I Became A Thief Who Steals Overpowered Skills

Chapter 16 The Whole Story of the Incident

The news that a whole team of mid-level knights was wiped out and that Belorkin had died spread in no time throughout the main Balheim estate.

This instance of world erosion had manifested anomalous symptoms, escalating the difficulty to five stars, and as a result, the only survivor was Kraush Balheim.

Where was Kraush now?

He was right at the main estate.

Who would have thought Id be back here for such a reason.

Kraush had been assigned one of the vacant rooms at the estate and was currently resting.

He was found in a pathetic state, completely drained of his strength by the purifiers and additional knights who arrived subsequently, resembling a drowned rat.

Thus, he was first transferred to the main estate since it was closer than the Green Pine Mansion.

Thanks to that, he was resting at the main estate for the first time in a long while.

How is this possible? How could Belorkin have passed away, yet the worthless half-penny of Balheim is the one to survive!

Watch your language, no matter what, Kraush is still a direct descendant of Balheim. Do you want to get into serious trouble?

At that moment, voices were heard from outside.

The voices owner was none other than Belorkins personal butler.

Apparently, he couldnt accept the fact that Belorkin had died and had shouted without thinking.

Some people are even extolling Belorkin as noble.

Revealed by the purifiers, this world erosion was graded at five stars, an increase of two levels from the original.

Five-star world erosion implies that only an Expert of the highest caliber can take down the master.

In such a situation, Belorkin, merely at the superior rank, struggled with all his might and was able to wound the Thousand-Faced Demon with Ignis and topple it over.

It was truly a noble sacrifice.

Of course, labeled as a sacrifice, he couldnt avoid death.

He suffered from the curse of the Thousand-Faced Demons final attack.

Belorkin had tried to pierce his face with the sword containing Ignis to breathe, but in his injured and suffocating state, he cut through his body instead, and died from the struggle to breathe.

And who was the one to narrate his heroic sacrifice?

None other than Kraush.

It seems they believe the testimony, so I neednt bother anymore.

Even though they were half-brothers, Kraush felt no significant guilt for having killed Belorkin himself.

Belorkin had consistently hated him to the very end.

After all, it was Belorkins fate to die by his familys hands. Nothing new there.

The way he was beaten to death by Charlotte is still vivid in his memory.

Speaking of which, why did Charlotte kill Belorkin?

Because of the successive curses and injuries caused by Belorkin, Kraushs memories of that time were foggy.

He had heard that Belorkin ended up doing something to Charlotte, just like he had to Kraush.

By now.

He would be out on a world erosion expedition with one of Balheims five upper-level knight squads.

Nothing to be concerned about.

In any case, Balheim was deep into preparing for Belorkins funeral while actively investigating the abnormal incident as a result of this world erosion.

And Kraush knew all too well that he couldnt return to the Green Pine Mansion until the investigation was completely underway.

Come to think of it, I told that someone Id be back soon.

Kraush thought of Bianca and scratched his head momentarily.

Shell manage fine on her own. She might even have forgotten him by now, busy immersing herself in books.

Lets set that aside.

Kraush sat on his bed and raised his hand.

And then, similar to when he wore the black hood, he channeled strength into his hand, and a flame burst forth in his grip.

It was none other than the Ignis he had stolen from Belorkin.

Watching the flame, Kraush let out a sardonic laugh.

The fact that he had finally stolen another skill he had longed for felt undeniably real.

Is this the second time after Arthurs return?

The conditions for triggering the dial when he stole the skill from Belorkin were threefold.

First was the collapse of self-esteem.

This had already slowly accumulated from the evening and collapsed finally with Kraushs last awakening.

Second was for the subject to willingly pass on part of Ignis to him.

Kraush directly received the flames from Belorkin to confront the Thousand-Faced Demon.

With that, the second condition was fulfilled.

Lastly, the third:

The subject must recognize that I can use Ignis better than himself.

The I referred to in the third condition was, of course, Kraush.

At the last condition, Belorkin, seeing Kraushs single slash, acknowledged that even Ignis was much better handled by Kraush.

The moment all the numbers on the dial matched, Kraushs black hood was activated.

Ignis from Belorkin was snatched in an instant into Kraushs hand, and as a result, a flame sprouted from him.

This was the full account of how Kraush was able to steal Ignis from the incident.

Kraush, who had meticulously guided the situation to fulfill all the conditions and successfully did so, was truly a hard-headed individual.

He had not only managed to make Belorkins death appear as a noble sacrifice but also concealed the fact that he had filched the skill.

Its still too early for anyone to find out.

The fact that he can steal skills shouldnt be disclosed to anyone for the time being.

Though the curse is tolerable, the moment others learn he can steal skills too, they will all keep at a distance.

Theres still so much more that I need to steal.

Ignis was merely a starting point.

Thats why Kraush reframed Belorkins death as self-destructive, shifting all the credit for the world erosion contributions to Belorkin.

Having verified Ignis, Kraush then extinguished the flame.

This incident had harvested quite a number of accomplishments.

Starting with the gain of Ignis and becoming able to use Extreme Blood Poisoning.

He had also confirmed a temporary measure for the Extreme Blood Poisoning.

But what intrigued Kraush most among these was that Ignis was able to ignite even the power of world erosion.

Whoosh!

The moment Kraush reignited Ignis, what soared from his hand was a jet-black flame.

Black Flame.

It was the force of world erosion, settled within Kraushs body, burning bright through Ignis as fueled by Extreme Blood Poisoning.

The black flame was significantly more perilous than the usual aura of flame.

The burning flames showcased considerable firepower that matched their fierce intensity.

Inadvertently, he had acquired a secret weapon.

It could all be credited to Belorkin.

However, there still remained one truly important matter.

The real issue that kept Kraush tied to the main estate.

The strange symptom of world erosion stages rising.

The incident had warranted the deployment of specialized personnel just to investigate world erosions.

It was quite a significant event after all.

And they havent found the reason yet.

Kraush, well aware of the reason, laid down his sword and sank into thought.

The cause behind this abnormal symptom was actually straightforward.

Immortals.

It was their breeds that had stirred.

World Eroders.

Born within world erosion, they bear a striking resemblance to humans while being erosion species.

These beings carry world erosion within their bodies, each and every one composed of monstrous individuals surpassing even the Masters in dreadfulness.

And among them, there exists an Immortal.

He is the one who manipulates the most species within the world eroders like extensions of his own hand.

Was it from that time? That guy started to deliberately raise the stages of world erosion.

The Immortal was engaged in the strange business of intentionally raising the stages of nearby world erosions by at least two levels.

The public was still unaware of such Immortals.

Well, of course, it would be. After all, it was Arthur who informed us about it.

Arthur provided information about the Immortal through his memories of regression.

The deeds of the Immortal, raising the stages of world erosion, repeatedly induced great dangers.

Thus, it was Arthur who informed about the Immortal and ended up killing him.

Ironically, though, Kraush found himself using such powers of the Immortal.

However, Kraush couldnt just overlook the Immortal

Mr. Kraush.

Kraush swiftly extinguished the Black Flame upon hearing the sound of knocking at the door.

Come in.

At Kraushs invitation, a female figure opened the door and entered.

Her appearance differed from that of an ordinary maidservant.

Covered with a headdress marked with the Balheim crest, she wore a blue cloak over a body-fitting dress.

She was none other than a member of the Valkyrie, the direct knights serving under Balheims matriarch.

The appearance of Valkyrie, individuals of Expert Upper-class capabilities, prompted Kraush to show a trace of curiosity.

Why would the Valkyrie have business with me?

Madame Aria Balheim requests your presence.

Mother?

Aria Balheim.

She was the woman who married into the Balheim family after the previous matriarch passed away and the mother of Charlotte and Kraush.

Due to Charlotte, who was a star of her own, she was effectively the most influential woman in Balheim, second only to the Patriarch.

Hearing her summons, Kraush felt an unwelcome feeling.

I would have thought Sephira, the world erosion investigation team, would have called me first, not that Mother would be the first to call.

Kraush roughly guessed why Aria had called him, as he knew his mothers personality better than anyone.

Alright, lead the way.

Yes, understood.

The Valkyrie escorted Kraush with due respect.

Following her through an unfamiliar corridor revealed hallways evidently etched with traces of Balheim.

The feeling that this place was indeed the Balheim main estate was palpable.

And this realization made Kraush feel somewhat intimidated.

No one else was as disconnected from this place as Kraush was.

Tap tap

Madame Aria, Mr. Kraush has arrived.

Shortly after, the Valkyrie stopped in front of a room and knocked.

The doorway, seemingly for entertaining guests, echoed with footsteps before a voice from inside beckoning entry.

Creak!

The door opened, and a waft of cosmetics filled the air.

Simultaneously, there stood a woman, her inherent brilliance not overshadowed by her thick makeup.

Despite her age, she retained a glamorous appearance and upon seeing Kraush, her eyes widened in astonishment.

Kraush!

She hurriedly rushed forward and embraced Kraush.

My son, youve been through such an ordeal, do you know how worried your mother has been!

Watching her make a fuss, Kraush responded with a clicking of his tongue, as expected.

She was Aria Balheim, the matriarch of Balheim and Kraushs mother.

Mother, lets go inside first.

Oh, thats right, how silly of me. Come on in.

Cheerfully, Aria ushered Kraush into the room, treating the guest reception room as if it were her own.

Watching her, Kraush remained indifferent.

Perhaps in his childhood, when he was chased out to the Green Pine Mansion and later met his mother, he would have cried his eyes out.

But unfortunately, Kraush had seen and endured far too much.

And he knew very well who the woman named Aria standing before him was.

With the door closed, Aria hummed a little tune while preparing some tea.

Kraush, without settling into a chair, asked,

What business do you have with me, Mother?

Eh? Well, my son, I called to see you after you nearly died.

At her response, Kraush couldnt help but snort.

If a son had narrowly escaped death, a mother would rush to see him first before anyone.

Yet, she had summoned Kraush only afterward, and with a completely unconcerned expression at that.