“Haven’t you done enough damage? Any sane man would lie low for a while after stirring up that vampire nest. Now you want information about which noble to rob?” One-Ear asked, exasperated, but the fact that he was still standing there and had answered Nick’s summons meant he wasn’t as mad as he looked.

He was also alone, for once. The crossbowmen and hidden guards he’d been bringing with him the past few times they’d met were noticeably absent, which made Nick feel better about his choice of information broker.

Learning from Nausicaa’s divination that at least one of One-Ear’s men was part of the Circle of Pure Souls was a shock, but Nick hadn’t been ready to burn his contact just because of that and had decided to use it as a test.

He’d quietly let the man know of his discoveries, and apparently, One-Ear had chosen to eliminate the entire group. It was a drastic method, but it made it easier to trust him, especially since he seemed sincere.

“I have never said anything about robbing anyone,” Nick replied innocently, like butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth. “I merely asked about what Houses were most involved in the illegal trades. I want nothing but for peace to return to Alluria, I assure you.”

One-Ear didn’t believe him for a second, but their relationship had long since moved past the simple back and forth they had at the beginning of Nick’s time in the city.

The broker knew Nick was far from an average apprentice. He had felt the heat he could generate himself, and from the bubbling curiosity that could be felt at the back of his mind, he probably knew about his dealings with the Duke.

I wonder if he still thinks this is part of the sanctioned operations. It would make sense for the Duke to punish those houses that worked behind his back, especially if it couldn’t be traced back to him. Oh well, I’m not going to confirm or deny anything. I just need to avoid getting caught.

“Yes, and I am just a simple, gossipy man who likes collecting secrets for no reason,” One-Ear snakily replied, but still, he didn’t leave.

Clearly, he had made his choice to ride with Nick and the faction he believed he belonged to, and was willing to take on some of the risks if it meant being on the winning side.

It almost made Nick feel guilty, since he could offer little protection to his friend if things went wrong, but that only confirmed his decision to do everything with great care.

They locked eyes for a long moment, both too stubborn to step back, but ultimately, there was only one way this could go.

“I hope you know what you’re doing. You must be the most reckless teenager I’ve ever met, and that’s saying something,” One-Ear muttered. “Alright, if we need to organize a heist, we should do it properly. What’s the main goal here? Property destruction? Plausible deniability? Cash? Damaging reputations?”

Nick smiled. “I knew you’d come around.”

“Have you heard? They’ve finally settled on a date for the auction!” a merchant exclaimed, giddily rubbing his hands together, while the woman manning the stall next to him rolled her eyes.

“I don’t understand why you’re so excited. It’s not like any of us will get a slice of the pie. I heard that tickets this year are going crazy. Someone even tried to buy one for eighty golds, and was turned down! Eighty golds! I wouldn’t have to work another day in my life with that much money!” she replied, getting increasingly heated.

“That’s exactly why I’m so excited! Usually, tickets only sell for that much the day before the auction, and not even every year. This whole mess at the docks, and the Duke increasing the security level throughout the city, has even made the most stoic nobles frenzy with speculation about what could be so valuable to require such extensive preparation.”

The woman didn’t seem impressed by his argument, “Bah, all that’s happening is that we need to close up shop an hour earlier to respect the curfew. I still don’t know why you are so happy.”

“Why, that’s because if things are so frenzied here, nobles and rich merchants from all over the kingdom will converge on Alluria soon! Word must have reached them, and you know how they are. They can probably pop up here in a flash from their castles, without having to travel all the way like us poor mortals!”

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Nick moved away then, having scouted enough of the mercantile consortium behind the two stalls.

It hadn’t been one of his initial targets, but on One-Ear’s urging, he decided to do some investigating himself into hidden connections among nobles, merchants, and gangs that the Duke’s men couldn’t reach with their methods, and had to admit that it might be a better plan than his direct attack.

Not that sneaking into a manse in the middle of the night wouldn’t have worked, but he had to admit that he hadn’t really thought about what the abundance of spatial items in Alluria would mean.

It only made sense for noble houses with a strong presence in the city to have multiple stashes and safes. Especially if their wealth wasn’t entirely legal, as was the case for House Marney, who were Viscounts of Valis’ Rest, a trading port town on the southern bend of the Valis River, which handled much of the ship trade to Alluria.

Along with the regular food, building materials, and miscellaneous goods necessary for a city this size to thrive, they were apparently also suspected of having connections to smuggling rings known to move illegal goods in and out of the walls.

Apparently, they were a known thorn in the Duke’s side, but they were also careful enough to never let anything suspicious come into the light, and had covered their tracks well enough that beyond a few inspections that led nowhere, they were ready to slip away from the current investigation once again, especially as the focus shifted toward the Circle’s operations rather than just the gangs.

Well, Nick was more than ready to do his part so justice could be served. That he’d enrich himself quite a bit to do so had little weight, in his unbiased personal opinion.

Taking his seat on one of the benches that lined the secondary market street, close enough to the Southern Valis Consortium to be within walking distance if an opening appeared, but still far enough away to avoid suspicion from the four guards stationed at every entrance—and especially from the mage who was operating some kind of divination focus, which, to Nick’s basic understanding, provided the man with a vantage point over the entire building similar to what a camera surveillance system would offer.

Fortunately, he had a very useful ring that would allow him to breach such a defense, along with the other surveillance wards cast on the building with ease.

Usually, I’d wait for nightfall to sneak in, but in this world, everyone and their mother has sharp enough senses to see in the dark, especially in a city. Getting in during the day, when their guard is down, might actually be easier.

All the preparation and anxiety before such a dangerous operation left Nick feeling unexpectedly nostalgic. Although he never gained access to the libraries of Earth's most influential families, he was no stranger to stealing grimoires and valuables in the dark.

This life had been surprisingly kinder, in an odd way. He had to kill much earlier, so it wasn’t easier, but resources had been abundant from the very beginning. He’d obtained multiple magical books even in a backward frontier town like Floria, and now that he was an Archmage’s apprentice, he had access to more magical knowledge than he knew what to do with.

And yet, he returned to his old habits, because despite the fact that the sale of the matriarchs had earned him more than the entire rest of the herd combined, and the refund from the auction ticket brought him to eight hundred gold coins—an amount of wealth enough to probably start his own splinter noble house and build a small town like his ancestor once did—it still wasn’t enough.

The amount of attention the auction was said to be receiving from nobles and wealthy merchants from all over the kingdom also didn’t make his projections any rosier. In fact, he’d revised his estimates and decided he needed at least another hundred golds on top of the thousand he’d set as a goal, just to make sure he could actually get the orichalcum.

Some might have mocked the idea of spending that ridiculous amount just to end up with a casting focus, something he once made with bones and twigs in Floria, and that he could probably get from Tholm if he just asked.

But Nick wasn’t aiming for just a simple wand. He wanted to utilize the ridiculously powerful and rare materials he’d discovered on his journeys so far, and orichalcum was the only material he could find in his research that was strong enough to not only withstand the clashing energies but also bring them into balance.

Whatever came out on the other end, whether it was a wand, a staff, or another ring, didn’t matter. He just knew it was necessary if he wanted to face a Prestige artificer in less than a year.

His musings were brought to an abrupt end as he sensed the guards around the Consortium take notice of something.

“Oho? So I’m not the only one who had this idea,” he muttered under his breath, tracking the misty figure slipping from shadow to shadow as it moved closer to the building.

Their unique mode of travel made it difficult for Nick to tell if they were a man or a woman, but he’d have to remember their signature and track them down once he was finished.

They deserve a gift for distracting the guards, a very generous one if the payoff lives up to One-Ear's promise.

Indeed, although the shadow magic the would-be thief was using was enough to go unnoticed by ordinary people and allow them to reach the steps of the Consortium, it was far from enough to bypass the multiple security nets surrounding it.

Nick spared them one last thought, hoping they could escape unharmed as chaos erupted on the street when the first guard drove their glaive into the moving shadow, forcefully ejecting them.

He, on the other hand, had little trouble bypassing the layers, as the [Ring of Unknowingness] worked just as well here as it had against the protections the Circle of Pure Souls had set up around its base.

SYSTEM NOTIFICATION!

Your Trait [Blasphemy] has nullified a Minor illusion.

Your Trait [Blasphemy] has nullified a Minor mental manipulation.

Your Trait [Blasphemy] has nullified a Minor psychic attack.

Feeling the magic wash over him never got old, and Nick had to suppress a snicker as he ghosted through the corridors, heading for the top office.

In his experience, rich people generally fell into two categories. There were those who hadn’t earned their wealth and openly displayed it to show off, and those who had achieved it through their own efforts, often hiding much more of their wealth than they let on.

In this particular case, Nick was tracking down the results of hard, if illegal, labor and knew that the heavily guarded safe at the bottom of the basement was nothing but a distraction.

The real wealth was hidden in the smaller, yet better-crafted one behind a painting in the biggest office. From what he could tell, it was still large enough for him to walk into, so he didn’t doubt he’d find enough for his needs.

The only problem is that the guy guarding the office isn’t moving, and he’s pretty strong. I promised One-Ear I’d behave, so killing him is out of the question. Hmm… Decisions, decisions.