I stood there, helplessly watching the departing van.
I thought about memorizing its license plate, but there wasn't one to be found anywhere on the vehicle.
"My cabbages..."
Was I really supposed to just let my cabbages go like this?
Just as I was about to collapse in despair, Yeoreum, beside me, started chasing the van with monstrous speed.
"Stop the car!"
In a flash, Yeoreum overtook the vehicle and stood in front of the van.
Startled by Yeoreum's sudden appearance, the black van kicked up dust as it braked hard.
"Ah—!"
Yeoreum had caught the thief.
I ran after the vehicle, a step behind.
I wanted to immediately open the van's door, but instead, I decided to stand behind Yeoreum.
It was unlikely that someone who would brazenly steal from private property was a normal person.
They could turn violent at any moment.
"You can't just take things from someone's property!"
Thump! Thump!
As Yeoreum furiously banged on the van's hood, a middle-aged woman I had never seen before got out of the passenger seat.
She acted rather nonchalantly, showing no sign of shame at all about being caught stealing.
"Oh dear, I'm sorry. I thought these didn't belong to anyone."
"How can you even say that...?"
Yeoreum frowned at the woman's brazen behavior.
Apparently displeased with her reaction, the woman became defensive.
"It'll be fine I'll just return them. Return them..."
"What, you..."
Before Yeoreum could finish her sentence, the middle-aged woman flung open the van's side door.
She did so with such force that it made a loud bang.
"My cabbages—!"
I hurriedly stepped up to the van.
The step was high compared to my small stature, but Yeoreum lifted me up.
It wasn't really necessary, but I was somewhat grateful for the assistance.
Entering the van, I found it filled with various crops.
I grabbed the radish closest to me and exited.
I had to jump down because the step was too high.
"I found my radish inside."
Holding the radish, I approached Yeoreum, but the atmosphere was tense.
It felt like a fight could break out at any moment, so I just watched the two women cautiously.
"The one who stole should take everything out herself. Stack them neatly by the tent."
"Stole? Look at how this young one talks!"
"So what, you didn't steal but just borrowed them?"
Yeoreum's voice was cold.
Colder than when she had dealt with me in the beginner's hunting ground.
Maybe she was really angry about the theft.
Not wanting to stir the pot, I stayed quiet.
"Gyeoul, let's go and watch them unload the vegetables?"
Yeoreum approached with a gentle voice, as if nothing had happened.
A stark contrast to the tone she used while dealing with the middle-aged woman.
"But shouldn't we help out a bit...?"
"So what? The thief is the one over there."
Yeoreum's icy gaze was fixed on the middle-aged woman.
Intimidated by her intensity, the middle-aged woman turned her head sharply away.
"Wow..."
Yeoreum was more formidable than I thought.
Feeling too intimidated to say anything, I decided to just watch her return the crops.
✧✧✧✧✧
I sat near the bonfire, watching two middle-aged people move the crops.
I wanted to help, seeing their struggle, but Yeoreum pressed down on my shoulder, preventing me.
"Gyeoul, I know you want to help, but let's just sit for now, okay?"
"Yes, yes..."
Right, of course.
After all, they tried to steal several days of hard work.
I decided not to sympathize with them.
"We're done, come check it out!"
The middle-aged woman, wiping sweat from her brow, approached us.
Her voice carried a hint of resentment from the hard labor.
I glanced at her briefly and then dashed towards the tent where the crops were stored.
"Oh..."
Cabbages, lettuces, radishes, carrots.
The crops were densely stacked on top of the tent.
However, the amount differed slightly from what I had recorded.
"Excuse me, but a few crops seem to be missing..."
Two, three.
A small but noticeable number of crops had disappeared.
At my question, the middle-aged woman trembled.
It was such a small tremor that I would not have noticed it without my improved vision.
"What are you talking about—! Everything we took is right there!"
She briskly brushed her hands and walked out of the tent.
Her hurried departure was suspicious.
"...?"
Did she secretly take some of my crops?
As I watched the middle-aged woman leave with a puzzled look, Sophia, who had been quiet, poked Yeoreum's back.
"It might be a decoy."
"A decoy?"
Yeoreum picked up a dented bucket nearby.
As she rubbed the dented part with her hand, the bucket returned to its original shape.
"…She's talking about a diversion."
A diversion.
Hearing that word, the two middle-aged people quickened their steps.
Sophia stopped them as they tried to hurry into the van.
"So, you got caught on purpose, didn't you?"
"What?"
"Was it to buy time and deceive us?"
"What nonsense are you spouting?"
Thinking Sophia was just a child, the woman spoke rudely.
Sophia's brow furrowed slightly, disliking being treated as a child.
"The crops have disappeared by two or three of each kind. That must be the real theft"
"Why would we bother doing such a tedious thing—?!"
Tedious thing.
I shared the middle-aged woman's sentiment.
I couldn't think of a reason why they would deceive us just to steal a small amount of crops.
"It's probably because of the buff the guild recently started selling."
"A buff?"
"Yes, the tea you made, Gyeoul, has a buff effect. They probably assumed the power came from the crops you grew yourself. The plants growing overnight must have seemed suspicious too."
"Ah..."
So they stole the crops to analyze them, suspecting they had a buff effect.
If they could grow it themselves, they would make a fortune.
I admired Sophia's unexpected insight.
"So, the van was just a diversion and the real one is elsewhere?"
"Yes."
"Wow..."
Yeoreum seemed overwhelmed by the complicated situation, rolling her eyes back and forth.
Although Yeoreum wasn't often the sharpest, honestly, I felt the same this time.
I had never imagined they would use a diversion just to steal crops.
"Um, stealing my crops won't help you..."
"What nonsense have you been spouting since a while ago?!"
Yeoreum approached the woman, holding a rope for tying up.
"I don't know about nonsense, but for now, I'm going to tie you up."
"Do you have any proof that we took them?!"
"...No evidence, but you did commit theft. I'm just taking precautions to prevent you from escaping."
That's right.
They did commit theft.
The middle-aged woman silently accepted her fate and the rope.
✧✧✧✧✧
After handing over the two thieves to Encia and Argo, a meeting was held in the container house.
It was about how to catch the thief who stole the seedlings.
"Someone snuck in while the guild's defenses were down. It's likely they weren't caught on CCTV as it was planned."
"It might be someone who can use invisibility."
"Yes, that's a possibility."
The middle-aged woman, knowing the answer, had kept her mouth shut.
How were we supposed to catch the real culprit in such a situation?
As I sighed deeply in frustration, Levinas approached us, hopping.
"You pathetic fools! I know where the criminal is!"
"Levinas knows?"
"Yes! My mana still lingers on the harvested plants!"
"Ah—!"
Yeoreum and I looked at each other.
We hadn't expected it would be this easy to track the culprit.
I patted Levinas on the shoulder happily.
"Levinas is amazing!"
"Am-amazing...?"
"Yes. Only Levinas can track them now."
Was she pleased with my compliment?
A blush crept onto Levinas' cheeks.
"Praise me more! Praise Levinas more!"
Levinas stood with her hands on her hips, a smug expression on her face.
Apparently, Levinas liked being praised.
Well.
Praising her doesn't cost anything.
I decided to compliment her without reservation.
"Great horned rabbit, please tell us the thief's location."
"Should I?"
Hahaha!
With her unique laugh, Levinas closed her eyes.
Just when I thought she might have fallen asleep, her eyes suddenly snapped open.
"Found them!"
"Where?"
"At the door!"
"At the door?"
Everyone's gaze turned towards the door.
There was no sound or movement, yet the culprit was supposedly right at the door.
Surprised, I looked up at Yeoreum, and at that moment, a rustling sound came from right in front of the door.
"Uh...?"
Yeoreum stared at the door with wide eyes.
A master who could go undetected even by me, who was good at sensing presences, and Yeoreum, who was excellent at everything.
To think such a master was just beyond the door.
I swallowed nervously due to the tension.
Only Levinas was hopping around the place without a worry.
<+>
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