[Thief: Level 9]

That was the last thing Hannah heard before she slept. She had gained no skill for the level up, but leveling twice in one day was good nonetheless. Level 10 was near now.

A new day was starting. Yesterday had been crazy, and they had almost died twice, but... they made it. They made it out. She stretched and looked around her room. Her bag was still there. She had left it in the rush to save Esme. She got closer and peeked inside. Before doing anything, she turned back, making sure Esme was still asleep. Good. She put her hand in the bag and rummaged around inside of it for a few seconds before finding what she was looking for. Her phone.

She pulled it out of the bag and pressed the power button on the side. It was an iPhone 8. She wasn't one of the people that bought a new one every year. The screen lit up for the first time in almost a month, and she put in her code. She looked at the battery power. It still had a lot, that was good. She scrolled through her screen, looking for something specific. Her downloaded music. It was all right here. She didn't have earbuds, but she would listen to it anyways. Pressing it close to her ear, savoring every moment of Peaceland by Nujabes. It was her favorite song. It reminded her of home. And how she missed it. That was how she spent her first few minutes awake.

After listening to the song, Hannah turned the phone off and put it back in the bag. She started thinking. Could she sell this? How much would it be worth? They could start an honest life if they had a bunch of silver. Hell, maybe it's worth gold. Of course, they'd be tricking the buyer because the phone would turn off eventually, but still, it was tempting.

She woke up Esme, and they got ready to go out. They wouldn't steal today. The girls wanted a break. A long one, if possible. They could maybe get arrested again if they were caught, or killed on the spot. No. They would go to the library today, and hopefully read up on the world, and its history.

After almost choking on a piece of meat, Hannah finished eating and they were ready to go out, so they did. But a man intercepted them. He was tall, bald, and he looked strong.

"Ye the [Thieves] that were arrested yesterday right?"

"Excuse me?"

"Are ye?"

"What if we are?"

Esme stepped protectively in front of Hannah and showed her hidden daggers. The man smiled and he lifted his hands in the air.

"Calm down lady, I just want to help ye. We-"

"We don't need your help."

Esme grabbed Hannah's hand and started walking, but the man put his hand in front of the doorway to block them. Esme pulled out her daggers and the [Innkeeper] looked nervously at the two and pointed at them.

"If you're going to fight, do it outside!"

He clearly didn't want a commotion in his establishment, and no one blamed him. The silent spectators had heard and seen what a fight could do to an inn. It starts as a simple fight between two drunk men and it degenerates into a massive brawl that can ruin the inn's income for multiple days while the [Innkeeper] gets all the plates, glasses, and furniture replaced. Well, high level [Innkeepers] could maybe stop a brawl, but they were rare and charged a lot. The man blocking the door continued to speak, in a whisper this time.

"Our gang is the reason you're free, girl. We can throw you back in jail as fast as our boss got you out, so I'd be careful if I were ye"

Hannah's face paled. How could he have known? Was he really telling the truth? What gang was he talking about? These questions flashed in their minds. And then Esme gasped, remembering something. Hannah didn't know what she remembered but she wouldn't trust this man. They had already been betrayed, and it resulted in their money being stolen by... a gang.

A memory. She remembered now. There was only one gang that could do these types of things. Her mind went back to what the man who had stolen their money said. 'We run this town'. This was him. He had stolen their money. Esme tried to strike at him with her blades but the man tensed and they didn't penetrate his skin, no matter how hard she pushed.

"W-what do you want? We don't have any money!"

That created a gasp from the crowd and they some of them got up and started backing away. A criminal? Here?

"I don't want your pocket silly pocket money like last time. Just follow me, and nothing'll happen. I promise."

"That's rich, coming from you. No way."

"Ye don't have much of a choice."

The man whistled sharply, and Hannah looked behind him and saw other men walking up behind him, grinning.

"So much for 'nothing will happen', just tell us what you want."

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"Boss wants to see ye. Job offer."

Hannah's eyes widened. A job offer from a criminal? But wait... they were also criminals. His line of thought made sense, but she had no intention of joining this gang. Esme looked at him intensely for a few seconds and then sheathed her daggers.

"What's the job?"

Hannah looked aghast at how Esme had folded to the man, but she quickly realized they had to comply. The man grinned again.

"Hm. Ye learn quickly. Boss'll tell ye, just follow."

Hannah was still worried about how this could be a trap, but they had nothing but a few silver coins left over. The City Guard had kept what they had stolen yesterday, which, according to Esme, was her biggest haul yet. They started walking, and they were closely followed by the man's lackeys.

"The name's Gregory. But people just call me Greg."

That was unexpected. Were they already on a know name basis? Esme quickly answered back.

"My name is Keira. She's Jodie. I'd say nice to meet you, but it's not."

The men behind Gregory laughed, and he grinned too. He looked back at the group.

"She's a tough one, huh?"

He chuckled some more before talking again.

"I've seen a lot of people lie to me. You aren't good at it."

The girls suddenly froze and stopped walking. How did he know? Could [Thugs] learn the [Detect Lie] skill they were subject to yesterday?

"When people look at me, they think I'm a dumb [Thug] who's all muscle and no brains. I know spells. Keep walking."

Hannah and Esme kept going. They recognized this street. This was where they found the weapon and jewelry store. Gregory turned towards the jewelry store and lifted one hand without looking back.

"You lot go get a drink or something. We'll be in there."

He walked towards the two [Thugs] that were guarding the store. They weren't the same one that was there the other day, so it looked like they rotated who had to guard the store.

"These two are with me."

The two nodded and let them through. The store wasn't something you'd think you would find in a poor district. It looked like it belonged right on Main Street.

"Impressed? We own this store. And many others in fact."

Hannah nodded. That sort of made sense, since they have to get a steady income somehow. But why was it established here? The store was a ghost town. No one here had enough money to afford it. These things probably cost many gold coins each. Shouldn't they have built the store on Main Street? She bit the bullet and asked.

"So... Gregory."

"Call me Greg."

"Greg. Why is this store... here, exactly? Doesn't look like it sells much."

Gregory laughed and answered her.

"It ain't here to sell, girly. Look, we're here"

Hannah looked at where he pointed, and it was a wall. There was nothing special about this wall, but she instantly figured out what it was.

"A secret passage."

"Yep. You're a smart one aren't ye? Good."

He held out his hand and chanted something under his breath. A code. Hannah didn't manage to hear what it was, but the wall was unchanged. She looked at Gregory confusedly.

"Nothing happened."

Gregory smiled and walked forwards. He disappeared into the wall. The girls followed him, and they found themselves in a completely different room. It was clean, tiled, and white. Bright. So very bright, compared to the store lit by candlelight, that Hannah had to shield her eyes before she could adjust to it. There, a man waited, looking at them. Greg tensed, and gestured them forward. This could only be one person.

"Boss."

"Gregory."

The man was small. Around Hannah's height, so 5'4. But even if he was small, he looked down at Greg. He had an air of superiority about him. Esme was sweating bullets. She told Hannah about her [Sense Threat] skill. Hannah knew instantly. This atmosphere. This feeling.

This man was powerful.

"Welcome to the Mob headquarters. My name is of no importance, but you may call me Skull."

Hannah and Esme were frozen. Even Gregory looked uncomfortable. Skull kept going.

"I have observed your abilities. Hannah, you possess the [Charm] skill. A very powerful one if honed correctly. Esme, you are smart, smarter than most of these meatheads who work for me. And you are a [Rogue]. A very good combat class at high levels. You would be two very valuable assets for me."

No. No. This wasn't happening. They were supposed to abandon their life of crime. To start anew. To become honest people! But Skull didn't care.

"Join me. You will no longer be subjects of the law. You will be rich. You will own this city with me. With us."

The power in his words. You could feel it. What was his class? What level was he? It was impossible to know. He somehow knew their names, and their skills. His presence was overwhelming. Esme managed to get a few words out.

"I-if we r-refuse?"

His deep gaze grew into a frown.

"You die."

He didn't need to say anything else. The reasons were obvious. They knew his location, and they knew he planned to conquer the city. If they did not join him, he would kill them. Esme pushed out another word.

"F-fine."

"Good. Come closer."

They couldn't. They were stuck. Frozen. Fear gripped at her very soul. Gregory could, though. He was used to this. He pushed them forward. Hannah saw a Skull put a piece of paper on his desk.

"Your contract. Sign it."

Hannah read it, it said the following.

'I, ____________ swear my life to the Mob and its ruler, Skull. I will never betray the Mob, and I will do anything to benefit the organization.'

"Gets straight to the point, right? Changes a lot compared to the 100 pages contracts a high-level merchant would give you."

He relaxed, and so did the tension in the room. Hannah could move now and so could Esme. He handed them a quill and some ink. Hannah reluctantly signed and then felt something reach into her heart. She coughed and gasped, clutching her heart, and then looked at Esme who was doing the same.

"What... did you do to us?!"

"Think about it like insurance. It's a magically bound contract. If you ever give classified information about us to anyone, your heart will stop. If you wish to leave the organization, you must get an authorization from me. Sorry about the tension by the way. That is one of my more powerful skills."

The tension instantly left the room, but that didn't change the most urgent fact. They were stuck here now, and they had no way out but death. Hannah teared up and choked out a word.

"Monster."

He smirked, unfazed by her sadness.

"Welcome to the Mob."