Susie ultimately failed to catch Luna's tail. The moment she leaped, the black cat on the table gracefully flicked it away, leaving her to grasp at empty air and crash thunderously into the table.
Silas didn't tease Susie any further. He had to rush back to the East Borough to organize personnel and consider what kind of factory to establish.
After bidding farewell to Audrey, he hurriedly departed.
As he established soul-level connections with his flock, he seemed to unconsciously grow more invested in them.
This was probably an instinct of the Shepherd.
---
Meanwhile, in Queens, at Viscount Lierson's estate.
"Welcome home, my dear brother. How was work today?"
The moment Kons returned home, he encountered a gentle, handsome young man in the entrance hall, smiling as he greeted him.
This was his older brother, John Lierson.
Levi had gotten one thing wrong.
Kons had no way of inheriting his father's title, because he was the younger son.
The one who would inherit the family's viscountcy was his brother.
"...Not bad."
Kons suppressed the complicated emotions in his heart and forced a smile.
"Go freshen up quickly, then come to the dining room."
John patted his younger brother's shoulder.
"Father came home early today, so we can all dine together as a family."
"Oh."
Though Kons felt uncomfortable, he knew his brother meant well, so he trudged back to his room.
With the servants' assistance, he washed up briefly, changed clothes, and entered the dining room.
People were already waiting for him on both sides of the long table.
"Kons, you must be tired after work."
The speaker was his mother, Viscountess Lierson.
This graceful, beautiful noblewoman gazed lovingly at her youngest son. "You're truly diligent.
I should report to MI9 and have them award you a medal. Don't you agree, dear?"
"Mother, please don't do that."
A servant pulled out his chair, and after Kons sat down, they laid out his silverware.
He and his brother sat on one side of the long table, with their mother across from them.
At the head of the table sat the master of the household, their father, Viscount Lierson.
The viscount had a newspaper spread open, reading intently. Only when he heard his wife's call did he shift his gaze from the news to look at his younger son.
"Run into trouble?"
He seemed to see right through him, asking directly.
"...Yes."
Kons had intended to lie, but under his father's scrutiny, he finally nodded slightly.
"I had a bit of an ideological conflict with my team captain."
"I've told you so many times, you need to communicate properly..."
Seeing this, the viscount immediately put down his newspaper and began his familiar refrain.
"When I was young, working with Count Hall..."
Here we go again!
Kons felt his head throb. His father was wonderful in every way except for this one irritating habit.
Once he started talking about the old days, he became unstoppable. Kons quickly grabbed his knife and fork from the table. "Let's eat first, I'm starving!"
His brother and mother simultaneously prepared their own utensils in coordination with him, clearly also unwilling to hear the head of household recount his glorious past for the thousandth time.
"Ah, fine then, let's eat first."
The viscount sighed, his enthusiasm deflated, and simply called out for the family to begin the meal.
"By the way, Kons, would you like to attend the ball tonight? The royal family and Duke Negan will be there..."
After dinner, Viscountess Lierson remembered something.
"I'm not going."
Kons refused flatly.
"Is that so? What a shame. I heard from Countess Hall that Audrey will be attending as well."
"Mm... well, maybe I should go after all."
Kons hesitated, then said.
The remaining three family members exchanged glances, seemingly suppressing laughter.
They had all basically figured out Kons's feelings.
Despite being the younger son of a viscount's family, with smoother, more straightforward paths available to him in life, he insisted on joining MI9 to try to establish merit.
Of course, this was partly due to personal ideals, but it was also driven by thoughts of improving himself to become more worthy of a certain someone.
The Lierson family naturally welcomed this development.
Their family had maintained good relations with Count Hall's family for generations, but whether anything would come of it still depended on how the young people felt about each other.
---
Silas returned to the Remann Gang's territory and summoned Charles.
"How did the investigation go?"
He asked.
"It's more difficult than I imagined."
Charles said with difficulty. "Factory buildings, machinery, raw materials, markets... they're all very hard to secure..."
"Don't worry about those for now."
Silas said. "I've already found someone. If we're lucky, we can get all of those things sorted out."
"You found a patron?"
Charles was overjoyed. "Which noble is it? How much investment can they provide..."
"Don't worry about those details. You'll find out soon enough." Silas said.
"Go organize the people and have them all gather in the square."
Charles left cooperatively, like a faithful sheepdog driving the flock for its master.
But Silas didn't go out immediately. Instead, he sat in his office, deep in thought.
He was considering what kind of factory to establish.
He picked up the document folder and flipped through all the files collected inside.
Silas noticed that the factories where those workers had previously been employed basically fell into three categories: steel mills, chemical plants, and textile factories. This also aligned with Backlund's current pillar industries.
Steel mills were too labor-intensive, and raw materials were difficult to obtain, making them unsuitable for the old, weak, sick, and disabled in his flock.
Chemical plants had even higher machinery requirements, and workers also needed better protection, all of which cost money.
After thinking it through, only textile factories, with their easily obtainable raw materials and relatively simple machinery operation, were suitable for him.
Moreover, from his review of the files, many in the flock were skilled textile workers, giving them a certain advantage in getting started.
Thinking of this, Silas suddenly laughed at himself.
Here I am, a Sequence 5 Beyonder, busy with these things...
Forget it, it's all for role-playing. Once the acting is complete, I can let these matters go...
He consoled himself with this thought and turned to leave.
---
At the same time, in the Forsaken Land of the Gods.
Pitch black.
The world seemed to contain nothing but pitch blackness.
Only the occasional lightning flashing across the sky could briefly illuminate this world.
"Crackle..."
The campfire blazed, casting a warm glow on every team member's face.
Quiet surrounded them. Only the sound of burning wood could be heard.
Everyone's faces bore expressions of worry and anticipation.
Unease came from that evil god's temple, which was terrifyingly dangerous and had already turned an entire exploration team into grotesque monsters.
Anticipation arose because the one leading this expedition was the Silver City's chief, Colin the "Demon Hunter."
The strongest warrior of Silver City sat cross-legged at this moment, slowly addressing everyone:
"We depart in 50 lightning flashes."