"You wanted to see me?" Marvin asked as he entered the Governor's office.
Usually, he would have greeted the Governor like a friend, but he was a bit nervous due to the timing of the talk.
Had he said something wrong during the meeting?
Nick paced around a bit and sighed.
"I'm not sure about something, and I need your advice, Marvin," Nick said.
Marvin became relieved. "Sure, what's up?" he asked more casually as he sat down.
Nick turned around and looked at him. "The way the city has been operating is risky."
Marvin became interested. "What do you mean?"
"We are knowingly working with Lust, and while I seem quite calm on the surface, I am actually quite worried about the inspection."
'He's not denying it. As expected,' Nick thought.
"It has worked up until now, but I'm not sure if it will persist. Also, I'm already a Mid Hero, and I can't advance anymore since the Baby Factory is only an Early Demon."
Marvin became a bit surprised. "You always said that you don't want to become an Agent."
"Of course I said that," Nick said with a bit of annoyance. "I wanted to make it seem like I would always be here and that there was nothing to fear despite working with Lust."
Nick sighed. "Also, I truly believed it at the time. It's just that age changes people. I'm starting to look at a more adventurous life more favorably."
"I'll be frank with you. I want to get out of this entire Lust business."
Marvin took a deep breath. "Those are dangerous words," he said.
"I know," Nick answered in a serious tone. "But I think you are the right person to talk to about this matter."
Marvin seemed a bit surprised.
"Oh, please," Nick said with an eye roll. "You think the Magnanimous Marvin moniker is just a joke? Your true personality is out in the open for everyone to see. You're not as good at lying as you think you are."
Marvin looked at Nick for a while before sighing. "Alright, yeah, you got me. It's just… have you seen the outer circle?"
"Everyone knows what's going on out there, but no one wants to take a look," Nick said. "Me included."
"Are you willing to help me with this?" Nick asked.
Marvin took a deep breath as if there was a mountain of work in front of him.
"I'll think about it. Don't get me wrong! I always wanted such an opportunity, but now that it's here, it's a lot to take in," Marvin said.
Nick nodded. "I get it. Please give me your answer within the next three days, and please don't tell this to the others."
Marvin nodded. "No worries. I will keep it a secret."
"Thanks, Marvin."
The two of them said their goodbyes, and Marvin left the office.
A moment later, Nick told his secretary that he didn't want to be disturbed for the next six hours before vanishing from the office.
Nick quickly caught up to Marvin and secretly followed him.
'While he seems trustworthy, I have to make sure. People only show their true selves when nobody is watching. Might be that he's just an amazing actor.'
Marvin just did his job for the next hours, and he did not seem different in any way.
But then, he met somebody.
It was the CEO of the second-largest Manufacturer, the secret Specter.
"Stan is getting cold feet," Marvin told the Expert with a cold voice. "He just told me that he wants out."
The Specter didn't seem surprised. "Tell me the details."
Marvin repeated everything Nick had said to the Specter, who remained silent.
"I didn't think that he would change his mind suddenly," the Specter said.
"I also didn't expect that," Marvin answered, "but apparently, he's had his doubts for a long time. He's probably just very good at staying hidden."
"I'll talk to Lord Lust," the Specter said.
Marvin nodded coldly. "I'll talk to Lady Sloth."
Nick's eyes narrowed as he watched.
This took him by surprise.
'He actually got me,' Nick thought. 'He only acted like he had a heart, but in truth, he's probably also a Specter, except that he follows Sloth, not Lust!'
'Influences from two Corruptors in the same city. I've never seen that before. Although Lust and Sloth are the only ones truly working together. Their territories are also side by side. It would make sense that they would keep each other's backs safe.'
'Marvin is quite good at acting. He even got me. Luckily, I followed him.'
Nick watched as the weaker Specter left the room.
'That's my chance!'
He followed the Specter towards an isolated house near the outskirts of the city.
There, he saw the Specter opening a secret trapdoor.
Nick followed after the Specter, and sure enough, he saw a Greater Relay!
From his hiding spot, Nick watched the Specter activate the Greater Relay, and Nick remembered the method the Specter used for the future.
This time, Nick didn't remain anywhere near the Greater Relay after the Specter activated it and retreated far away.
He didn't want to be found by Lord Lust just yet.
Thanks to his ability, Nick could tell that Lord Lust hadn't noticed him.
Several minutes later, the Specter walked out from the trapdoor, and Nick followed it.
The two Specters met up again.
"We're switching," the weaker Specter said.
"I already heard," the stronger Specter said.
Everything else was communicated via voice transmission, and Nick couldn't hear in on them.
However, he knew that they would be changing the leadership of the city.
With Aegis' inspection on the horizon, they didn't want to take any chances.
They would just expose themselves, let the Baby Factory die, and slowly reshape the city.
Marvin would most likely tell Aegis about what was going on in secret, and since Aegis was lacking in manpower, they might even consider him as a substitute Governor.
If that happened, things would be much easier.
However, even if Aegis didn't do that, the Specters still had a backup plan.
They just needed to let a new Demon working for Sloth get captured, which would slowly reshape the city into another one of Sloth's paradises.
The amazing thing about Sloth was that they didn't even need to have somebody in the government who secretly controlled things.
Sloth's Specters gave the humans what they wanted, and they would do everything Sloth wanted without even thinking about it.
'At least, that's how I think things will go down,' Nick thought.
The next moment, Nick secretly went to the city's console and contacted Aegis.
This time, he used his credentials as a special Agent.
He ordered an inspection of the city and told them what to do.
The inspectors would act like they had already killed the Governor in secret as they killed the other leaders.
Nick also ordered them to follow Sloth's presumed plan.
Nick didn't explain why since he had to keep everything secret.
Most likely, that specific order would elicit suspicion, and the inspectors would ask the Technician or the Left Arm for confirmation.
Naturally, they would give confirmation, and the plan would come into effect.
Lastly, Nick added that they should wait for the inspection until Marvin contacted them.
After all, Nick didn't want to elicit any suspicion.
He wanted Sloth's plan to go as smoothly as possible.
Nick sent all the details and turned back into the Governor.
For the next two days, Nick just acted like the Governor, but he kept his Barrier connected to the city console the entire time.
Finally, Nick got a message.
'The inspection will happen tomorrow. They were contacted by Marvin,' Nick thought. 'Seems like I was right.'
Nick told his secretary that he would be taking the day off and would spend it alone.
Then, the current Governor of the city vanished for the last time.
Nick quickly searched for the Specter working for Lust and followed it.
After not even a single hour, the Specter went to the Greater Relay again.
But this time, it didn't activate the Greater Relay.
Instead, it put the Greater Relay in a huge sack and fled the city.
Naturally, the Specter would know that it would be killed as an accomplice when the inspection happened, and it wouldn't let itself get killed by Aegis.
Specters were interested in their own survival above all, and even if Lord Lust ordered this Specter to die, the Specter wouldn't comply.
A high chance of death was still better than certain death.
Naturally, the Baby Factory would be sacrificed, but that was an expected loss.
Nick followed the Specter to its new hideout, which was inside a cave in the middle of nowhere.
For a couple of days, the Specter just stood in the cave, facing the wall.
'Guess it's just waiting.'
Then, exactly five days after leaving, the Specter moved and went to activate the Greater Relay.
'Now's my chance!'
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