A Top-Tier Art Thief, but Now Catching Ghosts

Theo, the hottest magician in L.A. and one of the world's greatest art thieves, died in an accident before his performance.

The good news was that he was reborn. The bad news was:

"Wait, you say I'm an exorcist? And the villa we're staying in is cursed?"

Theo stared at the employer who had come to find him, asking once again to make sure.

"That's right!" The villa's heir burst into tears. "Three people have died in the two days since we moved in! The bodies are still lying in the stairwell!"

"What do we do? That witch is sure to take a fourth person tonight. I don't want to die!"

Theo: "..."

He didn't want to die either!

How had this happened? What could he do? Put on a free magic show for the witch? Steal the witch's... Wait, steal?

Theo grabbed the heir by the shoulders. "This Baba Yaga you mentioned, does she follow the most basic law of conservation of matter... I mean, the alchemical law of equivalent exchange?"

Maybe he could try stealing the materials used to fuel the curse?

Theo: "Oh, and by the way, don't call me an exorcist. Call me a paranormal legend hunter. It sounds much trendier."

Several months later.

Theo's stash grew ever larger, while a terrifying and infuriating urban legend began to spread among ghosts and monsters:

The "Paranormal Legend Hunter" is supposedly a human exorcist. No one knows if he's really human, but one thing is certain: he's no ordinary exorcist. And he only goes after high-profile targets.

He can steal your most treasured possessions in the blink of an eye, or even steal you yourself.

The Flying Dutchman was sailing along just fine when, splash! The captain and crew fell into the sea.

The residents of the Winchester Mystery House were having a good meal when the entire mansion vanished into thin air!

Worst of all, the thing even stole the Wild Hunt's night and the Ghost Child's childhood... It can steal both night and childhood! What kind of human does that?

So remember: the moment you receive this guy's calling card, don't fall asleep, don't blink, and hold on tight to your head.

Theo returned to his old line of work and gradually found his stride, sneaking through the night and muttering,

"I really miss the old days... Back then, all I had to think about was treasure that wouldn't run away. Unlike now."

[Give it a rest. Don't pretend you don't enjoy this.]

His partner's voice came through the earpiece, teasing with a hint of displeasure. [Taking on the supposedly impossible? Getting to add mansions and paintings that no one else can touch to your private collection, all out in the open? Stealing with official approval?]

[Admit it. You're having the time of your life.]

Theo deliberately stopped. "You know what I'd enjoy even more?"

On the other end of the earpiece, the Red Cardinal said, [Not interested. Don't want to know. Keep moving.]

Theo was determined to finish. "Seeing how you can't stand me, but can't get rid of me."

The Red Cardinal: [...]

The next day, Theo woke up in the Red Cardinal's bed, long after the sun had risen. "..."

...He said "can't get rid of me"! Who gave you permission to ignore the last two words?

#

The Red Cardinal hadn't been with the International Paranormal Affairs Division from the beginning.

He'd originally worked in financial crimes. He'd caught countless notorious criminals, but the one he couldn't stop thinking about was the art thief C.M., who topped the most-wanted list and had never been caught.

He'd spent nearly his entire career studying this one person, until he knew more about him than he knew about himself. His case notes filled the whole study.

But when he finally got hold of a tiny clue about the man and excitedly hurried to meet him, he saw a news report.

[World-class magician Theo Moreau tragically died in Los Angeles while coming to someone's aid...]

He froze, then lowered his eyes to the notes in his hands. The name on the sticky note at the top read "Theo Moreau."

He didn't even know how he made it back to his apartment.

He threw away all his notes, keeping only one notebook.

Very slowly, he wrote in it: [In memory of a fallen genius...]

He laid flowers at the great magician's grave for three days and drank bitter coffee for three nights. Then he realized that this guy might possibly, maybe... have come back from the dead?

The next day, the chief, who had been planning to promote the Red Cardinal to department head, received a transfer request.

Chief: "???"

What the hell are you applying to transfer to the Paranormal Affairs Division for? You work in financial crimes! How many ghosts do you even know how to identify?

Theme: There comes a moment in life when we have to realize that we can't avoid responsibility forever, and that responsibility and love can coexist