"Once again, hello, customers. You can call me Cain."
The green-haired man gave them a polite nod as he introduced himself. His tone was smooth and controlled, the kind used by someone who conducted dangerous business on a daily basis.
But it was obvious that Cain was only an alias.
No one operating in a black market would use their real name so casually.
But Viola did not waste time thinking about that.
"I want you to make a new identity for my friend here," she said, getting straight to the point. " Also make his record suitable to enter a company as an employee.
"Oh? This man?" Cain's dark eyes shifted toward Ezekiel, studying him carefully. Even in disguise, there was something about Ezekiel's presence that demanded attention.
"In that case," Cain continued, "we'll need to take a proper photo of his face for the documentation first."
The process began immediately.
Inside the working room, there was a small white backdrop set against the wall, along with a professional camera mounted on a tripod. The setup looked disturbingly legitimate.
Ezekiel stepped forward.
He kept the white wig on but took out the thick glasses on his face.
The camera flashed once.
Then again.
Cain reviewed the images on a monitor.
Viola leaned closer.
"Adjust his eyes slightly in the picture," she said firmly, her gaze fixed on the screen. "Make them a bit smaller and sharper at the corners, and subtly alter the tone so it looks more natural. Not too obvious, just enough to change the overall impression."
Cain raised an eyebrow.
"You're very detailed."
"I prefer no loose ends."
Cain smirked faintly and began working. The software he used was advanced, capable of altering facial structure just enough to pass biometric scans without looking obviously modified.
Within minutes, the image of Ezekiel had transformed into someone similar, yet undeniably different.
The jawline softened slightly. The eyes appeared calmer. The overall expression was more ordinary.
Unremarkable.
Exactly what they needed.
The printing machines hummed quietly as the identification card was processed. A holographic seal was embedded. Serial codes were generated. Registration numbers were fabricated within what appeared to be a shadow database.
As the transaction neared completion, Cain pulled out something unexpected.
A sheet of dark parchment.
It was not ordinary paper. The surface shimmered faintly under the light.
"We use this for high-value transactions," Cain explained. "A cursed paper artifact. Effective for contracts. Whoever breaks the agreement will face consequences."
"What kind of consequences?" Viola asked calmly.
"Bedridden for life… if they're lucky," Cain replied. "Or death."
There was no humor in his tone.
Viola did not hesitate.
She signed.
Cain signed as well.
The artifact glowed faintly for a second before the markings disappeared, sealing the agreement.
An hour passed.
Finally, Cain slid the finished card across the desk.
Ezekiel picked it up.
Abel Revor.
That was the name printed on the card.
His new identity.
His new existence.
He stared at it for a moment, feeling a strange detachment.
Abel Revor.
A man who had no criminal record.
No past scandals.
No history of betrayal.
A blank slate.
They exited the working room and returned to the main counter.
"Well," Cain said casually, "making that ID alone is already costly. And I recall you also wanted to process more identification documents?"
"Yes," Viola replied. "I'll come back to retrieve the rest."
"Are you sure? All of that won't cost you a small amount. Our services are expensive, given the quality."
Viola did not respond verbally.
She simply stared at him.
Her gaze turned cold.
Unwavering.
It was clear she did not care about the money as long as the job was done perfectly.
Cain raised both hands lightly.
"Okay, okay. No need to glare at me like that. I'll handle it. I'll make him look like he graduated accounting or something as per your request earlier"
He turned to the boy beside him, whispering instructions while calculating costs and organizing the breakdown of payments.
"Ten thousand dollars at least for the full package," Cain continued. "Since the rest of the documents aren't finished yet, a down payment will suffice for now."
"Okay," Viola agreed without hesitation.
Ezekiel heard this as well and felt a flicker of guilt stir within him, but he couldn't speak to Viola right now. Doing so would risk revealing even the smallest detail of their plan to the strangers around them.
As Cain and the teenage boy began reviewing the ledger, Viola's eyes wandered again.
And once more, they landed on the small silver earring she had noticed earlier.
She picked it up this time.
"Hey, Cain," she asked, examining the minimalist hoop. "What is this earring for?"
Cain paused mid-calculation and looked over.
"Oh. That thing."
He turned sharply toward the boy.
"Hey, El. Didn't I tell you to bring that to the storage room earlier?"
The boy scratched his head sheepishly.
"Sorry, boss. I forgot."
Cain sighed before explaining.
"That artifact was sold to us a long time ago. Turns out it's not very useful."
"What does it do?" Viola asked.
"It changes someone's physical appearance based on the user's preference," Cain replied. "Some people use it to fake their build. You know, look like a massive muscular guy for a few minutes just to show off."
He shrugged.
"The problem is the mana consumption. It drains too much. For regular rankers, it's unusable. The highest rank that managed to use it properly was a B-rank hunter. Even then, he could only maintain it for an hour."
"In short," Cain concluded, "it's useless unless you want attention for a short time."
Viola turned the earring slightly in her fingers, thoughtful.
In the corner of the stall, Ezekiel had been silent until now.
But when he heard that explanation, something in his mind clicked.
High mana consumption.
Short duration for others.
But he was not "others."
He stepped forward.
"I would like to purchase this."
Cain blinked.
"You?" He looked Ezekiel up and down skeptically. "It's not exactly practical."
"That's fine."
There was no hesitation in his voice.
Viola looked at him, confused at first. Then realization slowly dawned in her eyes.
If this artifact could temporarily alter physical appearance…
Combined with his awakened abilities…
It might not be useless at all.
Cain leaned back, studying him carefully.
"Well," he said slowly, "if you insist, I'll sell it to you for ten bucks since you've been such a generous customer today. How about that?"
"Agreed!"
Viola said immediately.