Saint Samuel Church.
When Leonard returned reeking of alcohol, many people were already waiting for him, including Klein, who had come with the Night Watcher squad to report their results from the previous night.
"We didn't hear anything from you all night. We thought something might have happened to you."
"Good you're back, good you're back."
"Leonard Mitchell, you're a true warrior. You've just proved to everyone that you are a qualified member of the Red Gloves!"
After a round of greetings and praise, Leonard, already somewhat lightheaded from drinking too much, felt even more buoyant.
Klein supported him by the arm and helped him sit on a long bench to rest.
Smelling the heavy alcohol on Leonard, Klein frowned and asked, "You reek of booze. Just what exactly were you doing last night?"
Serving as bait was already dangerous enough. After escaping, Leonard didn't hide immediately, he spent the whole night drinking instead.
Klein truly didn't know whether to call him bold or simply reckless.
Leonard glanced at the other Red Gloves members who were also curious about what had happened, cleared his throat, and said:
"Last night I happened to be transported near a bar. Because of the sealed item's negative effects, I didn't dare wander around, and I definitely didn't dare return to the church directly. So I chose that bar as a temporary refuge."
"At the time, cold was surging through my body, and I felt chilled to the bone, so I had some drinks to ease the symptoms. I honestly didn't intend to drink that much at first. But then I met an interesting patron, and we had a great conversation… before I knew it, I'd had quite a lot."
"Later, that patron headed home to rest, but I stayed in the bar until it closed at dawn, then took a carriage back."
Leonard roughly recounted what happened, satisfying everyone's curiosity.
Klein thought for a moment but decided not to ask exactly how much money Leonard had spent on alcohol.
He was already familiar with Backlund's prices, alcohol in a bar was definitely far more expensive than outside.
Leonard drank the entire night; he'd likely burned through a whole week's salary.
The Red Gloves captain leading him had clearly thought of the same issue. He laughed and patted Leonard on the shoulder. "Don't worry, expenses incurred while on assignment can be reimbursed."
"Thank you, Captain," Leonard said with a smile.
A whole night's worth of drinks… judging from the prices at that bar, claiming 50 pounds probably wouldn't be an issue.
After all, they didn't know he had mostly been drinking the relatively cheap Southwail beer, and they also didn't know his tab had already been paid by someone else.
Earning an extra 50 pounds for nothing, indeed a nice little outcome.
He was already planning to visit the Bravehearts Bar again once things calmed down a bit. At the very least, he wanted to repay that drink.
Having completed his mission, Leonard headed to rest with Klein accompanying him.
On the way, Klein briefly recapped last night's results.
Just their East Borough Night Watcher squad working with the Red Gloves squad had wiped out five Beyonders, including a Sequence 6.
And the ambush over at Sivillas Square yielded even more remarkable results.
They killed two Sequence 5s and almost managed to keep a Sequence 4 demigod. This thoroughly shocked the Beyonders hiding in the shadows.
As for the identities of those two Sequence 5 powerhouses, the Church hadn't disclosed anything.
According to a Red Gloves member, one might be from the Feysac Empire and the other from the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom.
Leonard quietly listened and sighed. "To think a Sequence 4 demigod came just to target me. Good thing I ran fast, or I'd have been done for."
"You still need to be careful," Klein warned. "There were definitely more people lurking in the dark last night. And look, Aurora Order, known for their boldness, hasn't even acted yet."
"Strange, they're holding back this time… that's rare."
Leonard felt it was strange too. The Aurora Order was, in his impression, a fearless and terrifying organization.
They should also be searching for Followers of the Stars, so why was there no movement?
Could they now possess the acumen to see through traps? If so, that was indeed frightening.
After sending Leonard to his room, Klein left. He was at Saint Samuel Church on official business, he didn't have time for long conversations.
Lying in bed, ready to get some proper sleep, Leonard was interrupted by the voice deep within his mind.
"That person you talked with last night is not ordinary."
"You mean Mr. Hastur? Does he have some special identity?" Leonard's drowsiness dissipated instantly.
"Not sure. I couldn't see through him. And precisely because I can't see through him, he might be problematic."
"Old man, even you can't see through him?"
"I only have some suspicions."
"What kind of suspicion?"
"That he might be a Favored of the Evernight. The only ones I can't see through are those with a higher status than mine… or under the blessing of the Evernight Goddess."
Leonard was now fully awake and intrigued. "Old man, what Sequence were you when you were alive?"
"Alive? Brat, I'm not dead yet!"
"Ahem, slip of the tongue."
"If you want to know what level I am, then hurry up and improve your own strength. Backlund isn't simple. A Sequence 7 is just a slightly stronger ant."
Seeing that the old man didn't want to reveal anything further, Leonard returned to the previous topic.
"No wonder we got along so well at first meeting, so he might actually be a Favored of the Goddess."
"It's only suspicion."
"As long as he means me no harm, let's not dig into who he is. After all, it's rare to meet someone you can talk with."
"You may be a fool, but your luck seems decent."
"Old man! Can you not talk like that?!"
A clicking sound came from the depths of his mind, clearly expressing disdain.
"Do you still remember the negative effect of the Night Cloak?"
"Wandering around randomly may lead to encountering incredible events?"
"Perhaps your meeting last night was the incredible event."
"So accurate?" Leonard was shocked.
But thinking carefully, it did feel incredible.
He went to a bar just to drink, yet happened to run into a man who surpassed him slightly in appearance and talent.
Recalling last night, Mr. Hastur had come out of the VIP room, meaning he had arrived earlier than Leonard.
Judging from how he spoke, he was a regular there. So he clearly wasn't lying in wait for Leonard.
Leonard pondered for a long moment and had to agree with the old man's guess.
A man whose looks and talent outshone his own truly was something unbelievable.
...
"So the one pretending to be a Followers of the Stars was you, Leonard."
Hall of the Stars. Through observing fate, Hastur accurately located the impersonator: Leonard Mitchell.
He had drunk until late last night and slept until noon. After lunch, he returned to his room, entered the Hall of stars, and began examining fate threads.
He didn't expect that the culprit would be Leonard.
Just last night, they had drunk together and even discussed Followers of the Stars matters, both men acting with layers of caution.
Thinking back, it all felt rather amusing.
Hastur chuckled softly and considered Leonard's motive for impersonating a Followers of the Stars.
He must have learned about the existence of Followers of the Stars through the Church. After all, he was someone who had only recently arrived in Backlund from Tingen.
Combining this with recent events, it wasn't hard to deduce that Leonard acted under the Church of the Evernight Goddess orders, probably to lure out real Followers of the Stars.
"A good strategy. Unfortunately, Backlund only has Fors, the only Followers of the Stars, and there's no way you're pulling a fully salted-fish out of hiding."
Hastur muttered. For now, he didn't intend to take any actions against Leonard.
Perhaps it was fate. He went to the Bravehearts Bar on a whim and happened to meet Leonard, who had only just arrived in Backlund.
Leonard's Tarot Card identity was the Star, while he represented the Stars.
Stars and constellations, naturally connected. And Leonard had been pretending to be one of his own believers.
If the opportunity came, Hastur didn't mind making Leonard a real Followers of the Stars.
Turning falsehood into truth, also an interesting development.
Hastur thought for a moment, then looked up at the starry sky above.
Except for the High-Dimensional Overlooker, who was still gazing at the sea, the other stars were quiet.
He stared at the Overlooker for a while, then shifted to another shimmering speck.
He hadn't checked on the white crystal eyeball since it was blasted down from the sky by the Lord of the Storms and fell into Intis territory.
Now, taking a look, he saw it had landed on a small town's clock tower. Cracks covered its surface, yet the light inside had not dimmed much.
A hazy glow seemed to spread through the bell tower, forming invisible ripples radiating outward.
Was this pollution from the High-Dimensional Overlooker? After observing for a while, Hastur dismissed the thought.
The townsfolk were living normal lives. None seemed affected by the crystal eyeball, and no one had even noticed the additional object atop the bell tower.
"Still makes me uneasy."
After confirming there were no abnormalities, Hastur left the Hall of stars.