Apart from dancing at banquets, Audrey had never observed Mr. Hastur from such a close distance.
From his manner of speaking and tone, to his facial expressions, clothing, and taste in perfume, she did not let a single detail escape her as she carefully observed the Mr. Hastur who was right beside her.
The most obvious difference was in his behavior and manner of speaking. Today, Mr. Hastur spoke much more casually and naturally.
In the past, he might have thought through every sentence in his mind once, or even several times, before saying it. But today, his words were frank and direct, an unfiltered expression of his thoughts.
Audrey tried asking, "Mr. Hastur, do you think I look pretty?"
"Of course. That is an undeniable fact. Whether it is me or anyone else, the moment they see you, their gaze will naturally focus on you."
Hastur turned slightly and looked seriously at Audrey. "Miss Audrey may doubt many things, but you should never doubt your own beauty, unless you intend to question everyone's standards of beauty."
Audrey's cheeks turned slightly red, and she became even more certain of her guess. The Mr. Hastur from before would never have given such an overly direct compliment.
"Mr. Hastur, do you feel that there is anything different about yourself today compared with before?"
"Is there?"
"Perhaps I was mistaken."
Audrey did not dwell on the topic. The smile hidden in her eyes became even more pronounced.
"Mr. Hastur, did you sleep well last night?"
"…Of course. Very well."
Hastur smiled, stood up, left the sofa, and returned to sit behind the desk. "I had a little wine last night. After I came back, I slept very soundly and did not wake up until this morning."
A hint of suspicion flashed through Audrey's eyes. "I thought Mr. Hastur had gone out for a walk in the middle of the night."
She deliberately emphasized the words "middle of the night."
"Nighttime is the time for peaceful sleep. It is a gift from the Goddess." Hastur had not forgotten that he was supposed to be a believer of the Goddess of the Evernight.
Audrey also praised the Goddess, then asked again, "Mr. Hastur, when we digest a potion, will we be influenced by the knowledge brewing within the potion, causing changes in our usual behavior and mannerisms?"
"The higher the Sequence, the more obvious this influence becomes."
Hastur thought for a moment before adding, "The essence of the Beyonder pathways is chaos and madness. The closer one gets to the peak, the closer one gets to madness."
Audrey nodded solemnly.
After chatting for a while longer, Audrey got up and said goodbye. Hastur accompanied her downstairs and watched her board the carriage.
Before leaving, Audrey deliberately lifted the carriage curtain and revealed a bright smile. "Mr. Hastur, when it comes to paying someone a visit, daytime is still more appropriate."
Hastur was not particularly surprised. He merely smiled without responding, watching Audrey's carriage disappear into the distance.
Inside the carriage, Audrey hummed a little tune, in an exceptionally good mood.
Susie looked at her curiously and could not help letting out a bark.
"Susie, I discovered another little secret about Mr. Hastur."
"Woof?"
"I said it was a secret, so naturally I cannot tell you."
"Woof!"
...
In the afternoon, Hastur boarded a steam train and left Backlund.
This meant that Fors and Xio, who had arrived a little too late to ask Hastur for help, could only turn to Audrey for assistance instead.
The two of them did not even have a proper place to hide at the moment and could only temporarily stay in a hotel. The expenses were too high, and their savings would not last very long.
Disguised, Xio arrived near Earl Hall's residence and waited for about half an hour before she finally encountered Susie going out for a walk.
Xio casually passed by. A penny slipped from her fingers seemingly by accident. When she crouched down to pick it up, she used her body as cover to slip a note into Susie's new handbag.
After the brief encounter, Xio went to a nearby café and met up with Fors, who had been waiting there.
Twenty minutes later, Audrey finally appeared inside the café with Susie.
As soon as she sat down, Susie very naturally began wandering around the surroundings on patrol.
"Have you two run into some difficulties?"
Audrey immediately saw the uneasiness on Fors and Xio's faces. They looked as though they wanted to say something but were too embarrassed to bring it up.
Fors nodded. "There is something we need Miss Audrey's help with."
Xio briefly recounted what the two of them had experienced recently, merely leaving out the matter of being believers of the Stars.
"A suitable place to live… Let me think."
Audrey thought for a while, then pointed out three locations on the table. "I bought several houses in previous years. These three have not been rented out yet. You can choose one and move in."
Fors and Xio finally understood how wonderful it was to have a rich friend.
In the end, the two chose a house very close to the Church of the Storms.
"As for the key, I'll have Susie bring it to you after I return."
"Thank you, Miss Audrey!"
"You're welcome. You two have helped me with many things before, too."
Xio said seriously, "In the future, whatever Miss Audrey asks of me, I will definitely do my best to accomplish it!"
Audrey merely smiled. After finishing a cup of coffee, she left with Susie.
...
At seven in the evening, Fors and Xio finally finished giving the two bedrooms in the house a simple cleaning.
"Phew… I'm exhausted."
Fors collapsed onto the sofa in the living room on the first floor and rubbed her sore shoulders and thighs.
Xio brought over two cups of hot tea. She handed one to Fors and glanced at her. "I told you long ago to exercise more regularly. You're already complaining about being tired after doing just a little work. We still have to carefully clean everything again tomorrow."
"I'm not doing this anymore. It's too tiring." Fors shook her head, then sprawled across the sofa, not wanting to move at all.
"That won't do. This house has three floors. The first floor has a living room, kitchen, storage room, and three maid rooms. The second floor has four bedrooms, a study, and two washrooms."
Xio counted carefully before continuing, "We can leave the third floor alone for now, but we definitely have to clean the first and second floors. It'll be much more comfortable to live here that way."
Fors closed her eyes and sighed. "Xio, do you think we deserve to live in such a nice house?"
"..." Xio fell silent as well.
Indeed. The money the two of them earned in an entire year was probably only enough to pay the rent for this house.
Normally, they would never even dare imagine that they could live in such a luxurious and extravagant house, especially a three-story villa.
Fortunately, Miss Audrey had never mentioned rent from beginning to end. She had simply told them to live there as they pleased, and that they could ask her for help if they were missing anything.
"Fortunately, we met Miss Audrey."
"Yeah."
The two exchanged a deeply sympathetic glance.
A little after ten at night, just as Fors and Xio were about to go upstairs to rest, a tall and slender figure suddenly appeared in the center of the hall.
The sight caused their expressions to change slightly. They stared warily at the mature and elegant woman before them.
"I am going to establish an organization under the Stars. I want the two of you to help me as well."
Bernadette merely swept her gaze over Xio and Fors. The natural dignity emanating from her caused their bodies to tremble involuntarily.
"You're also a believer of the Stars?" Fors remembered that the person who had helped rescue Xio back then seemed to have spoken with this very same voice.
Bernadette calmly replied, "Yes. The people hiding in the shadows of Backlund have not all been uncovered yet. It would be best for the two of you to follow me, so that you will not be captured again."
There were not many believers of the Stars. As fellow believers, Fors and Xio could be considered two of the few people in Backlund whom she could make use of.
Moreover, protecting the the Stars faithful was precisely something she ought to do to share the burden and troubles of the Stars.
Xio asked somewhat nervously, "Who are you?"
"You may call me Bernadette."
A look of amazement flashed through Fors' eyes. That name really was beautiful, as though it naturally carried an air of nobility.
The aura of the woman herself was very similar to Miss Audrey's. More precisely, it was like the aura Miss Audrey might possess after growing up and experiencing many things.
Xio, who had long paid attention to various bounties, merely felt that the woman before her looked somewhat familiar. For a moment, however, she could not remember where she had seen her before.
Fors gradually regained her composure. "How are we supposed to believe you?"
Bernadette merely raised her hand lightly. Two pea vines suddenly emerged from the ground, carrying Fors and Xio instantly into the clouds.
She raised her head and gazed up at the starry sky, then bowed slightly.
"Great Stars, your believer Bernadette is here to pray for you to cast your gaze upon us."
After a while, the light of the stars in the night sky converged, forming a mysterious and majestic Hall of Stars.
Within the Hall of Stars, the Sovereign of the Stars who watched over everything pierced through the starry sky and cast Their gaze upon them.
Fors and Xio hurriedly imitated Bernadette's movements and praised the Stars.
Bernadette said, "The believers of the Stars need an organization that can unite them. I am willing to establish the Church of the Stars. First, it can provide all believers of the Stars with a place of shelter. Second, it will make it easier to carry out the instructions of the Stars."
Establishing a mysterious organization?
Not a bad idea. There really should be an organization of the Stars.
It was just that, at present, the believers of the Stars consisted of Bernadette, Fors, and Xio. Of course, he himself, the vessel of the Stars, could also be included.
As for Madam Lisa, they were members of the Yellow Robed Monks organization. Hastur did not want them to participate.
With Bernadette's extensive experience in organizing groups, there was indeed something to look forward to in the future.
Within the Hall of Stars, Hastur briefly considered the matter before granting Bernadette's request.
"The Stars will always protect you."
Leaving behind these words, Hastur dispersed that familiar starry sky.
"Then you are the Pope?" Fors asked tentatively.
"You may call me the Sage."
Bernadette had ambitions of her own in creating the Church of the Stars.
A Sage needed to guide those who had lost their way toward the correct path.
The image was closer to that of a navigator, an answerer of questions, and one who saves and enlightens others, rather than a Pope who symbolized authority and power.
Creating a new organization, building it from nothing, and pioneering a new path under the gaze of the Stars would be highly beneficial to her acting and digestion.
Fors and Xio exchanged a glance and spoke in unison.
"Greetings, Sage."
Bernadette nodded slightly, her gaze somewhat profound.
If Sequence 2 was still insufficient to save her father, then she would advance further.