297 Informant Contract
On his way back to the market district, Lumian leaned against the carriage wall, pondering the whole situation once more. He realized he had overlooked a problem.
A Sequence 7 mysteriously vanishes during a relatively simple mission, and it is now suspected to be dead. Would the secret organization behind him just pretend that nothing had happened?
Would they realize the truth tonight and launch an investigation?
As a Conspirer, there’s no way the Boss wouldn’t have thought of this. Yet, he didn’t warn me and allowed me to go home alone… Is he using me as bait?
Yes, the secret organization behind the Werewolf might not take action tonight. As long as they keep their wits about them, they should realize that their missing subordinate is a huge problem. It seems the Savoie Mob is not as simple as it appears. If I were in their shoes, I’d hold back for a while until further events unfold. Then, I’d use the chaos to figure out the true situation of the Savoie Mob.
Of course, if they have an angel’s protection and can get Him to temporarily descend upon Salle de Bal Brise, they can do whatever they want…
Now that I think about it, although that Werewolf was arrogant, he wasn’t that stupid or reckless. He’s just average. He must have captured some ordinary members of the Savoie Mob beforehand and roughly figured out the situation of the few leaders before targeting the leader who recently joined the Savoie Mob—me. Logically speaking, I wouldn’t have been involved in the Savoie Mob’s core matters. I wouldn’t know many secrets, and I won’t cause too many implications…
Furthermore, ordinary members of the Savoie Mob don’t know that I’ve advanced to Pyromaniac. Judging from my recent combat records, that fellow believes he can easily handle me. In close combat, a Werewolf with stronger self-healing abilities, faster speed, greater strength, and nimble reactions, possessing claws equivalent to Beyonder weapons, is far superior to a Provoker…
By the time Lumian returned to Salle de Bal Brise, he had already sorted out the situation. He touched Mr. K’s finger in his pocket and entered the room on the second floor, seemingly oblivious. He washed up and went to bed.
…
As the sun began to rise, Jenna hurriedly left 17 Rue Pasteur in Quartier du Jardin Botanique, a piece of toast in her mouth.
Last night, she had returned to visit her brother. She tossed and turned in the bed that she had shared with her mother until midnight before finally falling asleep. She woke up early in the morning, not wanting to run into her neighbors who might inquire about the wanted criminal named “Celia Bello.”
It was still dark, and the streets were mostly empty. Jenna passed by the few vendors and passersby and turned into an alley near Rue Saint-Hilaire, which was even more desolate.
And then, she saw a familiar figure approaching.
He was a man with brown skin, thick lips, and light-yellow hair neatly combed. He had native blood from the Southern Continent and an inconspicuous piece of tape on the bridge of his nose. Wearing a light-colored shirt and a yellow vest, a golden Sun Sacred Emblem was pinned to his chest.
Sun Sacred Emblem… Jenna’s heart skipped a beat as she remembered who he was.
He was a Beyonder from the Eternal Blazing Sun Church, once responsible for protecting Hugues Artois!
Jenna instinctively wanted to turn and leave the alley, but she noticed another Beyonder from the Eternal Blazing Sun Church standing guard at the alley’s exit! He too was an Eternal Blazing Sun Church Beyonder who had protected Hugues Artois!
Valentine’s eyes were bluer than lake water, and his expression was cold.
Jenna stopped turning and held her breath. Her right hand rested on her waist, ready to draw her hidden revolver and dagger in an instant.
Seeing her cautious stance, Imre quickly called out, “Relax! We’re not here to arrest you.”
Recalling Franca’s analysis about the possibility of the official Beyonders making her an informant, Jenna calmed down a bit, but still eyed Imre and Valentine warily.
Imre flashed a friendly smile and said, “We do eliminate wild Beyonders, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have options.”
“Don’t be intimidated by the rumors about the stake. This is Trier. Wild Beyonders who aren’t truly sinful won’t face such a fate. Of course, similar cases happen in other provinces, villages, small cities, and towns.”
Jenna grew more certain of the official Beyonders’ intentions. She feigned inexperience and asked, “What do you want from me?”
Imre smiled.
“We hope you can cooperate with us.
“In fact, if we hadn’t deliberately let you go, you would have been arrested long ago.”
Jenna pondered for a moment, thinking about how she managed to lead a peaceful life after assassinating Hugues Artois.
After a while, she asked hesitantly, “Cooperate?”
Imre smiled and nodded.
“Let me introduce myself. I’m Imre, a Purifier of the Eternal Blazing Sun Church’s Inquisition. This is my colleague, Valentine.
“Not every wild Beyonder earns our goodwill and the chance to cooperate. We’ve looked into your situation and confirmed that you’re also a believer of God and haven’t committed any serious offenses. Moreover, after gaining superpowers, you restrained yourself and didn’t misuse your abilities, except for assassinating Hugues Artois.
“We understand your hatred and your choice. After all, he’s a heretic who deserves death. Anyone has the right to purify him on behalf of God. You must know that if we hadn’t arranged it and deliberately turned a blind eye to your actions, you wouldn’t have escaped from the member of parliament’s office.”
Jenna nodded slowly, showing that she had realized it later.
Imre continued, “Because you’re a believer who inherently stays true to yourself and doesn’t abuse your abilities, we want to invite you to be our informant and provide us with corresponding intel.
“Don’t worry, we won’t force you to betray your friends. We just want you to keep an eye out for anything that might bring disaster to the market district and Trier.”
Stay true to myself and refrain from abusing my abilities… I used to be like that in the past, barely so in the present, but will I be in the future? Jenna thought, mocking herself. She wanted to tell them that they had arrived too late, and she was no longer the same person.
After a moment’s hesitation, she said, “I also live in the market district. I’d be glad to help resolve any issues that might harm this place through you.”
She tactfully expressed her willingness to cooperate.
At that moment, Jenna felt inspired and blurted out, “I discovered something two days ago!”
“What?” Imre glanced at his teammate Valentine in surprise.
They hadn’t expected their newly-hired informant to provide intel right away.
Jenna recounted how she’d attended a mysterious gathering where she heard about the disappearance of the Deep Valley Cloister’s gatekeeper. Upon accepting the corresponding commission, she described how she and her companion accidentally stumbled upon a cybernetic-eyed monk entering a nearby quarry and opening a secret cave filled with numerous human arms and legs.
Throughout the process, she kept her companion’s identity and name, as well as the time and location of the mysticism gathering, hidden.
Imre and Valentine were a mix of joy and solemnity.
They were delighted by the unexpected gain, but the peculiarity of the situation also troubled them.
“Very good. That’s the kind of cooperation we need,” Imre praised Jenna after she finished speaking.
Valentine nodded reluctantly.
It wasn’t that he didn’t see the need for such an informant; the incident with Hugues Artois had changed his perception of wild Beyonders significantly. However, he was a bit emotional as Imre could have convinced Celia Bello alone, yet he insisted on involving Valentine.
After praising the morning sun, he could have gone home to rest and enjoy breakfast with his family.
Nevertheless, Imre’s reasoning was sound.
According to the rules, it was best to have two Purifiers present when developing informants, especially Beyonders who belonged to a few pathways like Demoness.
Imre explained that over the years, many Purifiers had fallen into the trap of being seduced while developing Demonesses as informants or pursuing them. This led them to fall in love, betray the Church, and lose control amid the torment of faith.
Hence, having two Purifiers to supervise each other in such cases was essential.
Though Jenna was still an Assassin and had plenty to go before qualifying as a true Demoness of Pleasure, one couldn’t be careless about such matters, especially with a rare female Assassin.
After the praise, Imre added, “Cooperation means both sides can benefit from this matter. We’ll reward you accordingly based on the intel you provide. You can choose from money, materials, knowledge, weapons, and more.”
Jenna hesitated for a moment before asking, “Will there be a reward for what I just said?”
“What do you want?” Imre inquired.
“The main ingredient of the Instigator potion,” Jenna replied without hesitation,
having already received the potion formula from Franca.
Imre wasn’t surprised. He nodded and said, “We’ll discuss it after we verify the authenticity and importance of this intel.”
“Alright,” Jenna replied, not too disappointed as she didn’t hold out much hope.
Imre produced an ordinary-looking piece of white paper with a few simple clauses written on it, outlining what he had just said.
The terms didn’t demand Jenna’s faith to be constantly with the Eternal Blazing Sun, but they required her not to believe in an evil god.
Being experienced, Jenna read the terms over and over again until she confirmed that there were no issues, and then she readily signed her real name.
She watched Imre take out a fountain pen made of pure gold and sign his name. He then quickly wrote a few bright red words in the Notary position.
A sun-like glow briefly enveloped the contract before vanishing.
After bidding farewell to Imre and Valentine, Jenna headed towards Rue des Blouses Blanches.
…
Apartment 601, 3 Rue des Blouses Blanches.
Lumian roused Franca from her sleep at the crack of dawn and faced her wrathful expression as he recounted the Werewolf incident.
Franca swiftly focused her mind and mumbled contemplatively, “If there’s a follow-up investigation, the one you’ll face will either be Zombie or Wraith. I’m more inclined to believe the latter.”
“Huh?” Lumian was bewildered.
Franca explained matter-of-factly, “They are Sequence 6 and Sequence 5 of the Prisoner pathway.”
Lumian sighed, still puzzled, and commented, “You seem to know this pathway quite well.”
“Of course.” Franca chuckled. “In the whole world, besides a few Prisoner pathway Beyonders, the rest belong to two factions. One is the Southern Continent’s terrorist organization, the Rose School of Thought, that I mentioned earlier, and the other is…”
At this point, she paused, teasing Lumian deliberately. After a few seconds, she revealed, “Mr. Fool’s Church.”
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