Hall Earl's Villa.
The dim yellow sunlight was slowly slipping out through the cracks of the windows.
At her desk, Audrey pouted slightly, her right elbow propped on the table as her palm supported her fair little face. Her left index finger unconsciously traced circles on the surface of the desk.
A bit annoyed. Very annoyed. Extremely annoyed.
Tonight, she had to go to the Glaint residence to attend a gathering.
This had been decided many days ago. It would also be the first gathering after the Qilangos incident, and she had been looking forward to it.
But her father, Earl Hall, somehow heard the news and even came to talk to her about it.
She had originally thought Earl Hall would stop her from going to Glaint's gathering, but unexpectedly, he didn't stop her at all.
Instead, he asked her to pass a message to Mr. Hastur.
To be precise, he wanted her to invite Mr. Hastur to visit their home.
This should have been a perfectly normal social invitation, but coming from Earl Hall's mouth, it somehow felt strange.
If he truly wanted to invite Mr. Hastur over, couldn't he just send an invitation card directly?
Why make it so complicated and have her pass it on?
Wasn't her older brother Hibbert also on good terms with Mr. Hastur? Having him extend the invitation would surely be more appropriate than having her do it.
What really troubled her, though, was that she had no idea why Earl Hall wanted to invite Mr. Hastur over in the first place.
Unable to figure it out, Audrey glanced toward the corner, where a golden retriever with tiny paws was flipping through a book. After watching for a moment, she called out: "Susie, can you answer my question?"
"Audrey, the book says that solving your own worries yourself is the only way to eliminate them completely."
"Susie, you've read so many books, don't any of them mention helping a friend with their troubles?"
"But the books also say that not every kind of help to a friend should be given."
Susie paused, then asked in confusion: "By the way, Audrey, are there different levels among friends?"
Audrey's eyes brightened, her mood suddenly improving. It was rare for Susie to actively seek her help.
Ever since Susie devoted herself wholeheartedly to studying, Audrey found it harder and harder to gain a sense of superiority from her.
She thought for a moment, then replied very seriously: "Of course. Depending on how close you are, there are acquaintances you simply nod to, ordinary friends, close friends, friends worth deepening ties with, friends you can entrust your life to, and friends whose bond surpasses life and death."
"Then how do you determine the depth of friendship? Are there specific signs? Or perhaps a measurable value? And when that value surpasses a certain threshold, it means the relationship can advance to the next level?"
Audrey listened quietly at first, then slowly opened her mouth, closed it again, and looked at Susie with a complicated expression.
"Susie… you're a dog."
"I know, Audrey. You don't have to remind me. I know better than anyone how to be a proper dog."
"…I mean, you don't need to understand so many human things."
"The book says that because we know so little about the world, we must learn in order to understand it. Audrey, is that sentence wrong?"
"..." Audrey covered her forehead with a hand. She felt like she now had one more thing to be troubled about.
Maybe from the very beginning, she shouldn't have taught Susie anything. And later on, she definitely shouldn't have let her study whatever she wanted.
…
Night, at the Glaint residence.
In the second-floor study: Hastur, Glaint, Xio, Fors, and Audrey, whose expression didn't look very good.
Xio asked curiously: "Miss Audrey, you don't look well."
"I've just been in a bad mood recently."
Audrey replied with a smile. She couldn't exactly tell them that she'd been outdone by a dog, and almost driven to collapse by said dog's questions.
Glaint swept his gaze around and said regretfully: "Audrey, why didn't you bring Susie tonight?"
"It recently ate too much and has severe indigestion. It's lying at home resting right now." Audrey could guarantee she was telling the truth.
Susie had eaten too much, knowledge. She had consumed too much miscellaneous knowledge and ended up "indigestion."
"Is it serious? I can help treat it. I'm quite skilled in treating pets now."
"Thank you for your kindness, Glaint, but I've already found the best doctor for Susie."
Audrey politely declined. The "doctor" she mentioned was herself, of course she was excellent.
To avoid further questions about Susie, Audrey gently shifted the topic: "In the last Qilangos incident, we perfectly foiled his plan to assassinate Duke Negan. In that regard, all of us can be considered guardians of Backlund."
Xio and Fors felt a bit embarrassed. They hadn't unearthed much useful information and only learned through the newspapers that Qilangos had infiltrated Backlund to assassinate Duke Negan.
Audrey looked toward Xio and Fors, smiling warmly: "Your intelligence was valuable and helped me make correct judgments. I'm willing to pay each of you 500 pounds."
'How much? 500 pounds?!'
Xio and Fors widened their eyes, pupils trembling. A 500-pound reward!
All their previous mission rewards combined probably didn't even add up to this amount.
Miss Audrey was the very embodiment of generosity.
No, she radiated light. She was an angel who saved the poor!
"Thank you for your generosity." It took them a moment to react.
"This is the reward you deserve."
Audrey smiled brightly. The Qilangos incident had earned her at least 20,000 pounds.
Paying out this 1,000 pounds was nothing to her.
Then she looked at Glaint and offered him a reward of 200 pounds.
Originally, she had planned to pay 500 pounds for the danger he took on.
But since the matter couldn't be spoken of openly, she could only give him less than what Xio and Fors received.
As for Mr. Hastur… Audrey's gaze shifted to Hastur, but she didn't mention any reward.
They had already discussed it before, what Mr. Hastur wanted was noble status.
As for monetary compensation, she knew his finances were excellent lately, so she didn't plan to "test" him with money.
She found it a pity. The richer Mr. Hastur became, the harder it was for her to enjoy that simple pleasure.
After wrapping things up, she handed the stage over to the eager Glaint.
"Everyone, I've recently raised a miraculous dog, a dog that can do backflips."
Glaint waved his hand and called, "Blight, come here."
A little golden retriever dashed into the room, tail wagging happily as it cozied up to Glaint.
"Blight, shake hands."
The little golden retriever lifted its right paw and waited for Glaint to extend his hand before placing its paw into his palm.
"Good job, Blight."
Glaint patted its head twice, then continued: "Blight, give us some backflips."
"Woof!"
The little dog barked, and began performing backflips on the spot, one after another.
Xio and Fors were captivated. Even Audrey looked over with curiosity.
"Blight, now do a front flip."
Glaint commanded the dog through several more difficult tricks.
After the performance, he happily rewarded it with a meat jerky.
Fors asked curiously: "Is this the Beyonder ability of a Beast Tamer?"
"Yes. I can easily see through any animal's thoughts now. They're willing to get close to me and follow my commands. Training them has become effortless, as if I was born for it." Glaint answered proudly.
Xio sighed: "This is the charm of the Beyonder world."
"It's just a pity that Backlund doesn't sell any of the more impressive creatures, like giant lizards or two-headed wyverns."
Glaint felt regretful. Raising cats and dogs no longer satisfied him, they were too easy to train and offered no sense of achievement.
Fors mused uncertainly: "Such creatures likely only exist in the primitive forests of the Southern Continent, right?"
"My second brother is in the Southern Continent now. He told me that there are indeed many rare and nearly extinct magical creatures, such as giant serpents that can swallow an elephant whole, or apes seven or eight meters tall." Audrey provided a simple explanation.
"I really want to visit the Southern Continent someday." Glaint stroked the little retriever, his tone full of yearning.
Hastur smiled and reminded him: "The Southern Continent is far from peaceful these days. Best give up that thought."
"I was just imagining it. Aside from the air, everything in Backlund is great. I'm not foolish enough to go to the Southern Continent asking for trouble."
Glaint waved dismissively.
Xio then began sharing her recent experiences, especially those concerning followers of the Stars.
Glaint listened with curiosity, Fors's expression grew slightly tense and her smile stiffened, while Hastur listened quietly and calmly.
Seeing their reactions, Audrey's gaze lingered a little longer on Fors.