At the door, he suddenly thought of the aster flower. And if he remembered correctly, the estate left in the countryside was also called Aster Manor, wasn't it?
-------------------------------------------
Aster flowers, Aster Manor... could there really be such a coincidence?
His steps halted, his expression grew grave, any coincidence might be the prelude to a conspiracy.
Moreover, he had recently provoked Beyonders from the Fate Pathway. Any coincidence, any chance encounter, might contain something terrifying.
Aster flowers...
Hastur paused at the door, pondering for a long time before recalling records about asters.
Asters symbolize elegance and mystery. Many believe they possess magical power. In ancient Rome and Greece, they were considered sacred flowers.
Those shaped like stars were even used to represent the stars in the sky.
Representing stars?
Hastur instinctively raised his head to gaze upward. Gray mist veiled the sky over Backlund, and the brilliant sunlight strained to pierce through, letting fall only a faint ray.
The stars, so clearly visible at night, were now hidden behind the blazing sun, concealed without a trace.
Hastur stared blankly for a while, then laughed softly and murmured: "Too many coincidences make it all seem far too deliberate."
"Today is another beautiful day."
He summoned a carriage and went to the Glaint household.
When Hastur returned 2,200 gold pounds in the form of 220 banknotes of 10 pounds each, Glaint was visibly shocked.
As far as he knew, Hastur's financial situation wasn't good, how could he suddenly produce such a sum?
"Hastur, are you that baron who helped the police solve the Almshouse case?" Glaint asked in surprise.
"Just happened to be involved, that's all."
"No, no, you're far too modest, though that is a fine virtue."
"The police rewarded me with a bounty, quite generous."
"They're always crying poor before the king, and yet they still gave such a sum. It seems you played a crucial role in that case."
Glaint had the butler put away the money, then led Hastur into the study.
"You should have Lord Greg pull some strings for you. Perhaps you might even receive a reward from the king."
With no one else present, Glaint spoke more directly.
"The king doesn't much like our Campbell family."
Hastur sat on the sofa, sipping a cup of marquis tea, and replied casually:
"Your father, Voltaire... indeed, the king didn't like him much. Otherwise he wouldn't have stripped his rank for those outrageous deeds."
"Wasn't his title lost because of gambling?"
"Not just for that reason. Your father lost too much land to gambling, and combined with his incorrigible behavior, he earned the king's displeasure. That's why his rank fell from count to baron."
Hastur thought for a moment, then smiled: "Merely helping solve one case isn't enough merit for the king to look at me differently."
Glaint chuckled: "Add Duke Negan's weight to it, and it would be enough."
"Glaint, you're still too young."
Hastur shook his head and smiled: "Other than the royal family, the Negan family is the most noble. Their influence is already too great. On matters of noble promotions, Duke Negan would never casually give his opinion, he would even deliberately avoid suspicion."
"You're right. The duke has kept a low profile these years. The king now favors Count Hall more, and even intends for his son to marry Audrey."
Thinking it over, Glaint found it true, just as Hastur had said, and so he dropped the subject.
The two chatted idly in the study for another two hours. During this time, Hastur told Glaint much about mysticism and urged him to study some ancient Hermes and Jotun.
After leaving Glaint's home, Hastur went to Backlund University, and in the evening he visited the Bravehearts Bar to chat and play cards with Maric.
Another full day.
...
West Balam.
Here, warlords carved up territories, with many foreign powers lurking behind them, turning half the southern continent into colonies.
Tonight, in a small, unknown town, a surge of black light rose from the town center. The light spread with the wind, and in the blink of an eye, enveloped the whole town.
The residents streamed out of their homes, gathering at the vast square in the middle of town.
Smiles of bliss covered their faces, their eyes brimming with hunger for desire.
Men, women, young, old, they stripped off their hindering clothes, standing bare under the crimson moon.
The scarlet glow fell upon pale flesh, adding a hazy allure.
Reproduction is the instinct of many creatures.
Even immobile plants reveal their extreme yearning when it comes to propagation.
Reproduction is the continuation of new life, the truth that sustains the world to this day.
To resist it is to defy human nature.
Only by breaking the shackles of moral dogma and indulging in the desires from deep within can one obtain true freedom and happiness.
Indulge desire, propagate life.
As more and more townsfolk joined, the aura of lust grew thicker. Wisps of vitality drifted from the men and women, gathering at the altar in the center.
Standing at the altar, Mahams used calm yet bewitching words to entice one townsman after another to shed their restraints and join the revelry.
His eyes were filled with fanaticism, the corners of his mouth curling into a smile.
He could feel their god watching here, gazing upon him!
In the past, he had always believed that intercourse between men and women was a blasphemy against the sacred.
Only by restraining desire could one awaken divinity from such struggles and behold the gods.
But not until he truly encountered his god did he realize that all along he had gone in the opposite direction.
Desire is meant to be indulged. To indulge in desire is the greatest way of loving oneself.
Only by first facing oneself honestly can one face the world with the same heart.
Restraint and suppression of desire are nothing more than self-deception.
It is the instinct of being human, the root of all reproduction.
If all things in the world restrained themselves and no longer reproduced, what a deathly silence this world would fall into!
It came, the gaze of the god was piercing through the layers of starlit sky.
Mahams trembled with excitement all over; every time he witnessed a miracle, his soul was baptized once more.
"Orgy and debauchery, just as expected from you human scum!" A harsh shout shattered the silence.
Mahams looked up, and in the darkness he saw a mass of figures closing in!
"Dogs of the Church! You dream of disrupting the descent of God!"
...
The sea, aboard the Dawn.
Inside the captain's cabin, the phantom of the Son of Chaos emerged from the Magic Wishing Lamp and smiled: "Now do you believe I wasn't lying to you?"
He was in good spirits. This time, the Church of the Storms had joined hands with the Church of the Eternal Sun and the Church of Knowledge and Wisdom to ruin the god-descent ritual of the Mother Tree of Desire in West Balam.
They had helped him win his wager with the Mother Tree of Desire, giving him more confidence to negotiate and trade with it.
A small moment of triumph.
Bernadette stared at the Son of Chaos: "According to the information I received, this time during the descent, that divine abomination did not preside personally, and the whole ritual looked far simpler than before."
"This was only a trial."
"You're definitely hiding something from me."
The Son of Chaos thought for a moment and said: "I did conceal part of the truth. I made a bet with the Mother Tree of Desire, if I could ruin this descent ritual, It would give me a Tarot card."
Bernadette's expression shifted slightly. She knew that the Tarot cards in question must be the mysterious deck left behind by her father, Roselle.
"The Mother Tree of Desire originally wanted to wager with the Devil card, but I refused. For you, the Devil card is far too dangerous, so I asked it to change it to a Temperance card."
"I will not take that Temperance card."
Bernadette rejected directly. The things of the Mother Tree of Desire were not so easily obtained.
The Devil card was dangerous, but was the Temperance card truly safe?
The Son of Chaos looked up at the ceiling, his gaze seeming to pierce the barrier and see the twinkling stars above.
"That Temperance card was never meant for you from the very beginning."
...
"Extra! Extra! The Church of the Storms, the Church of the Eternal Sun, and the Church of Knowledge and Wisdom have joined forces in West Balam to destroy a massive cult ritual!"
"Extra! Extra! The Mystic Queen of the Dawn spotted near Damir Port!"
"Extra! Extra! The mysterious Baron who secretly helped the police crack the Sunrise Almshouse case was actually him!"
On the street, a newspaper boy held a stack of papers in his left hand and waved one in his right, shouting loudly to attract passersby to buy the day's edition.
"Give me one."
Passing nearby, Hastur ordered his coachman to stop the carriage and buy a paper.
Inside the carriage, Hastur unfolded the newspaper and read carefully.
From the information revealed, it seemed the Son of Chaos had indeed won the wager this time.
Had the Son of Chaos already completed the private transaction with the Mother Tree of Desire?
Bernadette's Dawn was seen near Damir Port, could she already have secretly entered Loen and come to Backlund?
Given the Son of Chaos's abnormal behavior recently, Bernadette would surely carry the Magic Wishing Lamp with her at all times to prevent accidents.
It seemed he must be cautious of the Son of Chaos's gaze, best not to encounter Bernadette at all.
Hastur then glanced at another piece of news. Some kind soul had revealed that he had helped the police solve a case.
The newspaper was full of praise for him, a young, talented, and handsome baron, without the slightest restraint in the compliments.
Hastur set the paper down, a bit troubled. He didn't want to be so famous.