So, after graduating and being unable to find a job for a long time, Ethan Carter started to have some ideas. He saw those legendary outlaws and notorious bandits on TV, each with extraordinary abilities, even the authorities couldn’t do anything about them, and he couldn’t help but feel envious.

Although becoming a notorious bandit was out of the question, with his undergraduate degree and a bit more effort, becoming a master pickpocket shouldn’t be a problem, right? So, he put his thoughts into action, and that’s how Ethan Carter entered the pickpocketing trade.

But after actually doing it, Ethan Carter realized things were nothing like he had imagined. In the half year since he became a pickpocket, he’d barely succeeded a few times, but he had become an expert at bowing his head and admitting fault. His acting skills were almost on par with professional actors.

Ethan Carter could never figure out why, despite all his hard work and enthusiasm, he just couldn’t make a name for himself in the pickpocketing world...

“Sigh, could it really be that heaven is jealous of talent?”

Hearing his stomach growl, Ethan Carter doubted his original decision for the first time.

“Huh?”

Ethan Carter’s gaze suddenly fell on the pink wallet in his hand. After staring blankly for a moment, he suddenly wiped the mud off his face and burst out laughing, thinking to himself that heaven had finally opened its eyes and given him a way out. At the same time, he cursed Mr. Cooper and Abraham Lincoln in his heart.

It turned out that when Mr. Cooper saw Ethan Carter flirting with Abraham Lincoln, he was so furious that he didn’t have time to take back the wallet Ethan Carter had stolen before kicking him off the bus. In the end, this actually helped Ethan Carter achieve his original goal, saving him from starving on the street.

“With this much money, I could eat knife-cut noodles for half a month.” Looking at the more than two hundred yuan in the wallet, Ethan Carter was overjoyed. “If I score one more time, I’ll be set for the month. Looks like my luck isn’t so bad after all.”

“Huh?”

Just as Ethan Carter was feeling satisfied and planning his happy future, he suddenly sensed something strange and whipped his head around.

On the horizon, a five-colored glow was speeding straight toward him. Ethan Carter’s eyes widened, and just as he was about to shout, he found his mind completely captivated by the glow, unable to make a sound.

The five-colored glow shot into Ethan Carter’s body like a meteor. He plopped down on the ground, gasping for air, feeling an indescribable exhaustion.

“System has detected target, scanning in progress...”

“System scan complete. Target information: male, advanced intelligent animal, limbs intact, meets binding criteria.”

“Binding compatibility: low.”

“Target selection: Would you like to bind to the Thief God System?”

This string of thunderous messages echoed in his mind, leaving Ethan Carter completely stunned. Although he’d read some web novels and knew that protagonists in those stories always had incredible adventures, and he’d fantasized about something unbelievable happening to him, when it really did, anyone would wonder if they were dreaming.

“Thief God System?” Ethan Carter’s eyes lit up.

Ethan Carter pinched his thigh hard and, feeling the pain, couldn’t help but grimace—though he was smiling.

The rain was getting heavier, but it didn’t affect Ethan Carter’s mood at all.

After confirming it wasn’t an illusion, Ethan Carter’s first reaction was...

“Wow, this is awesome!”

“That glow just now was the Thief God System, and the target is obviously me.” Ethan Carter was overjoyed. Such a great thing had landed right on his head—he couldn’t let anyone else take it. He hurriedly shouted, “Bind! Bind now!”

“System is preparing to bind...”

“System binding successful.”

As the messages continued to echo in his mind, Ethan Carter waited eagerly for the Thief God System to finish binding, hoping it would bring him great benefits. But after the binding was complete, he realized nothing else seemed to have changed.

Ethan Carter looked disappointed. It seemed those web novels really were just lies—this system he got was actually useless.

“Learn from your mistakes.” Ethan Carter shook his head. “Knife-cut noodles are still the real deal.”

Ethan Carter quickly looked for the wallet from earlier, only to find it had been washed away by the heavy rain, following the flow of water toward the street drain.

Ethan Carter’s mouth twitched. He jumped up and rushed to grab the wallet, but as if sensing his urgency, the wallet suddenly flew toward him. Ethan Carter was stunned, and the wallet smacked him right in the face, splashing dirty water all over him.

Startled, Ethan Carter suddenly realized that with just a light jump, he had leaped over two meters high.

He carefully felt his body again and found that his strength and agility had reached a whole new level—far better than his previously sickly self.

------------

Chapter Two: System Mission

“Could this be the benefit brought by the Thief God System?” Ethan Carter was full of excitement.

“Should I try that move again?” Ethan Carter cautiously tossed the wallet into the rainwater again, but this time a bit farther from the drain.

With a thought, the wallet once again flew toward him.