San Francisco, top-floor office of the Dark Hand headquarters.
The air seemed to freeze solid.
The pupils of the Demon statue embedded in the wall burned with tangible fury, locked onto the young man pushing a cleaning cart, his face a picture of 'I'm just diligently doing my job'.
"You thief!" the Demon roared with a hoarse, grating voice, vibrating the air. "Stop right there!"
Victor slowly turned around, a look of genuine surprise in his eyes.
"Wow," he exclaimed sincerely, looking the talking dragon sculpture up and down. "You can talk? I thought you were just... well, a uniquely styled decoration."
"You took something that doesn't belong to you!"
Suppressing the urge to crush the brat into dust, the Demon's words carried a heat that could ignite the very air.
"Oh~"
Victor immediately adopted an expression of sudden understanding, then bowed in the most sincere apology, his movements as precise as a rigorously trained waiter. "My most sincere apologies, sir!"
This completely threw the Demon off guard.
Such a... polite thief? Could he have been mistaken? Was this just a hapless janitor who wandered in?
However, Victor's next words utterly shattered that naive fantasy.
"I shouldn't have judged a 'dragon' by its cover."
Victor's tone was earnest, but his gaze had already begun scanning the dragon's scales and the age of the stonework with the fervor of a master appraiser.
"Earlier, I thought you were worthless junk—a grave error on my part!! This material, this craftsmanship, this profound sense of historical depth..."
"Especially your ability to speak! That interactive feature is museum-grade! You are undoubtedly the treasure guarding this entire estate!"
As he spoke, he magically produced a gleaming chisel and a hefty hammer from the seemingly ordinary tool bag on his cleaning cart.
Victor sized up the Demon's body embedded in the wall like an antique connoisseur, his eyes eager.
"Let me think... how to extract you from the wall intact, without damaging your artistic value... The wall structure is a bit tricky, but nothing major."
He hefted the hammer, seemingly calculating angles and force.
"DAMN IT! This is too much!"
the Demon's centuries of cultivation shattered in that moment, rage overwhelming reason. "My soldiers! Retrieve the talisman! Tear this insolent insect to pieces!"
The office shadows seemed to come alive, writhing and coalescing. Row upon row of ninja-clad, red-eyed Shadowkhan Ninjas materialized soundlessly, instantly surrounding Victor, their icy killing intent filling the air.
Victor surveyed the scene, sighed helplessly, temporarily tucked the chisel and hammer behind his back, and spread his hands:
"Hey, be reasonable, won't you? Why does everyone these days prefer to gang up? What's wrong with a one-on-one? Where's your villainous professional ethics?"
"Insect!" the Demon's voice was like ice. "One last chance. Return the talisman to me! Or I will make you experience pain deeper than hell!"
Hearing this, Victor didn't flinch. Instead, he straightened his posture, his face plainly stating 'righteous indignation':
"Oh, buddy, that's where you're wrong. It makes no logical sense!"
He began explaining his reasoning to the Demon, counting on his fingers:
"Look, first, I am a thief. That's my professional identity. Second, I chose to steal from you, which means I acknowledge the value of your collection—it's an indirect compliment to your taste. Third, and most importantly—"
Victor paused, then declared in a tone that suggested 'isn't this common sense?':
------------------------
I've posted 70+ chapters in advance on Patreon.
Webnovel updates will still be daily, as usual.
It might not seem tempting right nobut who knows what the future holds?
[email protected]/TripleCrown
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"