Because what Klein had said was not urgent, Ebner quickly set it aside and put his attention back on the banquet.
—He planned to go to East Chester County tomorrow to retrieve the original manuscript of Roselle. If time was still sufficient afterward, he would then consider whether to make a trip to Nas, the capital of the Gargas Archipelago.
It was called a celebration banquet, but since Ebner already knew that the "Calamity Seal" was placed behind his own "Pure White Eye," he did not make the event too grand or too formal.
Rather than a banquet, it was more like a dinner with friends.
When he saw that everyone had eaten almost enough, Ebner, as the host, stood up, lifted a glass of "Olmir" red wine, and began walking along the long table, toasting each of his friends in turn.
He first came to Xio, drank with her, and then smiled as he said, "I seem to still owe you a hot spring trip?"
"As long as you remember." Xio's tone was a bit sharp, both because of his constant delays and because her cup only contained milk.
"I've always remembered…" Ebner whispered a few words in her ear with a smile, then carried his glass toward Fors, while Xio stared blankly at her own cup for a while before finally sipping the milk.
Fors, on the other hand, was greedier. After clinking glasses with Ebner, she downed all the wine in her cup and said,
"As expected of Olmir, the most famous red wine. The vintage must be quite old too… The taste is far better than the ones we had back in Intis. Each layer of flavor is different…"
"If you had stayed a few more days, waiting until I officially stepped into Trier's upper circles, you wouldn't have lacked wine of this grade." Ebner said, pouring her another glass, clinking with her again, and adding, "Welcome back to Backlund, Miss Fors Wall."
"You saw me off in Trier, and now you're the one welcoming me back in Backlund… feels kind of strange…" Fors muttered, but she did not refuse the refilled Olmir and drank it all in one go again.
At that moment, Ebner took a string of stones bound into a bracelet from his pocket, placed it in Fors's hand, bent down slightly, and said with a soft laugh, "This is a gift for you."
"A gift?" Fors looked down at it and felt the patterns on the stones were somewhat familiar. "What does it do? Is it just an ornament?"
"This is a 'Teleportation Stone.' In an emergency, it can teleport you to a designated place. Right now, it can still be used three times…"
After a simple explanation, Ebner did not wait for Fors to respond. He continued walking toward Hazel, only the corners of his lips curling up as he turned his back.
If I had known Ebner would give me this, why did I spend money at the Tarot Club buying that badge? Fors couldn't help but mock herself inwardly as she held the bracelet.
Xio, who witnessed the whole process and clearly understood the inside story, glanced back and forth between Fors and Ebner before finally sighing.
On the other side, Hazel, though still young, had already matured socially. She poured herself a glass of white wine and, when Ebner came over, proactively raised her glass.
After celebrating the great sales of Roselle Gustav and The Search for the Laurel, Hazel, with a touch of pride, said to Ebner, "I've finished digesting the 'Swindler' potion."
"Does that statement count as a 'swindle'?" Ebner first joked, then grew serious, warning earnestly, "Once you become a 'Cryptologist,' you must be even more careful and cautious… It's best if you often stay at the Harvest Church…"
"Why?" Hazel was puzzled.
Because people of your pathway in the mid-sequences often end up partly becoming Sealed Artifacts, and partly becoming Amon… Ebner thought to himself. Outwardly, bound by the principle of "keeping knowledge," he gave a simpler explanation:
"You can think of it this way: all Beyonders of the Marauder pathway share a common enemy… Even your former demigod teacher has always been hiding."
Hazel nodded thoughtfully and said seriously, "I understand."
Seeing this, Ebner frowned slightly, because he noticed that the most probable "branch" of Hazel's "River of Fate" still intersected with one of Amon's avatars, not diverted at all by his warning…
Hazel now isn't as ignorant or arrogant as in the original timeline. She takes my words seriously… So, if it's not because of her subjective choices, then… is it due to Beyonder convergence? Or some other reason I don't yet know…
Didn't expect her and Amon to be so "fated"! Ebner sighed inwardly and decided to find another chance later to further shift Hazel's fate. After all, this environment wasn't right—he dared not open the "Pure White Eye" here.
After that, Ebner toasted in turn with the inventor Lepard, the journalist Mike, and his own brother Benson, who had only recently become a government employee, thanking them for their contributions to his film company.
Among them, Lepard, as the main inventor of the sound film projector, received a large share of dividends.
Reporter Mike had registered a new pen name, started writing professional reviews, and had become the head of the film company's public opinion department.
—After obtaining the shares Prince Edessak once held in Daily Observer, Ebner, together with Vera and Hazel, had gained absolute control of the paper, so transferring Mike to head the department was simply normal procedure.
As for Benson, though he had only just joined the Ministry of Finance, he had still contributed somewhat during the synchronized release of the films. At the very least, the applications for government support to establish public cinemas in smaller towns had passed quickly thanks to his involvement.
After chatting briefly with each of the men, Ebner finally came to Melissa.
Because of her young age, Mrs. Skade had prepared juice for her.
After lightly clinking glasses, Melissa pursed her lips and whispered, "I'll work hard to repay you for the potion ingredients…"
With Hazel's help, she had successfully concocted the potion from the materials Ebner sent through a messenger, and was now a Sequence 9 "Savant."
Gods bear witness—when she learned from Hazel that Sequence 9 potions alone cost 400 pounds, she was utterly shocked.
She knew that before Klein's death, his entire year's salary might not have even reached that amount… and Benson earned even less back then!
And this was only Sequence 9… Melissa could hardly imagine what the later potions would cost.
That was actually something your brother bought for you—I only passed it along… Ebner muttered inwardly. Outwardly, he only smiled without refusing the girl's determination. After all, having a goal would motivate her to study and work harder.
It would benefit both her and his film company… a win-win.
…
After the banquet ended, except for Xio and Fors, the other guests said their farewells and left.
Outside the villa at 28 Kinster Street, Benson finally had a chance to be alone with his sister. After some casual chatting, he asked, seemingly offhand,
"Melissa, what did you and Viscount Bryan talk about?"
Melissa stopped walking, stared intently at her brother's head for a while, long enough that he nervously raised his hand to neaten his hair, before she finally said seriously,
"I was discussing with Ebner why he's so popular with girls while my brother isn't…"
This… Benson was speechless, but somehow still asked, "And what did he say?"
"Ebner said you need to work on your appearance… especially your hairline!" Melissa fixed her eyes on her brother's scalp and said with a straight face.
Benson's expression instantly grew complicated. He opened his mouth, and after a long while finally muttered, "I read in the newspaper before that something called the sap of the Donningsman Tree might help with hair growth…"
Hearing this, Melissa could no longer hold it in. She burst out laughing and said, "I was joking… How could I possibly ask Ebner such a question?"
Benson froze, and after a long moment, he said helplessly, "Melissa, when did you learn to talk like that?"
"You once said, 'What's the difference between someone who doesn't understand humor and a curly-haired baboon?'" Melissa gave him a casual glance and asked back, "So isn't this good?"
"Very good! I mean, this is exactly what I hoped you'd become! Seems you're getting along very well with the film company's people." Benson said with relief.
Since Klein's death, how long had it been since he'd seen his sister so happy? Though that happiness might have been brought by that flirtatious detective, he still had to thank him… Such a contradiction, what should I do?
Melissa could see her brother's inner joy and conflict. She smiled and thought:
Soon, very soon! I've already stepped into the world Klein once lived in…
I will definitely find the true cause of his death!
…
Inside the bedroom on the third floor of the villa at 28 Kinster Street.
Having just taken a bath and changed into clean clothes, Ebner was about to rest when he heard a knock at the door.
Sensing briefly, he realized it was Xio standing outside.
(End of Chapter)