Chapter 154: The Secret Refuge

Chapter 154: The Secret Refuge

In the still of the night, fors extinguished the last cigarette butt, rose to her feet, and tiptoed to the door. Pretending to head to the washroom, she instead crept to Hugh's sleeping quarters. Listening intently at the door, she confirmed Hugh was asleep before returning to her own room.

Then, she secured the doors and windows and began to pray devoutly.

"Master of chaos and order."

"Origin of all rules in the starry sky."

"The one who returns the stars to their places."

…

In Queens, Hastur, who was sleeping soundly, was disturbed by a spiritual reminder and woke from his dreams. Sensing carefully, he murmured, "Who is disturbing my peaceful sleep in the middle of the night? Has Bernadette encountered some trouble?"

After a moment of hesitation, he entered the Hall of Stars.

A small light belonging to fors was emitting ripples of sound.

The sound was soft, as if afraid to wake the person sleeping beside her, sneaky and secretive.

Hastur narrowed his gaze, using the power of the Hall of Stars to open a dazzling starry sky above fors' head, making the Hall of Stars appear intermittently.

"Follower fors, I have important matters to report!"

fors was initially startled but quickly composed herself.

"What is it?"

"Mr. A is offering a reward for finding the followers of the stars!"

fors stated succinctly, then remembered that a being like the Master of Stars would not have heard of a nobody like Mr. A.

She hastily added, "Mr. A is a powerful extraordinary person currently in the capital of the Rune Kingdom, Beckland. It seems he has a mysterious organization behind him. I only learned tonight from an extraordinary gathering that he is offering a reward to find the followers of the stars."

Mr. A's reward, she thought, must be a divine revelation bestowed upon him by the true Creator.

She also recalled how she had merely glanced at Ulorus for a moment, catching his attention and prompting a divine revelation.

There are currently, at most, two apostles of the stars.

Bernadette is already an angel of Sequence 2, far away across the sea or on the Southern Continent, with no need for concern.

It's only the salted fish fors who needs to be careful, no wonder she was so eager to share this news with me.

Hastur pondered silently, also considering whether he could use the Hall of Stars to provide fors with secret protection.

"Don't worry about it."

"But I…"

fors hesitated, her expression gradually turning peculiar. To the stars, Mr. A was nothing, but she was only of Sequence 9. If discovered, she would surely be doomed.

"The stars will bless you," Hastur discerned fors' thoughts.

Perhaps Hugh, in need of money, had already accepted Mr. A's task, which would explain fors' strong reaction.

"Thank you for the stars' blessing!"

fors finally relaxed, a smile spreading across her face.

"The secret refuge."

With a soft whisper, Hastur manipulated the third chain of order, the invisible chain of secrecy, extending it from the starry sky to envelop fors, circling around her.

A sensation indescribable and exhilarating shocked and delighted fors.

She didn't understand what was happening, but she knew it was a good thing.

Inside the Hall of Stars, Hastur looked at fors, her face aglow with joy, wondering if he should take this opportunity to encourage fors to improve her strength?

Otherwise, she, currently only of Sequence 9, might not enter the Tarot Club in the future. How could he entrust her with tasks if her strength was too weak?

Should he find some tasks for her and then provide her with some potion formulas?

After some thought, he decided against it. As a mysterious being, caring so much for a follower of only Sequence 9 seemed beneath him.

Seeing that fors was no longer in trouble, Hastur dispersed the starry sky and left.

He habitually glanced at the star where the high-dimensional observer resided.

Under the crimson moon, the light of the stars flickered in and out of visibility.

The high-dimensional observer had left the stone room and was now on the beach, hands clasped behind his head, lying lazily on the sand, gazing leisurely at the stars and the moon.

After a few glances, Hastur withdrew his gaze and left the Hall of Stars.

…

At dawn, Hastur had just woken up to find a small black ball on his bed.

The little black cat, fond of clinging to him, had played with Hastur late into the night, so he let it sleep in his room.

"Meow."

A soft, tender meow, light and gentle, accompanied by its little head nuzzling forward, appeared very cute.

"Aisala, it's time to find you a potion formula for assassins."

Hastur played with Aisala for a while before getting up to wash and dress.

Now, aside from the factory and law firm, he had no other concerns.

These two ventures were managed by Manager Harley and Lecturer Folan, so he didn't need to waste time or energy on them.

For him, the most important things were to assimilate the potions and advance his noble rank, as well as to search for the extraordinary materials of the Sequence 6 Corrupted Baron.

Advancing in noble rank couldn't be rushed. Training that hunting dog with Grelint would take at least a month. Once he successfully bribed Earl Hall, he could steadily advance to Viscount.

As for becoming an Earl, he would need to achieve certain merits for the Rune Kingdom, providing a better reason for further advancement.

That was still a way off, no rush.

The task of finding extraordinary materials was entrusted to Sharon and Maric, who attended more high-end extraordinary gatherings.

But they might not find anything. The best way would be to directly seek out a noble of the Sequence 6 Corrupted Baron, kill him, and naturally obtain his extraordinary characteristics.

However, this was more challenging. A noble who could become a Sequence 6 Corrupted Baron would at least have a baron's title, and in most cases, they were Earls.

The Rune Kingdom had no shortage of Earls, but which noble was an extraordinary person was difficult to investigate.

"I can ask Will Auceptin for help with this; he's eaten so much ice cream, it's time for him to do some work."

Hastur had his plans.

After breakfast, without taking a carriage, he carried Aisala out for a stroll.

Not far behind, two attendants in their late twenties followed.

These bodyguards, specially found by Butler Neil, were said to be very professional.

They could protect his safety at critical moments, preventing incidents like kidnapping or extortion.

With nothing pressing today, Hastur let them follow at a distance.

Holding Aisala, he gently stroked its chin while surveying the shops on both sides of the street.

The streets of Queens were clean and tidy, free of sewage overflow or animal feces.

The drainage system was also well-maintained; the continuous heavy rain had left no standing water.

Occasionally, one could see sanitation workers spraying fragrances or similar substances on the ground.

After a round of browsing, Hastur headed to the pet area on the other side.

There were specialized pet sales, as well as clothes suitable for pets to wear and some small toys.

Hastur picked a few items that Aisala liked, such as bells that made sounds.

"Baron Hastur Campbell!"

As Hastur walked ahead with Aisala, someone suddenly called out to him from behind.

Hastur turned naturally, looking back, his pupils dilating slightly.

It was Mrs. Germanny.

Hastur couldn't remember how long it had been since he last saw Mrs. Germanny. Perhaps it was after a brief conversation at Greck's banquet that they hadn't met again?

"Mrs. Germanny, good morning."

Hastur still offered a proper smile.

But soon, the smile on his face froze.

Mrs. Germanny, without saying a word, stared straight at him, her eyes complex and difficult to read. Her peach-blossom-like eyes conveyed a mix of indescribable emotions.

As if resentful, joyful, lost, moved… It seemed as if all sorts of messy emotions had a bit of relevance.

She gazed at him so tenderly and affectionately, as if Hastur had once shared a deep and unforgettable love with her.

The two noble ladies accompanying Mrs. Germanny also noticed her unusual mood. A blonde noble lady sized up Hastur, revealing a look of realization, while another with chestnut-colored hair glanced at Hastur a few times, her eyes unable to hide her admiration, saying, "So this is Baron Campbell, indeed quite unique. No wonder you were so infatuated with him. Now that you've met here again, it seems you two are quite fated."

With that, she nudged Mrs. Germanny with her shoulder.

Mrs. Germanny, still staring at Hastur, said softly, "Baron Campbell has always been chaste, with a good reputation. There has never been anything between us."

…

Without waiting for Hastur to say anything, she pulled the two noble ladies away. After a few steps, she turned back, giving Hastur a look of resentment and helplessness.

…

Hastur's mouth twitched slightly. What was this all about?

It seemed as if he was a scoundrel who had betrayed someone's feelings. Especially Mrs. Germanny's words, which seemed to speak for his reputation, but actually seemed like a reluctant statement made to protect him.

To others, it would certainly seem as if something had happened between them, and now, Baron Campbell had pulled up his trousers and refused to acknowledge her, leading to Mrs. Germanny's current demeanor.

"Let's go home."

Hastur had completely lost interest in strolling and even regretted going out today.

(End of Chapter)