The Strange Adventures of Hearn the Believer

Unless the book itself is of great value or is a magical artifact with immense spiritual power, relying solely on her connections to search for it would essentially mean certain defeat in advance.

"Zzzzzzz...zzzzzzZ..."

Even though it was already past 8 a.m., the moon's serenade continued to play melodiously.

A sudden feeling of irritation arose in Domi's heart, the source of which she was unsure whether it was the serenade of the drunkard beside her or the sorrowful expression of the beauty before her.

In short, under the influence of this agitation, Dominic instinctively threw a punch at the groin of the sleeping Lord Hearn.

Dominique, who grew up in a remote corner on the border of the Ninth Prison, had a vivid childhood memory of how the best way to make a male demon, who was much larger than her, fall from consciousness into a coma or quickly wake up from a coma in an asymmetrical confrontation was to violently beat his groin.

This highly efficient method can be simply called disarming someone, or more precisely, confiscating their tools of the crime. To put it in more extreme terms, it's called... well, never mind.

In short, this is just a little bit of self-defense that Miss Dominic, the little devil who grew up in a small town where survival of the fittest prevails...

This tactic remains highly effective today.

The evidence is that Domi's fist stopped just a hair's breadth away from its destination and could not move forward an inch, while the drunkard who had been sleeping soundly in a "T" shape finally woke up.

"Going back is none of my business."

The demon named Hearn, the Believer, awoke abruptly. She first glared at Dominic with bared teeth, then shook off her claws. Afterward, she rolled her eyes listlessly, showing no sign of caring, and instead dismissed her.

“Hearn!” Dominic knew that this guy occasionally took on side jobs. After all, his regular job as a pianist at a nightclub in Gomorrah Bay didn’t earn him enough to support his extravagant lifestyle. He had connections in the area that Dominic didn’t have, and he was also a dissolute womanizer…

In Domi's mind, this guy should be happy to take on this silver-haired beauty's private job, and then use the opportunity to build a relationship and do her a favor, and eventually trick Miss Vanmillion into... cough, it's really too despicable—that's what she meant.

To be honest, Miss Domi was quite pleased that Lady Hearn would take on this job and go through the extra procedures. This was because Miss Vanmillion was simply too much of a target for her, to the point that she suddenly thought it would be quite profitable to use her gender to give Hearn a couple of bites in exchange for a ticket to join in. As for the "ticket money," she'd consider it a waste of money…

"What merit do I possess to be able to spend my remaining days with a beast like you in the twilight of my life?"

"what?"

"Next time you're up to no good, remember not to completely let go of your facial expressions."

Dominic, belatedly realizing what was happening, was shocked. She looked at the full-length mirror in the living room with suspicion, only to be met with a pretty face that was equally surprised and uncertain. Looking back at Miss Van Mielion, she saw a confused and bewildered expression... Only then did she realize that she had been tricked by Hern.

"In short, Miss Vanmillion, although I don't know from which source you heard my name, unfortunately, the result is the same. In my opinion, going to find a book that is worthless to me is not in line with my behavior logic. Being able to lie at home and sleep peacefully in this foggy and rainy weather is already a blessing for me. After all, I have to go to the store every night and be forced to work until the early hours of the morning. Not everyone has the energy to play this kind of childish game after work."

Hearn gave a nonchalant reply and adopted a dismissive attitude.

“Of course, I won’t let you work for nothing, Your Excellency Hern.” Miss Vanmillion was not annoyed at all; on the contrary, she gladly added.

"Heh... So how about staying tonight? A beautiful lady like you is enough reason for me to skip work, and the boss's wife should understand." After a short chuckle, Hern's expression turned mocking and malicious.

"Hmm? What do you mean by staying?" Miss Vanmillion tilted her head, seemingly puzzled.

“Well done, Hern… cough, I mean, how could you be so rude? Miss Van Mielion is a distinguished guest introduced by Miss Iota…” Dominic’s applause lasted only one beat before it stopped abruptly. In this atmosphere, she needed to step up as a champion of justice.

"eventful."

For some reason, after Dominic mentioned the name Iota, the devil named Hearn the Believer became impatient, so much so that his affectionate invitation a moment earlier lost its appeal and he stopped mentioning it.

He threw down the bottle and went to the balcony alone. With a soft bang, the faint scent of tobacco drifted in from outside the balcony on the wind.

“Since you know Iota, you can ask her to do it for you. Finding a book in Gomorrah is not difficult for her. She is not on the same level as us lowly devils. If you are close enough to her, you should know this.”

The second time, the host asked the visitors to leave.

“Miss Iota believes that entrusting this commission to Lord Hern is the most appropriate choice.” Miss Lily Van Mielion’s tone remained unchanged, still warm and gentle.

"That's hilarious. According to that woman's logic, I'm the best person to do all the jobs in Gomorrah. She can't stand me being idle for even a second."

"Actually, besides searching for that book, I also want to ask Lord Hern to help me find the person who went missing along with that book."

"Wonderful. The lost and found has been upgraded to a daycare center. Why don't you try your luck at the Guxin family's agency? They are the most professional in human resources dispatch."

"What can I do to get you to accept this commission calmly, Lord Hern?" Miss Vanmillion's expression finally turned serious, clearly realizing that it would be difficult to break the current deadlock without taking some action.

“Give up, leave here, or offer a price I can’t refuse.” The believer slowly drew smoke rings, her playful side emerging.

“Hearn, how about we…” Dominic walked onto the balcony and whispered his advice.

"Domi."

"..."

Dominic had always known that Hearn, the believer, was a devil of the highest order.

Strictly speaking, his behavior is actually very much in line with the devilish behavior of classicism: he never does good deeds indiscriminately, he will not act without a profit, he must agree on the payment before taking action, and if he is not satisfied, he will go back to his energy-saving life. In addition, he attaches great importance to the spirit of contracts.

In conclusion, he is almost the quintessential classical devil.

Apart from……

"Miss Van Mielion, may we speak privately for a moment?"

Recalling a somewhat unusual experience, Dominic sighed and then extended an invitation to Miss Van Mielion.

……

In the study, separated by several walls, Dominic turned around and faced today's visitor.

"Although it may be a bit abrupt, if Miss Vanmillion insists on having Hern handle this matter no matter what, we might as well go for something more conventional."

"Miss Domi, what do you mean?"

“Hearne… I haven’t known him for very long, but I know that dealing with him through personal favors is the most troublesome. Actually, didn’t he just say that you should offer him a price he can’t refuse, like when he asked me to buy wine before? Use that logic to deal with him, instead of hoping to persuade him through personal favors. I think that will be more effective. Actually… he’s not such a bad person.”

At this point, Miss Van Mielion's curiosity became clear.

"Miss Domi, is something that happened in the past?"

"I don't know either. Like I said, I've only known him for two months, but..."

"but?"

"However, all I know is that when dealing with the devil Hearn, as long as you follow the principle of equivalent exchange, everything will fall into place."

……

Twenty minutes later, Dominic Antofil got back into her car, with Miss Lily Van Mielion still by her side, just as she had arrived. The only difference was that a lecherous man was lying in the back seat, pretending to be asleep, with a rather new postcard covering his face.

That was the clue that Miss Lily Van Mielion resubmitted after returning to the living room. It was last sent from Gomorrah City, on the date of half a month ago, and signed by Angelina Van Mielion.

Domi had no hope of getting this, and even doubted whether he had conveyed it wrong. But unexpectedly, when the listless devil saw the signature at the end of the postcard, he inexplicably agreed to go with him.

"Could it be that one of his lovers has gone missing..."

During the brief moment he pressed the accelerator, Dominic quietly stuck out his tongue and secretly speculated.

……

Chapter 252 Good Morning, Good Afternoon, Good Night (Part 3)

"Good morning, Job, I have something to ask you..."

……

"Long time no see, Jasmine. Have any girls like this come to the shop lately?"

……

"Gwen..."

"No."

"I haven't even asked yet..."

"Dominic, you know our store. If a girl goes missing in the store, she's probably in a can of luncheon meat right now."

"..."

……

what--

As he stepped onto the dark alleyway stairs leading back to the surface, Dominic looked down at the postcard in his hand in the dim light, lamenting the tragic fate of the girl named Angelina Van Milion, who was probably already in grave danger.

The back of this postcard, sent from Gomorrah City two weeks ago, boldly displays a sunny scene—a bright red-haired girl with an enviable amount of hair, radiating a luminous smile, wearing a light-colored trench coat, and the Azeran Lighthouse, a landmark of the Gomorrah Bay area. The photo was taken on a pleasant afternoon when the sea fog had dissipated and the purple sunlight was just right.

Dominic stared blankly at the girl's smile for a while, then mechanically grinned and tried to make the same expression, then felt his jaw almost leave her.

It was a kind of clean, refreshing, and bright expression that made Dominic feel genuinely clean and refreshed, just like she had felt when she first met Miss Lily Van Mielion outside the foggy train station.

A devil can't laugh like that, not even a devil from a tiny, obscure place like her. It's a feeling that only an individual who genuinely believes in something bright and warm can express.

The sinners of Gomorrah cannot, Dominic cannot, and neither can that guy…

"?"

After leaving his acquaintance's bar, Dominic returned to the ground, then looked puzzled.

On the side of a not-so-dim alley, a black luxury car was parked all alone. A silver-haired beauty stood alone outside the car, holding a packaging bag that looked somewhat familiar to Domi. Like a little squirrel, she was taking small bites of a baked flatbread from a famous shop nearby.

It's a restaurant that highly values ​​freedom in ingredient selection, has a decent taste, and enjoys good popularity in the Bay Area. The flagship store is located on the next street.

However, before getting off the train, Dominic remembered that she had reminded Miss Van Mielion that this was a dangerous place and that she should avoid acting alone unless necessary.

Miss Van Mielion noticed Dominique's return and greeted her warmly. Although Dominique felt very welcome, she still raised her doubts and concerns.

The reason is simple: by any standard of evaluation, Miss Lily Van Mielion is the fattest sheep imaginable.

“It was Lord Hern who suggested having breakfast. He pointed out the location of the shop, which isn’t far away.” Miss Vanmillion handed an extra scones to Dominic, her smile undiminished.

"Hearn!"

Dominic was truly baffled by Mr. Hearn's reckless decision to put his client in such a dangerous situation. After learning the details, Dominic felt a surge of anger. She leaned into the back seat of the car, questioning him with a hint of feigned anger, only to find it completely empty.

"..."

"What about others?"

Dominic straightened up again.

Miss Van Mirion paused, then pointed enigmatically to the roof of the car. Dominic glanced at it, and then everything went black.

On the roof of the black luxury car assigned and maintained by the boss, a dog, or rather, a dog-like devil, was fast asleep, completely drunk. He was holding a bag of biscuits in his left hand and an empty wine bottle in his right.

Dominic wasn't unaware of what kind of person Hearn was; she knew he was a lazy dog ​​whose determination and execution were constantly fluctuating, comparable to a sit-up. Yet, even so, after agreeing to go out and work, he immediately slacked off and even made clients run errands to buy him breakfast. Now he was either asleep or unconscious on the roof of a vehicle... and so on.

Seeing this, Dominic felt that his low blood pressure was almost cured.

To calm his blood pressure, Dominic climbed into the car, sat in the driver's seat, and skillfully started the black monster—the wheels spun forward more than ten times, and "debris" rolled down from the roof.

Miss Van Mirion, looking surprised in the rearview mirror, covered her mouth, speechless. Dominic, who had stopped the car and dismounted, felt a headache coming on and was helpless.

"Ah, hey..."

In the alley, two women looked at each other in bewilderment; behind the car, a lazy dog ​​seemed to wake up from a dream.

Good morning, Dominic.

The black-haired youth stood up as if nothing had happened, his gaze returning from a blank stare to focus, then revealing a dreamlike smile that seemed to come from another world, before giving Domi a casual hug.

"Hearn, you motherfucker..."

Dominic was taken aback for a moment, then burst into a tirade of curses.

In principle, being hugged by a guy that both men and women would want to hug would be a pleasant thing for Domi, provided that his hands are not covered in biscuit crumbs or wine stains.

"Just kidding, just kidding."

The lazy dog, taking a step back, displayed a pair of smooth, jade-like hands as if to prove his innocence, and his little skill, which he claimed came from the East, came into play again unintentionally.

"you……"

"So, what was the result?"

The black-haired youth ended his tedious morning jokes and leaned against the door of Domi's car in his usual unserious manner, a blue flame flickering between his fingers, igniting wisps of smoke.

"Not really. My limited social circle is clearly not enough to help me easily find a stranger who disappeared in Gomorrah and her book."

Dominic is a shrewd and perceptive person; without such keen insight, she wouldn't have survived unscathed in hell to this day. For now, she calmly accepts that her attempts have been futile and hopes that this lazy dog ​​will bring a turning point to the stalled investigation.

"Since the common approach of naive young girls getting lost in nightclubs isn't working, why don't you try a different approach?"

Ms. Iota appointed you, not me. I'm just a driving assistant. It's fine if I do some chores when you're slacking off, but do you really expect me to solve the problem?

Whether it was the mocking expression that made him feel hot-blooded or because he hadn't slept well that morning, for a moment Domi almost spat his saliva and these "heartfelt words" in his face.

"Then just tell me what to do. Miss Vanmillion is still waiting, whether it's this one or that one. In any case, our time ends before sunset today."

Before sunset, it would be Miss Vanmillion's return time. Miss Iota had specifically reminded her that this silver-haired beauty's stay in Gomorrah was limited.

"Since chatting with bartenders at bars isn't working, why not try finding paparazzi who are well-informed and even more enthusiastic about gossip?"

“Hearn, you mean—” Dominic realized what he meant, glanced down at his watch, and calculated the remaining time.