Why Am I a Priestess When I Reach the Maximum Level? - [Vol. 5] Chapter 230

[Vol. 5] Chapter 230: The Storm Stirred by a Tiny Pawn

The thief is a type of profession.

Just like adventurers in the Human United Kingdom, priests and Holy Knights of the Holy Empire and the Goddess Church, or mercenaries scattered across the world, thieves are also a recognized special profession.

Their expertise does not strictly involve stealing things for others… Well, though they do take on various kinds of tasks, some of which are similar in nature, their main activities revolve around infiltration, investigation, and intelligence trading. In a way, they’re like an outsourced intelligence organization, somewhat similar to private detectives on Earth.

Just as adventurers are typically organized and assigned by the Adventurers’ Guild, clergy members are managed and trained by temples, and mercenaries have guilds that assess their ranks and assign missions, so too is the thief profession managed as a special occupation.

Their organization is known as the ?Thieves’ Alliance?.

Though they have a certain level of recognition, thieves are not a mainstream profession, nor can the ?Thieves’ Alliance? establish branches in every city worldwide, like other professions.

It is merely a second-rate guild.

In fact, locations with ?Thieves’ Alliance? strongholds are typically in core cities within a nation or province. In smaller countries, such facilities may only be found in the capital.

Moreover, the ?Thieves’ Alliance? does not openly advertise its services like most other guilds. To submit a commission or join, you need certain internal “connections.”

In summary, thieves are a niche profession, moving in the shadows, existing somewhere between right and wrong. Even Violet, due to her extensive travels around the world over the past two years, where she has encountered countless people and things, only has a slight understanding of them.

These people were dressed in the typical attire of thieves.

The bottles and vials hanging from their waists likely contained magical potions and powders prepared for various situations. They served a variety of purposes but had limited lethality, mainly geared toward unlocking and escaping.

The guiding principle of thieves is—”Never kill unless absolutely necessary.”

The earlier threats from their leader seemed fierce, but they were probably just a habitual way to intimidate his team and ease the tension. This group was clearly a well-coordinated and experienced band of thieves.

For such a large team of thieves to operate, could there be a ?Thieves’ Alliance? stronghold hidden within this Saint Sarnos City?

As Violet pondered their origin and purpose and planned to observe further, the thieves lurking in the shadows stopped wasting time.

After confirming their temporary safety, the tall human man, referred to as the leader, pulled out a compass-like object from his chest. Following its guidance, they began quickly searching around the temple’s edge ruins.

Since they were moving in the opposite direction from where her dragon and the others were hiding, Violet didn’t rush to act and silently followed behind.

Soon, the group locked onto an area not far from their starting point.

“This should be it. Move fast, search it, and let’s get out!”

“Got it!”

The leader, who seemed to be the only thief in the group with a spatial storage tool and without boxes or containers hanging all over him, began pulling out shovels, spades, and other tools, handing them to his subordinates and directing them to start digging in the ruins.

To avoid drawing attention, the thieves deliberately kept the noise of their digging as low as possible.

However, the spot where they were working happened to be one of the areas in these temple ruins most densely packed with rubble and debris, including broken weapons and remnants of Knight Templars’ armor.

To avoid the loud noise of metal clashing, the thieves had to be extra careful, moving pieces of armor out by hand before resuming with tools to dig through variously sized stones and soil. Naturally, this slowed their progress.

Strange… What exactly are they looking for?

From what the succubus named Cressia mentioned earlier in the day, a fierce battle likely took place around the temple during the street fighting when Saint Sannos City fell.

Judging by the timeline, it wasn’t just the city’s local defense force involved. The first wave of reinforcements led by the Judgment Saintess, the ?Hand of Judgment? Holy Knight order, probably also took part in this key battle to defend the central temple of Saint Sannos.

Could it be… certain treasures that were lost nearby back then?

But if some treasure had truly been buried here, how could she or her dragon have missed it…

As she pondered this, Miss White Fox cast her gaze into the distance.

Speaking of which… the ?Reaper’s Scythe? group, why haven’t they shown up yet? Could they really have run into some trouble?

Time ticked by, measured in the suppressed sounds of steady digging.

Fifteen minutes had passed.

The mountain-like pile of rubble had nearly been dug through by the thieves, yet up to this point, Violet still hadn’t sensed any significant or powerful presence.

Strange… Could it be not a treasure but something with special significance?

At this thought, the girl suddenly frowned.

In her perception, a strong light-elemental aura suddenly erupted, like a grenade whose pin had been pulled, appearing from nowhere and surging outwards!

A beam of golden light shot up from beneath the ruins, piercing the night sky!

“B-Boss!”

One of the thieves couldn’t help but exclaim.

The radiant golden light, reminiscent of a rare treasure being unearthed, was far too noticeable and glaring in the darkness.

Even though the thief leader reacted immediately, lunging forward to cover it with a black cloth, that brief flash was enough to alert everything nearby… perhaps even the entire city.

“Damn it! Hurry! Move, move, move! Stop holding back. Clear out the surrounding stones as fast as possible, grab the item, and retreat!”

At the leader’s urgent orders, the thieves redoubled their efforts, frantically clearing away the remaining stones and debris around the source of the light at more than twice their previous speed. In just a few seconds, the object they’d been after was fully revealed.

Even as the leader quickly wrapped it in black cloth and stowed it in his storage tool, Violet had already recognized its shape in that fleeting moment.

It was a longsword sheathed in its scabbard.

The shape of this sword was clearly different from the type typically used by knights and swordsmen, appearing slimmer and longer, somewhat reminiscent of a rapier from Earth.

With such a familiar form and the surrounding context, despite finding it incredibly hard to believe, four characters with special significance emerged in Violet’s mind.

But how could this be…?

While the priestess wrestled with surprise and disbelief, the thieves who had dug out the treasure dared not linger a moment longer.

Without waiting for their leader’s command, they swiftly fled, disappearing into the night at the temple’s edge at a speed several times faster than when they’d arrived.

At the same time, the sound of heavy, approaching footsteps reached the girl’s ears from afar.

From behind the ruins, Xiao Guang and others, who had also been hidden and witnessed everything, revealed themselves. They reunited with Miss White Fox, who approached while removing her ?Chameleon Cloak?, and Theresa’s eyes were wide, filled with disbelief as well.

“Miss Dawn! Could that really have been…?”

From their angle, they should have had a clearer view of the treasure’s shape. The same realization dawned on them. As long as one wasn’t clueless and knew a bit of the backstory, the conclusion was obvious.

“The demon guards are coming. Let’s get out of here first. This… really is an unexpected development.”