Eternal Thief

A few hundred miles away from the Black River City.

Within a mountain range, inside a cave, three capped figures were resting on each corner.

They were one other than Noa, Freya, and Winter, who completed their mission and fled far away from the Black River City.

Now, they're resting before they start to move again.

While resting, they also finally got the chance to see their rewards.

They all opened their mission respective mission panels.

======

[House Mission (Noa)]

-Mission: A Grand Entrance!

-Description: All the Thief House Members have been assembled in the Thief's House, it's time…!

-Task: A Memorable Heist!

[Mission Evaluation: Below Average]

[Reward(s)]

1. 500,000 House Points

[Claim?]

2. A Single Bloodline Evolution

[Claim/Later]

3. A Secret Skill:

-Shadow Escape: Secret Soul Skill

-Description: A secret skill used to escape within shadows.

-Condition to Cultivate:

1. Soul Embryo Realm

2. Grade-1 Night Demon Body

[Claim?]

======

[House Mission (Freya)]

-Mission: A Grand Entrance!

…

…

…

[Mission Evaluation: Below Average]

[Reward(s)]

1. 500,000 House Points

[Claim?]

2. A Single Bloodline Evolution

[Claim/Later]

3. A Secret Skill:

-Empty Sleep: Secret Soul Spell

-Description: A Dark Witchcraft Secret Spell.

-Condition to Cultivate:

1. Soul Embryo Realm

2. Illusionary Dark Pupil (Tier-3 Control)

[Claim?]

======

[House Mission (Winter)]

…

…

…

[Mission Evaluation: Poor]

[Reward(s)]

1. 500,000 House Points

[Claim?]

2. A Single Bloodline Evolution

[Claim/Later]

3. A Secret Skill:

-Flawless Aura Disguise: Secret Martial Skill

-Description: A skill of perfect disguise!

-Minimum Condition to Cultivate:

1. Qi Soul Realm

2. Myriad Beast Body Transformation (Hundred Transformations)

3. Faceless Art (Tier-3 Mastery)

[Claim?]

======

When they all saw the evaluation, their elated expressions vanished, especially Winter's who had received the lowest grade among the three.

'What kind of evaluation is this!?' They all thought.

They had completed the mission, and they knew they had stolen over 5 million HP worth of goods, but they still didn't get any extra reward. On the contrary, they felt like they had angered the goddess and they were afraid that some divine retribution will befall them.

However, when they saw the promised rewards were ready to be claimed, they felt relieved.

Freya looked at the secret skill with shining eyes. 'I got a secret spell that required my pupils even with that kind of evaluation? What if my evaluation was higher?' She didn't dare to imagine.

She knew better than anyone a spell was completely different from a skill, especially; secret dark spells.

This Flawless Aura Disguise secret skill also astonished Winter because it was almost impossible to mask someone else aura completely, but this skill can make it possible!

Meanwhile, Noa was quite thrilled with Shadow Escape because she probably got it because of her bloodline since it required Grade-1 Night Demon Body.

Although she wasn't sure when she'll be able to use it, she was looking forward to that day.

As for the one-time bloodline evaluation chance, they didn't even think of using it because it didn't have an expiry limit, which means they can use it at any time and any grade of their bloodline.

So, they all decided to save it until they reached either seventh or eighth grade in their bloodline before using it.

Furthermore, they had acquired quite a lot of HP in this endeavor, so they all were planning to buy every skill in their shops and cultivate hard so they would achieve higher evaluation in the next house mission and rewards!

Suddenly, a mutual notification rang in everyone's minds.

======

[The House Call Function has been unlocked and activated!]

[House Call: Spend 10 House Points to use this function to contact anyone in the Thief House at any time and place.]

======

They all looked at each other.

"Do you guys receive the same message?" Winter questioned.

Freya nodded, "Yes. This House Call is like communication cubes, but it's more than that since it came from the goddess."

Winter sternly retorted, "How can a measly communication cube compare to something from a god? Don't you see we can call at any time and place? That means there's no restriction, and we might didn't need to worry about someone's eavesdropping on our conversation."

"You're right. How about we try it with each other? We'll know how it works then." Freya suggested.

Winter quickly agreed she also wanted to try it.

Noa was also curious, but she was the last person who knows how to express herself in front of others.

In the end, she decided to try using it on Ace, and she also wanted to report their splendid success to him as well!

Ace looked at the dark interface in front of him.

=====

[Incoming House Call!]

-Caller: Noa Night (Thief Assassin)

-Accept/Ignore/Reject

=====

Ace decided to accept it, but he also put a concealing formation around just in case her voice rang aloud.

However, when he accepted it, "Leader?' her voice rang in his head like the system not in the open.

He was astonished and even more thrilled about this house call feature.

Now, he didn't need to worry about anyone hearing their conversation. No one will be able to tell he was talking with someone. Especially; in a theft where he can easily pass orders without any worry.

"I can hear you." Ace said with his thought like he usually does with the system.

Noa, on the other hand, was also startled when Ace's voice rang in her mind like the goddess. She was speaking out loud before.

Freya and Winter also found it astonishing when they heard each other voices in their heads, and they tried to talk with their thoughts as well.

Noa does the same.

"C-can… you… he-ar… me…?" She spoke stutteringly since it was her first time talking with her thoughts.

Ace guessed why she was suddenly talking this way and chuckled, "I can. This House Call is pretty amazing, huh?"

"Y-yes!" Noa replied with a hint of reverence.

Ace said, "Good job out there. No one gets hurt, right?"

"N… no. Everyone is fine, and this was only possible because you gave us… those powerful formations and talismans…"

She slowly told Ace about how they slaughtered the entire inner market of black river city and then forced the Puppeteer Clan's First Elder in handing over their treasures.

Then they escaped after trapping them in another grade-4 formation.

"… although we left behind two grade-4 formations. We earn so much from this heist. You can take all the treasures." She quickly offered without even asking the other two.

She knew without Ace's formations and talisman, they won't even complete the inner market before alarming the Puppeteer Clan, and Ace didn't get anything out of it at all, nor did he ask for anything in return.

Ace merely chuckled. "I don't need anything. Do you think I lack anything or need those treasuries from a slightly better tribe from a Demon Duke level tribe anymore?"

Noa was speechless since she had a clear idea of just how wealthy he was. She had gone into his thief's space multiple times. Although he only allowed her to skim through the raw material area, the other sides were still filled with storage rings.

Especially the mysterious storage ring wall in the center of his space.

But this also made her slightly frustrated since she wanted to help Ace, but he was the one who always helped her and didn't ask for anything in return. He had given her so much from the day they met. But she hasn't returned anything yet.

Ace didn't think too much of this sudden silence and questioned as his expression turned serious. "So, where are you guys right now? You have a very small window to reach here.

"Remembered, every demon king is here as well as other hidden experts of eight provinces. Although we don't have a clear idea about how they will react when they find out about a bandit gang robbing a city like the black river.

"But since you guys used the grade-5 formation, in the end, they will soon figure out that it was the stolen formation from the treasure pagoda. But it was only if they spread this news.

"If they tried to keep it under wrap because of the royal zone presence, we have little to worry about and the chances of this to happen are very high. But there's still a chance they would seek their help, so you guys have four or five days to reach me."

They all discussed these scenarios multiple times. It also concerned Ace's aim in this auction. He can't move without making sure they were all out of the woods.

"Please don't worry. We're far away from the Black River City and start moving again at night. We'll reach there in three days if nothing happens." Noa assured Ace with confidence.

Ace had no choice but to believe her. "Fine then. But if you sense something amiss, use plan-3 without any hesitation. I'll be waiting for you guys in Life Demon Auction!"