I Became A Thief Who Steals Overpowered Skills

Chapter 201: Unending Night

After Kraush’s visit to Charlotte’s Lion Order.

“Go ahead.”

Kraush heard Charlotte’s exceptionally nonchalant response.

He had expected her to at least ask why he was taking on such a task, but Charlotte didn’t bother to question it.

She simply accepted it as something Kraush wanted to do.

“Should your Noona go with you?”

Kraush was left dumbfounded by Charlotte’s overly casual answer.

Charlotte, wearing her usual playful smile, lightly teased him.

“No, thank you. I’ll manage just fine.”

“Oh, by the way, that Arthur kid you asked about last time.”

Kraush’s ears perked up.

“He said he’ll decide and join us once the second-generation trainees finish their training.”

The fake Arthur was also from the special class, so it was natural that other groups had probably tried to scout him too.

It was understandable.

‘I thought he’d jump at the chance to observe me and Charlotte up close, but apparently not.’

Perhaps he was being more cautious than expected.

Given the recent suspicious activity on this side, it might be that he was intentionally keeping some distance.

Thinking this, Kraush thanked Charlotte and stepped outside the Lion Order.

It was then that Kraush noticed a familiar head of black hair.

The figure was pressed flat against the wall, trying desperately to stay hidden.

But with her natural physique, there were certain parts of her that the wall couldn’t conceal.

Mary Diana.

A woman once known as the Divine Spear.

“Mary.”

When Kraush called her, Mary flinched and hesitantly stepped out from the wall.

Unlike when she had locked herself in her room, Mary was now wearing her school uniform.

However, the state of it—poorly ironed and with buttons done up haphazardly—was far from tidy.

Her hair was especially messy, as if she hadn’t bothered to comb it properly, sticking out in all directions.

She stood there nervously, fidgeting with an incredibly timid demeanor.

The former Divine Spear was now unrecognizable from her past self.

“Do you need something?”

Noticing that she seemed to have been waiting for him, Kraush asked leisurely.

“Well, um, I, uh… I heard you’d returned, so… I just wanted to see you briefly.”

Hunching her shoulders, Mary stammered as she spoke, her nervousness evident.

She stared at the ground, visibly broken.

It was no surprise.

She must have realized by now that her skill was gone.

Suddenly losing her skill, it was an unimaginable shock for Mary.

Her bewilderment was plainly evident in her appearance.

Yet, she couldn’t tell anyone about it.

And she absolutely couldn’t let Kraush find out.

If Kraush noticed that her skill had disappeared and decided to abandon her, she would have nowhere left to go.

That’s why she had come here today—to confirm something.

“Well, I’ll probably have to leave Rahern Academy again for a while because of work.”

Kraush said as he approached Mary.

Mary flinched and became even more timid as he drew closer.

A primal fear overwhelmed her, terrified that Kraush might discover her missing skill.

But Kraush didn’t seem to notice, or didn’t care.

When he stopped in front of her, he reached for her shirt.

He began undoing the incorrectly fastened buttons and refastened them properly.

Mary watched in a daze.

It felt strangely symbolic, as if Kraush were fixing her misaligned life along with the buttons.

“Mary, you’ve decided to come out of your room now?”

“Ah, y-yes. You said I just needed to follow you, so I—I thought I should try to do my best, too!”

Mary stammered, desperately trying to show how much effort she had been putting in.

“Well done. That’s exactly what I’d expect from someone in the same cohort as me.”

“Ah… hehe.”

When Kraush smiled and praised her, Mary couldn’t help but grin foolishly.

Her laughter was filled with a sense of recognition and happiness.

At that moment, she felt like she could do anything for him.

“So, how’s it been with Sigrid lately?”

Kraush asked casually, steering the conversation.

“Ah, uh, I haven’t seen her anymore. It’s completely over now.”

Sigrid, whom she once followed as her master, was no longer a part of her life.

Yet, despite this, there was no hint of regret in her eyes.

If anything, there was a faint trace of resentment toward Sigrid.

“I, I should’ve done this from the beginning.”

She muttered softly, a trace of regret in her tone.

If only she had left Sigrid’s side earlier, she wouldn’t have ended up like this.

Seeing this, Kraush gently patted Mary’s head.

“It’s okay. You’ve gotten out of it now, haven’t you? You’re free now, Mary. You can do whatever you want.”

“W-whatever I want?”

Mary looked up at Kraush.

Like a dog waiting for its master’s command, ready to obey at any moment, Mary was focused entirely on Kraush.

But Kraush didn’t give her any commands. Instead, he removed his hand from her head.

“Well, I’ve got to go now.”

“Ah.”

Mary flinched as she watched Kraush leave without giving her an order.

While she stood there, flustered, Kraush gave her a brief smile.

“You look good, being out of your room. Train while I’m gone and take care of yourself.”

“Y-yes, sir!”

Mary’s face lit up with visible joy, and she responded enthusiastically as if she had taken his words as an order.

Kraush, seeing this, walked down the corridor, hands slipping into his pockets.

He pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the hand that had just patted Mary’s head.

His expression remained emotionless, as always.

This marked the end of his dealings with Mary.

At the very least, she wouldn’t be an obstacle anymore.

‘That leaves Sigrid and Adela.’Nôv(el)B\\jnn

As he thought of the two, Kraush continued walking.

He was ruthless when it came to them, as with Mary.

* * *

The Unending Night.

One of the forbidden zones caused by the World Eroder.

This place existed in eternal night, where the sun never rose.

The darkness was unbroken, with countless towers piercing the sky like a dense bamboo forest.

No one knew who had built these towers, but parasitic beings known as Black Wraiths lived within them—bizarre, otherworldly creatures.

Kraush had come to the Unending Night for one reason.

To meet the world’s greatest Curse Master, Veltua Lacroix.

The problem lay in reaching the Unending Night.

Unlike other forbidden zones, which were generally regulated, the Unending Night was in lawless territory.

The mountain range leading to it was exceptionally treacherous, with dense woods and thick underbrush making even walking difficult.

The trees and vegetation, twisted and deformed by the influence of the Unending Night, made the journey even more perilous.

Not even criminals exiled from the human world dared to linger near the Unending Night.

Yet, as Kraush traveled along this treacherous mountain path, he moved with surprising ease.

The reason was simple: the carriage Kraush rode wasn’t ordinary.

Clatter, clatter.

Despite the piercing branches and sharp grass underfoot, the horse pulling the carriage remained unfazed.

This was no ordinary horse—it was a spectral steed summoned by Ebelasque.

Even the carriage Kraush sat in was made of bone, lacking wheels entirely.

Floating through the air, the carriage glided smoothly over the rugged mountain range.

“Was it really necessary for you to come along?”

Kraush, watching the passing scenery, turned his head to the side.

A woman seated in the front, arms crossed, lifted her head at his question.

Her jet-black hair had streaks of golden-yellow, reminiscent of forsythia. She wore a perfectly tailored black dress, her crossed arms emphasizing her figure.

She scowled deeply.

“Of course, I had to come. Did you really think I’d let you go to a forbidden zone on your own?”

“This was supposed to be a solo trip.”

“No way. If you’ve promised to live with me forever, you need to take responsibility and stay safe.”

Kraush rolled his eyes. Safe wasn’t exactly a word that described his life.

Still, he didn’t argue further as he stared at Ebelasque, his expression slightly incredulous.

Having Ebelasque around certainly made things more convenient.

The problem, however, was that she wasn’t the only one who had decided to tag along with Kraush.

“Haring, you too.”

The woman sticking closely to his side while warily eyeing Ebelasque was Haring Lagrin.

The moment she heard that Kraush was departing on a mission through the Lion Order, she had immediately insisted on joining him.

“Where Kraush goes, I go.”

The determination in Haring’s eyes was unshakable.

Though Kraush worried about the dangers of heading into a forbidden zone, Haring’s stubbornness left him with no choice.

‘Then again, worrying about someone from the Skyborne Generation does feel a bit silly.’

In fact, it might even be a good opportunity for her to gain knowledge about the forbidden zones.

After all, Kraush didn’t intend to stop the apocalypse alone.

“Just don’t overdo it.”

At that, both Ebelasque and Haring turned to stare at him simultaneously.

Their expressions were clear: Who are you to say that?

The only one amused by this was the crimson crow of Crimson Garden, perched on Kraush’s lap. It cackled mockingly, as if to taunt him.

Kraush’s awkward silence was interrupted by the sound of the carriage coming to a halt with a clatter.

They had emerged from the mountain range.

As they exited, the surroundings began to grow darker.

Moments ago, it had been midday, but now night was rapidly falling.

And this night was far darker than any ordinary night.

Thick fog seemed to hang in the air, obscuring everything around them.

The carriage, unfazed by the oppressive Night Fog, pressed forward.

If it had been a normal horse, it would have frozen in terror the moment they entered the fog. But the spectral steed continued on, undeterred.

Eventually, the fog began to lift.

What replaced it was the sight of bizarre towers rising amidst the darkness.

Each tower, with its sharp, pointed peak, seemed to pierce the sky, as if attacking the night itself.

Kraush stared at the scene through the carriage window and spoke.

“Ebelasque, leave the skeletal legion out of this.”

“Why? Weren’t you here to find Veltua?”

“Even if your skeletal legion moves, it’ll just waste time fighting the Black Wraiths.”

Kraush glanced out the window at the Black Wraiths visible from the towers.

The creatures, leaning out of the towers, were all observing the unexpected visitors.

Once their observation was complete, they would undoubtedly swarm in.

That meant they had already deemed the newcomers as prey.

“Let’s just keep moving. Veltua wouldn’t be anywhere near the outskirts like this.”

Veltua had entered the forbidden zone in search of a curse.

It was likely one of the highest-grade curses.

Even someone like Veltua couldn’t handle such a curse at will.

The reason he sought out a highest-grade curse was singular.

To observe it.

‘Crazy old man.’

What kind of lunatic would enter a forbidden zone just to observe a curse?

Kraush couldn’t wrap his head around it, thinking how utterly incomprehensible the man was.

“So, without the help of my skeletal legion, how do you plan to find him in a place this vast?”

As the carriage pressed onward, Ebelasque glanced outside, her expression showing faint exasperation.

She wasn’t wrong, the Unending Night was endlessly expansive.

The thought of scouring such a place to find someone made her look visibly overwhelmed.

Kraush, however, seemed entirely unbothered.

“It’s simple.”

His gaze fixed ahead, toward the increasingly dense darkness of the Unending Night.

“The place where the World Erosion’s power is strongest.”

That’s where Veltua would be.

Translators note: