East Chester County, inside the Hall family castle.
"Failed again… Who could've imagined that woman would bomb both an art gallery and an airship just because she thought the painting was fake…
"What's even scarier is that, as a 'spectator,' I didn't realize she was the culprit at all until Conan revealed the truth… even though my Beyonder abilities like 'mind reading' were sealed…
"Does this mean that my understanding of psychology is only superficial — that all the 'insight' I've been proud of was just the bonus from my Beyonder powers?"
Audrey lay on her bed, her emerald eyes unfocused, reflecting deeply on her own failings.
After a while, she stood up and walked to the door. Outside lay a big golden retriever, tail swishing idly. Audrey smiled and said,
"Susia, Islant is still at the 'Antique Collection and Preservation Foundation.' You don't have to keep staying in that hunting dog posture all the time, do you?"
At the mention of Islant's name, Susia alertly looked left and right, sniffed the air, and then replied,
"Audrey, as a dog, I think maintaining vigilance like this is necessary."
It was just that one time I couldn't resist asking Islant to show me how he fed that box with 'wolffish cans,' right? Audrey grumbled inwardly. Sure, the smell was awful, but he handled everything inside a sealed tank of water. It wasn't nearly as disgusting as Mr. Tower and the others described…
Still smiling, she said, "Dog? Didn't you tell me last time that repeating words too often makes it easy for others to grasp your habits and thought patterns?"
Susia replied seriously, "After what happened with the 'wolffish cans,' I've come to clearly understand that humans and dogs are not the same!
"Even though I can now read books independently and understand human thinking… physiologically, we are still completely different!"
Audrey blinked in confusion. "Susia, what are you trying to say?"
"Audrey, I don't want to be a dog anymore! I want to be a lady whose nose isn't so sensitive," Susia said, wagging her tail.
…Audrey found herself speechless for a moment. After a long pause, she managed, "Susia, maybe you should stop reading those kinds of silly novels."
"But that line was from a newly released film," Susia corrected.
"Oh, so you were joking…" Audrey forced her smile to stay in place instead of collapsing.
"Humor is the first step toward becoming a lady," Susia said earnestly.
"And where did that quote come from?" Audrey asked after a pause.
"It's from a new novel by Fors Wall," Susia said, leaping onto the desk and grabbing a book with her teeth.
"Er… I thought the actual line was 'Humor is the first step toward approaching a lady,' wasn't it?" Audrey glanced at the book, thinking aloud.
"Isn't that the same thing?" Susia tilted her head, tail wagging, eyes full of confusion.
"Of course not!" Audrey perked up, ready to give her golden retriever a grammar lesson — but just then, she saw Earl Hall walking up the castle stairs, followed by a valet and an attendant.
Though sunlight streamed brightly outside, the corridor here remained dim and heavy, with several candles already lit in sconces along the walls to illuminate the steps.
"This castle is far too old. I think it's in need of a major renovation," Earl Hall commented casually to his daughter.
Audrey nodded gracefully.
"Yes, dear father, that's exactly why I dislike this place — it makes me feel as though I'm slowly decaying."
"But I already spend thirteen thousand pounds a year maintaining it," the earl said with a wry smile.
He then shifted the topic to the bicycle company's stock sale, proposing a clever plan — to mortgage a small amount from the bank to buy the shares, then pledge those same shares to get another loan to pay off the first.
"The reason I think you should buy shares in this company," he explained, "first, is that this industry has an incredibly bright future. Right now, it's still far below its true value, and investing in it will steadily increase your assets.
"Second, from what I know, the shares being sold belong to a detective named Sherlock Moriarty… But that's not the key point — the one handling the sale on his behalf is the newly promoted Viscount Ebner Bryan!
"Heh, they're both detectives, so I assume they know each other, and that's why Mr. Moriarty entrusted Viscount Bryan to sell his shares.
"But whatever the reason, this is an excellent opportunity to establish contact with that rising star of the kingdom.
"I've long wanted to talk with him and see if we might collaborate… unfortunately, I've missed every chance so far."
By "missed," he meant the Duke Negan's ball.
Audrey's eyes flickered thoughtfully as she remembered Mr. Tower's commission. She tentatively asked, "Father, you think highly of that viscount? Are you planning to invest in Beldan?"
Earl Hall shook his head and smiled. "What I value is his film company.
"Or rather, its highly professional and complete operational model, its management structure, and its global theater network.
"That's something no other film company possesses — at least, not yet. I can easily imagine that for the next ten or twenty years, no one will be able to compete with them.
"Also, a film company's profitability isn't even the most important part. I believe everyone has underestimated the influence of a film company capable of simultaneous releases across the entire continent.
"If it were used to spread certain ideas, the resulting propaganda effect could far surpass that of newspapers.
"Sadly, I didn't take this new industry seriously enough back then, and missed the chance to invest."
Audrey's eyes widened slightly. This was the first time she'd heard her father speak so highly of a person — and an entire industry.
Though she still couldn't quite imagine it, she trusted her father's judgment and understood what he meant by "influence."
So Mr. Tower's company is really that powerful? But Father doesn't seem very interested in his Beldan project… Yet when Mr. Tower described its prospects, I thought it sounded wonderful…
After some thought, Audrey cautiously suggested, "But I think that viscount's new 'Beldan Film City Project' is quite good too. Why not start from there and build a friendship with him?
"After all, the bicycle company isn't even his own enterprise."
Earl Hall laughed softly again and shook his head meaningfully. "That project is interesting, yes — but Beldan is far too close to the Seashore of Intermittence."
Too close to the Seashore of Intermittence? Audrey blinked in confusion, but before she could ask, her father handed her another document and said with a smile, "That's why I've prepared another proposal. Once you've bought the bicycle shares and returned to Backlund, you can consider passing this to your friend Fors and have her deliver it to Viscount Bryan."
Curious, Audrey took the file. On the cover were the words:
"Proposal on the Establishment of the Academy of Film Arts and Sciences and the Creation of Film Awards."
If you can't join the game, then become the referee — set the rules, regulate the market, and gain influence in the film industry indirectly.
…
On Wednesday morning, after spending a day and a night discussing with Fanny, Ebner finally finished planning how to take full advantage of the upcoming western crisis in Intis to reap maximum benefit. Leaving Fanny's rented house, he went straight to the Bryan Film Company in Trier.
He spent the entire morning finalizing new projects with Elaine — films like The Saint of Toulon and The Cannon Fire of Varesi, both stories of heroines leading people and soldiers to crush cultists and demons. These would be released at the right time to bolster Fanny's public image.
Afterward, Ebner instructed the Secret Order's "Scholar of Yore," Daphne, to transform into Owen's likeness and act in his stead in Trier.
As for himself, he teleported back to Backlund — because Xio had returned from East Chester.
After more than a month of intense pursuit missions, during which she "judged" and punished all sorts of criminals, she was now only one step away from fully digesting her Sequence 5 potion — "Disciplinary Paladin."
(End of this chapter)