"By the way, if you're looking for Fletcher, you'd better be careful. Word around the building is that he's not exactly the most upstanding guy..."
Before they parted ways at the eighth floor, the beautiful Allen couldn't resist leaning in to whisper a little warning to Mike.
Consider it a bit of insider information.
From this, it was obvious that whether it was back when Fletcher lied through his teeth or recently when he was physically forced to tell the truth, he wasn't exactly popular with the people around him.
"Thanks for the heads-up~"
Faced with the subtle, "accidental" brush of her assets as she leaned in to whisper, Mike smiled and shot her a knowing look.
You really had to give it to her: a woman who actively works out has an incredible physique. And purely in terms of facial features, Allen was right up there with girls like Regina.
Youthful, vibrant, and absolutely radiant~
She was the kind of woman who practically invited the idea of a romantic fling.
Moreover, thanks to his mind-reading ability, Mike knew she harbored zero malicious intent; she was simply and purely lusting after his body.
So, seeing as she was so heavily blessed and full of "sincerity," Mike wouldn't mind finding the time to have a little "exchange of ideas" with her later.
...
After saying goodbye to the "massive" beauty Allen, Mike walked down to the room at the end of the eighth-floor hallway and knocked on the door.
"Listen, I'm not taking any cases right now! If you want to sue somebody, find another lawyer!"
After a long pause, Fletcher's voice drifted through the door, sounding thoroughly defeated and self-destructive.
For a man who had built his life on lying, losing the ability to tell a falsehood hadn't just thrown his personal life into total chaos; it had made it literally impossible for him to continue his work at the law firm.
As it turns out, if a person can only speak the absolute truth, it's a recipe for utter disaster.
"I'm not a client looking to hire a lawyer. I'm here to help you solve your problem..."
To smoothly make contact and secure his new ability, Mike prepared to flash his Special Division X credentials.
"Are you a priest?!"
However, things progressed much smoother than Mike anticipated. Before he could even pull out his badge, Fletcher threw the door open with a look of desperate "joy" and said enthusiastically,
"Some seriously messed up stuff has been happening to me lately. If you can help me fix this, you can name your price. I'll give you whatever you want!"
[Eloquence Experience +88]... [Legal Experience +66]... [Courtroom Experience +50]...
As expected of a top-tier litigator. The moment they met, the man dropped a massive pile of experience orbs.
Unfortunately, none of them were the trait orb Mike was looking for.
"Relax, your problem can definitely be solved,"
Mike reassured Fletcher before gently guiding the conversation. "But before we can do that, we need to figure out exactly what caused this problem in the first place..."
Find the root of the illness, then prescribe the cure.
It sounded incredibly professional.
But the reality was that Mike had already confirmed Fletcher didn't possess the trait orb.
That meant the source of his inability to lie was highly likely connected to someone close to him.
Mike was essentially just following the breadcrumbs.
On the flip side, Fletcher was practically on the verge of a mental breakdown from his forced honesty.
You have to understand, for a habitual liar, being physically unable to lie was a fate worse than death.
Consequently, treating Mike as his ultimate savior, Fletcher didn't even bother questioning his credentials and enthusiastically invited Mike and Needy inside.
"The place is a bit of a mess, please don't mind it!"
Fletcher quickly shoved a pile of junk off the sofa to clear a spot for them to sit.
You could tell the apartment had a great layout, and the furniture was originally arranged with care. It was clearly designed to be a warm, cozy home for a family.
But right now, the floor was littered with trash, clutter, and empty liquor bottles.
The owner of the house, Fletcher himself, was a total wreck: messy bedhead, a heavy stubble, a deeply wrinkled dress shirt...
You would never guess this man was a high-powered civil litigation attorney.
"It all started about a week ago. That day was my son's fifth birthday. It was also the day I won an incredibly difficult, high-stakes case..."
Sitting in the living room, Fletcher, having been tortured by his honesty for far too long, just let it all out with reckless abandon.
"That case was massive for the firm. So, to celebrate, my female boss and I went out alone that night and booked a hotel room..."
"Stop right there. You don't need to share the rest of that story."
Mike quickly cut him off.
As expected, absolute honesty was a massive debuff.
And suffering from this debuff, Fletcher literally had no filter left.
To save his own ears from being polluted with TMI, Mike stated bluntly, "I think I already know what the root of your problem is."
"Really?!"
Fletcher's face lit up with overwhelming joy.
If they knew what the problem was, it meant he finally had a chance to rid himself of this "curse."
"Yes. The issue most likely stems from your family. If we can track them down, there's a very high chance your condition will improve."
Mike pointed him in the right direction.
If you broke the situation down logically: Who would want Fletcher to stop lying forever and become a genuinely "good" person more than anyone else?
The answer at the very top of that list could only be the family members who truly "cared" about him.
"Audrey and Max?"
Realizing what Mike meant, Fletcher looked deeply conflicted. "Audrey and I are already divorced. I have no idea where she took our son."
Ever since he lost the ability to lie, Fletcher had been hit with one disaster after another. His divorce was just one item on a very long list of recent catastrophes.
"Is that so?"
Mike thought for a moment before offering, "Give me your ex-wife's specific details. I'll have someone look into it."
To secure that "inability to lie" trait, Mike was willing to put in a little elbow grease.
"Right. Her name is Audrey, thirty-two years old, and she has a five-year-old boy with her..."
After getting the information from Fletcher, Mike stepped aside and made a call to Agent Z at MIB headquarters.
Before long, Agent Z sent over exactly what Mike needed.
"I've got good news and bad news. Which one do you want first?"
Receiving the intel, Mike turned back to Fletcher.
There was a hint of pity in his eyes.
"The good news~"
Having had enough bad luck to last a lifetime, Fletcher only wanted to hear the good stuff.
"The good news is, we found where your wife and son are staying. They're at a luxury hotel up in Washington Heights, Manhattan," Mike informed him.
"Then what are we waiting for?! Let's go right now! The sooner I see them, the sooner I can get rid of this curse!"
Fletcher urged, practically jumping out of his skin.
Despite being a chronic liar who had a messy affair with his boss, Fletcher undeniably had a lot of flaws—but his love for his wife and son was genuine.
Knowing he had a chance to see his family again and fix his bizarre "condition" at the same time made him incredibly eager.
"Wait, what was the bad news?"
Just as he was about to rush out the door, Fletcher couldn't help but ask.
"There's a highly successful doctor named Jerry currently pursuing your ex-wife. According to reliable sources, he's planning to take her and your son on a vacation to Boston very soon."
Being a guy himself, Mike didn't sugarcoat it.
An older, highly eligible bachelor doctor and a beautiful, newly divorced mother—putting those two together rarely resulted in a happy ending for the ex-husband.
"Jerry?! That glorified medical equipment peddler?!"
Fletcher exploded, his eyes blazing with fury. "No way! I won't allow it! Max and Audrey are not going anywhere with him~"
With that, the man bolted out the door, hopped into his car, and sped off toward Manhattan like a madman.
...
Outside the luxury hotel, Fletcher managed to call his ex-wife and son out to the street.
"I forbid Jerry from being Max's stepfather! You better stop seeing that medical equipment peddler right now..."
Filled with pent-up frustration, Fletcher launched into a tirade the moment he saw his ex-wife.
It was understandable. Faced with a situation like this, any man would likely only get angrier the more he thought about it.
"We are divorced! You have zero right to tell me what to do! And furthermore, I haven't even asked you about what exactly happened between you and your boss!"
Audrey was clearly infuriated by her ex-husband's behavior and immediately started digging up old grievances.
With neither willing to back down, the situation between the two was rapidly turning into a powder keg.