I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

In ancient myths and legends, humanity once lived in harmony. They shared a common language, worked together, and enjoyed unprecedented prosperity—a prosperity that lasted until one day, someone harbored designs on the gods in the heavens.

People wanted to explore the dwelling place of the gods, and they wanted to avoid disasters... These desires led them to begin building the Tower of Babylon.

However, it was precisely for this reason that he angered the gods and was considered "disobedient" by God.

Therefore, God (the gods) punished them. He separated languages, making them incomprehensible to each other and preventing people from understanding one another.

...To this day, the myth of the Tower of Babel still symbolizes humanity's "rebellion" against things that are high above, but it also signifies humanity's arrogance in disregarding everything and attempting to challenge the invincible.

After taking a breath, Amamiya finally understood why Abydos's "Impression Space" presented such a scene.

It seems that... climbing the 'Tower of Babylon' is equivalent to venturing deeper into the Impressionist Space.

He reached out and wiped his cheek, and clusters of blazing, eerie blue flames automatically climbed onto Amamiya's hand, eventually spreading to his entire body.

After changing into the 'phantom thief's outfit, Amamiya began to approach the distant 'city of sin'.

The “City of Sin” looks awe-inspiring from afar, but upon closer inspection, Amamiya sensed something else entirely.

He saw strange figures wearing motorcycle helmets weaving through the streets and alleys of this city of sin.

"Hurry up, hurry up... make sure you're all hidden."

"The boss told us to hide and concentrate our forces... to probe the strength of that Xia Lai Sensei, and then find a way to strike a heavy blow against Xia Lai Sensei in one fell swoop..."

"What do you think of the idea of ​​kidnapping one of Abydos's members when they're alone?"

The Impression Space is a collection of the collective unconscious of humankind; therefore… the 'shadows' that Amamiya is seeing now are all expressing their 'dark thoughts' hidden in their inner world.

These are the shadows symbolized by the members of the "Helmet Gang" mentioned in the documents... After all, they all wear helmets similar to motorcycle helmets, making them too easy to recognize and with too distinctive features.

These 'residents' living in this other world interact just like people in the normal world, casually discussing strange topics that sound very odd and unbelievable to people in the normal world.

"Shadows...the same applies to this world."

After observing the behavior patterns of these shadows, Amamiya determined that these monsters, formed from the 'collective unconscious,' were similar to the shadows he had frequently robbed in the Impression Space in Shibuya, Tokyo.

The specific behavioral patterns are not much different, but the intensity is slightly stronger than the shadow in Shibuya, Tokyo.

Amamiya saw a helmet shadow whose color was different from the other shadows, perhaps a little more prestigious than the others.

He walked up to the shadowy figure, patted him on the shoulder, and casually started a conversation: "What are you doing?"

"I heard you talking about that Xia Lai Sensei... What exactly happened?"

"Who are you?" The shadow, clearly annoyed at being called out, turned around and glared at Amamiya. "Do we know each other? Why did you call me?"

Amamiya Qingqi coughed, his fingertips twirling, and a dazzling golden light burst forth from his hand.

A gold coin, its materials and craftsmanship unknown, that is dazzling and captivating.

“I’m a bank manager who was just hired recently,” Amamiya said, flicking the gold coins in his hand with his thumb. “I’m very curious about that Sensei from Xialai that you’ve mentioned. Can you tell me more information? I’ll give you some money depending on the value of the information.”

"Sure, sure!"

The Shadow Helmet members' eyes gleamed, their gazes constantly shifting with the rise and fall of the gold coins: "What does the big boss want to ask? I'll tell you everything I know!"

As 'aggregates of desires', the shadows are actually more susceptible to bribery and will tell you things—provided you can communicate with them.

Without the assistance of the "Unfettered Negotiation" ability, communicating with this otherworldly existence is just empty talk.

"What exactly is this plan you're talking about? It sounds interesting, can you tell me about it?"

As Amamiya spoke, he flicked the gold coins in his hand to the shadowy figure of the Helmet Gang.

The helmeted figure in shadows took the helmet as if it were a treasure, then carefully rubbed it in his hand before putting it into his skirt pocket.

"Are you interested in that Xia Lai Sensei, sir? Well, let me tell you..."

"Actually, we were hired by the Caesar Group. Our purpose is simple: to squeeze more money out of that countermeasures committee in Abydos."

"Then Caesar heard that a Sensei had recently come to the Federal Student Council and wanted to investigate what was going on, so he gave us a batch of equipment and entrusted us with this task."

At this point, the shadowy figure in the helmeted group scratched his head: "The planning advisor over there wants us to lie low for now, investigate this guy's background... and then figure out a way to launch a full-scale attack and give him a taste of his power."

"And then there are the immediate plans... We intend to keep an eye on the movements of those people in Abydos, preparing to kidnap one of their members when they're off guard..."

"Let's see if we can sow discord between that Sensei member and the Abydos members..."

There are many benefits to obtaining information from one's inner world—one of the most unique being that these 'shadows' almost never lie.

Upon hearing this, Amamiya thought to herself, "Just as I thought."

"Boss, I've said everything I know... Can we leave now?"

Amamiya smiled as he watched the shadow of the 'helmet group'.

"sure……"

As he spoke, a red glow appeared on his right hand.

"I'll... see you off."

After saying that, he kicked straight down, stepping on the helmeted figure's back amidst its surprised "Eh?", and then grabbed its helmet with his red-glowing hand.

"正体お見せる (Reveal your true colors)!"

Chapter 4 Hoshino: The Most Brain-Teasing Episode

"……What?!"

Hoshino, who was hiding in the corner watching this scene from afar, listened to the series of information spoken by this 'unknown creature' who clearly looked like a member of the Helmet Squad, and felt suspicious and uncertain.

Although his fighting style is a bit 'extreme', Hoshino is not actually a fool who only thinks about rushing in whenever he encounters a problem.

Although no one can stop you when you're caught up in the moment... when you're not caught up in the moment, you can still calm down and think about things seriously.

Hoshino offered his own interpretation of the dazzling, bustling city he saw, and the colossal tower that reached for the heavens—

Is this a reflection of the current 'grey area' (black market) in Abydos and the masterminds behind it who want Abydos to 'disappear' and for this land to 'change hands'...?

Hoshino, who was already trying her best to understand everything about this world, heard news that made her even more nervous...

Clues were gradually pieced together and perfected in her mind.

No wonder the Helmet Gang went completely silent after the 'Federal Student Council's train arrived,' as if they had prior intelligence...

No wonder those helmet squads that had been harassing the countermeasures committee from time to time have temporarily stopped.

It turns out they were plotting to sow discord, intending to gradually destroy Abydos through a strategy of defeating them one by one...

Hoshino thought about it carefully and felt that it was entirely feasible—

After all, no matter how powerful she is, it is still just the power of an individual.

Abydos cannot 'stick together' at all times.

Hoshino knew that she didn't have the energy to protect the other members of the countermeasures committee every moment.

Once the Helmet Squad has figured out the movements of the Countermeasures Committee members, they will launch a concentrated attack when the members are acting alone, taking control of the Countermeasures Committee members one by one...

Hoshino couldn't imagine what would happen next—if that situation really occurred, he would definitely unleash his power and hatred without restraint, and in the end, he would also be tightly gripped by the 'mastermind'.

If it were a game of 'layered' strategy, Hoshino might indeed have been a step behind... but she could still see things clearly and anticipate them.

If, at that time, the members of the countermeasures committee happen to be alienated and no longer trust this newcomer Sensei, no longer trust the only potentially reliable force at present... then all of them will truly be completely isolated and helpless.

As for the method of "sowing discord," Hoshino had come up with a very simple one—for example, observing who this Sensei has been acting with recently, who they are paying attention to, and then figuring out the whereabouts of the member being watched by the Sensei, so as to capture that member in one fell swoop...

The moment they discover a member's disappearance, or even 'death,' Sensei will be utterly unable to defend themselves—

After all, this member disappeared very quickly after contacting you, a 'suspicious adult'. If you say this has nothing to do with you, can we believe you?

At that time, the countermeasures committee will be in the following situation.

One by one, members disappeared, their strength gradually dissipated and weakened, their beliefs were severely shaken, and even the only 'external force' they could trust was rejected and abandoned by themselves...

Despite possessing considerable power, he could only watch, unable to do anything...

If that were to actually happen... that would be utterly hopeless.

The words spoken by the person who seemed to be a member of the 'Helmet Group' were illogical, but Hoshino had no choice but to consider their various plausible explanations.

No one had ever told Hoshino to "think more" before.

But after all, it concerns everyone on the countermeasures committee, and even the rise and fall of the entire Abydos... For the sake of the shadow of 'that person' in his heart, Hoshino had to think more and try to calculate all the possibilities he could think of.

If what that strange 'helmet group member' said is true... then what should we do?

Is this strange adult really someone I can trust wholeheartedly...?

Thoughts are like a tangled ball of yarn, with no beginning or end.

While struggling with this dilemma, she couldn't help but think of that senior colleague.

'If it were Yume-senpai... what would she do...?'

The howling, blazing wind interrupted Hoshino's chaotic, disjointed thoughts.

She snapped out of her daze and happened to witness a scene that deeply shocked her.

"正体お見せる (Reveal your true colors)!"

[BGM: Last Surprise]

Amamiya placed her red-glowing right hand on the helmet of the shadowy figure and then pulled hard.

'You try to run me through? Hold on.'

'Think again, don't you know what you're starting?'

'But...you sure ain't got a clue how d (However, you probably don't yet understand what's about to happen)'

With a whoosh, a thick, dark red liquid sprayed out as the 'mask' was violently ripped off.

Using the recoil from tearing the mask, Amamiya nimbly performed two or three backflips in succession, then stopped with a parkour-style roll, picking up a bright silver dagger in one hand and a platinum pistol in the other.

The surging, thick, dark red mud-like substance boiled and surged, quickly turning into a puddle of mud indistinguishable human form.

Then... all sorts of 'monsters' with hideous faces emerged from the mud and crawled up.

'This will go, don't you know my art?'

'Art of War'

Three or four different 'monsters' appeared.

Some of these monsters looked like a giant, glowing bird; others looked like a blood-soaked teddy bear exuding an ominous, cursed aura; and still others looked even more outrageous, appearing to be a black wolf-headed monster wielding a scale.

"Show time!"

The perilous atmosphere of the other world fully awakened Amamiya's inner desire for self-expression and his rebellious spirit, making him act more "mad" than ever before.

'Like a phantom thief, gracefully battling his enemy under the watchful eyes of everyone, as if performing a theatrical act…?!'

Hoshino, watching from afar, could only come up with this one description at that moment.

"Psona—Lucifer!"

And as you look up at the horizon, there is not a cloud.

But then a stormy weath catches you cold.

Undeterred, Amamiya faced several enemies and instead of defending, he swiftly darted forward with his exceptionally ornate short sword, simultaneously extending a hand and instantly striking one of them with his grappling hook.

'Zheng~'

As the short sword was swung at lightning speed, Hoshino, who was watching from afar, actually saw a beam of light piercing through the darkness.

A crescent-shaped blade flashed by, effortlessly slicing the strange 'big bird' in two as easily as cutting butter.

"Hmph, it's over!"

Having anticipated and deftly dodged a beam of purple light, Amamiya gripped the short sword in a reverse grip, crossed her hands, and began to unleash bright gunfire from the [Destroyer Emperor] in her hands.

It seems like it crept up out of nowhere all around.