Wizard: Surviving in the Steam Age with Points for Demon Hunter

Chapter 74 Encounter Progress: 50%

Does it have the attention of Yogfried, the God of Contracts...?

It seems that this is a deity who, like the Lord of Dawn, has not fallen into slumber.

"Transaction complete," Claire said, carefully putting away the contract. "You must keep this relic of the era safe. If you lose it, you'll be punished!"

Wei En put the book into his spatial ring and said irritably, "As long as you don't do anything malicious, no third person should know about this."

However, after signing the equal contract, he breathed a sigh of relief, at least for the time being he no longer had to worry about Claire trying to assassinate him.

"Of course not, huh?"

Claire turned her head and glanced behind her. "Looks like you're not being honest, Investigator Wayne."

Wayne also noticed Lacey and the others heading this way. "This can only mean that you are too strong."

"I was hoping to spend more time with you, but never mind, see you next time."

Claire rose lightly, appearing behind him in the blink of an eye. She pressed close to his back, whispered in his ear, "Next time I'll allow you to look openly~"

Wei En felt a tickle in his ears, and the hairs on his body stood on end. "Look, look at what?"

"Giggle~"

Claire did not answer; her figure slowly disappeared, leaving only her silvery laughter.

"Sir Quillough, there's a very good restaurant here. I hope you enjoy it..."

"Damn it, those Vasques in the Laos district should just rot there, not everywhere..."

"Breaking news! The City-State Secret Investigation Bureau's Death Birds..."

Hearing the surrounding sounds rush into his ears again, Wayne breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed he had escaped the illusion.

Fortunately, Claire wasn't here to assassinate him this time; otherwise, when Lacey and the others arrived, they would only be able to collect his body.

Just then, Lacey and Marco rushed over. "Wein, are you alright? Is Claire here again? Where is she?"

"She left. She left after seeing you come over."

"She didn't lay a hand on you?" Marco looked around to make sure nothing was amiss before asking.

"No, she probably didn't have time. She didn't expect me to have this."

Wayne pulled the 'alarm' out of his pocket and waved it. "I have to thank the captain for giving me this, otherwise she might have already made her move."

"Damn Claire, she was so badly injured yesterday, how dare she come here today."

Lacey's expression didn't improve at all because of his thanks. "Did she say anything?"

Wei En said, half-jokingly, "She's a bit crazy. She said she wants compensation from me, blames me for getting her injured, and said she's very interested in my body. I don't quite understand what she means by that..."

Marco thought it sounded familiar; he seemed to remember Claire saying the same thing to him last time.

"Then you'd better be careful. Claire said that because she wants to turn you into her puppet."

"what?"

Lacey's expression grew even angrier. "Did that bastard Yegor even take this matter to heart? He promised to..."

At that moment, a buzzing sound interrupted her.

"Hmm? Why are you summoning me at this time?"

Lacey turned to look at the Secret Investigation Division not far away, her brows furrowed.

Wei En asked, puzzled, "What's wrong?"

He noticed that the sounds were coming from her earrings, an amber-colored earring that looked like intricate gears, and was... ugly.

"A summons from the higher-ups," Lacey adjusted her earring. "Marco, take Wayne back first, I need to leave for a bit."

"it is good."

"...You go ahead with your work, we'll talk about my business when you get back."

"Wein,"

Lacey looked at him solemnly and said, "Regarding Claire's matter, I will apply to the higher-ups again. Don't worry, I will absolutely not let her run amok in Castor."

"Um."

Wei En nodded, feeling a warmth in his heart.

Regardless, they were genuinely concerned for his safety, it's just that they arrived a bit late...

When Wayne returned to his office, he was surprised to find that Tina had already returned and was sitting quietly at his desk, fiddling with a clown doll.

Before he could speak, a red notification message appeared in his mind.

[You have indirectly come into contact with the forbidden item 1-83, the Demon Clown, which has altered your destiny. Current encounter progress: 50/100. Comment: Fate always brings misfortune, and so does the forbidden.]

Special Rewards: Survival Points +20, Origin Points +2, Resilience Level +3, Spirit Level +3.

Indirect contact?

Wayne's gaze fell on the clown doll in Tina's hand.

Is that the Demon Clown?

Do not,

It shouldn't be.

If that's the case, the progress shouldn't just be 50%, but rather that we've already encountered it!

Thinking this, Wayne forced a smile. "Tina, when did you get back?"

"Tina, last night."

The white-haired girl turned to look at him, jumped down from the high-backed chair, and hopped over, dragging a clown doll that was about the same size as her.

Then, under Wayne's surprised gaze, she took his hand.

"Tina, you..."

That lively, bouncy gait, paired with that lifeless, empty face, just felt a little off...

Besides, she didn't walk like this before, did she?

Marco returned to his seat and casually said, "She was like this when I saw her this morning. Lacey said it was a side effect of that, and she'll be fine in a few days."

"I see."

When the incident was mentioned, a hint of tenderness flashed in Wayne's eyes as he patted Tina's head. "If you can smile, this is a good look."

"Tina, smile."

Upon hearing his words, Tina's lips curled into a strange smile.

Wei En only glanced at it, but cold sweat broke out on his brow.

Whose smile is so wide it reaches their ears...?

"Tina, stop. Let's not laugh anymore."

The white-haired girl's smile vanished. "Tina, I know."

"That's one of the side effects," Marco said, his expression mirroring Wayne's. "I've already suggested to Lacey that we temporarily stop sending her on missions."

"Good suggestion."

Wayne wiped the sweat from his brow and pulled Tina back to her seat.

It seems I need to keep my distance from the Dawn Church from now on. Who knows what Tina will become if this happens again?

If a catastrophic mutation were to occur... he would have no chance of surviving.

……

……

It wasn't until after lunch that Lacey finally pushed open the door and came in, looking quite annoyed.

"Hey, Commander Lacey, why are you so late?" Marco immediately went over to her.

"Get out of my way." Lacey slapped him away.

"Huh? Looks like today's meeting didn't go very well?"

Wayne stopped drawing the blueprints for the mechanical puppet he was working on, looked up at Lacey, and was also curious about what new moves the higher-ups of the Secret Investigation Division had made.

Lacey ignored him, plopped down in the high-backed chair, crossed her arms over her chest, and seemed to be deep in thought.

After a long pause, she finally said quietly, "Do you think it's possible that our Director has been replaced?"

The director was switched at birth??

Marco and Wayne exchanged a glance, both puzzled as to why he was being asked this out of the blue.

PS: Thank you to Lingyu for the generous donation.

I'll continue with three updates tomorrow, this time around midnight.

Thank you all for your support.

P.S.: Thanks to Quill Morgan for providing the cameo role of Quill. The surname Morgan is a bit out of place; I'll fix it.

(End of this chapter)