The thief pulled his legs, covered with baggy brown pants, up to meet the new height, and the process began again.

It took ten grueling minutes to reach the top, where the thief fell and lay exhausted. He lay there for a while, letting the rain beat on him. Flashes of lightning flew down from the sky like javelins. Fires might start, but they might not. It was of no concern to him. He had a job to do and the sooner it was done, the better. The thief lifted himself off the top of the wall, and began the journey down.

At the bottom the thief lay in some bushes, waiting and watching. The guards would pass. Apparently the guards believed nothing would happen, for they talked and gossiped to each other, unaware of his presence. The thief thanked the gods for their incompetence and proceeded through the university’s grand garden.