"Ariella."
Audrey's eyes lit up in delight when she caught sight of the little black cat. She even waved, trying to attract Ariella's attention.
"Woof." Susie also gave a dog, style greeting.
Ariella merely glanced at them before turning around and heading deeper into the house. After walking a few steps, she looked back at them, signaling for them to follow.
Caius gave a dry cough. "Since Lady Ariella has something to discuss with you, you can just go with her."
Ariella was the little black cat closest to Hastur, and her status had always been rather special. To show their respect, they had taken to addressing Ariella as "Lady" as well.
Could Mr. Hastur have sent Ariella to come get me?
The thought stirred in Audrey's mind. She led Susie and Fors after Ariella, heading deeper into the house.
Along the way, Audrey tried speaking to Ariella, but Ariella did not respond even once. This made Audrey somewhat regretful. She should have brought some dried fish with her when she went out today. If she had, she might have been able to attract Ariella's attention.
After making several twists and turns, Ariella led Audrey and the others to the door of Hastur's room. The door was already open, and Sharron was the only person inside.
"Meow."
Ariella let out a cry, trotted forward a couple of steps, then leaped into Sharron's arms.
It was Sharron who had asked her to go out and bring them here. Otherwise, she would not have bothered moving.
What an exquisite, beautiful girl!
Audrey's eyes shone the moment she saw Sharron. Although she was very interested in Sharron, who looked like an exquisite doll, she still maintained her elegant bearing and did not stare too much.
'This must be the ultimate doll Mr. Moon wants to pursue, right?' Fors was equally amazed inwardly, staring at Sharron without blinking.
"Sharron." Sharron paid no attention to their curious gazes and simply gave her name.
Originally, she had no intention of interacting with outsiders. But just now, 008 had suddenly bounced its way over to her and written on a blank sheet of paper: "Audrey Hall, an old friend from Backlund, seems to have an unusual relationship with Master."
Those words had aroused a little of her curiosity.
An unusual relationship? Sharron admitted that she cared a little about that question, which was why she had sent Ariella to invite them over for a meeting.
Back when she was in Backlund, she had heard of Miss Audrey's reputation. She was known as the most brilliant and dazzling jewel of Backlund.
Seeing her in person today, Sharron found that she indeed matched the descriptions from the rumors.
She possessed the beauty and elegance of a noble lady while also retaining the innocent liveliness of a young girl. Just a single glance at her was enough to naturally draw one's attention.
"Audrey. I'm a friend of Mr. Hastur."
"Fors. I'm also a friend of Mr. Hastur."
After their brief introductions, the room fell silent.
Sharron had simply wanted to see Audrey for herself and had no intention of discussing anything. Audrey, meanwhile, upheld the elegance of a noble lady and patiently waited for the other party to speak first.
Normally, if the other party remained silent, Audrey would take the initiative to speak and give them a way out of the awkward situation.
But today, for some reason, she suddenly did not feel like doing so.
In the end, it was Fors who directly asked, "Miss Sharron, is there something you wanted from us?"
"You may leave now." Sharron's indifferent reply nearly caused the expression on Fors' face to freeze.
This was the first time she had ever encountered someone who spoke like this. She was clearly so beautiful, yet the words coming out of her mouth were so merciless.
"Uh, Miss Sharron, you called us here just because you wanted to take a look at us?"
"Mm."
"…" Fors no longer knew how to continue the conversation. She turned a pleading gaze toward the thoughtful Miss Audrey.
"What kind of relationship do you have with Mr. Hastur, Miss Sharron?" Audrey asked curiously.
Sharron did not answer directly. She merely gently stroked Ariella, who was nestled in her arms. Yet that gesture seemed to answer something on its own.
Fors' mouth had already fallen slightly open, an "as expected" expression appearing on her face.
This little black cat only liked being close to Mr. Hastur. She hardly paid any attention to anyone else. Even Miss Audrey had failed to establish a good relationship with her.
Yet this Miss Sharron, who looked like a beautiful doll, was so close to Ariella and clearly possessed a special status within Mr. Hastur's territory. Her relationship with Mr. Hastur definitely could not be simple.
Good friends? It would probably be more appropriate to call them lovers.
Audrey's beautiful brows furrowed slightly. She looked Sharron up and down once more, a trace of seriousness entering her eyes.
"Miss Sharron, how did you meet Mr. Hastur? Why have I never heard him mention your existence?"
Although Audrey spoke those words with a smile, the aggressiveness contained within them made Fors instinctively take a small step backward, leaving the space to Miss Audrey and Miss Sharron.
"What's between him and me has nothing to do with anyone else," Sharron replied calmly.
"Are you Mr. Hastur's lover, Miss Sharron?" Audrey's direct question made Fors' eyes widen. This was the first time she had ever seen Miss Audrey act so aggressively.
"No," Sharron replied indifferently.
The smile on Audrey's face grew a little brighter. "Then Miss Sharron must be one of Mr. Hastur's friends in the mystical world. Mm, comrades who support and help each other?"
"More or less."
"Then can Miss Sharron tell me where Mr. Hastur is right now?"
"No."
There was no disappointment on Audrey's face. She simply smiled and said, "Since Mr. Hastur isn't here today, we'll be leaving first."
Sharron said nothing and calmly watched them leave.
On the table, 008, which had been playing dead for a while, began furiously writing on the blank paper as if it had just glimpsed some enormous secret.
"Oh, heavens! What exactly did I just witness? Is this really something I'm allowed to watch from the sidelines?"
"Miss Audrey, the dazzling jewel of Backlund, and Miss Sharron, Master's most trusted comrade. Their first exchange actually unfolded in such a manner."
"Who will ultimately win the heart of the intelligent, wise, handsome, and dashing Master? How fascinating."
When Sharron's gaze swept over, 008 hurriedly wrote one final sentence: "A war between women without smoke or gunpowder, how thrilling!"
After silently watching for a while, Sharron's gaze visibly grew colder.
008 shuddered all over and hurriedly wrote on the considerable amount of blank space remaining on the paper: "I only believe in Miss Sharron. She is the one most suited to accompany Master for the rest of his life."
"No matter how brightly Backlund's jewel shines, it cannot compare to years upon years of companionship by his side."
"This is an indisputable fact!"
Although 008 displayed an astonishing survival instinct at the final moment, Sharron ultimately put it back into its pen case and shut it inside.
Sharron was even thoughtful enough to place the Book of Prophecy, which had been keeping it company lately, on a bookshelf where 008 could only stare longingly at it.
After finishing all this, Sharron returned to standing before the window, gazing deeply at the distant scenery.
Yet a faint ripple had appeared in her heart.
…
After walking out of Hastur's house, the smile disappeared from Audrey's face, replaced by a solemn, contemplative expression.
Fors glanced at Audrey's face and cautiously asked, "Miss Audrey, are you worried about Mr. Hastur's whereabouts?"
"Mm, she really isn't someone who's easy to deal with," Audrey subconsciously murmured.
But she quickly realized what she had said and added, "Mr. Hastur's whereabouts being unknown is indeed worrying, especially now that the royal family has been deliberately steering this matter."
"Xio was right. None of the members of the Augustus family are good people. They're always deliberately targeting and trying to kill kind and upright nobles!" Fors said indignantly.
Audrey merely gave a soft acknowledgment, clearly not very interested in the topic.
The two women and one dog walked along the street for a while before Fors suddenly asked, "Miss Audrey, where are we going next?"
"My second brother Alfred's residence in Southville County is not far from here."
As Audrey spoke, she gave a specific location and hailed a carriage to take them there.
Fors sat opposite Audrey, looking at the obviously preoccupied young woman. Several times she wanted to speak, but stopped herself.
By evening, Audrey and Fors arrived at her second brother's large villa. Alfred had already prepared rooms for them.
At the end of dinner, Alfred asked whether they had managed to see Hastur today.
After hearing that they had returned empty, handed, Alfred smiled and said, "That's perfectly normal. Many people have been trying to find Hastur recently, but none have succeeded. Perhaps he's no longer in Southville County."
Audrey did not discuss the matter further.
At the moment, she was far more interested in Sharron.
…
Within the Hall of Stars, Hastur, who had been keeping an eye on Sharron, witnessed the entirety of the meeting between Sharron and Audrey.
An inexplicable strange feeling arose in his heart, and he could not quite tell what emotion it was.
But he could be certain of one thing: it was not happiness.
It felt more like… panic at the thought of something slipping beyond his control?
It was only an ordinary meeting and a simple conversation. Was there really anything worth paying attention to?
"Sharron, Audrey…"
When he spoke those two names together, the strange feeling grew even stronger, and certain related memories began to return.