Chapter 83: A New Discovery

Chapter 83: A New Discovery

The sun had set entirely, and a moonless night had descended. Usually, thanks to the illumination of a massive moon, one could see at least a little in the night, but tonight was different. In this place without streetlights, it was pitch dark.

Despite the late hour, Tatsuro and Ai had awakened some time ago. They had been conducting research and preparing for a potential confrontation outside. Hours passed quickly in this manner, and then it happened.

As they finished their preparations and stood ready, Cardina's detection magic picked up the same human presence as the previous night. Tatsuro, who was already awake, was informed of this, and Cardina received a reassuring pat on the head.

"Our preparations are complete. If they come, let them come." (Tatsuro)

"If they don't come, that's fine too." (Ai)

With a confident expression, they both put their strength into the equipment they held.

This time, it was not just a few people; about thirty individuals had formed a group, holding torches as they searched for the escaped prey.

"Given their movement speed, we should be able to find them soon. Hey, haven't you found them yet?"

"They're probably long dead, right? The trap was triggered, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, but the message from the scouts our reinforcements sent said there was nothing at the trap location. There were no signs of an explosion, and all the traps we set were completely destroyed. They are definitely alive. Come on, if you understand, start searching already, you idiots."

"Alright, I get it. Wait?"

"Things are getting noisy up ahead. What's going on?"

The most pompous of the group, a man wearing armour like a knight despite being a thief, with a thorny cudgel on his back, walked toward his agitated subordinates. As he approached, he noticed the figure writhing in their trap.Gẹtt the latest novels at n.o/(v)/e/l/bin(.)com

"What are you all doing? The trap location was clearly marked on the map, and you can't even read that? Are you all that stupid?"

"It's not true; the trap's location has been changed!"

"What? You should not be able to use it once it is activated So, you're telling me they dug it out skillfully before activation and moved it. These kids they should not have skimped on trap quality. Hey, put someone who can use dispel magic up front and have them locate the traps."

"Yes, right away."

The surprisingly well-organized thieves quickly adjusted their approach and resumed the hunt for their prey. Frustration began to show in the man as they struggled to find the traps, making it difficult for him to focus on the detection magic for people.

(Damn it. This is getting troublesome. If I say, I couldn't do anything,' when I report to the boss, my life will be in danger.)

"You still haven't found them?"

"It seems they've buried dummies that look just like the real traps, so it's quite a challenge."

"Dummies? Can't your detection magic tell them apart?"

"The problem is that they've made the dummies so closely resembling the real traps that no one with dispel magic skills can distinguish them in our group."

"Damn it, maybe these kids are even better at dispelling magic. We might need to catch them and make them our pets."

As he said that, the man in full armour suddenly felt something was amiss and turned around. To his surprise, the number of people who had been behind him had decreased.

"Hey, where did those guys behind us go?" he asked

"Huh? Where did they Oh, it looks like quite a few have disappeared."

When the man's entourage asked where the others had gone, they said they had vanished without notice. The man in full armour relayed this information, and one of his entourage was punched.

"You idiot! That's no damn excuse! Are you kidding me?"

"Please don't hit me. Talk to them directly!"

"Oh? You moron! Listen up, you guys, We didn't notice' won't cut it!"

"Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!"

As the underlings nervously and profusely apologized, the man in full armour continued to hit all of them and instructed the others to search for the missing members.

Then, when the man in full armour turned his attention to join his subordinates who were searching for traps at the front, he noticed that the numbers on that side had also decreased.

Finally, he realized that an abnormal situation was occurring.

"What's happening?"

"Huh? The people who were up front seem to have disappeared, too. They're pretty audacious to slack off like this."

"You morons! It is not a casual situation like that! We're under attack!"

"What?!"

Even if they had been focusing on the traps, the users of dispel magic among them should have noticed if someone got close. However, without anyone noticing, their numbers were being reduced, and the arrogant man's expression lost its composure.

It was a skill that could be called a product of coincidence, even if it was a technique.

"Illuminate with fire magic!"

"Yes! Huh?"

"There's no one here!"

"Wha?"

The place they had illuminated had nothing in it, and the man using detection magic had been hit.

However, there had indeed been a response, but it was merely a mass of mixed magic composed of dispel and dark magic, recognized as a person when detection magic was applied.

"It seems they rely too much on detection magic and easily fall for this. I should inform Catherine not to spread this around too much." (Tatsuro)

"What will we do now?" (Ai)

"Since they know something's there, and their numbers are low, let's switch to a different approach." (Tatsuro)

While the thieves were in disarray, trying to figure out the false information, Tatsuro, with a staff in his right hand and holding Ai's hand with his left, cast a spell before the thieves could locate them with fire magic.

"What the!?"

The thieves, who had attempted to illuminate the area with fire magic, found themselves in even darker surroundings. The light from the torches they held had disappeared, and they began to panic.

Tatsuro had only used dark magic to conceal the thieves who had gathered in one place, but they were engulfed in true darkness magic, which was now at level 7, effectively concealing their surroundings. The thieves needed light magic to regain visibility, but none of them was skilled in it, and leaving the area was not an option as Tatsuro controlled the boundaries.

While the thieves were in disarray, Tatsuro used telepathy to send detailed information about the enemies to Ai and have her incapacitate them with her whip. Despite the decreasing number of thieves, they managed to cut the group to less than one-third.

In this case, it did not matter if the voices of the incapacitated thieves were heard, so they were targeted with more force, resulting in a chorus of pain as one by one they fell. Panic continued to engulf the darkness.

"Get a hold of yourselves!"

The leader in full-body armour shouted in an attempt to restore order, but his voice went unheard, and he, too, was struck down. Only the leader remained, dodging attacks with skill in the darkness.

"It's just this guy who's skillfully avoiding fatal injuries in the darkness. It would be nice if he'd just pass out." (Ai)

"Whether he's sharp or it's a skill All right, let's investigate." (Tatsuro)

Tatsuro became interested in the man who continued to evade fatal injuries despite not striking with full force, so he decided to use dispel magic to sneak a peek at his status.

Name: ???

Class: Baton User

Level: 32

Ki: 382

Mana: ???

Strength: ????

Durability: 287

Agility: 257

Magic: ????

Magic resistance: ????

Magic Control: 47

|Acquired Skills|

[Baton Mastery Lv. 6], [Unarmed Combat Lv.2], [Body Strengthening Lv.3]

[???? Lv. 3], [Crisis Detection Lv. 2]

|System skills|

Remaining Skill Points:????

|Titles|

[????]

(His Level is surprisingly strong for a thief. Moreover, with [Crisis Detection], it can respond to threats even when invisible. I'll use an attack that can't be dodged.)

Tatsuro rallied himself for one final move.