Eva stood in the middle of the lobby, staring intently at the nervous, mousy man in front of her. In her hands were now a letter that was addressed for her by none other than Dex Miller. At first, she had thought it was something about the riverside spirit they had seen some weeks ago when Eva was in Orch but now, reading the contents of the letter again and again, Eva was starting to get increasingly annoyed at what this man wanted from her. Of course, she refrained from taking it out on the man that took the letter to her. He was already shaking just from being out in her presence and Eva didn’t feel sadistic enough to do anything more about it. She sent him off with a flick of her hand and went in, climbing up the long round stairs to her room, the same luxury hotel they had stayed in the last time.

Eva had actually came back to Orchidia for training. With the threat of Grimoire Heart looming in the corner, Eva knew she had to get herself up to shape. It would break her heart and confidence if she was left doing nothing in the oncoming war. It would have been quite nice if they had more information about that dark guild, too. Shrouded in mysteries, Grimoire Heart stood as a piece of puzzle to all Council and Rune Knight members.

Throwing on whatever that she saw in her closet, Eva knocked on Hanase san’s door, informing him that she will be out for a while once he came out before leaving him half annoyed at the fact that Eva was already doing something dangerous right after one day of arriving in another town. He sighed and let her go, however, closing the door behind him to get to his own work of managing the most troublesome model he had ever came across.

Once she arrived at the location, an almost abandoned café, she met Dex much like how she met him the very first time. He quickly moved his attention over to her when she noticed Eva approaching, slowly standing up to greet her with a blank expression which Eva returned with a strained smile.

As they settled down, Eva and Dex got into a conversation about how they were going to stage what could be the most perfect stunt ever to get him acknowledged by anyone and everyone to be the greatest detective he was. It was probably his or maybe it was her luck that kept Eva from showing him the same shocked expression she wanted to. Inwardly, she was trying to figure out what had hit this man’s head so hard but at the mention of high rewards, Eva thought for a second, put on a polite smile and nodded, letting him go on about what more he needed out of her. This plan, she sighed, she hoped no Rune Knight or other officials would see her doing it.

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As they finally settled on what they were going to do, Eva now completely aware of what Dex wanted to happen, they started discussing about whatever they need and what nots for the whole plan to come together and succeed. He asked her to gather a huge amount of animal blood first and continued on about what he was going to do about it despite Eva’s scrunched up expression telling him he isn’t going at it the right way.

For a few minutes, Eva kept asking him if he was sur that this is what he wanted to do. As harmless of a prank as it was, as a Rune Knight, Eva knew that what Dex was about to do could lead him to get quite a bit of warning from the Rune Knights, incidentally a faction that she belonged to. In the end, if it was found out, Eva would also be on the list of those who would get scolded and her lieutenant position will be out of question for not trying to stop him like a normal person.

So when the man didn’t budge in his quest to stage the perfect fake crime, Eva sighed, agreed, and went out, making a straight line towards the nearest salon. For a day and for one day only, Eva decided to dye her hair black, using soft temporary dyes that would give her enough color but won’t last even one wash. She made sure that she was specific with all the changes she was getting done on herself, letting them style her hair up in a way that made it seem like Eva had short hair instead of her truly flowing blonde one. Along with it, Eva got herself a hooded black top and some baggy pants all put together with strong enough makeup to make her seem like someone ele, complete with a pair of black framed glasses.

With that, Eva went to the nearest butcher, looking around for the first ingredient they needed for the crime. She received a big bag of animal blood from the butcher, right after talking to him calmly about it. Despite him seeing to be suspicious, probably due to the calm and professional voice she used, he let her go with the large bag, telling her specifically to hold it carefully lest the bag spilled and everything was ruined.

Half disgusted but half careful of what she needed to do, Eva went to the forge next, going through several weapons and whatnots to specifically pick up a few ones that looked completely worn out and used. Although Dex had asked her to steal it, Eva’s Rune Knight persona made her drop a bunch of coins in the counter before she moved on, using the alleyways to get to the location that Dex said he would meet her in once she had gathered everything necessary for the so called crime that they were going to do. She kept the bag of blood and weapons close to her as she made the last turn.
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Eva was almost there in the alleyway of the café they had met in, just a few steps away when she felt a hand grab her wrist and pull her behind another building. Eva turned around promptly to come face to face with a Rune Knight, her features paling drastically at the sight of the familiar ankh symbol that she herself bore on her collar. She gulped, looking down at the suspicious items in her hand and groaning. There was no way out of this unless she could explain the whole plan to him and let him be in on it which she wasn’t sure if Dex would like at all.

But once the Rune Knight started telling her how she had no choice but to either tell him what’s going on and defend herself or go to jail with him with no other option. He noticed that the blood in her hands belonged to an animal and not a human but that still didn’t stop her from having to explain what was going on to him, which, after a while to trying to hold back, she did, finally giving into the duty she carried as a Rune Knight.

Of course Eva made sure to keep her own identity a secret, telling him only what she wanted him to know and nothing more. But the story made enough sense and Eva made sure to tell him that they were not doing anything illegal but only doing a job that is nothing less than a farce at that moment that would satisfy her client enough so that he won’t do anything far more stupid than this in the future. At that, the Rune Knight seemed to have given it a good thought and then silently nodded, telling her he would go along with it and even help her but that she would have to do this under his jurisdiction which Eva was more than fine with seeing as she won’t have to feel she was doing something wrong anymore.

They held their conversation for a while longer with Eva explaining to him about how she was going to set up a scene much like mimicking some old crime and then Dex finally showing up to cast his pseudo detective charm on the whole case. The Rune Knight had looked just as confused as she had when the plan was explained to her first. He even asked her if this Dex fellow was mental to which she giggled and said maybe. Shaking his head, he gestures his hands to go on, do whatever she wanted to do and Eva moved along to the alleyway that Dex had picked up to get the whole thing done. The Rune Knight behind her kept instructing her that this so called investigation will now be under the rightful watch of the Council which Eva shrugged and nodded, very much fine with that. Although she didn’t forget to think of the expression he might make once he learns that she was a Rune Knight herself, a seated knight no less.

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Now with the ‘rightful’ watch of the ‘magic council’ right behind her, Eva started decorating what could be the perfect faked crime in history ever. She slowly undid the knot to the bag with animal blood, putting on a pair of gloves before she emptied it on the floor in a splatter that made it seem like real blood all drawn out from some violent crime done against some poor soul. Eva managed to recreate one of the murder scenes she had witnessed herself as a Rune Knight page, letting the blood pool in an imperfect circle, making sure that the angle and size were right. In fact, she seemed to have managed to spook the Rune Knight behind her off with the kind of precision she was treating the whole thing with,

Once the bloodied scene was done, Eva proceeded to ‘decorate’ the gruesome murder site with the worn out weapons she had got from the forge, scattering it all around in an attempt to make it seem like someone had struggled desperately for their life there but was not given the chance to utter any sort of noise for herself or himself. For an added effect, Eva took an axe and slammed it down with all her strength over one of the gavbage cans, making it stick to it in what seemed like someone using it to strike some poor prey.

When she turned around to face the Rune Knight with the scene complete, she held back a giggle from the frightened and startled expression he held. ‘Is it over?’ he had asked once she approached him and Eva nodded, saying the scene was complete but the act wasn’t. That on her signal, she needed him to act like he had never seen her at all. Once they conversed about whatever that is needed after this, Eva began to channel her magic. She decided to keep her more flashy magic spells behind. After all, if someone traced her through her rather special magic, Eva knew she would be done for. Plus, even though the Rune Knights still didn’t know that she was owner of Heavenly Body magic, she knew that it wouldn’t be too long till they found out what with her going to be one of the few they have their eyes on as prospective lieutenants and later captains. Basically, they had a lot of expectations on her as much as they had on a few others and they would most surely look into her magic once they know she had not been using her wind magic that she registered with. This meant that they would soon look for the magic she now holds and it would lead to the discovery of Heavenly Body magic. After that, there was no doubt that they would make her seem as some Rune Knight superstar. Sure, a lot of rare magic existed but Heavenly Body was definitely a top tier one and even Eva was scared to know that she carried it with her.

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With that, she gathered her magic power in one blinding ball of light. For anyone looking from the outside, it was nothing but pure light magic. However, in Eva’s eyes, the ball of light swirled around like a mini planet that she planted on the floor to watch it expand and then go boom to make an awful lot of noise. She made sure that the Rune Knight was closing his eyes because the ball of light that just expanded had the potential to partially blind people for a little bit. As she grabbed the man and turned around to shield him from the light, Eva looked back to see if what she did had gathered enough attention or not. She potentially heard some whispers and a few clatters but no one seemed to have taken it easily enough to come running towards the area. She could guess why. The alleyway they were using was in the less than savory part of the time and she sort of understood people’s mindset to ignore anything that could potentially drag them into trouble as well.

But really, did people have to avoid everything? Eva felt slightly irritated to see that not a single man had come running to them yet. In the end, Eva cast another spell, this one slightly stronger than before. She created a small ball of light and let it explode again. This time, instead of a blinding effect, the spell actually did some damage, shaking the ground underneath them for a bit as she stood smirking at the sight. The Rune Knight behind her seemed to have gone somewhat in shock at the way she had chosen to handle it, but snapping out only to immediately move up in front of her. He prepared himself to act like a real Rune Knight, himself, as he gestured with his hand to move away. She raised an eyebrow at that but obeyed just as she heard numerous footsteps coming in their direction. Her job was complete. She had prepared the stage for the most perfect faked crime in Orchidia’s history, of course, courtesy of Dex Miller, a wannabe so called detective whom longed to show the world that he was the real deal. She wasn’t sure how much of his plans would work now that a real Rune Knight was also there to take over the matters but she guessed that they would figure something out together. Her job was done and there was no need for lingering anymore. The scene was perfect, bloody and gory enough for the fake crime to appear as a real one, especially since Eva had used her own experiences as a Rune Knight to create it. Although she contemplated her morale for a bit on the matter, having remembered crimes so perfectly, Eva swept the thoughts away as soon as they formed, immediately hiding in the shadows behind the alleyway to see what people were going to do. Expectedly enough, they had just the reaction she wanted.
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They stood gasping and recoiling. The scene was bloody enough to make most of them close their eyes and look away. The more courageous ones, mostly men stepped up and examined the scene in detail only to cringe and fall back afterwards. So far, it did not seem as if anyone had figured out that it was animal blood and the setup was completely fake. The Rune Knight, surprisingly, was doing a good job acting oblivious to the whole situation. Funny how Rune Knights, the protectors and military of proud magic council had its best people that knew just how to manipulate and trick people like any dark mage. They knew crime like the back of their hand simply because they worked with it on a daily basis and knew exactly how to act and knew exactly what to say. They were masters in all sorts of trickery as well. The only difference between them were that one faction worked for the so called greater good while the other stayed completely true to their selfish desires, which was kind of cool only if they didn’t leave a path of destruction behind. Staying true to one’s desires was a good thing in Eva’s eyes but only if it did not hurt people that has nothing to do with it.

She quickly ran through the shadows once enough crowd was attracted, moving swiftly in the cold night, letting her now black hair run free as she hastily removed the hooded top and placed it on her shoulder. Letting the glasses slip off her face, Eva transformed into any normal passerby, only coming out of the shadows far away from the incident so as to not get herself involved in it. From the corner of her eyes, however, she noticed Dex Miller approach her with a victorious grin on his face. The man had finally gotten what he wanted and he was far too happy about it. She wasn’t sure if she was doing the right thing by fooling so many people but she guessed that it was a harmless prank still and if somehow this man had fun with it, she didn’t mind enough either. Only, tomorrow, she wanted to go over the river spirit incident again. He was far too curious about what had happened to it. Since she left in the middle of the investigation, she had not heard of anything about it at all which she intended to change once this was over.

The pouch of coins that fell on her palm was quickly hidden away in her pockets as she watched the man in black part the sea of crowd like a particular legendary man that parted the sea and walk to the center as if he was some professional detective about to discover the hidden mysteries. “Mysteries, my ass,” Eva snorted under her breath, drawing the hooded top over her once more, only, this time, she left the hood down and walked away, letting herself blend with the crowd that now pattered over to the site of a perfect crime.
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