Chapter 199: 199
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"*Pant* Ms. Herrick, Mr. Aukes, the crazy *pant* woman ran *pant* away!"
The man was panting while speaking at the same time, making his speech incoherent, but Graham and Jonathan understood what he meant. Eveline's childhood friend looked at the fake secretary with concern on his face, and then back at the security guard. His expression turned sour.
"How did she run away?! And have you called the Police?" Jonathan's voice was stern.
"Y-yes we have, Mr. Aukes. She ran *pant* when we were making the call..."
'Eveline' looked at Jonathan calmly.
"It's fine, Jonny. I'm sure the Police will catch them. Besides, I know how to protect myself," he smiled at the woman's childhood friend and extended it to the other people in the office who were looking his way.
Graham didn't worry about the escaping crazy woman. He left the worried Jonathan who was still munching the security guard's ass and headed towards the mayor's office that should be down the hall.
"The mayor should be back in his office by now, shouldn't he, Val? What do you think he wants to tell us?"
Walking down the corridor as gracefully as he could, Graham arrived in front of white double doors with intricate carvings on them. He knocked on the door exactly four times, because that was what the real Eveline would usually do, and a voice came from inside.
"Come in!"
"You're looking for me, Hank?" said Graham intimately.
Graham closed the door gently behind him and glanced sneakily at the office where the mayor was. It was a grand office, much bigger than his little detective one in his apartment. It was even much bigger than Mastro Gianni's office.
The mayor's office was the size of the common workspace but without all the cubicles. The man's desk was placed near the center a little closer to the wall opposite the door with a large, beautiful carpet adorning the floor. The walls were painted white and carved with beautiful patterns. Numerous trophies, including animal mounts, medals, and certificates were hung on the white wall.
The office looked more like a living room than an office. There was a fireplace on one side with comfortable sofas placed around it-- again, a carpet was decorating the floor. The numerous shelves around the room had books and more trophies in them. The chandelier hanging from the ceiling was very expensive-looking; the kind Graham would never be able to afford only by doing an honest detective job.
Hank Krammer was sitting at his desk, reading some documents. He glanced at 'Eveline' for a second and then returned to his documents. It was clear that he was currently very busy.
"There are many things in my mind, to be honest, Eve," The mayor's voice was troubled, "First, have you seen Wiebe and Danny? They haven't shown up since yesterday,"
Slowly and elegantly, 'Eveline' walked up to the mayor and sat on the desk. The slender hands then started caressing the mayor softly. It was what the real Eveline would usually do, so even if he was feeling very uncomfortable right now, he had to do it.
Earlier, after putting the real Eveline to sleep, Graham was able to read her memory about the mayor before planting those thoughts inside her head. He was lucky that he had managed to do it, otherwise, right now the mayor might have suspected something because of the inconsistency of his secretary's actions.
"I haven't seen them either, Hank, but I have asked someone to go look for them," he lied.
Hank Krammer rested his forehead on his palm and started shaking his head.
"If I see those two, they'll get it from me! I've also sent Lucas to look for them," he replied, irritated.
After stopping his head shaking, he looked at 'Eveline' and raised his eyebrow.
"What about the impostor just now? How did she look just like you?"
'Eveline' smiled. The beautiful secretary ran her finger up and down the mayor's right cheek.
"I have no idea. She might have been sent by our opposition to try to shake our position here, but of course, a half-baked plan like that wouldn't work, teeheee..."
The giggle left the secretary's mouth and resounded in the large office room, echoing back at the only two people there. The mayor's expression was calm now, but Graham couldn't shake the feeling that he suspected something.
"!!"
Hank Krammer then grabbed Graham's slender wrist tightly and looked straight into his light green eyes. The man pulled the hand and brought their faces closer together.
"Then prove to me that you're the real Eveline..." he whispered domineeringly.
The man's other hand began running across the secretary's body, touching every bit of it, grabbing anything that caught his interest. His breathing became heavy as lust took over him.
'Eveline' then whispered into his hears.
"I order you to fall asleep..."
The mayor's eyes suddenly opened wide and he pushed the secretary back using all of his strength, which sent Graham flying. A wave of sleepiness swept over him, but his status as a Marquis rank made him able to resist longer than those weaker than or equal to Graham.
"I, in the name of the Deity of Domination and Order, intensify your desire to sleep!"
Before the mayor could do anything else, Graham had already used the ability stored in Purloin to amplify the sleepiness that the man was feeling.
With the two abilities combined, the mayor couldn't resist anymore and fell into a deep sleep not long after. The sounds of his snoring filled the office.
"Phew... that was close," Graham exhaled in relief. He genuinely felt grossed out being touched inappropriately by the mayor.
Carefully, Graham approached the sleeping mayor and listened to his breathing intently to find any irregularities. After all, the man was a rank higher than him, so he might have some tricks up his sleeves to avoid control effects.
"If we hadn't stolen that woman's identity, we wouldn't have had the chance to get close to the mayor like this, Val. Or maybe we could, if we transformed into one of the sex workers whose service the mayor often uses, but that's a path I don't want to tread..."
Once he was sure that the mayor was truly sleeping, he began chanting.
"I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby plant the thought in your head that you will think that I am the real Eveline Herrick and the real Eveline Herrick is an impostor!"
He felt his energy leaving his body and entering the mayor's head, rendering him weakened. Graham began breathing heavily as he sat down on the chair for support. He had to recover his stamina quickly before the mayor woke up because there was something else he wanted to do.
Snore...
The combination of Order and Intensify was really potent that the mayor was still sleeping even after five minutes when Graham's stamina had completely recovered. The man was probably also very tired in the first place so his body naturally welcomed the rest.
Since his stamina had returned, Graham chanted one more time.
"I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby plant the thought in your head that the impostor Eveline Herrick stole your book artifact and your enhanced cane, while I, the real Eveline Herrick, was sent to chase after the impostor!"
Graham felt weakened once more, but he didn't have any time to waste. He quickly but carefully grabbed the book and the cane that never left the mayor's side. Once he had the items, he buttoned his black coat and began chanting one more time while mustering all the stamina he had.
"I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby change my whole being to that of Hank Krammer!"
His body began undergoing a transformation process, which felt very strange because he was turning from a woman into a man. His body became much bigger, which the tight dress couldn't fit anymore, so it began tearing. Luckily, his coat was big enough and buttoned, to cover his now exposed skin and private part.
Graham took off the high heels that he was wearing and hid them under his coat. He now looked like a flasher because he was only wearing a coat without pants or shoes. He couldn't 'borrow' the real mayor's shoes because it would risk waking him up.
Once he had completely turned into the mayor, Graham exited the office in a hurry and just interacted as necessary with people he passed on the way. They all had a concerned look on their faces, but they didn't dare to ask any question since Graham wore a furious expression on his face on purpose.
Once he was out of the town hall, Graham went to a secluded alley near there where he had hidden his original clothes. After making sure that no one was around, he unbuttoned his coat and found out that the dress was completely ripped apart, including the underwear that he had worn as Eveline.
"*Pant* If we had shown ourselves in public like this, Val, we would certainly have been thrown to jail for public indecency,"
He took a deep breath because his stamina hadn't fully recovered. After that, he reverted back to his original appearance and put on all his clothes.
The trench coat that he was wearing was big enough to conceal the cane and, of course, the book under it. However, he preferred to be safe, so he would switch with Valentine once he was done. He had to do things quickly before the mayor woke up.
Flick!
The lighter created a small flame that Graham used to burn the clothes and shoes that belonged to 'Eveline'. He manipulated the flame not to go away until everything was burned to ashes. It took longer than he expected to completely burn the high heels. All the while, he used Order to contain the fumes so they would not attract attention. Once he was done, he sat on the ground and leaned against the wall.
"I order myself to fall asleep!"
The same wave of sleepiness that had struck the mayor was now looming above him, making his head heavier and heavier with each passing second. He fell asleep shortly after, and Valentine woke up in his body.
Knowing what to do, Valentine quickly placed Concealment on the cane and book, as well as anti-divination. He also located the bloodstains that Eveline had used for anti-divination and rubbed it clean with his nail.
With the cane and book concealed and hidden under his coat, he walked back to the street confidently as nothing had happened. It was rather difficult to walk normally with a cane hidden under his coat but had to in order to avoid attention. He and hailed a public motor carriage to take him back to his hotel.
He made it safely to the hotel and after paying the driver, Valentine got out and entered the elegantly designed building. He was greeted by Stefan on his way in.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Hymes! Back already?"
The warmth of the smile that he radiated could be felt all the way from across the room despite the cold weather. Stefan was getting more and more professional by the day, although at times he was still naive and clueless.
"Hello, Stefan. Yes," replied Valentine shortly with a smile accompanying his words.
The detective then walked upstairs to his own room and after locking his door, Valentine bared the two items that Graham had just stolen on the table.
"G, these are a very nice bonus. I'm sure stealing these wasn't part of your plan, was it?"
It was indeed not a part of Graham's plan, but he had thought about doing it. His plan was only to steal the identity of Eveline Herrick which he would use again in the future in case he needed it. He was just lucky that the mayor called him to his office and didn't reprimand him right away. Graham was sure that the mayor had his suspicion, but the man had to make sure first.
"The key to your plan was the timing, wasn't it, G? If the mayor had come earlier to the workspace and witnessed the whole thing, he would have been able to see who was the real one, since he knew Eveline's Contractbound abilities. Danny and Lucas would also know who the impostor was, but Danny is out of the picture and Lucas was sent to look for him, all according to the plan,"
"Since the mayor was almost sure that you were the real Eveline, he dared to bring you to his office, which resulted in us stealing these two valuable items,"
Valentine crossed his arms and looked at the book and cane on the table. No matter how he looked at it, the book was just a normal book. If he hadn't seen its abilities in person, it would be hard to believe that it was an artifact, especially since he had never seen an artifact before. The uneasy feeling he got from the book helped him confirm that it was, indeed, a supernatural artifact.
"The bitch's anti-divination is gone, so my reveal should work, right, G?"
Valentine focused on the wooden cane and used his reveal ability on it.
"I ask that you reveal your secrets to me!"
Illusory letters began appearing and slowly, they formed a complete text.
'Dr. Obtuse's Cane. Current status: sated. An enhanced weapon created by a powerful transmuter. It was made from the remains of a powerful Contractbound, who, when in life, was obsessed with many things. This cane has the ability to grant the user's enemy a strong random obsession that will last for six hours, but at the same time, will randomly eat the user's desire for something, rendering the user completely uninterested in that thing until the duration is up. This cane is indestructible by anything as strong as or weaker than it.'
The text disappeared and Valentine admired the weapon but was also slightly concerned about the negative effect. He then continued on with what he was doing.
Focusing on the small book with a blue cover, Valentine opened his mouth and let the words out.
"I ask that you reveal your secrets to me!"
An illusory text once again began forming above the book. Once it was complete, Valentine read it.
'The Contract Book of Paulina. A strong artifact disguised as an ordinary book. It has the ability to bind people into an unbreakable contract. When someone, willingly and not under threat or force, writes the terms of the contract and signs their name in this book, the contract will be validated. If the person breaks his own term, the consequence that is written in the contract will be realized. No one, except those stronger than the book, will be able to stop the consequence from happening once a contract's term is broken. This book is also indestructible by any known means.'
The words began disappearing after Valentine finished reading them. He crossed his arms and thought about the information.
"So can we write a contract with immortality as the consequence? I guess not, since I'm sure death is stronger than this book."
Please report us if you find any errors so we can fix it asap!
"*Pant* Ms. Herrick, Mr. Aukes, the crazy *pant* woman ran *pant* away!"
The man was panting while speaking at the same time, making his speech incoherent, but Graham and Jonathan understood what he meant. Eveline's childhood friend looked at the fake secretary with concern on his face, and then back at the security guard. His expression turned sour.
"How did she run away?! And have you called the Police?" Jonathan's voice was stern.
"Y-yes we have, Mr. Aukes. She ran *pant* when we were making the call..."
'Eveline' looked at Jonathan calmly.
"It's fine, Jonny. I'm sure the Police will catch them. Besides, I know how to protect myself," he smiled at the woman's childhood friend and extended it to the other people in the office who were looking his way.
Graham didn't worry about the escaping crazy woman. He left the worried Jonathan who was still munching the security guard's ass and headed towards the mayor's office that should be down the hall.
"The mayor should be back in his office by now, shouldn't he, Val? What do you think he wants to tell us?"
Walking down the corridor as gracefully as he could, Graham arrived in front of white double doors with intricate carvings on them. He knocked on the door exactly four times, because that was what the real Eveline would usually do, and a voice came from inside.
"Come in!"
"You're looking for me, Hank?" said Graham intimately.
Graham closed the door gently behind him and glanced sneakily at the office where the mayor was. It was a grand office, much bigger than his little detective one in his apartment. It was even much bigger than Mastro Gianni's office.
The mayor's office was the size of the common workspace but without all the cubicles. The man's desk was placed near the center a little closer to the wall opposite the door with a large, beautiful carpet adorning the floor. The walls were painted white and carved with beautiful patterns. Numerous trophies, including animal mounts, medals, and certificates were hung on the white wall.
The office looked more like a living room than an office. There was a fireplace on one side with comfortable sofas placed around it-- again, a carpet was decorating the floor. The numerous shelves around the room had books and more trophies in them. The chandelier hanging from the ceiling was very expensive-looking; the kind Graham would never be able to afford only by doing an honest detective job.
Hank Krammer was sitting at his desk, reading some documents. He glanced at 'Eveline' for a second and then returned to his documents. It was clear that he was currently very busy.
"There are many things in my mind, to be honest, Eve," The mayor's voice was troubled, "First, have you seen Wiebe and Danny? They haven't shown up since yesterday,"
Slowly and elegantly, 'Eveline' walked up to the mayor and sat on the desk. The slender hands then started caressing the mayor softly. It was what the real Eveline would usually do, so even if he was feeling very uncomfortable right now, he had to do it.
Earlier, after putting the real Eveline to sleep, Graham was able to read her memory about the mayor before planting those thoughts inside her head. He was lucky that he had managed to do it, otherwise, right now the mayor might have suspected something because of the inconsistency of his secretary's actions.
"I haven't seen them either, Hank, but I have asked someone to go look for them," he lied.
Hank Krammer rested his forehead on his palm and started shaking his head.
"If I see those two, they'll get it from me! I've also sent Lucas to look for them," he replied, irritated.
After stopping his head shaking, he looked at 'Eveline' and raised his eyebrow.
"What about the impostor just now? How did she look just like you?"
'Eveline' smiled. The beautiful secretary ran her finger up and down the mayor's right cheek.
"I have no idea. She might have been sent by our opposition to try to shake our position here, but of course, a half-baked plan like that wouldn't work, teeheee..."
The giggle left the secretary's mouth and resounded in the large office room, echoing back at the only two people there. The mayor's expression was calm now, but Graham couldn't shake the feeling that he suspected something.
"!!"
Hank Krammer then grabbed Graham's slender wrist tightly and looked straight into his light green eyes. The man pulled the hand and brought their faces closer together.
"Then prove to me that you're the real Eveline..." he whispered domineeringly.
The man's other hand began running across the secretary's body, touching every bit of it, grabbing anything that caught his interest. His breathing became heavy as lust took over him.
'Eveline' then whispered into his hears.
"I order you to fall asleep..."
The mayor's eyes suddenly opened wide and he pushed the secretary back using all of his strength, which sent Graham flying. A wave of sleepiness swept over him, but his status as a Marquis rank made him able to resist longer than those weaker than or equal to Graham.
"I, in the name of the Deity of Domination and Order, intensify your desire to sleep!"
Before the mayor could do anything else, Graham had already used the ability stored in Purloin to amplify the sleepiness that the man was feeling.
With the two abilities combined, the mayor couldn't resist anymore and fell into a deep sleep not long after. The sounds of his snoring filled the office.
"Phew... that was close," Graham exhaled in relief. He genuinely felt grossed out being touched inappropriately by the mayor.
Carefully, Graham approached the sleeping mayor and listened to his breathing intently to find any irregularities. After all, the man was a rank higher than him, so he might have some tricks up his sleeves to avoid control effects.
"If we hadn't stolen that woman's identity, we wouldn't have had the chance to get close to the mayor like this, Val. Or maybe we could, if we transformed into one of the sex workers whose service the mayor often uses, but that's a path I don't want to tread..."
Once he was sure that the mayor was truly sleeping, he began chanting.
"I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby plant the thought in your head that you will think that I am the real Eveline Herrick and the real Eveline Herrick is an impostor!"
He felt his energy leaving his body and entering the mayor's head, rendering him weakened. Graham began breathing heavily as he sat down on the chair for support. He had to recover his stamina quickly before the mayor woke up because there was something else he wanted to do.
Snore...
The combination of Order and Intensify was really potent that the mayor was still sleeping even after five minutes when Graham's stamina had completely recovered. The man was probably also very tired in the first place so his body naturally welcomed the rest.
Since his stamina had returned, Graham chanted one more time.
"I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby plant the thought in your head that the impostor Eveline Herrick stole your book artifact and your enhanced cane, while I, the real Eveline Herrick, was sent to chase after the impostor!"
Graham felt weakened once more, but he didn't have any time to waste. He quickly but carefully grabbed the book and the cane that never left the mayor's side. Once he had the items, he buttoned his black coat and began chanting one more time while mustering all the stamina he had.
"I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby change my whole being to that of Hank Krammer!"
His body began undergoing a transformation process, which felt very strange because he was turning from a woman into a man. His body became much bigger, which the tight dress couldn't fit anymore, so it began tearing. Luckily, his coat was big enough and buttoned, to cover his now exposed skin and private part.
Graham took off the high heels that he was wearing and hid them under his coat. He now looked like a flasher because he was only wearing a coat without pants or shoes. He couldn't 'borrow' the real mayor's shoes because it would risk waking him up.
Once he had completely turned into the mayor, Graham exited the office in a hurry and just interacted as necessary with people he passed on the way. They all had a concerned look on their faces, but they didn't dare to ask any question since Graham wore a furious expression on his face on purpose.
Once he was out of the town hall, Graham went to a secluded alley near there where he had hidden his original clothes. After making sure that no one was around, he unbuttoned his coat and found out that the dress was completely ripped apart, including the underwear that he had worn as Eveline.
"*Pant* If we had shown ourselves in public like this, Val, we would certainly have been thrown to jail for public indecency,"
He took a deep breath because his stamina hadn't fully recovered. After that, he reverted back to his original appearance and put on all his clothes.
The trench coat that he was wearing was big enough to conceal the cane and, of course, the book under it. However, he preferred to be safe, so he would switch with Valentine once he was done. He had to do things quickly before the mayor woke up.
Flick!
The lighter created a small flame that Graham used to burn the clothes and shoes that belonged to 'Eveline'. He manipulated the flame not to go away until everything was burned to ashes. It took longer than he expected to completely burn the high heels. All the while, he used Order to contain the fumes so they would not attract attention. Once he was done, he sat on the ground and leaned against the wall.
"I order myself to fall asleep!"
The same wave of sleepiness that had struck the mayor was now looming above him, making his head heavier and heavier with each passing second. He fell asleep shortly after, and Valentine woke up in his body.
Knowing what to do, Valentine quickly placed Concealment on the cane and book, as well as anti-divination. He also located the bloodstains that Eveline had used for anti-divination and rubbed it clean with his nail.
With the cane and book concealed and hidden under his coat, he walked back to the street confidently as nothing had happened. It was rather difficult to walk normally with a cane hidden under his coat but had to in order to avoid attention. He and hailed a public motor carriage to take him back to his hotel.
He made it safely to the hotel and after paying the driver, Valentine got out and entered the elegantly designed building. He was greeted by Stefan on his way in.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Hymes! Back already?"
The warmth of the smile that he radiated could be felt all the way from across the room despite the cold weather. Stefan was getting more and more professional by the day, although at times he was still naive and clueless.
"Hello, Stefan. Yes," replied Valentine shortly with a smile accompanying his words.
The detective then walked upstairs to his own room and after locking his door, Valentine bared the two items that Graham had just stolen on the table.
"G, these are a very nice bonus. I'm sure stealing these wasn't part of your plan, was it?"
It was indeed not a part of Graham's plan, but he had thought about doing it. His plan was only to steal the identity of Eveline Herrick which he would use again in the future in case he needed it. He was just lucky that the mayor called him to his office and didn't reprimand him right away. Graham was sure that the mayor had his suspicion, but the man had to make sure first.
"The key to your plan was the timing, wasn't it, G? If the mayor had come earlier to the workspace and witnessed the whole thing, he would have been able to see who was the real one, since he knew Eveline's Contractbound abilities. Danny and Lucas would also know who the impostor was, but Danny is out of the picture and Lucas was sent to look for him, all according to the plan,"
"Since the mayor was almost sure that you were the real Eveline, he dared to bring you to his office, which resulted in us stealing these two valuable items,"
Valentine crossed his arms and looked at the book and cane on the table. No matter how he looked at it, the book was just a normal book. If he hadn't seen its abilities in person, it would be hard to believe that it was an artifact, especially since he had never seen an artifact before. The uneasy feeling he got from the book helped him confirm that it was, indeed, a supernatural artifact.
"The bitch's anti-divination is gone, so my reveal should work, right, G?"
Valentine focused on the wooden cane and used his reveal ability on it.
"I ask that you reveal your secrets to me!"
Illusory letters began appearing and slowly, they formed a complete text.
'Dr. Obtuse's Cane. Current status: sated. An enhanced weapon created by a powerful transmuter. It was made from the remains of a powerful Contractbound, who, when in life, was obsessed with many things. This cane has the ability to grant the user's enemy a strong random obsession that will last for six hours, but at the same time, will randomly eat the user's desire for something, rendering the user completely uninterested in that thing until the duration is up. This cane is indestructible by anything as strong as or weaker than it.'
The text disappeared and Valentine admired the weapon but was also slightly concerned about the negative effect. He then continued on with what he was doing.
Focusing on the small book with a blue cover, Valentine opened his mouth and let the words out.
"I ask that you reveal your secrets to me!"
An illusory text once again began forming above the book. Once it was complete, Valentine read it.
'The Contract Book of Paulina. A strong artifact disguised as an ordinary book. It has the ability to bind people into an unbreakable contract. When someone, willingly and not under threat or force, writes the terms of the contract and signs their name in this book, the contract will be validated. If the person breaks his own term, the consequence that is written in the contract will be realized. No one, except those stronger than the book, will be able to stop the consequence from happening once a contract's term is broken. This book is also indestructible by any known means.'
The words began disappearing after Valentine finished reading them. He crossed his arms and thought about the information.
"So can we write a contract with immortality as the consequence? I guess not, since I'm sure death is stronger than this book."
"*Pant* Ms. Herrick, Mr. Aukes, the crazy *pant* woman ran *pant* away!"The man was panting while speaking at the same time, making his speech incoherent, but Graham and Jonathan understood what he meant. Eveline's childhood friend looked at the fake secretary with concern on his face, and then back at the security guard. His expression turned sour."How did she run away?! And have you called the Police?" Jonathan's voice was stern."Y-yes we have, Mr. Aukes. She ran *pant* when we were making the call..."'Eveline' looked at Jonathan calmly."It's fine, Jonny. I'm sure the Police will catch them. Besides, I know how to protect myself," he smiled at the woman's childhood friend and extended it to the other people in the office who were looking his way.Graham didn't worry about the escaping crazy woman. He left the worried Jonathan who was still munching the security guard's ass and headed towards the mayor's office that should be down the hall."The mayor should be back in his office by now, shouldn't he, Val? What do you think he wants to tell us?"Walking down the corridor as gracefully as he could, Graham arrived in front of white double doors with intricate carvings on them. He knocked on the door exactly four times, because that was what the real Eveline would usually do, and a voice came from inside."Come in!""You're looking for me, Hank?" said Graham intimately.Graham closed the door gently behind him and glanced sneakily at the office where the mayor was. It was a grand office, much bigger than his little detective one in his apartment. It was even much bigger than Mastro Gianni's office.The mayor's office was the size of the common workspace but without all the cubicles. The man's desk was placed near the center a little closer to the wall opposite the door with a large, beautiful carpet adorning the floor. The walls were painted white and carved with beautiful patterns. Numerous trophies, including animal mounts, medals, and certificates were hung on the white wall.The office looked more like a living room than an office. There was a fireplace on one side with comfortable sofas placed around it-- again, a carpet was decorating the floor. The numerous shelves around the room had books and more trophies in them. The chandelier hanging from the ceiling was very expensive-looking; the kind Graham would never be able to afford only by doing an honest detective job.Hank Krammer was sitting at his desk, reading some documents. He glanced at 'Eveline' for a second and then returned to his documents. It was clear that he was currently very busy."There are many things in my mind, to be honest, Eve," The mayor's voice was troubled, "First, have you seen Wiebe and Danny? They haven't shown up since yesterday,"Slowly and elegantly, 'Eveline' walked up to the mayor and sat on the desk. The slender hands then started caressing the mayor softly. It was what the real Eveline would usually do, so even if he was feeling very uncomfortable right now, he had to do it.Earlier, after putting the real Eveline to sleep, Graham was able to read her memory about the mayor before planting those thoughts inside her head. He was lucky that he had managed to do it, otherwise, right now the mayor might have suspected something because of the inconsistency of his secretary's actions."I haven't seen them either, Hank, but I have asked someone to go look for them," he lied.Hank Krammer rested his forehead on his palm and started shaking his head."If I see those two, they'll get it from me! I've also sent Lucas to look for them," he replied, irritated.After stopping his head shaking, he looked at 'Eveline' and raised his eyebrow."What about the impostor just now? How did she look just like you?"'Eveline' smiled. The beautiful secretary ran her finger up and down the mayor's right cheek."I have no idea. She might have been sent by our opposition to try to shake our position here, but of course, a half-baked plan like that wouldn't work, teeheee..."The giggle left the secretary's mouth and resounded in the large office room, echoing back at the only two people there. The mayor's expression was calm now, but Graham couldn't shake the feeling that he suspected something."!!"Hank Krammer then grabbed Graham's slender wrist tightly and looked straight into his light green eyes. The man pulled the hand and brought their faces closer together."Then prove to me that you're the real Eveline..." he whispered domineeringly.The man's other hand began running across the secretary's body, touching every bit of it, grabbing anything that caught his interest. His breathing became heavy as lust took over him.'Eveline' then whispered into his hears."I order you to fall asleep..."The mayor's eyes suddenly opened wide and he pushed the secretary back using all of his strength, which sent Graham flying. A wave of sleepiness swept over him, but his status as a Marquis rank made him able to resist longer than those weaker than or equal to Graham."I, in the name of the Deity of Domination and Order, intensify your desire to sleep!"Before the mayor could do anything else, Graham had already used the ability stored in Purloin to amplify the sleepiness that the man was feeling.With the two abilities combined, the mayor couldn't resist anymore and fell into a deep sleep not long after. The sounds of his snoring filled the office."Phew... that was close," Graham exhaled in relief. He genuinely felt grossed out being touched inappropriately by the mayor.Carefully, Graham approached the sleeping mayor and listened to his breathing intently to find any irregularities. After all, the man was a rank higher than him, so he might have some tricks up his sleeves to avoid control effects."If we hadn't stolen that woman's identity, we wouldn't have had the chance to get close to the mayor like this, Val. Or maybe we could, if we transformed into one of the sex workers whose service the mayor often uses, but that's a path I don't want to tread..."Once he was sure that the mayor was truly sleeping, he began chanting."I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby plant the thought in your head that you will think that I am the real Eveline Herrick and the real Eveline Herrick is an impostor!"He felt his energy leaving his body and entering the mayor's head, rendering him weakened. Graham began breathing heavily as he sat down on the chair for support. He had to recover his stamina quickly before the mayor woke up because there was something else he wanted to do.Snore...The combination of Order and Intensify was really potent that the mayor was still sleeping even after five minutes when Graham's stamina had completely recovered. The man was probably also very tired in the first place so his body naturally welcomed the rest.Since his stamina had returned, Graham chanted one more time."I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby plant the thought in your head that the impostor Eveline Herrick stole your book artifact and your enhanced cane, while I, the real Eveline Herrick, was sent to chase after the impostor!"Graham felt weakened once more, but he didn't have any time to waste. He quickly but carefully grabbed the book and the cane that never left the mayor's side. Once he had the items, he buttoned his black coat and began chanting one more time while mustering all the stamina he had."I, in the name of the Deity of Cunningness and Transformation, hereby change my whole being to that of Hank Krammer!"His body began undergoing a transformation process, which felt very strange because he was turning from a woman into a man. His body became much bigger, which the tight dress couldn't fit anymore, so it began tearing. Luckily, his coat was big enough and buttoned, to cover his now exposed skin and private part.Graham took off the high heels that he was wearing and hid them under his coat. He now looked like a flasher because he was only wearing a coat without pants or shoes. He couldn't 'borrow' the real mayor's shoes because it would risk waking him up.Once he had completely turned into the mayor, Graham exited the office in a hurry and just interacted as necessary with people he passed on the way. They all had a concerned look on their faces, but they didn't dare to ask any question since Graham wore a furious expression on his face on purpose.Once he was out of the town hall, Graham went to a secluded alley near there where he had hidden his original clothes. After making sure that no one was around, he unbuttoned his coat and found out that the dress was completely ripped apart, including the underwear that he had worn as Eveline."*Pant* If we had shown ourselves in public like this, Val, we would certainly have been thrown to jail for public indecency,"He took a deep breath because his stamina hadn't fully recovered. After that, he reverted back to his original appearance and put on all his clothes.The trench coat that he was wearing was big enough to conceal the cane and, of course, the book under it. However, he preferred to be safe, so he would switch with Valentine once he was done. He had to do things quickly before the mayor woke up.Flick!The lighter created a small flame that Graham used to burn the clothes and shoes that belonged to 'Eveline'. He manipulated the flame not to go away until everything was burned to ashes. It took longer than he expected to completely burn the high heels. All the while, he used Order to contain the fumes so they would not attract attention. Once he was done, he sat on the ground and leaned against the wall."I order myself to fall asleep!"The same wave of sleepiness that had struck the mayor was now looming above him, making his head heavier and heavier with each passing second. He fell asleep shortly after, and Valentine woke up in his body.Knowing what to do, Valentine quickly placed Concealment on the cane and book, as well as anti-divination. He also located the bloodstains that Eveline had used for anti-divination and rubbed it clean with his nail.With the cane and book concealed and hidden under his coat, he walked back to the street confidently as nothing had happened. It was rather difficult to walk normally with a cane hidden under his coat but had to in order to avoid attention. He and hailed a public motor carriage to take him back to his hotel.He made it safely to the hotel and after paying the driver, Valentine got out and entered the elegantly designed building. He was greeted by Stefan on his way in."Good afternoon, Mr. Hymes! Back already?"The warmth of the smile that he radiated could be felt all the way from across the room despite the cold weather. Stefan was getting more and more professional by the day, although at times he was still naive and clueless."Hello, Stefan. Yes," replied Valentine shortly with a smile accompanying his words.The detective then walked upstairs to his own room and after locking his door, Valentine bared the two items that Graham had just stolen on the table."G, these are a very nice bonus. I'm sure stealing these wasn't part of your plan, was it?"It was indeed not a part of Graham's plan, but he had thought about doing it. His plan was only to steal the identity of Eveline Herrick which he would use again in the future in case he needed it. He was just lucky that the mayor called him to his office and didn't reprimand him right away. Graham was sure that the mayor had his suspicion, but the man had to make sure first."The key to your plan was the timing, wasn't it, G? If the mayor had come earlier to the workspace and witnessed the whole thing, he would have been able to see who was the real one, since he knew Eveline's Contractbound abilities. Danny and Lucas would also know who the impostor was, but Danny is out of the picture and Lucas was sent to look for him, all according to the plan,""Since the mayor was almost sure that you were the real Eveline, he dared to bring you to his office, which resulted in us stealing these two valuable items,"Valentine crossed his arms and looked at the book and cane on the table. No matter how he looked at it, the book was just a normal book. If he hadn't seen its abilities in person, it would be hard to believe that it was an artifact, especially since he had never seen an artifact before. The uneasy feeling he got from the book helped him confirm that it was, indeed, a supernatural artifact."The bitch's anti-divination is gone, so my reveal should work, right, G?"Valentine focused on the wooden cane and used his reveal ability on it."I ask that you reveal your secrets to me!"Illusory letters began appearing and slowly, they formed a complete text.'Dr. Obtuse's Cane. Current status: sated. An enhanced weapon created by a powerful transmuter. It was made from the remains of a powerful Contractbound, who, when in life, was obsessed with many things. This cane has the ability to grant the user's enemy a strong random obsession that will last for six hours, but at the same time, will randomly eat the user's desire for something, rendering the user completely uninterested in that thing until the duration is up. This cane is indestructible by anything as strong as or weaker than it.'The text disappeared and Valentine admired the weapon but was also slightly concerned about the negative effect. He then continued on with what he was doing.Focusing on the small book with a blue cover, Valentine opened his mouth and let the words out."I ask that you reveal your secrets to me!"An illusory text once again began forming above the book. Once it was complete, Valentine read it.'The Contract Book of Paulina. A strong artifact disguised as an ordinary book. It has the ability to bind people into an unbreakable contract. When someone, willingly and not under threat or force, writes the terms of the contract and signs their name in this book, the contract will be validated. If the person breaks his own term, the consequence that is written in the contract will be realized. No one, except those stronger than the book, will be able to stop the consequence from happening once a contract's term is broken. This book is also indestructible by any known means.'The words began disappearing after Valentine finished reading them. He crossed his arms and thought about the information."So can we write a contract with immortality as the consequence? I guess not, since I'm sure death is stronger than this book."
