Only Wisdom Awakened - Chapter 250

Chapter 250: A Sneaky Cat
On the streets…

Hans moved out of the way, barely evading a passing moped, then, he was pushed the other way by a passing old lady, who looked at him sighing.

The streets were bustling with life and action, and the pavement of the roads was made out of little cobblestones, however, they weren’t like the usual, because at least a third of the stones that made up the ground had come out of their supposed spot, and, or were partially broken.

People were as stuck as sardines in their boxes, and being able to move was a luxury.

The streets between the buildings became as tight as three meters wide, and yet the locals still found ways to sneak some stalls or a couple of tables for their restaurant in the streets.

It was chaotic, even more than the night market, but most people, whatever their attire, their humor, and their lives, wore tranquil and happy emotions on their faces.

He was in… Naples… the pickpocketers’ heaven.

‘God I hate and love this city at the same time, I don’t think it’s possible to have mixed feelings any more than this’

Hans thought as he moved out of the way to create more space for the non-ending horde of people to move.

Then, he put his hand in his pocket and reached out to his phone, he grabbed it and…

He grabbed it and….

‘Aghh!! Someone stole my phone!

I’ve been in this city for ten minutes and someone’s already stolen my phone!’

‘Where are you?! I know you haven’t gone far, I used my phone less than a minute ago.

Hans scanned the surroundings with his mystic insight, and in the meantime, slightly crouched, he also touched the ground with the tip of his index finger spread out his mana, and searched for someone with unusual movements.

He immediately spotted them, it was a short person, probably a kid, Hans couldn’t see them anymore, but they were the only person who was running away.

{Stealth}(tier-4)

Hans cast silently, as he disappeared from the eyes of normal people.

In a busy city such as Naples, it was easy for him not to give too much in the eye as he vanished.

Then, Hans lifted himself in the air, ready to follow the supposed pickpocket who stole his phone.

It wasn’t really that precious of a phone, since he hadn’t changed it even after awakening, but it held some pretty important information and contacts, so Hans didn’t want to lose it.

{Telekinesis}(tier-7)

Hans was floating a couple of meters above everyone’s head, and in the meantime, tailing the little boy who had stolen his phone.

Hans was sure of it now, he had seen his phone, along with many other items, lying in the boy’s pocket.

‘How didn’t I notice someone like him sneaking up on me and taking away my phone?’

Hans was really curious, so he analyzed the kid…

‘That’s unexpected’

Hans thought with a smile on his face.

[Name: Umberto Ricci

Age: 10

Level: 79

Title: none

Class: silent thief (rare)

Strength: 28

Dexterity: 35

Endurance: 20

Wisdom: 11

Indifference: 129

Class skills:

{Light handed

Skill description:

Having light footsteps is basic, but having light hands is special.

Skill effect:

If you want to take something away, the touch of your hands will go unnoticed.}

{Squeeze

Skill description:

If you really want to go unnoticed by someone, then you must also fool anyone who could see you, diminishing your contact with people in a crowd is the best way of doing that.

Skill effect: you can squeeze your body in advance in order not to be touched by people, instead of waiting for them to push you so you can pass through.

This skill cannot surpass the limits of the human body.}

Skills:

{Pickpocketing}(C-rank)

{Light steps}(D-rank)

{Silent breath}(D-rank)

Awakened skills:

{Indifference

Skill description:

For a thief, passing by unnoticed has to be the norm, if no one sees you, you can steal what you want.

Skill effect:

You gain the special stat: {indifference}.

The higher your indifference is, the more difficult it will be for anyone or anything to spot you, whether they are searching for you or passing by.}

Description:

…

Note: could steal from almost everyone.

Evaluation: peak (D-rank)

Current emotional state:

Disappointed.]

A special stat… Hans knew about them, but they were incredibly rare to find, to think a kid like him would have one…

The boy had turned into a dark alley, where he emptied his pockets and tried to determine today’s loot.

He looked at Hans’ old phone disappointed, other than that, there were a couple of expensive-looking watches that were probably fake, a couple of earrings, and a whole lot of Bluetooth headphones, there were about half a dozen of those, probably all fake, but they could resell for a minimum price.

“Tch! I shouldn’t have even taken this trash phone”

The boy there the phone to the side, reorganizing the rest of the stolen items.

But after more than a second passed… he noticed something was amiss.

‘The phone I threw… it didn’t make any sound’

The kid turned around in haste, only to see Hans with his phone in one of his hands, smiling at him.

“If you didn’t like it that much, you could’ve just left it with me, you know things can also have something called: ‘sentimental value’ right?”

The kid was immediately alerted, he backed down and kept his body ready to dash away at any moment.

“Don’t think about anything funny kid”

Hans recommended with a smile.

All of a sudden, the young man in front of the kid disappeared, and Umberto felt a hand touching the back of his neck.

As if his neck was in the jaw of a tiger, he dared not to move, as he carefully opened his mouth.

“I’m sorry sir, I didn’t intend to.

This is an everyday job for me but I don’t choose to do this”

Hans almost chuckled as he watched the audacity of the kid… he was… shifting the blame.

“Oh… tell me about it”

Hans said.

The kid smiled as he thought:

“Got him”

“I am under the grace of Her Majesty the Crimson lady, I can’t rebel otherwise my head would be sent flying”

Deciding to mess with him a bit, Hans said:

“So the Crimson lady, one of the most powerful and influential people on the planet, is forcing little kids to steal fake watches and headphones?”

‘This… doesn’t sound right’

The kid immediately thought.

“N-no, it’s her subordinates, but they say that if I disobey she’ll kill me, along with all the other kids”

Hans sighed.

Half a second of suspense passed, and then his grip on the boy’s throat tightened as he lifted him off the ground.

“Kid, if you want to lie… you should at least learn how to make up something on the spot… otherwise, people will see right through you”

“I-i lied but… please, let me go, it’s difficult to make a living here! It’s true that I’m forced to do this, otherwise I won’t be able to pay my fee.”

At the mention of the fee, Hans’ grip was eased, and the boy fell to the ground again.

He immediately turned around and looked at Hans with terrified and intimidated eyes.

“I was just playing with you, don’t worry about it”

Hans said smiling.

‘Like hell you were!!’

Thought the kid in his mind, but decided to stay silent.

“You have to pay a fee?”

Even if still reluctant to answer, the boy told the truth:

“Yes, we have to pay about three hundred euros every week, all of us who are part of the underground society”

‘The Underground Society!’

That name immediately rang a bell, it was one of the organizations under the Crimson lady…

‘Ha! Even if he was lying, he might indeed be under the Crimson lady, and without even knowing it’

“Alright kid, you’re good to go, I’ll take care of it”

The boy watched Hans confused and alert, what was he playing this time?

“What? Do you want a beating for stealing my phone? Come here I’ll give you one”

The boy immediately fled the alley, running as fast as he could without looking back.

‘Am I really that scary?’

Hans thought to himself.

And then he realized that he had just grabbed a ten-year-old kid by the neck, and a sense of remorse started hitting him.

‘I guess that if you’re doing something bad at that age it isn’t entirely your fault… maybe he really had a good reason to steal apart from being part of the underground society, he just didn’t want to tell me.

Also… the fact that he ‘awakened’ the hidden stat: {indifference}, must have something to do with his childhood…

Now I kind of feel bad…’

Still terrorized for his life and afraid that Hans might be following him, the boy ran as fast as he could, slightly altering his body to phase through the countless people without touching any of them.

After a while, as his back was covered in sweat and his heavy panting stopped his run, the kid climbed up a little wall and observed the scenery, crawled up into a ball with his back against a wall.

He almost cried as he watched the beautiful motion of the sea…

Only one thought recurred in his mind…

He… he saw me… there’s someone other than ‘him’ who can notice me.