

“Are you serious?!”

Phantom Thief Pink Bomb.

A name that must be used and be famous enough in order to surely summon Velkian, the necromancer.

It was the name of the new Rogue Master who would shake the Sälen Kingdom and the entire continent.

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