Catch me if you can... Lady Furina.

"It's all too risky..." Isaac muttered to himself as he looked at his notebook. However, he soon changed his tone, "But not impossible..."

It was already nearing nighttime. The golden blanket of the sun had already shown itself, and the cold embrace of the night was slowly covering Fontaine.

As for Isaac's cafe, it was still open. He had been out for half a day, he ought to stay open for some more customers, after all.

But even then, he still intends to close in an hour or half an hour.

Sitting down on one of the empty chairs of the cafe, Isaac gently tapped the table with the pencil in his hand.

He was making plans for his grand plan for his first main quest, as such, it had to have no flaws.

As for the plan itself, it was quite simple.

Isaac was going to steal something right under the Archon and the Chief Justice's noses.

And, it just happens to be something quite precious that was recently added in Palais Mermonia.

"Dame des Eaux" was a painting that a famous painter in Fontaine did for Lady Furina.

It depicted her sitting on a throne, whilst looking down on the viewer with an amused smile— showcasing her authority and status. But of course, that's only in painting.

And... It was Isaac's goal.

He first got this idea when he visited Palais Mermonia with Klee, but after thinking about it more and crafting a structure of the plan, it started to seem more doable.

"A painting beloved by both the Archon and the people— suddenly vanishing!" Isaac uttered softly before curling a mischievous smirk. "It would truly be an unsolvable case... Even more so because..."

"I have the system." Yes, this was Isaac's trump card. He was going to steal the Dame des Eaux and place it in his inventory! Undetected by anyone!

"Haha..." Isaac's body trembled as a sense of excitement washed over him. However, he soon calmed down and took a deep sigh. "Calm down... There's still more to think about."

"Palais Mermonia is heavily guarded and the security nigh-on impossible to get through with all the Melusines around..." He mutters to himself while thinking. There was a reason the Melusines make up most of the Marechaussee Phantom— it's because they have exceptional senses!

Just thinking of passing through a Melusine undetected is impossible... To a normal person, that is. "...But they also rely on them too much. If I use special methods, there would be no problem."

However, another problem arose after this one. "...The invisibility potion's duration is only fifteen minutes. There are massive chances of it wearing off while I'm still inside and exposing me."

"I need a way to cover my identity..." He looked at his hand while contemplating before an idea struck him. He then thought of something, "Wait... Isn't this the golden opportunity for 'that'?"

He then quickly opened his note and began writing something. After writing, he stopped and looked at it for a few moments before laughing wryly. "Yeah... This will do."

"System." He then called out to his system. And, to his expectations, the system showed up in an instant.

[Yes?]

Isaac lightly smirked before extending his hand towards the floating system and opening the system shop. "It's time for something fun."

"Tonight, Gehrman joins the Hunt."

*

*

*

Soon, the night fell over Fontaine. The cold winds blew and the lights of the night lit up the city.

Palais Mermonia.

It is the site where all administrative affairs in the land are handled.

The office of Iudex Neuvillette was also here, and as far as Fontainians are concerned, the Palais Mermonia is essentially the highest authority in the land.

And not just anyone can enter willy-nilly. As one of the most important sites in the nation, the security is well-regulated around it.

Even right now when it was in the middle of the night. Though many won't notice, a lot of Gardes are still stationed around Palais Mermonia, doing regular shifts.

Behind the Palais, two Gardes were stationed watching over the back entrance.

Just then, something happened.

Shwoo—*

A rustling sound of leaves was heard. Instantly, the two Gardes were alerted and looked at where the source of the noise was.

"What was that?" A young Garde asked.

"I don't know..." A senior Garde replied. "Check it out. I'll stand guard."

The young one nodded and left his post. He then walked over to the source of the sound which was on their left.

A few moments after the Garde left, the senior suddenly heard a yell. "Agh—!"

The senior heard the yell and became alert. Fearing something, the senior quickly hastened and ran towards his colleague.

When he arrived, he saw his colleague lying down on the soil with a troubled expression.

"What happened to you?" The senior asked as he helped the young one get up.

"Tch, I don't know..." The young one said as he looked behind him. "I was just about to approach the source of the sound when I tripped."

"Tripped?" The senior looked around where they were standing and saw nothing that could potentially knock someone over.

He then looked at his colleague with a confused expression and felt something wrong.

His eyes then widened and quickly ran back to his post. When he arrived, he was relieved to see that the door did not open.

...not knowing that a shadow had already infiltrated Palais Mermonia.

*

*

*

Meanwhile, Isaac, who had successfully infiltrated Palais Mermonia, breathed a sigh of relief.

'If not for the system's function and the invincibility potion, I might not have pulled this off.' He thought with a smile as he stealthily traversed the Palais.

Right now, he was in a state of silence. His presence cannot be detected, and, paired with the potion, he is truly undetectable.

Along the halls of the Palais, Isaac encountered some patrolling Gardes and Marechaussee Melusines— thankfully, he managed to stealthily avoid them.

It took a while for him to find it, but he finally found the thing he had been searching for.

In the grand hall of the Palais, the moon's ray of light passed through the glass, illuminating the interior.

The luminescent moonlight also gave Isaac a view of the painting.

When he saw it, he couldn't help but momentarily stop and admire it. Looking at the painting of his Archon, Isaac couldn't help but admit—

'...despite being an overly-dramatic theater kid, she sure is beautiful, huh?' Removing those thoughts, he quietly shook his head before focusing on his task once more. 'Focus, Isaac.'

He then approached the painting and carefully placed his hand on it. He then looked around and saw that no one was around.

'System, how much longer does the potion last?' He asked while keeping up his caution.

[7 Minutes.]

'...I have to finish this now.' Aware of the situation, Isaac looked at the painting once more and commanded the system.

'Place it into the inventory!' He commanded.

Woosh!*

Following his command, the System immediately sucked the painting into a vortex, and within but a second, Dame des Eaux was gone.

'Now for the second part.' After doing this, Isaac pulled something out of the system inventory and dropped it into the ground.

Woosh—*

The item swayed in the wind for a few moments before finally landing, revealing itself.

It was a card! More specifically, a Tarot Card depicting the 21st card, "The World". At the back, a large calligraphy of the letters "J. M." was inscribed.

'That should make things fun and confusing for a while.' He smiled softly before turning around.

Now, having watched a lot of movies in his past life, Isaac now only has one motive after stealing something very precious.

'RUN!' He quickly dashed out. He was sure that there would be some sort of alarm set up on that painting.

And, just as he predicted, red lights began to flicker inside the Palais.

Soon, the sound of a Melusine was heard throughout the halls. "An intruder has infiltrated the Palais!"

Isaac, who was still in stealth mode, heard this and ran for the back door. However, he was soon obstructed when a group of Gardes started making their way in.

Isaac didn't panic and just hid in a corner, letting them pass.

Soon, the group of Gardes along with some Melusines ran past him in agitation.

Isaac watched silently. He then looked around and confirmed that there was no one guarding the back entrance now.

He stealthily went to the door and opened it, leaving the scene undefeated. Leaving Palais Mermonia, he smiled softly. 'Now for the last trick of the performance...'

He then took one more item from the system shop. After taking out the item, he commanded the system. 'Temporarily turn off invisibility.'

*

*

*

A few minutes prior.

'...why am I having a bad feeling?" On top of Palais Mermonia, inside a secret room.

It was a room where Lady Furina rested. It cannot be accessed through normal means and you have to really search the Palais for the entrance.

Right now, while wearing her nightgown, Furina stood up from her luxurious bed with a troubled expression.

"Did I forget to do something in today's trial or something?" She asked herself with an annoyed tone. She then stood up and thought of going down for some midnight snack, when suddenly, the alarms were set off.

"Attention! An intruder has infiltrated the Palais!" The sound of a Melusine traveled around the Palais with an agitated tone.

Furina, who just stood up, was quiet when she heard the sudden alert. "What? An intruder?!"

It took her a few seconds before she finally processed what was happening. "Someone dares to infiltrate my Palais?!"

"Who has the audacity to—!" With an angry tone, she picked up her coat and was just about to leave her room when she suddenly saw something outside through her window.

"Huh?" Furina found it odd. "Why is there someone calmly walking..."

Suddenly, she cut her words as a thought crossed her mind. She then looked at the person clad in black clothes outside. "Could that person be the infiltrator?!"

As if hearing her words, the person walking away abruptly stopped and turned around before looking up towards the highest point of the Palais.

It was then that Furina saw it.

A man with neat black hair and a refined demeanor with a gloomy aura was looking at her.

He was wearing a black buttoned-up tight double-breasted suit with a light grey shirt underneath. Along with black trousers and sleek black shoes.

The first thing Furina noticed was his mask. It was a white mask that covered his whole face, however, painted on it was what seemed like clown makeup.

The mysterious man looked at where Furina was before placing his left hand on his chest and slightly bowing down.

Furina saw this and immediately understood the gesture— after all, she had seen it many times in the Opera House. 'It's the end of his performance!'

"You..." Furina looked at the mysterious man and saw that he straightened his posture once more.

He then slightly lifted his mask to reveal his mouth and opened it as if he was saying something. After doing this, the man put his mask back down.

With that one interaction, the man walked away, slowly blending in with the darkness of the night— disappearing not only from her sights but also to the Melusines who sensed his presence.

The Melusines quickly tried to look for the man, however, it was to no avail. It was as if he disappeared like a Ghost.

His traces had already dissolved to nothingness. There wasn't even a trace of his footsteps.

Meanwhile, Furina, who saw the man's mouth, instantly understood what he said. An annoyed smile soon appeared on her face. "How dare you... You... You dare challenge me?"

'Catch me if you can, Lady Furina.' That was what the man said.

* * *

A/N:

"Dame des Eaux" means "Lady of Water"