Eternal Thief

Chapter 1143  The Stakes and The Gamblers!

Eva and Alina finally sat on empty seats, their expressions somewhat gloomy. They looked at Ace with indignation. The other house members were also silent.

Ace knew there would be consequences for going against those two, but he really had to show them the servitude of what he was about to tell them.

”Since everyone I consider close to my family is here, Iʼll be straightforward with you all. The first thing I want to tell you all is that my heritage comes from a mysterious thief lineage called the Heaven Stealer, which makes me the Heavenʼs Stealer. I got it from the Mortal Sky Heaven when I was twelve by the entity you all know as ʼThief Goddess.ʼ

”Although I didnʼt know it chose me, recently, Iʼve learned something about myself, and I think it has something to do with my bloodline. Anyway, the main point is there are countless perks of being a Heavenʼs Stealer, like the one you all are aware of, the ability to cultivate in both soul and martial paths.

”But since everything has a cause and effect, the biggest disadvantage of the Heaven Stealer heritage is that the moment they embark on the path of Heavenʼs Stealer, they will be marked by Heaven itself as the Eternal Enemy of Heaven!

”I know itʼs vague, but it is what it is, literally. My enemy is probably the creator of time and space or at least the same level of existence.

”The Heavenly Punishment is also the result of my status as Heavenʼs Stealer. Donʼt think of it as mere Heavenly Tribulation, which seems to grant rewards after you successfully overcome it. The Heavenly Punishment has only one goal, which is to actively try to kill me by remaining within the boundaries of something called [Natural Order]…”

Ace starts to explain the truth behind his existence, but he still doesnʼt reveal anything about the system, not directly. He decided to keep the façade of ʼThief Goddessʼ because he felt that revealing the systemʼs existence would be detrimental to anyone.

As Ace recollected everything he knew about being Heavenʼs Stealer, his final mission in the Mortal Sky Ascensions Temple, and then finally brushing with the Heavenʼs Advocate, the five people listening to him thought they were hearing a ridiculous story.

Furthermore, as Ace explained more and more about the truth behind his existence, Eva and Alinaʼs expressions warped in horror as they completely forgot about what happened earlier, and they paled with anxiety.

On the other hand, Noa had a similar reaction to Eva and Alina, while Freya and Winter were completely ashen. Their hearts went cold with sheer fear and trepidation when they understood the gravity of Aceʼs situation. Moreover, unlike Alina and Eva, who can still choose not to enter the thiefʼs house, they donʼt have such a luxurious option. They were completely in the same boat as Ace, whether they liked it or not.

Furthermore, all the benefits they received from the ʼThief Goddessʼ by only doing some thieveries no longer appeared lucrative. They were simply being neutered to go against the freaking Heaven itself, and now those thief houseʼs benefits felt greatly lacking in front of their true goal.

But they didnʼt voice out their inner thoughts because, first, they had already completely assimilated into the thiefʼs house and had accepted their identities as thieves. Second, they knew if they hadnʼt joined the thiefʼs house, they wouldʼve been nobodies or already been dead with the grim circumstances surrounding them.

Third, Ace had it far worse than them, and despite having the authority to use them as tools, he actually never did, and heʼs always fought on the front lines; their last mission was a good example of it.

After they heard Ace had stolen directly from one of the most guarded places by Heaven, just thinking about it made them shudder in fear. They knew they would never be able to keep their calm, knowing that they were going to steal from the creator of their very life.

Instead, they were filled with gratitude toward Ace for giving them an easy pass on the last mission and taking the most difficult part for himself. There was no doubt that he was a competent leader. Not to mention, he didnʼt consider them tools; instead, he just called them family, which somehow moved them.

Lastly, despite their dread, deep down, they felt a tingle of excitement at the prospect of the very Heaven going after them. Just how many could they say that they were marked by Heaven, and it was actively trying to kill them?

Absolutely no one because they were nothing but a speck of dust. Now, all of a sudden, a minion of Heaven, Heavenʼs Advocate, was personally here to hunt their leader and them down; just the implication behind this was so huge that no one could imagine.

Nonetheless, what Ace just revealed had completely turned their lives upside down, and their view of the world would never be the same. After all, Heaven was just a vague concept for them a few moments ago, but now they knew it really existed, and their leader was even marked by such an existence as its Eternal Enemy.

Doesnʼt this mean Ace had the potential to take down Heaven? At that time, those who were closest to him would bask in endless glory with him. Although it was still an impossible dream, they wanted to believe it, and this also became their motivation!

Ace was unaware of how twisted the minds of two women were. After explaining everything and making sure they all understood what was at stake, he fell silent, let them absorb all the surreal information, and waited for their response.

Eva was the first one to speak in an anxious tone, ”Canʼt you discard this Heavenʼs Stealer business? Going against something as elusive as Heaven is a path of death! Please, if you could, give up on it! We have a long life ahead of us, and we can live it as we like!” Her eyes were bloodshot and filled with grievance.

”Sheʼs right!” Alina also slapped her hand on the table, making it tremble, as trepidation filled her eyes. ”This is very dangerous, not itʼs a death sentence, and I donʼt want that for you! This ambition is simply a death trap! You are being beguiled into this, and I wonʼt let this happen!”

”Leader, even if itʼs my death, as long as you can live, Iʼm willing to accept it!” Noa also grimly voiced out her opinion. ”Wait a minute! Who cares if youʼre willing or not because Iʼm certainly not agreeing to this!” Winter glared at Noa before snapping at Eva and Alina. ”And you two, if youʼre afraid of death, then donʼt join the thiefʼs house. Some people here didnʼt have that opportunity!”

”What did you say?” Eva was enraged as she glared back at Winter as an icy aura started to release from her; she wasnʼt suppressed here because of her unique connection with Ace.

Alina again took the side of her love rival as she murderously looked at Winter as well. Although she had a good opinion of Winter since they had saved her from Dreams Shatterʼs schemes, she wouldnʼt just stand by and watch Winter sending Ace to the depths of hell just because she was afraid to die.

Noa also showed her hostility as her eyes started to turn darker, like black holes.

”Everyone calmed down!” At this moment, Freya suddenly stated loudly, drawing everyoneʼs attention, but their looks were cold as they all waited for her stance.

Freya took a deep breath, ignored everyone, and looked directly at the man on the throne, who was watching this with a neutral look despite being the very reason for this upheaval.

”Leader, please make something clear for everyone here. Just like the members of the thiefʼs house, the only way to quit is to ʼdie,ʼ does the same rule apply to you as Heavenʼs Stealer?”

Freyaʼs question instantly made everyoneʼs expression, especially the three who wanted him to give up on this path. Only now, this possibility occurred to them that Ace was not doing this willingly, but he simply didnʼt seem to have any other choice.

Ace was surprised by Freyaʼs calm demeanor in this situation and asking such a deep question. He hadnʼt spoken before, and he wanted to see everyoneʼs reactions, and they were not out of his expectations except Freyaʼs.

But now that everyoneʼs attention was on him again, he thought it was a good thing the debate ended without his intervention, yet he also wanted to avoid this exact question.

Nonetheless, since he was being honest with them, he decided to answer it.

”In the past, it might have been possible. But now, not only is it not possible for me to back down, but Iʼm not going to back down even if I have the option because of two main reasons.

”First, Freya is correct because, like you guys, I have cleared many missions with the death penalty as punishment, including the last one. And I have no control over it, so all I can do is keep increasing my strength to avoid such an outcome.

”Second, I have personal matters that I need to deal with in the future, and I donʼt think it would be possible to achieve my goal without being Heavenʼs Stealer!”