I Became A Thief Who Steals Overpowered Skills

The Unending Night.

The deeper one ventured into this realm of eternal night, the thicker and more oppressive the darkness became.

“They’re starting to chase us now.”

Kraush could sense the Black Wraiths closely pursuing the carriage from behind.

It seemed they had completed their assessment of the intruders and were now launching a full-scale attack.

[What will you do?]

The Erosion Beings that lived within the forbidden zones were fundamentally different from ordinary Erosion Beings.

Residing in a place saturated with World Erosion, they naturally developed bodies far superior to their counterparts.

Evidence of this was the Black Wraiths, who were now rapidly closing in on the carriage at a speed unimaginable for those outside the forbidden zones.

Shaped like monstrous apes with glowing red eyes, they let out hideous screeches as they charged at the intruders.

“Handle them.”

Kraush spoke as he turned to Ebelasque.

“Ebelasque, open the hatch.”

At Kraush’s command, Ebelasque placed her hand on the wall of the carriage.

With a grating crack, the bone ceiling began to open, revealing the night sky above.

Kraush climbed up through the opening, his head emerging to witness the grotesque sight.

Black Wraiths filled the horizon, swarming like cockroaches, their writhing forms flooding the landscape in pursuit of the carriage.

It was a scene that would have caused an ordinary person to faint from terror.

Yet, Kraush remained unfazed.

With a light leap, he stood atop the carriage, facing the horde.

The Black Wraiths, under the night sky, drew even greater strength from their surroundings.

Here, they acted as though they were the rightful rulers of the Unending Night.

But there was one thing they didn’t know.

The night didn’t belong solely to them.

Kraush’s hair began to darken, turning jet black as it responded to the Unending Night.

The energy of Nox, Kraush’s skill, surged forth uncontrollably, spilling into the darkness.

Simultaneously, his eyes began to glow a deep crimson, as the Seven Stars of the Heavenly Slaying Star flared to life within him.

Under the chaotic brilliance of the Heavenly Slaying Star, Kraush’s body exuded an overwhelming sense of stability and power.

In the night, Lunar Body reached its peak effectiveness, enhancing Kraush’s strength to its absolute limit.

His breath escaped in slow, deliberate exhales, each one radiating intense heat.

The temperature around him rose noticeably, his breaths now carrying a scorching vapor.

Fwoosh.

Suddenly, flames ignited atop Thunderstorm, the weapon now gripped firmly in Kraush’s hand.

The black flames burned fiercely, feeding voraciously on the energy of the World Erosion saturating the Unending Night.

The high-temperature black fire roared wildly, an unstoppable force amidst the dark.

Thanks to Kraush continually absorbing the World Erosion from the Unending Night, his power only grew.

“Watch carefully.”

He declared, gripping Thunderstorm tightly, as if addressing the Black Wraiths.

Crackle!

Lightning surged across Thunderstorm, forming a sheath of crackling energy around the blade.

At the same time, the black flames within collided against the sheath, creating an ever-expanding storm of destructive power.

Drip.

At that moment, in the depths of Kraush’s mind, a single droplet fell into the calm lake of his consciousness, rippling outward.

The surge of black flames shattered the sheath forged from Lioner, the energy bursting forth with unstoppable intensity.

The moment the entwined black flames and lightning were fully concentrated along the blade, Kraush swung Thunderstorm forward.

Annihilation Erosion

Third Form

Heavenly Thunder Annihilation

The blade cut forward, halting at the apex of its swing.

In the immediate aftermath, the world fell into an eerie silence.

The Black Wraiths, which had been charging at full speed, froze in place, their momentum halted.

Crack!

Suddenly, fractures began to appear across their bodies, spreading like a web of destruction.

Fwoosh!

With a roar of flames, the entire area was engulfed in a brilliant light.

BOOOOOOM!

A violent explosion consumed everything in its path, devouring the landscape where the Black Wraiths had once stood.

The black flames obliterated the creatures entirely, erasing them from existence.

Not a single one of the Black Wraiths that had swarmed the horizon remained alive.

CRAAAACK!

The following shockwave shook the carriage violently, making it rattle uncontrollably.

Even the spectral steed pulling the carriage nearly stumbled, momentarily losing its footing.

Kraush brushed back his windswept hair and dispelled the energy from Thunderstorm’s blade.

As he exhaled lightly, his breath, which had been radiating heat, returned to its normal temperature.

This was thanks to Kraush’s use of the upper-tier curse Frozen Fang, which rapidly reduced the temperature after the overwhelming heat of Heavenly Thunder Annihilation.

“Much better.”

Kraush wore a satisfied expression as the scenery ahead finally became clear.

By now, his hair had returned to its natural dark-blue color.

When he stepped back into the carriage, Ebelasque was staring at him with a dumbfounded expression.

While she had always known Kraush was strong, the sheer destructive power he had unleashed moments ago was beyond anything she had anticipated.

Well, it couldn’t be helped.

Kraush could become stronger inside the forbidden-level World Erosion than outside.

The output just now wouldn’t have been possible if it weren’t for the regional trait of Unending Night.

“What’s that? Is your body okay even after using something like that?”

“I’ve prepared for this, doing everything I could to endure it.”

Kraush said that and tried to sit back down in the chair.

However, at that moment, as a sharp pain surged through his body and he staggered, Haring quickly supported him.

“Kraush, water.”

When Haring handed him water, Kraush took a sip and swallowed.

‘So I tried to fill the gap when the World Erosion was absent.’

Kraush realized that the reason for the sharp pain lay in the Aura.

The Aura had forced its way into the empty space created by the absence of World Erosion, and when the World Erosion returned to fill that gap, they clashed.

The sensation of the two colliding and gnawing at his insides was enough to cause even Kraush intense pain.

[See? Who told you to get greedy?]

Crimson Garden clicked her tongue and criticized Kraush.

“It’s fine. That’s why I came here to deal with it.”

Ignoring Crimson Garden’s scolding, Kraush straightened his posture.

The power of World Erosion emanating from the direction where the Specter Horse was heading was growing stronger.

Surely, they wouldn’t take much longer to find Veltua.

Boom!

However, Unending Night seemed unwilling to let intruders pass so easily.

In the distance, a Black Wraith Giant formed from a mass of Black Wraiths revealed itself.

Holding an entire tower in its hand, the creature was truly a monstrous colossus.

When Kraush tried to rise from his seat again, both Haring and Ebelasque stopped him simultaneously.

“Do you think I came along for no reason? I knew this would happen, so I came to help.”

“I can help too.”

Seeing the two trying so hard to stop him from overexerting himself, Kraush had a slightly dumbfounded expression.

“Just rest.”

With that, Ebelasque raised an army of skeletons, and Haring stepped forward, dagger in hand.

Watching them quietly, Kraush eventually slumped back into the carriage seat.

If he tried to get involved unnecessarily, he figured he’d just end up getting scolded.

‘I’m not sure how things turned out this way.’

Still, he decided to go along with it, thinking it wasn’t so bad after all.

＊ ＊ ＊

It had been about a week since they entered Unending Night.

Thanks to the Specter Horse, which ran without rest for even a moment, they were making rapid progress.

However, traversing through Unending Night, where the sun never rose even once, was proving to be far more grueling than expected.

Starting with the loss of a sense of time itself, the constant sensation of something being gnawed away made it difficult to recover from fatigue.

On top of that, the persistent interruptions by the Black Wraths made things even worse.

The deeper they ventured, the more varied the forms of the Black Wraths became in their ambushes.

Some approached silently like shadows, while others, relying on their sheer size and bulk, charged recklessly.

Each time this happened, they were forced into battle, leaving the three of them in a state of unrelenting exhaustion.

“I mean, I’ve even pushed through acid rain before, so I can manage somehow. But you seem to be holding up even better than I am.”

“With Lunar Body and Nox, of course.”

Listening to Ebelasque’s comment, whose dark circles had grown even deeper, Kraush gazed out the window.

The unchanging scenery of endless night and plains gave the illusion that they were endlessly circling the same spot.

Only the occasional appearance of towers confirmed that they were indeed moving forward.

As Kraush had said, he was managing relatively well in Unending Night thanks to Nox and Lunar Body.

However, those without such advantages were struggling immensely.

The most noticeable among them was Haring.

Haring, whose dark circles had become as pronounced as Ebelasque’s, was leaning against Kraush’s body, fast asleep.

Judging by the irregular rhythm of her strained breathing, it seemed she was having a nightmare.

This was the true problem with Unending Night.

Even if one managed to find a safe place to sleep, they could only dream of nightmares here.

The nightmares would continually eat away at a person’s psyche, and those who remained in Unending Night for too long would ultimately be consumed by them.

“Haring.”

So, before Haring could fall into a deeper sleep, Kraush woke her up.

If she fell further into the nightmare and was devoured by it, she might never wake again.

“Ha, hak!”

Startled by Kraush’s awakening call, Haring woke with a scream-like gasp.

Haring, her face drenched in cold sweat, looked at Kraush and, as if reassured, buried her head into his chest.

She wriggled like a frightened child seeking comfort from a parent after a bad dream.

The way she clung to him was reminiscent of a cat that had opened up to its owner.

Having experienced this several times already, Kraush had grown somewhat accustomed to it.

Haring had a habit of instinctively burrowing into the nearest person’s arms right after waking up from sleep.

“Do you like being so close to her?”

Ebelasque asked with a sly smirk, her lips curling upward.

“Oh, right, you must love young girls. Just like your fiancée, huh?”

She even pouted her lips exaggeratedly, prompting Kraush to give her a look of disbelief.

“…Ebelasque, haven’t you been grumbling at me a lot more than usual lately?”

Noticing that her temperament seemed more sensitive recently, Kraush questioned her.

Ebelasque, however, simply stared back at him with a steady gaze.

After a moment, she rolled her eyes and glanced downward with feigned innocence.

“It’s… it’s just your imagination.”

Imagination, my foot.

Kraush thought back to when Ebelasque’s grumbling had started.

It didn’t take long for him to realize that it coincided with their visit to Green Pine Mansion.

What had happened there? He had sent the Mad Sword Emperor to Ixion’s meeting and solidified his engagement to Bianca.

As he pondered this, Kraush slowly turned to face Ebelasque.

Seeing her avoiding his gaze, a thought crossed his mind, and he decided to ask her just in case.

“Ebelasque, you…”

At that moment, his eyes caught a faint light in the distance.

In Unending Night, where only the red eyes of the Black Wraiths should have been visible, this was entirely out of place.

The bright light, akin to sunlight, was something he absolutely could not afford to miss.

This was because Kraush clearly remembered that light.

“Ebelasque, turn the carriage around!”

“Huh, what?!”

Ebelasque, who had been nervously bracing herself for what Kraush might say, responded in a flustered tone.

Following Kraush’s command, she hastily turned the carriage around, causing the Specter Horse to let out a piercing wail as the carriage swerved forcefully.

Clatter!

“Ugh…?”

The sudden change in direction snapped Haring, who had been groggy from sleep, back to her senses.

As she lifted her head, she saw Kraush leaning out of the carriage window.

Kraush was focusing all his attention on the distant light, his gaze locked onto it.

Sure enough, the light seemed to notice their presence and began to change direction.

And it was moving at a speed that made it difficult for the carriage to keep up—just barely staying ahead of them.

At this rate, they would lose it.

“Ebelasque, keep chasing the light!”

Kraush kicked the door of the carriage open.

At that moment, a crow flew out of nowhere and soared high into the sky.

Kraush glanced at Crimson Garden, now in the form of the crow, and immediately leapt out of the carriage.

The World Erosion within him surged into Ignis, roaring to life.

The raging Annihilation Erosion coursed through his legs in an instant.

Whoosh!

As the blazing Annihilation Erosion activated, white steam escaped from Kraush’s mouth.

Boom!

With a powerful kick off the ground, Kraush shot forward like an arrow.

At the same time, the Accel surrounding his body amplified his speed even further.

Moving several times faster than the carriage, Kraush rapidly closed the distance to the light.

Beneath the light, a man riding a massive, centipede-like creature was traveling at high speed.

The man, shrouded in a robe that obscured his entire body, turned to look back.

All that was visible of him was a jet-black beard protruding from under his hood.

“Huh? A kid?”

As Kraush locked eyes with him, he felt a brief sense of curiosity. In that instant, Kraush kicked off the ground and landed on the centipede’s back.

Exhaling deeply, Kraush observed the man’s hand reaching into his robe.

He couldn’t even begin to imagine how many curses were hidden within the folds of that garment.

However, it seemed the man had no immediate intention of drawing them out.

“How strange. I was certain you were just a World Eroder, but the power within you isn’t limited to that alone.”

The reason the man hadn’t unleashed his curses was due to Kraush’s unusual nature.

With World’s Aura, World Erosion, and aura all intertwined within his body, Kraush appeared incredibly peculiar in the man’s eyes.

Good.

If he had recklessly bombarded me with curses, this would’ve turned into a hassle.

“Veltua Lacroix.”

Kraush called out his name, steadying his breath.

“Let’s have a conversation, shall we?”

This marked the moment Kraush faced the world’s greatest Curse Master, Veltua Lacroix.

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