A pink-haired girl wearing a frilly white-pink outfit stood on top of a building. She was looking at the Westa Monument Tower which was the place she declared she would arrive in her coded message.

"It's a great night for an appearance!" she declared after she did some stretches.

"Are you really sure you can pull off your escape trick tonight, Momo?" a voice behind her asked.

The voice belonged to a girl with short black hair that was covered with a cap. She was wearing a yellow green shirt with white stripes, short shorts, and mismatched socks.

"Don't worry, Subaru! I'm sure I'll have the knight order dancing around my palms again… assuming someone there got my coded message correctly", she replied.

That girl was worried because she was afraid that her coded message was too difficult. She didn't expect the captain of the 13th unit to crack it but she was hoping someone else did. Otherwise, it would be a pointless show if there was no audience.

"And don't call me Momo. Tonight is Spade Echo's night", she grinned.

She then felt a slight twist on her gut. It was a familiar feeling she would always have whenever something wrong was going to happen.

And the thought of something wrong happening made her remember that one memory.

###

It was one of her rare heists outside of Westa. She decided to visit the city called Portia, a seaside city-state which was a trade center filled with opportunities.

Momo had a suspicion that the gemstone called "Sky Sapphire" that was being shown in the city's museum was the Alexandrite. It was owned by the government since its previous owner donated it after his death.

As per usual, she sent out a notice that she would steal the Sky Sapphire. She clearly stated the date and time she would take the gem without any coded message. The last time she had a coded message, her opponents didn't crack it and so, she had a very easy job.

It was strange that she wanted people to know when and where she would strike since a thief with a common sense wouldn't risk their heists and get captured.

But it was all for the sake of making Spade Echo more famous. If she was able to pull off a heist in such a major disadvantage, then her name will go across the land. And hopefully, it'll reach her friend who disappeared without a trace.

Momo arrived at Portia after a day of traveling. Normally, it would take several days to go from Westa to Portia but she had one advantage which was a wing-shaped artifact called "Wing of Space".

That artifact allowed her to soar in the sky using minimal mana. It was a rare artifact that her friend, Mitsukage Yachiyo, gave her as a reward for her getting high scores in an exam.

She surveyed the museum first and was disappointed that the 13th unit of the Westa Knight Order wasn't around. Unfortunately, Portia refused their offer to help because they didn't want to owe any favors to Westa.

Momo already figured out the layout of the museum and upon researching for a bit, she stumbled upon its blueprints. That made her plan so much easier and she knew it wasn't a challenge to steal the Sky Sapphire.

"And? How do you intend to keep Spade Echo away from the gem?" a journalist asked the museum's owner.

"Take a look at the room where the Sky Sapphire is. Notice that there's a hole on the ceiling which is directly above its case", the museum owner replied.

"And what does that do?"

"If someone would attempt to push the case's lid, like this…"

The museum curator threw a ball at the case which caused its lid to move slightly. And a second later, the ceiling crashed down.

"The only way to escape the falling ceiling is to jump at the case. However, the hole has an orihalcum net attached to it. And thus, Spade Echo is as good as trapped!"

Oh? They actually prepared a trap like that and showcased it for everyone to see? Are they that confident or are they just stupid? Spade Echo smirked.

"A trap like this might be very simple but it's hard to avoid. It has a high rate of success and there's no way to get the gem without triggering the trap!" the museum owner laughed.

Spade Echo laughed in her heart because she was happy that the information she received before coming to Portia was accurate. Thanks to that, she managed to set a trick to get the gem using the tools she had right now. After finishing her preparations, she was about to leave when she heard a commotion.

"I can sense it! Spade Echo is among us!" a man shouted.

He had gray hair and a strange white hat that had long orange ears on the top. An orange long-sleeved polo covered his top and white trousers were on his legs. His blue eyes were hidden behind large round glasses with an orange tint and his shoulders had a white jacket hanging over them.

"If you have nothing better to do, please don't bother us, Mysta", a knight said.

"No, no! This isn't just my bored mind being paranoid! I can feel it! Spade Echo is among this crowd and if we question them, we can get her!" the man argued.

"Look here. We can't detain all of the guests in this museum just because of your feelings. There's a due process for it."

Momo decided to leave the museum because she didn't like how the vibes became slightly dangerous.

What was that? she asked in her mind as she wandered Portia's streets.

But she decided to push it to the back of her mind. She had a heist to do!

###

"Attention all Portia Knights! There are only less than 20 minutes until the time Spade Echo declared she would come! Remain alert and report anything out of the ordinary", a Communicator barked orders.

A blonde woman was tied up and knocked out in a corner. She was placed near the trash bin and the boxes, cans, and other things were arranged in a way that would make it difficult for someone to find her.

In a spot near the woman, another blonde woman with an exact same face smirked as she stared in a mirror.

"My disguise is perfect as always. Well then, Miss Selena Samson from Portia District 9, 24 years old, and single, I'll be borrowing your face and name", she grinned.

She felt a slight twisting feeling in her gut but she decided to ignore it. If the 13th unit wasn't around and if her opponents were dumb enough to showcase their trap to the public, this heist was the easiest heist she ever made.

Spade Echo calmly walked towards the museum while carrying a replica of her outfit. It didn't take long until she arrived at the entrance and talked to the guards.

After explaining her story, she was allowed inside.

"Eh? Someone found Spade Echo's attire?!" the chief of the Portia Knights marched down and approached the disguised Spade Echo.

"Yes! I found this while I was walking around. You said that we have to find anything out of the ordinary and so I thought an outfit similar to Spade Echo's counts as one", she replied as she showed them the frilly white-pink dress.

"Just to be safe, can you show me your Knight Crest and Portia Citizen Identification Card?" he asked.

"Yes, sir!" Spade Echo handed him the things he wanted.

"Well then. Tell me your name, age, and birthday."

Those were easy questions. Spade Echo easily memorized that information and so, she had no problems passing that challenge.

"Selena Samson, 24 years old. Born on Settherius 11", she answered.

"Okay, good work! The Grand Knight is waiting for you on the top floor", the chief said as he returned her documents.

The Grand Knight was the highest ranking knight in the Portia Knights. But Spade Echo had no intention in going to that person. All she needed was an excuse to infiltrate the museum and finish her heist.

"Wait!" a voice interrupted their conversation.

Spade Echo turned around and saw the gray-haired man from earlier.

"Can you tell us your Portia Citizen Identification Number?" he asked.

"M-Mysta?! What are you doing here?! Hey! Who let this nosy detective inside?!" the chief shouted.

"Not now, Exodus. Let's hear it from Miss Selena Samson. As a Portia Citizen, you memorized your PCIN, right?" he asked.

"I-It's 690420-3601412", Spade Echo answered.

Everyone in the room stared at her with their mouths wide open except for the gray-haired man who only smirked.

"S-S-S-Spade… Spade Echo! Arrest her!" the chief shouted and Spade Echo made a run for it.

You're kidding me! Spade Echo cursed as she ran as fast as she could.

"Everyone! Seal off all entrances and exits to the museum immediately! Don't open them until I give the word!" the gray-haired man's voice shouted from the Communicators.

"H-Hey! Don't just take my Communicator like that!" the chief's voice scolded him.

"Also, change your Communicator's frequency to manual frequency 442A. I'm sure you learned it in your knight academy days! Now Spade Echo is just a bird in a cage with her wings clipped."

Ah! They're changing their frequencies?! This is bad! Very very bad! Spade Echo was panicking.

After unscrewing the air vents in the toilet, Spade Echo entered it and stayed hidden. But she knew it wouldn't take long until her opponents would think that she used the air vents to escape so she hurried to her escape route.

"I see her! She's in the air vents!" a knight shouted as he shone a flashlight on Spade Echo who was crawling through the air vents.

Hey! Isn't this too fast?! Why did they expect me to run to the air vents?! I made sure to hide my tracks well! Spade Echo cursed in her mind.

Spade Echo continued crawling until she found one of her escape routes. She was beginning to unscrew it and the flashlight shone on her again.

"Floyd, reporting! The target is attempting to escape the air vents!" the knight shouted at his Communicator.

"Stay calm. Right now, she's a panicking prey whose plan is in pieces. Tell us your current location!" the gray-haired man's voice said.

"It's dark and we've been moving around a lot so I'm not sure. We've climbed one floor from the second floor's toilets so we should be on the third", the knight said as he approached Spade Echo.

Spade Echo already finished unscrewing the vent and she continued moving.

"Don't worry. All 28 air vents in the building have been secured. Just keep your eye on her. She can't escape now. All teams securing the air vents on the third floor, prepare to move in!" the gray-haired man said.

"Hey! Don't just give orders to my knights, you damn detective!" the chief's voice shouted.

The knight crawled towards the exit of the air vent and saw that no one was around.

"Floyd, reporting! I've lost the target at the exit of the air vents! I'm currently in the third floor's east hallway!"

A pink gas was sprayed on his face and his eyelids were becoming heavy. It only took a second before he passed out.

"Floyd, reporting! The target has abandoned her knight disguise and is currently running down the stairs! Requesting backup!" Spade Echo mimicked the unconscious knight's voice and spoke to his Communicator.

"All right! She's panicking and has abandoned her disguise! All knights on the second, third, and fourth floors, head to the stairs! Don't let her get away!" the chief commanded.

Whew… I got out of it quite nicely. That was very dangerous! she thought as she dragged the sleeping knight to a location where he couldn't be easily found.

She changed her face to match the sleeping knight and she walked towards the room where the Sky Sapphire was waiting.

Only four minutes until my appearance! I have to get there! she hurried.

Spade Echo managed to arrive two minutes before her declared time. The Grand Knight, the gray-haired man, the chief, and other knights were in the room.

"Like I said, Mysta! Spade Echo is being pursued! There's no way she can steal the Sky Sapphire!" the chief argued.

"Don't you think it's weird? By discarding that disguise in a building filled with knights, she's like a hermit crab that threw away its shell while crawling defenselessly across the sea floor", he said.

"She's not in her right mind! Spade Echo is probably panicking so she made a reckless mistake like that!" the chief argued.

"No. This man has a point. Spade Echo is someone who would pull off a heist despite a huge disadvantage. She must know how to act properly under pressure", the Grand Knight told him.

"Bah! Don't give him any credit! He's just lucky that Spade Echo didn't memorize the PCIN!"

"But alas, luck is a powerful ally, Exodus. So tell me. What is the name of the person who is favoured by Lady Luck?" the Grand Knight looked at the gray-haired man.

"Mysta Rias, a detective", the man adjusted his cap while introducing himself.

A detective? I thought they were just people who poke their noses in others' businesses? Spade Echo asked in her mind.

"In any case, you believe that despite this disadvantage, Spade Echo will still appear on her announced time?" the Grand Knight asked Mysta.

"Correct. We haven't received any reports of the knights that said they found her. If she's as great as she is rumoured to be, then she will come", Mysta fixed his attention to the case of the Sky Sapphire.

"Heh. With our trap, there's no way Spade Echo can escape!" the chief bragged.

A ringing sound chimed from the Grand Knight's watch.

"It's already 11:00. Spade Echo's gonna appear! Knights! Be prepared!" the Grand Knight shouted.

White mist appeared from the air vents and surrounded the room.

"Is this sleeping gas? Everyone! Cover your mouths!" the chief ordered.

"No! This isn't a sleeping gas! This is spray paint!" Mysta exclaimed as he noticed his body was becoming white.

"Someone! Check the air vents and stop whatever contraption is shooting out this mist! Who the hell forgot to check the air vents?!" the chief barked orders once more.

After five minutes, the mist stopped. The entire room was painted white along with the knights present. And then they saw a card on top of the painted case of the Sky Sapphire.

They all moved close to it and they saw a message.

The Sky Sapphire is now in my hands. Thank you for your patronage!

-Spade Echo

"I-Impossible! The trap didn't activate! Hey! Is the trap's system active?!" the chief asked.

"Yes. There are no anomalies in the trap", a knight responded after talking to a Communicator.

"Shut off the power! We have to check if Spade Echo did steal the gem!" the Grand Knight ordered.

When it was confirmed that the trap was shut down, they opened the case. The white paint covered the glass so they couldn't see the insides. No one knew the state of the gem unless the case would be opened.

And when they did, the Sky Sapphire was gone.

"I-Impossible. How did she?" the chief's face became pale.

"Check each other! No one left the room yet so if Spade Echo did steal the gem, then it must be on her body!" the Grand Knight shouted.

But it was in vain. When they checked everyone's bodies, there was no gem.

"C-Chief! There's a report that a white object is flying away from the museum!" a knight said as he talked to a Communicator.

"All knights! Pursue the white object! Don't let it out of your sight! Let's go!" the Grand Knight said and everyone marched out of the room.

Spade Echo joined the knights leaving the room but she skillfully slipped out. With everyone being tense and confused, it was easy for her to get through the cracks of their defenses.

That was why she returned to the empty room while still wearing her disguise. It was a very simple trick and it was funny that it worked. A simple trap could be defeated by a simple trick.

"Simple problems require simple solutions", a voice behind her said.

Spade Echo turned around and saw Mysta.

"Don't you agree, Spade Echo?" he asked.

"W-What are you saying? I'm only here to check if the Sky Sapphire is indeed gone", she lied.

"Sure. Check it out. But if you move the real case's lid, the trap will spring down. So either way, the gem is safe."

Ah… He figured it out, huh? she thought.

"There's nothing on the case because it's a fake case you placed on top of the real one. When the room became misty because of the white paint, you placed the fake case on top. The white paint hid the boundaries of the cases which caused it to look normal. That's why the trap didn't activate. The only condition it has is that the real case should be opened which you didn't do", he pointed his finger at her.

Spade Echo removed her disguise and she was now in her regular outfit. She looked at Mysta and clapped her hands.

"How did you know?" she asked.

"The height of the case. When I visited this afternoon, it was around my waist. But after the white mist, it was at my stomach's level. It didn't take long for me to piece things together."

"Scary~ You are very observant, huh?"

"As a detective, I have to be aware of minute changes in my surroundings. They might be hints and clues."

"But why did you wait until the knights were gone? If you revealed the trick back then, you would have protected the gem."

"Exodus really hates my guts so he won't listen. I can try convincing the Grand Knight but if I do, that only means the gem is protected. I am a detective. I'd rather catch the criminal. This is the only way to catch you red-handed."

"You are confident you can catch me?"

"Of course. I'll have you know I'm pretty skilled in martial arts and I'm guarding the only exit to this room. And even if I failed, I prevented you from stealing the Sky Sapphire. No matter what happens, it's still a win for me."

Mysta got into a battle stance and grinned.

"What'll it be, Spade Echo? A: Get the gem and get crushed by the ceiling? B: Fight your way through me? Or C: Are you going for the boring but safe choice and surrender?" he asked.

Spade Echo rubbed her chin as she thought.

"I'll go for D: None of the above!" she took out a card and threw it to the floor.

The card glowed and exploded creating a hole that leads to the floor below. Spade Echo opened the real case and snatched the Sky Sapphire. Before the ceiling could crush her, she leaped down the hole and safely avoided the trap.

"Ah, shit!" Mysta cursed.

Another explosion occurred from the floor below and it didn't take a second for Mysta to think that Spade Echo blew a hole in the wall.

He got out of the museum and saw Spade Echo flying away.

"Explosives, huh? That's something I didn't expect. You win this time, Spade Echo", Mysta sighed.

Meanwhile, Spade Echo breathed a sigh of relief as she flew away.

"Ugghh… That was so scary. What the hell was that?! I had to swallow my pride and use an inelegant way of escaping!" she complained.

She looked at the Sky Sapphire and placed her mana there. However, it didn't glow a pure white light.

"Another dud? This night just keeps on getting better and better", she groaned.

###

"Are you okay, Momo?" Subaru asked.

"Yeah. I just remembered one heist where I had trouble", she replied.

"Oh? The one in Portia where a detective cornered you?"

"Yeah. Detectives are a pain. I am doing difficult heists to gain more attention but I don't want to play in that difficulty again!"

"Oh? The great Spade Echo is afraid?"

Spade Echo scoffed at her remark.

"Afraid? I'm a thief, a creative artist who takes her prey in style. A detective is nothing more than a critic who follows my footsteps", she said.

White wings appeared on her back and she grinned at her friend.

"And I, the great Spade Echo, is not afraid of a little critic like that!"

She jumped off the building and began flying.

"Now then, White Star… Spade Echo will play a little prank on this fine Artix Grace day!"

###

A/N: And that's the end for the 3k Special Chapter! Wow. I never expected this fanfic of mine would reach 3000 votes in Wattpad. I mean… It's not a reader-insert, crossover, nor a romance/harem fic. I didn't expect it to receive this much support.

But I'm not complaining. Thanks for supporting it and I hope you'll continue enjoying this little fanfic of mine!