Samuel remains silent, staring at the screen. His face is impassive, but his eyes gleam with steely determination.
"Find me that person," he orders in a cold tone. "And do it quickly."
In a trash bin in a dark and foul-smelling alley, a faint movement could be heard, just a rustle among the garbage.
The noise grew steadily louder, as if something was trying to free itself. Finally, the lid of the bin rolled to the ground with a metallic clatter.
"Meow."
A black cat slowly emerged, its ears flat and green eyes gleaming in the dim daylight. Its expression was one of frustration: its search through the garbage had yielded nothing worth eating.
Its dirty paws cautiously moved across the damp pavement of the alley. A short distance ahead, the cat noticed a figure lying motionless on the ground. Driven by hunger, it approached, sniffing the cold flesh and wondering if it was edible.
Then, it gave a small bite, almost like a taste test.
"Meow!"
Suddenly, the figure's eyes flew open. With a quick jolt, the person sprang up from the ground, startling the cat, which bolted off in a flash, leaving only the echo of its rapid footsteps on the cobblestones.
***
"Meow!"
Still groggy, I saw the cat darting away into the misty morning.
I glanced down at the finger on my left hand, noticing a small drop of blood slowly trickling down my dirty skin.
"It really did try to eat me," I muttered with an ironic smile.
"Well, I can't blame it. I'm in the same situation. If not for my dignity and the tiny shred of common sense I have left, I'd already be considering eating that half-rotten pizza contaminated by trash germs."
My eyes fell on a pizza slice, half-eaten and now covered in a thick layer of green mold, which had spread across it like some alien organism.
I sighed deeply, ignoring the gnawing hunger in my stomach. Struggling to my feet, I left the narrow alley, and the blinding morning light hit me like an unexpected punch.
I raised my right hand to shield myself from the sun's rays, feeling my eyes burn from the sharp contrast with the darkness of the alley.
In front of me, the giant screen atop a nearby building began broadcasting the day's news.
Unlike the last time I had seen it, today it featured a male anchor, his cold voice filling the air while his serious face dominated the luminous surface of the screen.
"Shocking news! Last night at midnight, an invaluable gem was stolen from the famous Veluria Museum."
I froze in place. The news immediately caught my attention. A heist?
"According to reliable sources, the city's security forces had been notified in advance not only of the time of the robbery but also of the exact object that would be stolen."
"The famous Blue Sapphire, also known as *Al ch-...*"
****
I smiled, recalling everything that had happened.
"The outcome is exactly as I had predicted," I muttered, satisfied with my plan.
This method was risky, but it was worth it. The advantages far outweighed the disadvantages. Why? The answer was simple.
People tend to focus on what piques their curiosity. A thief who announces his crime in advance? Unusual. Irrational. But precisely for that reason, so effective.
While everyone was busy protecting the obvious, I had already completed my true objective.
**[Congratulations! The role: Enigma has been successfully created]**
A notification appeared before my eyes, a floating projection in the air.
**[The popularity of the role: Enigma is growing rapidly]**
"Perfect," I thought, pleased.
**[The role: Enigma has leveled up to 1, and you have gained 5 stat points]**
But then another notification materialized, and my smile faded slightly.
**[The newly created role will be subject to restrictions and penalties]**