"We hope that you can get me or Judy an opportunity to enter the ball through Detective Isengard's connections."
"You don't have to take risks for the rest. We will handle it properly and not bring you any danger."
At this, Cullen smiled at Ebner, waiting for his reply.
What a coincidence. I just received an invitation not long ago…
Upon hearing this request, Ebner was stunned for a moment before asking after a moment of silence, "Viscount Cullen, why don't you use your vampire connections to get an invitation? Moreover, with your abilities, you should be able to sneak into an ordinary ball without an invitation, right?"
Cullen shook his head with a smile and explained, "This isn't an ordinary ball. When the time comes, it's said that an important figure will be present to give a speech. The examination at the venue will definitely be very strict. If we use our relationship with the Sanguine, we will definitely be heavily scrutinized by MI9."
"A big shot? Which big shot?" Ebner asked curiously. Mike didn't mention this on his invitation.
"I don't know who it is exactly… but it should be a member of the royal family." At this point, Cullen looked at Ebner, who was obviously a little moved, and added, "Of course, we won't let you help us for nothing. If we can obtain the qualification to enter, I'll give you a copy of a set of mysticism books from the Blood Clan."
Ebner's eyes lit up upon hearing this. After pondering for a moment, he said, "Actually, I've been invited to this ball as well. I was allowed to bring a companion, so I don't have to trouble Teacher. However…"
"If you have any requests, feel free to ask." Viscount Cullen smiled and promised.
"I wish to purchase a Beyonder ingredient from the Sanguine. I need your help to pass it on," Ebner said with anticipation.
"What material?" Cullen didn't think it was too troublesome to be the middleman, and he could even earn a difference in price, so why not?
"The heart of the Elder Tree." Ebner exhaled, revealing his goal.
Cullen glanced at him and said meaningfully, "So you really are a 'detective'…" Then he changed the topic and said with certainty, "Sure, I'll help you ask about this. I remember that this material should be in the treasury."
"That's great! Thank you, Viscount Cullen." After Ebner thanked him from the bottom of his heart, he recalled that the identities of these Forsaken Saints seemed to be unable to withstand investigation. He could not help but ask,
"Although I can bring a companion in since there are important people here, I'm afraid the inspection will not be lax. What identity do you want to enter with me?"
It was definitely impossible for him to be a Forsaken One. Although he was an official member of the Orthodox Churches, he was also a foreigner.
At this moment, Judy, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, suddenly interjected, "I have a Beyonder item. It records the transformation ability of a Faceless. When the time comes, I can disguise myself as a clean, capable local and enter with you."
"What identity? If it's someone who has nothing to do with me, I'm afraid he will be suspected by MI9's security, right? If you are being watched, it will be very difficult for you to get close to Madam Windsor." Although Ebner didn't know how the Forsaken Ones planned to deal with Windsor, once they were stared at, it would be difficult to use any powerful means.
"That's true… In the next one or two days, I'll use a disguised identity to get to know you and pretend to have a good chat with you. This way, it won't seem too abrupt for us to attend the ball together." Judy thought for a moment and immediately gave a solution.
"That's a good idea… But did you use the Faceless powers recorded in your Beyonder items for that long?"
"Don't worry. This ability has been recorded more than twenty times, and it can last for at least six hours each time. It won't be a problem even if it takes another week," Judy replied confidently.
But why did you record so many Faceless? Was it because you changed your face every time you caused trouble?
Ebner grumbled under his breath but kept a smile on his face. What he didn't expect was that the insult was actually close to the truth.
At this moment, Captain Asenov, who had been silent all this while, decided.
"Alright, let's do as we discussed. You guys go and prepare yourselves. Don't make things difficult for Mr. Bryan."
"Yes, Captain!"
…
August 1st, Wednesday…
After breakfast, Ebner glanced at the date on the Backlund Morning Post that his teacher had subscribed to. He couldn't help but sigh. It's already August. Time sure flies… This is also the last month of peace. From now on, the Loen Kingdom and even the entire world will experience one major event after another.
It was not until the distant bell of the Holy Wind Cathedral rang seven times that Ebner snapped out of his reverie. He slowly stood up and went to his cupboard to take out his clothes.
He wore a black vest, a suit of the same color, copper-framed glasses, a half top hat, and a faint scholarly aura. After looking at himself in the mirror in satisfaction, Ebner greeted his teacher's servant and left.
But at that moment, two girls walked in together. Their eyes lit up when they saw Ebner and they quickly walked over.
The girl walking in front was wearing a beige dress and a small lady's hat. There were faint freckles on her face. She was Ebner's junior in public school, the daughter of Sergeant Fiona in the North District, Susan.
Ebner also recognized the girl behind Susan. She was also the classmate of the original owner of the body, Roman, who had joined the Kapusky teacher club at the last ball.
"Great detective, why aren't you saying anything? Have you forgotten your old classmate and old friend now that you're famous?" Susan walked up to him and joked with Ebner.
"Why would I? I'm just a little surprised to see you guys… Is there something you want to talk to me about?" Ebner was indeed a little surprised. As far as he knew, Susan had been receiving some ladylike etiquette education recently, so she probably didn't have time to come out and play.
"Can't I visit you if I have nothing to do? When we were in the club, apart from Jane, we had the best relationship!" The girl first argued with dissatisfaction, then she pulled Roman behind her and continued, "But you guessed right, we do have a commission… No, to be precise, Roman has a commission for you."
"What commission? About Ms. Kapusky?" Ebner asked curiously.
"Because my mother found quite a number of parents to work together to put pressure on Mr. Kapusky, who has already been expelled by the school. He seems to have gone to Tingen to apply for a new position, and he's currently not in Backlund." Susan rejected Ebner's guess, then tugged at the dejected Roman and said helplessly for her,
"We're here for Roman's matter… Her engagement partner seems to have a lover in the dark. We want you to find out what their relationship is… If it's really that kind of relationship, we hope you can take a few photos as evidence."
Does that mean my first assignment after I became famous was to catch adulterers? Ebner grumbled to himself before turning to Roman, who kept his head down. For some reason, he felt something was wrong with Roman. And she didn't seem as sad as she seemed.
"Roman, what's your fiance's name? Where does he live? And how did you know he has a lover?" It wasn't as if Ebner hadn't been involved in catching adulterers when he was a "reasoning student", so he was naturally familiar with this.
Hearing Ebner's question, before Roman could say anything, Susan was the first to cheer up. "That's great, Ebner," she exclaimed. "You agreed to the commission? I thought you'd disdained such cases after becoming a famous detective."
Ebner laughed at that but said nothing. He only turned his attention to Roman. He was beginning to think something was wrong with this classmate of his. Mind you, in the Host's memory, she was far more lively than Susan. Even if she had suffered a blow, she should not have been so silent.
"I want to talk to Ebner alone about this…" Roman finally mustered up the courage to say this after a long while. Then, she turned to Susan and asked hopefully, "Can I?"
Susan was a little surprised to hear this, but she soon felt that this involved the privacy of her good friend and that she really wasn't suited to hear it. So she nodded in understanding and said, "Then I'll wait for you here."
Ebner also wanted to know what this student was up to, so he brought her into his office. However, the moment he entered, he discovered that the entire room had been sealed by a wall of spirituality!
Ebner was shocked. He quickly activated the White Eye and took the revolver from his holster.
"Ebner, don't be so nervous. It's me!" At this moment, Roman suddenly changed his voice behind him, and his fluent Loenese accent became slightly southern.
"Judy?" Ebner was slightly relieved, but he still did not let down his guard. He asked in confusion, "Why did you come here in the image of my classmate?"
"It's me… Your classmate suffered a huge blow because of her fiancé. She jumped off the Tussock River last night and only survived after I saved her… She's currently recuperating in the Harvest Church and is under Cullen's care. You can visit her at any time." Afraid that Ebner would misunderstand, Judy explained everything in one go.
"After learning from her that you're her classmate, I felt that her identity was much better than the one I had prepared earlier. After all, you two are classmates. Even if you attend the ball together, you won't arouse much suspicion."
"I see…" Ebner nodded, then asked, "And how did Susan get involved?"
"Sigh, don't mention it. Not long after I disguised myself as Roman and moved into her house, this Miss Susan came to me on her own accord. She seemed to have been tortured by etiquette for too long and kept chatting with me… I had no choice but to change the topic about her fiance's betrayal. Who knew that I would be dragged here by the indignant her…" Judy sighed and continued, "Originally, I wanted to help Roman investigate the possible problems with the person she was engaged to and use it as compensation for temporarily occupying her identity."
"But now, I can only rely on you."