"Well, it’s not like we want to be thieves…” The bandit said, picking up a piece of chicken and biting into it. “Oh, my god, this is amazing!”

It was near daybreak, so I started a campfire and made food for everyone. The bandits were still tied up, but I put them into a sitting position and gave them enough room to be able to hold plates and eat. A full belly made everyone happier and more talkative. This was a tactic too!

“Thanks, I think I’m getting better at it.” I smiled.

There were few cooks in this world who did it enough to maintain that job. Likely, when it came to a bandit, they’d never find one in their entire lives. I didn’t think my cooking was anything special, but it was improving and still better than most people would taste on the road.

“When I was ten, my dad died in a bar scuffle, and my mom was loaded with debts and became a prostitute. I had no choice but to steal for my food.” One guy said, suddenly sniffling. “I just wanted to steal enough to pull my ma out of that situation! Next thing I know, my status swapped from commoner to thief, and the entire town turned their back on me!”

“Aw… I’m so sorry…” Lydia was patting his back while he cried.

The other girls were similarly comforting the other bandits who were in similar states. Once I got them talking, the floodgates opened and they began to reveal pains hidden deep inside them. It seemed like every bandit had a painful backstory more pitiable than the last. It seemed like once you got the scarlet letter of a thief, there was no going back.

These guys even revealed that if you murder a human, it does leave a mark on you, but that thieves, bandits, pirates, and other dirty jobs were an exception to the rule. In other words, any adventurer, knight, or even a commoner was free to murder a thief or bandit without repercussions. I found that to be a bit unreasonable.

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“The whole system is against us!” One of the guys cried out.

“It’s fine if you had a normal life, but what poor person hasn’t had to commit crimes in their youth just to survive?”

“Ah… well.” I sighed. “It does sound really bad. But if you guys could leave it all behind, would you?”

Other than Balrack, who had remained quiet throughout the ordeal while silently glaring at us, the rest of them all nodded excitedly and said they’d definitely want to do something else if they could only go back and restart.

“Here, let me see…” I went to one of the thieves, “Join my party for a second.”

“Eh? Okay…” He shook my hand, looking confused.

While party mechanics worked in this world, people didn’t see the same text I saw, so parties were rarely formally made like I did it. As soon as I had him join my party, I could see his jobs and everything.

“Oh… you got a couple of levels in Merchant.”

“Merchant?” The man asked, and then his eyes grew teary. “My father was a Merchant.”

“Well, what do you think? You want a shot at selling legit?”

“Re-really?” His expression was filled with wonder, but just a hint of disbelief.

I switched his job and then disbanded him from my party. “There, your job is now Merchant.”

“What?”

“He’s a priest?”

“No, must be a dark priest!”

“Impossible!”

“Hey, you got that job checking stone, don’t you, hand it to him!” One of the bandits nodded excitedly and gestured to a bag. Miki looked in it and then handed some kind of magic stone to the new Merchant.

He looked at the stone for a solid minute while the other Bandits stared on in anticipation. Finally he burst out into large wet tears.

“It’s true! I’m really a Merchant!”

“Ah… if you go back to banditry, your job will return to bandit pretty easily. “I warned. “But as long as you don’t commit crimes.

“No, sir! I won’t, sir!” He started shaking my hand while crying.

It became a really emotional scene. After that, the bandits began to eagerly wait one after another for their turn. By the forth, text popped up in my screen.

{You’ve put the dark deeds behind these men and have given them a second lease on life. Dark Priest has been unlocked.}

Ah, that was unexpected.