The Girl Who Looted Tomorrow

Euphemia was different from most people. She had a sharp eye for detail.

“The way he walked and stood was different from an ordinary person,” she said. “Habits drilled into your bones are difficult to hide.”

“He’s definitely received professional training. Most likely, he’s a soldier.”

“Red hair and a soldier…”

There was one obvious conclusion.

“Are you saying he’s Obsidian’s mastermind?” Freya asked. “The Rank Five General?”

Euphemia nodded.

“It’s very possible.”

“He also looked different through your perception than he did to my eyes. That probably means he’s carrying an extraordinary item capable of interfering with your senses.”

“The War Path itself definitely doesn’t have that ability.”

Freya’s mind raced.

This meant the man knew a great deal about the Earth Path. Before coming to the city to carry out his plan, he had prepared an extraordinary item to prevent Earth Path practitioners from finding him too easily.

Then there was the conversation at the flatbread stall.

The vendor was quite talkative, and judging by how he had greeted the man, this was clearly not the customer’s first visit.

However, minced-meat and onion flatbread was a traditional street food of the Kingdom of Tarapaca. Only locals tended to eat it regularly.

“Are you saying Obsidian’s mastermind, the Rank Five General, is probably a soldier from Tarapaca itself?” Freya asked.

“I’m certain of it,” Euphemia replied. “Most soldiers in Tarapaca follow the Law Path. Very few take the War Path.”

“Also, someone at Rank Five could genuinely hold the rank of [General] in the military.”

That overturned Freya’s earliest theory.

She had initially suspected that Obsidian’s mastermind might be a spy sent by a neighboring country to cause destruction.

“But why would someone from Tarapaca deliberately create a disaster in his own country?”

Euphemia clicked her tongue.

“Who knows? Maybe he’s simply deranged.”

“In any case, I’ll ask my grandfather to contact his friends in the military. There can’t be many Rank Five War Path Generals.”

“That alone should be enough to uncover this man’s real identity.”

As she spoke, Euphemia opened her shoulder bag and took out a notebook and pen.

She wrote a letter on the spot, describing the situation as briefly as possible. Then she tore the page from the notebook and folded it a few times.

Euphemia looked around before pulling Freya toward a nearby public restroom.

The moment they reached the entrance, however, Freya refused to take another step.

It was far too filthy.

Euphemia had no choice but to enter alone.

Less than thirty seconds later, she came rushing back out while pinching her nose.

“Never mind. Let’s find somewhere else.”

She needed to draw an occult array on the ground with a spirituality crystal. The array would summon a special [Spirit World Messenger] capable of delivering the letter quickly.

After seeing the state of the restroom, even Euphemia could not bring herself to work in there.

The two girls moved on and eventually found an empty corner.

Euphemia crouched beside the wall with a spirituality crystal pinched between her fingers and began drawing.

A short while later, an intricate array with a radius of roughly three feet took shape beneath her hand.

Euphemia quickly recited the summoning words.

“In my name, I summon the messenger bound to Euphemia M. Holmes.”

“Honor our agreement and come to my side.”

The entire array began glowing with a faint white light.

A small, translucent white dove flew out from its center.

It fluttered its wings and looked around. Then, to everyone’s surprise, it flew straight toward Freya.

The little dove landed on Freya’s shoulder and rubbed its head affectionately against her cheek.

Freya tilted her head in confusion.

Euphemia stared at it with the same expression.

Neither of them understood what had just happened.

After a moment, Euphemia said, “It seems to like you.”

“Maybe it’s because you follow the Earth Path?”

The Earth Path was arguably the gentlest of all Paths.

Freya also followed the Life Branch. To small animals, she was like a warm little sun. Her presence was comforting, and she smelled wonderful.

It was only natural that they would adore her.

With a helpless smile, Euphemia walked over to the dove and held out the letter.

“This is urgent. Please deliver it to my grandfather.”

The little dove rubbed its head against Freya one more time. Only then did it reluctantly take the folded letter in its beak.

It flapped its wings twice and vanished into thin air.

Euphemia took out the Invisibility Cloak.

“Now we just need to wait for a reply.”

“This is also the perfect opportunity to follow that General. We might be able to find one of his other bases.”

Back at the flatbread stall, the customer named [Jerome] was still waiting for the vendor to prepare his order.

He turned and looked in the direction Freya and Euphemia had left.

Euphemia’s reaction had been nearly flawless.

She had acted exactly like someone who had suddenly realized she had forgotten her money. Her momentary shock, embarrassment, and panic had all seemed completely natural.

The problem was her appearance.

Euphemia did not look like a commoner.

Her monocle and cane both marked her as a noblewoman, and a noble was far less likely than a commoner to leave home without money.

After all, a commoner might leave home to work.

What did nobles leave home for?

They went shopping or looked for entertainment. It was hardly as if they were also heading out to work.

Of course, it was still possible that Euphemia had genuinely forgotten her money.

But even if there was only a ten percent chance that she had been acting, what had the performance been intended to hide?

Her surprise upon seeing him?

Why had she been surprised?

Did she recognize him?

Jerome paid and accepted the flatbreads from the vendor while thinking about the other girl beside Euphemia.

The white hair, closed eyes, and bare feet made it obvious that she was an Earth Path practitioner.

That meant the two girls he had encountered by chance were anything but ordinary.

Jerome mentally reviewed everything he had done so far.

His plan was still in its preparation stage. He had yet to make a single obvious mistake, so the chances of anyone discovering him were extremely low.

Perhaps the noblewoman really had forgotten her money.

But this operation was far too important for Jerome to take that risk.

Even the slightest possibility that she had recognized him or discovered something was unacceptable.

[Author’s Note, Euphemia bought too many clothes for the two of them to carry comfortably. She tipped a clerk to deliver everything to her rented apartment, so they did not have the bags with them.]

Fortunately, minced-meat and onion flatbreads took time to prepare.

Jerome had ordered three, so the vendor needed even longer.

By the time Euphemia sent her letter and returned with Freya beneath the Invisibility Cloak, Jerome was still there.

“As far as I know, the War Path has no sensory abilities,” Euphemia whispered. “As long as we remain beneath the Invisibility Cloak and don’t get too close, we should theoretically be safe.”

“But don’t observe him with Mind Sense, Faye. Don’t direct any hostility toward him either.”

They already knew that Jerome possessed an extraordinary item capable of blocking an Earth Path practitioner’s Mind Sense.

What they did not know was how that item worked.

What if it was consumable?

Perhaps it automatically spent spirituality to block any attempt to observe its owner.

If Freya kept watching Jerome, he might realize that someone was monitoring him.

As for why Freya must not show hostility, Euphemia explained that as well.

“At Rank Two, the War Path gains a supernatural ability called [Intuition].”

“It allows practitioners to sense an incoming attack before it happens, both inside and outside combat.”

“It’s a passive ability. That means ambushing a War Path practitioner is nearly impossible. The moment someone prepares to attack, they’ll sense it.”

“This man is already Rank Five, so [Intuition] must have been strengthened several times.”

“He might even notice us if we direct hostility toward him.”

Freya looked puzzled.

“What exactly counts as [hostility]?”

Euphemia thought for a moment.

“I have no idea.”

“But I can guarantee that I don’t feel the slightest hostility toward him.”

“He’s Rank Five, and I’m only a Rank Two Scholar Path practitioner. Fighting him wouldn’t even qualify as a real fight. I’d just be walking to my death.”

“I’m too busy thinking about how to escape. How could I possibly feel hostile?”