madnovel Chapter 120 The Gears of Fate
Chapter 120 The Gears of Fate
Chapter 120 The Gears of Fate
When Evan saw Mr. Hope's approving look, he knew he had passed the test.
Mr. Hope must have received instructions from Robert long ago to inform Tingen to expose the scam and stop there, rather than doing so on the advice of Evan.
But Robert still made a point of having Hope come over to give Evan a heads-up, to see if he was blinded by the huge sum of money. If Evan's answer didn't satisfy him, he might teach Evan a lesson with his "iron fist of love".
Robert using a scam to help the military cover its debts is one thing, but preventing Tingen from suffering serious damage is another. If Evan doesn't understand this and tries to continue making money off this, he will be greatly disappointed.
"What is the third thing?"
"Lord Robert wants you to come home tomorrow evening to visit Earl Akhova at his estate in the countryside. You mustn't be late."
Mr. Hope, with a serious expression, gave Evan special instructions.
Evan's expression also tightened, and he nodded solemnly. He had only met Count Akhova a few times when he was a child, and his memory was somewhat hazy. But from the information he had gathered indirectly, this count was also a ruthless person, so Evan couldn't help but take him seriously.
After Mr. Hope finished explaining things at the apartment and had a cup of tea, he took his leave. Evan didn't linger and simply escorted him to the apartment building.
Back at his apartment, Evan washed his teacup, changed his clothes, and prepared to look around for a coded message to contact him. When he arrived at the lion statue in the city center park, he found a cross mark. This was the common contact mark he had given to Hugh Deercha and Fors, which was usually used to contact people in case of emergency.
After erasing the mark, Evan took the subway from the nearby subway station to the "Earl's Café" in the Hilton area, where he found Fors already waiting there for a long time.
"What's the urgent matter that you need to contact me about?"
Evan sat down directly opposite Fors, startling her so much that she nearly spilled the coffee she was about to drink.
Evan shook his head at the sight; such vigilance was really not as good as Hugh's, who was constantly improving.
"You walk so quietly, you scared me to death!"
Fors felt no shame at being approached, but instead blamed Evan.
"You're no longer the wild extraordinary individual you used to be, but a full member of MI9. From now on, you'll be facing outstanding extraordinary individuals from various countries. You won't even know if someone gets close to you. If I heard one day that someone had slit your throat, I wouldn't be surprised."
Fors was startled by Evan's tone, and at the same time felt a chill on her exposed neck. Then, in a wronged and pleading voice, she said:
"I understand. I just haven't adjusted to the change in status yet. I'll definitely be more vigilant next time."
Seeing that she was quite sincere, Evan let her off the hook and asked the same question again.
"What's the urgent matter that you need to contact me about?"
"Hugh was arrested and imprisoned. I originally wanted to use my MI9 connections to bail her out, but Hugh said that there are too many people and too much gossip at the police station. Once the news that she is connected to MI9 gets out, she won't be able to work in the East District anymore. So she asked me to come to you to ask what to do."
Evan nodded, feeling that Hugh Deercha had made rapid progress recently and was very thoughtful in his consideration of issues.
Whether in high society or the lower class, there is a set of rules for survival. Once a bounty hunter has a deep connection with the "cops," although he may not be resistant, he will never be able to gain the complete trust of others in the future. This is a great loss for Hugh Deercha.
Evan, naturally, didn't want Hugh Deercha's MI9 identity to be exposed too early, so he continued by asking:
"What did she do to get arrested?"
"She beat up a gang leader who was lending money at exorbitant interest rates. However, the borrowers later discovered that the interest was several times higher than they had expected, and they couldn't pay it off even if they went bankrupt. So they negotiated with the gang leader to waive the unreasonable interest and went to arbitration with Hugh."
As a result, the gang leader completely disobeyed Hugh's "rule" and threatened Hugh not to interfere. He also threatened that if the money was not repaid quickly, he would kidnap the borrower's wife and children and force them to work as prostitutes to pay off the debt.
Outraged, Xiu beat him up, breaking both his legs and vandalizing a bar. He was eventually apprehended on the spot by the arriving police.
In front of Evan, Fors dared not lie and told him everything in detail.
So that's what happened. This was the opportunity that led Fors and Audrey to meet. In short, the gears of fate began to turn at this moment.
Although Evan had many ways to quietly rescue Hugh Deercha, he was not prepared to do so, because if Fors did not get to know Audrey through this incident, she would not be able to connect with the Tarot Society. She might survive the next Red Moon, but she definitely wouldn't survive the one after that.
The best way to handle this is to let things take their natural course and let the original story unfold.
"It's not convenient for me to get involved in this matter. You heard that Hugh Deercha was caught red-handed by the police, which means the evidence is conclusive. He will probably go to trial in a few days, and it will be troublesome if he goes to jail."
In such cases, it's best to seek help from a relevant nobleman, or ideally, hire a top lawyer to defend you in order to have any chance of being exonerated.
Oh, and after you're done, you should find that gang leader and get him to issue a letter of forgiveness.
"Isn't your brother an aristocrat? I read in the newspaper today that your brother just pushed for the enactment of a major bill and assumed an important position. Finding a top lawyer shouldn't be too difficult for him, right?"
Forl thought of the newspaper he had read today and looked at Evan with shining eyes.
"It's just a small matter, and you want me to ask my brother for help? What are you thinking?"
Evan couldn't resist prying open Fors's head, wanting to see just how much water was in her brain, and how she could have come up with this idea.
Robert is now in the public eye; putting him in charge of this matter is equivalent to a high-ranking official in his previous life directly intervening in a routine security incident.
Within hours, all of Hugh Deercha's information would appear on the desks of all the political bigwigs in Backlund, and all his identities would be exposed.
If George III knew that Hugh was Mason Deer's daughter, and with a little ruthlessness, it was uncertain whether Hugh Deercha would even leave Backlund alive.
Fors was a little scared by Evan's yelling, so she shrank back and said aggrievedly:
"Then what do you suggest we do?"
Evan didn't want to enlighten Fors anymore, otherwise he would be led astray by her sooner or later, so he said directly to her:
"Viscount Grelint, who has only recently inherited the title, often hosts various balls and literary salons. He should have sent you, the most prominent up-and-coming writer, an invitation. He also aspires to become an extraordinary being. You can use this as leverage to promise to take him to a gathering of extraordinary individuals, and you should be able to get his help."
For thought for a moment, and realized that she seemed to have received an invitation from this Viscount Grelint, but she had always ignored it.
Having become an extraordinary being, she has always looked down on the nobility and has a peculiar psychological advantage over them. Therefore, she has never attended such aristocratic gatherings, nor does she want to fawn over the nobility.
But today's events also served as a reminder that she cannot give up on socializing and expanding her network because of arrogance.
After all, having more friends means having more options. You never know when you might need their help. Unless you become a demigod, you can't completely ignore the rules of secular society.
Even demigods, as members of an organization, cannot escape various constraints.
"I know what to do. She's been carrying out the spy tracking mission you assigned her these past few days. Now that she's in prison, I need to help her with her release. The rest you'll have to do yourself or find someone else to handle."
As he spoke, Fors handed Evan a recent investigation report that Hugh had written in prison. Evan took it without saying much, and left after confirming that Fors was alright.
As Evan left the coffee shop, he suddenly had a flash of inspiration and sensed that someone was watching him. He switched to his "grayscale vision" and discovered a slender, dark-skinned female figure following him from a distance.
Based on his spiritual intuition, Evan felt that it was Helen from the Gnostic Church and understood that she might have come to him because of Triss.
But Evan didn't go home immediately to wait for her. Instead, based on the information Hugh Deercha had gathered over the past few days, he personally followed a spy who had confirmed receiving a mission. It wasn't until evening that he ate a hungry dinner and returned home.
Evan did this to conceal his ability to detect the witch's spying, disguising himself as a "little white rabbit" who had not escaped their control.
High-level hunters often appear as prey.
"You must be exhausted after a long day, personally tracking the target. Is MI9 short of personnel?"
Evan had barely sat down on the sofa in the living room, and before he could even catch his breath, Helen appeared out of thin air in the apartment, smiling as she spoke.
Evan, on the other hand, instinctively rolled over and hid behind the sofa, completely concealed, as if he was genuinely startled by the sudden appearance of another person in the apartment.
"Hahahahahahaha!"
Helen burst into laughter at the sight, while Evan, who had poked his head out, visibly turned red, then snorted and sat down on the sofa.
Seeing this, Helen thought Evan was really angry, so she smiled and sat down next to him, coaxing him in a sweet voice, and occasionally rubbing her breasts against Evan's arm.
"I just wanted to give you a surprise. I didn't expect you to react so strongly. I didn't mean to scare you."
Okay, don't be angry anymore. I won't do it again.
Helen shook Evan's arm, whining and pleading.
"Hmph! I'm not angry that you scared me, but that you don't trust me. This isn't the first time you've followed me. You followed me the first time I came to Backlund, and I don't know how many times you've followed me in secret."
"Since you don't trust me, why bother having me carry out this undercover mission? Just report me to the witch cult. It would save everyone trouble. Why bother with all this testing?"
"I absolutely did not doubt you. I was just curious about what you usually do, which is why I was silent."
The Gnostic Society lost track of Triss, whom Evan mentioned last time, and desperately needs Evan's intelligence support. If Evan becomes estranged from her now, all previous investments will be wasted.
So Helen repeatedly comforted him, and even secretly used spider silk to arouse Evan's desire.
Evan's outburst this time was not to break with the "Gnostic Society," but merely to prepare for demanding potion ingredients later, putting the other party in a position of being in the wrong.
So, after being soothed by Helen's gentle words, Evan gradually softened his attitude and rolled onto the bed in the bedroom.
In an instant, the room was filled with the sound of children crying.