Chapter 96: Audrey: Poor Mr. Hastur

Chapter 96: Audrey: Poor Mr. Hastur

If he could score 90 in combat class, then in firearms class, he couldn't even get the passing mark of 60.

After half an hour of theory class, he tried target shooting.

Regrettably, out of ten shots, five missed the target, not to mention hitting the bullseye.

He was aiming seriously, but the results were not optimistic.

"Relax a bit, be more casual, don't care too much. The more you care, the more likely you'll tremble slightly when you pull the trigger," the instructor Hyman said with a bit of pity looking at the empty bullet casings on the ground.

In a battlefield situation, he would wish to split a single bullet into ten.

"Being casual is just leaving it to fate," Hastur muttered under his breath, aimed casually, and pulled the trigger.

The bullet shot out like a meteor, not missing the target but hitting the eight-ring.

"…" Hastur fell silent.

"That's how it should be. Your arm posture is stable; it's just that mindset you're lacking," Instructor Hyman was pleased with the result and signaled Hastur to continue practicing.

This time, he aimed casually again, thinking it was good enough, and pulled the trigger, hitting the target with a seven-ring score.

"…"

Instructor Hyman became increasingly satisfied, while Hastur grew more silent.

After many trials, he concluded that he had a good sense for guns and didn't need to aim specifically.

Well, it meant he was very suited for a fate-based shooting style; as long as he didn't aim deliberately, the results weren't too bad.

Once he aimed seriously, the chances of missing were high.

Instructor Hyman's advice was to relax, not be nervous, be more casual, and practice more.

After practicing until noon, Hastur stayed at the club for a free lunch.

The variety of dishes was rich, and the taste was not bad, not as good as the chef at home, but at least above the passing line.

The key was that the lunch was free.

After lunch and an hour of rest, Hastur practiced another hour of combat class and an hour of firearms class, then left the club and took a carriage to the law firm.

Instructor Follen was efficient; the law firm had hired three new assistants, two men and one woman, all looking very young.

Upon inquiry, he found out that all three assistants were students from Beckland University.

Fortunately, Instructor Follen paid them a decent weekly salary, otherwise, Hastur would really feel like a tutor making students work overtime for free.

For the next while, Hastur followed Instructor Follen, learning how to be a lawyer capable of handling various matters independently.

For example, when a case was entrusted to the law firm, what needed to be done first, then what… instead of going straight to court upon receiving a case.

Going to court was the result; the important part was the effort in between.

Understanding the ins and outs of the case, down to the details of what time meals were eaten, finding effective legal grounds that would stand in court, and possibly looking up some obscure laws to find a key point for a surprising victory.

It was troublesome, but also very training.

In just half an afternoon, Hastur learned a lot.

Near dinner time, Hastur personally funded a lavish dinner for all members of the law firm.

No alcohol was consumed, and the seven people spent 13 gold pounds, less than 2 pounds per person.

…

After waiting for three days, Audrey finally sent an invitation.

In the afternoon, the carriage of the Earl of Hall arrived leisurely at Hastur's doorstep.

Considering the distance between the two houses, it was only a twenty-minute carriage ride, not far.

Audrey alighted from the carriage, Suzie did not come today, and her personal maid stayed close by her side, looking serious, with eyes full of vigilance.

Was she afraid that Hastur would abduct Audrey?

Hastur understood her look; it was just like a father guarding against a son-in-law.

Indeed, his recent contact with Audrey had been frequent.

The pure and kind Audrey, the jewel of Beckland, it was normal to fear being abducted by him.

After all, he was young, handsome, unmarried, and had a good reputation, familiar with Greleck and Hibbert.

Thinking about it, in the eyes of others, he and Audrey really matched well.

Considering Hibbert's previous behavior, it wasn't impossible that he wanted Hastur to get closer to Audrey.

What was he thinking? He had an audience standing by his side.

Hastur quickly suppressed these messy thoughts and led Audrey up to the second-floor study.

This time, the personal maid did not stay outside the door but stood behind Audrey, occasionally glancing at Hastur.

The two chatted briefly, then turned the topic to Roselle's diary.

To show his sincerity, Hastur pulled out the top three pages from a pile of Roselle's diaries in the drawer, one of which was a copy he had written himself.

"This is the crystallization of knowledge left by Emperor Roselle, enduring through the years, and just by touching it, one can feel the pulse of that era."

Audrey tried to use words of praise to express her fondness for Roselle.

While staring intently at the three pages of Roselle's diary, she silently memorized the content in her mind.

Hastur did not disturb her, allowing Audrey to take advantage of him.

He believed in Miss Audrey's generosity; she wouldn't always take advantage of him for free.

After confirming she had completely memorized the three pages of Roselle's diary, Audrey looked up, a bit embarrassed, "I was a bit mesmerized just now."

"Many people say that the original manuscripts left by Emperor Roselle have a magical power that makes one engrossed in their study," Hastur gave Audrey a way out.

Audrey smiled and said, "Yes, I feel the same. Even though I don't understand them, I want to decipher the meaning of each symbol."

"That's also the original intention of my work."

"How nice, I also want to try to crack these mysterious texts."

Audrey paused and asked, "Are there other Roselle's diaries? Can I buy a few to study?"

"…"

Hastur didn't answer immediately, just looking at Audrey with a myriad of emotions.

Miss Audrey, are you planning to take advantage of these three pages of Roselle's diary for free?

You've learned to be bad, so rich, why not just smash me with gold pounds?

"Is my request too much?" Audrey's gaze shifted slightly, a bit guilty.

"No, I'm just happy to suddenly find a like-minded partner."

Hastur chose to compromise; he couldn't not sell Roselle's diary to Audrey, could he?

"So that's it."

Audrey breathed a sigh of relief, glad that Mr. Hastur hadn't noticed she had taken quite an advantage of him.

"I don't have many original manuscripts of Emperor Roselle here, I can only sell you two for study first, and we can study more together when I collect more in the future."

This time, Hastur didn't dare to pretend to be generous and offer them to Audrey.

If Audrey really accepted, he would lose hundreds of gold pounds.

Audrey smiled and said, "I can offer 100 gold pounds per page to purchase."

100 gold pounds per page was the price she thought was appropriate, especially since Mr. Hastur had only spent 50 gold pounds per page from Fawles and Miss Hue.

With a simple flip, she could earn back double the profit, which would also be a significant income for Mr. Hastur, who was currently financially troubled, right?

Hastur sighed, "I have always held Emperor Roselle in high esteem; even a single piece of paper he left behind has extraordinary significance to me."

"…"

Audrey was stunned for a moment, then understood the meaning behind Hastur's words.

Roselle's diary was precious to him, with extraordinary significance.

She could buy it, but it would cost more.

Was Mr. Hastur's financial situation so dire?

How pitiful.

"I can understand that feeling; I am also an admirer of Emperor Roselle, and I have always wanted to collect the things he left behind, even just a piece of paper."

Saying this, Audrey doubled the price for each page of Roselle's diary to 200 gold pounds.

"In that case, these two pages of Roselle's diary will be entrusted to Miss Audrey for collection."

Hastur agreed to the deal without raising the price further, and to show his generosity, he gave the three pages of Roselle's diary he had originally taken out to Audrey as well.

"Thank you…"

Audrey was not happy at all, but rather a bit annoyed.

If she had known that these three pages of Roselle's diary would be given to her for free, she wouldn't have needed to memorize them so hard.

Memorizing such symbols was very hard work, and she had memorized three full pages.

Honesty is indeed a beautiful virtue.

Audrey sighed sincerely in her heart.

The deal concluded, Hastur gained 400 gold pounds, and Audrey acquired five pages of Roselle's diary, both parties outwardly satisfied with the transaction.

After chatting for a while, Audrey got up to leave.

Staying too long in the house of an unmarried baron could easily give rise to bad rumors.

Audrey, always in the spotlight and under scrutiny, knew this well.

That's why she waited three days before visiting Hastur.

Those noble ladies with nothing better to do loved to gossip about such matters.

(End of Chapter)