Chapter 28: Chero (2)

“Hoooom!”

As the townsfolk began to appear one by one on the street, Chero stretched and stood up.

He sat there for a moment, dazed, gazing at the morning street before pushing himself up from his knees.

“Ahem, I drank way too much strong liquor last night! I really can’t stand that kind of booze, you know!”

Who was it that eagerly gulped down that strong liquor?

‘He really is a funny guy.’

I was hiding at the entrance of the alley, watching the scene unfold.

Chero, suffering from a hangover, was swaying back and forth, tugging at his limbs.

Gulp.

Following my instructions, Thomson was sweeping the street, pretending to be a cleaner, all the while keeping a sharp eye out for the right moment.

But it wasn’t the look of someone waiting for a chance to pickpocket—it was the look of someone waiting for a chance to ‘reverse-pickpocket.’

……But why does he look so nervous?

Logically, isn’t it much easier to slip something into someone’s pocket than to steal something out of it?

I gave him an easy job, so why is he so jittery?

I mouthed the words, scolding Thomson.

‘Hey, just do it like you always do!’

Then Thomson mouthed back.

‘Trying something new is making me really nervous, sir!’

Now that I think about it, that’s understandable.

Has a back-alley thug ever tried slipping something into someone else’s pocket before?

He’s probably hit people on the back of the head with bricks and robbed them plenty of times.

But whether it’s pickpocketing or reverse-pickpocketing, the principle is the same.

First, distract the target’s attention.

“Ahem.”

Thomson, having finished his pointless sweeping, started walking briskly in Chero’s direction.

The moment the two passed each other on the same line—

“Whoops!”

Thomson casually hooked his own leg with the broom and, grabbing Chero, crashed to the ground in a heap.

“Whoa! What are you doing?!”

“Aigo, I’m so sorry! I skipped breakfast and my legs just gave out!”

The two of them sprawled out together on the street.

Watching from the shadows, I admired the performance.

‘Wow, that’s what makes a pro different.’

His movements were so simple and skillful that if you didn’t know better, you’d think it was just an accident.

Thanks to that, Chero was left dumbfounded, tangled up with Thomson.

‘Now for the second step—do it in an instant.’

Thomson’s hand moved like lightning.

No, more like a sly snake.

“Ah, are you all right, sir?”

Saying that, he deftly dropped what he’d been holding into Chero’s coat pocket.

A single Silver Coin.

No more, no less.

He succeeded in slipping in the one thing Chero hated most.

I cheered inwardly, while Chero, still clueless, was croaking in his hoarse voice.

“Ugh! What a rotten start to the morning! Has the street sweeper been drinking?!”

.Weren’t you the one who drank?

“Aigo, I’m truly sorry!”

Anyway, after completing the first reverse-pickpocket, Chero hurried off into another alley.

He’d soon return in a new disguise, ready for the next phase.

“Hmm.”

I watched Chero trudge away, paying close attention.

He scratched his nose furiously, sneezed violently, and finally slipped his hand into his coat pocket.

And the next moment—

“……?”

His hand slowly withdrew from his pocket.

He must have felt the unfamiliar sensation a bit late.

The moment Chero’s gaze landed on the Silver Coin—

“Waaah! What the—?!”

With a shout, he hurled the coin onto the ground.

“Why is this filthy piece of silver in my pocket?!”

Chero shook his hand like it was covered in grime, even rubbing it hard against his pants.

As expected.

I watched him with a quiet smile.

‘So it works the same here, too.’

Chero has an almost pathological hatred for Silver Coins.

The reason is unknown.

Digging into the original setting a bit…

‘There’s a rumor it’s related to Chero’s Vampire Lineage.’

But nothing was certain.

At least, it was never revealed in the original game.

“Agh, just how much did I drink last night? Did I get this as change?!”

Chero just assumed he’d been too drunk to notice the Silver Coin when he pocketed it.

Well, that’s a reasonable guess.

‘Who would ever suspect a pickpocket of reverse-pickpocketing them?’

But what if it keeps happening?

All day long?

If the thing you hate most keeps appearing in your pocket, endlessly?

‘You’d probably go insane, wouldn’t you?’

Yeah, that’s how this event is supposed to go.

Driving Chero half mad.

That’s the quest: Card Cheat Chero’s Most Perfect Strategy.

And then, something wonderful will happen.

“Heh heh, hehehe….”

“Sir, why are you laughing like a villain?”

“Whoa, you scared me.”

Thomson had already finished preparing for the next round and appeared behind me.

A true pro is fast.

While Thomson was tormenting Chero, it was actually me who was in more danger.

“Hey, you. Come over here.”

The Lower Guards were beckoning to me with a wave.

‘Ugh, here we go again.’

Random inspection.

With city security tightened, there was no way to avoid the patrolling guards.

Since I had to follow Chero’s route, even knowing the guards were waiting, there was nothing I could do.

Still, this much was easy enough to deal with.

“How old are you?”

“Seventeen, sir!”

“With that face?”

“……Yes.”

“Tsk, suspicious. Show me your ID.”

“Yes, here it is.”

I had a fake ID made by the Order of Eolem.

“Shan Alledro? Hmm, I haven’t seen you before. You kind of look like the guy on this wanted poster…”

As the Lower Guard tilted his head, I started my silver tongue routine.

“Come on, how could someone as plain as me look like that? And of course you haven’t seen me before!”

“Why not?”

“I’m actually from Erarhrt, but I just got hired as a courier for the Order of Eolem and moved here recently. Hehe.”

“Ah….”

Mixing the given information to spin a plausible lie.

“Hm, so that’s why there’s an archbishop’s seal on this ID? All right, carry on.”

[You have successfully deceived the neutral NPC ‘Lower Guard’!]

‘Success.’

That’s how you trick an NPC.

Combining this process with Giloshian’s only strength—a high Charm stat—Lower Guards were easy to fool.

After sending the guards away, I signaled toward the other side of the alley.

‘It’s fine, keep going.’

‘Understood, sir!’

Thomson, who had been watching my way from hiding, nodded and disappeared.

……This really does feel like some kind of spy movie.

Thomson used a variety of disguises and situations to slip Silver Coins into Chero’s pockets.

He became a butcher demanding payment, getting into a scuffle.

He showed up as a dignified old gentleman, saying, ‘Young man, I think you dropped your watch,’ and slipped a coin into Chero’s pocket before disappearing.

“Thief! Stop, thief!”

“Waaah! Out of the way! Move!”

He even actually stole something from somewhere and, while being chased by the shopkeeper, crashed into Chero.

…That one seemed more self-serving, though.

Anyway, as a result of constantly stuffing Silver Coins into Chero’s pockets like this—

“Pfft! Cough cough!”

Sitting in a restaurant slurping noodles, Chero choked and spat out his food.

“Ugh! Another Silver Coin?!”

Maybe he was reaching for a handkerchief to wipe his mouth, but when he put his hand in his pocket, he found ‘it’ again.

“What the hell is going on?! Why does this keep happening? Disgusting! It’s filthy, I tell you!”

He screamed and hurled the Silver Coin away.

A beggar child, who’d been watching, darted out, snatched it up, and ran off.

I smiled quietly as I watched.

‘Almost there.’

The street beggars had caught on that Chero would throw another Silver Coin, so he’d been reverse-pickpocketed so many times it was almost a spectacle.

He was on the verge of losing his mind.

‘Now, just one more time!’

I signaled to Thomson, who was disguised as an ordinary resident.

Thomson nodded with a determined look.

“Achoo!”

As he passed by Chero, he let out a violent sneeze.

At the same time, a silver coin glinted in the air.

The Silver Coin traced a graceful arc and landed softly somewhere.

“….!”

Chero, grumbling as he slurped his noodles, suddenly froze.

“Mmph! Mmmph!”

With noodles still in his mouth, he raised both hands and started scratching his back like mad.

“Aaagh! Silver, Silver Coin! The Silver Coin!”

Clear broth and a piercing scream mixed together as the table was overturned and chaos erupted.

“What’s going on?”

“What’s wrong with that man?”

“Indeed, sir.”

Thomson was now standing among the nearby patrons, frowning along with them.

Such professional, subtle movement.

‘Did I do well, sir?’

‘You did great. That was perfect.’

The last place Thomson reverse-pickpocketed the Silver Coin was at the nape of Chero’s neck.

He had slipped it right between the collar and the back of his neck.

“Yaaah! Get it out! Someone get it out!”

Chero was thrashing and shouting.

And the moment his fingers brushed the last Silver Coin—

“A curse! This is a curse! It’s the curse of the Silver Coin, I tell you!”

Chero hurled the coin far away.

“Again! Where is it this time? Come out! All of you, come out!”

He even turned his pockets inside out, shaking everything out.

A bunch of bizarre objects tumbled out of his pockets.

I nodded in satisfaction at his ridiculous state.

‘That’s it.’

Making Chero unknowingly keep the Silver Coin he hates so much.

That was the activation condition for this Hidden Piece.

And Thomson had fulfilled that condition perfectly.

If I’d drawn a thief-type card and had a Steal skill, I could have done it myself.

But since I didn’t, his help was essential.

I mouthed words of praise to Thomson.

‘You did great. I’ll make sure your fortunes turn around.’

‘Huh? You want me to jump now?’

‘Forget it, man.’

Crash.

“Where is it? Where’s the Silver Coin this time?! Aaaargh!”

Among the jumble of things Chero dumped out in his half-crazed state—

Shine.

One familiar item dropped to the ground.

It was a Destiny Card.

A dazzling, rainbow-hued card of ‘that’ grade!

‘Now’s my chance.’

Without hesitation, I strode forward.

And from behind the distracted Chero, I grabbed the card.

At the same time, information appeared before my eyes.

So tempting.

And so dangerous.

[Destiny Card][EX Grade] The fate of an investigator who believes the culprit will always return to the scene.
Bound Skill: Unknown

‘This is already the second transcendental-grade card I’ve seen.’

I haven’t even hit level 10 yet, but I seem to be seeing this rare grade way too often.

But this time, I felt no desire at all.

In fact, there was no need.

……This one was, true to its name, just a device for ‘Trap Investigation.’

‘If I use it, I’m the one who’ll get blown up.’

So, while Chero’s pocket-rummaging was a Hidden Piece, it wasn’t really a Hidden Piece.

A Hidden Piece you shouldn’t take.

A Hidden Piece you have to act against all common sense.

Holding the card, I tapped Chero’s shoulder.

“……?”

“You dropped this, sir.”

The old folktale of the Gold Axe and Silver Axe.

It’s just like that.

“Hm?”

Chero’s eyes flashed with madness as he stopped rummaging through his pockets.

“Really? That’s not your card? Are you sure?”