Death March kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyusoukyoku (LN) - Volume 18 - Chapter 9

Phantom Thief

Satou here. The phrase phantom thief generally calls to mind a master of disguise who can break into even the securest of buildings and open impossible-to-crack safes with ease. Maybe that’s because of you-know-who III?

“It’s a thieeeef!”

The auctioneer’s shriek filled the darkness of the auction hall.

I guess I shouldn’t have assumed that someone would try to steal the Prayer Ring only when it was taken out of the chest to be handed over.

“Lord Kuro…”

“Don’t worry.”

I opened my map and marker list.

The Prayer Ring was still inside the Dragonseal Chest.

As for its location—they’d gotten farther than I expected.

It was already outside the auction hall.

“Damn phantom thief…”

The Dragonseal Chest appeared to be in the hands of a phantom thief called Pippin.

I used my Space Magic spell Clairvoyance to lock on to him.

No way was I letting him escape.

“So it was a phantom thief who took it?” Miss Manager asked.

“That’s right. I’ll go get it now.”

I did my best imitation of Hayato the Hero’s gallant smile to reassure the worried-looking Tifaleeza before I took off.

I used “Warp” to leave the room, kicked through the nearest window, and shot upward using “Skyrunning.”

As I used “Flashrunning” and my map’s marker to close the distance between us, the phantom thief soon came into view with the naked eye, teleporting from rooftop to rooftop.

“Space Magic…?”

According to my map information, the phantom thief had a borderline rule-breaking hereditary skill called “Short-Range Teleportation.” Between that and skills like “Item Box” and “Disguise,” even the most elaborate thefts must be a breeze.

“But that ends now.”

I used “Flashrunning” to land in front of Phantom Thief Pippin.

“You sure got here quick.”

The thief’s breathing was ragged. His “Short-Range Teleportation” must use a lot of stamina.

“Give back what you stole.”

I held out my hand.

“All right, you got me… Yeah, right!”

Pippin flung an empty bottle at me mid-sentence and teleported to the ground.

“You’re wasting your time.”

I jumped down with “Flashrunning” and chased Pippin through the clouds of dust.

Pippin teleported from one corner to the next in the mazelike alleyways of the lower part of town.

There was hardly any time lag between each of his “Short-Range Teleportation” jumps; his skill level must be ridiculously high.

The short distance between corners was a bit too tight for “Flashrunning,” so I switched to “Warp” as I followed him.

I’d chased a target who kept using “Short-Range Teleportation” once before, the demon-possessed gjallarhorn in the Muno territory, but it was a whole lot harder in a complex maze of passages when following someone who knew them incredibly well.

Still, his stamina wouldn’t last forever.

It was only a matter of time before I would catch up.

I saw another empty bottle drop and shatter in the alley Pippin had vanished into.

Based on the familiar scent, it was probably a mass-market MP recovery potion.

Pippin must be using potions to keep restoring his magic so he could go on using “Short-Range Teleportation.”

“Whoops.”

Pippin had brought down some garbage as he fled, blocking my path.

This wasn’t the first time he’d used some kind of preprepared trap or underhanded method to slow me down.

None of them were too serious, but the total amount of time loss they added up to was still nothing to sneeze at.

“…He stopped?”

Frowning suspiciously at the dot on my radar, I ran toward the end of the narrow alley.

“A market…?”

The slightly curved road was lined with stalls and packed with people shopping.

“Ah, he’s trying to lose me in the crowd.”

With some delicate “Warp” maneuvers, I used some spying skills to hide in the crowd myself as I approached the thief.

A long-haired lady-killer stood kissing a pretty and prim young lady in the shadows of some crates behind a stall.

As I walked over, he flapped his hand at me as if shooing away an annoying dog or cat.

That’s some solid acting chops.

“Is she here to carry the stolen goods?”

“What the hell d’you think you’re—”

Without waiting for him to carry on the act, I moved to lightly strike at the man’s stomach.

As soon as I stepped forward, Pippin vanished.

My radar showed that he’d teleported to the other side of the building.

In those precious few seconds, the woman who’d been with him was already fleeing into the crowd.

Which one should I chase?

“I’ve got this one!”

I heard Hikaru’s voice from above.

Looking up, I saw her jumping down from the top of the building.

As the shoppers screamed in alarm, I thanked Hikaru via Telephone.

“Tch, on my tail again already?”

Pippin disappeared, tossing aside his lady-killer disguise mask.

He must have fled behind another building.

I used “Flashrunning” to jump over the building and give chase.

“Heh-heh-heh. Bad luck, sir. If you’re looking for the ring, I’m afraid I gave it to that girl already.”

“You’re lying.”

I dismissed Pippin’s bluff instantly.

Pippin still had the chest, and my marker list still showed the ring in an area without a map. Since the girl didn’t seem to have the “Item Box” skill, a Garage Bag, or anything else of the sort, Pippin was definitely the one to catch.

“…Tch!”

Just as I was about to catch up to him with “Warp,” Pippin vanished again.

I thought about using Unit Deployment to go after him, but my unaccustomed, improvised teleportation wouldn’t stand much of a chance against an experienced “Short-Range Teleportation” user with the home-field advantage. Frustrating though it was, I had to keep chasing him using “Warp” and “Flashrunning.”

Besides, I did promise Arisa that I wouldn’t abuse Unit Deployment.

Speak of the devil, Arisa contacted me via Tactical Talk as I continued the chase.

“Master! Was that you and Hikaru who went flying past just now?”

“Yeah, the ring was stolen. I’m giving chase now.”

“What?! That’s terrible!” Arisa exclaimed. “But what kind of person must this thief be that you haven’t been able to catch them yet?”

“It’s a phantom thief by the name of Pippin. He’s using ‘Short-Range Teleportation’ and his familiarity with the downtown area to give me the runaround.”

I had no idea how he was teleporting past buildings to areas he couldn’t even see without a guide like a seal slate.

“Let us help with the chase, then!”

“Thanks. He’s heading around the royal capital by way of the lower part of town.”

I took Arisa up on her offer, mostly so that this wouldn’t take all day.

I conveyed Pippin’s route to them by using the area numbers we’d come up with during the red-ropes incident.

“Okey-dokey, we’re on it! We’ll cut him off and catch him like a rat in a trap!”

The rest of the group all cheered their responses.

All I had to do, then, was play the role of the cat chasing the rat right where we wanted him.

“…He’s here.”

“Gaaaaah!”

Mia’s summoned water pseudo-spirit undine rose from a puddle, blocking Pippin’s path.

While he was distracted, I managed to grab his shirt—but just as I expected, he slipped out of it and fled like a lizard shedding its tail.

“Mrrr.”

“Thanks, Mia.”

“Mm.”

I kept chasing after Pippin.

“You shall not pass, sir!”

Pochi stood in a corner of the alley with her sword at the ready to block Pippin’s path again.

“I’m not letting some kid beat me!”

Pippin started charging toward her as if to knock her aside.

Pochi grinned, knowing he was underestimating her.

“…Or catch me.”

Pippin teleported right before he reached Pochi.

She flew into a panic, her target suddenly out of sight.

“Waaah, sir!”

“It’s fine. I’ll get him.”

I patted Pochi’s head on my way by.

“Nin-niiin…?”

“Yikes! What is this, a spiderweb?!”

Tama’s ninjutsu caught Pippin amid some stacks of lumber.

Well, that was anticlimactic.

“Don’t underestimate the great Pippin!”

The piles of lumber toppled, and Pippin vanished beneath them in a cloud of dust.

“Mew! Oh nooo…?”

As the kindhearted Tama worriedly searched for Pippin, I put the logs away in my Storage.

“Gooone?”

A man’s shirt and trousers fluttered in the sticky webs.

This guy is quick on his feet all right.

“Master, looook…?”

Tama picked up a rainbow-colored gem.

I recognized it as the national treasure of Blybrogha Kingdom that Shadow Thief Sharururuun had tried to steal in the royal castle: the Dragon’s Eye.

Pippin must have dropped it, although I had no idea what he was going to use it for.

Thanking Tama for the discovery, I gave my next order.

“Good work, Tama. Sorry to rush you, but can you head to the next checkpoint right away?”

“Aye-aye, siiir?”

Tama gave me a brisk salute as I went on following the light that marked Pippin on my radar.

“If you wish to pass—”

“Oh shit!”

Pippin teleported before Liza could finish her sentence.

He must have sensed the overwhelming difference in strength between them.

“…Am I really that frightening?”

“Not at all,” I reassured Liza, who looked strangely hurt, before I kept chasing Pippin toward the spot where Lulu was stationed above.

“Ack! Gah! Where’s this coming from?! Dammiiiiiiit!”

I heard Pippin’s telltale screams up ahead.

I couldn’t blame him for being upset. No matter how many times he kept teleporting, there were always bullets shooting at his feet.

“I’m sorry; I can’t shoot anymore. There are children in my line of fire.”

“I will protect the larvae, Lulu, I declare.”

Nana stood in the way of Pippin, who was running toward an empty lot where children were playing.

“I will not allow you to put larvae in danger, I declare!”

“I wasn’t planning on it!”

Pippin nimbly dodged Nana’s Foundation attack Magic Arrow before vanishing.

The arrow broke a potion vial Pippin had dropped and sent shards shattering toward my face, which I quickly brushed away.

“Master, I protected the larvae, I report.”

“Good work.”

I waved at the smug-looking Nana, as well as Lulu atop the water tower, as I entered the last leg of the chase.

Pippin didn’t have much MP left; the potion he dropped while dodging Nana’s Magic Arrow must have been his last. He should run out completely after a few more teleportations.

I leaped over a building with “Flashrunning” to keep chasing Pippin beyond it.

“Here comes the headliner! Don’t expect to get away from the great and adorable Arisa!”

“Tch, a magic-using brat?!”

Wearing a very magical-looking wide-brimmed hat and robe, Arisa was waiting around the bend with an old staff at the ready. When did she even buy that outfit?

“Check…”

“I’m not giving you time to chant!”

Pippin raised his arm as he ran toward Arisa.

“…and mate!”

Arisa’s nonlethal Burn Flash spell engulfed Pippin in flame. At that same moment, a hidden undine emerged from the puddle at his feet and caged him with flowing chain-saw-like pillars of water.

“As if such flimsy flames could stop me!”

Pippin shook off the flames, then froze in place for a moment.

“B-but why?!”

“Hee-hee! Don’t think you can use a gift like ‘Short-Range Teleportation’ before the mighty mage Arisa, either.”

Arisa flashed the flustered thief a clumsy wink.

“A teleportation barrier?!”

Pippin clicked his tongue and tried to force his way through the water pillars trapping him.

His skin ripped where it touched the water, sending up a serious spray of blood.

Startled, Mia instinctively shut off the water pillars by mistake.

“Sorry—”

“No worries,” I assured her.

After all, an even more fiendish obstacle awaited him no matter which way he ran.

“No entry, sir!”

“Not here, eitherrr?”

“Get outta—”

Pippin tried to push past them and fell into a pit.

“Manhole jutsuuu?”

“Tama’s amazing, sir!”

Looking closer, I noticed a shovel lying at the side of the alley, although I didn’t see the displaced dirt anywhere.

This ninjutsu apparently required a lot of preparation in advance.

“Now, would you mind giving back the Prayer Ring you stole?”

Without his teleportation, Pippin couldn’t escape us.

He was already in checkmate, just like Arisa had said.

“Tch!”

With a bitter grimace, Pippin shoved a hand into the bag at his waist and pulled out the Dragonseal Chest.

That was a little too easy.

A sequence of memories flashed through my mind: the Dragon’s Eye that was lying in the alley, the face of Shadow Thief Sharururuun who’d tried to steal it in the royal castle, the leprechaun prince talking about its abilities, and Miss Manager’s explanation of the Dragonseal Chest.

Don’t tell me…

“Sharururuun!”

Pippin shouted and tossed the chest into the air.

An arm stuck out of the third-story window of the housing complex next to us. It was the prim beauty who Hikaru was supposed to be chasing.

The beastfolk girls ran toward the building.

But before they could reach it, and just as Shadow Thief Sharururuun was about to catch the chest, it was suddenly swept away in a gust of wind.

“Touch…doooown!”

It was Hikaru.

“Niiice?”

“Very great catch, sir!”

Tama and Pochi cheered, and the rest of the group looked up, too.

“Hear my prayer…”

“That’s enough.”

As Pippin began muttering, I swept the Prayer Ring out of his hand.

“Whaaa—?!” Arisa cried. “Why’d he have the ring?!”

“How…did you know…?”

“Just a gut instinct, I guess?”

I’d realized that Pippin might have dropped the Dragon’s Eye after using it to open the Dragonseal Chest.

“Sergeant Pochi, Sergeant Tama, apprehend the criminal!”

“Gotchaaa…?”

“You’re under arrest, sir!”

I jumped back with the ring, and Tama and Pochi hopped into the hole to restrain Pippin and tie him up tightly.

I stole the rest of his magic while I was grabbing the ring so that he wouldn’t be able to teleport away for a while.

Glancing at my log, I saw I’d gotten a few new titles.

> Title Acquired: Persistent Pursuer

> Title Acquired: Bane of Thieves

“Yeah, sorry ’bout that. It’s so different from the royal capital I know that I kept letting her get away.”

Hikaru came down with the chest.

Despite her carefree tone, she seemed a little sad.

The chase must have brought back memories of the old royal capital.

“Master, shall I capture this girl as well?”

Liza returned carrying an unconscious Shadow Thief Sharururuun.

Unlike Tama and Pochi, who’d turned back partway through, Liza kept chasing the girl to get the chest back.

“Yeah, and be thorough. She’s a slippery one, too.”

After all, she’d casually shown up here in spite of being thrown into a dungeon after I captured her in the royal capital.

“Right, can I ask you a question?”

I turned to Phantom Thief Pippin, who Tama and Pochi had wrapped up in ropes like something out of a gag manga.

“What?”

“Why did you steal the ring?”

“Ha! How could any phantom thief worth his salt resist going after the treasure of a century?!”

Oh, is that all?

Here I thought there might be some dramatic reason he needed the Prayer Ring. I guess I shouldn’t have bothered worrying.

“Can I ask something, too?” Hikaru chimed in. “Why didn’t you steal the ring when they took it out of the chest at the beginning of the auction?”

“Hmph, only a buffoon would strike when security is tightest.” Pippin looked smug. “The smartest time to strike is after they’ve let their guard down.”

“You’re awfully proud of yourself for a criminal.”

“Mm. Judgment.”

“Hey, stop! Not the face!”

At Mia’s command, the undines pelted Pippin’s face with water.

Now, time to turn these guys in.

“Duchess Mitsukuni, Team Pendragon, I thank you for your aid.”

I bowed to Hikaru and the girls formally before bringing the pair back to the guards’ station.

Maybe such an act wasn’t necessary in front of thieves, but I was worried that it would look unnatural for Kuro to be teaming up with Satou’s group.

“I’m back.”

After delivering the Dragon’s Eye and the thieves to the guards’ headquarters, and the chest with the ring returned to the auction hall, I explained the situation to Tifaleeza and Miss Manager.

Since Hikaru was technically the one who won the auction for the ring, it was her job to do the paperwork and pick it up at the auction hall.

It took longer than expected; the sun had already set by the time we got back to the royal capital mansion.

“Welcome back.”

“Welcooome?”

As usual, Mia and Tama were the first to greet me, followed by the other girls in turn as we headed for the living room.

“Master, dinner is ready in the garden.”

“Thanks, Lulu.”

Another evening of enjoying the sakura while we ate sounded nice.

The sakura trees in the Shiga Kingdom bloomed for longer than the Yoshino cherry blossoms of Japan, though the season seemed to be winding down.

“Well then, a toast to our success at the auction—cheers!”

“Cheers!”

Everyone raised a glass and responded in unison.

Aside from Hikaru, their drinks were all nonalcoholic.

“Shiga sake goes great with crispy fish skins… Don’t you think, Ichirou?”

“Yeah, it does.”

Although sakura salmon were still in season for a while yet, I wouldn’t be able to buy them anymore once we left the royal capital, so I was definitely eating my fill in the meantime.

The idea that it might go better with wine than Shiga sake passed through my mind, along with the image of an izakaya. But I couldn’t remember who from my old homeland had said that, and the image soon vanished.

“Mew?”

“Why would you eat fish skin when there’s plenty of meat left, sir?”

Evidently, Tama and Pochi were a bit young to understand the appeal.

“What’s wrong, Hikaru?”

“Ah-ha-ha, it’s nothing.”

Arisa’s comment prompted me to turn toward Hikaru, who looked oddly close to tears.

“It does not seem like nothing, I declare.”

“Mm, worried.”

“Really, I’m fine.”

Hikaru shook her head at Nana and Mia.

“I was just thinking that this really isn’t my Ichirou.”

A little tipsy, Hikaru looked at me with a lonesome expression.

“Whenever I said sake goes well with fish skins, my Ichirou would always say, Wine obviously pairs better.”

Hikaru’s Ichirou Suzuki sounded like a narrow-minded guy.

Fish skins were a lot more versatile than that.

Arisa elbowed me, prompting me to pour Hikaru some more sake and add, “You must’ve been really close.”

Next to me, Arisa wore an expression that said something like, Is that the best you can do?! but I preferred giving a vague answer rather than risking a topic that might upset Hikaru even more.

“Yeah, we were.”

“Close as in a couple?” Arisa asked.

“Ah-ha-ha, nope.” Hikaru shook her head. “I loved him more than anything, sure, but we couldn’t be a couple.”

“You didn’t tell him how you felt?”

“Of course I did. But he shot me down all three times.”

Hikaru closed her eyes wistfully.

“Ichirou said I was like a younger sister to him; that’s why.”

“W-well, master’s off-limits. He’s already got me.”

Hikaru’s sidelong glance toward me must have set Arisa off: she quickly spread her arms in front of me defensively.

“Mrrr.”

“Arisa…”

“Sorry, I mean he’s got us,” Arisa amended when Mia and Lulu protested.

“Ichirou, you’re into little girls now?”

“Of course not. I always preferred older women, and I still do.”

Especially my beloved Miss Aaze, who happened to be older than human history.

“Now, that’s just like my Ichirou!”

Thoroughly drunk, Hikaru wrapped her arms around me.

I was glad to see her finally smiling, at least until she started crying at the same time.

Rather than offer up inadequate words of comfort, I simply patted her head and back gently until she stopped crying.

As she finally wore herself out and fell asleep, she whispered in a voice so tender it hurt my heart: “I miss you, Ichirou.”

“I’m so sorry. This was supposed to be a celebration.”

After a short nap sobered her up, Hikaru meekly apologized to everyone.

“C’mon, don’t worry about it. Sometimes you just gotta let off some steam or you’ll explode.”

Arisa spoke on behalf of the rest of the group.

“Now, that’s enough of the gloomy talk!”

She clapped her hands briskly.

“Master!”

“All right, let’s unveil the Prayer Ring, then.”

At my signal, Hikaru took the Prayer Ring out of her “Inventory” and placed it on the table.

It glowed with a gentle blue light.

“So this is the Prayer Ring…the treasure that allows a wish granted by the gods…”

Lulu gazed at the ring.

Then her rapturous expression changed as if she’d thought of something.

“…Arisa.”

Lulu beckoned to her sister, and they exchanged a whispered conversation.

Since it seemed private, I turned off my “Keen Hearing” skill so as not to overhear.

Arisa looked surprised and stared into Lulu’s eyes for a moment before her gaze turned lovingly proud, like a mother looking at her grown-up daughter.

“…Master.”

Lulu and Arisa beckoned me over, too, and whispered in my ear.

“…Are you sure?”

I could barely believe what they were proposing.

“Yes, I think that would be best.”

“I’m totally with Lulu!”

There was no hesitation in their eyes, despite the difficulty of this decision.

They’re both so kind.

“You should be the ones to do the honors, then.”

I handed the Prayer Ring to Arisa and Lulu.

In turn, they walked over to Hikaru.

“Huh?”

“It’s a present from Lulu and me.”

They pressed the ring into Hikaru’s hand.

Realizing what they’d given her, Hikaru’s eyes widened.

“Please use it.”

“What? But…”

Openly dumbfounded, Hikaru looked at Lulu.

“Really, just take it.”

“We’ll be fine.”

“Yeah! We’ve got no problem staying as slaves for now, and I’m sure our cheat-mode master will find another way to free us from our Geist sooner or later.”

Lulu and Arisa nodded encouragingly at Hikaru.

Seeing their smiles, Hikaru’s bewildered expression turned to a complex mixture of joy, gratitude, and apology.

“Now, go on and use that thing to be reunited with your true love!”

With tears in her eyes, Hikaru turned to me questioningly. I nodded.

She gripped the ring tightly and held it to her chest, the tears finally breaking free to roll down her cheeks.

“Thank you, Arisa, Lulu. And you, Ichi…”

Then she shook her head, as if letting go of something, and corrected herself.

“Satou.”

This must be her way of showing that she saw me as the person she’d met in this world, not the Ichirou from her old one.

“I wish…”

Hikaru murmured her prayer.

Light flowed from the ring, dyeing the royal capital in dazzling blue.

It was an incredibly gentle light, warm with holy love.

And then…