Chapter 171: Is Mr. hastur a Devotee of the everNight goddess?

Chapter 171: Is Mr. hastur a Devotee of the everNight goddess?

St. Samuel Church.

When Leonard returned with the scent of alcohol lingering on him, many were already waiting for him, including Klein, who had come to report the previous night's battle results with the Night Watcher squad.

"We hadn't heard from you all night; we thought something dangerous had happened to you."

"It's good to be back, good to be back."

"Leonard Mitchell, you are a true warrior. You have successfully proven to everyone that you are a qualified member of the Red Glove squad!"

After a round of greetings and affirmations, Leonard, already feeling light-headed from too much drink, became even more so.

Klein supported his arm, helping him to sit on a bench to rest.

Smelling the strong scent of alcohol on Leonard, Klein frowned slightly and said, "You reek of alcohol; what exactly did you do last night?"

Acting as bait was already a dangerous task. After escaping, Leonard didn't immediately hide but instead drank all night.

It was hard to say whether he was brave or recklessly fearless.

Leonard glanced at the other Red Glove squad members who also wanted to know what had happened last night, cleared his throat, and said:

"Last night, I was transported near a bar. Due to the negative effects of the sealed artifact, I didn't dare to move around randomly, let alone come straight back to the church. I had to choose that bar as a temporary refuge."

"At that time, I felt a chill surge through me, my body ice-cold, so I drank some strong liquor to alleviate the symptoms. Initially, I didn't intend to drink much, but then I met an interesting patron. We hit it off and, before I knew it, I had drunk quite a bit."

"After that patron went home to rest, I stayed in the bar until it closed at dawn, and then I took a carriage back here."

Leonard roughly recounted the events of the previous night, satisfying the curiosity of those around him.

Klein thought for a moment but didn't ask how much Leonard had spent on alcohol last night.

He had seen the prices in Backlund; the drinks in the bar were definitely much more expensive than outside.

Leonard had drunk all night, probably spending a week's salary.

The captain of the Red Glove squad leading Leonard also thought of this and patted him on the shoulder with a smile, "Don't worry, the expenses incurred on a mission can be reimbursed."

"Thank you, Captain." Leonard's face broke into a smile.

The cost of a night's drinking, judging by the prices he saw in the bar last night, reporting an expense of 50 gold pounds should be no problem.

After all, they didn't know that he had mostly drunk the cheaper Southville beer last night, nor that someone had already settled his tab.

Earning an extra 50 gold pounds for nothing was indeed a nice turn of events.

He had already decided to visit the Brave Bar again in a few days when things weren't so tense, to at least repay the cost of the drinks.

Having completed his mission, Leonard went to rest in his room, accompanied by Klein.

On the way, Klein briefly introduced the previous night's battle results.

Just their East District Night Watcher squad, in cooperation with a Punisher squad, had killed five extraordinary beings, including one of Sequence 6.

The ambush at West Vilas Square was even more astonishing.

They had killed two of Sequence 5 and nearly captured a Sequence 4 demigod, thoroughly shocking those extraordinary beings lurking in the shadows.

As for the identities of the two Sequence 5 extraordinary powerhouses, the church had chosen not to disclose them.

According to a Red Glove squad member, one might be from the Fossac Empire, and the other a member of the Church of Knowledge and Wisdom.

Leonard listened silently, then remarked with emotion, "To think that a Sequence 4 demigod targeted me, I'm lucky I ran fast enough, or it would have been disastrous."

"You still need to be careful. There were definitely more people spying on us last night, like the Aurora Order, known for their boldness, who haven't made a move yet," Klein reminded him.

"Strange, they're usually not so patient. It's rare to see."

Leonard also found it odd. In his impression, the Aurora Order was a fearless terrorist organization.

They should also be looking for the Followers of the Stars, so why was there no movement?

Could it be that they've gained the wisdom to see through traps? That would be quite frightening.

After escorting Leonard back to his room, Klein left first. He had come to St. Samuel Church on official business and didn't have much time for reminiscing.

Lying in bed, ready to sleep well, Leonard was disturbed by a voice deep within.

"The person you talked to last night was a bit unusual."

"Do you mean Mr. hastur? Does he have some special identity?" Leonard's sleepiness was dispelled quite a bit.

"I'm not sure, I can't see through him. But it's precisely because I can't see through him that there might be a problem."

"Old man, even you can't see through him?"

"I just have some doubts."

"Doubts about what?"

"Whether that person might be a Devotee of the Night. The only people I can't see through are those with a higher status than me or those hidden by the night."

Leonard's sleepiness vanished completely, and he became spirited, curious, "Old man, what Sequence were you when you were alive?"

"Alive? You brat, I'm not dead yet!"

"Cough, a slip of the tongue."

"If you want to know what level of existence I am, then hurry up and improve your strength. Backlund is not simple. Even a Sequence 7 is just a slightly stronger ant."

Seeing that the old man didn't want to reveal this, Leonard steered the topic back to the Devotee of the Night.

"No wonder I enjoyed our first meeting so much; turns out he might be a devotee of the goddess."

"It's just a suspicion."

"As long as he means no harm to me, let's not probe into his identity. After all, it's rare to have a friend you can get along with."

"You may be naive, but it seems your luck isn't too bad."

"Old man, can't you speak nicely!"

A disdainful click came from deep within.

"Do you remember the negative effect of the Night Cloak?"

"Wandering aimlessly can lead to incredible events?"

"Perhaps, your encounter last night was one of those incredible events."

"Is it really that accurate?"

Leonard was thoroughly startled by this statement.

But thinking about it carefully, it did seem quite incredible.

He was just looking for a bar to drink in, yet he happened to meet someone who could slightly surpass him in looks and talent.

Thinking back to last night's scene, Mr. hastur had come out of the bar's VIP room, meaning he had arrived at the Brave Bar earlier than himself.

From his tone, he was a regular at that bar, so there was no chance he was waiting there specifically for him.

Leonard pondered for a long time and agreed with the old man's speculation.

That there could be a man in this world who surpassed him in looks and talent was indeed an incredible thing.

…

"So, it was you who impersonated a Follower of the Stars, Leonard."

In the Hall of Stars, hastur, by peering into related fates, accurately identified the person impersonating a Follower of the Stars, Leonard Mitchell.

Last night he had drunk too late, slept until noon upon returning, and after lunch, he went back to his room to enter the Hall of Stars and begin fate peering.

He hadn't expected Leonard to be the one he uncovered.

Last night, he had even discussed the Followers of the Stars with Leonard over drinks, both of them full of guile.

Now, thinking about it, everything seemed very interesting.

hastur chuckled lightly, then pondered Leonard's purpose in impersonating a Follower of the Stars.

He must have learned of the existence of the Followers of the Stars from the church, having only recently arrived in Backlund from Tingen.

Combining recent events, it wasn't hard to deduce that Leonard's impersonation was instigated by the Church of the everNight Goddess.

The purpose of this must have been to draw out the real Followers of the Stars.

"A very good strategy, but alas, Backlund only has Fors as a Follower of the Stars. You can't possibly fish out a completely flat fish."

hastur murmured to himself, not intending to take any action against Leonard for the time being.

Perhaps it was fate that led him to the Brave Bar last night, where he met Leonard, who had recently come to Backlund.

Leonard's Tarot card identity was The Star, while hastur symbolized the Stars.

The Star and the Stars are inherently connected, and he had impersonated a Follower of the Stars.

If there's a chance, hastur wouldn't mind making Leonard a true Follower of the Stars.

To play the part for real would also be a nice turn of events.

hastur thought for a while, then turned his gaze to the twinkling stars overhead.

Apart from the High-Dimensional Overseer still observing the sea, the other stars were very quiet.

hastur just stared at the High-Dimensional Overseer for a while, then moved to another small light point.

Since the last time the White Crystal eyeball was knocked from the sky by the Lord of the Storm and fell into the territory of the Intis Republic, he hadn't paid attention.

Now, taking a look, the White Crystal eyeball had fallen on the bell tower of a small town, covered in cracks, yet the light within it had not dimmed much.

The hazy glow seemed to be passing through the large bell, turning into invisible ripples, spreading in all directions.

Was this contamination from the High-Dimensional Overseer?

After observing for a while, hastur temporarily dismissed this guess.

The townspeople continued their peaceful lives, unaffected by the arrival of the White Crystal eyeball. In fact, no one even knew about the pair of White Crystal eyeballs on the bell tower.

"It always feels unsettling."

hastur watched for a long time, and after confirming there was nothing unusual, he left the Hall of Stars.

(End of Chapter)