Chapter 21

Chapter 21 – Criminals #3

Moonlight Flower wasn’t the culprit . Tae-hyuk had checked her belongings using the Robbery skill, and Rosario wasn’t among them .

If so, who was the thief who robbed his house?

Tae-hyuk first thought about how to find the real thief . First of all, it was hard right now, as they might be looking for other prey or hiding in their shelter .

Night was the time of the thief . It was difficult to specify the position of his free moving target .

‘My opponent is a thief who targets this area . ’

Thieves were extremely territorial . So most of the time, they would continue to work in their ‘designated territory . ’ It was the reason why thieves were often caught in the same area . Some time had passed since the crime was committed, and it was impossible to find the thief’s whereabouts right now .

Tae-hyuk utilized all of his knowledge .

‘There is a place where a thief who commits a crime must go . I need to go there . ’

A thief had to dispose of the items they had stolen and change it into money . The so-called person who ‘received stolen goods . ’

Most of them would buy the goods at a reasonable price . In some cases, they would hire a thief directly if there was something they absolutely needed . They wouldn’t directly dirty their hands and would receive huge benefits .

“Hrmm…”

Tae-hyuk groaned .

There was a small problem .

‘I have never been to one…’

A broker of stolen goods had their own nest .

Tae-hyuk remembered there was a broker who managed a thief near Cheonggyecheon . But he had only heard about if through a thief at the prison . He didn’t know who the stolen goods broker was .

Of course, what they did was illegal . It wasn’t like a chicken house that would be advertised on flyers .

If he knew this, then he would’ve listened more carefully…

Tae-hyuk shook his head .

‘If I had known, then I would’ve memorized the lottery numbers . First of all, I have to make the most of what I know . ’

Tae-hyuk decided to meet up with the broker .

He had the crime skills, and he could take advantage of it . Then he would be able to get what he wanted .

* * *

The sun was rising as Tae-hyuk stretched out . He got up and went through some light stretches .

On his desk was a reference book recommended by An Eun-young .

After school ended, he would learn directly from her . Other than that, he needed to study by himself .

‘My stats didn’t go up today…’

If the study skill wasn’t present, then it took him almost 10 times longer for his stats to rise .

In order for Tae-hyuk to be on a similar level to An Eun-young, he needed to raise his school rank by almost 200 . It needed to be done within a month . It would’ve been impossible if he didn’t have the help of the studying skill .

‘I would love to spend all day with Eun-young but…’

She had her own life . He couldn’t do that .

In the end, he had to study alone while An Eun-young was at school .

‘Why am I desperately trying to become 1st in the school…’

He couldn’t complain to anyone .

The Demon Revealing Mirror showed that he had dark circles under his eyes .

There was only one person who would come and see it .

“It is An Eun-young . ”

He couldn’t help but sigh .

“Anyway, it is time for the stolen goods broker to do business . ”

Thieves worked at night, and would check their equipment as they disposed of stolen items during the day .

Naturally, this was the broker’s main activity time .

Tae-hyuk searched through his vague memories as he headed to Cheonggyecheon .

* * *

“Is it this place?”

Tae-hyuk hid in a back alley and looked at a building .

On the surface, it was a pawn shop that didn’t seem that suspicious .

The problem was the people .

‘Everybody has a tired face, as if they couldn’t sleep at night . Uh, that person just yawned . ’

In addition, the person exited after five minutes and was carrying a thick bundle of money . There was no sense of urgency when they entered the pawn shop .

‘This is the correct answer . They’re all thieves!’

10 people entered in just one hour .

Tae-hyuk clicked his tongue .

‘There are so many thieves in the country . ’

This was why no matter how many taxes was paid, there was always a deficiency .

There was nothing good about facing other thieves . Tae-hyuk waited for all the customers of the pawn shop to leave .

‘Now!’

“Uh, is it Tae-hyuk?”

A sleepy voice was heard from behind him .

Moonlight Flower was standing there while yawning .

“… Moonlight Flower noona?”

“Hello!”

Unlike yesterday, Moonlight Flower was wearing normal clothes .

However she was wearing dark sunglasses to hide her identity . She wasn’t able to concede one thing .

‘Jeans and a top that shows her belly… It is better than the leather clothes she wore yesterday…’

Even so, the exposure was too high . He didn’t know where to look .

Moonlight Flower approached and plastered herself onto Tae-hyuk’s side .

Then she spoke in a chirpy voice .

“Did you come to get supplies from Mama?”

Tae-hyuk’s eyes shone .

‘The broker is called Mama?’

“Mama? Yes, I wanted to buy something . ”

“Huh ~ Is that so?”

It seemed like he could take advantage of meeting Moonlight Flower here .

Tae-hyuk asked with a sly expression .

“Did that house from yesterday not belong to Noona? No, you couldn’t even cross the wall properly . Why are you going to a broker of stolen goods…?”

Moonlight Flower’s face turned red . She waved her hands and exclaimed .

“Now, I’m not trying to dispose of stolen goods! Yesterday, I accidentally broke a stick . I’m trying to get a new one…”

“You should be careful . ”

Tae-hyuk nodded with a convinced look .

Thieves would also buy things from brokers, as the brokers also sold equipment . Moonlight Flower had a variety of tools . She wouldn’t have bought them from an auction, so most of them would be purchased here .

“I came to buy equipment . What did Tae-hyuk come to buy?”

“That’s not it . I need information . ”

“Hrmm . Obviously, there is something that you are looking for . That other thief must have stolen it . Then, did you come to the broker to ask if somebody had come to the store to sell it?”

Tae-hyuk’s eyes widened .

He thought that she was just a stupid thief . However, she was smarter than he thought .

Moonlight Flower smiled at the expression on Tae-hyuk’s face and poked his cheek .

“Ahah, is that the answer? You shouldn’t make fun of a woman’s senses . ”

“…… . Please keep it a secret from Mama . Wouldn’t it be nice to share each other’s secrets?”

He needed to ensure that Moonlight Flower didn’t reveal it .

Moonlight Flower folded her arms and said .

“Well, I’ll won’t reveal it . ”

“But isn’t Noona curious about the thief who ignored the rules and invaded someone else’s territory?”

“Yes . I am curious . ”

“Then do you want to go with me? Don’t you have something to do here anyway?”

Moonlight Flower’s eyes widened .

“I-Is that so? I also didn’t want to go alone . ”

“Then I will be the one talking . Just watch from the sidelines . ”

“Let’s go!”

Moonlight Flower seemed to be familiar with the stolen goods broker . If he entered with her, then the broker’s wariness would reduce . He would be able to obtain what he wanted earlier .

‘Shall I get some information about Mama from Moonlight Flower?’

Tae-hyuk asked casually .

“You seem to come here often . ”

Mama’s store was on a corner of an alley in Cheonggyecheon . It looked like any other ordinary pawn shop . A place that lend money for goods received .

“It is the most famous place for handling stolen jewellery in the area . ”

The important thing was for the broker to evaluate the goods and calculate the correct price .

Among the items that the thieves handled, there were many fakes . It was up to the broker to judge the stolen goods .

Moonlight Flower started talking about things that Tae-hyuk didn’t even ask . She was a person who would be called an enemy to herself .

Tae-hyuk stored the things Moonlight Flower told him in his head . Information was always valuable .

“Then let’s go . ”

Tae-hyuk and Moonlight Flower opened the door and entered the pawn shop .

A woman who was painting stood up and welcomed them .

“Welcome . How can I help you?”

The woman seemed to be in her early 30s . She was dressed in black mourning clothes . A beautiful woman who gave off a mature atmosphere .

“Hey, Ajumma! I came here to ask you something . Well, not exactly me but this guy . ”

“Omo . It is Moonlight . Come on . Didn’t I tell you to call me unni, instead of ajumma?”

“I understand! Mama unni!”

“I will say it one more time, if you call me ajumma then I will stick a knife in your belly . ”

“Ahaha… I’m sorry . ”

Mama laughed, but she had a strange expression on her face .

“Is he your boyfriend? Well, you are pretty . Why are you just standing there?”

“Nope . He is just a younger brother that I know . He is a little naive . ”

“Really? Anyway, I’ll go and get some cold drinks . Wait here . ”

Moonlight Flower talked in a familiar manner to Mama .

Tae-hyuk was just watching with an open mouth .

‘I should have noticed when I heard the name Mama . I didn’t think that it would be Big Mama . ’

Tae-hyuk felt dizzy .

Big Mama was one of the big criminal brokers .

She dealt with counterfeit art that went into the range of tens of billions of won . She was a representative of South Korea, just like the Russian or American mafias .

He had entered the lair of a tiger .

‘I-I have to get out of here!’

Then Mama spoke .

“Omo, Moonlight . Your brother is trying to run away? However, I hope he knows that this place is free to enter, but not free to leave . ”

Tae-hyuk wanted to cry .