In the afternoon in Barcelona, the guard at the South District Police Station was yawning while lounging on a confiscated luxury recliner.
In the old days of Barcelona, the identity of the police was like that of lofty rulers. Their existence was not to protect public safety, but more to display authority.
In the streets and alleys of Barcelona, they flaunted their arrogance before innocent citizens. They shouted at anyone who resisted them, and would readily use batons and tear gas.
Tap tap tap...
Hearing footsteps, the guard slightly opened his eyes. He saw a strange girl wearing a cat-eared hood walk in.
After noticing the South District Police Station badge hanging from her shoulder, he had no intention of questioning her. He simply pulled his police cap down over his eyes and continued sleeping. No matter how she looked, she resembled a thief far more than a police officer.
This was not because the guard was neglecting his duty. On the contrary...
This guard was also a thief—more precisely, a thief belonging to the underworld.
This city was no longer ruled by institutions of force. It now belonged to something even more violent—the gangs.
The South District Police Station had now become a gathering place for Barcelona's Treasure-Stealing Gang.
Those who once feared the police had now become the masters of the police station itself. It was hard not to sigh at the irony.
As the name suggests, the Treasure-Stealing Gang was a group of habitual thieves who specialized in stealing antiques and other valuable treasures.
Though they only engaged in petty theft, in the dark underbelly of an orderly city, people involved in this kind of "low-risk, high-reward" work were actually the most numerous.
First, since no lives were lost, those maintaining order often turned a blind eye and were too lazy to intervene.
Second, most people only sought to survive and had no resolve to kill, leaving them stuck in the middle as mere thieves.
This was why the Treasure-Stealing Gang had become the largest gang in Barcelona.
And today, they welcomed a new member—a short, brown-haired girl wearing a cat-eared hood.
"Hehe, so this is the Treasure-Stealing Gang? Looks pretty impressive. There must be a lot of treasures hidden inside." Pardo followed the recruiter who had brought her here into the hall.
Due to Su's arrangements, Pardo didn't get to go back and laze around sleeping. Instead, she was thrown straight into a new mission.
In truth, Su had already assigned her very little work. Pardo had been on break for quite some time, and the matter at Aponia's sanatorium hadn't even counted as work for the Mad Hatter Party.
On top of that, she still hadn't given up running her Dusk Street Pardo Shop, which made her seem extremely busy.
At first, Pardo even wanted to come up with a new excuse to skip work and sleep in, but how could Su let an employee who took money without working get away with it—especially a veteran one?
When she heard that there were countless treasures here waiting to be "rescued," Pardo reluctantly changed her mind and agreed.
Jobs that let you earn extra money weren't easy to come by. Making some extra on the side during work was only natural, right?
Although Pardo already lived on Dusk Street, entering Barcelona itself was still difficult. Those gangs didn't care where you were from—everyone was treated the same if they wanted to enter the city.
Outside the city, after successfully passing the Treasure-Stealing Gang recruiter's "talent recruitment" test, Pardo was brought into the city.
Hearing Pardo's words, the recruiter twitched at the corner of his mouth, but quickly forced a smile. "Of course. Our Treasure-Stealing Gang is one of the top gangs in Barcelona—and also the most... wealthy."
The man speaking was the recruiter who had brought Pardo in. A red bandage was tied around his arm, giving off a strange sheen.
Sniff sniff... "Yep, there's definitely a lot of gold here... ow!"
While Pardo was looking around, she ran straight into something like a wall of iron.
Rubbing her forehead, she looked up. The "iron wall" turned out to be a burly man in a suit and tie, his muscles nearly bursting through the fabric.
It was hard to imagine that this man also belonged to the Treasure-Stealing Gang. He stood out far too much.
The burly man stopped the recruiter and asked, "What's with this little girl wearing cat ears? The Treasure-Stealing Gang isn't a place for children to play house!"
His voice was as booming as his physique. Even standing some distance away, Pardo felt like her ears were about to be blown off.
The recruiter quickly greeted him. "Hey, Boss Raven, this is the righteous phantom thief—Violet Melforce... or something like that?"
The recruiter leaned over to Pardo and whispered, "Hey, what was your name again?"
Since the girl's name was so strange and long, he hadn't remembered it at all.
In this era, people didn't even have surnames, so long names like that were rare.
But even Pardo hadn't remembered the alias Vill-V gave her. "Uh... Melforce... Melforce... Melforce Canned Felis!"
She made up a completely unrelated name on the spot.
The recruiter scratched his head in confusion. "Really? I thought that wasn't what you said before... Whatever, names don't matter."
Raven frowned. So you brought someone in without even knowing who they are?
"Hmph. Then have you confirmed her abilities?"
"Relax, of course I tested her. You don't trust me, Boss?" The recruiter leaned in and whispered, "She didn't even need help. Before I knew it, she'd already lifted my wallet. That's how skilled her hands are."
In simple terms, Pardo had stolen the recruiter's wallet right in front of everyone without anyone noticing.
Raven crossed his arms and carefully sized Pardo up.
The recruiter was a deputy leader of the gang and an expert thief. Yet this seemingly ordinary girl had managed to steal from him unnoticed right under his nose. That piqued Raven's interest.
Could she actually come from some famous lineage?
"Fine, fine."
After hearing this, the man in the suit waved his hand. A trace of complex emotion flashed through his eyes, but he quickly concealed it and smiled at Pardo. "Welcome, thief. I am Raven, leader of the Treasure-Stealing Gang."
Looks like the Treasure-Stealing Gang is pretty friendly to newcomers, Pardo thought.
"Come on, sign here." Raven placed a document on the table.
Pardo picked it up, puzzled. "Flexible Employment Registration Form... Accident Insurance? Why do we have to register for this kind of work?"
"We're a legitimate company!" Raven said, patting the business license and certification documents hanging on the wall.
A legitimate company would require flexible employment registration and accident insurance?
A legitimate company would set up its headquarters inside a police station?
A legitimate company would hire a group of thieves as employees?
"Once you've signed, head to the parking lot. We're heading to the outskirts soon."
"Huh? Not going into the city center? It's crowded there—plenty of good stuff. Why are we going to the empty outskirts?"