"Do you think that by pulling it into the Spirit World, you can steal something that never belonged to you?"
The leading figure sneered, causing that moon to float upward. While amplifying the strength of his subordinates, it also suppressed Hastur's power. Then he followed them into the Spirit World.
But before even a minute had passed, a scream rang out. The gateway to the Spirit World opened, and the upper half of the leader's blood-soaked body fell out.
The corpse had been cleanly severed at the waist, the cut smooth and even. His face was frozen in shock, eyes wide open.
This scene stunned the other guardians present. They exchanged glances, then each chose a direction and fled.
"Seems like Sharron's teacher made a move."
Hastur wasn't surprised. When Sharron proposed transporting the mummy coffin through the Spirit World, he had already guessed she might seek help from her teacher.
"This place should be burned down."
Hastur looked around, then set a fire, reducing the warehouse to ashes.
....
After successfully retrieving the demigod-level mummy, Sharron did not return. She simply informed Hastur that she was preparing to advance to Sequence 4 Puppet and needed time.
According to her estimate, it would take at least a month before she returned.
At this, Ariella let out a resentful sigh. With Sharron around, all it needed to do was act cute and fawn a little to receive dried fish as a reward.
But its current master kept thinking about making it lose weight.
The next day, news of the merchant ship fire made it into the port's small newspapers, but it caused no real stir.
At night, as usual, Hastur went to the Hall of Stars before sleep, observing the stars once more. Nothing unusual appeared; neither Adam nor the True Creator showed any movement.
Just as he was about to leave, the star belonging to the Son of Chaos suddenly lit up.
Hastur focused his gaze on it. The Son of Chaos, still trapped within the Magic Wishing Lamp, was requesting a private meeting with him.
This was something Hastur had previously allowed, if there was an urgent matter, they could contact him, and he would decide whether to bring them into the Hall of Stars for a discussion.
The Mother Tree of Desire and the Supernova Dominator had shown no interest in private meetings.
The Son of Chaos being so impatient tonight was probably due to being provoked by the High-Dimensional Overseer.
Just thinking about that scene made Hastur's lips curl into a smile.
After calming himself, Hastur extended the Chains of Order and brought the Son of Chaos into the Hall of Stars.
Tonight, the Son of Chaos was unusually quiet. It sat in its place for a few minutes before letting out a slow sigh.
"I never realized before how precious freedom is."
"Seems you've had quite a few reflections lately," Hastur replied calmly.
Thinking of the last visit from the High-Dimensional Overseer, the Son of Chaos's emotions were complicated. "It wasn't a pleasant experience."
Hastur only smiled, waiting for it to continue.
"The High-Dimensional Overseer has already visited the Hall of Stars?"
"Yes, on the same day it went to see you."
"..." The Son of Chaos coughed lightly. It truly didn't want to recall what had happened that day. Ever since then, it didn't even know how to face Bernadette, and could only remain silent and pretend nothing happened.
After another brief silence, the Son of Chaos said in a low voice, "I want to return to the starry sky. What conditions do you require to help me achieve that?"
Hastur showed no reaction to its concession and replied evenly, "The stars are awakening. You are one of them. Before the apocalypse, you will return to the starry sky."
The Son of Chaos smiled. "Is that a prophecy of the stars?"
"You can also see it as a blessing."
"A blessing of the stars… thinking about it, that's not bad."
The Son of Chaos didn't dwell on it further. Its restless mood finally settled.
It only regretted that it hadn't come to speak privately with the stars sooner.
In the end, it still couldn't let go of its pride.
After coming to the human world, it hadn't learned much of the good, but had picked up quite a few bad habits.
With peace of mind restored, the Son of Chaos no longer wished to continue the conversation. It only asked, "May I stay here a bit longer to rest?"
Hastur nodded, though inwardly he thought, Looks like the High-Dimensional Overseer really hit it hard last time.
The Son of Chaos didn't leave, and for the sake of so-called status and dignity, Hastur didn't drive it away either. He could only remain in the Hall of Stars, accompanying it until three in the morning before finally seeing it off.
Fortunately, when the Son of Chaos left, it didn't add a "I'll come again next time."
....
Caius handled matters efficiently, returning to the castle on March 12 to report. Following Hastur's instructions, he had already placed his people into appropriate positions, fully taking over the affairs of the territory.
With land secured and plantations capable of producing sufficient grain, the next step was naturally to recruit soldiers.
In the Kingdom of Loen, every lord had a certain right to conscript troops within their territory, though this right had been gradually weakened as royal power consolidated.
The number of troops a lord could recruit was increasingly restricted, reduced from tens of thousands to the current limit of 200.
These 200 soldiers could be equipped with armor and weapons. Exceeding that number would be considered treason, punishable by execution.
Hastur wasn't that ambitious. He would first recruit 200 personal guards, then secretly expand through the Yellow-Robed Monks organization.
In a world where gods existed, ordinary soldiers weren't particularly powerful, but for defending towns and maintaining stability, they were indispensable.
To speed up the recruitment of 200 guards, Hastur directly allocated 100,000 gold pounds to Caius as operating funds.
This nearly moved Caius to tears.
In the past, all such expenses had been covered by their organization, and some small costs even came out of his own pocket.
He didn't dare seek reimbursement from Hastur, so he could only silently contribute from his own savings.
What delighted him even more was that this meant he was truly trusted, and his position had finally stabilized.
After resolving these trivial matters, the long-absent Madam Lisa suddenly appeared before Hastur, announcing that she had successfully advanced.
She was now Sequence 2: Oracle.
The main characteristic of this sequence was listening to divine revelations and acting according to the will of the gods.
To accelerate digestion of the potion, one had to gain the favor of the deity they worshipped.
If the deity became dissatisfied, she would be stuck at this sequence for life, with an increased risk of losing control.
It meant entrusting one's life and future entirely to a god.
Hastur knew he could never do such a thing. He would not hand over his life and soul to a distant, lofty deity.
But for a devout believer like Madam Lisa, this was the greatest honor, the very goal she had always pursued.
Hastur accepted her loyalty, but still did not declare himself the Pope of the Yellow-Robed Monks.
He feared that he might accidentally step onto that Beyonder pathway. After all, the temptation of jumping from Sequence 4 to Sequence 1 in one leap was far too great.
....
Back in Backlund, letters from Southville County arrived one after another, some even reaching King George III.
But after reading them, he burned them immediately.
After much thought, he personally wrote a letter to the Duke of Southville.
Coastal defense would be a top priority. Since the current duke lacked the ability to bring change, he should hand over authority to that young Count Campbell.
Young people dared to think and act, that was exactly the kind of talent Southville County needed right now.
At the Hall family residence, Audrey received a letter from Puning Port, written by her second brother, Alfred.
"What a coincidence. If I remember correctly, Mr. Hastur's territory isn't far from Puning Port. I wonder if my brother has met him."
Audrey murmured, then shook her head with a smile. The two didn't know each other, so even if they met, nothing would come of it.
Turning her attention back to the letter, Audrey frowned slightly in thought, then decided to give her brother a small hint.
If he truly wanted to make a name for himself in Southville County, then working under Mr. Hastur would be a good choice.
That way, she wouldn't have to worry too much about his safety. Presumably, her father, Earl Hall thought the same.
After finishing her reply, Audrey took another sheet of paper and wrote a second letter, this one addressed to Mr. Hastur.
In the two letters, she briefly introduced both sides. As for what would happen next, that would depend on her brother and Mr. Hastur.
"Woof!" Susie, who had been lying by the edge of the desk, suddenly barked, reminding Audrey of her presence.
Audrey paused, feather pen in hand, and turned to look at Susie. "Do you want me to mention you in the letter to Mr. Hastur?"
"Yes, Audrey, I also want to receive a gift from Southville County."
Audrey spoke earnestly, "Susie, one must not be too greedy. The same goes for dogs."
"Audrey, but you've already received three gifts. And Mr. Hastur even asked in his letter whether you wanted him to bring me a few gifts as well," Susie said, sounding aggrieved.
What caught Audrey's attention was, when had Susie secretly read the letters sent by Mr. Hastur?
She clearly hadn't opened them in front of Susie.
Her tone sharpened slightly. "Susie, you actually peeked at the letter Mr. Hastur sent me!"
"Woof!" Susie barked, then pulled out a letter from its doghouse and gestured for Audrey to take it.
After reading it, Audrey rubbed her forehead.
So, Mr. Hastur had also written a separate letter specifically for Susie.
Of course, the letter wasn't addressed to Susie by name, it simply had a small drawing of a puppy carrying a bone as a marker.
But how did Susie know that the letter was meant for her?