Don't move, it's a robbery!

After giving up the pursuit of the wanted criminal, I temporarily stayed at the city lord's mansion.

Besides me, there are two children, a boy and a girl, who are staying here with me. Yes, they are the two little ones we rescued in the no-man's-land.

The boy's name is Zack, and the girl's name is Reggie; they are siblings who are not related by blood. To escape the war, they fled from the Kingdom of Lars to the city of Linde with their family. On their way there, they encountered some man-eating monsters, and their parents lost their lives protecting the children.

Because Zack was a little older, he took on the responsibility of protecting his younger sister and brought her to the no-man's-land, where they relied on their natural wit to steal and make a living.

Then they were targeted by the forest witch.

It's pitiful, but there are countless pitiful people in this world. Basically, everyone has their own tragedy, so I didn't care too much. I just planned to give them some money and send them to an orphanage.

But I don't know what Zack is thinking, he insists on staying and wants to learn combat skills from me. He's willing to be my slave for it.

I must say, this kid has a good eye; he saw at a glance that I was the strongest one here. But I don't have the habit of bringing unnecessary burdens, so I decisively refused him.

Leos, however, took a liking to the boy and decided to teach him some self-defense skills. So the brother and sister stayed temporarily at the city lord's mansion, serving as servants and also learning alongside me from Eve.

Yes, I'm also learning, or rather, that's why I stayed at the City Lord's Mansion.

"One multiplied by two equals two, two multiplied by two equals four, three multiplied by two equals six... So that's how it is! This is mathematics. I was wondering why those businessmen could calculate money so quickly; there's such an advanced science as multiplication!"

I was deeply moved. So this is the power of knowledge.

I'll never have to be afraid of those unscrupulous merchants again!

"Ms. Eve, do you know any ways to speed up learning? Look, there are so many books here, but I've only learned one page's content after reading all morning. How long will it take me to learn?"

Eve rolled her eyes at me, seemingly ignoring me, until I shook my money pouch, at which point she reluctantly turned her head away.

"There's no quick way to learn. It's something that takes time and effort to accumulate. I spent thirty years learning back then."

"What! You're 30 years old? You're well-preserved! You look like a young girl."

"You!! Elves have a different lifespan than humans. We are considered adults at 48 years old, which is equivalent to 16 years old for you humans."

"Wow! So you're already 48! So you're already past your prime?"

"I!!"

"I'm sorry, I was wrong before. Don't let my appearance fool you, I actually have a lot of respect for the elderly. Even when I'm robbing them, I wouldn't use a stick."

"Phew, I'm not angry, I'm not angry."

"I will treat you with respect from now on, Grandma Eve."

"You bastard! I've put up with you for too long!"

After playing around with Eve for a while, I went back to reading the book, and I read it very carefully.

Originally, I wasn't particularly interested in literacy; after all, I could live just as well without it. But after the curse and the wanted poster incident, I finally realized the importance of knowledge and experience.

While experience can compensate for a lack of knowledge, if I can't even read books because I don't know how to read, then my learning avenues are far too limited.

If it's just about literacy, I can find someone to teach me by spending some money, but finding someone as knowledgeable as Eve is much more difficult.

Although I don't say it, I actually cherish this learning opportunity. The little incident just now was just to relieve the fatigue from studying. But because my foundation is so poor, I haven't even finished learning the most basic common language and script yet. Even that kid Zack is learning faster than me.

Of course, I wasn't going to give up, so I could only work twice as hard. But it seems like this thing also depends on talent. Anyway, after trying to catch up for a few days, I was successfully left far behind by Zach.

"I'm so tired, it feels more tiring than fighting all day."

I twisted my aching neck and looked up at the sky, only to realize that it was getting dark again. A day had passed by in the blink of an eye.

"Professor Eve, I think I'll never become a scholar in this lifetime. It's easier to be a robber."

"These two things are not in conflict."

"What?"

"I say, there is no conflict between being a robber and being a scholar."

"I thought you looked down on robbers."

"I still despise robbers, but I don't despise you."

I don't know why, but Eve's attitude towards me was much better today; you could even say she spoke to me with a lot of earnestness.

"Whether you're a bandit, a soldier, a merchant, or a cook, everyone has their own way of life. They may choose it voluntarily or be forced into it, but no matter what, these professions are all means of making a living chosen so that they can survive."

"But it's different for scholars. While many people do study for specific purposes, others study out of interest. In fact, everyone has an interest in learning; it's just that the things they want to learn are different."

"Children learn the rules of games to play, farmers learn how to sow seeds to grow crops, carpenters learn how to use tools to make things, and nobles learn how to rule others to consolidate their position. You could say that they learn all of these things for a certain purpose, or you could say that these purposes themselves are what they are most interested in."

"I believe that what makes a scholar is not how many books he has read or how much he knows, because everyone has been a scholar at some point in their lives. It's just that most people lose the motivation to continue once they have achieved or given up on their original goal."

"But if you have a desire to learn new things and are willing to put in the effort, then no matter what your profession or status is, you are still qualified to be called a scholar in the process of exploring the unknown."

I was somewhat surprised. According to Eve, even an illiterate farmer had lived a life that belonged to a scholar.

"I've heard that only valuable knowledge can be considered knowledge. Can the experience that farmers gain from farming also be considered knowledge?"

I pointed to the bookshelf next to me. None of the books on there were affordable for ordinary people.

"If a farmer who is particularly skilled at farming records his farming experience, how much would it be worth?"

"If it's a method that can double the yield of grain in the fields, then this book is worth at least a thousand pieces of gold."

"Really? A farmer can write a noble book?"

Eve nodded, and her affirmation made my mind churn, as if something different was quietly emerging.

"Don't just stand there, ask me whatever questions you have. I'm about to start my experiment."

Eve, carrying a rabbit, asked me for a pill and then walked into the yard.

Looks like we'll be having rabbit meat for dinner again tonight.

I was feeling a bit helpless, wondering if I should try a different way of eating it, when I heard Zack sneaking up on me.

Haha, you actually tried to ambush me? Don't you know I'm the master of stealth?

I pretended not to notice him, but just as he was about to get close, I suddenly swung my bat and stopped right in front of his forehead.

"Ahhhhh!"

The sound of a girl screaming?

I looked down and realized that the person who had just approached me was Reggie.

Did I really mistake someone else's footsteps for mine? I guess I'm really tired.

"Hey kid, what's up?"

"Brother Robin Hood, I'm a girl."

"I like calling other people 'kid,' so what?"

"No, no, Brother Thief, someone's here to see you. I'm here to let you know."

Is someone looking for me?

I immediately became alert. Although I was quite famous in Linde City, the only people who truly knew me and where I lived were the people of Jingfengzhiling.

"Who is it?"

"A woman with very fair skin, who looked quite pretty, but I didn't like her. I felt there was something frightening about her."

This sounds like they're up to no good.

I rubbed Reggie's head, and after confirming the meeting place he suggested, I took out my three-star staff and left the city lord's mansion.

Of course, I wouldn't be foolish enough to just go there directly. Before arriving, I first checked the surrounding terrain, found a suitable ambush location, then found a suitable counter-ambush location, and after hiding, I planned an escape route in case I couldn't win the fight.

I took out some pills for night combat and put them in my mouth, so I could swallow them if things went wrong.

After I had everything prepared, I found a dark corner and began to wait for my target to appear, while remaining highly vigilant in case someone suddenly appeared next to me.

I am different from others; I never see myself as a hunter. I do not deny my strength, but I never believe that I am invincible.

The exchange between hunter and prey often happens in an instant.

"Come on, challenger, let me see who you really are."

Then I saw my female neighbor carrying a sack come into view.

Yes, it's her; she does indeed match Reggie's description.

However, this is likely a smokescreen, deliberately used by the real enemy hiding in the shadows to lower my guard!

I disappeared into the darkness again and searched around for half an hour before I finally confirmed that there were no enemies hiding in the shadows.

"Thump!"

"Oh!! Ah! Boss, it's you! Why did you hit me on the head?"

I didn't use a stick just now, so my female neighbor wasn't knocked unconscious, but she looked like she was in a lot of pain. She looked at me with a pitiful expression, full of resentment.

"How did you know I was here? And what do you want from me?"

The female neighbor felt even more aggrieved, saying that this was all my previous arrangement.

"Boss, you promised me before that as long as I help you find that wanted woman, you would let me go back to my old life."

Oh, right, I think I made that promise before.

Oh no, she's come to me to redeem the pie she promised.

"Uh, yeah, but you probably don't know this, you got the wrong person last time. This is definitely not me lying to you, you need to..."

"It's okay, it's okay. I know there might have been a mistake last time, because this time I've caught the real deal!"

"Oh right, right, right... wait a minute!"

I quickly looked at the sack my female neighbor had brought, then opened it and sure enough, I saw a girl who was tied up tightly.

Although she had lost some weight and her clothes had some bloodstains and tears, she was indeed the Tina from the wanted poster.