"Beep!"
The elevator doors slid open with a soft chime. Matt stood there, battered and bruised, his crimson suit scuffed and torn in several places. At his feet lay a pile of unconscious red-cloaked ninjas, tangled and groaning in defeat. The fight inside that confined metal box had not been easy. Matt's exceptional reflexes and heightened senses were suppressed in the narrow space. Even with all his skills, the injuries were inevitable.
He took a moment to breathe, then extended his senses outward. Strangely, there were no immediate threats approaching. Turns out, the elevator had been a faster choice than dashing up the stairs.
As he limped out of the elevator, two figures rounded the corner. It was Robert and Erica. But what caught Matt off guard wasn't their presence—it was their ridiculous appearance.
Robert was dragging a large sack with one arm and pulling an ancient-looking statue with the other. Erica, wrapped in ropes like a bizarre mummy, had a C4 bomb strapped to her waist and was balancing a priceless vase like a reluctant art thief.
Matt blinked. "What... what are you doing?"
Robert grinned. "Oh, hey Lawyer Matt. Fancy meeting you here."
He gestured at the haul. "We saw all this stuff just lying around, figured someone should give it a home. Waste not, want not."
Matt frowned. He could already tell what was going on. The sack, the statue, the way Robert was eyeing the surroundings like a kid in a candy store—this wasn't a rescue mission for Robert. This was a heist.
Still, he turned to Erica, who looked equally unimpressed.
"You okay?" Matt asked.
Erica shot him a deadpan look. "What do you think?"
She was clearly not amused. When Robert had asked her to carry the sack of valuables, she'd refused. After all, she was a trained assassin, not a moving company employee. But then Robert, in his infinite charm, had produced a C4 explosive, tied it to her midsection, and politely handed her the detonator as a "friendly encouragement."
Faced with that kind of negotiation, Erica chose the vase. But even she had a limit—when Robert tried to get her to carry a jade chamber pot worth four million dollars, she put her foot down. Some lines, apparently, must never be crossed.
[Achievement Unlocked: Thieves Don't Leave Empty-Handed]
[Target Value: 31.6 million / 30 million USD]
[Title Acquired: Super High School Level Thief]
Despite having passed the monetary goal, the system hadn't flagged the mission complete. Robert figured it was because they hadn't escaped yet. After all, a stolen item wasn't truly stolen until the thief got away with it.
"No time for chit-chat," Robert said urgently. "We need to get out before they catch up."
Matt shook his head grimly. "Too late. I can hear them coming up the stairs."
Erica's eyes sharpened. "Then we fight our way out."
Robert groaned. "You're an assassin, not a berserker. Can we not try charging headfirst into a building full of angry ninjas?"
He set down the sack and statue. Then, with a suspiciously satisfied smile, he pulled out a small remote and pressed the big red button.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Explosions erupted below them. The ground trembled. A blast punched through the floor ahead, revealing a circular hole just big enough to jump through.
Matt blinked. Erica's eyes widened.
"You rigged the building?"
Robert nodded proudly. "Shortcut. You're welcome."
Without waiting, he grabbed his haul and leapt through the hole. Matt and Erica followed, landing hard but balanced on the floor below.
BOOM!
Another hole opened on that floor.
Robert laughed and kept going. "Next stop, freedom!"
Floor by floor, they descended in chaotic grace until they reached the fourteenth. The explosions had stopped, and there were no more shortcuts. But at least they had bypassed the incoming ninja swarm from above.
Unfortunately, the hand-cloaked ninjas were nothing if not determined. Several had jumped after them, continuing the pursuit like red shadows.
Moments later, three figures burst out into the underground garage: Erica gripping her precious vase, Matt shouldering the heavy sack, and Robert trailing with his statue.
Behind them, the crimson wave of ninja fury stormed through the doors.
Robert glanced back and paled. "Okay, time to stop being a team. Let's split up!"
Matt and Erica didn't hesitate. Splitting up would draw off some of their attackers and give each of them a better chance of escape.
Robert looked serious. "When we hit that intersection up front, look at my eyes and follow my lead."
Matt scowled. "You know I'm blind, right?"
But it was too late. They reached the hallway, and Robert veered left. Erica instinctively dashed right. Matt, having no clue which way Robert had gone, just kept running straight.
The red ninjas, momentarily confused, split into three groups. One group ran after Erica, another after Matt, but the largest chunk followed Robert, who was dragging the largest statue like a mad art thief.
Robert ran like hell.
"Don't just chase me! Two others went that way!" he shouted.
The lead ninja snarled. "You stole the sacred chamber pot!"
"No I didn't!" Robert yelled back. "She refused to carry it!"
"Lies!"
"Fine, I sold it online!"
The red tide surged after him.
Matt and Erica paused down the alley. The coast was surprisingly clear. Only the distant cries of Robert and the angry ninjas echoed through the air.
Erica turned to Matt. "Your friend is... something else."
Matt sighed. "I'm never inviting him to anything again."
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