Feitan glanced at Shizuku, who was enthusiastically admiring the jewelry, and poked A Luo.
"You go! Tell Shizuku to stop wasting time here. The Boss already has what we need. According to the plan, we should be heading to East Gorteau's Light now."
A Luo: "..."
They were the ones who had come here to rob the place. Wasn't she just a little tagalong?
Why did she have to run around doing all their errands?
Unfortunately, Feitan was an unreasonable bully. Still too weak to stand up to his tyranny, A Luo could only obediently run over to Shizuku as ordered.
"Shizuku, the Boss sent word that he has the locations of the gems and all the passwords. We need to head to the place we agreed on right away. Can't we take our time admiring the jewelry back home once we've got it all?"
Shizuku thought it over and decided A Luo had a very good point.
Only then did she stop admiring the jewelry and follow Feitan toward the exhibition hall displaying the Star of East Gorteau.
As they passed the guards outside the hall, Feitan gave them a glance.
"What's wrong? Is there something strange about those people?"
A Luo was terribly nervous. This was her first time doing anything illegal.
The Spiders almost never failed in the manga... but what if!
What if a flap of her little butterfly wings caused some unforeseeable change, making the Spiders fail and getting her arrested along with them?
She was still so young. Her life had only just begun.
And she still had to find Malena!
A Luo never dared forget the earnest instructions her father had given her before leaving.
Feitan scoffed.
"Nothing! Probably just that nobody's Nen Ability. You and Shizuku go inside first. I'll have some fun with the guy hiding behind these guards."
When A Luo heard that Feitan was leaving her to enter the hall with only Shizuku, she was completely dumbfounded.
"You're joking, right? There are so many people in that hall, and you're sending just me and Shizuku in? What if-and I mean what if-Shizuku's forgetfulness suddenly kicks in?"
Feitan kept watching the guards.
A Luo's concern was reasonable. If he left her alone with Shizuku and Shizuku's forgetfulness kicked in, was he supposed to expect A Luo to deal with everyone in the exhibition?
But...
If he ignored the guy hiding outside, it would be fine if his ability only created a few guards. But what if he also had a skill that could trap people... With both him and Shizuku inside the hall, they might end up at a disadvantage.
It would be best to deal with that person outside first.
But they didn't have enough time to tackle them one by one. The Boss and Pakunoda would be here any moment. If they still hadn't dealt with the people inside and secured the Star of East Gorteau by then, it would be humiliating if word got out.
He had always been known among the members for finishing fights quickly.
Yet today, he had managed to trip himself up. It was all because the girl with them had been dazzled by the jewelry. They had wasted too much time along the way, leaving him caught between two choices.
Forget it!
Why think so much?
He might as well go straight into the hall. If the guy outside really had some troublesome restrictive ability, he could just take a few injuries and raze the entire exhibition hall to the ground.
He, Feitan, had never feared anyone in his life!
Having made up his mind, Feitan stopped agonizing and led A Luo and Shizuku straight into the innermost exhibition hall.
The Star of East Gorteau that Shizuku had wanted all along rested beneath a glass cover in the center of the hall.
The pear-shaped pink diamond weighed nearly a hundred carats. Flawlessly cut, it had been fashioned into a crown that sparkled with dazzling brilliance.
The Star of East Gorteau was only the crown's centerpiece. Besides this largest and most flawless diamond, several others only slightly smaller had also been perfectly set into the crown.
The entire crown was made of pure gold and studded with dozens of small diamonds, giving an impression of unsurpassed luxury and dazzling perfection.
"I heard this crown is the most expensive piece of jewelry at the entire Treasure Festival!"
"I heard that too. And it isn't for sale. Once the exhibition ends, it'll be sent straight back to the palace. Apparently, His Majesty plans to give it to his favorite little princess."
The people in the hall gathered around the crown, discussing it at length.
A Luo didn't find the crown particularly beautiful. A single glance at the thing felt enough to blind her, that was all.
"Shizuku, do you want that crown?"
Shizuku shook her head.
"No! It's too sparkly. It hurts to look at. I only want the biggest diamond on it, the Star of East Gorteau."
Feitan:
"Shizuku, remember, we're thieves. If we like something, we can just steal it! You like that pink diamond, so all we have to do is take it off for you right now."
Feitan had just finished his declaration as a thief and was about to make his move when Shizuku interrupted him.
"Huh? That's not right! The Boss clearly said we were just a club that could go and take whatever we wanted. So we're actually thieves?"
With an adorably clueless look, Shizuku grabbed Feitan and questioned him.
A Luo covered her face.
No wonder this girl had agreed to the robbery without the slightest hesitation or qualm.
So you hadn't realized you were robbing people, or that you were actually thieves?
Feitan nearly lost his mind.
"Don't tell me you've only just realized what you've been doing? If you regret it now, there's still time. I'll send you straight to hell. The Boss can just recruit a new member."
For a moment, the atmosphere between the three of them turned tense.
Feitan was ready to strike, prepared to purge their ranks at any moment... while A Luo worried that Shizuku would come to harm at his hands.
But unexpectedly, Shizuku suddenly clapped her hands in delight.
"That's great! Thieves are so cool! Doesn't that mean we'll get to do exciting things like this all the time?"
Feitan: "..."
A Luo: "..."
Shizuku was so oblivious and endearingly ditzy that her reactions truly couldn't be judged by ordinary standards!
After that little interlude, Shizuku urged Feitan to get on with it.
Working together, the two first took out every guard in the exhibition hall, then used the password Chrollo had provided to open the transparent glass case holding the crown.
They'd gotten it that easily?
Shizuku and A Luo had barely breathed a sigh of relief when they heard Feitan speak coldly toward the hall's entrance.
"We've already taken care of all your guards. If you don't show yourself... we'll be leaving with the jewelry."
Before you continue