On its yellowed pages, written in Hermes, were the words: "Everyone will die, including me."
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A few days later.
Because the Beyonder battle from some time ago had too great an impact, recently the Church of the Evernight Goddess, the Church of the Storm, and the Church of Steam joined forces to thoroughly sweep Backlund.
Most of the people from the Rose School of Thought had already left Backlund to lie low.
After learning this news, Sharon and Maric also chose to leave.
Hastur felt it was a bit of a pity. In the past few days, whenever Sharon was free, she would guide him in learning Jotun, which benefited him greatly.
"Prepare to move." Hastur instructed Butler Neil to go down and get ready.
Two days ago, the new house in the Empress Borough had already been fully renovated and organized, ready for move-in at any time.
Since Maric and Sharon were still here hiding from the Rose School of Thought people, Hastur hadn't been in a hurry to move.
Now that the two had left, it was also time for him to move.
"Don't touch the things on the third floor, just seal them up as much as possible."
Hastur specially reminded again, to prevent the servants from bringing the things on the third floor to the new house.
Those things were better left here.
In the afternoon, Butler Neil had already arranged everything, and at the new house in the Empress Borough, he had also hired many maids and workers.
This time, most of the belongings to be moved were Hastur's personal items.
For example, several drawers of pocket watches from his collection, canes, clothes, books, and so on.
Empress Borough, No. 3 King's Avenue.
The new house stood along the street, a detached single-family residence, occupying about twice the area of the previous house, with a light-luxury style of decoration.
Everything inside was fully equipped. Except for identity-showcasing collectibles and other valuables, it could already be considered perfect.
Hastur went to the second floor and chose the largest master bedroom. The third floor was likewise left uninhabited.
The main reason was that he felt living on the top floor was relatively dangerous, while the middle second floor was a bit safer.
It was also more suitable for escaping or directly jumping out of the building.
Hastur had the two newly hired chefs cook some new dishes, and he enjoyed a nice meal.
But he didn't eat too much, because there was still a banquet in the evening.
Something like a housewarming feast.
The invitations had already been sent out two days ago. The main invitees were familiar people like Greg, Glaint, Audrey, Professor Wayne and Lecturer Fron, Manager Harley, and so on.
There were also some neighbors living nearby, such as Viscount Wade and his wife, and Count Richard.
Hastur hadn't expected that even here Count Richard would actually end up as his neighbor.
...
At around half past seven in the evening.
Professor Wayne and Lecturer Fron arrived first, then the neighbors from next door, followed by Manager Harley, Glaint, and others one by one.
Hastur warmly received them for a while, but soon felt a bit overwhelmed. With a full smile, he greeted and chatted with each guest in turn, and after one round his face almost stiffened.
In the end, he let Butler Neil help entertain the guests. When Greg and Audrey arrived, he would come out again to receive them.
Hastur held a glass of fruit wine, sitting on the sofa in the hall, snatching a moment of leisure amidst the busyness.
Rubbing his cheeks, he rested for a while before feeling relieved.
He hadn't rested long when Glaint brought Count Richard over.
"Baron Campbell, we finally meet again." Seeing Hastur, Count Richard was clearly delighted.
Glaint asked curiously, "When did you two meet?"
Hastur invited the two to sit, then spoke of the events at the manor, only slightly omitting part of it.
Count Richard sighed emotionally, "If not for that encounter, I might have continued going further and further down the wrong path."
"It was all the guidance of the Goddess."
Hastur praised the Evernight Goddess with a smile, not expecting Count Richard to also praise Her, and even draw a crimson moon on his chest.
Hastur's surprised look made Count Richard explain, "I am now also a believer of the Evernight Goddess. It was She who enlightened me to walk out of my recent confusion and gave me direction forward."
Could it be that after going to church multiple times, he was moved by the teachings of the Evernight Goddess?
Not necessarily. His original faith, with just some slight alterations in its description, could be redirected toward the Evernight Goddess. Turning to worship Her was also quite natural.
Hastur thought about it and didn't dwell on the matter.
Believing in the Evernight Goddess was much better than worshiping some other messy powers.
The three of them chatted, and the topic turned to the Beyonder world. Glaint was a novice, finding everything fresh and new.
Meanwhile, after the last incident, Count Richard had put in hard effort to study. When he spoke about Beyonder knowledge, it was well-organized, quickly capturing Glaint's attention.
Hastur only quietly listened. He only stepped in to make small corrections when Count Richard said something gravely wrong, to prevent him from leading Glaint astray.
After about half an hour of conversation, Greg and Audrey arrived, accompanied by Hibbert.
Hastur left the hall to welcome and entertain them.
Tonight, Audrey was still the most dazzling pearl, and her arrival made many noble ladies pale in comparison.
"Hastur, you finally agreed to move to Empress Borough. From now on, you mustn't refuse when it comes to drinking."
Greg was clearly delighted and patted Hastur on the shoulder.
Hibbert said with a smile, "This place isn't far from where I live. We must stay in touch more often."
Audrey gave a polite smile and said, "Being able to live in the Empress Borough alongside Baron Campbell is truly a fortunate thing."
"May fortune accompany each and every one of us."
As Hastur spoke, he cast a meaningful glance at Audrey.
Klein should have already held the first Tarot Gathering, right?
The meeting between Miss Justice and Mister Fool indirectly set the wheels of history into motion.
After a few pleasantries, Audrey, who didn't like too much liveliness, also entered the hall and joined the conversation between Glaint and Earl Richard.
She only listened quietly, showing the appearance of being curious about everything.
Glaint, who was relatively familiar with Audrey, suddenly realized that Audrey seemed somewhat different tonight.
She looked more confident and composed than before. Although she had always been confident and composed, that was when she was facing ordinary people.
When facing Beyonders, Audrey's confidence and composure would usually be somewhat discounted.
But tonight, when listening to Beyonder knowledge, Audrey's demeanor seemed as if she herself were already a Beyonder.
Yet she clearly was not a Beyonder. Could it be that Audrey had experienced something during this time?
Naturally, Audrey noticed Glaint's curiosity and confusion, but she still maintained her polite smile and had no intention of explaining it to him.
In recent days, she had indeed encountered her own adventure, Audrey's own fantastical story.
June 29, which should have been an ordinary day, unexpectedly became the beginning of Audrey's, no, Miss Justice's, adventure story.
She remembered that at that time, she was in her bedroom, sitting in front of the dressing table, caressing the bronze mirror with its ancient patterns and cracked surface.
According to her father, Earl Hall, this mirror was a treasured item of the Black Emperor of the ancient Solomon Empire, a Beyonder item.
So she was treating it as a magical mirror, using it for prayers and various tests that carried a trace of embarrassment.
Hmm, as for how the tests were conducted… that was not the point.
The point was, the bronze mirror on the table suddenly bloomed with a crimson light, enveloped her in an instant, and carried her into a realm above gray fog.
There, she encountered Mister Fool and Mister Hanged Man.
When she first arrived above the gray fog, she was very flustered, but she barely managed to stay calm, lest others notice her inner panic and fear.
Mister Fool was a mysterious existence of great power. With just a single thought, he caused the gray fog before her to undergo tremendous change.
A grand and majestic palace, like the legendary Giant King's Court, suddenly rose before her eyes.
Beneath the massive dome was a long bronze table, with ten chairs on each side and two at the ends, twenty-two seats in total.
Mister Fool sat at the head seat, while she and Mister Hanged Man sat at the two closest positions.
At that moment, her curiosity overcame her fear. Everything here appeared mysterious and extraordinary in her eyes.
This was far more unfathomable than the Beyonder world Glaint and the others had spoken of.
In such a setting, she dared not be the first to speak. It was Mister Hanged Man who first broke the silence.
He should be a Beyonder with rich experience and vast knowledge of the occult.
Mister Hanged Man spoke at length about valuable Beyonder knowledge, and at first, she listened intently.
But after a while, she felt that this knowledge was very familiar.
In her previous conversations with Mister Hastur, he had already introduced much related Beyonder knowledge, explained more thoroughly, and in a way easier to understand than Mister Hanged Man.
As a well-mannered noble lady, she would not rudely interrupt someone's speech.
After listening for a while, she secretly shifted her gaze toward Mister Fool.
She wasn't sure if it was her imagination, but Mister Fool also seemed to be listening very attentively.
This discovery made her feel ashamed. Even a mysterious existence like Mister Fool could show such an earnest attitude when listening to Mister Hanged Man's words, while she was distracted and inattentive.
She quickly corrected her mindset and adopted the appearance of listening seriously.
She even spoke up occasionally to prevent Mister Hanged Man from feeling awkward about speaking alone.
It was only when Mister Hanged Man said he had the formula for the Spectator potion in his hands that she truly perked up.