The Deceitful One

Taylor's Clothing Store.

The manager of the clothing store was a bald middle-aged man. He was sitting behind the cash counter at the moment and doing the accounts.

As he was calculating the monthly expenditure of the store, he heard the door to the store open, and a young man with black hair and black eyes, wearing a white shirt, black trousers, and a brown jacket walked in.

He was looking around the store with bright eyes. The store manager looked at the young man's clothes and couldn't help but show disdain. But he quickly hid it.

After all, this young man was his customer. Even if he couldn't afford anything in the store, the manager had to show him some basic courtesy, at least on the surface.

The young man was naturally Bryan. The clothes here all looked very fancy to him so he was delighted when he saw the collection. He approached the store manager and said, "I would like to buy a suit."

The store manager replied with a mocking look in his eyes, "Our products here are very expensive, sir. Perhaps you would like to look at the price first?"

Bryan saw the look of disdain on the store manager's face but he simply didn't care. Throughout his life, he had been looked down upon by many people. When he begged on the streets, people would sometime show him pity while most of the time they would gloat at his misfortune.

As someone who came from a wealthy family, Bryan couldn't help but be angered by the contemptuous looks directed at him in the beginning. But over time he just stopped giving a fuck. He no longer cared about what people thought of him.

Growing up in such a harsh environment, Bryan had learned things that would take normal people most of their lifetime to learn.

People would feel happy when praised but angry when cursed at. To Bryan, all these things were superficial. Who cared what others thought of him? Could their praises feed him? Could their curses provide a roof over his head?

So after hearing the store manager's words, Bryan took out the stack of one-pound notes from his pocket and flashed it in front of the store manager. "I don't have time to waste. Just show me something that can fit me."

After looking at the money in Bryan's hands, the store manager instantly had a fawning look on his face, "Right this way, sir. What color do you prefer?"

Seeing the complete change in the store manager's attitude, Bryan sighed and thought in his heart, 'At the end of the day, it's all about the money.'

After going through all the collections that the store had to offer, Bryan ended up buying 2 black suits which comprised of tailored, buttoned jackets, and a pair of pants made from the same material and color. He also bought 2 black double-breasted suit vests and 4 white shirts.

Bryan liked the color black so much that he wanted to get black shirts instead but the store manager strongly advised against it, saying that he would look as if he was attending someone's funeral.

He didn't like wearing a necktie but he still bought one. Considering all formal events required men to wear a neck tie or a bow tie. Furthermore, Bryan also bought one black trenchcoat, which he liked very much, as well as a black fedora hat and a pair of black leather shoes.

After buying all the things he needed, the total bill came up to 27 pounds. The store manager was full of smiles. After receiving the money for the transaction, he personally walked Bryan out of the store.

Bryan felt the pinch of spending so much money all at once. 'A gentleman must have good manners and wear good clothes, Bryan.' He thought about what Detective Watson had said to him and tried to ease the pain in his heart a little.

It was 1 pm by the time he reached home. He cooked himself chicken soup and had it with fresh baguettes. After finishing up his lunch he decided to meditate before leaving for Leah's place.

She had asked him to come at 6 pm, so there was still a lot of time left. Therefore, Bryan diligently started meditating and attempted to carve the 11th rune.

…

Davis Manor, 30 Augustus Street.

In a bedroom on the second floor, two beautiful young ladies were sitting on the bed and talking to each other. One had a voluptuous figure with brown hair and hazel-green eyes, she was Leah.

The other was a tall and petite young lady with blonde hair and blue eyes. She was wearing a blue dress and her hair was a bit disheveled currently.

"Grace, you've become too wild recently." Leah looked at the blond girl with blue eyes and chuckled.

"Oh, what can I do? Every time I see you, I can't control my urges." Grace replied seductively.

"Stop it! If the maids outside hear us, I'll be in trouble" Leah giggled.

"Who cares! Once we become roommates at Nadir University, we can fuck all we want." Grace spoke in an intoxicated manner.

"Yeah yeah, whatever you say. That's still two months away." Leah replied and then added, "By the way, I've also invited my friend Bryan, whom I spoke to you about. So, please don't be rude to him."

"Hmph! Is that the boy who you're fucking currently? I'll see what's so good about him." Grace snorted in displeasure.

"Hehe he's a sweet boy and he's very handsome too. He's also the student of Detective Watson who's from Nadir." Leah smiled and replied.

Grace's eyes narrowed, "You mean Detective James Watson?"

"Yes, that should be him. Is he a big shot in Nadir?" Leah asked in curiosity.

"That's right. He's a very famous detective in Nadir and he's associated with the Church of Wisdom." Grace replied but she thought inwardly, 'I heard grandpa say that Detective Watson is a Transcendent from the Church of Wisdom. Is this Bryan also a Transcendent or is training to become one under Detective Watson? Hmm, it's very likely.'

Now, Grace was really curious about Bryan. Her family was from Nadir and worshipped the God of Craftsmanship. Her grandfather, Count Robert Wilson, the current head of the Wilson Family was an Artisan Path Transcendent.

Grace was heavily doted on by her grandfather and was given the opportunity to become a Transcendent. But she refused it since she was not willing to embark on the Artisan Path.

'Maybe this Bryan can perhaps be of help to me…' Grace was in deep thought.

"Grace...Grace! What are you thinking about so deeply?" Leah brought Grace out of her reverie.

"Nothing. Just curious about Bryan." Grace replied nonchalantly.

"Ohh? Could it be you're finally interested in men now?" Leah smirked and asked teasingly.

"Hmph, how can any man hold a candle to you, my love?" Grace replied and approached Leah. She pushed Leah's shoulder and lay her down on the bed. Then she got on top of her and kissed her passionately on the lips.

Leah did not resist at all. She put her hands around Grace's neck and waged a war of tongues.

…

Meanwhile, Bryan had just finished a round of meditation. He went to the bathroom to freshen up and then took out his new suit after. He stood in front of the mirror in his bedroom and got dressed.

He wore a white shirt and tucked it into his black trousers. He then put on his necktie, thankfully Detective Watson had taught him how to tie a necktie.

He took out his black double-breast suit vest from the wardrobe and wore it on top of his shirt and tie. After all that, he finally put on his black tailored jacket.

Bryan looked at himself in the mirror and couldn't help but smile in vanity. "Hehe looking good, Mr. Lombardi!" He mumbled.

After looking at the mirror and striking some poses for a few minutes, he wore his new black leather shoes and put on his black fedora hat.

He approached the study table in the bedroom, took out his precious silver pocket watch from the drawer, and put it inside his vest pocket with its chain hooked around one of the buttons on the vest.

He walked out of his apartment after locking the door and called for a public carriage. After getting on it, he instructed the carriage driver, "30 Augustus Street."

"Right away, sir." The carriage driver replied politely.

Bryan looked at the view through the carriage window. It was almost 6 pm and the sun was setting. The sky was dyed a shade of dark blue and orange, looking like a marvelous painting. Leah had told him that she had invited a few of her friends to the banquet tonight. Her parents had also invited their friends.

This was a welcome banquet that her family held for Leah's elder brother, Johnathan Davis, who was studying at a law college in Nadir. He had come to spend time with his family this break.

He only had one more year to go before he graduated from law college. After that, he could apply for the Belize Bar Examination. Once he passed the bar examination, he would officially become a lawyer.

It was the first time Bryan was attending a banquet so he was quite nervous. He was truly very grateful to Detective Watson for teaching him noble etiquettes and other miscellaneous things.

At the time, Bryan thought he was teaching useless things. But now, he couldn't help but be thankful for him.

'A couple of months back, I was still living in the slums worrying about what I would eat the next day. Now, I'm wearing such fancy clothes and attending lavish banquets.' Bryan couldn't help but sigh at the unpredictability and fickleness of life.