Demon Chapter

Chapter 15: Profession Identification

Connecting the six ghostly children on the second floor with the skulls he’d found, Gavin Lin picked up the remains. He then asked around about Thief Trainer Mori’s behavior in Golden Spark Town—and soon received some revealing information.

Mori was an extremely lewd man. He had a known history of peeping at women, though his thief skills usually helped him avoid being caught red-handed.

Gavin Lin grew even more certain of his suspicions. With a plan in mind and a plausible excuse ready, he returned directly to the inn and placed the child-sized skulls on the table in front of Mori.

He then fixed Mori with a steady stare until the trainer’s eyes began to dart away. “I know you’re hiding something from me,” Gavin Lin said. “You claimed you went to that house because you were drunk—but I think you were really there to take advantage of the two women living alone.”

People in this world had their own thoughts and motivations. They behaved like real individuals—and like real people, they made mistakes. For instance, a man who’d gone a long time without female companionship might act recklessly under the influence of alcohol, especially if he already had a poor reputation and a record of misconduct.

At this, Mori’s expression changed. He tried to defend himself at first—but when Gavin Lin deliberately mentioned that the widowed Adler Feodor had seen him that night, Mori deflated like a punctured balloon and slumped in his seat.

After a pause, he muttered, “You misunderstood… she misunderstood… I—I only wanted to spy on the house that night. You know, I’m just… curious about women’s bodies.”

Mori’s face flushed red for a moment, then turned pale again. “But that night, when I snuck up to the second floor, I saw those six ghosts. I was too drunk, and fear made my head spin. I stumbled off the stairs and fell. I didn’t wake up until the next morning—but I swear, it wasn’t a hallucination…”

He spoke with unusual insistence.

Gavin Lin was inwardly satisfied—his deduction had been correct. Mori was indeed no good. Now it was time to properly pressure this perverted man.

He pointed to the child skull fragments and said, “These remains were found behind the house. On the second floor, I also saw six children—but clearly, they weren’t ordinary…”

He recounted everything he’d witnessed.

But after hearing him, Mori shook his head. “What I saw were definitely ghosts—not children!”

“Fine,” Gavin Lin replied. “But whatever they are, the investigation ahead will be very dangerous. I’m just an ordinary person with no means of self-defense. This task is too risky and too difficult for me. For the sake of the Alliance, I think I should report this matter up the chain.”

He locked eyes with Mori, his gaze clearly saying: If you don’t cooperate, I’ll expose your spying incident to everyone.

Gavin Lin knew Mori had done this before. The town administrator of Golden Spark had even warned that if Mori repeated such behavior, he’d be expelled from town.

So Mori absolutely did not want this scandal to get out. He understood Gavin Lin’s intent perfectly. After coughing twice and pausing to think, he bit his lip and pulled a book from his pocket.

“Recruit, you’re right,” he said reluctantly. “This investigation does carry some danger. I’ll give you an advance reward and officially set your profession as a thief. That way, you’ll be able to learn thief skills. As for reporting it… let’s hold off for now—the haunting hasn’t been confirmed yet.”

He handed the book to Gavin Lin.

The moment Gavin Lin touched it, system information appeared:

Profession Identification Certificate

Profession: Thief

A profession that walks in the shadows. Upon identification, your profession will be set as Thief, and you will only be able to learn skills belonging to this class.

Confirm immediate identification?

This was exactly what Gavin Lin had worked for. Without hesitation, he confirmed.

BOOM!

The book dissolved into a warm stream that flowed into his body. Instantly, his attributes updated:

Contractor 1065

Race: Human

Gender: Male

Level: 2 (49 hours remaining to level up)

HP: 80

Defense: 14

Attributes:

Strength: 8 (average adult male)

Agility: 13 (average adult male)

Stamina: 8 (average adult male)

Intelligence: 6 (average adult male)

Profession: Thief

Skill: Shadow Strike (Level 1)

Seeing his new profession and the “Shadow Strike” skill in his skill panel, Gavin Lin felt immense relief—his main objective had been achieved.

“If you want to learn additional skills, you’ll need to pay fees,” Mori added. “Many skills also have level requirements—you can’t learn them until you meet the prerequisites.”

“So, what skills can I learn right now?” Gavin Lin asked.

“Stealth,” Mori replied honestly.

Gavin Lin spent the next thirty minutes learning the Stealth skill. Clearly, “time” functioned as a form of currency here.

Stealth (Level 1) – Instant skill. Enters stealth mode, allowing silent movement undetected by enemies. Effect lasts until stealth is canceled.

Shadow Strike (Level 1) – Instant skill. Requires a melee weapon. Deals 19 points of damage plus 100% of weapon damage.

These were his two current skills—and Stealth was undoubtedly the most practical. After all, it was practically the signature ability of any thief.

After leaving the inn, Gavin Lin considered whether to continue the main quest, “The Haunting Incident in Shangjin Town.” He now faced two choices:

One was to abandon the quest, hunt monsters in the wild, and return to his room once the 12-hour quest timer expired.

The other was to find a way to complete the task.

Taking a deep breath, Gavin Lin made his decision. Though he was curious about the supernatural incident, the odds of solving the mystery were slim. It was better not to waste time—he’d hunt wild monsters instead. This would help him refine his new skills, earn time-based rewards, and test how well Stealth and Shadow Strike worked in practice.

Outside Shangjin Town, various wild creatures roamed—including dangerous beasts. Among the most notorious were the goblins inhabiting the nearby mines.

Gavin Lin easily located a cave in a low valley—one that had become a goblin lair. Around its entrance, several ugly goblins wandered, clutching miner’s shovels.

Within a hundred meters, Gavin Lin activated Stealth for the first time.

Instantly, he entered a strange state—as if he’d melted into the surroundings. Looking down, he saw his body had become nearly transparent. Thrilled, he began moving forward slowly.

Ahead stood a goblin.

The creature stood beside a mine cart, seemingly on guard. The nearest other goblin was fifty meters away.

Gavin Lin crept closer—thirty meters, twenty, then ten. The goblin showed no sign of noticing him.

At five meters, he could clearly see the monster: barely a meter tall, walking upright like a dog, its oversized head swiveling as sharp teeth gleamed and drool dripped from its mouth. Even from several meters away, its foul stench was unmistakable.

At two meters, still undetected, Gavin Lin circled behind the creature and drew the dagger at his waist.

In one fluid motion, he triggered Shadow Strike.

The blade plunged into the goblin’s neck from behind. A faint purple glow flickered along the steel—followed by a soft thwack as it pierced flesh.