I Became A Thief Who Steals Overpowered Skills

“…follow you?”

Mary blankly repeated Kraush’s words.

It was understandable, she had never expected anyone to say such words to her.

Mary had spent her entire life at the vanguard, clashing with enemies head-on and shattering them.

She wasn’t particularly gifted with intelligence.

If anything, she was below average.

Perhaps because of this, it became a strength when she stood at the forefront.

With her mind free of overthinking, Mary could charge forward without hesitation.

Charging forward again and again, leading everyone in her wake, was her forte.

But even her strengths had their limits against a certain foe.

A being born in the depths of the great calamity: Ragnarok.

Before the monstrous entity that consumed the world in its grasp, Mary was utterly powerless.

The Skyborne Generation was thoroughly obliterated, her nation was erased from existence, and Mary herself was driven to the brink of death.

When she finally came to, the world was already teetering on the edge of annihilation.

As she watched the wounded and able-bodied alike rise for one final battle, she realized something.

The crushing pressure of always standing at the front and the weight of everything depending on her alone.

When her thoughts reached that point, a vague sense of dread overtook her.

To alleviate that dread, she clung to none other than Arthur.

The hero who always stood confidently by her side.

That hero had once said to her.

「It’s okay, Mary. Even if you make mistakes, I can undo them. I have the power to go back. So go ahead and move forward freely.」

Arthur’s promise of a final safeguard.

Even if the world was erased, they could simply go back together.

Believing in those words, Mary thrust her spear toward Ragnarok.

Yes, that was how it had been.

And the result was, as expected, utterly devastating.

The world fell, and the Skyborne Generation was reduced to a handful of survivors, including Kraush and Arthur.

The rest were annihilated.

Looking up at the ruined world, Mary sighed in despair.

Even though she had ignored the crushing pressure and charged ahead, the result was still this.

The weight she had once cast aside came back, now swelling far beyond its original size.

So, after the regression, Mary became even more obsessed with Arthur.

She believed only Arthur could relieve her of this burden.

However, Arthur did not appear before her.

No matter where she looked, Arthur was nowhere to be found, and his absence began to rot Mary from within.

One incident after another erupted, dragging her deeper into despair.

And then came Sigrid’s final, scornful words, the last thread of trust Mary had clung to.

All of it was enough to utterly break Mary.

At that point, Kraush, the one who had overpowered her, spoke to Mary.

「Just follow me.」

The idea that all she had to do was follow.

That was a statement Mary had never heard in her life.

She had always lived hearing words of trust and encouragement from those who followed her.

Even Arthur, though he stood by her side, never sought to stand ahead of her.

But Kraush was now telling her to follow.

With those words, Kraush stepped deeply into Mary’s heart, and their weight was beyond anything she had imagined.

Mary stared at Kraush, her expression blank.

Without saying a word, Kraush looked down at her.

Though he now appeared in a female form, Mary could see his true form overlapping with it.

He was no longer the cursed one.

He was a figure so radiant and strong that he could command even someone like Mary, the former Divine Spear, to follow him.

A luminous person destined to usher in a new era.

Mary gulped audibly.

She, too, was only human.

When the world fell into ruin, the fear and uncertainty that had taken root deep within her heart continued to eat away at her.

Sigrid was no different.

Though her personality had never been particularly gentle, after the regression, it had grown even harsher.

She, too, had been devoured by the helplessness she had felt in the face of destruction.

Sigrid had always been capable of accomplishing anything, after all.

Perhaps that was why Mary realized, surprisingly, that she had stopped relying on Sigrid a long time ago.

Staying by Sigrid’s side, who had been corroded by ruin, would only lead to repeating the same mistakes.

Thus, Mary chose Arthur as her refuge.

But now, with even that refuge failing to appear,

Kraush’s words were an irresistibly sweet temptation.

“R-really, I just have to follow you?”

Mary believed Kraush didn’t know this world was doomed.

She was certain of that.

But because of that, a different thought began to take shape in her mind.

Because Kraush was unaware of the world’s impending doom, Mary thought he might not fear it. Unlike those who had already faced defeat, he could stand against ruin without hesitation.

It was a selfish and overly optimistic interpretation, but Mary wanted to believe it.

She no longer had the strength to walk forward on her own.

Kraush remained silent.

In that silence, Mary’s heart churned uneasily. Her eyes were fixated solely on his lips, waiting.

Like a bride anxiously awaiting her groom’s answer, she shrank back, desperately hoping for his response.

“Alright.”

The moment Kraush’s lips parted.

“You just have to follow me.”

The sweet words she had longed for echoed through her ears, engraving themselves deep into her mind and heart.

Crack—

A sound of something breaking resounded above her head.

Mary couldn’t hear it, but Kraush heard it clearer than ever.

In his grasp, the Black Hood skill activated, scattering fragments of the broken dial into radiant shards of light.

Among the shimmering pieces of light, Mary’s face lit up with the brightest smile she had ever shown.

Having shed the burden and all that had weighed her down, she decided to focus solely on following Kraush.

This realization brought her a fleeting joy.

Amid the cascading fragments of light, Kraush quietly clenched his fist.

The skill Accel, which he had long desired, had come into his possession at that moment.

Soon, Mary would realize that her skill had disappeared.

However, she would never speak of it.

She feared more than anything that Kraush might learn she had lost her value.

For the rest of her life, Mary would act as though she still possessed Accel, keeping up the facade.

But Kraush’s dealings with Mary were far from over.

She still had one more role to play.

“Before that, Mary, there’s something I’d like to ask of you.”

“Y-Yes, anything! Please ask me anything!”

Mary nodded enthusiastically, her eagerness evident.

Seeing this, Kraush smiled apologetically, as if he felt bad for asking.

“I need to contact Sizerly. Is there a way to reach her?”

“Sizerly Ephania, you mean?”

Mary’s eyes widened in surprise.

She knew that Kraush and Sizerly weren’t on bad terms, but she hadn’t expected him to seek personal contact with her.

“Yes. Is it possible?”

When Kraush asked again, Mary hastily nodded in agreement.

The owner of the imperial brand engraved on Mary’s body was none other than Sizerly.

Thus, Mary knew well that she could use the brand to establish contact with her.

“I’ll get in touch right away.”

Mary said, as if pleading not to be cast aside, her desperation evident in her voice.

When Kraush smiled and thanked her, Mary was overwhelmed with happiness from that alone.

It was the result of surrendering everything to Kraush.

‘This finishes my business with Mary.’

While Kraush acknowledged Mary’s talent, he knew that her future depended entirely on whether she could change herself.

He could only provide the spark, but beyond that, it was up to her.

‘One thing makes me curious, though.’

What would Mary Diana look like if she reached the peak of martial arts with only her Heavenly Martial Body, without relying on any skills?

Whether that vision would become reality or remain a mere fantasy was entirely in Mary’s hands.

‘Now, only two remain.’

Abella and Sigrid Ephania.

These two were all that was left among the three women who had returned in time.

Mary Diana had been one of them.

And Kraush had just completely broken her down.

＊ ＊ ＊

After dealing with Mary, Kraush successfully exited the girls’ dormitory.

Although his appearance, resembling his mother, drew plenty of attention,

fortunately, no one dared to approach him.

This was likely due to the cold expression on Kraush’s feminized face, which discouraged any interaction.

Thanks to that, Kraush smoothly made his way toward the Special Arts Department.

His plan was to meet Darlene and demand the potion to reverse his feminization.

After all, with his business with Mary concluded, there was no reason to maintain this form for even another day.

[ Kraush. ]

At that moment, a voice came from Crimson Garden, who was leisurely flying above.

When Kraush looked up at Crimson Garden with a puzzled expression,

he suddenly felt a chilling sensation down his back.

And then, as he hurriedly turned his gaze forward.

“Hm?”

A woman with long, dark blue hair flowing in the breeze stood before him.

Her eyes were devoid of any emotion, yet they carried a pressure that made anyone feel small just by meeting her gaze.

Charlotte Valheim.

None other than Kraush’s elder sister, one year his senior.

The moment he saw Charlotte, Kraush instinctively froze.

Every fiber of his being screamed that he absolutely should not face her in his current form.

And in that instant, he realized why Crimson Garden had called out to him.

She had deliberately shifted their attention to distract him before he could avoid Charlotte.

[ Heh heh. ]

A sly, wicked laugh echoed in his mind.

But Kraush had no time to be annoyed by Crimson Garden. He needed to figure out how to deal with the current situation.

Because Charlotte had been staring at Krashu the whole time since she first looked at him.

How would a sister react upon seeing her younger brother cross-dressing?

If it were Lilish, Kraush might have had some guess, but he couldn’t even begin to predict how Charlotte would react.

‘No, she probably hasn’t noticed yet.’

She’d just think it’s a woman who resembles their mother a little.

It was the moment Kraush was about to turn his head and walk past Charlotte.

“Kraush.”

Without a hint of hesitation, Charlotte called out to him.

As Kraush’s shoulders instinctively twitched in response, Charlotte tilted her head to the side.

“What’s that look supposed to be?”

For a fleeting moment, Kraush considered using his Accel to flee.

But he quickly abandoned that thought.

Charlotte might even chase after him.

Kraush knew Charlotte’s personality to some extent.

With her, a head-on approach was the better option.

So, Kraush confidently turned back to face Charlotte.

“There’s a reason for this.”

A reason for cross-dressing, of all things.

Even Kraush found it ridiculous, but he had nothing else to say.

Charlotte lightly pressed her chin with her fingers and looked Kraush up and down.

Feeling uneasy under her gaze, Kraush shrank back slightly, but Charlotte paid it no mind.

Then, she broke into her characteristic smirk, lifting only the corner of her lips.

“A little sister doesn’t sound bad.”

As she said that, she suddenly stood right in front of Kraush.

“My little brother has been asking Noona for a lot of favors lately. What do you say? Time to pay me back.”

“Pay you back…”

As Kraush nervously gulped, Charlotte’s eyes sparkled with mischief.

“Go on a date with me.”

And just like that, Kraush found himself about to go on a date with Charlotte.

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