Even in the darkness of midday, the looming presence of the mansion was still present.

Flames burned brightly on lamps encircling the outside of the home, which gave an ominous presence to the house, like candles surrounding an alter. A dull yellow light shone through all the windows, indicating activity in the mansion. Unlikely during nighttime, during midday workers had to continue working. Luckily there were plenty of lamps in production due to their high demand, so it never became truly impossible to continue working during midday for the majority of jobs.

The wagon they had just exited continued to grumble in a slow crawl across the gravel path towards the doors of the manor.

Even the doors were imposing at about twice the height of Mogi and easily five times his width. The deep, rich mahogany that made up the doors was a rare luxury good sourced far away from the safety of Casadonia's domain. The massive double doors made Mogi's heart drop, realizing that entering through them was not an option. Outside they were shrouded in a layer of darkness that could protect the orphans from unwanted eyes, but as soon as they stepped foot inside the building, there was no escaping confrontation. Although confrontation did not mean failure, it came with huge risks that Mogi wanted to minimize, as he wished to avoid using his backup plans for as long as he could.

Mogi crouched down and signaled for Marsh and Victor to follow. His slow steps crunched across the ground quietly, yet in his mind each time his foot contacted the ground it sounded like fireworks hissing through the air. Mogi's heart throbbed like a galloping horse each time he thought he had stepped too heavily, paranoid that they would be caught.

By the time the three orphans reached the grass adjacent to the road, their steps reduced to a near silent patter across the delicate blades of grass. Mogi let out a sigh of relief as he made his way behind a large hedge in front of the mansion.

Gathering behind the prickly green bush, Mogi turned to Marsh and Victor while adjusting his bowtie.

"We only have about three hours for this heist since we'll need another hour to escape the manor under the veil of darkness. For now we stick together, so follow my lead."

Mogi pointed to a dark window at the far edge of the mansion. Its unassuming presence contrasted the yellow glow emitting from the rest of the windows, giving it an ominous presence that left Mogi on edge, yet it was their only option.

"We'll have to take the risk by entering through that window, but at least there should be no one inside."

Peeking over the hedge with a calm gaze Victor nodded slowly.

Marsh on the other hand stared at the dark window with an apprehensive that slowly spoiled his handsome face.

"Are you sure this is our only option. We have no idea what that room is, how it is connected to the rest of the house, or if anyone is going to go in it. It all just feels too risky."

Mogi shook his head, his mouth moving in a furious whisper.

"It's too late for thoughts like that if you consider the distance it takes to get out of this damn manor. We're in too deep. This is our best bet, we can't hesitate or we'll run out of time."

Victor shifted his gaze to Mogi while crouching deeper behind the hedge. His lips moved in a soft murmur.

"Marsh has a point Mogi, but you're right that we can't be indecisive. Before we sneak in, Marsh and I need some information. You don't just expect us to follow you around blindly. We need to know exactly what your plan is. We're all in this together after all."

Mogi nodded letting out a soft and reluctant sigh. He had purposefully kept secretive on his exact plans in order to convince Marsh and Vic to join him, but now that they were here, there was no point in holding back information. It's not like they could turn back if they disliked his plan anyways.

"Our goal is to reach the basement. If I was a rich man with a mansion I would keep my most prized possessions hidden away in the depths of the cellar where no one would find them. Of course their are plenty of valuables on display in the house, but the risk of stealing those items is too high. If we bank on the fact that the most precious valuables are in the basement, we only need to steal only one or two stow-able items each. We can stay mobile that way without compromising our servant disguises. Speaking of our suits, they are only a fail safe. I hope our interactions will be limited to quick glances where no one questions our presence, but if we are forced to talk we have a chance to avoid detection by pretending to work at the manor. Marsh's nobleman clothing is a last resort for when we need someone with a more demanding presence, but it should not come to that."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Mogi sighed and then with a mocking glance looked at Victor.

"Is that enough information or do you need me to go more in detail?"

Victor's unwavering gaze met Mogi's

"That should suffice, we need to get going anyways."

Mogi scoffed, looking back over the hedge. He was not surprised that Victor answered. Seems like he would never grasp what a rhetorical question was, yet Mogi was not sure where he had learned what a rhetorical question was anyways.

Before going, Mogi double checked if the area was clear one last time. The few guards patrolling the area were given away by the trail of embers left behind by the torches grasped within their hands. The path was clear and there was no time to waste.

Crouching down, Mogi escaped from the cover of the verdant bush and scurried his way to beneath the window he had spotted in the distance. Marsh and Victor followed close behind in a blur of shadows.

The window was slightly more intimidating up close. Looking from afar did not quantify the sheer size of the mansion. Standing up Mogi's head was barely above the outer window sill. The dusty window itself was huge, its sheer presence making Mogi feel tiny. Though the window seemed to have been neglected due to the cobwebs occupying its corners and the blemishes spotting the entire glass pane.

Mogi stared at the vast window unsure of how to get in. At first he had wanted to break it, but on second thought that seemed quite risky. The sound of glass shattering would echo throughout the yard like symbols crashing, and they would be hard pressed on avoiding capture. On the other hand, the window was most likely locked on top of being harder to move due to its lack of use, so any other option would be difficult to pull off.

Victor's hand lighted touched Mogi's shoulder. He held a thin and long rock in his other hand that he must have picked up from the gravel road at some point. It's shape almost resembling a deformed dagger.

"I got this."

Victor shoved the thin rock under the middle of the window sill with a resounding thud through the soft wood. Then using his own weight as leverage, Victor attempted to pry open the window.

An inaudible groan escaped from Victor's lips as a pop and click indicated the lock on the other side had broken. Victor's face grimaced in effort as he continued to push the window open.

The soft screech of wood against wood made Mogi shudder as the window was finally open enough for them to make their way into the dark room.

The window pressed down on the Mogi's suit as he slipped his way through the crack in the window.

Mogi groaned as he landed face first with a soft thud. The taste of dusty wood made Mogi gag as he rolled to his back.

It was hard to tell in the dark, but the room was a decent size. Despite this, its space was practically filled. The room was obvious some sort of storage space for random junk and supplies that were haphazardly strewn about, making the room feel like a maze.

Mogi sat up spitting the remaining dust out of his mouth just in time to watch Marsh slip through the window gracefully.

By entering feet first Marsh was able to skillfully enter the room with minimal noise. Marsh then turned around to help Victor into the room, closing the window shut with a quiet thud.

Mogi sighed in relief when they had all made it. Getting up to his feet Mogi faced the door that was discernible by the thin band of light that snuck its way from underneath the door.

Suddenly, the door slowly creaked open. A fiery light from the outside hall surged through the the cracks of the door, casting the whole storage room with an indirect glow that only served to emphasize the shadows inside of the room.

Mogi's heart did not have time to drop as he quickly crouched down, using his hands to press Marsh and Victor into the same position with him. His heart suddenly caught up to him in a furious whirlwind, making his chest feel an unbearable heaviness.

A servant entered with a broom and a mop. Her shorter stature and quiet confidence made her work clothing seem more fitting than the orphan's current attire, despite the identical design.

Whistling a joyful tune, the servant set the broom and the mop with others that were left on the same wall that the door was located. She then left the room, closing the door and leaving the boys behind.

Mogi struggled to reign in his ragged breathing caused by the breath he been holding in.

'That was close.'

Not only was it close, but it would have been over if they had been caught. There would have been no explaining the broken lock on the window or why three servants were in the corner of an abandoned room.

Mogi slapped himself mentally. It was not the time to stress. What had to be done had to be done. Quickly standing up, he hopped his way over through a sea of junk to the door. Marsh and Victor followed in his footsteps with upmost caution as to not knock something over and cause a potential ruckus.

Taking a deep breath Mogi slowly inched the door open to evaluate their current situation.

It was not looking good. In order to make their way to the basement, they had to find a staircase leading to it, but that staircase was probably in the center of the mansion. Not only was the central area of the mansion busy, but they were also in the corner of the large mansion far away from its center. Precious time had to be wasted to make their way to their desired destination

They were currently at the end of a hallway was that seemed to stretch an inconceivable length. The servant that had almost caught them was walking down the hallway, unaware of the piercing red eyes that were penetrating through her back.

Mogi gritted his teeth. It looked like they would have their work cut out for them if they wanted to succeed.