Evidently, Sir Stelios was apart of a conspiracy as well. A conspiracy he had neglected to tell Theo of since his arrival, but evidently arranged with the Charles Malton before him.

Theo didn't mention it since, but he now had a different opinion of Sir Stelios. What is 'The Proletariat', some kind of gang? Who else was a double-agent? Was this estate full of them? Maybe it was the vault, the treasury. The riches held within must be something.

Enchanted gear, something priceless- perhaps an amulet that made you immortal? Theo could only hope.

'Should I tell Violet?', he thought; 'No, she'd just overreact. Plus, I might prefer Stelios over her anyways. Maybe the Proletariat are just really good guys.'

"Brother.", he stopped walking and looked to the side, there stood his kid sister Leslie- looking up at him. "Yes, Leslie?", a red-eyed 4-foot tall girl with green hair stood across from him. She had a plain expression, if a little cold. She was in a dark red and white ball gown.

"You've been acting different the past week or so, don't think I've not noticed." she said plainly.

[Assimilation] triggered immediately.

"Well, sister, as we grow older we mature in stages, some pass more quickly than others-", "No, I do not think that is the cause, brother.",

Theo just starred at her, and she starred back- he had to look away.

"Erm, well then- w-what do you think the cause is?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I think it is clear enough to both of us... Brother."

At this point he was getting a cold sweat. [Assimilation] wasn't working... Usually he'd turn it on and he'd just talk his way out of it.

Theo lowered his hand towards his scabbard- the decorative sword he carried with him.

"...Your... Tryst, with the maid girl. Of course. It seems she was hired only a few months ago, one of our most recent hires-"

Theo nearly breathed a sigh of relief.

"I had Sir Thomas look into her past. It seems that she is a [Thief] brother."

Theo pretended to be shocked.

"What? Impossible. She likes me for who I am, obviously."

She blinked. -She does blink from time to time. That's a relief.

"This must be upsetting to you, and it seemed she had been a good influence on you too... A shame, perhaps if she had not been a thieving wretch, the family would've tolerated it. A'las... Don't worry, she is being arrested this very moment." she began strolling away.

His jaw dropped. Time almost seemed to slow as she turned to leave.

Theo knew he would have to be careful about this. Leslie was a genius no doubt. Not that he was a dumb guy either, but he could never fool Leslie with anything but the truth. He knew that at least. But- they both had attendants following them around... It wasn't a very private conversation.

"W-wait!",

She stopped as if she expected him to protest; "Oh, could it be you're so infatuated that you would ignore even a dagger in your back brother? Or perhaps... You are apart of her schemes?"

"No, but how could you be so sure? How did Sir Thomas know she was a [Thief]?", "It's Sir Thomas, Charles. He knows, she was not the first. Many like her have had similar plans. House Malton is not made up of fools, and those of us that are- we look after." she didn't specify whom, but he could probably guess who the fool was she was looking after.

"I-uh- can we speak privately perhaps? About this matter? Before it goes to far?"

'Tssk', she made an irritated sound. "Sir Thomas!"

"Sir Thomas-?" Theo began to say but he was bludgeoned on the back of the head and everything went black.

---

At some point, it seems Leslie Malton had put two and two together.

She and Theo were locked in the dungeons- a place she doubted Theo even knew about. The oaf. He always assumed things would work out for no reason at all, as if it was destined.

It wasn't long after Violet had found herself here that Theo had been dragged in. The changeling had a lump on the back of his head. Sir Thomas, wall of armor essentially, dragged Theo in and shackled him to the opposite wall as she.

"Would you feel like speaking yet? We've given you some time, and we've unearthed your conspirator. You think yourself clever, for corrupting a member of our house? My brother will see our interrogator flay your flesh to the bone.", it was beyond eerie to hear a young girls voice say such things. But Violet did her research, she knew this girl was strange. She just hadn't expected Theo to be such a crap changeling.

That was what went wrong with her plan. Theo. If he had just never showed up, she would've wooed Lord Charles and raided the vaults by now. And now she was likely going to be executed or at least, very inconvenienced for a very long time.

"No? Very well then, I will tell the interrogator he has until my brother awakes to prepare his... 'Tools'." -at that the girl left the dungeons. Stepping carefully over the cracked stone.

She walked down one of the maze-like tunnels. Leaving them in the dark jail cell.

'looks like this operation is blown. Sorry Theo, you were a buffoon, but you managed to make me laugh once or twice. So... Goodluck.', she began reaching down from her shackles, her fingers stretching for her bundled hair.

'There!' she snatched a metal hairpin. The shape was odd for a reason- just right for picking mundane locks such as these. She delicately placed the pin into the keyhole. 'Pzzt!', a spark flung the pin across the room and burned her finger a bit.

'Damned Gods! I really didn't want to do the other method...', 'pop!' her wrist went limp and she drug it through the gap in the enchanted shackles. It hurts, but it works. She popped her wrist back into place.

Free of the shackles- she went to the locked cell door and inspected it. This one was enchanted against picking also. She looked towards Theo- he was unconscious still lying against the wall.

Maybe one of his doppleganger skills could get through this. But then she thought against it, -he'd end up being a burden. Besides, she had planned for this. It was hard to research what the treasury was like.

The dungeon was another matter entirely.

The bars weren't enchanted - this she was sure. Only the lock. So, she unwound a silver thread that was wrapped around one of her socks. Then she set to work sawing the bars with it. The wire was made by a Threadripper Arkai, it was able to cut through metals harder through iron.

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Little metal flakes started to fall away and within five minutes she had removed a portion of the bars, and she was out. It was easy from then on, it was just a matter of climbing up to the surface grates then blending in with the other maids.

In another five minutes she was sprinting through the forest.

---

Theo came to about then. "What... The hell?" he awoke in a dungeon across from a pair of empty shackles. The events of what happened before he was knocked out catching up with him.

'Crap, she knows... But how much?', Theo had no idea. At the very least, she was very confident that he was apart of the plan to raid the treasury.

Theo was hoping to convince her that it was all a big misunderstanding, that yes, Violet had planned to rob the treasury, but had actually fallen for him and decided not to. It sounded like a good plan until she ordered that knight to nearly behead him.

The back of his head still throbbed with pain.

[Level Up!]

[Doppleganger Level 5]

[Skill Form Change]

'Form change?', "Oh. That's right. There's a base form."

---

The maid [Thief] ran frantically through the forest. They'd expect her to go for a horse- no, she made for the river. She would run along it to cover her tracks and throw off her scent.

Her thin strands of dark brown hair were whipping in the wind before a few fingers clutched a handful yanking her to a stop.

"OW! Stopstopstop!", she grabbed at the fingers and realized it was a bear of a person holding her. No- literally a bear person. A beastkin with furred arms and face held her. They were dressed in loose fitting linen clothes. A peasants outfit.

"Easy, Sinatra! Easy!" the grip loosened at the older voices' command, transitioning to a choke-hold instead.

"Please! I'm just the maid!", the older woman came into view. She was dressed in exotic clothing. Numerous multi-colored sashes made up a skirt that were tied together in the middle with a teal colored pearl the size of a doorknob at her waist.

She had a bright red corset on- the collar was made up of peacock feathers and it buttoned up down the center with a series of yellow laces. A poof of white fabric shot up over her breasts and out of the slender sleeves.

Besides that she was an older women in her late fifties or so. Red hair similar to the color of her corset, and green eyes.

She starred at the woman. "W-who are you?" Violet asked.

The womans' eyes sparkled and she spoke; "Oh, me~? Well, I'm the Baba-Yaga! Supreme Witch of Adun!" she tapped her walking stick on the ground and confetti came out the end.

---

An infuriated Leslie stood at the dungeon cell. At least Theo assumed she was, her face was often flat without expression. But her brow was slightly furled.

"Where is the maid?" She asked plainly.

"Maid? You mean... Violet was in here?"

She 'tssked', "Very well, we will have to interrogate you instead Brother." she nodded to an attendant near her and they took off down one of the many halls.

"Escape, there's been an escape!" they shouted.

Theo blanched- "Y-you can't torture me- I'm a Malton!", "Who said anything about torture-"

She pulled out a neckless. It had dozens of ember gems dangling from it. Embedded in brass that nearly shined like gold.

"The [Amulet of Durass], a priceless artifact. Father allowed me to 'borrow' it from our treasury... It's capable of telling truth from lies. Sir Thomas, if you would-"

She handed it to the wall of a man next to her, who unlocked the cell and placed the neckless on Theos shoulders.

'Shit!', "So, were you conspiring with the maid [Thief], brother?"

"No!", a jolt a white-hot pain shot through his bones- "AAargh! Fuck!", he felt it in his teeth.

"I see, what did you have to gain from pilfering the treasury? You're a Malton, surely it wasn't for wealth."

'It's like a lie-shock collar! He had to tell the truth without giving everything away-', "I needed wealth for a journey, to find someone I'm looking for!" - no pain then.

"Hmm, perhaps my line of questioning is too vague. I do know of this bounty you placed for information regarding a 'Samantha Lemont', but... There's something you're not telling us, why are you looking for Samantha Lemont? What did she warn you about?"

Theo sighed. That would be a really hard one to dodge.

"She's a relative of mine.", no pain. It was close enough to a truthful answer.

"What did she warn you about?"

"She warned me... That if I made an angry face for too long, that it would stay like that..?"

Leslie tilted her head for a second, pondering. Then looked at Thomas. Then back at Theo.

"Is that code for something?" she asked.

This would only get more and more difficult- she would unwind the mystery soon enough. He had to think of a way to turn this around, but how?

---

Violet was stunned. The old woman was the strangest person to run into out in the forest.

"Cute outfit. Are you a maid from the Malton Estate? Have you seen my grandson, Theo? Apparently this lord has been asking about me. By an oddly specific name."

"Theo! Yeah, I know him- listen, I tried to save him but I could barely get out myself! We were trying to get into the treasury as we planned, but-"

The old woman only sat and listened patiently. Gracefully nodding as she explained. After what seemed like minutes, Violet finally finished.

"-nd I don't think they know he's a changeling yet, but it's only a matter of time... I'm afraid whoever he was to you, he''ll likely be executed within the week..."

The Baba-Yaga nodded once more. "Yes, that sounds like my grandson... If you would be so kind, my eyes aren't what they used to be... What kind of plant is that? Right there?" she asked referencing to something on the forest floor.

"Huh- you mean-", Violet leaned her head down to see over the burly beastkins arms- 'THWACK' the walking stick cracked her upside the head, nearly hard enough to draw blood.

"Owe, what in the 9 hells was that for!? I told you everything I knew!"

"But you left him there! You harlot! He protected you and you left him! Infact, what do you think about that flower over there!"

"W-wait! I'm sorry! I'll make it up to you, maybe we can break him out!"

"Maybe? Yes, maybe- SURPRISE ATTACK!" she swung with the walking stick again but stopped inches from a flinching Violet. She cackled malevolently.

She waved the staff at Violet instead- "Let that be a lesson to you about leaving your friends behind. Sinatra, let her go. And let us go get the boy."

Violet dropped to the ground. The hulking beastkin and the woman continued walking.

"Y-you don't need me to point the way?" she rubbed the bruised spot the Baba-Yaga smacked her in. A welt was forming.

The old woman turned towards her, one hand held regally behind her back, the other gripping her walking stick.

"You told me enough. But if you want to follow along I wouldn't tell you not to. It's your choice. Maybe you could negotiate on my behalf, lest I have to burn the place down. It sounded quite nice in the way you described it. It would be a shame."

"Burn... It down?" Violet took another measure of the woman. She was a witch? At what level? She was confident enough to be level sixty, and the beastkin with her was intimidating as well. But they were only two, how could they stand against the entire house of Malton?

Seeing the Violets reaction, there was a twinkle in the Baba-Yagas eyes.

"Yes, I may not look it, but I'm quite the menace when I want to be. And I'd like to see my grandson, it's been some time after all." she walked on, ignoring the maid.

Violet considered for a moment. There are some high-leveled freaks in the world.

Maybe she was one of them. Who else could've put such an amateur doppleganger into place like that? And her grandson? There were so many possibilities there. Violet didn't know what to think. But she smelled a profit, something about her [Thieves] intuition told her that a buck could be made here.

---

"Enough! Tell me, why were you acting strangely the past few days!"

The color drained from Theos face, and he knew- that one would get him.

"I'm a quirky guy, what can I say- OW! Shit that stings!", the pain was unbearable, impossible to maintain a poker-face through. The lie was obvious.

"Tell me." she said assertively.

Theo sighed; "I'm a changeling." he shrunk down against the wall of the cell. Defeated.

"A changeling, is this code? Do you know what a changeling is Sir Thomas?", "No, Lady Malton.", "Hrm... Ask my magus instructor, she'd likely know. Or perhaps Sir Stelios, he is a knowledgeable fellow."

"I-Is that all for now?", Theo asked. Perhaps he would have his chance now.

"Yes, brother. For now. Retrieve the amulet Thomas. We'll go see about this changeling business and see about tracking down this maid. Rest assured brother, I have more questions for you. And father will learn of this treachery."

A man hurried down the stairs- a butler, disheveled and out of breath- "Lady Leslie! Lord Brandon has requested our presence at the south gate! He says the maid has been returned by some old woman and a beastkin!"

Leslie whipped around towards Theo- "Fascinating. I suspect I know who this woman is. Alert the guard, we shall meet her. Be prepared to capture her Sir Thomas."

The man nodded stoically.

An old woman? ...Who else could it be? So quickly too! She's only been here a week, not even two weeks longer than he had been! She must've heard about the bounty- it was just a half-effort at finding her. He didn't expect it to actually work. But it did, and it figures she was the one saving him.

He laughed, of course it would work out like that. Leslie gave him a confused look as she left the dungeon.

Theo was overjoyed, this time Leslie made sure to station guards outside his cell.

And they looked at him like he was a madman, laughing like a fool. But he knew something they didn't.

They had no idea. That's what was so funny. Theo was a casual gamer, he didn't play to win like his grandmother did. And if she had already found him... She must be at a ridiculous level already. Probably gamed the system as she always did.

---

Lord Brandon Malton was showing the guard commander a few pointers at the front entrance when he saw her.

She had appeared from an odd section of forest and made her way to the main path. A familiar maid in-toe.

"There she is... Hopefully this mess concerning my nephew can be put behind us. Guard, go receive my niece. If you would." the sore, exhausted guard ran off into the estate.

"Hello miss! Thank you for capturing the fugitive, you must have a good man there. Beastkin, far from your homeland hmm?"

They approached them comfortably. "Yes, he is. Sinatra here is like me in that way... We're both very, very far from our homeland."

"I see... Well, I am Lord Brandon Malton, and whom do I have the pleasure of addressing miss-"

"Your worst nightmare...",

Brandon cocked his head to the side.

"Huh?"

"You can call me; miss 'Brandons worse nightmare.', Sinatra, if you could? A member of the family is quite the bargaining chip.",

"Sounds good to me. Maybe this one will put up a fight."

The maid Violet took a few steps back.

"I don't know what your intentions are miss, but I fight at the level of a [Knight Commander] and-"

'CRASH!' in the blink of an eye the beastkin flashed towards Lord Brandon, he barely deflected the closed fist coming at him with his shield- what was this things strength!?

But he didn't see the sweeping kick coming for his side.

The lord flew into a tree bisecting it. Bouncing along the forest floor into the distance.

"Jesus Sinatra!", the baba-yaga slapped him on his arm.

He winced as he heard another tree snap from the impact.

"Sorry babs, -he said he was on par with a knight commander..."

She sighed. "Well, go collect whatever is left of him. Let's see what I have in my purse here-" she fumbled around in the satchel that hung at her side. Her arms disappearing into the bag up to the shoulders impossibly.

The remaining guard left was standing nearby shaking like a leaf.

"Hard candy young man?" she asked him, producing some from the bag. He was bone-white in the face.

"No? Very well then."

"Who are you people?" Violet asked. She was ignored.

Sinatra carried the lord on his shoulders out of the forest he landed in, blood dripping down from every orifice in his head.

"Here you go. Eat up." she said placing a little candy into the comatosed Maltons mouth. She slapped the side of his cheek gently. "That's it."

His wounds began healing rapidly, the sound of bones snapping back into place. He stirred, and groaned weakly.

"Now, let's go see about trading this one for my grandson. And any others we collect on the way."

She walked through the front gates of the estate. Her eyes went wide as she surveyed the fountains and green lawns. The white statues and perfectly trimmed hedges.

"Lucky bastard." she cackled.