MTLNOVEL Chapter 22: Chapter 22: Donating to Those in Need
"Cipher, come here for a moment," Feidric called, waving her over. When she approached, he paused, then asked quietly, with a hint of suspicion, "Were you the one who stole from Viscount Braun's manor?"
Feidric was standing in a corner of the Adventurer's Guild hall. With most of the members crowded around the wanted posters, he was completely alone in that area.
"A-ah?" Cipher's tail stiffened slightly at the question, and she glanced away. "Stealing? I don't know anything about that..."
Feidric simply replied calmly, "Just tell me the truth. If you didn't do it, no harm done. If you did, I won't betray you."
"Huh?" Cipher stared at him, bewildered. Shouldn't he be scolding or criticizing her right now?
Feidric wasn't surprised by her reaction. "I don't even know Viscount Braun," he said. "What does his misfortune have to do with me? But Cipher, you're my companion. Isn't it perfectly normal to stand by your companion, no matter what?"
"Just don't let Aria find out you stole anything," Feidric said. "She's easily fooled; if you dare to tell her, she'll believe it."
Feidric's willingness to cover for her surprised Cipher, but she was even more puzzled by his next question. "So, how did you figure out it was me?"
Feidric gave her an exasperated look and pointed to her shoulder bag. "You just bought that bag yesterday, and it's already stuffed full today. Plus, you asked me about storage rings this morning. Was it really that hard to guess?"
Feidric had already been fairly certain Cipher was the culprit, but when he saw the wanted poster, doubt crept in again, hence his initial hesitant tone. It wasn't until he observed Cipher's reaction that he was convinced once more.
"So," Feidric asked, "why is there such an absurdly abstract bounty for a 'Round-Faced, Pointy-Mouthed, Bald Phantom Thief'? Were you wearing a mask at the time?"
Cipher shook her head, looking bewildered. "I wasn't wearing a mask. Wait, no one even saw me. How did they come up with that description?"
"No one saw you?" Feidric asked, his confusion deepening. "Then how did Viscount Braun even know he'd been robbed?"
"Because I left a note," Cipher replied, before reciting the message she'd written. Feidric was stunned into silence.
This... is this even right? he wondered. Who breaks into a house, steals everything, and then leaves a note taunting the owner? If no one saw her, why didn't she just take the loot and leave? Wouldn't that have been the perfect heist?
No, Feidric quickly realized, what was even more absurd was that Cipher had infiltrated Viscount Braun's mansion, stolen his valuables, and made a clean escape without being spotted by a single person. How on earth did she manage that?
After all, this was a Viscount's residence! It would undoubtedly be heavily patrolled by guards. For an ordinary thief, simply getting inside would be an insurmountable challenge.
Feidric couldn't wrap his head around it, but he was deeply shaken. The seemingly clumsy and airheaded Catgirl he knew was actually this capable?!
After a moment's pause, Feidric asked, "So... did you really steal two thousand Gold Dragons?"
Cipher immediately protested, "That's impossible! My shoulder bag wouldn't even hold two thousand Gold Dragons. I only took a few hundred at most. This is a setup!"
Feidric remained silent, at a loss for words.
Finally, Cipher sighed. "Now that I have this money, I don't even know what to spend it on. Hey everyone, is there anything you particularly need or want to buy?"
Feidric shook his head. "Not really. Besides, even if we did want something, we probably couldn't find it in this city. You should keep the money for yourself."
As they spoke, Cipher suddenly noticed a ragged peasant enter the Adventurer's Guild. He went straight to the front desk and began speaking to a staff member.
Her cat ears twitched slightly, allowing her to overhear their conversation.
The matter was simple: the peasant was there to post a quest. His village, located near Stone Pine City, had been ravaged by several frenzied wild boars that had rampaged through their fields. The villagers had pooled their Gold Dragons to hire adventurers to eliminate the beasts.
There was nothing particularly strange about the situation itself, but Cipher suddenly realized that if she didn't know how to spend the money, she could simply donate it to those in need—the poor and helpless!
After all, she had stolen the money, so she wouldn't feel bad about giving it all away. Besides, if she ran out, she could always "revisit" Viscount Braun's manor, right?
(Viscount Braun: Oh, thank you so much!)
Cipher clenched her left fist and slammed it into her right palm. "I've got it! I'm going to donate all these hundreds of Gold Dragons!"
Feidric: "???"
Feidric was utterly bewildered. Cipher wasn't the first thief he had ever met, but every other thief he knew could be described with words like "greedy," "selfish," and "untrustworthy."
Yet Cipher kept shattering his preconceived notions. Feidric could sense that she was completely serious.
If someone had told him before that a thief would donate their stolen loot to those in need, he would have dismissed it as a joke. But now, that exact scenario was unfolding right before his eyes.
Cipher was nothing if not efficient. Once she had an idea, she acted on it immediately. However, she wasn't just going to hand out the money directly. She planned to draw a pile of cat heads, wrap the gold coins in paper with these unique designs, and deliver them to everyone in need.
This act would undoubtedly skyrocket her fame. While no one would know the identity of the mysterious benefactor, the legend of the "Cat-Headed Phantom Thief" would become a beloved tale, spreading far and wide.
Cipher immediately asked Feidric, "Do you have paper and a pen?"
A moment later, Feidric stared at Cipher's crude cat head drawings in silence. Suddenly, he remarked, "I think I finally understand where the nickname 'Round-Faced, Pointy-Mouthed, Bald Phantom Thief' came from."
Cipher had never studied art and lacked formal drawing skills. As a result, the cat heads were incredibly simple: an oval with two pointy ears, a pair of oddly shaped eyes, and nothing more. At first glance, they exuded a strangely ugly-cute charm.