Ace sent away Eleanor before his smile vanished as he entered back the shop and saw Zaria glaring at him with a cold smile.
Zaria coldly scoffed when she saw Eleanor was gone, "You didn't tell me she was your girlfriend."
Ace ignored her sarcastic remark and solemnly said, "I still need more time to cultivate my new ability. So, I'm giving you your first mission. Are you ready? It should be pretty easy for you?"
Zaria was surprised before her eyes shimmered with a hint of anticipation, "About damn time! Sure, as long as it's not something suicidal, I'm down. But you need to keep an eye on Leah for me."
Ace accepted without hesitation, "I'll do it even if you haven't told me. She won't come out from the thief's house anymore."
Zaria nodded since she knew she could count on Ace when it came to taking care of Leah since he hadn't shown any vile intentions towards her, and he even allowed Leah to roam freely in the thief's house except for those private chambers.
Since Zaria agreed, Ace didn't delay and issued a mission.
Although Zaria seemed calm on the surface, she was still excited since she was looking forward to getting this mission and how it worked. Suddenly, she heard the static voice in her head, and a familiar interface with new words appeared in front of her.
[House Leader Mission]
-Mission Introduction: Spy on the Ravens!
- Requirement (1): Follow Eleanor to the hideout of the Ravens! - Requirement (2): Pinpoint the other members' locations if possible!
- Requirement (3): Spy on their activities, if possible!
- Requirement (4): Don't get notice!
-Reward: 100,000 House Points --
-Time: Until you receive the House Call or Figure out the Ravens' intentions! --
-Punishment: Deduction of 100,000 House Points!
[House Point(s): 100,000]
Zaria nodded when she saw the mission's requirements since they were pretty easy for her to fulfill, especially the last one, as long as she was discreet, not to mention Ace gave her a choice of freedom with other requirements as well, except for the first one.
The rewards were also to her liking, but when she saw the punishment there, her expression sank as she shouted, "Hey, what's up with this punishment!? Are you messing with me?"
Ace gave her a reproachable glance and explained, "Do I look like I want to mess with you? Adding punishment to the mission is mandatory, and the greater the reward, the greater the punishment. I can't do anything about it. So, don't mess up. This mission should be very easy for you as long as you follow Eleanor. So, instead of blaming me, I think you should get going since Eleanor is already pretty far away."
Zaria pursed her lips but didn't refute since Ace's words made sense, and she again realized just how much control Ace had over her. If he decided to give the punishment of death, she wouldn't be able to stop him.
"Oh, and before you go, I have a skill that is very handy for thriving. You should be able to comprehend it pretty easily. Remember, missions aren't the only way to earn house points; you can earn them with theft, and the bigger the theft, the higher the reward. Just don't overdo it. We don't want any attention on us and spook those guys…" Ace warned before he gave her a star slip containing the Pick Pocket skill, which he had improved even further after making it his divine trait.
After all, the Pick Pocket was a signature technique of the Thief House and Ace's favorite; everyone liked it. Zaria was surprised as she received the star slip, and before she could ask any questions, Ace was gone, leaving behind final words, "Close the shop before you go…"
"Scoundrel! Still ordering me around!" Zaria cursed with a faint smile but didn't delay any longer and quickly left after locking the shop.
Just as Ace had said, following a Quasi-Lord like Eleanor was pretty easy unless Eleanor had a Great-Lord grade treasure. Her law sense range was enough to cover 10% of the city so that Eleanor couldn't escape her.
Furthermore, Eleanor wouldn't have imagined that Ace could tame someone like Zaria and order her around so she didn't suspect anything.
But she didn't know that if she had threatened Ace's life enough or hadn't encountered Zaria, he was already planning on pulling Eleanor into the Thief House since Eleanor's skills and nature greatly resemble a cunning thief. Nonetheless, Eleanor was still quite helpful since she was titled Ravenmind, and as long as she was willing to change sides, he had already decided where to place her.
Zaria nonchalantly walked, keeping a distance of around five hundred meters between herself and Eleanor. But she also used a spell to make herself invisible since she knew those 'lambs' were watching her every move, and if they spotted her walking around, they would make a fuss.
Today, she wasn't the tyrant boss of the Feline Alchemy Shop, but instead, she was moving as a Lucky Thief of the Thief House, which unknowingly excites her since she had never done this before.
However, Zaria's expression changed when she noticed where Eleanor was going, 'What the hell? Why is going to the King's Anvil? Could it be those guys infiltrated the King's Anvil all at once? Not possible! She got the certificate by chance, and I don't think they would all have gotten one.
'Besides, I have seen their faces, so I'll know if they are pretending to be her servants. But first, I have to enter the King's Anvil myself. Although those guys won't dare to block me, it'll be akin to revealing myself.
'Should I sneak in? The Anvil Count won't dare to do anything even if he found me. Tsk, tsk, this mission is easy, my foot!' Zaria's lips curled up in indignant when she remembered Ace's words.
Nonetheless, she was determined to get those house points and save her own. So, for the first time, she decided to mess with the Runic King Palace and use Falcon as a protective talisman!